5/25/2013 1 Comment Sweet Saturday SamplesSo it has been awhile since I participated in Sweet Saturday Samples. Time constraints and workload have kept me at bay but I'm so glad to be back and able to share with you. Today I'm showcasing a sample from Beyond A Doubt, book four in The Renaissance Hearts Series. Lucy has just rescued Bryce from drowning and she has convinced him that she needs an escort to England. Bryce doesn't have any food or money and so the couple stops off at a farmer's house to request assistance. Chapter Seven: Stomp, stomp, stomp, she went into the house. Moans of pain rent the air. Doreen was a woman of ample girth. The small bed creaked with distress at her every movement. “Why does it hurt so bad?” she wailed. Lucy moved closer, watching as the lady opened one eyelid. “Oh, it’s ye. Haven’t ye started supper yet? I’m right near to starvin’!” Taken aback by the swift change in attitude, Lucy remained silent. The powerful, strong voice that emerged from the woman brought clarity. The woman was faking. The audacity caused Lucy to burn with anger. Stalking to a nearby shelf, Lucy pulled down pots and slammed them on the table, sending out sounds of rattling metal. Lucy pilfered through jarred items. Finding a few ingredients that appeared edible, she placed them in the pot, covered them with water, stoked the fire, hung the pot over the flames, and let the ingredients come to a boil. The air permeated with a pleasing aroma. Doreen pushed up on her elbow. “Smells good.” The door flung open and Doreen fell back with another fake groan upon her lips. “Smells good, lass,” repeated Emmett. Lucy didn’t comment as she brought the pot to the table. All four of them scooted their chairs closer. Lucy filled a bowl of the steaming brew for each person. Bryce eyed the concoction warily. “What’s in it?” “This and that,” she said, shrugging her shoulder. Bryce nodded, still not eating. Emmett took the first bite. Hot liquid sprayed across the room in a perfect circle as he spit the stew from his mouth. Lucy jumped back. “What is heaven’s name is this?” “Well, I’m sorry if my cooking is not to your liking. All I could find to cook was the herbs on the wall and–“ Emmett sprung from the table, one of his hands to his mouth, the other to his behind. “What have ye done? Those were me herbs,” wailed Doreen . “That’s what I said,” said Lucy. “But them herbs weren’t for eatin’!” Before Doreen said more, she held her stomach and followed her husband out the door. Bryce’s spoon remained poised in front of his mouth, not yet touching his lips. With a sigh, he dropped the spoon. His large hand engulfed hers as he pulled her to a standing position and dragged her toward the open door and their waiting horse. “Why are we leaving? They owe us shelter!” yelled Lucy, trying to move away. “Nay, lass. Yer attempt to kill them negates everything they owed.” Thanks so much for stopping by. Feel free to leave comments. Also check out the books tab if you are interested in reading more about my works. As the beauty of summer rolls around and my schedule relaxes, I hope to bring you more wonderful samples. It was nice meeting you and I hope you'll stop by again soon.
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5/18/2013 1 Comment Saint Sloan by Kelly MartinThe day before her 18th birthday, Sloan's dream of having a perfect birthday is shattered. Home alone after spending the afternoon working on a science project at the new boy’s house, Sloan is brutally attacked in her kitchen by a man she can’t recognize. The only clue she has to go on is what he whispers in her ear, “You deserve this.” The police have one suspect—Aaron Hunter, older brother of ‘the new boy’, who picked Sloan up a few nights before as she ran from a party. Adamant that he didn’t do it, Aaron begs Sloan to believe him. For her part, Sloan doesn’t know who to trust. She never saw her attacker’s face, and when she does picture it, it’s Aaron’s face she sees standing over her. Trying to move on is impossible with a former best friend who taunts her and gives her the moniker, “Saint Sloan”, an ex-boyfriend who doesn’t understand why she changed a few months before her attack, and Aaron’s brother, Ray, who makes Sloan smile but has a side she doesn’t understand. With her attacker ready to strike again, Sloan has to figure out who would hurt her and stop him before he finishes what he started. Happy birthday to her… All month Kelly is hosting a giveaway. To participate hop over to her blog and enter on the Rafflecoptor. Good luck! Kelly's Blog I would like to welcome Zanna Mackenzie. She has dropped by to talk about her new novel-- The Love Programme. Don't you just love the cover! Welcome Zanna... Many thanks for hosting me on your blog today! My novel, published by Astraea Press, is called The Love Programme, here’s more details: Thanks to an embarrassing incident involving a wedding and her ex-boyfriend Marcus, Lucy has to leave her home town in a hurry and needs a place to escape to for a while. Best friend Fiona is convinced now would be a good time for Lucy to get herself a new life with some potential for romance thrown in. Fate seems to agree when Lucy is given the once-in-a-lifetime chance to star in a TV show and be a contestant on The Love Programme - two weeks of luxury living on a grand Highland estate coupled with, she hopes, fun and romance in wildest Scotland. When Lucy meets Paul - the young, handsome owner of the Highland estate - she thinks she may have found the love of her life but who is the mysterious Hannah and what part does she play in his life? When she discovers that Marcus is planning to follow her to Scotland to win her back Lucy has some serious soul searching to do. Does she have a future with Paul, with Marcus or is she yet to find the man of her dreams? There’s a sneak peak at the book below and The Love Programme can be downloaded now on Amazon and other places ebooks are sold. Amazon UK Amazon USA Barnes and Noble Astraea Press Excerpt From The Love Programme: “I’m so glad he’s marrying someone else,” whispered Lucy, watching the groom shuffle nerv-ously from one foot to the other at the top of the aisle. “It could have been you up there,” replied Fiona. “How many times did Marcus ask you to marry him?” “Three,” Lucy replied, shifting position for the fourth time in as many minutes. Why did church pews have to be so uncomfortable? “The first time when we were five, then again at twenty and finally,” she paused, reliving the moment in her head, “eight months ago.” “Well,” Fiona said, as the organ struck up, filling the cold but pretty church with overly loud mu-sic, “it looks as though you’re safe from any more proposals, because I think the bride has just arrived.” Amelie Marchant made her way slowly down the aisle, blonde hair in an elegant chignon, de-signer dress looking a million dollars. Beneath her thin veil it was clear she was smiling, no doubt savouring each precious second of being the focus of everyone’s attention, yet keeping her own attention firmly fixed on Marcus, who was awaiting her arrival at the altar. Fiona nodded in approval. “She looks gorgeous. Her dress is exquisite.” She nudged Lucy. “Doesn’t the little bridesmaid look sweet in deep pink?” “Yes, she’s Amelie’s niece apparently.” Lucy let a small sigh of contentment slip from her lips as Amelie reached the altar and stood close to Marcus. Finally she, Lucy Stokes, was going to be free of Marcus Brandon. He was marrying someone else, hallelujah! She would, at long last, be able to live her life exactly the way she wanted to. The whole reason she was here today was to witness the ceremony for herself. To know it was for real. Okay, so she and Marcus had been childhood sweethearts. They’d played at the whole boy-friend-girlfriend thing on and off, sometimes quite successfully, for well over fifteen years. When she’d reached her twenties Lucy had sensed they didn’t have a future together, and she’d been trying to get Marcus to realise the fact ever since. When she’d broken it off with him for the last time, to say he hadn’t taken kindly to the idea they were no longer an item was a major understatement. Over time she’d grown used to his persistent phone calls, the fact he often just popped round to see her and casually suggested, if they were both at a loose end, they might go for a drink or to the pictures. Even when she’d plucked up the courage to attempt to date other people, it had been a complete disaster. Friadon was a small town and Marcus seemed to know every detail of where she went, when and with whom. On more than one occasion he’d tried to talk her out of going on a date, and she suspected, but couldn’t prove, he’d persuaded at least one of her dates to stay well away from her, causing her to be stood up, all alone in the heavy rain, outside the local cinema. Six months after they’d split up, in a completely misguided attempt to woo her back, he’d gotten down on one knee and proposed to her for the third time at the travel agency where she worked. Armed with a huge bouquet of red roses and a bottle of champagne he’d asked her to marry him one last time. It had been in front of several customers too; Lucy had been pink with embarrass-ment. When, riddled with guilt, she’d gently declined his offer yet again, he’d gone off and met Amelie. Eight months later here the two of them were standing at the altar about to become man and wife. Realising the ceremony was already well under way and she’d missed the first bit through not paying attention, Lucy tried to focus on what was being said, forcing the memories of Marcus from her mind. Yes, they’d enjoyed some fun times over the years, and she had to admit there had been occasions when they’d been completely great together, but it was all in the past now. His future lay with Amelie. Clearing his throat the vicar glanced nervously towards the congregation and asked, “Does any-one here object to the marriage of Amelie Marchant and Marcus Brandon? If so, speak now or forever hold...” “I object.” The words were barely audible but Lucy heard them and fear shivered up her spine. The vicar, looking as though his worse fears were being realised, glanced around anxiously, un-sure what to do or say next. “I object!” This time the voice was louder. The vicar grew red-faced and flustered. “I’m sorry, sir, did you say you object?” The bridegroom nodded solemnly. “Yes, I’m afraid I did.” Those in the first few rows of the church heard the faintest of whimpers escape from beneath the bride’s veil and her knees appeared to buckle just a little. Fixing a stern gaze upon the unwilling groom the vicar muttered, “Why exactly do you object, Mr. Brandon?” Marcus addressed the packed congregation, his eyes scanning the rows, seeming to search for someone. Then in a loud, clear voice he announced, “I object because I’m still in love with an-other woman!” Raising his right hand he pointed to an area, three pews back on the right, just in front of a stone pillar. “Lucy, my love, will you ever take me back?” There was collective gasp from the congregation; the bride fainted on the spot, sinking to the floor to be quickly swallowed up in a cloud of ivory silk and lace. Lucy, covered in embarrass-ment from head to foot, used her generously proportioned purple feather hat to try to hide her face, clasped her matching purple purse to her chest and ran from the church as fast as her kitten heels would carry her. **** Author bio: Zanna Mackenzie lives in the UK with her husband, 4 dogs, a vegetable patch that’s home to far too many weeds and an ever expanding library of books waiting to be read. Being a freelance writer and editor of business publications is her ‘day job’ but, at every opportunity, she can be found scribbling down notes on scenes for whatever novel she’s working on. She loves it when the characters in her novels take on minds of their own and start deviating from the original plot! Formerly a travel agent and therapist (she has qualifications in clinical aromatherapy, crystal healing, naturopathic nutrition and herbalism) she loves walking the dogs and gardening – that’s when she’s not writing or reading! Zanna has written two novels, The Love Programme (Astraea Press) and How Do You Spell Love? (Crooked Cat Publishing) and both were published in early 2013. Thanks so much for stopping by Zanna. To find out more about Zanna check out the links below: www.zannamackenzie.blogspot.co.uk www.zannamackenzie.co.uk Twitter: @ZannaMacKenzie Facebook: www.facebook.com/zanna. mackenzie Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10703273-zanna-mackenzie Amazon Author Page - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Zanna-Mackenzie/e/B00BKY1A18/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0 |
Felicia RogersWriting clean romance with laughter and love. Archives
April 2017
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