Chasing Stars by L. Duarte #spotlight @LDuarte77


OK here it is my next BIG thing. 

 

 

Hope sprouts from the recognition that the person with real flaws and qualities dormant 

inside me is capable of love.

 

 

Amazon

Book Description

Publication Date: July 10, 2013

 

As a pampered Los Angeles teen, Portia McGee once created a bucket list with her best friends Tarry and Niki. Though falling in love topped their list, it was the last thing she could ever imagine doing. Through the rejection of her parents, Portia learned early in life that love is elusive.

Now a famous and frivolous A-list actress, Portia has a Hollywood pedigree sealed in gold by a celebrity actress mother and New York mogul father. When Portia’s latest role requires an elaborate temporary tattoo, she meets Will, a gifted tattoo artist with a tortured past. The attraction is electric and immediate, but Will refuses to take the encounter to the next level—a decision Portia associates with the ring he so clearly wears on his wedding finger. Those old, familiar feelings of rejection take hold, and Portia now realizes that she must face the past in order to forge a new future. As their deep bond ignites in Portia an unexpected spirituality, can she finally free herself to once again chase the stars of her early days? Both richly glamorous and rich in meaning, Chasing Stars is a sparkling celebration of how faith and love can conquer even the most challenging of circumstances to uplift the human soul.

Chasing Stars is the debut work of romantic fiction by L. Duarte that charts the improbable, rousing romance between two star-crossed lovers, and the journey both must take to open their hearts to renewed hope and lasting love. At once soulful and playful, it’s certain to transport anyone who still, deep down, has faith in the abiding power of second chances.

 AUTHOR’S NOTE: Chasing Stars is intended for mature readers, containing sexual content and strong language.

 

 

Drawn To You by Robin Shaw @AuthorRobinShaw #Spotlight #Q&A @giselleco


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 Drawn to you full size 72

 

Tell me in three succinct descriptions who you are.

1) cat and dog lover, 2) daughter and twin sister 3) and as creepy as it sounds, I am a major people watcher

      What’s your favorite indoor/outdoor activity?

I love to walk. Now that it’s summer and my schedule isn’t as hectic as it used to be, I walk thirty or forty blocks. And I don’t like to stop.

  What chore do you dislike doing?

Laundry. As a kid and teenager, I’d always ended up doing everyone’s laundry.

     What is your favorite time of the day?

I love mornings; I am more alert and energetic than any other time of the day or night.

     What’s your least favorite mode of transportation?

Trains. It can be congested and people are at their worst when they don’t have space to move their arms and legs.

      What sound do you love?

I love the sound of my infant cousins soundly asleep.

      What sound do you dislike?

I dislike hearing constant blaring horns and loud arguments outside of my window.

     Who is your favorite author or favorite book?

There are so many fantastic authors and books that I love. I repeat: so many fantastic authors and books that I love. With that stated, I LOVE J.R Ward and can’t wait to get to Lover At Last. I need a weekend away from everything so that I can devote hours to the latest Blackdagger Brotherhood novel as is required. For anyone who doesn’t like paranormal or urban fantasy like I hadn’t years ago, I really believe that her character-driven stories and swoon-worthy alpha males can make anyone at least like vamps.

     What inspired you to write Drawn To You?

Writing Beth and Chase’s story enabled me to truly escape into their worlds

and de-stress. I hope others enjoy reading it as much I enjoyed writing it.

   

Excerpt 1:

 Bethany

 I thought that I’d heard someone knocking on my door last night. When I’d finally put on my nightgown, no one had been there. I must have been disoriented from not getting a good night’s sleep for the past few days.

 I jolted at the soft knock and movement the doorknob on my door. I couldn’t have been going crazy this time. When I opened the door, Chase was standing in front of me in a white t-shirt and pressed black pants and shoes. It didn’t occur to me that we should talk on more neutral ground. I already trusted him and I couldn’t explain why and it scared me a little. Anticipation coiled low in my belly.

 Chase’s hands landed on my shoulders. The force of his touch made my back lean against the door, shutting it closed. A faint line marred his brows as he studied me. Greeting him with an open smile, his features smoothed out. 

“I knocked on your door last night.” 

At the party last night, Cassidy had asked me if I’d be fine if Rylan drove me here. Since I hadn’t wanted to ruin her night, I’d told her that it was cool.

“By the time I got up, I didn’t see anyone.”

Sighing deeply, I watched as his beautiful hazel eyes swept over my collarbone and drifted down towards my breasts and back to my face hungrily. I never wanted that look to go away.

 “I knocked for twenty minutes. I didn’t know if you’d fallen asleep or if you were ignoring me.”

 Shaking my head “no”, I moved away from the door and sank down on the bottom of my bed. He joined me, his arm touching mine. The scent of soap and a light aftershave washed over me.

 “Did anything happen last night?”

 I frowned at his question. “Not at all.”

 He blew out a sigh of relief. “Take out your cell phone and put in your password.” His tone was gentle and commanding at the same time.

 I retrieved my phone from the side pocket of my nightgown and handed it to him after I unlocked it.

 Smiling, I watched as he entered his number into my phone. I heard chirruping and realized that he called himself from my phone.

 “Nice ringtone.”

 “Don’t worry. You’re gonna have a better ringtone than that.” He chuckled and stood up. “We need to be able to get a hold of each other. I forgot to exchange numbers with you yesterday. I put in Pierce’s and Nancy’s numbers too.”

 I tilted my head in agreement. Being alone with Chase in my guestroom was like sampling a treat instead of consuming it in one bite. He stroked his knuckles along my jaw and his voice softened. “I gotta go to the work. I’ll see you later, though, okay?”

 

I shivered and he dropped his hand from my face. Chase had the firmest ass I’d ever seen. And that was the only positive about his departure. Was any part of him not firm?

 

AUTHOR BIO
Robin Shaw is an independent author who lives in NYC. She is an animal lover and a food enthusiast. After completing her undergraduate education, she entered the mental health field. She also obtained her MS degree. She is consumed by bringing her characters’ stories to life. Drawn To You is the first book in the Paloma’s Edge companion series.
Author Links:

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Love Lost by Love Belvin @lovebelvin #review


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Title: Love Lost

Author: Love Belvin

Series:  Love’s Improbable Possibility #1

Purchase: Amazon ~ Kobo ~ Smashwords ~ B&N ~ Diesel ~ Sony

Love Lost begins with a tough upbringing. The main character Rayna Brimm is in a home that is broken and she has never had a role model. Being a New Yorker, I know the scene and the surrounding areas. For someone to make it out of the projects without help is not really common and I will almost say rare. The beginning of the book is filled with a lot of street talk, but it is, I kept telling myself part of the history of Rayna.

How Rayna and her family are scattered is a somewhat difficult tale. I couldn’t connect with a girl embroiled in this life and completely surrounded by drugs and chaos. She is with a boy who is a low level trouble maker. He cheats, lies, does and sells drugs. Some how, this is what was hard to swallow, Rayna rises above. I guess she studied while her crack head Mom was scoring and she had nothing else to do. A short while her grand parents were talked about but it seems they could care less about Rayna.

She ends up (no spoilers) in North Carolina going to college. This was the dis connect for me. I could see, relating to my own east coast area, a kid in Washington Heights growing up and maybe going to a state college to try to rise above. I for one have been in California for a few years and I will never get the Brooklyn out of me. I talk and act exactly the same even with higher education. I could be wrong but you don’t de-ghetto in a week. The references to fashion and a type of shoe was baffling to me. My only thought was a story many years ago I read about Oprah Winfrey. She said once she made it and had a segment on the news that she was going to buy good sheets and towels. This was something she dreamed of a, nice 1000 count Egyptian cotton sheet set. She talked about luxury bath towels and that story always stuck with me. Even as I watched Oprah grow, I saw her constantly talk about money. She always told people that Bill Cosby told her to always sign your checks and keep a value in your head. So, for Rayna blowing money on Louis Vuitton anything was a hairball in my throat. I hope what I wrote here makes sense.

She gets a room mate and best friend who is upper middle class. I mean Rayna had to be really “rough around the edges” and it was unspoken how she was accepted. I think maybe if people talked about her slang and made reference that she was lacking class I could have felt better. So her room mate goes home to California and Rayna is in tow and gets a job with the family business. She works towards her therapy degree and wants to focus on sports related therapy. Enter Azmir Jacobs, a man who was into Rayna. I guess he also had a similar background. Again no spoilers. Azmir and Rayna together or getting together was the love story.

blog rating ouch

I won’t say I hated the book. I just had a few issues and would never post a review like this. I was asked to read book 2 and see if it gave me some closure and some answers. I will read book 2 and I hope I get that. A story of love’s redemption… something to think about.

 dont bother obama

About the Author

 Love Belvin is a native of the Tri-State area and now lives in the Delaware Valley. She’s an avid reader and enjoys dinner parties with her closest girlfriends. While she enjoys many things, nothing excites her more than curling up with a glass of wine and a good romance novel.

Follow her

Amazon ~ Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Giveaway

Love is giving away 3 signed copies of Love Lost to 3 separate winners along with 3 e-copies to 3 separate winners (6 winners total)

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Blog Tour Schedual

JULY 8

The Book Whore-der’s Delights

Amber’s Reading Room

AAMBC (African Americans on the Move Book Club)

 

JULY 9

THESUBCLUBbooks

Book Junkies Anonymous

 JULY 10

Momma’s Books

JULY 11

I Love Indie Books

Nose Stuck in a Book

JULY 12

Reading Renee

So Many Books So Little Time

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Seize Me (Breakneck Series) by Crystal Spears @CrystalDSpears #newrelease



 

♥ Amazon US ♣ Amazon UK ♠ Barnes & Noble ♦ 

 
 
 
 

Winter Belov was the sweet innocent one in her crime family, the dutiful daughter that never

disappointed her father. One day, her father does the unspeakable. When he turns his back, Winter flees across the country, taking her life savings with her, determined never to enter that sort of lifestyle again.


No longer innocent, she now lives in Nevada. Lana is her best friend and the only family Winter has. Together, they are two of the best exotic dancers in the county. While working a shift, Pyro, Lana’s long time crush, propositions Winter. He begs her to do a private gig at Breakneck. She accepts, with the condition that Lana dances with her.

When Winter’s eyes lock with Braxxon Breaker’s, the President of Breakneck, she realizes she is no longer free; she has been seized. He is everything she is running from but at the same time, everything she wants. Braxxon will not take no for an answer, and purposely disrupts Winter’s life.


Rivals of Braxxon’s club are vicious and they do something that will have him out for blood. Winter’s and Braxxon’s relationship is anything but a normal one. If they want to be together, crimes must be committed, friendships will be broken and people are going to die.


What happens when all that chaos mixes with Winter’s father locating her? It will be a bloodshed when Winter and Braxxon seek revenge and take no prisoners.
***WARNING***


For readers 18 & up only! This novel contains explicit language, sex, drugs and sexual situations that some might find offensive. 

Amazon Author   Goodreads   Author on Goodreads

Facebook     Twitter    Blog

 

Also by Crystal D. Spears

Strictly Off Limits (Jade’s Diaries, Strictly Series, #0.5) 

Strictly Stuck (Jade’s Diaries, Strictly Series #1) 

Strictly Stripped (Jade’s Diaries, Strictly Series, #2) 

Strictly Off (Jade’s Diaries, Strictly Series, #3) 

Strictly Determined (Jade’s Diaries, Strictly Series, #4) 

Strictly Settled (Jade’s Diaries, Strictly Series, #5) 

Smile Novellas (3 books

Fidelity 

 

About the author:

  

Crystal D. Spears is a 28 year old mother of two.

She enjoys the outdoors and loves spending time with her two daughters.

She currently resides in Indiana.

She wrote My Real Smile as a teen and updated it this year with new songs and IMS to Texting.

The Second and Third Novella of the Smile series will be published late Spring 2013.

Strictly Off Limits (Jade’s College Diaries) is a short erotic story that got excellent feedback and now she is making it a series of at least five.

♥ Amazon US ♣ Amazon UK ♠ Barnes & Noble ♦ 

Nadine Christian #author #spotlight @pitcairngirl


RememberingLove_150dpi_eBook

When her beloved foster parents pass away, Holly discovers a past both shocking and heartbreaking: the murder/suicide of her biological parents on the South Pacific island of Pitcairn, famous for the HMAV Bounty mutineers. Travelling to a home she does not remember, Holly reconnects with long-lost childhood friend Jack. An old friendship quickly becomes more…until a dark secret is uncovered.

Will joyous love remembered become heartbreak? Can she find out the truth before someone else is hurt?

Nadine Christian 

Website

 

Twitter @pitcairngirl

Google Circle

Facebook

Goodreads

Nadine Christian lives on Pitcairn Island, a small isle in the middle of the South Pacific, with her husband, five children, four goats, two cats and thirty chickens. With its rich maritime history, Pitcairn’s romantic past comes alive in her novels, capturing the taste of life on an isolated tropical island, miles from the rush and bustle of normal city life.

QuintalsReturn_150dpi_eBook

Release Date: August 1st, 2013

Publisher: Eternal Press

Hotelier Kate Quintal and her sister Jen are hired to run a new luxury hotel on Pitcairn Island.

Anticipating only the hard work that running the new facility would entail, a burgeoning romance with the burly and handsome Bryce Brown is the last thing she expected. With a new love and the success of the island’s new tourism endeavor, life seems sweet.

So why are things suddenly falling apart? Who is trying to sabotage the hotel, and why? Kate finds herself fighting, not only for her job, or her heart…but her life.

The second installment from “The Bounty’s Retreat Series” “Home Again, Home Again” is set for release November 2013.

Stacks Image 272

Release Date: November 1st, 2013

Publisher: Eternal Press

Home for Tina means family, Pitcairn Island and a job as an aircraft engineer. She’s not looking for love, so when pilot Blane Solis sweeps her off her feet, she is soon flying into the heady slipstream of romance…but, is he the one for her?

Tina’s childhood sweetheart Connor Brown doesn’t think so. What dark secret is Blane hiding, and why is he hell bent on ensuring Tina doesn’t find out? And can Tina ever forgive Connor for what he did so many years ago?

One heart. Two men. A shattered past and an unsure future…with love on the line.

Available in E-Book or Paperback once released.

Eternal Press Publisher’s URL: http://www.eternalpress.biz

Rogue Alliance by Michelle Bellon #review


The book has a lot of great elements combined to create a real page turner. It is a crime novel with a strong character base. The main character is Shyla Ericson, whom I adore. She is a cop in Los Angeles on the biggest high profile case of her career. The author gives you a very descriptive background on her that includes a rough upbringing. I will say that there is a lot of violence and that is what shapes her in a good way. She is not bitter and evil, like you would imagine someone who went through her trials. 

Then Brennan Miles. This is the one that got me and had me pulled in. I liked the MILD paranormal part of his character. I dont know if it is safe to say how he comes in or what role Victor has. I  will be quiet. Then Victor Champlain he is the head of  head of the Los Angeles base and lead on the drug deal.  

 The supporting cast as well as the 3 big major role players blend really well.  I think my detective lovers will gobble this up. What I liked about Shyla was the fact that she was tough and a woman.  As for the plot, it is up and down in a way that you are not so completely ready to throw the book. 

4  star blog  book

About the author:

 

Michelle Bellon currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and four children. She

earned her Associates degree in Nursing and fills her free time with her love for writing. She has

published four novels, winning the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award in the YA category this

last fall.

Goodreads

Web

Facebook

Remembering Love by Nadine Christian @pitcairngirl #spotlight


 

 

                                             RememberingLove_150dpi_eBook

  

When her beloved foster parents pass away, Holly discovers a past both shocking and heartbreaking: the murder/suicide of her biological parents on the South Pacific island of Pitcairn, famous for the HMAV Bounty mutineers. Travelling to a home she does not remember, Holly reconnects with long-lost childhood friend Jack. An old friendship quickly becomes more…until a dark secret is uncovered.

Will joyous love remembered become heartbreak? Can she find out the truth before someone else is hurt?

 

Nadine Christian 

 

Twitter @pitcairngirl

 

Nadine Christian lives on Pitcairn Island, a small isle in the middle of the South Pacific, with her husband, five children, four goats, two cats and thirty chickens. With its rich maritime history, Pitcairn’s romantic past comes alive in her novels, capturing the taste of life on an isolated tropical island, miles from the rush and bustle of normal city life.

 

 

 

 

 

QuintalsReturn_150dpi_eBook

 

 

Release Date: August 1st, 2013

Publisher: Eternal Press

 Hotelier Kate Quintal and her sister Jen are hired to run a new luxury hotel on Pitcairn Island.

 Anticipating only the hard work that running the new facility would entail, a burgeoning romance with the burly and handsome Bryce Brown is the last thing she expected. With a new love and the success of the island’s new tourism endeavor, life seems sweet. 

So why are things suddenly falling apart? Who is trying to sabotage the hotel, and why? Kate finds herself fighting, not only for her job, or her heart…but her life. 

The second installment from “The Bounty’s Retreat Series” “Home Again, Home Again” is set for release November 2013.

Stacks Image 272

Release Date: November 1st, 2013

Publisher: Eternal Press

 

Home for Tina means family, Pitcairn Island and a job as an aircraft engineer. She’s not looking for love, so when pilot Blane Solis sweeps her off her feet, she is soon flying into the heady slipstream of romance…but, is he the one for her?

 

Tina’s childhood sweetheart Connor Brown doesn’t think so. What dark secret is Blane hiding, and why is he hell bent on ensuring Tina doesn’t find out? And can Tina ever forgive Connor for what he did so many years ago?

 

One heart. Two men. A shattered past and an unsure future…with love on the line. 

 Available in E-Book or Paperback once released.

 

Eternal Press Publisher’s URL: http://www.eternalpress.biz

 

Rogue Alliance by Michelle Bellon #spotlight


 

 

Pacific Northwest award-winning author, Michelle Bellon, releases her newest and most daring novel. Tumwater, WA – Author Michelle Bellon has released her latest book, a sexy crime thriller, Rogue Alliance. Trying to escape a horrific past, Shyla has immersed herself in life as a tough, sassy cop in the bustle of LA. When the case of a lifetime takes her back to her hometown of Redding, she is thrown into a world of organized crime, deceit, and bitter reminders of her childhood. As Shyla’s path crosses that of Brennan, an unwitting and troubled sidekick to the ringleader she’s intent on taking down, she is forced to re-evaluate everything she believes about herself, her job, and what she knows about right and wrong. Can she face the demons of her upbringing and learn to trust again? Her life will depend on it. 

 

“Fast-paced, dark, and sexy as hell…Shyla is a gritty detective who will become the heroine of the decade.”

 

About the book:

Rogue Alliance by Michelle Bellon

ISBN: 978-1480224810

Publisher: CreateSpace

Date of publish: November 2012

Pages: 286

S.R.P.: $9.75

 

About the author:

Michelle Bellon currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and four children. She

earned her Associates degree in Nursing and fills her free time with her love for writing. She has

published four novels, winning the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award in the YA category this

last fall.

Goodreads

Web

Facebook

Love vs. Sex! #ASMSG #Polyamory #Lifestyle #relationships


Penelope Jones's avatarPenelope Jones

Polyamorous Relationships= Love

Open Relationships=Sex 

 

Yes I said it, and I mean it!

*grins*

 .

I am a commitment phobe! That hasn’t changed… however I am still sticking to the standard; I am finding reasons to try rather than ways out of relationships!

YAY me!

.
Anywho, lately, it has been weighing heavily on my mind this topic.  A Polyamorous relationship vs an Open relationship?  Has Fetlife corrupted these two topics and made them interchangeable?

 

 

I’m such a tease…

Head over to Thianna D’s blog and see what I have to say about Poly vs. Open relationships.

 

P.S. It’s my opinion based on facts of what Polyamoryis and , and what an Open Relationship is and is not. So, please, form your own opinions, and feel free to leave me comments below; let me know what you think! 🙂

(In case you…

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