Lynne Marshall’s Too Close For Comfort!

Lynne Marshall’s Too Close For Comfort!

Lynne Marshall’s new book, Too Close For Comfort, hits shelves today. If you love romances with older heroines, you’ll love Too Close For Comfort and Lynne’s other older-heroine book, One For The Road.

Lynne – you’ve just allowed me to push my wine blog to Saturday, lol! I’ve got five questions for you to answer, so I can introduce you to my readers. Thanks so much for playing along!

Christine: What draws you to writing older heroines? 

Lynne: Though life is interesting at every stage, I feel things become more challenging after forty.  Women often hit their stride after the big four-oh.  I believe we become more intriguing and sure of ourselves.  Also, I can relate to women a bit closer to my age than the twenty-something heroines and their dating adventures. I enjoy stories that include marriages and children and the next big relationship obstacle to overcome.

Christine: Other than writing, what is your favorite creative endeavor? 

Lynne: I am a totally uncreative person outside of writing.  I have done many crafts over the years, but none have stuck. I do feel that I am fairly creative with throwing things together and coming up with a darn good meal, though.  Is that considered being creative?

I also believe that I am a creative cusser. I make up cuss words, and enjoy stringing a long line together, with gusto, and hopefully won’t even offend anyone in the process.  In fact there is evidence of my fake cuss words in Too Close for Comfort, in particular, at the beginning of chapter Twenty-one. 

Christine: If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

Lynne: I would like to try out several places for a year, but not necessarily to settle down there for good.  I must say, I have a love affair with Canada, and I could see myself in a small seaside town in the Atlantic northeast.  There was one place in particular that my husband and I stumbled upon when we visited Halifax in 2010.  I believe it was called Chester, (Chester Harbour) Nova Scotia.  I’d really love to live there for a year. Or in Mahone Bay, which was equally beautiful and quaint.

Christine: Name three simple joys in your life.

Lynne: That first cup of coffee in the morning.  Knowing my husband is nearby.  Seeing both of my grown childrens’ faces.

Christine: If you could sit down for a meal with any literary character, who would it be and what would you eat?

Lynne: I honestly prefer to keep my characters in books, and actually being with them would ruin the magic of reading and imagination. So may I change that to any literary author?

ABSOLUTELY!!!

Samuel Clemens!  Oh my gosh, what I’d do to share a meal with Mark Twain.  I’d let him choose the meal and would do everything in my power not to let him know whether I hated something or not.  Though he’d probably test me by ordering something weird, and I’d love knowing that!  I’d eat something I’d never liked before in order to share a meal with Mark Twain, and I’d listen to every single word he uttered and would watch every gesture and expression he made.

Lynne, thanks so much for stopping by! Readers, I swear you will LOVE this book – give it a look see!

Too Close for Comfort
The Wild Rose Press

Dissove the partnership…or renegotiate between the sheets…

Blurb: Joy Waltham is stressed out. Before she can expand her business empire, she needs her ex-husband’s signature dissolving his silent partnership. A trip to Maine to find her ex, get the signature, and chill out seems ideal. But instead of relaxing, Joy winds up in the middle of a mystery—and wrapped in the overprotective arms of Comfort’s chief of police—her ex-husband.

After retiring from LAPD, Paul Donovan took charge of tiny Comfort’s police department. Bored senseless, he’s still not ready for chaos in the form of his ex-wife shaking up his life. Joy arrives just in time to meddle in his investigation of a string of accidental deaths. Now forced to work together, Joy and Paul confront some unexpected challenges.

It’s emotional deja vu as they dig through their thorny past, reawaken old sexual attraction, and face the fact they never stopped loving each other.

Excerpt:

“It could have been crazy,” she said, straightening her shirt.

Paul didn’t believe her. She read it in his expression. They had no business reopening their past, and that was exactly what they’d do if they got it on right here right now. She stared at him, desire whispering for a reprieve. Joy cleared her head with a sigh. He swallowed. So did she.

He patted her hip, a sure sign that the party was over. “Let’s go.”

Not quite understanding what had come over her in the first place, she attempted to sound upbeat. “Well, it was fun while it lasted.”

She pulled up her corduroy pants while Paul backed out of the car, ass first. He tucked in his shirt and pulled off his knit cap then scratched his head. He made a sound in his throat like a quiet self-deprecating curse. With lips drawn tight, and eyes crinkled at the corners, he stepped back while she crawled out.

“So what’d we learn from this?”

He didn’t waste a beat as he opened the passenger door for her. “That I had no business bringing you out here.”

She stopped close by his face, and ran her hand along the jaw that had just rubbed her cheek raw. She caught a whiff of his aftershave mixed with a surge of testosterone, and wished she’d had the chance to breathe more of him. “You’re right, Mr. Straight and Narrow,” she said, staring at him, her mouth still tingling from his kisses. “This was probably a mistake. Heaven forbid we should have some mind-numbing sex for old time’s sake.”

Follow Lynne
Order from The Wild Rose Press
Order from Amazon

~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~

Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?

Did I Notice Your Book Blogfest!

Did I Notice Your Book Blogfest!

Ciara Knight, a friend of mine, has joined together with Alex J. Cavanaugh for this fun blog hop – all about books that may be hidden gems, but that the world should read and know about. No book that is on the NY Times or USA Today bestseller lists is allowed, and neither is our own book if we’re a writer.

I had a hard time choosing. I have many writer friends and have read and reviewed a lot of their books in the past year. So I decided to go online and check out all the reviews I’ve done at Amazon – and one book stood out for me.

Lorna Tedder's cover of Flying By Night

Lorna Tedder’s Flying By Night. (That link is to Amazon.)

Here’s the blurb (again from Amazon):

” “The last time I saw my two husbands alive, they were standing naked before the Altar of the Goddess.”

So begins a harrowing tale of suspense, mystery, and spirituality. Kestrel Firehawk, a polyamorous witch, is framed for the murders of her lovers and forced to flee for her life on Beltane Eve.

Almost as dangerous as a cold-blooded killer is Dylan MacCool, the burned-out detective on Kestrel’s trail. His pursuit of answers will bring him to his knees–and take him to a destiny he never knew existed.”

And…below is the review I put up on Amazon:

“A terrific novel set in the pagan/Wiccan world, Flying By Night is an amazing story filled with love and tragedy and written with depth and compassion. Det. “Finn” McCool, working a seemingly ritualistic double-murder case where a woman also goes missing, is plunged into a world he’s afraid of – the pagan world – and doesn’t realize the depth of his own prejudices until he pushes away the one person he needs more than anything.

Kestrel Firehawk is the missing woman; she is guided to a pagan group who helps her, hides her, and literally saves her life by distracting the murderer out to get her. Years later, Finn tracks Kestrel down; unfortunately, so does the murderer, who will not suffer a witch to live. There are other players in the game who come to Kestrel and Finn’s aid; and the four of them become locked in a showdown to the death with the murderer.

I devoured this novel during work, throughout my lunch hour, and sat and read when I finally got home – I could not put this book down unless I absolutely had to, it was that good. The writing is rich, complex with imagery, emotion, and history, and will catch your heart. A jewel of a book.”

If you know Lorna, tell her I noticed her book. And then go check it out for yourself – you will not be disappointed! Oh – and October is the perfect season to read it. Treat yourself – get a copy for your Kindle!

Buy the book here: AMAZON

Find Lorna here: BLOG

~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~

Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?


 

Violet Midnight by Lynn Rush

Violet Midnight by Lynn Rush

cover of Violet Midnight

 

BLURB:

Let the Hunt begin…
Pursuing a normal existence by attending college proves difficult for vampire Hunter, Emma Martin, considering the mystical tattoo on her wrist glows whenever Vamps are near. And after three months of silence, the glow is back with a vengeance.

Jake Cunningham witnesses Emma using her powers and reveals a few of his own. Finally, after three years of searching, he realizes his newfound abilities must mean he’s a Hunter like Emma.

Thankful not to be alone in the fight against the Vamps, Emma finds hope and comfort in Jake’s arms. As she learns more about her new love’s family and its dark heritage, she may be forced not only to hunt them, but also to sacrifice her life to save Jake’s soul.

Stalk Lynn Rush here:

Website: http://lynnrush.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/lynnrush

Goodreads:  http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13548020-violet-midnight A Rafflecopter giveaway

Go HERE, because there’s a party happening over there and there are giveaways!

~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~

Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?


Parental Evolution

Parental Evolution

Photo of me and a glass of beer.

Me, contemplating selling my sons on eBay. Or thinking about having a second beer before the first one is finished.

Parents start out with this squalling bundle of fragile skin, bones, and big eyes. It has no control over its bodily functions. We get this thing thrust into our arms and we’re told to help it grow.

That includes teaching them about potty training, and training wheels on bikes. It includes soccer games, video games, knowing when to say no. It includes a huge no-whining rule. Homework, and housework, and learning to cook. And that death of loved ones is also a part of living, and loving.

(Of course, all this training of kids is done without ANY manual because the manuals you’ve read are all outdated/touchy-feely/tigerish/ and don’t fit with YOUR family and lifestyle. So we’re all skidding along, without a map and without a guide, going purely on gut instinct and learning as we go.)

Then come talks about sex. Safe sane and consensual sex. Condoms. Gentlemanly behavior. Dating. Driver’s Education. Driver’s license. College applications.

All these things have hit my husband and I as parents, and we’ve dealt with it. The one thing that we can’t seem to get past? The one thing that has taken more lectures, more tantrums, more angry glares and slammed doors from all parties concerned than all the other things combined?

Getting our spawn to get out there and find JOBS. Yes, the economy is bad. But you know what? Teenagers are getting jobs all the time. Mine aren’t. (Okay, at 19 and 22, only one is a teen, and that one barely.) I can only think they’re sabotaging themselves.

So it’s holiday hire time. I’m having to hold my sons’ hands as they fill out applications (so I know for sure they’ve done it) and drive them to the mall for those outlets that don’t have online applications (again, so I know they’ve done it). Every weekend from now until DOOMSDAY will be spent getting them to find work.

It’s exhausting. Does anyone want two bright, strong boys? I’ll sell hire them out, cheap….

~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~

Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?


Two Pinots and a Red Blend

Two Pinots and a Red Blend

In these days of high unemployment and global financial crisis, it’s nice to relax with a bottle of wine that doesn’t break your pocketbook. I’m here to sort out the memorable from the truly awful, and each bottle is under $10, unless noted otherwise.

I am a happy girl. Rain came to my corner of So Cal. Rain, hail, thunder, lightning, fires (from the lightning), mudslides (from the rain) and flooding (also from the rain). Who said California doesn’t have any weather?!!

When it rains, I like to dig out the stew pot and make a hearty stew, or perhaps a yummy, cooks-forever roast. Since I was at work, I couldn’t get to my happy place today, but the hubby did it for me! As I type, the roast and the bread machine are sending my olfactory senses into happy overdrive. So, for this weather, I’m hauling out three reds I haven’t talked about before – big enough for the roast beast, warming enough for the chill outside. (I even needed a sweater today, and not because of the air conditioning at work, lol!) It’s time to warm up with some red wines!

Clayhouse Red photoClayhouse Wines  Adobe Red, 2009  Central Coast  Alcohol 13.5% by Volume; at BevMo! on their 5cent sale, $17.04 for two.

On the Label: “The Adobe Red is a blend created for that rebellious, hedonistic red wine lover inside of you, rustic like the adobe but refined with sensuous dark fruit flavors. 52% Zinfandel, 25% Petite Sirah, 15% Malbec, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Syrah, 9% Petit Verdot.”

My Take: We bought this on the advice from the guy who works the wine tastings at BevMo. He can be pretty cheerless, but he led us to this wine so I forgive him, lol. Because, Hell Yes. I am a hedonistic, rebellious red wine lover and I’ve never tried to hide it. We just bought this wine during the latest 5cent sale. This wine is big but not too big; soft, but not too soft. It’s got the Zin I prefer (with a nice dash of pepper). It’s what I’ll be opening to go with dinner tonight (sorry, honey! I owe you a bottle).

My Rating: ~ Very, Very Drinkable ~ I can tell you right now, I’ll be going out and stocking up. At $8.50 a bottle, it’s hard to beat.

Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Pinot Noir 2010 Russian River Valley Alcohol, 13.5%
by Volume; $11.99 at Trader Joe’s.

On the Label: Vinted and Bottled by Patrick Slater Wine Co, American Canyon, California (GOSH I love their labeling! But when I googled Patrick Slater Wine Co, I got Pat Slater, a female real estate agent up in wine country. So who knows who’s actually making the wine. Not that it matters.)

My Take: I liked this wine. As much as I didn’t think last week’s Trader Joe’s wine deserved the Grand Reserve title, this one does. It’s fruity, juicy, easy to drink yet holds up to food very well. My guess is this one will attain Slut status once it’s a little bit older.

My Rating: ~ Very Drinkable ~ And even though it’s over $10, I’ll buy it again!

Thanks to http://fogcityfoodie.com/2011/08/03/2009-piper-sonoma-pinot-noir-review/ for the photo (check out their review!).

Piper Sonoma Pinot Noir 2009 Sonoma Coast  Alcohol 13.8% by Volume; Not sure of price, but I think it’s around $16 at Pavilions; I might have gotten it on sale for under $10.

On the Label: “For over thirty years, Piper Sonoma has sourced the finest Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes ripened to perfection by the warm Sonoma sun. We’ve crafted this excellent still wine from grapes selected from some of the most outstanding vineyard lots in Sonoma County.”

My Take: I am predisposed to love this wine. Why? Because one of the most wonderful experiences I’ve ever had at a winery was at the Piper Sonoma plant back in 1989. We watched them bottle sparkling wine, and we had a glass of Tete de Cuvee sparkling wine that was probably the best taste of wine I’ve ever had, ever. Ever.

But when I saw this wine in the grocery store, I circled around it for a couple of years. It should have been a no-brainer – my favorite sparkling wine maker, plus one of my favorite drinking wines should equal SPECTACULAR. But – I was worried. What if I didn’t like it? What if it was terrible? What then?

I got over myself and bought a bottle. We drank it. I bought another bottle, just to check it out. Sigh of relief. It didn’t suck!

My Rating: ~ Very Drinkable ~ It is juicy, lovely, easy to drink – but not that much better than my favorite Smoking Loon Pinot Noir, and much more expensive. It does have a slightly greater depth to it, though, so when I want a bigger Pinot, I’d turn to this one. I think. Lol!

As usual, these are just my honest opinions, and always depend upon my mood, the weather, and what cycle the moon is in. Your taste buds will differ.

~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~

Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?

My Rating System: Undrinkable, Barely Drinkable, Drinkable, Very Drinkable, and the ever popular Stay away! This is MY wine, you slut!