Drinking Deep by @dylanncrush Book Blitz and Giveaway! #XpressoTours⁣⁣⁣ @XpressoTours #dylanncrush #DrinkingDeep

 

Drinking Deep
Dylann Crush

(Whiskey Wars, #1)
Publication date: May 12th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

A generations-old family feud might ruin a couple’s last chance at love…and tear apart the oldest whiskey distillery in Tennessee in the process.

Danica:
I need a win. My scumbag ex-boss is trying to drag my reputation through the mud. If I can land my first client, I might be able to get my marketing business off the ground. But when I show up for my first meeting with the owners of a distillery, the gorgeous guy at the end of the table looks an awful lot like the one-night stand I ghosted. So I do what any hot mess in heels would do… pretend like we’ve never met.

Cole:
The Hatfields and McCoys have nothing on the feud my family’s got going. We’ve been fighting with the Stewarts longer than anyone in Beaver Bluff can remember. Which sucks since we happen to co-own the largest whiskey distillery in Tennessee. Now they’ve brought in a marketing consultant to switch things up. If I can’t fight my attraction to the woman with curves like a back mountain road, she could ruin me.

Lose yourself in the richly crafted world of Beaver Bluff, Tennessee where the whiskey flows freely and love is only ever a few pages away.

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—

EXCERPT:

He nudged his chin toward my glass. “You ready to try your whiskey?”

“Let’s do it.” I picked up my glass and swirled it around again.

“Here’s what I want you to do. Breathe it in, but keep your mouth open.”

“You want me to breathe with my tongue?” I bit down on my lip to keep from laughing. This was starting to sound like the woo woo mediation class my friend Jolene had dragged me to a couple of years ago.

Instead of laughing, his eyes got more intense. “Yes, exactly.”

He was really into this. I’d been planning on quizzing the guy at the local liquor store to teach me everything he knew before I had to head down for my meeting next week with a distillery, but with Cole willing to share his knowledge, it might save me a few hours of time. Plus, he was at least twenty times more attractive than the grizzly older man who’d been running the family liquor store for the past forty years.

“Can you demo for me? I’m not exactly sure I know how to breathe through my tongue.”

“Why do I get the feeling you’re giving me shit?” His eyes crinkled at the corners, but he picked up his glass, swirled it around, then held it up to his nose with his lips slightly parted.

My entire reproductive system shimmied as I ran my gaze over the sexy scruff on his cheeks, the strong hand currently wrapped around the glass tumbler, and the sight of the tip of his tongue. I could think of so many other things he could use that part of his anatomy for beyond breathing in a beverage.

“There.” He lowered the glass and glanced at my hand. “Your turn.”

Mmm. I cleared my throat and brought the glass close to my mouth. With my lips parted, I took in a breath. The alcohol sent fire racing across my tongue, followed by a wisp of something smoky. I shifted my gaze to Cole. The intense way he studied my mouth made heat hurtle toward my belly.

Then lower.

“You ready to get your first taste?” His voice went low, rough around the edges like a piece of sandpaper lightly scraping against my skin.

I was more than ready for my first taste… of him. “Yeah, let’s do it.”

He lifted his glass. “Let it roll over your tongue, hold it in your mouth for a few seconds, then let it slide down the back of your throat. Okay?”

My chest rose and fell as I took in a breath. “Got it. Roll, hold, slide.”

“That’s right.” He lifted his glass, and I couldn’t tear my gaze away as he sipped, tipped his head back, and slowly swallowed.

Since when did watching someone take a simple sip from a glass make my panties damp? Eager to find out what might happen next, I copied his movements. A slow burn traced its way over my tongue and down my throat, all the way to the bottom of my belly. In that moment, I could feel appreciation for why so many people were drawn to whiskey. It was so much more than taking a nip from a hidden bottle.

It was romantic. It was sexy. It was a whole new world opening up to me.

My mind spun with possibilities for the meeting I had next week.

“What do you think?” Cole asked, liquid fire burning in his gaze.

“I think it was a bit of a religious experience.” For someone who made a living at communicating, I was temporarily at a loss for words. “What do you think about what I think?”

He rested his arm on the back of my stool and held my gaze for an extra-long beat. “I think I’d like to kiss you right now. What do you think about that?”

My stomach clenched. I wasn’t a woman who kissed strangers in bars. Then again, where had that gotten me? Jolene’s words pounded through my head. Take a chance. You deserve it.

Swallowing my hesitation, I tilted my head and met his gaze. “I think I’d like that very much.”

USA Today bestselling author Dylann Crush writes contemporary romance with sizzle, sass, heart and humor. A true romantic, she loves her heroines spunky and her heroes super sexy. When she’s not dreaming up steamy storylines, she can be found sipping a margarita and searching for the best Tex-Mex food in the Upper Midwest.

Dylann co-hosts Romance Happy Hour (https://www.romancehappyhour.com/) with live episodes every 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month and is a founding member of the Romance Chicks group where authors and romance readers can connect.

Although she grew up in Texas, she currently lives in a suburb of Minneapolis/St. Paul with her unflappable husband, three energetic kids, a clumsy Great Dane, a lovable rescue mutt, and a very chill cat. She loves to connect with readers, other authors and fans of tequila. You can find her at www.dylanncrush.com.

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The Memory Keeper of Kyiv by @erinlitteken Blitz and Giveaway!! #XpressoTours @XpressoTours⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ #erinlitteken #TheMemoryKeeper

 

The Memory Keeper of Kyiv
Erin Litteken

Publication date: May 16th 2022
Genres: Literary Fiction

Perfect for fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz and The Beekeeper of Aleppo.
“A powerfully moving debut . . . Ukraine’s tragic history painfully echoes its current crisis, and on every page the Ukrainian spirit shines out, unbowed, unbent and unbroken. This is a compelling, timely read.” Kate Quinn, author of The Rose Code

In the 1930s, Stalin’s activists marched through the Soviet Union, espousing the greatness of collective farming. It was the first step in creating a man-made famine that, in Ukraine, stole almost 4 million lives. Inspired by the history the world forgot, and the Russian government denies, Erin Litteken reimagines their story.
In 1929, Katya is 16 years old, surrounded by family and in love with the boy next door. When Stalin’s activists arrive in her village, it’s just a few, a little pressure to join the collective. But soon neighbors disappear, those who speak out are never seen again and every new day is uncertain.

Resistance has a price, and as desperate hunger grips the countryside, survival seems more a dream than a possibility. But, even in the darkest times, love beckons.

Seventy years later, a young widow discovers her grandmother’s journal, one that will reveal the long-buried secrets of her family’s haunted past.

This is a story of the resilience of the human spirit, the love that sees us through our darkest hours and the true horror of what happened during the Holodomor.

“I never imagined the release of my novel on a past oppression of the Ukrainian people would coincide with such a parallel tragedy.” Erin Litteken

May we never forget, lest history repeat itself.

A share of proceeds will be donated to DEC’s Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

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—

EXCERPT:

A sharp click echoed in the room, and everyone froze. The Russian’s cocked pistol pointed at Tato. “Are you resisting orders? If you are, we will have to label you an enemy of the people. We all know what happens to enemies of the people. I could shoot you right now, and nobody would care.”

Katya’s head buzzed. All the anger she’d felt morphed into sheer terror as she stared at her Tato. His beet-red face glistened with sweat and his hands curled slowly into fists, the anger crackling off him like a hungry fire seeking fuel. If someone didn’t intercede, he would be shot for attempting to murder Prokyp with his bare hands.

Mama, too, saw his inner struggle, for she stepped in front of Tato and spoke calmly. “I apologize for my husband’s behavior. He’s overprotective of his daughters. He didn’t mean what he said. We’ll cooperate, I swear it.”

The Russian smirked and lowered his gun. Dropping Alina’s hand, Katya pulled her father into a hug and spoke in his ear. “Please, Tato, there is no harm done, but we can’t lose you. Please.” She felt the tension lessen from his body, but vibrations of anger still throbbed like the veins on his neck.

Prokyp watched the scene with amusement, then sauntered back over to his cohorts, smiling. The Russian turned to him and asked with complete sincerity, “Have you been offended by this man? What would you like to do, Comrade?”

Prokyp glanced at Tato and then at Alina, who was white as a sheet, but holding her head high as Mama had taught them to. Katya’s legs wobbled, so she locked her knees and held her breath as they waited for this fool to decide the fate of their family.

“I suppose I can overlook it this once, as long as he and his family promise to cooperate fully in the future.” His gaze lingered on Alina. “But we shall have to check back here often to make sure they are behaving.”

Another activist pushed into the house with a large sack of wheat balanced on his shoulder. “I found this, and another just like it, hidden in the barn loft.”

Katya’s heart sank. She’d worried the wheat in the barn wasn’t hidden well enough, but Tato thought it safe out of sight beneath the hay.

“You can’t take that!” Tato shouted. “It’s my seed for planting this fall!”

“This will pay your quota. For now.” The Russian Soviet waved a hand dismissively, as if suddenly bored by them. “Come, we must move to the next house.”

The woman cast an apologetic look toward Mama and hurried behind the men as they left. The door swung wildly in their wake, and none of them moved until Tato strode forward and slammed it shut, though not before Katya saw the activists’ cart stacked high with sacks of grain, just like the ones they’d taken from the barn.

Erin Litteken is a debut novelist with a degree in history and a passion for research. At a young age, she was enthralled by stories of her family’s harrowing experiences in Ukraine before, during and after World War II. She lives in Illinois, USA with her husband and children.

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False Illusions by @authorjenniferyoungblood Book Blitz and Giveaway! #jenniferyoungblood #FalseIllusions #XpressoTours @XpressoTours

 

False Illusions
Jennifer Youngblood

(Honeysuckle Island, #4)
Publication date: May 10th 2022
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense

Is he the answer to her troubles or an intoxicating illusion that could turn deadly?

Single mom Olivia Burkhart struggles to rebuild her life after the murder of her fiancé, Brent Allen, a deputy on Honeysuckle Island. She vows to never get involved with another cop, and then Flynn Yates enters her life with his playful smile and penetrating blue eyes.

As Olivia tries to come to terms with her feelings for Flynn, life delivers some hard blows that resurface her fears with a vengeance.

Then fate gives her the chance to work six weeks at an exclusive art gallery in charming and quaint Carmel, California by the sea.

When Olivia catches the eye of world-renown artist Xavier Kipling, a brooding and handsome widower, she finds herself drawn into a sophisticated world of wealth beyond anything she’d ever imagined.

A strange painting gives way to unsettling events, making Olivia question if her aching heart can discern between illusion and reality.

Is the Kipling mansion an idyllic haven, or a hiding place for deadly secrets?

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

As he stepped up, Olivia rolled down the window and placed both hands on the steering wheel as Brent had taught her to do. The officer removed his sunglasses and tucked them into his shirt pocket. Olivia jerked, taken aback by the vividness of his deep blue eyes. A tidal wave of heat gushed over her cheeks as she took in his rugged features. She was mortified at the attraction that pinged through her. Why did he have to be so dang good-looking? And why did he have to exude such a bad-boy, reckless vibe that called to her inner soul? It didn’t hurt that he filled out his cop uniform well with his cut biceps and masculine forearms. Great gravity, he was nice to look at.

His gaze lingered on her a moment too long, and then he seemed to catch himself. “Good afternoon,” he began in a brisk tone. “May I see your license and registration?”

It happened again. Their eyes connected, sending all rational thoughts flying out the window. When a tiny smile tugged at a corner of the officer’s mouth, Olivia found herself grinning back like a goober.

His quirk of amusement gave her the jolt she needed to return to her senses. Good grief, she was acting like a moonstruck idiot! She’d always been a sucker for cops. Add in his stunning good looks and sense of arrogance, and she was a goner for sure.

“Your license and registration,” he prompted

She snapped out of her daze. No way could she get involved with another cop. Hadn’t she had enough heartache over Brent to last her a lifetime? Danger followed cops, or rather cops followed danger. She owed it to Ryan and to herself to find a guy who had a stable, predictable job.

What the freaky Frankenstein was she thinking! Here she was contemplating a future … or squelching any chance of a future with some guy who probably wasn’t remotely interested in her. He was simply doing his job. The eye-locking thing was probably a figment of her imagination—proof that she was in desperate need of a good night’s sleep. She was getting twitter-pated over nothing. Was the guy even single? She glanced at his ring finger and felt a curious blip of relief when she saw the naked strip of skin over that all-important finger. Of course, just because he wasn’t wearing a ring didn’t mean that he wasn’t involved with someone.

“Uh, sure,” she stammered as she turned to find her purse. She glanced down at the floorboard and Arden’s feet only to realize that her purse was in the back seat. She was twisting around to get it when Arden caught hold of her arm.

“I’ve got this.” Arden’s voice rang out both confident and indignant.

Crumb! Arden was about to get on her high horse. This was bound to end poorly.

“Officer, do you have any idea who this is?” She looked at Olivia as she spoke.

He raised an eyebrow in faint amusement. “A woman who was speeding in a school zone,” he quipped dryly.

Olivia’s jaw dropped. “I was not speeding! I slowed down.”

He didn’t back down in the slightest. “When you saw my car. And for the record, you didn’t slow down soon enough.”

“I never saw your car.” Anger blanketed her, hot and furious. “I slowed down the instant I saw the sign. That sign should be displayed more prominently,” she added defensively.

He smirked. “If it had been a snake, it would’ve bitten you. License and registration,” he demanded, looking her in the eye.

It went through Olivia’s mind that the guy was a jerk. She should be outraged about the snake wisecrack. But right now, she couldn’t think straight. She was feeling things she never thought she’d feel again—the stir of ribbons through her stomach, the flush of warmth over her skin, the heady sizzle of energy pulsing through her like a fireball.

“Fine,” she spouted as she turned to get her purse. Placing it in her lap, she reached for her wallet and slid out her license. As she handed it over, her hand brushed against the cop’s, rustling awareness through her. Okay, this idiotic attraction was out of control. She turned to Arden, her discomfort spewing out in irritation. “Don’t just sit there like a ninny. Get the registration out of the glovebox.”

Jennifer Youngblood is a USA Today Bestselling Author of clean romance, sweet romance, romantic comedy, and romantic suspense novels. For as long as she could remember, Jennifer has wanted to be an author. In those rare moments when she's not dreaming up another story, Jennifer loves cooking, spending time with family, and occasionally breaking away from her hectic life to take spontaneous trips to exotic and sometimes not so exotic locations. She couldn't survive in a world without chocolate, good books, family, and friends.

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Love's Last Kiss by @sharonwrayauthor Book Blitz and Giveaway! #XpressoTours⁣ @XpressoTours⁣ #sharonwray #LovesLastKiss

 

Love’s Last Kiss
Sharon Wray

(a Deadly Force Novel)
Publication date: May 17th 2022
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense

Is love worth risking everything for?

Rose Guthrie, a reluctant erotic dancer, hasn’t trusted anyone since her parents’ death. Yet, to make money for her brother’s heart transplant, she agrees to deliver a sealed box to a mysterious buyer. Until the box—and the seller—disappear. Not surprised by the betrayal, her situation becomes more dangerous when she learns that a brutal arms dealer, known as the Prince, also wants the box and will kill everyone she loves for it. With one clue left, she breaks into Doom—Savannah’s violent, illegal fight club. Unfortunately, Doom’s referee—the sexy, ex-Army Ranger, Kade Dolan—stands in her way. Although she harbors a secret attraction to Kade, she can’t let him stop her. If she doesn’t deliver the box on time, she’ll lose everything. Including her own life.

Rose doesn’t trust disgraced Army Ranger, ex-con Kade Dolan, but that’s okay—he doesn’t trust himself either. Why? Because he lies to everyone about everything, including his time in Leavenworth and his job as an illegal fight club referee. Then there are his two side gigs. The first as an informant for the Prince, the leader of a secret, two-thousand-year-old private army. The second, loving from afar the beautiful, secretive Rose Guthrie. After the Prince discovers Rose is the courier of a lost 18th century artifact, he orders Kade to help her find the box before their greatest enemy does. If they succeed, Kade must return it to the Prince. If they fail, Kade must kill her.

Betrayal or death. When faced with an impossible choice, Kade can’t lie anymore, at least not when it comes to what he’s about to do the woman he loves. But when Rose uncovers Kade’s lies, they learn a terrible truth—the 18th century box holds a secret far deadlier than they imagined. A secret that could destroy them all.

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—

EXCERPT:

Kade rubbed his forehead with his fist. How could he have made such a terrible mistake?

Since meeting Rose, he’d been unable to stay away from her, even when he’d barely known her. And now that they’d made love, he wasn’t sure he could leave her.

Yet, while he’d admitted his growing love for Rose, he’d also left out the most important details of his life. And Rose wasn’t stupid. She had to suspect he was hiding things. It was probably why, despite the passion she’d shown in his arms, she hadn’t spoken her own feelings aloud.

He couldn’t blame her. He was neither a prince nor charming. He was a man in an impossible situation. A man in love with a woman who had trust issues. A man who rarely asked for help because it made one beholden to others. A man about to commit the rest of his life to a murderous cult that dated back centuries.

He opened his eyes, determined to crush his pity party. Rose needed him, and they still had work to do. They had twenty-eight hours to meet the Prince’s deadline, and they still had no idea where to find that box.

When he saw the cup of hot coffee on his bedside table, his throat closed up. He’d never get enough of her sexually, but her inherent thoughtfulness was what made his heart brim with other unfamiliar emotions. Emotions he struggled to understand, much less define.

Yes, he loved her. But his feelings for her were so much more intense than he’d expected. Then again, other than Nin and his mother, he had little experience in loving women. Infrequent sex with random females from the club didn’t count.

He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and moved slowly, testing each tight muscle group before standing upright. Unfortunately, King George, who’d been guarding the bathroom door, decided Kade had committed an Act of Aggression. The cat bared his teeth.

Kade held out his hands and backed up. “Whoa, kitty.”

He hit the edge of the bed and fell onto his naked ass. The pillow flew across the room, and King George pounced after it. A moment later, Rose emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her body. Wet strands of hair hung past her shoulders.

He drew the throw blanket over his lap and tried not to stare at her bare thighs. The towel acted more like a short, strapless dress, exposing way too much soft, bare skin.

The cat hissed at him again, and she shooed him away. “King George, be nice!”

The cat left the room with his back arched and his tail high in the air. As if to say to Kade, kiss this.

“I’m sorry.” Rose clutched the towel, keeping it tight around herself. “I’d like to say King George isn’t normally this nasty in the morning, but that would be a lie.”

Actually, Kade wasn’t thinking about the cat at all. He was too distracted by the drops of water that rolled down the curve of her neck and slipped between her breasts. His body hardened with one part in particular becoming almost painful. Needing a distraction, he took the mug and inhaled the scent of roasted beans. “I don’t mind King George. Nin had a cat like that once. It took a while, but I eventually won her over.”

She took a step forward. “How long is ‘a while’?”

He sipped his coffee and sighed. It was perfect. Hot, black, and not too bitter. “Seven years.”

She laughed and shifted awkwardly, her hands grasping the towel. “You don’t give up, do you?”

“Never.”

Sharon is a librarian who once studied dress design in the couture houses of Paris and now writes of novels of suspense, adventure, and love. A caretaker of Donut the one-eyed rescue dog, she's addicted to snapping photos and eating Oreos.

She writes the bestselling Deadly Force romantic suspense series where smart, sexy women teach their alpha males that Grace always defeats Reckoning.

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A Brilliant Night of Stars and Ice by Rebecca Connolly Book Spotlight!

Based on the remarkable true story of the Carpathia—the one ship and her legendary captain who answered the distress call of the sinking Titanic.

Shortly after midnight on April 15, 1912, the captain of the Carpathia, Arthur Rostron, wakes to a distress signal from the Titanic, which has struck an iceberg on its maiden voyage. Though information is scarce, Rostron leaps into action, determined to answer the call for help. But the Carpathia is more than four hours away, and there are more questions than answers: Will his ship hold together if pushed to never-before-tested speeds? What if he also strikes an iceberg? And with the freezing temperatures, will there be any survivors by the time the Carpathia arrives?

Kate Connolly is a third-class passenger on Titanic, and she is among the last to receive instruction and help after it hits an iceberg. Despite the chaos of abandoning ship, Kate is able to board a lifeboat, though after seeing the Titanic sink into the abyss and hearing the cries from hundreds of people still in the water, she wonders if any rescue is even possible.

Told in alternating chapters from both Captain Rostron and Kate Connolly.

My Thoughts

Stories about the Titanic have always fascinated me, that said, I really did not know anything about the Carpathia, the ship that rescued the survivors of the sinking. Told in alternating chapters, the captain, Captain Rostron,  and crew of the Carpathia and the passengers in the third class of the Titanic, Kate Connelly is one of many Irish immigrants traveling to America to better themselves.

What starts out as a maiden voyage with a new ship going from Ireland to New York City turns out to be a relative nightmare for everyone involved. The ship hits ice and slowly takes on water and sinks fast. April 15, 1912, is the fateful night that will forever be in history as one of the tragedies of maritime history.

There were 2228 people on board the Titanic, 337 in first class, 285-second class, 721 in third class, and 885 crew members, and only 705 survived. Molly Brown, wife of a Colorado silver mine entrepreneur, and John Jacob Astor were among the famous survivors.  

I found this novel based on facts, very enlightening and sad. All of the lives lost to the frigid waters, impeccable research went into the writing of the book. I found it interesting that the author described what happened to some survivors and the crew of the Carpathia. I read this book in a few sittings and was totally engrossed in the lives and deaths of the people involved. A definite page-turner.

I give the book 5 stars for the impeccable research and writing.

I received a copy of the book for review purposes only.

About the Author:

REBECCA CONNOLLY is the author of more than two dozen novels. She calls herself a Midwest girl, having lived in Ohio and Indiana. She’s always been a bookworm, and her grandma would send her books almost every month so she would never run out.

Book Fairs were her carnival, and libraries are her happy place. She received a master’s degree from West Virginia University.

Learn more about Rebecca and her books at rebeccaconnolly.com

   
 

Advance Praise:

“Reading A Brilliant Night of Stars and Ice made me realize that the full story of the tragedy of the unsinkable Titanic hasn't been shared yet. Captain Rostron's decisive and heroic actions as he prepared his crew for what they were about to encounter was inspirational and heartrending. I've found a new hero in a man who never hesitated in doing the right thing.” —Heather B. Moore, author of The Paper Daughters of Chinatown “A Brilliant Night of Stars and Ice is a haunting yet hopeful story of one man's rush to the rescue.” —Jen Geigle Johnson, author of A Foreign Crown

Titanic Facts:

20 – the number of horses needed to transport the main anchor.

$7,500,000 – the cost of building the RMS Titanic.

269.1 metres – the length of the Titanic (882 feet 9 inches).

220 to 245 feet – the estimated length of the gash caused by the collision (minimum to maximum length).

10,000 – the approximate number of lamp bulbs used on the ship.

There were 840 staterooms in all, 416 in First Class, 162 in Second Class, and 262 in Third Class.

825 tons – the amount of coal used per day. Sister ship Olympic, comparable in size but with a lower gross register tons of 45,324, had a daily coal consumption of around 674 tons.

1,050 tons – the amount of coal used per day by the Cunard ships, which although faster were also smaller and much less fuel efficient.

13 – the number of honeymooning couples on the voyage.

49% – the percentage of passenger places that went unused (the loss of life could have been far great still).

64 – the number of lifeboats the Titanic ship could have been capable of carrying

48 – the number of lifeboats originally planned for Titanic

20 – the number of lifeboats Titanic actually carried

472 – the number of lifeboat spaces that went unused.

20 – the number of people said to have cancelled their plans to sail aboard Titanic after dreaming that she would sink. 60 minutes – the delay between the collision and the first Titanic lifeboats launching. The Titanic, like her sister ship Olympic, had not been fitted with any form of public address system. 58 miles – distance of the rescue vessel Carpathia, at the time of the distress call.

15-45 minutes – the typical maximum life expectancy of the Titanic victims in the water.

At 11.40pm on 14 April 1912, the RMS Titanic strikes an iceberg

At around 2.20am on 15 April, the Titanic disappeared beneath the surface of the Atlantic Ocean

Striking the water was like a thousand knives being driven into one’s body. The temperature was 28 degrees, four degrees below freezing. -Charles Lightoller, Titanic Second Officer

Colonel John Jacob Astor IV was the wealthiest passenger on board, and believed to be one of the richest people in the world at the time, with a personal fortune that was estimated at between $90-150 million, which today would make him a billionaire a few times over.

You could actually walk miles along the decks and passages covering different ground all the time. I was thoroughly familiar with pretty well every type of ship afloat but it took me 14 days before I could, with confidence, find my way from one part of that ship to another. -Charles Lightoller, Titanic Second Officer

Everyone who purchases a copy prior to April 15^th will be able to submit their receipt to receive the exclusive goodies. Link to submit: shdwmtn.com/brilliantbundle

The Wine Down by Louise Lennox Cover Reveal!

We are so excited to share the cover reveal for The Wine Down, by Louise Lennox, the first book in the Meet Cute Book Club Series. Keep reading for more details about this sexy, friends to lovers romance.

Title: The Wine Down

Author: Louise Lennox

Release Date: 6/16/2022

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Trope: Friends to Lovers Romance, Diverse Romance

 

  Environmental lawyer Brandi Armstrong is one of Abbott Ridge’s favorite hometown residents. From the take-no-prisoners attitude she employs in the courtroom for local farmers to her ability to maintain control in every situation, she leads a life with no room for error—or romance, for that matter. When her ex-boyfriend tries to take her family’s farm, she fights like hell and renews her vow to never fall in love again. When Restaurateur Riddick Kruger left his native South Africa to attend college in Abbot Ridge, NC, he was lonely and couldn’t wait to get back home. Then through a crazy mishap, he became best friends with the brilliant Brandi Armstrong. Sixteen years later, he’s built a dazzling life in America, but he’s also formed a passionate love for Brandi - she just has no idea. Once Riddick realizes he’s kept his feelings to himself for far too long; he creates the perfect moment to tell Brandi how he feels. His actions changes their friendship forever. And sends Brandi running scared. Until she runs back to Riddick in order to save her family’s farm. Will Riddick save the day and give Brandi the happily ever after she reads about in her book club every month? Find out in this steamy friends-to-lovers romance from Louise Lennox!

Escape with the Meet Cute Book Club, where meet-cutes don't happen only between the pages of romance novels, and one by one, all the members find their own happily ever afters.

Pre-Order on Amazon Add to Goodreads Here!

About Louise Lennox

Contemporary romance Author Louise Lennox is a hopeful romantic writing steamy romances full of heart and healing. A Spelman College and Georgetown University graduate, Louise provides women with diverse and meaningful representation in romance novel pages. Not seeing enough women like herself headlining positive love stories, she launched #HappyBlackRomance; a community of readers and writers committed to the creation and sharing of positive romance stories featuring Black heroines. Louise Lennox plots highlight the joys of Black relationships across the diaspora; pushing readers from all cultural backgrounds to admire them for their strength and downright sexiness. In her novels sparks always fly; the sex amazes; and the characters always leave the world better than they found it through their love. When she’s not writing, Louise is enjoying her work as a school leader, wife, and mother of the two cutest dragons to ever walk the earth! To learn more about #HappyBlackRomance and to score a free book or two, check out her website www.lovelouiselennox.com.

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About The Meet Cute Book Club Series

Escape with the Meet Cute Book Club where meet-cutes don't only happen between the pages of romance novels and members find their own happily ever afters. Eight single women bound by their love of books take a monthly break from real life to lose themselves in the chapters of romantic fiction. From friends to lovers to fake relationships and more, each story features a brand new couple and their journey to find love from an amazing lineup of authors including Louise Lennox, Tracy Broemmer, A.M. Williams, Mel Walker, RJ Gray, Rebecca Wilder, Julie Archer, and Kate Stacy. These eight standalone romances are packed with meet-cutes, heat, and of course a happily ever after!

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⁣ Midnight Blaze by @anyasummersauthor Reveal! #XpressoTours @XpressoTours #anyasummers #MidnightBlaze

 

Midnight Blaze
Anya Summers

(Dungeon Singles Night, #8)
Publication date: July 26th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

All she wants is to help her best friend.

Tessa’s bestie has been dying for a night of ecstasy with a certain sexy doctor at The Eros Pit. When Tessa winds up with the doctor’s marker at the singles night event, she swaps. There’s no harm in it, not when she knows her best friend will get to have the night of her dreams.

Except Tessa ends up with a Dom she wants nothing to do with – Cooper Livingstone. Danger surrounds him. The sexy alpha is a total badass, fighting wildfires on the front range. He’s potent. Makes her body come alive in ways she has never experienced before. It worries her how much she craves his wicked brand of lovemaking after a single night.

Cooper lives and breathes his daredevil lifestyle. For him, there is nothing like coming up against Mother Nature’s wrath – that is, until Tessa winds up in his bed. Underneath her serene façade lies a feisty, passionate woman who calls to him on an elemental level. After a single night, he yearns to claim the intoxicating submissive. She’s in his blood. He dreams about her taste and her surrender. The need to claim her, make her his in every way, is a hunger he cannot deny. He will do whatever it takes to earn her surrender, and possibly even her love.

But Tessa doesn’t take chances. They’re way too dangerous. She knows far too well how devastating the consequences can be. And submitting to Cooper might just be the biggest risk of all.

Can Cooper convince Tessa to take a chance on him?

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Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Anya grew up listening to Cardinals baseball and reading anything she could get her hands on. She remembers her mother saying if only she would read the right type of books instead binging her way through the romance aisles at the bookstore, she’d have been a doctor. While Anya never did get that doctorate, she graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with an M.A. in History.

Anya is a bestselling and award-winning author published in multiple fiction genres. She also writes urban fantasy, paranormal romance, and contemporary romance under the name Maggie Mae Gallagher. A total geek at her core, when she is not writing, she adores attending the latest comic con or spending time with her family. She currently lives in the Midwest with her two furry felines.

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The Archer Series Box Set by Heidi McLaughlin Release Blitz!

The Archer Brothers Series
Heidi McLaughlin
Publication date: May 20th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

The Archer Brothers

Here with Me
A mission gone wrong

Choose Me
Brothers torn apart

Save Me
A race against time

Here with Us
A new beginning

Choose Us
A life changing decision

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—

EXCERPT:
(Here with Me)

“EVAN, I THINK WE’RE finished for today.”

My head lifts quickly as I meet her gaze. There is a look of pity masking her smile. She can pity me. It’s understandable. If I were in her shoes I’d pity the person I am right now. I chance a look at the clock and see that I still have a few more minutes. Maybe she feels how broken I am and needs time to regroup or find someone else to fix me.

“Okay,” I say hesitantly. I’m not sure I want to go through this again with another doctor, and definitely not a military one.

The doc folds the page of her notepad over and slides it into her desk. She smiles softly. “I’m going to tell you the same thing I told Ryley this morning. My schedule has been cleared this week so I can help get things resolved, or heading toward a resolution. My plan is to see you and Ryley together in the next couple of days to discuss what methods need to be implemented for both of you. My concern is EJ. You need to be able to bond with him and she understands that.”

She stands, coming over to me. “My suggestion, and I didn’t tell this to Ryley, is for you to spend some time with her. She’s hurting, Evan. While you thought everything was fine, aside from the fact that you were gone for so long, she buried you and tried to move on with her life. She’s making neither heads nor tails of what’s happening right now, but give her time without letting her slip through the cracks.”

My body sighs as I stand, as if it knows I don’t have to sit in that chair anymore. My feet shuffle toward the door, leaving the doc leaning up against her desk. “Thank you,” I say before opening the door and leaving the room.

The sun is bright and penetrating when I step out of the office. I have to shield my eyes quickly before I walk out into traffic. Once my eyes adjust, I look across the street to the park hoping to see Ryley sitting over there. If she were, it’d be so much easier to talk to her right now, although the thought of bringing her to base makes more sense to me since she wouldn’t be able to run away from me. Somehow, however, I don’t think Ryley wants to be anywhere near the base – not that I can blame her. At this point, I don’t want to be there either, except it’s the only choice I have since I’m not really welcome in my own home.

With only one other destination in mind, I text the guys and ask them to meet me. We need to figure out what’s going on. Each of our situations is different, yet we’re all experiencing the same thing. I also need to bite the bullet and call my mother. I’m not sure why I haven’t yet. I guess I’ve been waiting to see if our unearthly return would make the news, but so far nothing has been reported. Every time I learn another factoid about this deployment, I’m more convinced that it was not legit.

Pulling in front of Magoo’s, it would be easy to go drown my sorrows in beer, but I need to keep a level head about the situation. If I ask the wrong person a question, who knows what could happen? As is, someone high up has taken away my life. It doesn’t matter that I’m standing here today or not. I’m not the same person and someone needs to pay.

It’s a happy relief to walk in and be surrounded by friends. The bar stools are full of patrons, men I’ve served with in the past. Tables are thrown together to make bigger spaces and the same chairs are still here. An American flag hangs on the wall with various pictures surrounding it. All these pictures have been given or sent to Rick, the owner, for display. I refuse to look at the wall that holds all our past SEALs. I know the four of us are up there or maybe Rick has taken them down. Either way, I’m not looking, at least not today.

I’ve spent many hours trying to figure out what happened and answering all the questions I could. It’s very unsettling to know that people thought you were dead.

Heidi McLaughlin is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author of The Beaumont Series, The Boys of Summer, and The Archers.

Originally, from the Pacific Northwest, she now lives in picturesque Vermont, with her husband, two daughters, and their three dogs.

In 2012, Heidi turned her passion for reading into a full-fledged literary career, writing over twenty novels, including the acclaimed Forever My Girl.

Heidi’s first novel, Forever My Girl, has been adapted into a motion picture with LD Entertainment and Roadside Attractions, starring Alex Roe and Jessica Rothe, and opened in theaters on January 19, 2018, and is now available on DVD & Digital.

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The Mesilla (The Two Valleys Saga, Book 1) By Mary Armstrong Blog Tour! @authornotarthur @maryanneyarde @contrarymaryauthor @coffeepotbookclub #HistoricalFiction #WildWest #WesternHistoricalFiction #BlogTour #CoffeePotBookClub

 

Book Title: The Mesilla

Series: The Two Valleys Saga, Book 1

Author: Mary Armstrong

Publication Date: 22nd April 2021

Publisher: Enchanted Writing Company

Page Length: 391 Pages

Genre: Western Historical Fiction

At 14 years old, Jesus ‘Chuy’ Perez Contreras Verazzi Messi is too small and frail to work the land on the family farm near the Rio Bravo in Mexico. The local padre’s tutoring reveals Jesus’s unending curiosity and fertile mind. Noted Las Cruces, New Mexico attorney, and politician Colonel Albert Jennings Fountain, agrees to take his nephew under his wing. Jesus ‘reads law’ with his uncle and shares adventures and adversity with the Fountain family and other historic Mesilla and Tularosa Valley citizens. His coming-of-age story will take you into the wild southwest, a brewing range war, a territory struggling toward statehood, courtroom dramas, and the adventures and adversities of a boy’s quest for manhood. 

*A fictional memoir by Jesus about the ten years leading to the notorious and unsolved Fountain murders.

Universal Links for the series:

When the Doves Coo (A Prequel to The Two Valleys Saga): https://books2read.com/u/mKpegv

The Mesilla (The Two Valleys Saga, Book 1): https://books2read.com/u/3yKn8J

The San Augustin (The Two Valleys Saga, Book 2): https://books2read.com/u/menJWR

The Mesilla Buy Links:

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mesilla-Two-Valleys-Saga-Book-ebook/dp/B093CPZ71B

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Mesilla-Two-Valleys-Saga-Book-ebook/dp/B093CPZ71B

Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/Mesilla-Two-Valleys-Saga-Book-ebook/dp/B093CPZ71B

Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/Mesilla-Two-Valleys-Saga-Book-ebook/dp/B093CPZ71B

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-mesilla-mary-armstrong/1140770711?ean=9781737154549

COAS Books: https://bookshop.org/books/the-mesilla/9781737154501

Mary lives in the heart of one of the ‘Two Valleys’ in Las Cruces New Mexico, with her husband Norman ‘Skip’ Bailey, Jr. and their Cavachon child-dog, Java. In 2017 she wrote the one-act play, “It is Blood,” which was selected for a performance by the Las Cruces Community Theatre. Whereas the Two Valleys series is a prequel to the notorious and unsolved murders of Albert J. Fountain and his eight-year-old son, “It is Blood,” is a sequel to those events. 

After winning an award for her debut historic fiction novel “The Mesilla,” Mary has decided to focus on that genre — at least for the foreseeable future. Her writing is fast-moving, thought-provoking and with just enough wordsmithing to satisfy your artistic hankerings. While her writing has literary merit, she strives to capture the moment — the time and the place — and help you live in that moment.

Before releasing her debut novel, Mary dabbled in creative writing, including a weekly column in the Las Cruces Sun-News. Since retiring from a diverse career in various planning and design fields, she has devoted herself more fully to her writing, being a good spouse, serving her dog Java, and slipping away to the golf course when left unchained to the desk. 

 

Social Media Links:

Website: https://maryarmstrongauthor.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/authornotarthur

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maryarmstrongauthor

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-armstrong-590ab9211/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/contrarymaryauthor/?hl=en

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/mary-armstrong

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B093CZQNZS

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21456893.Mary_Armstrong

Tour Schedule Page: https://maryanneyarde.blogspot.com/2022/03/blog-tour-mesilla-two-valleys-saga-book.html