The Year of Cecily by @laforesta1 Book Blitz! ⁣⁣#LisaLin #TheYearofCecily #XpressoTours⁣ @XpressoTours⁣⁣⁣

 

The Year of Cecily
Lisa Lin

(From Sunset Park, With Love, #1)
Publication date: January 17th 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

This is the year of Cecily Chang.

San Francisco attorney Cecily Chang is ready to tackle the New Year head on, so she creates a list of resolutions guaranteed to reboot her life—right after her dutiful visit home to Sunset Park, Brooklyn, for the Lunar New Year. Cecily prepares to face her critical, meddling mother, nosy relatives, and the chaos and drama family togetherness brings. At least the food will be delicious. This holiday, Cecily vows to remain calm—as long as she doesn’t see him.

Jeffrey Lee deeply regrets how he ended things with Cecily ten years ago, but he felt it was best for her at the time. When he runs into her again during the New Year, he sees it as a sign. Now a successful screenwriter, Jeffrey is determined to win back Cecily’s heart.

But Cecily doesn’t believe in signs or second chances and embraces her new resolutions. This time, Jeffrey won’t give up—and he’s convinced he can write them a new Hollywood happy ending.

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Having escaped the madhouse, Cecily dutifully made her way down the street to the Lee residence. She knocked on the door and was greeted by Jeffrey’s younger sister Bethany. She was dressed in a soft blue sweater and jeans, with a bandana pulling her hair back.

“CeeCee!” Bethany exclaimed as she enveloped Cecily in a hug. Despite herself, Cecily couldn’t prevent a grin. She’d always had a soft spot for Bethany.

“You’re home for the weekend?” Cecily asked. Last she heard, Bethany was a senior at Columbia, majoring in biochemistry.

“Yep. Where else would I be?” Bethany readjusted her bandana. “Mom needs all hands on deck for the cleaning.”

Cecily made a face. “My mom’s planning a top-to-bottom deep cleaning today too. I’m on bathroom duty. She’s also grumbling because she needs to take me to Walmart later to buy new clothes. But you can’t fight tradition.” She rolled her eyes good-naturedly. It was a New Year tradition slash superstition to clean the house top to bottom, get a haircut, and buy a new outfit. It was all about out with the old, in with the new and generating good luck and a fresh start for the Year of the Pig.

Bethany had no response, just blew out a breath and looked at her expectantly.

“Oh, right. Is Jeffrey around? I need to speak to him.” Speaking of the devil, he appeared behind his sister in the doorway.

“If you’re here to pay me for the Uber, think again.” He crossed his arms, and a stubborn look came over his face.

All right. If he was going to be a hard-ass about this, then so could she. She had plenty of experience dealing with difficult clients.

“It’s out of my hands, Jeffrey. You know that I can’t go into the New Year unless I settle all debts. You wouldn’t want me to start the Year of the Pig with bad luck hanging over my head, do you? You really want that on your conscience?” She gave her most innocent look and blinked disarmingly.

Jeffrey just scowled. “You always were a spoiled brat when it came to getting your way,” he muttered.

Cecily took immediate umbrage. “How dare you!” Such an unfair accusation. Besides, how did he know? They hadn’t seen each other in ten years. Maybe she had her moments, but didn’t everyone?

Jeffrey just raised an eyebrow. “Who was the one who told our moms I scalped her Barbie doll when she really was the one who decided to give it a haircut?”

“Really with that? I was five years old for God’s sake!” Seriously.

An implacable stare from him. “Did you or did you not get a new doll for your birthday?”

“To be clear, the statute of limitations for that has come and gone,” Cecily sniffed. “Not fair for you to throw that in my face now. It’s been thirty years, and I doubt your ability to accurately recall the event in question. Besides, whether or not I got a replacement Barbie doll is irrelevant to the current discussion.”

“And I was the one who got spanked for something I didn’t do.”

She continued to glare, and so did he.

Bethany just looked at them back and forth like she was watching a tennis match. “You two are weird,” she decided with a shake of her head. She walked away and disappeared back into the house.

Jeffrey ignored her. “But if you insist, it was sixty dollars.”

As Cecily dug through her wallet and purse, he added nonchalantly, “Oh and just so you know, Guillermo gave us a four and a half star rating.”

Her head snapped up and she stopped searching for the money. “Why didn’t we get five?”

“You were always so competitive.” He chuckled. He leaned against the doorjamb and put his hands in his pockets.

“Well, why didn’t we get five? We did nothing wrong,” she insisted, with her hands on her hips.

“Go ask him,” Jeffrey suggested, his lips twitching.

Cecily frowned and went back to her purse. Finally, she scrounged up thirty dollars and thrust it at him.

“There you go.”

“Glad I could help you start the New Year with a clean slate,” he drawled. “Happy now?”

She raised a warning brow. “You’re lucky I didn’t ask for a receipt.”

“Your faith in me is touching.

Lisa has been an avid romance reader and fan since she read her first Nora Roberts novel at the age of 13 after wandering the aisles of her local bookstore. Lisa loves that romance has the power to inspire and believes that HEAs are for everyone.

Lisa writes light contemporary romantic comedies with a liberal dash of snark and banter. She enjoys delving into the complexity of Asian and immigrant family experiences, and celebrates female friendships in her trademark dry, witty style. As an Asian-American author writing own voices Asian American stories, Lisa hopes that her books will show the diversity of the Asian-American experience, and the importance of every reader being able to see themselves represented on the page.

Having grown up in Pennsylvania and helping out at her parents’ restaurant, Lisa has never bothered to learn to cook. She has two liberal arts undergraduate degrees and a J.D, and in her former life she was an intern, then Legislative Assistant for a PA State Representative. She also worked as a paralegal at a boutique law firm. Lisa is a politics junkie (don’t get her started on the wonder that is The West Wing!), indulges in naps whenever possible, and believes Netflixing in her pajamas and ordering take out qualifies as the perfect weekend.

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The Aspen Cove Series by @authorkellycollins Book Blitz! ⁣⁣#AspenCove #kellycollins #XpressoTours⁣⁣⁣ @XpressoTours

 

One Hundred Reasons
Kelly Collins

(Aspen Cove, #1)
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

A woman who wants to leave.
A man who has to stay.
And a love that won’t be denied…

Nurse Sage Nichols’ life isn’t going as planned. When a favorite patient passes away, Sage abandons her post for a few minutes longer than planned — and just like that, she’s without a job and a paycheck.

But Sage’s patient left her a parting gift: a creaky bed-and-breakfast in the heart of the Rockies. So, determined to sell the rundown property and return to Denver for a fresh start, Sage heads north to the mountains.

When Cannon Bishop’s mother died, he gave up his dreams of leaving Aspen Cove for good and returned to run the family business. As owner of the only bar and son to the town drunk, he’s got no room in his life for a woman. But when Sage Nichols breezes into town, she changes everything.

And if there’s one thing Cannon hates, it’s change.

Recruited by the local doctor, Sage finds herself more involved in small town life than she intended. But the warm welcome she receives from the locals does not extend to the man next door.

Then trust sprouts unexpectedly between them and when Sage’s plan to return to Denver falls through, she is left wondering if her future might lie in Aspen Cove after all.

Sometimes love gets in the way of the best laid plans…

Welcome to Aspen Cove, the tiny Colorado town where fresh starts, hope, and true love live…

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“This feels kind of perfect.”

He adjusted the blanket and pulled her closer. The arm of her chair dug into her side, but she didn’t complain. For the first time since she arrived in Aspen Cove, she wasn’t alone or lonely. It was an odd sensation to be so comfortable with a man who made her temper flare, and her insides turn soft. The most interesting thing was he made her feel something other than empty. She would take rage and passion over apathy any day.

They sat in companionable silence for minutes. Cannon turned toward her and tilted his head. A kiss was coming, and all her questions about his lips would be answered. She leaned in, relaxed her lips and inhaled. Just as the lids of her eyes fluttered closed, she felt him shift.

“I think they’re done.” He rolled to his feet, taking the blanket with him. “Let’s get you inside and warmed up.” He offered her a hand and pulled her to her feet. “I’ll clean this up.” With his arm at her back, he led her to the door.

Sage wasn’t ready to say goodbye, but it was the smart choice. There was no point in starting something that wouldn’t go anywhere. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. “Thank you. This was probably the best night I’ve had in a while.”

He held her close, and his lips touched the top of her head in a gentle kiss. “You need to get out more.”

“I do. I really do.”

“Tomorrow night, you should come to the bar.” He stepped back. “It’s karaoke night. Bring Otis.”

“Okay.” She nodded. It would be the first Saturday night where she wasn’t pulling a shift or spending it curled on the couch, watching reruns.

“It’s a date.” He stepped away and started down the stairs.

“Is it?” Did he mean a real date, or was he using it as a figure of speech?

“Just come to the bar.” He disappeared into the night. She watched his outline as he picked up the glasses and bottles by the water and moved toward his cabin.

She giggled as she walked into the house. Suddenly, nothing bothered her. Not her nose. Not the newlyweds going at it like rabbits. Not the thought of being stuck here until the house sold.

A voice from deep down told her she could be happy here if she’d let herself. Flopping onto her bed, she grinned up at the ceiling, thinking of the magical effect that a long hug and light kiss from the right man could have. She wasn’t sure if it was the wine talking or her hormones, but something was telling her to trust Cannon.

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International bestselling author of more than thirty novels, Kelly Collins writes with the intention of keeping love alive. Always a romantic, she blends real-life events with her vivid imagination to create characters and stories that lovers of contemporary romance, new adult, and romantic suspense will return to again and again.

Kelly has sold more than a quarter of a million books worldwide, and in 2021 she was awarded a Readers' Favorite Award Gold Medal in the Contemporary Romance category for A Tablespoon of Temptation.

You can learn more about Kelly at www.authorkellycollins.com.

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Gods of Inthya, Tales of Inthya, Book 5.5 by Effie Calvin New Release Blitz! @ninestarpress @indigomarketingdesign #LGBTQIA+

 Title:  Gods of Inthya

Series: Tales of Inthya, Book 5.5

Author: Effie Calvin

Publisher:  NineStar Press

Release Date: 01/17/2023

Heat Level: 1 - No Sex

Pairing: Female/Female

Length: 38600

Genre: Fantasy, anthology, Fantasy, gods, magic, romance, short stories

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At the beginning of time, the gods came together to create Inthya, a world where magic is common and hatred never had the opportunity to take root. 

But the Inthyan gods are young and imperfect. With countless failures behind them and unspeakable horrors lurking outside the borders of creation, they must not allow this world to meet the same fate as the last—without alerting their mortal worshippers that anything is wrong. 

Nineteen short stories from the perspectives of the gods themselves, some humorous, some horrifying, and all united by a theme of protecting the mortals who love them unconditionally.

Gods of Inthya
Effie Calvin © 2023
All Rights Reserved

Inthi, God of Creation and First of the Ten, does not generally manifest in cities. This is somewhat paradoxical, considering most new ideas come from places where mortals gather in large numbers. But Inthi is a quiet, thoughtful sort of god and has trouble focusing when surrounded by too much noise and commotion. Even when they are called to a mortal’s private workshop, away from shouting vendors and screaming children, they cannot block out the soft but persistent hum of countless souls going about their daily business outside, each mind a bright beacon of wants and worries and dreams.

But today, unfortunately, they must make an exception.

Inthi is intimately familiar with their own Great Temple in Birsgen, and the enormous district surrounding it. Some call it the Flame District, but others simply call it Inthi’s District. Most large cities have one, a place where smiths and artisans and inventors come together to work and exchange ideas.

As Inthi approaches their temple, they hear mortal voices raised in argument. Standing on the steps are two people—a neutroi that Inthi recognizes as their own archpriest here in Ieflaria, and a priestess of Eran dressed in silver robes. The priestess is the source of most of the noise, waving her clenched fist in the archpriest’s face.

Inthi’s archpriest, however, is unimpressed. They wave a hand dismissively and say, “Your concerns are unwarranted.”

The priestess’s cheeks redden. From the rage that emanates from her mind, Inthi can tell reason has failed and now she is about to start cursing. Inthi walks up behind her and rests a reassuring hand on the prophet-priestess’s shoulder. “It’s all right,” they say. “I will handle it.”

Eran’s priestess looks at Inthi with wide, disbelieving eyes. She takes a step back, too dumbfounded to speak. Inthi’s own archpriest has not recognized them, but she has. With more effort, they can disguise themselves completely, but Inthi is not inclined to do so today.

“I appreciate your efforts,” they add. Only rarely do Eran’s priests take an active role in events. Most adhere to the philosophy that attempting to alter the future is pointless at best and disastrous at worst. This priestess must have decided that no outcome is worse than what she’s already seen in her dreams. “Excuse me.”

Inthi walks past the bemused archpriest and enters the temple. Inside is warm from the heat of dozens of forges, and every stone is steeped in magic. Countless prayers have been uttered within these walls. Generations of priests and artisans have labored here. Even if the temple was disassembled and all the stones cast into the sea, it would take centuries for the magic to dissipate from the air.

After taking a few moments to admire the new bronze statues decorating the temple’s anteroom, Inthi takes a side door into a hallway. All around them, mortal minds buzz with ideas; mortal hands wrest iron and copper into new shapes. It is still early, but most of them have been awake for hours. Some have not slept at all.

Inthi could have manifested directly at the source of the problem, but there is time enough to enjoy being in the temple. They pass a few priests in orange robes, but most of the mortals are dressed practically, with heavy leather gloves and large aprons. Some carry boxes, or tools, or push carts filled with scrap metal to be melted down and turned into something useful. Inthi brushes each mind as they pass, appreciating every mortal’s unique focus.

NineStar Press | Books2Read

Effie is definitely a human being with all her own skin, and not a robot. She writes science fiction and fantasy novels and lives with her cat in the greater Philadelphia area.

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Tank (The Moonshine Task Force: Special Edition), #2 by Laramie Briscoe Release Blitz!

 

Title: Tank (The Moonshine Task Force: Special Edition), #2

Author: Laramie Briscoe 

Genre: Small Town Contemporary Romance 

Release Date: January 20, 2023 

Hosted by: Buoni Amici Press, LLC.

From USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling author, Laramie Briscoe, comes the special edition of a fan favorite series.

Nobody writes blue collar romance like Laramie Briscoe, and nowhere is it more apparent than in the Moonshine Task Force: Special Edition Series. This edition includes a never-before-released short story, as well as all the slices of life scenes and text messages I've written for this couple. Life isn’t promised, love isn’t easy, and relationships aren’t always clean, but everyone has their soulmate who is willing to forgive when it would be better to forget.

Trevor “Tank” Trumbolt

I never thought in the blink of an eye my life could change, but it did. Cresting a hill driving to my favorite fishing spot, I was hit head-on by a teenager with no regard for anyone’s life but his own. The recovery process has been hard, painful, and damn near beating me down. The bright spot? Blaze. Surviving the wreck has given me a second chance to make a life with her. Not knowing if I’ll ever be able to rejoin the Moonshine Task Force again has brought my world into focus. It’s made me realize what’s important. Blaze. Stella. My brothers. My sister. The ego that ran Blaze away before isn’t here any longer. What’s left is a man who’s holding his heart in his hands and a burning hope that once I’m healed she’ll still be around.

Daphne “Blaze” Coleman

There’s only been one person in the world who’s accepted me for who I am - from the fiery red of my hair and vibrant tattoos covering parts of my body to the smartness of my mouth and my desire to be matched in the bedroom. That man is Trevor Trumbolt. When he asked me to give up my job as an EMT because he saw the dangers I face one scary afternoon, it spelled the end for us. Now that he’s been injured, he needs my help and my love. I’ll give it all freely, but in the end I’m gonna need him to understand one thing about relationships. The give and take, love and sadness, pleasure and pain is a two-way street. He’s either in this with me or he’s not, but at the end of the day, I won’t let him boss me around. If there’s anything that can handle the steel of a tank – it’s the heat of a blaze.

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Laramie Briscoe is the USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author of over 30 books, with sales of over half a million copies.

Since self-publishing her first book in May of 2013, Laramie has appeared on the Top 100 Bestselling E-books Lists on Apple Books, Amazon Kindle, Kobo, and Barnes & Noble. Her books have been known to make readers laugh and cry. They are guaranteed to be emotional, steamy reads.

When she's not writing alpha males who seriously love their women, she loves spending time with friends, reading, and marathoning shows on Netflix. Married to her high school sweetheart, Laramie lives in Bowling Green, KY with her husband.

Purchase Renegade Today!

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Havoc, #3: Special Edition:

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Ace, #4: Special Edition:

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Menace, #5: Special Edition:

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Conveniently Wed to the Laird by Jeanine Englert Blog Tour!

 

The laird’s bridal bid…
Is love too high a price to pay?

When new laird, Ewan Stewart, comes across a wife for sale at a market, he outbids everyone to rescue her. He never intended for Catriona to become his bride, but a convenient marriage could secure his clan’s future and her freedom. They agree that their arrangement must stay free of love, yet Catriona’s bravery and fire intrigue him. Can Ewan resist falling for his wife—the one rule he must not break? 

Purchase Link -  https://books2read.com/u/m2eyak

Context: In Chapter 1, Laird Ewan Stewart is accompanying his sister Brenna into town for a stop at the milliner’s shop in the markets of Edinburgh. Deciding to take in the sites and enjoy a moment of their visit, he walks down into the town square only to find a poor woman being sold off by her husband to the highest bidder. Although Ewan despises the idea of “buying” a wife, he cannot let the woman fall into the hands of a man he knows to be cruel, so he purchases her instead.

 

Excerpt from Chapter 1 of Conveniently Wed to the Laird:

Ewan’s heart thudded in his chest, and his ears buzzed. The lass would be dead by week’s end if MacGregor had his way with her, and who would know or care?

He would.

Ewan cursed aloud. He knew what he had to do. It was the lesser of two evils.

‘I’ll buy her for the full,’ he called out, his voice booming across the market.

Dallan stilled, and upon catching Ewan’s gaze through the crowd, he smirked. ‘Stewart,’ he said. He shoved the lass away. She stumbled and skidded to the ground from the force.

Ewan clenched his jaw. His gaze slid to the woman, who, although startled, seemed unhurt, and then back to Dallan. ‘I see you haven’t changed, MacGregor,’ he stated, squaring his shoulders upon approach.

‘Neither have you.’ Dallan spat at the ground and ran a hand through his hair. ‘Still as soft a heart as ever. Do you plan to save this whore as well as your dwindling clan from ruin now that your father is gone? Not likely. Enjoy your wench and your brief reign as laird. I’ll save my half a guinea.’ He laughed and sauntered off with two of his men in tow.

‘Bring her here,’ Ewan commanded, rage lacing his words. The crowd turned to him.

The lass’s eyes widened as her husband yanked her up from the ground. She clambered after him, holding the rope of the harness fitted to her torso as she was tugged along.

‘Unbind her hands and remove that ungodly harness from her. Now,’ Ewan ordered. ‘She is no animal.’

‘Ye might think differently after ye get her home.’ The man winked at him. ‘I’ll leave ’er be. Otherwise she’ll run.’

Ewan scowled at him and shoved a guinea into the man’s open palm, even though he wished to punch him in the face instead.

‘Pleasure doin’ business with ye.’ The man grinned and pressed the guinea to his lips. ‘I shall celebrate my freedom this eve!’

Ewan shook his head in disgust as the man walked away. He faced the lass. ‘Are you hurt?’

‘Nay,’ she answered, slowly lifting her gaze to him.

Her large amber eyes arrested his attention. He’d never seen such a shade before.

He cleared his throat. ‘Come with me,’ he told the woman. He turned and began the walk back to the carriage, his body vibrating with anger.

‘What shall you do with me, sir?’ the woman asked, walking a step behind him. He slowed his pace to ensure she didn’t drift far from him, his gaze sliding behind him at regular intervals. Dallan was not a man to lose at anything well, and Ewan wouldn’t allow the woman to be harmed further.

‘I’m not sure yet, but you’ll not stay here.’ He didn’t dare spare her another glance but kept a quick pace up the road to the carriage. He’d had enough of his brief visit to the Grassmarket. He’d had enough of a great deal of things.

Jeanine Englert’s love affair with mysteries and romance began with Nancy Drew, Murder She Wrote, and her Grandmother’s bookshelves full of romance novels. She is a VIVIAN® and Golden Heart® Finalist as well as a Silver Falchion, Maggie, and Daphne du Maurier Award Winner in historical romance and mystery. Her Scottish Highland historical and historical romantic suspense novels revolve around characters seeking self-acceptance and redemption. When she isn’t wrangling with her characters on the page, she can be found trying to convince her husband to watch her latest Masterpiece or BBC show obsession. She loves to talk about books, writing, her beloved rescue pups, as well as mysteries and romance with other readers. Visit her website at www.jeaninewrites.com.

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Goodreads: Conveniently Wed to the Laird by Jeanine Englert | Goodreads

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Instagram: https://www.instragram.com/JeanineWrites

Giveaway to Win a Highlander Trio Prize Pack (Open to UK/ US Only)

Settle in to enjoy the complete Falling for a Stewart Trilogy along with some Scottish themed jewelry and book swag! Good luck and thank you for participating in the giveaway!

*Terms and Conditions –UK & US entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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Leave Your Sh*T Here: Write, Release and Destroy by Jackie Wallace & Elizabeth Reed Spotlight Tour! @laurenireadbooktours @acornsireadbooktours @iReadBookTours

 #iReadBookTours #mentalhealthawareness #iReadBookTours #books #authors  

Join us for this tour from Jan 10 to Jan 23, 2023!

Book Details:

​Book Title:  Leave Your Sh*T Here: Write, Release and Destroy by Jackie Wallace & Elizabeth Reed
Category:  Adult Non-Fiction (18+),  64 pages
Genre: Self-Help
Publisher:  Yorkshire Publishing
Release date:  January  2023
Content Rating:  PG

Book Description:

Leave Your Sh*T Here received a glowing, 5-star review from Readers’ Favorite! 

Leave Your Sh*T Here is a workbook that helps people to understand that it's normal to face adversity in life and that in the end, everything will be just fine. The workbook also provides a safe space to release those feelings in confidence and dispose of them in a manner the reader chooses, releasing all emotions privately into the universe, ridding them of all toxic thoughts and feelings.

Besides being a book with facts and best practices with highlighted topics, Leave Your Sh*t Here provides teachable moments covering subjects such as inner strength, how to face emotions, self-reliance, and investing in yourself.

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Jackie Wallace is a serial entrepreneur, author, and podcaster. With over 35 years of leading and coaching people and over 250 interviews as a podcaster, she enjoys exploring how everyday people figure out their purpose and pursue it. Her superpower is curiosity which makes her an avid learner. Wallace has embraced her failures and learned to rewrite the narratives acknowledging the blessings in the lessons. In addition to business, she is a wife and mother of three.

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The Flame Tree by Siobhan Daiko Blog Tour! @siobhandaiko

 

Based on a little-known true story, from award-winning author Siobhan Daiko comes a tale of love and survival against all the odds set in Hong Kong at the start of the Pacific War.

In the spring of 1939, dashing young William Burton and the beautiful Constance Han set sail from London on the same ocean liner to Hong Kong.

Romance blossoms while they enjoy games of deck quoits and spend sultry tropical evenings dancing under the stars. Connie is intrigued by Will’s talent for writing poetry, and she offers to give him Cantonese lessons to help him with his new job— a cadet in the colonial service.

But once in Hong Kong, Connie is constrained by filial duty towards her Eurasian parents, and their wish for her to marry someone from her own background. She can't forget Will however and arranges to meet him in secret under the magnificent canopy of a flame of the forest tree—where she fulfils her promise to teach him to speak Chinese.

Before too long, trouble looms as Japanese forces gather on the border between Hong Kong and mainland China. Will joins a commando group tasked with operating behind enemy lines, and Connie becomes involved in the fight against local fifth columnists.

When war breaks out, they find themselves drawn into a wider conflict than their battle against prejudice. Can they survive and achieve a future together? Or do forces beyond their control keep them forever apart?

Perfect for readers of Dinah Jefferies, Ann Bennett and Victoria Hislop.

Purchase Link - https://mybook.to/TFTHK

Siobhan Daiko is a British historical fiction author. A lover of all things Italian, she lives in the Veneto region of northern Italy with her husband, a Havanese dog and a rescued cat. Siobhan was born of English parents in Hong Kong, attended boarding school in Australia, and then moved to the UK—where she taught modern foreign languages in a Welsh comprehensive school. She now spends her time writing page-turners and enjoying her life near Venice. Her novels are compelling, poignant, and deeply moving, with strong characters and evocative settings, but always with romance at their heart.

Website: https://siobhandaiko.org

Twitter: https://twitter.com/siobhandaiko

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Love by Design by Elizabeth Everett Blog Blitz!

 

Praise for A LOVE BY DESIGN by Elizabeth Everett

“Elizabeth Everett’s praiseworthy Secret Scientists of London series returns with A Love by Design...It’s easy to sympathize with brainy Maggie and her quest for independence, and George proves to be a hero worthy of her. The fight for women’s rights is front and center, giving heft to this otherwise lighthearted romance.”

—BookPage, starred review 

 

“No one does a better job at making science sexy than Everett, and the latest artfully engineered addition to her Secret Scientists of London series is another triumph of emotional vulnerability and sizzling sexual chemistry. Built upon a solid foundation of engaging characterization and innovative plotting, this clever historical romance is deftly embellished with delightfully droll humor.”

—Booklist, starred review 

 

“Enjoyable characters and an avoidance of many of the most common tropes of historical romance enliven Everett's novel; a must-read for those looking for STEM romances.”

—Library Journal, starred review 

 

“Written with an evenhanded mix of slapstick, emotional confrontations, and scenes of intimacy that include reproductive choices, this novel may be the strongest one of the series yet. Fans of Lisa Kleypas will also appreciate glimpses of the tropes she's popularized in the Victorian historical romance genre, including ‘hurt/comfort,’ fused with a sequence reminiscent of the scene in Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility in which Alan Rickman's Brandon carries Kate Winslet's Marianne home. A second-chance, friends-to-enemies-to-lovers romance that imagines smashing the patriarchy.”

—Kirkus Reviews, starred review 

You couldn’t design a better hero than the very eligible and extremely charming Earl Grantham. Unless, of course, you are Margaret Gault, who wants nothing to do with the man who broke her youthful heart.

Widowed and determined, Margaret Gault has returned to Athena’s Retreat and the welcoming arms of her fellow secret scientists with an ambitious plan in mind: to establish England’s first woman-owned engineering firm. But from the moment she sets foot in London her plans are threatened by greedy investors and—at literally every turn—the irritatingly attractive Earl Grantham, a man she can never forgive.
 
George Willis, the Earl Grantham, is thrilled that the woman he has loved since childhood has returned to London. Not as thrilling, however, is her decision to undertake an engineering commission from his political archnemesis. When Margaret’s future and Grantham’s parliamentary reforms come into conflict, Grantham must use every ounce of charm he possesses—along with his stunning good looks and flawless physique, of course—to win Margaret over to his cause.
 
Facing obstacles seemingly too large to dismantle, will Grantham and Margaret remain forever disconnected or can they find a way to bridge their differences, rekindle the passion of their youth, and construct a love built to last?

A LOVE BY DESIGN by Elizabeth Everett

Berkley Romance Trade Paperback Original | On sale January 17, 2023

Maggie had returned.

Of course, she was now known as Madame Margaret Gault.

Try as he might, Grantham could never twist his tongue around the name.

Almost his whole life, he'd called her Maggie.

His Maggie.

From upside down, he watched as she turned the corner of the carriage house, the wind unfurling the hem of her simple bronze pelisse. A brown capelet hung about her shoulders, and a matching muff hid her hands. Catching sight of him, she paused, tilting her head so he caught a glimpse of lush auburn curls peeking out from beneath her tea-colored bonnet trimmed with bright red berries. Margaret's fair skin showed no hint of the freckles that had once plagued her every summer, and thick brown lashes shielded her hazel eyes.

She was unusually tall for a woman; nevertheless, she moved with effortless grace, and not even the blazing clash of colors adorning Violet next to her could detract from her beauty.

For she was a beauty, Margaret Gault. Once wild and graceless, she'd bloomed into a woman of elegant refinement.

A woman who was more than met the eye.

A woman who would rather feast on glass than give him the time of day.

For eleven years, the first day of summer meant Margaret would be waiting for him beneath the willow where they first met. She and Violet attended the Yorkshire Academy for the Education of Exceptional Young Women together. While Violet came home to her large, affectionate-and very loud-family, Margaret had no one waiting for her at home. Her father had died of a stroke when she was ten and her mother had little interest in Margaret's whereabouts or well-being.

Violet and Grantham had been Margaret's family. The three of them had been the best of friends until one hot afternoon when Margaret had smiled a certain way and the ground went out beneath his feet. A year later he was soldiering in Canada and Margaret lived in Paris and their summers together were nothing but a memory he pulled around himself like a blanket on cold lonely nights.

"Good afternoon, Grantham," Violet greeted him, seemingly unaffected by his headfirst dive into her rosebushes. She wore a shocking yellow day dress beneath a burgundy velvet paletot and atop her head sat a garish blue bonnet topped with a life-sized stuffed parrot.

Swallowing a barrelful of curses, Grantham tried wriggling out of the bushes, every single thorn piercing his flesh a hundredfold as Margaret stared without saying a word.

"Ahem." He cleared his throat as he managed to get to his feet despite being trapped in the center of one of the bushes. As he pulled a branch from his hair, a shower of wrinkled brown rose petals drifted down his shoulders. "You are especially . . . vibrant today, Violet. I brought this for Baby Georgie."

He thrust the torn, dirtied rabbit at Violet, who received it with a bemused air. One of the buttons had come off and the silk was stained green and brown.

"Madame Gault," he said, bowing to Margaret. "So lovely to see you again."

No matter how strongly Grantham willed it, Margaret did not speak to him in return. Instead, she bent her knee a scant inch in a desultory curtsey, her lush mouth twisted like the clasp of a coin purse, no doubt to hold inside the names she was calling him in her head. He had a good idea what some of them were, considering he most likely had taught them to her.

Grantham hadn't seen Margaret for thirteen years until their reunion-if one could call it that-a year and a half ago in the small parlor of Athena's Retreat. He hadn't exactly met the moment then, either-although to be fair, there'd been a hedgehog involved. The handful of times he encountered her since, she'd avoided meeting his eyes with her own, as though he were an inconsequential shadow cast by their past.

Someone to be dismissed.

Someone who had broken her heart and whom she would never forgive.

"See who is come to live in England for good." Violet linked her arm with Margaret's and beamed at her friend.

This was news.

When Margaret had come to stay at Athena's Retreat a year and half ago to complete an engineering project for her father-in-law's firm, Grantham had hoped she'd stay but she returned to Paris after three months. He'd asked Violet if Margaret might ever return, but Violet had doubted it.

"She's one of the only women engineers in Europe with an excellent reputation. Why give up a dream hard fought to come back to England and fight all over again?" Violet had asked.

Something had changed, however, and now Margaret was home.

His heart leapt in his chest and the bitter orange flavor of hope flooded his mouth.

"Clean yourself up and come inside for tea," Violet said to him now.

Margaret did not echo the invitation. Instead, she tightened her hold on a stylish carpet bag and accompanied Violet and Arthur into the building.

There are moments in life when the world shifts as though a door has opened somewhere out of sight. Whether a person runs toward that opened door or not depends on how fast they're stuck in place. Grantham considered for a moment how painful it would be to get himself unstuck.

Although the tangle of branches in front of him twisted menacingly, he pulled a deep breath of resolution into his lungs alongside the scents of rosehips and crushed greenery. Gritting his teeth, he made his way through the thorns toward the open door.

Excerpted from A Love by Design by Elizabeth Everett Copyright © 2023 by Elizabeth Everett. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved. 

Elizabeth Everett lives in upstate New York with her family. She likes going for long walks or (very) short runs to nearby sites that figure prominently in the history of civil rights and women's suffrage. Her series is inspired by her admiration for rule breakers and belief in the power of love to change the world.