Release Week Blitz & Giveaway ~ LOVE BLOOMS ON MAIN STREET by Olivia Miles

Love Blooms on Main Street

By Olivia Miles

Series: The Briar Creek Series, #4

On Sale: July 26, 2016

Publisher: Forever

Format: Mass Market & eBook

Price: $5.99 USD (MM) & $4.99 USD (eBook)

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Love is always in season . . .

Florist Ivy Birch fantasizes about the day a man will surprise her with a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Especially if that man happens to be Brett Hastings. One stolen kiss at her best friend's wedding and Ivy can't get the sexy ER doctor out of her head.

In the small town of Briar Creek, you can't avoid anyone for very long. Not that Brett has been trying to avoid Ivy. He just can't afford to let anything distract him from his work-not again. So when a hospital fundraiser throws them together, love is the last thing on his mind. But with her quick wit and sweet laugh, soon the one woman he's tried to keep at arm's length is capturing his heart...

A small gasp escaped from her but was quickly silenced by the firm press of Brett’s mouth on hers. Unlike their last kiss, which had felt so tender, this time Brett was leaving no room for confusion about his intentions. She stiffened against his touch, trying to resist him, but pleasure pooled warm in her stomach and the space between her legs began to ache as he wrapped two arms around her waist and pulled her to his chest.

Oh, God. She wanted to fight this. The feeling he was stirring within her. The need for more. She opened her mouth to him, letting him in. He kissed her deeply, not giving her a chance to break away, and she wasn’t so sure she could, even if she wanted to. Her hands, which had been pushed off her hips by the strength of his arms, hung loosely at her sides, as if determined to stay out of this drama she was creating for herself, but, like her mouth, they lost the fight. She slid her hands up onto Brett’s arms, taking in every curve of his hard muscles, and up onto his shoulders as she leaned into him. His breath was heavy as he kissed her harder, and she parted her legs to let his slide between and press against the tightness that was building within her.

“What are we doing?” she asked when they finally came apart. She blinked up at him and resisted the urge to flatten his disheveled locks. I did that, she realized with a flutter.

“I don’t really know.” Brett’s voice was low and coarse. “But I like it.”

She firmed her mouth and smoothed her dress. Not good enough.

Turning to stare at the folding table, she felt her spirits begin to sag. She’d let him in again. Let him take her to places she’d wanted, to dream dreams that should have stayed in her unconscious. And nothing had changed. Men don’t change, Ivy. That’s what her mother had always said. When would she learn?

“Well, it can’t happen again,” she insisted.

“Oh no?”

She glanced back to see that slow, sexy smile. “No.” But even as she said it, her body was saying yes.

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Mistletoe On Main Street, #1

A Match Made On Main Street, #2

Hope Springs On Main Street, #3

Love Blooms On Main Street, #4

Christmas Comes To Main Street, #5

Series Page on Goodreads

Olivia Miles is a Chicago-based romance writer. Having grown up in New England, Olivia attended McGill University in Montreal, Quebec before settling in Chicago where she lives with her husband, their daughter, and two ridiculously pampered pups.

When she is not chasing after her little ones, she is hard at work creating feisty heroines and alpha heroes with a heart. A city girl with a fondness for small-town charm, Olivia enjoys highlighting both ways of life in her stories.

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Book Blitz & Giveaway ~ Pennies (Dollar #1) by Pepper Winters

Pennies

Pepper Winters

(Dollar #1)

Publication date: July 20th 2016

Genres: New Adult, Romance

“At 18 I had pennies, but money didn’t make me bold. At 19 I had dollars, but it didn’t dull the pain of being sold. At 20 I had hundreds, but then I met him and was found. At 21 I had thousands, but all I wanted was to be bound.”
“At 23 I had dollars, but life changed and made me rich. At 25 I had hundreds, but it wasn’t enough to stop my killing itch. At 27 I had thousands, but my reputation didn’t set me free. At 29 I had millions, but I met her and could finally see.”
Tasmin was killed on her 18th birthday. She had everything planned out. A psychology degree, a mother who pushed her to greatness, and a future anyone would die for. But then her murderer saved her life, only to sell her into a totally different existence.
Elder went from penniless to stinking rich with one twist of fate. His lifetime of crime and shadows of thievery are behind him but no matter the power he now wields, it’s not enough. He has an agenda to fulfil and he won’t stop until it’s complete.
But then they meet.
A beaten slave and a richly dressed thief. Money is what guided their separate fates. Money is what brought them together. And money is ultimately what destroys them.
She was poor.
He was rich.
Together…they were bankrupt.

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—

WORD OF WARNING

Pennies (Dollars #1) is a DARK ROMANCE. This means there will be hard to read scenes, graphic language, and sexual content (both implied and explicitly written). Please do not read if falling in love with a man who dresses in monster robes rather than knightly armour offends you. This is not a fairy-tale. This is a black abyss that must be climbed blind before deserving the light. Along with literary darkness, this is book one of a five book series. Each subsequent novel will be released every few months (so your fingernails don’t tire holding onto the cliff-hanger), and each is full-length. Please also remember not all answers are given and not every character is as they seem. There are beasts adorned in angel clothing and angels hiding in beast’s fur.
Remember that.
You have been warned.
Don’t say you weren’t told.
Read at your own peril.
Fall in love with Elder Prest at your own risk.
Are you ready?
You sure?
You really, really sure?
Okay then…enter the world of pennies and dollars.

—

FREEDOM.
Such a modest word.
It carried very little importance for those who had it. But for those who didn’t, it was the most precious, prized, and promised hope of all.
I supposed I was lucky to know what freedom felt like.
For eighteen years, I’d been free. Free to learn what I wanted, befriend who I liked, and flirt with boys who passed my rigorous criteria.
I was a simple girl with ideals and dreams, encouraged by society to believe nothing could hurt me, that I should strive for an excellent career, and no one could stop me. Rules would keep me safe, police would keep the monsters away, and I could remain innocent and naïve to the darkness of the world.
Freedom.
I had it.
But then, I lost it.
Murdered, resuscitated, and sold.
I lost my freedom for so many years.
Until the day he entered my cage.
Him, with the black eyes and blacker soul.
The man who challenged my owner.
And set my imprisonment on an entirely different path.

Pepper Winters is a NYT and USA Today International Bestseller. She wears many roles. Some of them include writer, reader, sometimes wife. She loves dark, taboo stories that twist with your head. The more tortured the hero, the better, and she constantly thinks up ways to break and fix her characters. Oh, and sex... her books have sex.
She loves to travel and has an amazing, fabulous hubby who puts up with her love affair with her book boyfriends. She's also honoured to wear the IndieReader Badge for being a Top 10 Indie Bestsellers, best BDSM series voted by the SmutClub, and recently signed a two book deal with Grand Central. Her books are currently being translated into numerous languages and will be in bookstores in the near future.
To be the first to know of upcoming releases, please join Pepper's Newsletter (she promises never to spam or annoy you.)

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Book Blast: Because I Love You by Tori Rigby – Excerpt and Giveaway

 

Hello readers!

Are you looking for your next read?

Well, let us help make things easier for you!

Welcome to the Book Blast for

Because I Love You by Tori Rigby

presented by Blaze Publishing!

Check out the teaser below, and be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!

 

As a special treat, we’ve got another book that may tickle your fancy… What is it? Read on, dear reader, read on!

 

 

Eight weeks after sixteen-year-old Andie Hamilton gives her virginity to her best friend, “the stick” says she’s pregnant.

Her friends treat her like she’s carrying the plague, her classmates torture and ridicule her, and the boy she thought loved her doesn’t even care. Afraid to experience the next seven months alone, she turns to her ex-boyfriend, Neil Donaghue, a dark-haired, blue-eyed player. With him, she finds comfort and the support she desperately needs to make the hardest decision of her life: whether or not to keep the baby. Then a tragic accident leads Andie to discover Neil’s keeping a secret that could dramatically alter their lives, and she's forced to make a choice. But after hearing her son’s heartbeat for the first time, she doesn’t know how she’ll ever be able to let go.

Because I Love You 

by Tori Rigby 

Release Date: May 17, 2016 

Publisher: Blaze Publishing

BAM | Chapters | Amazon | B&N | Kobo | TBD | iBooks

 

What Readers Are Saying:

 

“emotional and heartfelt read” – Laura H (The Voluptuous Book Diva)

 

“one of the most amazing books I have ever read and a great contemporary read” – KittyKat (Goodreads Reviewer)

 

“It's one of those books where everything worked really well together. The story. The characters. The relationships. And the writing. It was just so beautiful.” – Nicole (Bookish Thoughts)

 

“I’ll ask Jill to come pick me up.”

“No,” he replied, his voice breaking. He cleared his throat. “Don’t put yourself out. I’ll stay with Owen.”

“It’s okay. I like being there.”

Neil nodded then shook his head. “No, this is ridiculous.” He moved so fast, I had no idea what was happening until my face was in his hands, and his lips were on mine.

A tingle ran down my spine. His kiss was powerful, urgent, and so full of passion; my head spun. But this was wrong. I couldn’t let myself give in.

I pushed off him with a squeal and stepped out of his reach. “Neil—”

He growled and dug his hands into his hair. “When I tell you I love you, do you think it’s because I believe you want to hear the words, or because I’m trying to start a conversation? God.” He flung his arms out to his sides. “I say it to remind you that you are the best damn thing that has ever happened to me. And I will spend every last breath fighting for you.”

 

Adopted at three-days-old by a construction worker and a stay at home mom, Tori Rigby grew up with her nose in a book and her fingers on piano keys, always awaiting the day she’d take her own adventure. Now, she goes on multiple journeys through her contemporary and historical romances. She longs to live in the Scottish Highlands, and her favorite place in history is Medieval England—she’d even give up her Internet and running water to go back in time! Tori also writes high-concept genre fiction as Vicki Leigh, and when she isn’t writing, she’s kicking butt in krav maga or attending classes to learn how to catch bad guys.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instragram | Tumblr | Goodreads

 

YOU MAY ALSO WANT TO CHECK OUT…

 

 

Seventeen-year-old Rose suffers from terrifying, painful nightmares that leave her bruised, exhausted, and questioning her sanity. Desperate to hold on, she makes a choice: Trust her doctor who claims he can cure her, or listen to another patient who swears the asylum will kill them.

Asleep 

by Krystal Wade 

Publication Date: February 16, 2016 

Publisher: Blaze Publishing

BAM | Chapters | Amazon | B&N | TBD

 

Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!

 

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Book Review ~Two Across by Jeff Bartsch

Two Across

by Jeff Bartsch

Highly awkward teenager Stanley Owens meets his match in beautiful, brainy Vera Baxter when they tie for first place in the annual National Spelling Bee-and the two form a bond that will change both of their lives.

Though their mothers have big plans for them-Stanley will become a senator, Vera a mathematics professor-neither wants to follow these pre-determined paths. So Stanley hatches a scheme to marry Vera in a sham wedding for the cash gifts, hoping they will enable him to pursue his one true love: crossword puzzle construction. In enlisting Vera to marry him, though, he neglects one variable: she's secretly in love with him, which makes their counterfeit ceremony an exercise in misery for her.

Realizing the truth only after she's moved away and cut him out of her life, Stanley tries to atone for his mistakes and win her back. But he's unable to find her, until one day he comes across a puzzle whose clues make him think it could only have been created by Vera. Intrigued, he plays along, communicating back to her via his own gridded clues. But will they connect again before it's all too late?

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When I first picked up Two Across, I really didn't really know what to expect.  The synopsis really intrigued me though and I loved the cover, so I could not wait to start reading.  Although this story started out slow for me,  as I continued reading something amazing happened - I could not put this book down for the life of me.  Gosh, this story had so much to like about it and the ending - well it made my heart both sad and happy in the space of just a few pages. 

Two Across is not only an adorable and fun story, it is a strong debut for this talented author who is able to draw the reader in with strong character development and a storyline that flows effortlessly. 

If you love crossword puzzles (especially learning how they are created), love to read about characters growing up emotionally or just love a story of two people who are destined to be together, but can't seem to make it work, then you will love Two Across.  I am really looking forward to see what the author,  Jeff Bartsch, releases next.  I for one will definitely be reading more of his books in the future!

4 1/2 stars

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Jeff Bartsch grew up in Milwaukee, where at the age of 14 he delivered newspapers before dawn on the city’s coldest day on record, at 26° below zero. He pursued the primarily indoor study of creative writing at the University of Wisconsin, and held the Katey Lehman Fellowship in the MFA program at Penn State University. He is an award-winning copywriter who has worked on campaigns for many major brands. When not writing, reading, or drinking beer, he enjoys riding his fancy Italian road bike as fast as he possibly can without hurting anyone, himself included (one broken collarbone was more than enough). He lives in New York.

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Release Blitz & Giveaway ~ Bad Bloods (November Rain & November Snow) by Shannon A. Thompson

November Rain 

Shannon A. Thompson

(Bad Bloods #1)

Published by: Clean Teen Publishing

Publication date: July 18th 2016

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Seventeen-year-old Serena isn’t human. She is a bad blood, and in the city of Vendona, bad bloods are executed. In the last moments before she faces imminent death, a prison guard aids her escape and sparks a revolt. Back on the streets determined to destroy her kind, Serena is spared by a fellow bad blood named Daniel. His past tragedies are as equally mysterious as her connection to them.
Unbeknownst to the two, this connection is the key to winning the election for bad bloods’ rights to be seen as human again. But Serena is the only one who can secure Vendona’s vote. Now, Daniel must unite with her before all hope is lost and bad bloods are eradicated, even if it means exposing secrets worse than death itself. United or not, a city will fight, rain will fall, and all will be threatened by star-crossed love and political corruption.

Shannon A. Thompson is a twenty-three-year-old author, avid reader, and habitual chatterbox. She was merely sixteen when she was first published, and a lot has happened since then. Thompson's work has appeared in numerous poetry collections and anthologies, and her first installment of The Timely Death Trilogy became Goodreads' Book of the Month. As a novelist, poet, and blogger, Thompson spends her free time writing and sharing ideas with her black cat named after her favorite actor, Humphrey Bogart. Between writing and befriending cats, she graduated from the University of Kansas with a bachelor's degree in English, and she travels whenever the road calls her. 

Visit her blog for writers and readers at www.shannonathompson.com.

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Bad Bloods Book Release!

Letter from the author: Publishing is quite the journey! As some of you know, Bad Bloods was my first published book—originally released when I was only 16 in 2007—but now that I’m older, I am beyond ecstatic that Bad Bloods is getting a second chance almost a decade later. Special thanks goes out to my publisher, Clean Teen Publishing, for believing in this story, and of course, an extra thanks goes out to all the book bloggers reading and reviewing it. You all are my stars.

Bad Bloods in 35 words or less: 17-year-old Serena is the only bad blood to escape execution. Now symbolized for an election, she must prove her people are human despite hindering abilities before everyone is killed and a city is destroyed.

November Rain, Part One, released TODAY

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, Goodreads

November Snow, Part Two, releases July 25, 2016

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, Goodreads

What are readers already saying?

“The best duology I’ve ever read! Action packed. Fast paced. Heartbreaking. The ending brought me to tears and made my heart melt.” - Crazy Beautiful Reads

“A fast paced fantasy, sci-fi story full of exciting characters with their own fascinating abilities and background stories. Didn’t disappoint one bit! For fans of Red Queen and Shatter Me: this one is definitely something you should check out!” - The Book Prints

“Fresh and alluring. November Rain is an amazing treat. I loved it and can’t wait to be an avid fan of the series. The series is definitely going to be worth drooling over.” - Read, Watch, and Think 

“I recommend November Rain for EVERYONE but especially fans of dystopian and SCIFI. A great novel… It was full of strong characters each with their own background and an interesting world.” - The Book Forums

  

“My dad was a cop. My mom hugged me a lot. I can’t really remember what she did, but I think she was a writer.”

She used to smell the same way my books did—the ones I remembered reading but not retaining the ability to read beyond a few words. I leaned forward to snatch the paper out of my back pocket. “She always told me stories, especially at night, and my favorite one was about the stars and the moon and how we were all born from them.” I unfolded the paper to stare at the clunky handwriting, knowing it was my father’s but wishing it was my mother’s elegant script. “That’s why they’re so beautiful to us, but that’s also why we should respect them.”

“What do you mean?” Finally, he said something.

I found him over the paper and folded it. “Well, for one, the darkness can shelter us, protect us in our sleep, but it can also let all the bad things hide.” A frown etched onto my face instead of the smile I wished to share. When I realized my failure, I searched the sky. A white light pushed against the back of the murky overcast, bright enough for me to predict. It’d be a full moon in a week. “The full moon can be romantic, light up paths for us, but it can also scare people into believing in monsters.” Bad bloods were the monsters now. “All of my mom’s stories proved that,” I said. “She used to tell me that a full moon is when mysterious things happen and wishes come true.” I stared at the little paper in my hands. “Do you think she tells my sister those stories?”

Daniel didn’t respond. He only listened. I had told him before I had a sister. He had probably assumed I lied, but I hadn’t. It was the truth, and it tumbled out like a story my mom created before bedtime. I tried to picture her telling stories to my sister, but nothing came. I only saw the little girl, with Mom’s hair and Dad’s eyes, standing in the road, saying my name.

“I’ve never met her,” I confessed, staring at the writing bleeding through the folded end. “I think her name is on this, but I can’t read.”

Daniel reached for it. “I can—”

“No.” I held the note against my chest. “I want to learn and read it on my own,” I explained, softer than my previous snap.

Daniel’s head tilted. “Robert never taught you.”

I wasn’t sure if it was a question or a statement, but I responded anyway. “He can’t read.”

Daniel’s eyes swept over me. He took the time to rub his face before looking away.

“He can’t read,” I repeated, studying his reaction. “Right?”

Daniel’s hand lowered to his lap. “I can teach you,” he said, and when he faced me again, he was remarkably closer than I realized. His hand moved to rest on my knee. My heart stabilized. “What else do you want?”

It was a question I had never heard before, and the way Daniel stumbled over the sentence suggested he had never been able to say it before either. Bad bloods weren’t allowed to want anything. Not even life. So, when I was asked, my mind spiraled into obscurity, never actually solidifying an answer even though I searched for one.

“I’ve never been allowed to want anything,” I confessed.

“Me neither,” Daniel agreed, and for a brief second, I was oblivious to the fact that his lips were on mine.