Reviews!

I am still having a difficult time concentrating on reading a book, I hope to get back into it at some point. Still doing book promotions just not reviews Thank you for your understanding during this difficult time. I appreciate all of you. Kathleen Kelly July 2024

27 March 2023

Murder in Postscript by Mary Winters Blog Blitz! #MurderinPostscript #NetGalley

 

MURDER IN POSTSCRIPT by Mary Winters

On Sale March 28th, 2023

Berkley Prime Crime Trade Paperback Original

 

When one of her readers asks for advice following a suspected murder, Victorian countess Amelia Amesbury, who secretly pens the popular Lady Agony column, has no choice but to investigate in this first book in a charming new historical mystery series.

Amelia Amesbury—widow, mother, and countess—has a secret. Amelia writes for a London penny paper, doling out advice on fashion, relationships, and manners under the pen name Lady Agony. But when a lady’s maid writes Amelia to ask for advice when she believes her mistress has been murdered—and then ends up a victim herself—Amelia is determined to solve the case.

 

With the help of her best friend and a handsome marquis, Amelia begins to piece together the puzzle, but as each new thread of inquiry ends with a different suspect, the investigation grows ever more daunting. From London’s docks and ballrooms to grand country houses, Amelia tracks a killer, putting her reputation—and her life—on the line.


MURDER IN POSTSCRIPT by Mary Winters

Berkley Trade Paperback Original | On Sale March 28, 2023

Excerpt


Winifred gave Amelia an impulsive hug, and Amelia breathed in the beautiful strawberry scent of the child. Edgar hadn’t given her love—he wouldn’t risk passing on his degenerative condition— but he had given her his dear niece, and for that, Amelia would always be grateful.

When the girl was gone, Amelia took the letters into the library, her favorite room in the house. It was something else Edgar had given her that she’d enjoyed very much—a home with books. While the Feathered Nest had plenty of room for dining and entertaining, it did not afford much room for books, just the special theatricals the family loved and performed. One of her favorite performances was Romeo and Juliet, probably because she and Grady were central characters. Most times her eldest sister, Penelope, took the lead roles. Indeed, Penelope was better at memorizing lines, but Amelia was better at improvising.

She stopped and inhaled a breath. The room smelled of cloves and paper and past cigars. Hundreds of leather-bound tomes filled the wooden bookshelves that lined the two-story room. She bypassed the books and made for the large rosewood desk, situated in a bright alcove of windows. It faced a dark green couch, striped chairs, and an ornate oval table. In a nearby corner was a smaller table, with heavy crystal glasses and fine liquor. And on the far wall was a grand stone fireplace, surrounded by two soft damask chairs, comfortable enough for reading and dozing. She’d spent many nights there doing just that.

Slice went the letter opener, revealing the contents for her eyes only. She scanned the penmanship: hurried, sloppy, and slightly smudged from tears. Definitely a relationship problem. Settling into her chair, she began to read the letter.

Dear Lady Agony,

You are a lady of repute. Please tell me what to do. I love the boy next door, but he’s unaware of my feelings. I am certain we possess a special bond, for he smiles at me so. But he’s going to ask another girl to marry him. He told me his plan on the way to the well. I stumbled away, confused, but how I longed to tell him the truth of my feelings. Am I too late?

Devotedly,

Too Late for Love

Amelia dunked her quill in the ink. This one was easy, a drop in the bucket of love letters. She began her response, which would be printed in the magazine. Readers’ letters weren’t included, and a good thing, too. Amelia had a feeling many writers would be embarrassed later by the emotion they’d poured into their requests.

Dear Too Late for Love,

It’s never too late for love. In fact, I prefer the old, and perhaps wiser, adage, Better Late than Never. In your case, it cannot be truer. You love the boy and are late to admit it. Yes. However, there is still time. He hasn’t asked anyone to marry—yet. Best he knows your true feelings before he proceeds. Even if he does not reciprocate them, you will feel secure in the knowledge that you told him. And that is a feeling you can live with. The other is not.

Yours in Secret,

Lady Agony

The next letter was just as clear-cut. It was from a reader who was jealous of her friend’s hair, though she didn’t say so outright. The letter accused the friend of spending too much time dressing her long, blonde, thick locks, but it was obvious to Amelia that the letter writer wished for the hair herself.

Another dunk into the inkwell, and Amelia was poised to respond.

Dear Hair, There, and Everywhere,

Some women are born with great hair. Others are born with great wit, vivacity, or kindness. Cultivate one of the latter. Or purchase a wig. The choice is just that simple.

Yours in Secret,

Lady Agony

She waited a moment before opening the last letter, savoring the unknown contents. It would be tomorrow afternoon before she received more letters, the mysteries that made up her day. Because of the popularity of the column, Grady made certain the letters arrived daily so that she wouldn’t fall behind.

She turned the envelope over in her hands, positioning it in front of the light. A few drops of spring sunshine shone through the windows, making burgundy flecks on the wall as it bounced off the nearby decanter of brandy. Soon a housemaid would be in to start a fire, to warm the chill brought on by the late afternoon. Then Amelia would enjoy a glass of sherry before dressing for dinner, a complicated affair that she had never quite mastered.

She noted the seal of the envelope had been hastily done. Dashed out at the last minute, perhaps, the letter might contain time-sensitive information. Amelia unfolded the paper. The handwriting, no better than chicken scratch, was hard to decipher. Written at a slant, possibly in this morning’s rain burst, it was wrinkled and marked. Yet the writer’s desperation was clear from the first sentence. Amelia scanned the letter twice before dropping her quill, splattering ink on the desk. She grabbed her spectacles and read it a third time. Her eyes must be deceiving her. It was indeed dated this morning.

Dear Lady Agony,

You are my last hope, for I have nowhere else to turn. Could you meet me at St. James’s Park at nine o’clock this evening? Make sure no one follows you. I believe someone is following me. I’ll be at the bench by the pond. You will know me by my red hat. Please make every effort. I’ve witnessed something dreadful, and I fear the worst.

Devotedly,

Charlotte

Postscript: I think my mistress was murdered.


Excerpted from Murder in Postscript by Mary Winters Copyright © 2023 by Mary Winters. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved. 


Mary Winters is the author of the Lady Agony mystery series. A longtime reader of historical fiction and an author of two other mystery series, Mary set her latest work in Victorian England after being inspired by a trip to London. Since then, she’s been busily planning her next mystery—and another trip!


Although I have degrees in Literature and Creative Writing, my love affair with Victorian fiction didn’t start in the classroom but with a monthly book club. I was a young eighteen years old, working a job I didn’t particularly enjoy, when I made the fortuitous decision to join a subscription service. From the moment I received my first chunky paperbacks and pink wine glass, I was hooked. I loved coming home and delving into my historical romances. They were the gateway to other historical fiction, including mysteries, like the Amelia Peabody series.

When I enrolled in college, I had already written my first novel, not surprisingly a historical romance. My professors frowned upon the genre, but I understood the heart of the work. The heroines were nonconformists, constantly challenging the conventions of the time. Their fortitude inspired my own writing a great deal.

By the time I entered graduate school, I put away my romance novel and wrote a literary novel for my thesis. Then, when I graduated, I put away my literary novel and started a mystery series with an amateur sleuth professor.

But always my love for Victorian literature remained, and in 2019, when my family and I took a trip to England, it was reignited. Seeing Regents Park, Piccadilly, Grosvenor Square—all those places I had first read about so many years ago—I knew I wanted to write another book, a mystery, set in the time period. That book became Murder in Postscript, which will be published in 2023. I’m thrilled to see this first dream come true.


 

Edge of Trust Freya Barker Release Blitz! @BuoniAmiciPress #BAPpr #FreyaBarker #fortheloveofbooks #girlswhoread

 #goodreads #greatreads #igbooks #igreaders #igreads #ilovebooks #ilovereading #indieauthors #instablog #instabook #instagood #instagramblogger #instagramstories #instagramupdates #instareads 

Title: Edge of Trust 

Author: Freya Barker 

Genre: Romantic Suspense 

Release Date March 27, 2023 

Hosted by: Buoni Amici Press, LLC. 



Gunpowder and loyalty meets cocktails and ink. I am a laid-back wise guy. A veteran, a friend, a marksman, and a loner. My name is Honon. I may be hesitant to pull the trigger, but am not afraid to fire with the right target in my sights. I am a focused free spirit. A black sheep, a go-getter, a scrapper, and an artist. My name is Emme. I’m single-minded enough to reach my goals, but still moderately flexible when life throws a curveball. We make a reluctant couple—our hesitation evident—but when innocent lives are endangered, and hard-fought trust is challenged, we discover who we can count on. Each other.

AMAZON 

Tweet: #ReleaseBlitz Edge of Trust (Arrow’s Edge, #6) by @freya.barker Purchase your copy today @Amazon https://ctt.ec/a3W08+ #BAPpr #FreyaBarker #fortheloveofbooks

USA Today bestselling author Freya Barker loves writing about ordinary people with extraordinary stories. With forty-plus books already published, she continues to create characters who are perhaps less than perfect, each struggling to find their own slice of happy. Recipient of the ReadFREE.ly 2019 Best Book We've Read All Year Award for "Covering Ollie, the 2015 RomCon “Reader’s Choice” Award for Best First Book, “Slim To None”, Finalist for the 2017 Kindle Book Award with “From Dust”, and Finalist for the 2020 Kindle Book Award with “When Hope Ends”, Freya spins story after story with an endless supply of bruised and dented characters, vying for attention!

Broken Dreams by @Abbie_Roads Reveal! ⁣⁣#AbbieRoads #BrokenDreams #XpressoTours @XpressoTours⁣

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Broken Dreams
Abbie Roads


(Beautiful Nightmare, #2)
Publication date: May 9th 2023
Genres: Adult, Dark Romance, Romance

A stalker. A killer. A v!rg!n hero who will sacrifice himself to save the woman he loves.

FBI Special Skills Consultant Lathan Montgomery has a genetic anomaly that he uses to solve cold cases, but it forces him to live in seclusion. When he saves a woman from a roadside attack, instead of her presence causing him to lose control, she soothes him. For the first time in his life, he experiences love.

But someone is watching them and planning to make them both suffer.

Broken Dreams is the second book in Abbie Roads’ Beautiful Nightmare Series of dark romantic thrillers. It features a v!rg!n hero who never thought he’d find love. If you devour true crime and romance novels then you’ll love a series that combines both in a roller-coaster ride of danger, mind games, and swoon worthy love.

Buy this dangerously dark romance today!

Trigger warning: Depictions of SA and violence.

Previously published under the title Hunt the Dawn

Add to Goodreads / Pre-order

Abbie Roads is the best-selling author of the Fatal Dreams Series and the Fatal Truth Series. Her novels have been finalists in many prestigious contests including The Golden Heart, The Greater Detroit Booksellers Best, The Oklahoma National Readers’ Choice Award, The Write Touch, The Strut Your Stuff Contest, The Aspen Gold Contest, The Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, The Heart of Excellence Readers’ Choice Award, The Midnight Sun, The Kathryn Hayes Contest, The Chanticleer, The Daphne du Maurier, The National Readers’ Choice Award, The New England Readers’ Choice Contest, The Beverly Award, and The Maggie Award. Her debut novel Race the Darkness was Publishers Weekly Top 10 Pick for Fall and Never Let Me Fall is an Amazon Editor’s Pick.

By day Abbie Roads is a mental health counselor always focusing on the bright side. By night she writes on the dark side, putting her characters through the wringer before she gives them their happily-ever-after. She loves a good inspirational quote and is a fan of true crime.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram


26 March 2023

Out in the Surf ,Out in College, Book 10 by Lane Hayes New Release Blitz! @lanehayes3 @indigomarketingdesign #LGBTQIA+

  #contemporary #booklover #bookblogger #bookaddict #romancereadersofinstagram #booknerd #bookworm

Title:  Out in the Surf

Series: Out in College, Book 10

Author: Lane Hayes

Publisher: Lane Hayes

Release Date: March 21

Heat Level: 4 - Lots of Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 41000

Genre: Romance, Contemporary MM Romance, Sports Romance, Bisexual, College Romance

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The hockey player, the surfer, and a lesson neither can forget…
Luca-
I love the beach, and I'm a good athlete. Learning how to surf should be a breeze, right?
Wrong.
In a twist, hockey is nothing like surfing. That's okay—I just need a diversion to round out my new life in So Cal while I figure out what comes next. As long as I keep my head above water, this could be fun.
Bonus…my instructor is hot.
Cal-
Teaching newbies to surf is easy money. Usually. My newest student is a wild card who seems to think his jock status should make him a natural at everything he tries, and I can see why. Luca is…special. He's dynamic, energetic, and fun. It's hard not to like him. But I like him a little too much.
This could be trouble.
Out in the Surf is a low-angst MM romance, bisexual-awakening story. When the teacher becomes the student, it may be time to come out in the surf.

I held out my hand, smirking when he stared at it suspiciously.
“Thanks.”
He pressed his palm against mine, shook my hand, and released it. No big deal, right?
Wrong.
My fingers tingled and my heart rate soared to the stratosphere. I played it cool, though. I hooked my thumbs in my belt loops, and casually glanced up at the street sign before asking, “So…when do you want to schedule your next lesson?”
Luca barked a laugh. “I'm not doing that again. That was single-handedly the most traumatic thing that's happened to me since I moved to Cali. A clear sign I should stay closer to shore and away from surfboards.”
“No, no, no. You've got that wrong,” I cajoled. “It's like I tried to tell you…you've got to get back on that horse. Or surfboard. Don't let fear win.”
“I'm not afraid of surfing. It's more a matter of returning to the scene of the crime.”
“What crime?”
“The kissing crime!” He threw his hands in the air and paced a few feet away.
I pursed my lips to keep my smile in check when he came to a stop in front of me. “Are you going to do it again?”
Luca shrugged. “I didn't intend to do it the first time around. But what if I accidentally stick my tongue down your throat? Don't look at me like that. It could happen.”
“I'm willing to take a chance.” I chuckled. “How about Monday?”
He screwed his features into wide-eyed disbelief. “Really?”
“Really.”
“I can't. School started last week and I can't be late…yet.”
“Wise choice.” I stepped away from the crosswalk to lean against the building’s façade. “Okay, if you have any open mornings, we'll make it work. Otherwise, I'll make time for you on the weekend. Early.”
Luca furrowed his brow. “If I hypothetically agreed, what is ‘early’ to you?”
“Seven a.m.”
“F*ck that.” He snorted with a laugh. “I need my beauty sleep.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to assure him that he didn’t, but that was a strange sentiment coming from another guy. Wasn't it?
“Early bird gets the worm and all that,” I singsonged.
“Hmph. I'll think about it…someday.”
“Sounds fair. Gimme your phone number.” I handed over my cell and let him add his contact info. “I'm free tomorrow morning…just sayin’.”
I was teasing. I was more interested in coaxing an incredulous reaction than anything. And Luca didn't disappoint. He put his hands on his hips and shook his head in mock consternation.
“You're nuts. Certifiable. I wouldn't want to hang out with hungover me if I were you.”
“I've seen you barf. Does it get worse?”
He opened his mouth and closed it. “Wow, I really was a mess that day.”
“You weren't that bad,” I chided playfully.
“Liar,” Luca scoffed. “All right. Call me or text me. We'll have a redo and next time, I promise not to kiss you.”
“I wouldn't mind if you did,” I replied, unthinking.
We both froze.
I wasn't sure who was more surprised. My jaw unhinged while he cocked his head and really looked at me for the first time that night, his eyes roaming my face as if searching for clues.
“So kissing might be okay,” he hummed, narrowing his eyes.
I felt his gaze like a physical touch. It had never occurred to me to wonder how another man saw me, but I had to admit, the flash of naked desire in his expression did something for me.
This was a new one. Luca was gay, or maybe bi. Either way, he was plainly interested in me…and I didn't hate it. In fact, my jeans hugged my crotch a little too tightly, which meant my body appreciated his interest and maybe shared it. And that was pretty…gay.
Was I okay with that?
Purchase at Amazon


 

Lane Hayes loves a good romance! An avid reader from an early age, she has always been drawn to well-told love story with beautifully written characters. Her debut novel was a 2013 Rainbow Award finalist and subsequent books have received Honorable Mentions, and were winners in the 2016, 2017, 2018-2019, 2020-2021 Rainbow Awards. She loves wine, chocolate and travel (in no particular order). Lane lives in Southern California with her amazing husband and her fabulous pup, George.

Website | Facebook | TwitterGoodreads | Instagram | BookBub

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His Fatal Legacy by Heather Atkinson Blog Tour! @heathercrimeauthor @HeatherAtkinso1

 


Edinburgh 1896

Amy Alardyce's once-perfect life is in tatters. Her eldest son, Robert, has come of age, become the master of his own home, and married his childhood love Jane.  But with maturity has come a terrible legacy, and the dark desires Robert inherited from his evil father Matthew, are fighting to get loose.

Whilst Jane is working hard to get her and Robert accepted into fashionable society, poor women are being hunted on the streets of Edinburgh, and Amy fears her son is to blame.  And once the infamous Inspector Murphy takes up the case, Amy has to face a stark choice - denounce her son as a monster or risk her own safety to protect him from the consequences of his lethal actions.

Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3vEn6Bs  


Heather Atkinson is the author of over fifty books – predominantly in the crime fiction genre.  Although Lancashire born and bred she now lives with her family, including twin teenage daughters, on the beautiful west coast of Scotland.  Her gangland series for Boldwood, set on the fictional Gallowburn estate in Glasgow begins with the title Blood Brothers. 
 

My Thoughts

His Fatal Legacy by Heather Atkinson is the third book in the Alardyce Series. It starts up pretty much where the second book left off. Amy Alardyce has remarried to Henry, theirs is a wonderful marriage and Henry has been able to help Amy move past all the tragedy she has had. Amy's eldest, Robert is a problem for her as she sees that he has a dark side to him, like, his father Matthew.

Young maids have been accosted late at night and Amy and Henry feel that Robert is to blame. Robert denies this but they feel otherwise. In spite of Amy and Henry's efforts to keep Robert from marrying his childhood sweetheart, Robert and Amy get married and soon are blessed with a baby, Emily. 

After the birth of his daughter, Robert's proclivities stop for a bit, but his darker side soon takes over. He does not like anyone in society, and won't go to balls or parties with his wife. She tries to convince him that he should do this, so they can get back into society after being ostracized because of who his father was, a lowly footman. He still refuses any invitations to his wife's consternation.

Soon there are murders, and suspicion is still on Robert but he is able to have someone else look guilty, Robert is all about revenge against those who he thinks has wronged him. Inspector Murphy is on the case and he is bound and determined to prove that Robert is at the heart of the crimes. When something happens that ruins everything for him, he disappears.

The story is set in Edinburgh in the late nineteenth century, has a very gothic, chilling atmosphere, and a thoroughly enjoyable read, I read The Missing Girls of Alardyce House, but missed the second book His Cursed Heir. I did find that that was ok, I really did not miss much of the story, it is good to read the in order but I think that they can also be standalone. Heather Atkinson is very good at bringing the past stories into the current book. This is a historical fiction at it's best. I look forward to reading the next in the series Evil at Alardyce House Book #4.

I give this book 5 stars!

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







25 March 2023

Surrender by Lee Schneider Book Spotlight!

 


It is 2050. Kat Keeper, an entrepreneur, hires an AI savant to recreate the consciousness of her husband, who has passed away. Soon, she is drawn into a love triangle with her husband's mind and the man who created it.

Kat learns, only too late, that the man she hired leads a tech company that is working to capture the inner thoughts of all people and use them to control the weather, all tech and learning, and even human will. Kat knows she must stop this, but doesn’t know how. She is pursued by a secret circle of women who say they have the answer, and want her to lead them.

Surrender takes place in a future where a global machine intelligence manages our climate disaster. While a tech company works to harvest every citizen’s thoughts, a secret band of resisters struggles to keep human thought safe and free.

Lee Schneider is the author of screenplays, teleplays, stage plays, short stories, and audio drama podcasts. His thirty-year career in media includes podcast production, documentaries and series with History Channel, Discovery, Court TV, Food Network, Travel Channel, TLC, Dateline NBC and Good Morning America


The founder of Red Cup Agency, a podcast production agency, and an adjunct lecturer on the faculty of the USC School of Architecture, he is also the author of five non-fiction books. Surrender is his first published novel. He lives in Santa Monica, CA with his family. 

Visit Lee at his website, and on TwitterInstagram, and Mastodon.


Friends without Benefits by Evelyn Fenn New Release Blitz! @ninestarpress @indigomarketingdesign #LGBTQIA+

 #contemporary #booklover #bookblogger #bookaddict #romancereadersofinstagram #booknerd #bookworm

Title:  Friends without Benefits

Author: Evelyn Fenn

Publisher:  NineStar Press

Release Date: 03/21/2023

Heat Level: 1 - No Sex

Pairing: No Romance

Length: 93300

Genre: Contemporary, ace, aro, non-binary, coming out, in the closet, over 40

Add to Goodreads

Academic Clare is in a rut. She is in her forties, her job is stressful, and she feels worn down by the personalities and politics in the university department where she works. She has also just broken up with her latest boyfriend.

During one of their regular get-togethers, Clare’s oldest friend shows Clare a newspaper article, pushing her into an exploration of what it means to be asexual.

As Clare figures things out, she meets homoromantic couple, Tristan and Matt, nonbinary Ollie, student Jack, aromantic Janice, and Matt’s cousin, Natalia.

Follow Clare and her new friends through a series of misadventures as they road trip, take part in Pride, suffer a series of misunderstandings, and forge new relationships

Friends without Benefits
Evelyn Fenn © 2023
All Rights Reserved

I bagged a table. U get the drinks LOL!!!!

Clare keyed a quick ok, pressed Send, and dropped her phone into her bag. No matter how much she liked Louisa and how much she usually enjoyed their Tuesday evening get-togethers, Clare wasn’t looking forward to tonight. Only three days before, Clare had broken up with her long-term, long-distance boyfriend, and Louisa was sure to want details.

Clare took a fortifying breath and jogged up the steps that led to the pub’s front door.

The Quill and Scholar, a favourite hangout of postgraduates and lecturers, buzzed with the after-work crowd. Although the pub appeared older than the university, it had opened less than thirty years before when it had capitalised on a fashion for bottled lagers. Since then, the Quill had moved with the times, catering for fashions for real ales and craft beers and, most recently, craft gins.

When she had been a student, Clare had eschewed the Quill’s designer labels in favour of happy hours, Boddington’s, and flavoured schnapps served in test tubes by the chain pubs a couple of hundred yards down the road. Although Clare had never developed a taste for bottled beer and she hated gin, she liked the Quill’s ambience and décor. Plus, nobody could go wrong with the house Chardonnay. Besides, these days, the kinds of places marketed to undergraduates made her feel old.

Clare loosened her scarf, shoved her hat and wrist warmers into her jacket’s pockets, and fought her way through the crowd towards the bar. The room was full of people, many of whom she knew by sight and some by name.

Mikey, an astrophysics postgraduate who moonlighted as a barman, greeted Clare, and said, “The usual?”

“Please.”

He sighed theatrically. “One of these days I’ll get you to branch out. Some of our botanicals are amazing.”

Clare nodded and, not meaning it, said, “One day. Not today.”

While she waited for her drinks, she waved at Sam, an occasional drinking buddy, who was in the throes of writing up her doctoral thesis.

Clare exchanged notes for drinks and change, and then, holding her glasses aloft, she set out to find Louisa.

Clare and Louisa had nothing in common beyond a host of shared memories from their undergraduate days and a friendship that had endured across the years. Clare’s dad had once described Louisa as having more neck than a giraffe. On another occasion, he’d said, “That lass has got more front than the esplanade at Blackpool!” Given that Louisa had, when eight and a half months pregnant, worn a white dress as she headed down the aisle for her second marriage, seeking a blessing in the church of a god she didn’t believe in, Clare supposed Dad might have had a point.

Clare had taken an excessively long time to realise that Dad had a crush on her best friend. Mum thought it was hilarious. She had tried to explain it more than once, but Clare still didn’t get it.

Even though he’d only met her a dozen times over the years, Dad often asked after Louisa. Clare would say that she was fine, and Mum would laugh, kiss the top of Dad’s balding head, and say, “You can dream so long as you don’t trade me in for a younger model or buy a motorcycle!” Then Dad would colour slightly and answer that he was only being polite and that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with the mother of his children.

Clare slalomed her way through the crowd and up the wide, wooden staircase that led to the first floor, where the rooms of the converted Victorian villa were smaller, quieter, and cosier. Her favourite, a former bedroom with a large bay window that offered good views along the busy street and thus afforded great opportunities for people watching, was at the front of the building.

Today, Louisa hadn’t been able to bag seats at the window and, instead, had parked herself at a table pressed against a wall, where she was now frantically working the screen of her smartphone.

In her business suit and heavy bling, her overcoat and accessories neatly arranged on a neighbouring chair, Louisa stuck out like a gemstone among pebbles. She had allowed her knee-length skirt to ride up slightly, thus emphasising her long, slender legs, and revealing kneecaps along with a hint of thigh. Thanks to genetics, a lot of self-discipline, soft lighting, and hair dye, Louisa passed for a good decade younger than her forty-and-a-few years. Louisa also dyed her eyebrows and eyelashes; Clare hadn’t known people did such things until they’d shared a flat in their second year at uni.

Even this late in the day, Louisa’s makeup appeared flawless. She wore matching vermillion lipstick and nail polish, the latter almost certainly the result of a mani-pedi, and her eye shadow and eyeliner looked as though they had been applied by a draughtsman.

Clare slid Louisa’s usual in front of her. Louisa glanced up and gave her the barest of acknowledgements as she continued working her phone.

The immaculate nail polish glittered with reflected light as she finished typing and sent a message. “There. Done. I’m all yours.”

“Everything okay?”

“Oh, yes.” Louisa brushed Clare’s concern away. “Just a teensy crisis at work. All sorted now.”

Knowing Louisa and the general nature of her job, Clare was certain that, whatever the crisis had been, there would have been nothing teensy about it. Only major crises got escalated as far as Louisa, who had always been able to make light of the most catastrophic emergencies. Clare envied her insouciant self-confidence.

There was a pattern to their evenings together. Glass one would carry them through an exchange of war stories and a sympathetic hearing of each other’s colleague-related character assassinations. Sometime during drink two, having got all their work angst out of their systems, they would move onto subjects of greater mutual interest. Glass three was when they got to the difficult topics, the ones that laid souls bare. Today was going to be at least a three-glass evening. They wouldn’t get to—let alone through—the interrogation otherwise.

Sure enough, when there was barely an eighth of an inch of liquid at the bottom of Clare’s second glass, and Clare’s perception was blurring around the edges, Louisa asked, “How were the in-laws?”

“The…what?”

“You know. Gavin’s parents. The people you went to visit at the weekend? The parents of your SO?”

SO. Significant other.

“My insignificant other, you mean,” said Clare, doing her best to copy Louisa’s style of banter. “We split up.”

“Oh.”

There was something in the way Louisa said, “Oh,” that made Clare bristle. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well. You and Gavin. You’ve always struck me as a couple more in word than deed.” Clare tried to hide her shock at Louisa’s astute observation by gulping the dregs of her drink. “Did you even do it with Gavin? Ever?”

Clare’s silence spoke volumes.

“What was wrong with him?”

“With…him?” Clare asked. “You tell me. You set us up.”

“I don’t know him that well. So, tell me. What’s wrong with him?”

“Nothing, as far as I know. We went out a few times. We didn’t click.” She stood up. “I’ll get the next round.” If they were going to have this conversation, she was going to need that third glass, and maybe another after that.

NineStar Press | Books2Read


I lived in five different cities, spanning two continents, before leaving crowds and commuting behind and settling somewhere that official statistics describe as “Very Remote Rural”.

I have made up stories for as long as I can remember, and I have been writing them down for almost as long. I cut my creative writing teeth on fan fiction in the days of paper fanzines and, later, online. I had fun but eventually grew tired of playing in other people’s sandpits. Turns out, it’s more fun to create sandpits of my own.

I have worked in the public, private, and voluntary sectors, with roles ranging from number crunching and lecturing to mucking out cowsheds and toilet cleaning. I currently hold down a day job while daydreaming of writing full time.  Find Evelyn on Twitter.

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One lucky winner will receive a $50.00 NineStar Press Gift Code! 

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24 March 2023

The Last Ride by @anyasummersauthor Reveal! #amreading #TheLastRide #AnyaSummers #XpressoTours @XpressoTours

  #oneclick #romance #contemporaryromance #romanceaddict #bookishnews

The Last Ride
Anya Summers


(SEALs on Wheels, #1)
Publication date: May 9th 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

I hate her.
I can’t forgive what she did.
But she’s the first one on the list.

One final ride with my crew.
One last chance to fulfill an oath sworn in blood.

Yet I don’t expect the chemistry between us to knock me on my ass.
And I don’t know how to reconcile my feelings, my need for her.
It goes against every vow I swore.

But I can’t stay away.
She needs me. My body. My soul. My protection.
With danger stalking her, I’ll use every trick I learned as a SEAL to defend her.

Because nobody messes with what belongs to me.

Grab this steamy, enemies to lovers, stand-alone where a Navy SEAL clashes with a stripper, as they grapple with an attraction they cannot deny.

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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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Rohan and Nyra and the Big Sister's Bet by Anthony C. Delauney Book Review!

 

Rohan can’t wait for his big sister Nyra to come home, but when she does, she has a surprise in store for him.

What starts off as a fun game of playing catch soon turns into a powerful, loving lesson on gambling and greed that Rohan will never forget. Discover what awaits in Big Sister’s Bet!

Rohan and Nyra and Big Sister’s Bet is the third book in the Owning the Dash Kids’ Book series from Anthony C. Delauney, award-winning author and founder of Owning the Dash, LLC, an organization dedicated to helping educate and inspire families as they work to achieve their financial goals.

Hardcover

Published March 7, 2023

Anthony Delauney is a Certified Financial Planner Practitioner, author and “financial dadvisor”. He created Owning the Dash, LLC to promote childhood financial literacy and to guide families on their journey to financial freedom.

https://owningthedash.com/author/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Anthony-C-Dela...
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OwningtheDash/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anthony.del...
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/owningthedash/
 
My Thoughts
Rohan and Nyra and the Big Sister's Bet is about two siblings, Nyra older and in a wheelchair make a bet with Rohan in a game involving playing catch with a football. She bets a dollar for every catch that Rohan makes with the stipulation that if he drops the ball he loses all his money. 
They start playing and Rohan catches up to 25 times, earning him $25. He then gets a bit greedy and thinks that he can keep playing and catching. He learns that that is not always true, he fumbles a catch and loses all his earnings. The lesson he learned was that life is full of choices and you need to remember what is at stake because if you make the wrong choice it can cost you. 
This short book, the right size for a child is well written and the pictures are very colorful and pretty. I think that this is the perfect book for a child, it not only is a cute story it teaches a valuable lesson as well.
I give it 5 stars!


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