Showing posts with label western romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label western romance. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

New Kindle World Release by Donna Michaels

Hi, it's Donna Michaels and I'm excited to have another cowboy release in my Harland County series, but this time he's a Sable Hunter Hell Yeah Kindle World crossover!

It was such an honor to be asked by Sable to participate in her Kindle World and to be one of the launch authors! Creating another branch of my McCall tree to mingle with her McCoys was the icing on the cake! Her Hell Yeah Cowboy hit #1 in Western Kindle last week and currently sits at #3, plus it's at #2 in Western Kindle Worlds. :-) Thank you all for making it a best seller! And big hugs to those who've left reviews! <3

Years ago, he unknowingly rescued his soulmate, now she’s back in Texas and about to save his guarded heart.




Cover photo by Cover Me Photography with Orestis Papapetrou


Blurb:

Unlike his twin, Texas National Guardsman Sgt. Logan McCall would rather march barefoot and blindfolded through a cow pasture than date the same woman twice. After an active duty injury during a flood washed away his promising sports career and engagement years ago, Logan guards his heart more than his life until, fresh from deployment, he runs into a friend of the McCoys…literally. Hill Country’s newest resident is hotter than the wing sauce soaking into his shirt.

Mission on.

Graphic designer and carrier of misfortune, Chloe Davis is a danger to herself and those around her, so entertaining thoughts for the sexy cowboy wearing her hot sauce should be a no-no…not a hell yeah—especially considering he’s the guardsman linked to a horrible instance in her past. But when he turns out to be one of her clients, she can no more avoid him than the attraction sizzling between them. Chloe’s back in Texas determined to make a fresh start, and she succeeds in business but fails to resist the handsome soldier’s relentless pursuit.

But when he discovers her past, will he trust his heart or lose her forever?


Excerpt
“I’d like to know what kind of read you were getting from my brother that was so interesting, Cady.”
Ah, hell.
Logan swallowed his drink along with a few curses. He’d rather not know.
Her calm, steady, perceptive gaze settled over him again. “Today’s the day.”
Super. Whatever. He wasn’t biting. Just raised his glass and enjoyed another mouthful of beer. The ale was ice cold with just the right amount of malted barley and hint of bitter. Damn, it was good to be back in the states.
“The day for what?” Lincoln frowned. “What’s going to happen to Logan today?”
“With any luck, I’ll finally make it to my ranch. That’s what.” It was all he wanted. All he’d wanted for fucking months now.
“He’s going to meet up with his soulmate again,” she replied as if he hadn’t spoken.
It took a full twenty seconds before any of that sunk into Logan’s head. The word soulmate bounced around a few times, barely leaving room for the again part. He had a soulmate? Well, shit. That wasn’t good. Not the reading he expected. Or wanted to hear.
Besides, if he had a soulmate, and they’d supposedly already met, wouldn’t he have remembered her?
It didn’t matter.
No way was he going to touch that topic, especially since his family had a history with soulmates. His cousin Cole McCall reunited with his soulmate Jordan after over a decade apart. The two had been through hell but were now married and living a happily-ever-after they deserved down by the gulf in Harland County. The couple had this crazy connection you didn’t need your eyes to see. 
Weird shit.
Not something Logan wanted or ever pursued for himself since his failed engagement back when he gave a damn about relationships. Now he stuck with casual hookups. Nothing serious. It was cleaner. Easier. Safer. Believing in someone, trusting someone, only to have them crush you wasn’t worth the risk. He’d learned the hard way. Didn’t need to be beat over the head with it. Casual or not at all was his motto. The last thing he wanted was a soulmate.
The thing was, he believed in Cady and her abilities. So he did what any man in his position would do. He topped off his beer and enjoyed another healthy pull.
“Did you say soulmate?” Lincoln blinked at Cady, and when she nodded, his brother turned a shit-eating grin his way. “This I’ve got to see.”
Joseph smiled. “Me, too.”
Logan laughed. “Hate to disappoint you all, but look around.” He made a sweeping motion with his hand. “The place is practically empty, and the only woman here is Cady. Not a soulmate in sight.”
“She has big brown eyes that are going to melt that guarded heart of yours, Logan McCall,” Cady remarked leaning closer. “She’s near. Can’t you feel it?”
Feel it? What he was feeling was agitated. On edge. Restless. He had for some time now. But today he could add aggravated to that list. Cady’s dark, direct, Creole gaze, and the guys’ amused ones weren’t helping. Logan set his glass down and rose to his feet. “What I feel is the need to use the bathroom. Excuse me.”
The more distance he put between himself and the two chuckleheads at the table, the better he felt. And Logan was sure, once he was home, the weird restlessness—like he had unfinished business—would disappear. Hell, he just got off deployment. It was common to come back with baggage. This shit was normal. He’d deal with it.
What wasn’t normal was for him to run away. He didn’t really need to use the bathroom, but the urge to leave the table had been too strong to ignore. Cady knew. He could see it in her eyes and slight tug to her lips, but bless her, she didn’t call him out on it, just let him go without a word. Not only had his buddy married a smart, beautiful woman, she was sweet, too.
Going on the assumption the john was in the same place as before, Logan rounded the bar and—smacked into someone rushing down the corridor, all soft and curvy.
And hot?
He felt the heat right through his T-shirt. It scorched.
Inhaling on impact, he reached out to steady the distinctly feminine form, his mind registering a light, flowery scent, mixed with the mouthwatering aroma of…chicken wings?
“I’m so sorry. Are you okay? Did I burn you?” Her breathless voice had a sweet huskiness that spread awareness all the way down his spine.
What the hell?
He shook his head to clear it. “I’m fine,” he replied, staring at the mass of wavy brown hair obscuring the woman’s face as she tried to brush off the sauce that leaked onto him from the Styrofoam container she cradled in one hand.
“I’ve ruined your shirt.” She continued to try to clean him up but only made it worse. A second later, her palm stilled on his chest, and she drew her lower lip between her teeth.
“I’m fine,” he repeated, silently willing her to look at him.
With the initial shock of the collision wearing off, he realized the merit of the situation. Pressed against him was a soft, warm woman with an abundance of curves his body immediately wanted to get to know better. A little taller than average, she brushed his bottom lip with the top of her head, her riot of hair sticking to the chin he hadn’t shaved in two days. Logan wondered how their other body parts lined up, but most important, he wondered…what color eyes she had.

***********************
You can find all the books in Sable's Kindle World right here:




Thanks for reading,

~Donna
www.donnamichaelsauthor.com




Friday, March 25, 2016

THAT KISS, THAT KISS by Andrea Downing

Let's welcome Andrea Downing to The Roses of Prose today.

Recently, while having my daughter do a last proofread of a manuscript of mine, looking for typos and missing words, she pointed out that the scene describing a second kiss used identical words to the scene of the first kiss. Well spotted! But, uh-oh—another re-write.  While we, as authors, tell different stories and have different settings, and therefore different leads to the kiss, once we get there it’s very difficult to make each kiss different; describing a basic human action that occurs a gazillion times a day around the world takes an awful lot of imagination!
One of my favorite country/western songs is Faith Hill’s ‘This Kiss,’ so it seemed like a good place to start looking for inspiration. “You got me like a rocket shooting straight across the sky” could, I guess, be adjusted for a heroine, though it wasn’t quite the inner emotion I was looking for.  We hadn’t reached “perpetual bliss” in the storyline as yet, and as the second kiss, it wasn’t the “pivotal moment.” “Centrifugal motion”?  Was the heroine spinning?  Maybe…then again, maybe not.  “Subliminal”? Hmm.  Scientifically, yes.
The scientific word for kissing is osculation. Your lips, apparently, tell your brain a huge amount of information (without words!) and, subsequently, oxytocin and dopamine may be released.  If the kiss is a good ’un, and you feel safe and secure in it (very important), you’re likely to continue the relationship.  If the kiss is bad, well, adios pal…. It follows, then, that long-lasting relationships include a lot of kissing! But back to writing the kiss, did I really want to describe the release of oxytocin?  I think not.
I headed off to that universal source of all research, Google, hoping I might find some words I could employ in my description. ‘How to describe a kiss’ brought up a Wiki How-to. Amazing.  Wiki claims there are three parts to describing the kiss:  setting the scene, creating a build-up, and describing the kiss. When I saw the first part started with, “Choose who is going to be kissing whom,” my heart sank. That was long decided, and it was obvious that the scene was already set. Okay, so I moved on to ‘Creating a Build-up.’ This included the advice of having one character notice something new or interesting about the other. Really?…On, then, to describing the kiss. Wiki advises using all five senses and including placement of lips, tongue, heads, eyes, noses, hands and arms, and also describing how the kiss ends.  This all seems a bit technical to me, rather like being given instructions on how to build a toy airplane—placement of wing, nose, body, tail, and undercarriage.
I’ve decided I’m neither too old nor have been single for so long that I cannot describe a kiss. 
So here is where my research never led me, that second kiss in Bad Boy, Big Heart from the Come Love a Cowboy anthology of contemporary western romance: 
His face hovered so close to hers, she could see the tiny specks in the green of his eyes, like leaves floating on a pond. She leaned slightly into him and let her lips be captured, let his hands hold her face gently so the kiss went deeper, and his tongue found the cavern of her mouth, his lips arresting her own. K.C. felt as if that kiss went down to her toes, moved through her body like some warming drink, quenching the thirst she had for him. Her toes curled with the delight of it, and her heart ached as he pulled away.

And if you wish to read the first and third kisses, please head on to http://www.amazon.com/Come-Love-Cowboy-Kathleen-Ball-ebook/dp/B01D5876UK



COME LOVE A COWBOY

Eight stand-alone Contemporary Western Romance novellas from Bestselling and Award Winning Authors.

From firefighters, bronco busters, and wealthy ranchers to bad boys, we have them all for you!  If you've ever wanted to fall in love with a sexy, alpha cowboy of today...now's your chance.

A savings of more than 75% if the books were purchased separately.


Luke’s Fate by Kathleen Ball
Meg O’Brien hoped never to lay eyes on the one man who broke her heart. To her dismay, Luke Kelly arrives at her ranch a much different and broken man. Can Meg ever forgive his callous treatment of her and help Luke become the man he used to be?

Grant Me The Moon by Caroline Clemmons
All Tory Fraser intended was to show her high school history club students a local archeology dig. How could she know the excursion would involve a murder?

Three for The Win by Keta Diablo
Hollis should have known better than to fall for a bone-melting man like Stede. He’s gone now and Eli is left to pick up the broken pieces of her life.

Border Affair by Hebby Roman
When his partners’ daughter is kidnapped in México, a self-made millionaire must confront his feelings about their affair and the future of their relationship.

Leaving Necessity by Margo Bond Collins
Mac has one week to convince his ex-girlfriend Clara not to sell his oil company. In this high-pressure reunion, can they strike love again?

The Shape of Destiny by Julie A. D’Arcy
A young male shape shifter. A beautiful female ranch owner. Can love be born in a web of deceit?

Bad Boy, Big Heart by Andrea Downing
She’s a New Yorker escaping her parents.  He’s a Wyoming cowboy supporting his dad. One summer, two young people—three months to find love.

Desert Heat
by Patti Sherry-Crews
A single mother struggling to keep her guest ranch puts her own desires on hold. When a handsome and persistent fireman sets his sights on her, she must decide how much she’s willing to give.

Monday, June 16, 2014

My Favorite Year Has Something Gone With The Wind Lacked by Donna Michaels


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

I love Peter O’Toole. Handsome, debonair, gorgeous blue eyes, killer accent. Clark Gable is the epitome of tall, dark and handsome. Both are wonderful hero inspirations and were enough to draw me to their movies.

As a screenwriter, I loved both My Favorite Year and Gone With The Wind for different reasons.
MFY has several well-rounded fundamentals, blending drama with splashes of humor and a small added romantic element. The audience can relate to the part of Benjy being a fan of a famous movie star, and root, not only for him, but Peter’s character Allan, as the young writer tries to help and encourage the older star to ‘dry’ up, take charge of his personal life and make amends with his estranged daughter. It’s a feel good movie that puts a smile on your face as the credits roll.
 
GWTW is epic. Pure and simple. A masterpiece. Great, dramatic writing and acting, and the fact it was adapted from a Pulitzer Prize winning book, written by a woman, is wonderful. Drama and romance blend to create an exceptional story that sticks with you long after the credits roll.
 
 
As a romance writer, I can’t exactly say I love both movies.
Don’t hate me but, as I’m sure you’ve figured out, I do have a bit of a problem with GWTW. Again, please don’t hate me, and yes, I’m being a bit of a princess diva, but IMHO I didn’t get my HEA. I’m probably not the only one who feels this way, but as far as I know, I’m the only one who is foolish enough to voice my opinion. And that's all this is, my opinion. It doesn't mean I hate the movie, because I don't. I love it. But, hey, I write romance, for goodness sake. And all my romances are HEA. Sure, Rhett and Scarlett are volatile, and they both wronged each other, but maybe if they worked through their issues, compromised, apologized for their shortcomings, they could take it slow and work on rebuilding, not only Tara, but their relationship.
Nah.
I’m just kidding with you. You can’t change the ending, then the movie wouldn’t be so epic. Wouldn’t stick in your mind. Wouldn’t draw such strong reactions from people like me. ☺ And, it’s okay, really. I’ve already written a different ending in my head, and my Rhett and Scarlett did achieve the HEA that is so important to me as a romance author.  
Have you ever done that? Rewrote the ending to a movie or book in your head?

I haven’t written an epic, Pulitzer Prize winning novel, but I do have a few happily-ever-after romance novels out there that have received reviewer top picks and some wonderful reader emails. My latest, HER FOREVER COWBOY, Book 4/Kevin in my Harland County Series hit three Amazon Top Ten Lists this past week: Best Selling, Top Rated and Hot New Releases. I’m so humbled. Thank you to all who helped make that possible. ♥
 

Thanks for reading,
~Donna
 

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Native American Indian Heritage Month & Western Lore by Amber Leigh Williams

The month of November is a lot of things. For some, it's a time to write with National Novel Writing Month kicking off on November 1. For others, it's a time for family with Thanksgiving right around the corner. For others, it's time to hit the stores because the Christmas holidays are coming up fast (if those early holiday commercials are any indication). It's important, though, particularly for me, to remember throughout all of this that November is also Native American Indian Heritage Month. I can't trace my ancestry back to those Indians who helped the pilgrims all those years ago...but my mother's family does have some ties with the Cherokee of Tennessee. That being said, I'd like to dedicate my post this month to Native American culture and its role in shaping the spirit of western lore....

I happen to write western fiction. Western romance, that is. Contemporary western romance. But if you go out west where cowboys drove their horses and cattle, even today you'll find heavy traces of the Ol' West. I think that's why we still find cowboys and ranches and rodeos so alluring. It's that fascinating whisper of what was. So much of fiction set throughout the West is derived from its people, culture, but maybe especially its setting. While researching my next western romance trilogy (yay!), I discovered an irresistible story backdrop - the Black Hills.

The Black Hills is one of the most storied mountain ranges in the American West. The knuckles of the range itself reach across the border of South Dakota into Wyoming. In contrast to other western mountain ranges, it is small (Harney Peak, the highest summit, is only 7,244 feet) and remote – far removed from the Rocky Mountains. An “island of trees in a sea of grass,” the Black Hills is home to the tallest peaks of continental North America east of the Rockies. Because they are covered in trees, the mountains appear dark in the distance. Therefore, the Lakota named the region HeSapa, or “Black Mountains.”

The Black Hills were first inhabited by Native Americans around 7000 BC. Among the tribes that called the range home were the Arikara, Cheyenne, Crow, Kiowa, and Pawnee. Finally, in the eighteenth century the Lakota made the Black Hills their home by driving out the other tribes. Much of Lakota culture is central to the Black Hills. Both the Cheyenne and the Lakota believed that the region was the axis mundi, or "sacred center of the world." However, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the discovery of gold caused many European Americans to flock to the Black Hills. Soon after, the last major Indian War on the Great Plains, known as the Black Hills War, unleashed. In violation of a treaty with the Native Americans, the United States seized control of the land. As late as 1980, the Supreme Court ruled that the Black Hills had been taken illegally from the tribes. The Lakota refused a settlement of one-hundred-and-six million dollars, citing that they wanted the return of the Black Hills to their people. To this day, they persist in their quest to reclaim their land.

In the late nineteenth century, thousands of gold miners descended on the mountain range. In 1880, there was no part of the Dakota Territory more densely populated than the Black Hills. The cities of Deadwood, Central City, and Lead formed amidst the great surge of pioneers. Railroads also began to crop up. Since 1880, the gold mines of the Black Hills have earned four million dollars a year with an additional three million dollars in silver.

The Black Hills are covered mostly in fragrant Ponderosa Pine and Black Hills Spruce. Though scattered throughout the range are picturesque grasslands in lieu of forests, home to mountain meadows or “open parks.” The wildlife of the Black Hills is very diverse. It is actually known as a “mixing and meeting place” where species from all parts of the north, south, east, and west go to mingle. For example, both the forest and grasslands create great habitats for American bison, a variety of deer, mountain lions, prairie dogs, marmots and fox squirrels in particular. The creeks that run through the Black Hills are known for their trout fishing.

Tourism is a large part of the Black Hills economy. The range is home to Custer State Park, South Dakota’s largest state park and one of the largest in the United States. In August, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally takes place on the scenic roadways scattered throughout the Black Hills. In 2005, more than 550,000 bikers took part in the rally, bringing more tourism and revenue to the area. Famous sightseeing gems like Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Wind Cave National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Harney Peak, Bear Butte State Park, Devils Tower National Monument, The Crazy Horse Memorial (which is the largest sculpture in the world), and George S. Mickelson Trail also bring people from all around the world to the Black Hills.

Another vital part of the Black Hills community and economy is sheep and cattle ranching. And yes, Roses, here we find our cowboys! It's not hard for me to imagine my trilogy of heroes and their dude ranch nestled in a picturesque valley with those wondrous "Black Mountains" on the horizon and all that history and ghosts from the past waiting to be uncovered. I really can't wait to explore both the characters and those beautiful Black Hills - their landscape and history.

Amber Leigh Williams lives on the Gulf Coast. A southern girl at heart, she loves beach days, the smell of real books, relaxing at her family’s lakehouse, and spending time with her husband, Jacob, and their sweet, blue-eyed boy. When she’s not running after her young son and three, large dogs, she can usually be found reading a good romance or cooking up a new dish in her kitchen. She is represented by Joyce Holland of the D4EO Literary Agency. Find her on the web at www.amberleighwilliams.com!

Thursday, February 28, 2013

SHARE THE LOVE, SHARE THE ASKING?


 Please join me in welcoming Andrea Downing to The Roses of Prose today. And what fun to have her - she has a give away. Read to the bottom of the post and see how you can win!

     Tomorrow, sadly, is March 1st.  Why sadly?  Because in some years, tomorrow would be February 29th when a young lady has full license to ask out a man or even to propose marriage.   If you are stuck with a commitment-phobe boyfriend, have been dying to go out with that good-looking guy in your office or have just been stuck at home for the last three Saturdays dying for a date, Leap Year would be the time to take on the responsibility that usually falls to the man—doing the asking.
      The tradition of a woman proposing on Leap Year seems to have started in the Scandinavian countries where, if such a proposal was refused, there was a penalty of buying gloves or dress cloth for the woman.  Hardly good recompense for having a marriage proposal turned down!  This tradition was then brought over to Scotland by a Queen Margaret (there were several Margarets) in 1288 who had been living with her court in what is now Norway; since Margaret was aged 5 at the time this was made law, it is hardly likely to have been her idea.  Nevertheless, by the 17th Century the tradition was in place in Great Britain and eventually spread to Ireland. 
      But without Leap Year what can you do?
      Well, you can wait for November 15th, Sadie Hawkins' Day.  Sadie Hawkins' Day was started as a plot device by cartoonist Al Capp in his L'il Abner cartoon strip.  Poor ol' Sadie was said to be the ugliest woman in Dogpatch.  When she remained unwed at the ripe old age of 35, her father, the prominent, powerful and wealthy Hekzebiah Hawkins, declared a footrace in which the town's eligible bachelors were given a head start over Sadie.  But whomever Sadie caught had to marry her!  Extensive research has not divulged to me the name of the unfortunate forced into wedlock in this manner, but it has revealed that way back in 1937 when the cartoon strip appeared, it began a tradition on U.S. college campuses of Sadie Hawkins dances and races.   Think how prescient this was prior to Women's Lib!
     Nowadays, Sadie Hawkins' Day is often confused with leap year and the name applied to February 29th—but do we really need it?  Most young women I know—and my own sweet daughter is one of them—have no problem in asking men out on 'a date.'   But propose marriage?  Ah—that's a different proposition!

     I'm very happy to give away an e-copy of my book, Loveland, to the first person who can prove to me that his or her birthday is February 29th!  OK, ok:  I'll give away one free e-copy of Loveland to the first person who can find out the name of Sadie Hawkins' husband!  No?  Can't find it?  Well, my character, Lady Alexandra Calthorpe, was way before her time in pursuing a career.  If you can head on over to my website at http://andreadowning.com and tell me what career Alex was pursuing and put it on a comment on the 'About the Author' page, I'll send a free e-copy of Loveland to the first person to answer correctly.  That's 3 chances to win. Good luck!


BLURB:
    
When Lady Alexandra Calthorpe returns to the Loveland, Colorado, ranch owned by her father, the Duke, she has little idea of how the experience will alter her future. Headstrong and willful, Alex tries to overcome a disastrous marriage in England and be free of the strictures of Victorian society --and become independent of men. That is, until Jesse Makepeace saunters back into her life...
     Hot-tempered and hot-blooded cowpuncher Jesse Makepeace can’t seem to accept that the child he once knew is now the ravishing yet determined woman before him. Fighting rustlers proves a whole lot easier than fighting Alex when he’s got to keep more than his temper under control.
     Arguments abound as Alex pursues her career as an artist and Jesse faces the prejudice of the English social order. The question is, will Loveland live up to its name?


EXCERPT:

     As the round-up wound down, the Reps took
their stock back to their outfits, and soon the men
were back at headquarters or at the camps. Alex
knew word had more or less got out and found the
punchers were gentler now around her, had a sort of
quiet respect for her, and she hated it. She tried to
bully them a bit to show them she was still the same
girl, jolly them into joshing with her as they had
before. It was slow work. At the same time, she
yearned to see Jesse, to speak with him, to try to get
life back to the way it was before the argument at
the corral, and before he saw the scars. The
opportunity didn’t present itself. She would see him
from a distance some days, riding with the herd,
sitting his horse with that peculiar grace he had,
throwing his lariat out with an ease that reminded
her of people on a dock waving their hankies in
farewell. Hoping to just be near him, she slid into
one of the corrals one evening to practice her roping.
     The light was failing and the birds were settling
with their evening calls. Somewhere in the pasture a
horse nickered. She sensed Jesse was there,
watching, but she never turned as he stood at the
fence. She heard him climb over and ease up behind
her. He took the coiled rope from her in his left hand
and slid his right hand over hers on the swing end,
almost forcing her backward into his arms.
     She thought of paintings and statues she had
seen, imagining his naked arms now, how the
muscles would form them into long oblique curves,
how he probably had soft downy fair hair on his
forearms, how his muscle would slightly bulge as he
bent his arm. His voice was soft in her ear, and she
could feel his breath on her neck like a whispered
secret.
     “Gentle-like, right to left, right to left to widen
the noose, keep your eye on the post—are you
watchin’ where we’re goin’?”
     He made the throw and pulled in the rope to
tighten the noose. Alex stood there, his hand still
entwined with hers and, for a moment, she wished
they could stand like that forever. Then she took her
hand away and faced him. For a second he rested his
chin on the top of her head, then straightened again
and went to get the noose off the post while coiling in
the rope. She looked up at him in the fading light
and saw nothing but kindness in his face, simplicity
and gentleness that was most inviting. A smile
spread across her face as he handed her the coiled
rope and sauntered away, turning once to look back
at her before he opened the gate. Emptiness filled
her like a poisoned vapor seeking every corner of her
being, and she stood with the rope in her hand
listening to the ring of his spurs as his footsteps
retreated.
****
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Contact Andrea at:
Twitter at @andidowning
and FB page is http://www.facebook.com/writerAndreaDowning?fref=ts