"Sweet Southern Trouble" (Michele Summer) SPOTLIGHT TOUR with GIVEAWAY!

BOOK INFORMATION

Title: Sweet Southern Trouble

Author: Michele Summers

Pub Date: May 2, 2017

ISBN: 9781402293641

BOOK SUMMARY

An ambitious Southern belle

Marabelle Fairchild knows she’s a gal who can get things done. Feeling unappreciated at the exclusive private school where she’s a kindergarten aide and varsity tennis coach, Marabelle determines to score with the next big fundraiser. What she doesn’t expect? A smokin' hot football coach to throw her off her game...

A reclusive NFL bachelor...

NFL coach Nick Frasier is Raleigh’s most eligible bachelor, but he wants to focus on his career…not his playboy status. He doesn’t need a smart-mouthed, pint-sized kindergarten teacher pestering him. So he cuts Marabelle a deal—in exchange for Nick sponsoring a bachelor auction starring him and his gorgeous celebrity pals, Marabelle will pose as his fiancée to ward off unwanted advances.

What could possibly go wrong?

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AUTHOR INFO

MICHELE SUMMERS writes about small-town life with a Southern flair, and has her own interior design business in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Miami, Florida. Both professions feed her creative appetite and provide a daily dose of humor. |

The best things about the South can be debated until the cows come home. For me, the list changes as often as our weather. I was born and raised a Carolina Blue Tarheel, but after college, I made my home in Miami, Florida and stayed for over twenty years (A different kind of south altogether). But since returning to my Tarheel state, it’s quite evident, some things have changed…and some things have not!

Here’s one of my favorite things about the south:

College Rivalries: I live in the heart of the ACC and yeah, we love our football, which includes tailgating with barbeque, fried chicken, deviled eggs, pimento cheese and sweet tea. But football is kind of like the appetizer, leading up to the main course. We use football season to get in shape and start flexing our school color muscles, because what we really cut our teeth on and can cause more devastating arguments than the Presidential debates is…basketball! Make that college basketball. Those buzzer-beater games where we all sit on the edge of our seats, praying our team wins before we succumb to our final heart attack. Where we cheer and cry along with our favorite players and shake our fists and curse at the blind refs or coaches who call bad plays. My kids have vivid memories of being shoved in their bedrooms during basketball games, when they were little, because mommy couldn’t be held responsible for her colorful language.

We take our basketball as seriously as we take our fried chicken, NASCAR or sweet tea.

EXCERPT

“Coach Frasier, may I be perfectly frank?”

“Have you ever been anything else?”

Marabelle hesitated before answering. “Well, no, but I think it’s an admirable trait.”

Nick bit the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling. “Then certainly don’t change on my behalf.”

Blinking huge, chocolate-brown eyes, Marabelle looked more determined. Her face—sans the paint—was attractive. Faint freckles were scattered across her small, pert nose, but her mouth—by far the main attraction—had that bee-stung look that Hollywood stars coveted. For a moment, he wondered if her lips were as soft as they were full, if she tasted…

Where had those thoughts come from? She’s a kindergarten teacher, for chrissakes. He punted those unwanted thoughts right out of the stadium, and got his head back in the game by focusing on her small hands, which seemed to talk even more than her sexy, full mouth.

Marabelle paced in front of the large, white, dry-erase board. “Trinity Academy has a very important fund-raiser every spring that the whole community supports, and this year is going to be extra special, because they’re raising money to improve the football field and add two more tennis courts. And—”

Nick had heard this pitch a million times. Same setup, different location. “And you want me to contribute to the fund? Right?”

She stopped pacing. “Well, it’s more than just your money. Don’t get me wrong, your money is huge.” Nick chuckled at her lack of tact, but she ignored him, intent on lining up dry-erase markers in alternating colors.

“We need your help in contacting your celebrity friends and asking them to participate in the golf and tennis tournaments,” she said, leaning the markers against the board. “And we want you to ask the single, eligible men you know to sell themselves in our bachelor auction,” she finished all in one breath and turned, knocking all the markers to the floor.

“Um, what?” Nick shook his head as he bent to help her gather the scattered markers. This had to be a joke. “Are you secretly filming me for YouTube or something? Is this some sort of practical joke?” He’d had enough of being secretly filmed to last a lifetime, and if this fairy-tale character thought she could pull a fast one on him, she had no idea who she was up against. His gaze darted around the classroom, searching for a hidden camera. The room looked clean. Then he smirked. “Did my offensive coordinator set this up?”

Kneeling on the floor with puckered brows, Marabelle asked, “Who?”

Nick handed over three reds and two blues. “Coach Prichard. We’ve been arguing about the draft, but I didn’t think he was this upset.”

Right on cue, she turned stern schoolteacher. Standing, she released the handful of markers on the metal tray, her back as straight as if fused with a goalpost. “Coach Frasier, this is not some reality TV show, and I don’t even know your offensive coordinator. But if he’s upset, I suggest you make nice, and maybe you guys will start winning some ballgames.”

Splaying hands on his hips, he delivered one of his fiercest stares. “You tetched in the head or something? Are you telling me how to coach a professional football team?”

Marabelle didn’t flinch. A room full of five-year-olds must be tougher than he thought. Curling her fingers around a ruler in the metal tray as if she might rap his knuckles, she said in the same firm, schoolteacher voice, “If there’s dissension among your staff, it would be prudent to smooth things over. Arguing with your staff is bound to affect the players. It just goes to reason.” Tap, tap went the ruler in her palm.

Nick swore under his breath. Many a rookie had backed down from his most intimidating stare. Its effect was legendary. But not on crazy Marabelle. “Ms. Fairchild, you don’t know jack shit about coaching football.” Nick rarely lost his temper off the field, but she’d managed to push all his buttons. He knew his young team had struggled last season. He certainly didn’t need reminding from little Miss Muffet. He had the team’s owner, general manager, and the press for that. But Nick believed in his team. They had raw talent, and with good coaching and proper discipline, they’d only get better. Yet, it still rankled when he was confronted with their less-than-stellar record.

He didn’t need this hassle. “I’m out of here,” he muttered, starting for the door.

“Coach Frasier, please wait!”

Nick whipped around to squash the crazy, ruler-toting fairy once and for all, when three high school boys barged through the classroom door, carrying large tennis bags over their shoulders.

“Hey, Coach, you comin’ to practice today?”

“What?” The theme song from The Twilight Zone played in his head. Why would he be coming to practice here?

“Whoa! You’re Nick Frasier,” said the tallest of the boys as all three gazes landed on him.

Nick plastered on a smile, not wanting his scowl to be reported all over social media. “Hey, guys. What’s up?” All three eagerly shook his hand, talking at once. “You boys play for the tennis team?” Nick asked in between introductions and hand pumping.

“Yeah. We’re heading to practice and wondering if Coach is coming.”

“Coach?” Still confused, he searched their faces.

“Surprise, surprise,” Marabelle chimed softly next to him.

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"Between a Wolf and a Hard Place" (Terry Spear) ★★★★ VIRTUAL TOUR with GIVEAWAY!

BOOK INFORMATION

Title: Between a Wolf and a Hard Place

Author: Terry Spear

Series: Silver Town Wolf, #7

ISBN: 9781492645115

Pubdate: April 4, 2017

Genre: Paranormal

BOOK SUMMARY

In Silver Town, the secrets run deep…

Alpha werewolf Brett Silver has an ulterior motive when he donates a prized family heirloom to the Silver Town hotel. Ellie MacTire owns the place with her sisters, and he’s out to get her attention.

Ellie is even more special than Brett knows. She’s a wolf-shifter with a unique ability to commune with the dead. Ellie has been ostracized, so she protects herself and those she loves by revealing nothing—not even when strange and dangerous things begin to happen in Silver Town. And especially not to the devastatingly handsome and generous wolf who’s determined to win her over…

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EXCERPT

He smiled and leaned down to kiss her. No ghosts out here to interrupt them. Just a chilly fall day when green-needled pines rubbed elbows with quaking golden aspen, their leaves dancing gaily in the cool breeze.

Brett’s gentle kiss turned hot and needy. No way was she pushing him away this time, ghost or no. This was what she’d needed. A kiss from a wolf who didn’t automatically dismiss her ghostly abilities. A man who was warm and gentle, but also passionate and oh so desirable.

This time Ellie did what she’d wanted to before, slipping her tongue into his mouth and stroking his. He crushed her against his body, revealing how passion- ately needy he was. She’d never seen a male shift who was aroused like that, and she had every intention of adding the image to her bedroom fantasy tonight. His lips continued to brush against hers, slowing the pace as if he were trying to get his rampant urges under control.

As hard as he was, he wasn’t succeeding.

He finally brushed his mouth against her hair with a long, lingering kiss. “Ready to run?”

His voice was heavy with lust, and she was having a difficult time backing off and letting the poor wolf get his erection under control. Instead, she wanted to rub against him, like wolves did, to show she was just as interested in him as he was in her.

Their pheromones had already spiked, boosting the burning need to consume and claim each other as mated wolves. Consummating a relationship only ended one way for wolves: mated for life.

Brett’s angular face softened as he pulled away, still holding her arms as if he wasn’t quite ready to let go.

“One of the things I wanted to show you is my great- aunt’s home,” he said as Ellie rested her hands on his hips, barely hearing what he was saying as she remem- bered how his erection had felt against her abdomen.

“It was my uncle’s after that, but it’s in ruins now. Lightning hit a pine tree, which caught fire. It started a fire in the woods, and my great-aunt’s home was con- sumed. The stone floor and the two chimneys are still standing. The forest has regrown up around it. It’s a lovely place to visit, near the river.”

That got her attention. “Did anybody die there?” She really didn’t want to meet any ghosts on this wolf run.

“No. My great-aunt had already died, and my uncle made it out just fine. Are you ready to run?”

“I am.” Though she’d really enjoyed all the kissing that led up to the run. She was relieved she wouldn’t be plagued by ghosts. At least she hoped she wouldn’t be. That didn’t mean someone else might not be haunting the area.

They finally released each other and began to yank off their clothes.

Because of the cold, Ellie hurried to strip as fast as he did. She had fully intended to avert her eyes and not check out his arousal, but she couldn’t resist peeking. As soon as she did, she got an eyeful—the cold didn’t seem to affect him one bit. When she glanced up to see if he had seen her look, Brett pulled off his shirt and smiled at her.

Her whole body warmed, and she swore waves of heat were radiating off her.

Naked now, she quickly called on the warming qual- ity of the shift, her body transforming in the blur of the change, the cold on her skin dissipating. She dropped to her four paws, her winter coat warming her as the snow- flakes settled on the outer guard hairs and keeping the snow from melting against her skin. Brett had already shifted and was waiting for her. She nudged his face in greeting before he licked hers and raced off downstream away from the falls.

She watched him loping through the woods, the strength of his muscles, his beautiful furry, black-tipped tail held stately behind him, and his head held high, smelling the air, watchful, alert.

CAT'S REVIEW

"Between a Wolf and a Hard Place" by Terry Spear.  This is a sweet and endearing story - I truly enjoyed it.  It's an easy read that is filled with friendship and family, a bit of suspense and even a touch of angst.  Everything that is needed to make a story flow and keep the mind and heart of the reader engaged.  The characters were real (well, as real as a shifter can be) and likable.  Both our Hero and heroine warmed my heart - they were true to each other, even when obstacles appeared in their way.  The romance blossoms and blooms and was simply lovely to read.  The secondary characters, including Brett's aunt, were fun and added so much to the story.  This one certainly falls into the paranormal world, with shifters and ghosts and supernatural stuff but, even with all of that, it is simply a love story.  And Ms. Spear did a wonderful job.  It's not filled with sex scenes or lusting after the other, but with heartfelt feelings and actions.   I say thumbs up for this one!   (received ARC for honest review)

★★★★

AUTHOR INFO

USA Today bestselling author TERRY SPEAR has written over 35 paranormal romances featuring werewolf and jaguar shapeshifters. In 2008, Heart of the Wolf was named a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year. A retired officer of the U.S. Army Reserves, Terry also creates award-winning teddy bears that have found homes all over the world. She lives in Spring, Texas.

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Review copy and Prize copy provided by SOURCEBOOKS

"Jordan's Return" (Samantha Chase) ★★★★ with GIVEAWAY!!

BOOK SUMMARY

For the first time in print, New York Times and USA Today bestseller Samantha Chase’s debut novel is a heartwarming story of second chances

WILL ONE SUMMER TOGETHER

All Jordan Manning wants is a quiet summer on the Virginia coast with her sons to recover from a near-fatal accident and an abusive relationship. Her plans to find a new direction for her future are turned upside down when she runs into the first man who ever broke her heart…and he’s determined to win it back.

BE ENOUGH TO HEAL OLD WOUNDS?

Rob Tyler thought he’d moved on, but when fate drops a second chance with his first love right in his path, his feelings rush back stronger than ever. Rob is determined to give Jordan the future they should have had years ago, but making up for past mistakes isn’t easy…

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CAT'S REVIEW

"Jordan's Return" by Samantha Chase.  Ms. Chase is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors.  Her stories are heartfelt and elicit emotions from sadness and longing to happiness and belonging.  This story tells the tale of Jordan, a woman recovering from some tragedy in her life.   She meets up with her old flame, Rob.  These two were perfect together.  I adored both of them.  They both have issues that they need to deal with before either of them can move forward - either alone or together.   Ms. Chase superbly writes the path towards healing and love for this pair.  They need to work hard to get to that happy place and, as the reader, we follow along feeling all the emotions that go along with that journey.  This is a contemporary story that, while a feel good tale, also shows the hard emotions that come with broken and hurting hearts.  (received copy for honest review)

★★★★

AUTHOR INFO

About Samantha Chase:

Samantha Chase, a creative writing teacher, released her debut novel, Jordan’s Return, in November 2011. Since then, she has published seventeen more titles and has become a New York Times and USA Todaybestselling author. She lives with her husband of twenty-four years and their two sons in Wake Forest, North Carolina.

EXCERPT

Without looking up, she heard Rob murmur something to the boys and then heard the sound of footsteps heading down the hallway to their bedroom and the door closing. He came and sat next to Jordan and took both of her hands in his.

“I’m sorry, Jordan. I’m afraid that was my fault,” he confessed as he ran his thumbs over her knuckles. “We were talking while out on the boat today and they mentioned wanting to go to the park. I told them how great it was and I got them all wound up about it. I really had no idea this was a topic you and the boys had already discussed. I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault, Rob. You’d think living close to the park that we’d go, but there never seemed to be the time.” She smiled weakly at him, reveling in the feel of his strong hands wrapped around hers. She wanted to draw on that strength, have it fill her and take all her pain away.

That thought nearly stopped her breath; if just having him touch her hands gave her such a strong reaction, how was she ever going to come to grips with just being friends? Who was she kidding—now that she knew Kelly wasn’t a threat, the thought of being just friends with Rob was completely unappealing.

She looked at his face and saw he was waiting for her to continue. “The thing is, I get tired so easily still and I just can’t do all the things they want me to. Believe it or not, up until about six weeks ago, I was still using a cane to get around.”

Rob dropped her hands and kicked the chair out from under him. He paced the length of the kitchen with a scowl on his face. Jordan eyed him hesitantly. She had never in all her life seen Rob when he was angry. She remembered Eric’s anger well. He had directed it at her often enough during their marriage and even well into their divorce. She silently prayed what she was about to witness wouldn’t be anything like what she’d experienced in the past.

“Jordan,” he snapped but then caught himself. He took a moment to breathe and calm himself down before beginning again. “Jordan, I am just sick inside when I think about what you and the boys have gone through. I know I can’t erase any of it, but dammit, it breaks my heart to see them look at you that way!”

Jordan finally let the tears she was fighting back fall. She knew exactly what he meant. “It’s not easy for me either, Rob,” she sobbed. “I have to live with the bad decisions I’ve made every day, and unfortunately, my children have to pay the price for them. A normal woman would have taken her children someplace fun for a vacation, but because of what I am now, we have to take quiet vacations where they have to look after me!” As her tears freely flowed, Rob stopped his pacing and came to kneel down beside her.

“Look,” he said as he reached up and wiped the tears from her face with his thumbs. “Let me do this for them. Please.”

“Do what?” She sniffled.

“I want to take us all away for the weekend.” He stopped and waited for her refusal. When she stared at him with wide eyes and a wet grin, he went on. “We’ll leave on Friday night and drive up. We’ll get a hotel room or a suite someplace, and we’ll spend all day Saturday at Kings Dominion and then spend part of the day Sunday relaxing around the hotel before coming home.”

Home. Oh, how he would love to have a home with Jordan and the boys that they all could come back to and live together.

Calm down there, Romeo. You’re going all soft and emotional and way ahead of yourself. Get a grip!

“Rob,” she began, “I can’t. I—”

“Shh. You can go at your own pace. I’ll do all the running around. You can take as many breaks as you like—sit down in the shade and enjoy the view, have a snack, whatever you want. The boys will get to enjoy the rides and you can sit back knowing they are having a good time.”

Rob let that scenario play through Jordan’s mind for a moment before asking, “What do you think?”

“That’s far too much, Rob,” she said and reached up to touch his face. The fact that this man wanted to do something nice for her and the boys touched her more than anything else in the world could have. It had been so long since she’d known this type of kindness, no, tenderness from someone, and she wasn’t sure how to respond.

“It’s not too much, Jordan. I want to do this for you and the boys. Trust me. It’ll be fun. Come on. What do you say?” His eyes were sweet and pleading, and Jordan would have given him anything in that moment. Staring deeply into his eyes, she knew she was lost.

“I say you are the sweetest man I’ve ever known.” She leaned in and kissed him briefly on the lips, only meaning to express gratitude, but at the initial contact, she realized it wasn’t enough.

Rob still held her face in his hands and Jordan reached up to do the same to his as they tasted and teased each other’s lips with shy remembrance. They nipped at each other, both painfully holding back.

Jordan sighed and leaned in to him, and all Rob’s restraint left.

He slanted his mouth over hers again and again, and when he gently probed at her soft lips with his tongue, she willingly opened for him and let out a soft cry of pleasure.

And then found herself alone. Rob stood and released her while he caught his breath. She feared she had disappointed him in some way. Maybe she had misread the signals but she thought he wanted her as much as she wanted him. Placing her face in her hands, she cringed with embarrassment. And then he was back at her side.

“Jordan? I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to get so carried away. I…I promise I won’t let that happen again. I’m not expecting anything from you in return for this weekend, that’s not why I asked, so please relax. I promise to keep my hands to myself.” There was a trace of desperation in his voice that caused Jordan’s head to snap up. Her eyes were full of questions.

“I don’t think I understand.”

Looking down at the ground because he couldn’t bring himself to look her in the eye, he spoke. “I know you’ve just been through a hellish few months and you’re here to recover, and I go and practically attack you. I’m so sorry. I don’t want you to worry about me pouncing. I promise to control myself and…” He stopped speaking at the sound of her soft laughter. “What’s so funny?”

“Pouncing?” she laughed. “I think we’d have to admit that we both pounced. You have nothing to be sorry for. I just thought you were regretting kissing me because…well…”

“What, Jordan?”

“Because you didn’t enjoy it,” she admitted in a quiet voice.

She couldn’t bring herself to look at him either, but he left her no choice. Using his index finger, Rob lifted her chin so she was forced to meet his gaze.

“Oh, I enjoyed it,” he said softly as he inched closer to her. “I enjoyed it very much.” His lips touched hers briefly. “In fact, I’ll probably dream about it for a very long time.”

Unfortunately, they couldn’t let it go any further than that. Noises were drifting down the hallway from the boys’ room and they both knew this would lead them nowhere for right now.

Resting her forehead on his, she asked, “Are you sure you really want to do this? An entire weekend with my children has been known to take down many brave adults.”

Rob stood and took her in his arms and held her close. She felt so good, and he just absorbed the sensations before speaking. “I’ll make all the arrangements,” he stated. “Besides,” he added playfully, “it isn’t fair for them to get stuck going to a theme park with a girl who doesn’t fully appreciate all the scary rides.” He winked at her and stepped away.

“Oh, I see. So this isn’t really about helping me out, this is to spare Joseph and Jake the embarrassment of having a chicken for a mom, is that it? The fact that you are just a big kid who enjoys thrill rides is just a bonus, right?”

“Absolutely,” he said as he headed down the hall to talk to the boys, leaving Jordan standing in the kitchen, smiling at his retreating form.

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"Unbound" (Sara Humphreys) GET IT TODAY FOR $0.99!!

BOOK SUMMARY

The forces that bind them can also tear them apart...

Zachary McKenna is a warrior shapeshifter from the Lion Clan, trying to catch a break in the sun and surf of Mexico. Mai Tais and scantily clad beach beauties are just what he needs after his last battle. But the fun doesn't last long before a beautiful young woman is mugged on his doorstep and Zach is pulled right back into the fray.

Zach has no idea of the danger Annabelle has unwittingly brought to his doorstep, until he discovers that losing her will almost certainly destroy him...

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AUTHOR INFO

Sara is a graduate of Marist College, with a B.A. Degree in English Literature & Theater. Her initial career path after college was as a professional actress. Some of her television credits include, A&E Biography, Guiding Light, Another World, As the World Turns and Rescue Me.

In 2013 Sara's novel UNTAMED won two PRISM awards--Dark Paranormal and Best of the Best. Sara has been a lover of both the paranormal and romance novels for years. Her sci-fi/fantasy/romance obsession began years ago with the TV Series STAR TREK and an enormous crush on Captain Kirk. That sci-fi obsession soon evolved into the love of all types of fantasy/paranormal; vampires, ghosts, werewolves, and of course shape shifters. Sara is married to her college sweetheart, Will. They live in New York with their 4 boys. For a full list of Sara's books and reading order, please visit her website at http://novelromance.net/books/reading-order

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