New! Pre-order Delicious Heat by Sadira Stone

Delicious Heat by Sadira StoneHurry!! Pre-order until Jan 4!

Blurb:
Cupid has lousy timing.

After kicking her cheating husband to the curb, nurse Anna Khoury discovers she’s pregnant. When Bangers Tavern’s hunky chef makes heart eyes at her, she dismisses that delicious thrill as the last thing she needs. Single motherhood will take all her strength and focus. Anna’s battered heart can’t take another blow.

Chef Diego Vargas is aiming higher than burgers and tater tots. His dream—his own food truck, the Empanada Angel, but he’ll need his family’s support to pull it off. Meeting Anna leaves him thunderstruck, even though his attraction to her threatens all his plans. Call it fate, call him crazy, but he’s determined to prove he’s in it for keeps.

With a belligerent ex-husband and two overprotective families set on breaking them up, Anna and Diego will need more than red-hot passion to pull them through. His career and her baby’s future are on the line.

Come back to Bangers Tavern for a spicy tale of forbidden love that will warm your heart…and other parts…and make you hungry for empanadas!

Buy links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HRJW5CN?ref_=pe_3052080_276849420
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w?ean=2940162472384
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/delicious-heat
Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/id1592832791
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59644171-delicious-heat

Excerpt:
When the tots were crispy and golden, Diego layered on the toppings: shredded extra-sharp Tillamook cheddar, crumbled pepper bacon, paper-thin slices of green onion, sauteed garlic mushrooms, pickled sweet-hot pepper slices, sour cream, and a drizzle of his house-made spicy ketchup. Heart attack on a plate. He hoped Charlie’s sister was hungry. Was she as pretty as Charlie?

He smoothed his apron and blotted his sweaty forehead. “I’m just gonna deliver these.”

At the bar, he found bartenders Kiara and River, along with all three servers, huddled around a brunette knockout in a curve-skimming red dress.

She glanced up. Their gazes met and held. Everything else slowed down.

Those last few steps to the bar felt like being towed through honey. Her espresso-dark eyes widened, sparkling under the Christmas lights. Her plump lips parted. Her chest rose and fell.

She’s a goddess.

He set the container of tots before her, removed his cap, and scrubbed a hand through his squashed hair. She echoed the gesture, winding a chestnut curl around her slender fingers.

Abuelita had told him the story of when she and Abuelo first met. “It was like a golden rope wrapped around my heart and pulled me to him. It holds us together still.”

At the time, he’d laughed off her hyperbole. But now, in this electric moment, Diego understood exactly what she meant.

“Hi.” The angel murmured, her voice low and musical, like a cello. “Did you make these?”

Dumbstruck by her beauty, he could only nod.

She lifted a tot to her lips, inhaled the steam rolling off it, and sighed.

He thanked the kitchen gods for the apron hiding his erection.

She took a bite, then her head lolled back on a groan. “Soooo good.”

Charlie narrowed her eyes and moved closer to her sister, bristling with protective vibes. He’d do the same if someone was eyeing his little sister like a tasty snack.

Say something, idiot! He cleared his throat. “They go really well with the Port Angeles Amber.” He hooked a thumb over his shoulder toward the beer taps.

Delicious Heat by Sadira StoneHer gaze dropped, and the corner of her mouth hitched up in a shy half-smile. “Wish I could try it, but I’m pregnant.”

No ring on her left hand, but a pale indentation where one had recently been. Divorced? Please let her be single. Please, please, please.

“Oh. Well then, enjoy, Miss…”

“Anna.” Though it didn’t seem possible, her wide smile made her even more beautiful.

Flushed and breathless, he backed toward the kitchen and bonked into something soft.

“Watch where you’re going, Romeo.” With a chuckle, Dawn grasped his shoulders, spun him around, and sent him on his way with a gentle shove.

What are you doing? his common sense shrieked. She’s pregnant! But he allowed himself a final glance over his shoulder. She popped another tot into her lush mouth and winked. He waggled his fingers and pushed through the swinging doors, then collapsed against the wall, clutching his heart.

“Whatsa matter with you?” Shelby asked with a snort.

He closed his eyes and heaved a happy sigh. “I just met the woman I’m going to marry.”

Delicious Heat by Sadira StoneOrder your copy of Delicious Heat today!

Sadira Stone:
Sadira StoneAward-winning contemporary romance author Sadira Stone spins steamy, smoochy tales set in small businesses—a quirky bookstore, a neighborhood bar, a vintage boutique… Her stories highlight found family, friendship, and the sizzling chemistry that pulls unlikely partners together. When she emerges from her writing cave in Las Vegas, Nevada (which she seldom does), she can be found in belly dance class, or strumming her ukulele, perhaps exploring the West with her charming husband, or cooking up a storm, and always gobbling all the romance books. For a guaranteed HEA (and no cliffhangers!) visit Sadira at www.sadirastone.com.

I’d love to hear from you! Please visit me on all the socials.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sadirastone/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SadiraStone
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18568049.Sadira_Stone
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/sadira-stone
Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/Sadira-Stone/e/B07KWK5FBX
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/sadira0641/
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Author newsletter: https://eepurl.com/dKLMP2

Charity Sunday: Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation

How Charity Sunday works: for every comment made on this blog post, I will donate money to the charity named. The same promise is made for every blog site listed in the group–click the Linky Links link at the bottom of this post to see the list of participants and read/comment on any of them to see a donation go to that blogger’s charity. We’re all different! Thanks for your help and your participation!


I’m dedicating this month’s Charity Sunday to Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation because the book I’m featuring is Finding a Christmas Miracle (written with my pal, Jan Selbourne). Jan and I wrote two novellas to make up the book and our heroes are enlisted men in their respective armies during Vietnam. They don’t die but dying is a chance every military member knows could happen. And if it does, Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation is here to help pick up the pieces for the children who need help with school expenses and counseling. This is a 4-star rated organization in Charity Navigator with 100% ratings in both Financial and Accountability arenas—I haven’t seen that before.

“Our mission is to provide college scholarships and educational counseling to military children who have lost a parent in the line of duty.” Please comment on this post and help me send a good donation to this worthwhile group!

Finding a Christmas Miracle by Jan Selbourne and Anne KristFinding a Christmas Miracle
Two exceptional novellas by award-winning authors, Jan Selbourne and Anne Krist

Blurb:
Two men are engulfed in a war no one understands or wants—Vietnam. They’re both hoping for a miracle with little expectation of finding it.

Finding a Christmas Miracle by Jan Selbourne and Anne KristJan Selbourne lends her award-winning writing talent to A Miracle in the Outback. Nick Saunders is in a hurry to escape a family argument and also to return to his Army base in Wagga Wagga. He doesn’t need another complication. Rachel Garth is a woman with a broken down car, a small girl, a deadly snake, and a baby on the way. She needs Nick’s help. He doesn’t know it, but he needs hers, too.

In award-winning author Anne Krist’s The Miracle of Coming Home, Army PFC Tom Stabler wins a trip to his parents’ Nebraska farm for Christmas. He needs the time away from the war. Lately, he’s been feeling lost and too alone. Trouble is, being home is almost as bad. Then Susan Swensen arrives, just as sweet and pretty as he remembers. Can Susan help him find himself again, or will it take a miracle?

Buy link:
Universal link https://books2read.com/u/3n2KvK

Excerpt:
Awake now, Tom wondered if he’d ever adjust to the feeling of safety again, ever truly believe it existed. He feared he’d always be peering into shadows for the hidden enemy or listening for the almost silent, deadly snick of a landmine trip.

Falling back on the pillow, he stared at the posters on the opposite wall, illuminated by weak moonlight shining through the window. One was for a rock concert held in Omaha four years ago. He’d wanted to take Susan Swensen, but her father wouldn’t let her go the hundred-plus miles into the city with him. Too far, he’d said in his thick Scandinavian accent. Too much can go wrong with a car. Young people can get stranded. Alone.

The last was said with a long, thoughtful stare right into Tom’s soul. How had the man known of Tom’s evil intentions to fake a car breakdown in order to make time with his daughter? Eventually, when she was accepted into nursing school, Mr. Swensen had let Susan go to Omaha. By then, Tom had gone much farther. All the way to Hell, in fact.

The other poster hailed the Fighting Hawks, his high school football team, on which he’d been the star linebacker. Those were heady days. He’d made a great linebacker at the university, too, but a lousy scholar, which was what put him on academic probation and placed his ass squarely in the middle of that worthless strip of land called Vietnam.

Now he wouldn’t even make a linebacker. He skimmed his hand down his chest and across his stomach. Lean—skinny almost. Where once had been bulk there was sinewy muscle. He could still run, though. Oh, yeah, he got lots of practice running. From firing position to firing position, from cover to transport helicopters—black birds hovering over open kill zones to lift guys out of danger or drop them in—and from helicopter back to cover. Some days it seemed he ran the whole damn time.

It felt that way now. But what the hell was he running from?

Tom sighed. There was no going back to sleep. Throwing off the covers, he roused himself from the warmth and sat up, looking at the four walls and feeling dislocated.

This room held the bed where he’d slept since he was six. Today, Christmas Eve, he turned twenty-one. After all those years, the bed should be familiar, and it was. The bed and the room. Both fit, both were comfortable. But Tom no longer was.

It was the same with the house. When he arrived early yesterday morning, he’d sensed something was off but hadn’t been able to put his finger on the problem. Now he knew. Somehow, while he was gone, things had changed, and no one had told him.

His bedroom, the kitchen where he’d watched his mom bake cookies, the living room where he’d beaten his dad at chess for the first time, all felt cramped and alien, as though he’d read about them but hadn’t lived in them. Even his family was all wrong. Gray threaded his mom’s hair, and his dad moved slower. As for his granddad, he was a frail replica of his previous self, with a wrinkled face and almost translucent skin. The loss of grandma had taken him hard. He’d greeted Tom with a smile and firm hug but Tom hardly knew what to say to him.

This life, these people, belonged to a Tom Stabler who no longer existed. The man he was now would have to adjust his thinking to live here again, and learning how would sure as hell take more than one week.

Loneliness clawed at his insides. Here, in the one place he should have felt a part of things, solitude engulfed him. It would have been better to stay in Nam than be here with everything wrong, no longer a part of his home, his family.

Reviews:

Jan Selbourne and Anne Krist creatively interweave emotional circumstances with developments that are frequently unexpected, and the result are stories which I will long remember for their realism. Both novellas are stirringly heartwarming holiday romances. 5 Stars, Amelia Richards

Well done, both ladies. 5 stars, Lesley Wilson

For heart-warming Christmas romance, the two novellas in Finding a Christmas Miracle certainly fit the bill. 5 stars, jcbooks736

5 stars on Amazon with no review Thank you, whoever you are!

Author Anne Krist:

A few years ago, Dee S. Knight began writing, making getting up in the morning fun. During the day, her characters killed people, fell in love, became drunk with power, or sober with responsibility. And they had sex, lots of sex.

After a while, Dee split her personality into thirds. She writes as Anne Krist for sweeter romances, and Jenna Stewart for ménage and shifter stories. All three of her personas are found on the Nomad Authors website (www.nomadauthors.com). Fortunately, Dee’s high school sweetheart is the love of her life and husband to all three ladies! Once a month, look for Dee’s Charity Sunday blog posts, where your comment can support a selected charity.

Author links:
Website: https://nomadauthors.com
Blog: http://nomadauthors.com/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/DeeSKnight
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DeeSKnight2018
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/265222.Dee_S_Knight
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B079BGZNDN
Newsletter: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/h8t2y6
LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/dee-s-knight-0500749
Sweet ‘n Sassy Divas http://bit.ly/1ChWN3K

Sale! Sale! Sale! Take the edge off with Edgeplay by Annabel Allan

Edgeplay by Annabel Allan99¢ from December 20-31!!
Hurry! This is one great sale for one hot book and (as you see) it won’t last forever!

By day, Ava Goode is in the insurance game, getting her work done and being a model employee. But by night, she retreats to her secret world where she Dominates those that seek to submit to her.

This private world gets turned upside down the moment she meets Gabriel Burton; a man who is not only successful, but works for her father—and dating men in her father’s office is a big no-no. But, it’s hard to resist your deepest desires, especially when they kneel before you and kiss your feet, like a good boy.

Edgeplay by Anabel Allan

New! The Journeyman’s Trial. Part 2 in Lisabet Sarai’s Toymaker’s Guild series

The Journeyman's Trial by Lisabet SaraiLust is a lubricant to creativity at Randerley Hall. But what happens when two Toymakers fall in love?

Blurb:
If she builds it, will they come?

Technically brilliant and thoroughly wanton, Gillian Smith has found her vocation: designing innovative erotic devices for the Toymakers Guild. Lust is a lubricant to creativity at Randerley Hall. But what happens when two Toymakers fall in love?

The Guild’s tribe of talented, uninhibited engineers has embraced Gillian as one of their own. Edward Thorne, the perverse genius who founded the Guild, undertakes to train her in the skills she’ll need as a journeyman, from practical mind-reading to transcendental orgasms.

As Gillian labours to impress the charismatic Master, her enigmatic fellow journeyman Rafe both entices and frustrates her. Their passion seems to go beyond mere appetite, but in Randerley’s promiscuous and permissive environment, does love make any sense?

When the Toymakers receive a commission to equip London’s most exclusive brothel with the latest sexual technology, Gillian has the chance to demonstrate her formidable abilities as well as to help Rafe exorcise the demons of his past. She doesn’t realize she’ll be forced to choose between Rafe and her future in the Guild.

If you like intelligent, lusty women and kinky steam punk sex toys, pick up a copy of The Journeyman’s Trial.

The Journeyman's Trial by Lisabet SaraiSeries blurb:
Defying the repressive morality of the Victorian era, the Toymakers Guild uses advanced technology to fabricate bespoke sexual artifacts for the discrete pleasure of select clients. Its members are not only brilliant engineers but also sexual renegades seeking freedom from the prudish society that surrounds them. These are their stories.

Buy links:
Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/618-the-journeymans-trial-the-toymakers-guild-book-2/
Amazon  US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09MQV4Y86

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09MQV4Y86

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1118032

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-journeymans-trial-lisabet-sarai/1140567579?ean=2940165096259

Kobo –  https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-journeyman-s-trial-the-toymakers-guild-book-2

Add on Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59740783-the-journeyman-s-trial

The Journeyman's Trial by Lisabet SaraiOnline excerpts:
PG-rated:
https://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com/2021/11/sneak-peek-journeymans-trial-out-next.html

X-Rated:
https://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com/2021/12/a-message-of-paradoxical-pleasure.html

The Porographer's Apprentice by Lisabet SaraiSpecial deal! Get The Pornographer’s Apprentice, The Toymakers Guild Book 1, for only 99 cents during the tour!  Buy links here:
https://www.lisabetsarai.com/pornographersapprenticebook.html

Rave Reviews for The Toymakers Guild Book 1

There are many more plot points, but I don’t want to spoil your enjoyment of this book. It has varied and steamy sex scenes that will take your breath away, a plucky heroine who doesn’t always come out on top (ahem), but who always prevails in her quest to be accepted as a Toymaker.  ~ Fiona McGier, Goodreads

With thoughtfully written characters, hot sex scenes, and a well-paced and interesting plot, the Toymaker’s Apprentice leaves you asking only one question….when is the next book in the series coming out? ~ The Phantom Tollbooth, Amazon

[A] fast paced, hilarious, and thoroughly entertaining story as Gillian gets intimate with the staff and technology, only to find that there is a plot against the Guild that she takes on to save the day. I can’t wait to read what happens in the next book! ~ Arthur Royo, Amazon

The Journeyman's Trial by Lisabet Sarai

Victorian nerds:
Greetings. My name is Lisabet, and I’m an engineer.

In the so-called real world, I design and write computer software. I also manage development projects and mentor other engineers. I’m surrounded by smart people who enjoy the puzzles of technology and who like to make things work. It’s a challenging but exciting environment, an environment in which solving a tough problem can be as satisfying as… well, maybe even as satisfying as an orgasm. In a different way of course.

In The Journeyman’s Trial I’ve indulged myself by bringing some of that excitement into the story. The Toymakers Guild is basically a group of young Victorian nerds. Archie’s a genius with electricity. Rafe’s a chemist as well as a creative mechanical engineer. Jia excels at clockwork artifacts and optics. My heroine Gillian has skills in all these areas, but what fascinates her most is mathematics and computation. In a world where computers don’t really exist yet, she’s trying to create them and figure out how to make them work.

Then there’s the Master Toymaker, a genius who not only knows how to design and build physical devices, but who also has a deep understanding of human thought and emotions.

The novel includes pseudo-technical descriptions of the outrageous sexual artifacts the Guild produces. I suppose that some people might get impatient with my flights of engineering fancy, but for me, that has been part of the fun in writing this series. I love imagining how innovations that are commonplace today might have been realized in the Victorian era, given the technical limitations of the period.

Is the book realistic? Well, yes and no. I’ve taken a lot of technical liberties, but in fact the second half of the nineteenth century was a time of great progress and innovation.

And what about the sexual insatiability of my characters?

I’ve known, and loved, a lot of nerds in my life. Contrary to the stereotypes, really intelligent people are often very active sexually. They have a richer, more  elaborated understanding of desire and the many ways it can be fulfilled. None of the characters in The Journeyman’s Trial is based on a real person, but I’ve been involved with quite a few brilliant individuals who had similar attitudes – open-minded, experimental and focused on giving and receiving pleasure.

Just like Gillian and her uninhibited colleagues.

The Journeyman's Trial by Lisabet SaraiExcerpt:
At the foot of the stairs, she almost collided with a lean, dark figure. If he hadn’t grabbed her by both shoulders, they both might have tumbled to the floor.

“Why, hello, Jill!” A cocky smile lit the young man’s aquiline features. “I haven’t seen much of you lately.” He held on to her for considerably longer than was necessary to stabilise them. When he let go, she continued to feel his hands, heating her skin through the fabric of her garment.

“Good afternoon, Rafe.” She brushed some imaginary dust off her somewhat wrinkled lab coat. It was true that she’d barely spoken two words to her fellow journeyman since he’d rescued her on the moors two weeks before. Half the time he hadn’t even been at the dinner table. She’d wondered if he was travelling again. “I’ve been occupied with learning my new duties. The Master has been training me.”

His eyebrows arched. “Training, hmm? I’d like to know more about just what that entails!” He ran his fingers through his unkempt black locks. “I never got any sort of training from the Master. Of course, he hasn’t been around much. If I recall, he left Randerley only a few weeks after I joined the Guild.”

“When was that?” She wasn’t sure how she felt about the brash, forward young man who’d stolen a kiss within half an hour of her meeting him. Well, perhaps stolen wasn’t exactly the right term, but still, he seemed to have quite familiar manners.

“Two years ago last Christmas. Seems like a lifetime.”

“And before the Guild?”

His expression darkened. “I don’t really want to talk about that. Anyway, I’ve got an appointment with the Master in two minutes.”

Gillian stepped back to give him free access to the stairs. “You mustn’t keep him waiting, then.”

“But I’m really delighted to run into you.” He chuckled at his own jest. “Care to go riding with me tomorrow afternoon?”

“I’ve got quite a lot of work—”

“Tomorrow’s Saturday. Even that slave driver Featherstone takes Saturday afternoon off! Come on, Jill. Say yes!” His hand was back on her shoulder, casual, warm, maddening.

“Well… I grew up in the city, so I’m not much of a horsewoman.” She had to admit to being curious about Rafe. With his loose-limbed grace and easy smile, he was definitely attractive. Shouldn’t she be focused on her training, though?

“We’ll put you on Dorothea. She’s a sweet, biddable mare who won’t give you any trouble. And Samson likes her.”

“I don’t know…”

“I’ve got to go!” He squeezed her shoulder briefly and ran his fingers through her curls, then bounded up the stairs. “Meet you at the stables tomorrow at three,” he called out as he climbed out of sight.

“But…” There was no one to listen to Gillian’s excuses. In any case, why should she object? Rafe was a fellow member of the Guild. It was only fitting they should get to know one another – perhaps intimately.

The Journeyman's Trial by Lisabet SaraiAbout Lisabet:
Lisabet SaraiLisabet Sarai became addicted to words at an early age. She began reading when she was four. She wrote her first story at five years old and her first poem at seven. Since then, she has written plays, tutorials, scholarly articles, marketing brochures, software specifications, self-help books, press releases, a five-hundred page dissertation, and lots of erotica and erotic romance – over one hundred titles, and counting, in nearly every sub-genre—paranormal, scifi, ménage, BDSM, GLBT, and more. Regardless of the genre, every one of her stories illustrates her motto: Imagination is the ultimate aphrodisiac.

You’ll find information and excerpts from all Lisabet’s books on her website (http://www.lisabetsarai.com/books.html), along with more than fifty free stories and lots more. At her blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com), she shares her philosophy and her news and hosts lots of other great authors. She’s also on Goodreads, Pinterest, BookBub and Twitter. Join her VIP email list here: https://btn.ymlp.com/xgjjhmhugmgh

 

Reading through a tough time: Welcome JL Peridot

When the holidays go well, they give us everything we ever dreamed of about festive love and generosity of spirit. But they don’t always go well, do they? And sometimes reading is the best solace we can find.

When going through a tough time, I sometimes turn to a good book to get me through. It’s hard—stress saps my focus like nothing else. But even the rudest and most chaotic of books can offer peace and quiet like no streaming service does (except maybe Nois.li).

So, with just a few weeks to go until the new year, here are a few of my favourite tips for getting through the holidays the literary way…

Choose books with a guaranteed happy ending

Romance is a great place to start. Love stories and romantic subplots can exist in every genre, but for a story to be called a “romance” by industry standards, it needs to have a happy ending.

For this reason, romances are often (unofficially) touted as comfort reads, but there are other genres you can rely on too like cozy mysteries (mysteries that aren’t dark and bloody), gentle fiction, and inspirational fiction. Note that the latter two tend to be broad categorisations that encompass both non-religious and religious fiction. If either of these may stress you out even more, be sure to look up the book’s labels and reviews before reading.

Happy endings and lovely reads:

  • Not Suitable For Work by Skye McDonald
  • On Location by Sarah Echavarre Smith
  • Blood Kissed by Keri Arthur
  • Hidden Gem by Enni Amanda

Re-read a book you loved before

It’s tried and tested in your book, so don’t be shy about reaching for it again—this goes double for books you’ve re-read multiple times. There’s no shame in craving familiarity and predictability, especially in unpredictable circumstances.

Adjacent to this—for anyone who just can’t bear to pick up the same old book again—is asking close friends to recommend a book they loved that made them feel good. Knowing they’ve previously cherished the story that’s in your hands may bring about that much-needed feeling of companionship and camaraderie, while possibly giving you extra insight into someone dear to your heart.

Re-reads and recommendations I’ve enjoyed:

  • Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
  • Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce
  • The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
  • Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Prioritise compelling over classic

By the time we reach adulthood, we will have been bombarded by recommendations for books we “should” read. Yeah, you know what that’s like. Well, forget it. As an adult, you are surrounded by “shoulds”—practically drowning in them. Many “shoulds” are valid of course, most come from well-meaning people. But you don’t have to put up with this in your leisure time.

Give yourself permission to choose books that suck you in. Fun reads. Trashy reads. Pulpy reads. Easy reads. Do this in the name of self care.

No recommendations here, just questions:

  • What book grabbed your attention the moment you saw it?
  • What book have you always wanted to read but were too embarrassed to pick up?
  • What book would you regret not reading if it were to disappear?
  • Where are you likely to find your favourite fiction tropes?
  • Who wrote that book you absolutely couldn’t put down; what else did they write?

Get lost in a series

When you know you’re in it for the long haul, a good series gives you a safe place to return to at the end of the day. Or throughout the day, if that’s what you need.

Whether the books follow a continuous story arc or give you a bunch of standalones with overlapping events and settings, you can more or less expect a “same same but different” quality between books. That is, every book will deliver something you loved about all the other books, even if most everything else has changed.

No recommendations from me. Goodreads Listopia has thousands!

All right, bookworm, here’s where to find more books without going broke…

  1. Book promotion platforms (eg. StoryOrigin, ProlificWorks) — Consider this your best-kept secret, as indie authors turn to these platforms to reach new readers. As such platforms offer only limited access directly to readers, your best bet will be to subscribe to a couple of newsletters from indie authors in your genre. That puts you just a few clicks away from a massive rabbithole of books, many of which will be discounted, free, or available for review.
  2. Book promotion mailing lists (eg. eReaderIQ, Books and the Bear, Book Doggy, The Book Circle, Discount Book Man) — These mailing lists are book catalogues, often curated to your taste in genre, delivered directly to your inbox. Books appearing in these catalogues tend to be on sale or available for free, either permanently or as part of a limited time promotion.
  3. ARC (advance reader copy) websites (eg. NetGalley, BookSprout, BookSirens, Hidden Gems) — These sites are a great source of free books, as long as you’re happy to write a review. Although some readers love writing detailed reviews, it’s not always expected. Most of the time, a star rating and a few words about what you liked or disliked is enough. If you’re an avid reader and you tend to keep track of your books anyway, signing up for ARCs is an excellent way to keep your e-reader topped up.

And that’s a wrap for 2021! Thank you for reading my content here on Nomad Authors.

And thank you ever so much, Dee and Jan, for hosting me 🙏

About JL Peridot

JL Peridot writes love letters to the future on devices from the past. She currently resides in Boorloo (Perth, Australia) on Whadjuk Noongar country. Subscribe to her newsletter or visit her website at jlperidot.com for the full catalogue of her work. She also keeps a blog of random thoughts, updates and cool things she’s found.

Her latest indie release is a steamy futuristic office romance, It Starts with a Kiss 🚀

It Starts with a Kiss — out now!

It Starts with a Kiss by JL PeridotCeleste is a talented engineer who doesn’t realize her job’s going nowhere fast. She’s a little naïve. She’ll cut code and solder cables forever as long as Owen’s around. Owen, on the other hand, knows exactly how badly things suck—he just doesn’t care. Sure, his skills aren’t what they used to be, but they’re still better than what Halcyon Aries deserves.

Then it happens. The company’s toxic management team finally cross the line. As both techies race to upgrade the station and to free the team from their oppressive contracts, they come to learn that life—and love—can only ever be what you make it.

Strap in for a steamy office romance in space, because sometimes It Starts With a Kiss!

About JL Peridot

JL PeridotJL Peridot writes love stories and more from her home beneath the southern skies. When not chipping away at her current WIP, she’s chomping down on a new favourite book, watching Netflix, and chilling real good. Subscribe to JLs mailing list for banter, updates, teasers and the occasional microfiction.

Website: http://jlperidot.com

Blog: http://jayelle.pink

New Release and in the spirit of Christmas…

Finding a Christmas Miracle by Jan Selbourne and Anne Krist

Just in time for Christmas–but with two stories that are good to read all year long–Jan and Anne Krist send your way, Finding a Christmas Miracle.

Blurb:
Two exceptional novellas featuring two men engulfed in a war no one understands or wants—Vietnam. They’re both hoping for a miracle with little expectation of finding it.

Jan Selbourne lends her award-winning writing talent to A Miracle in the Outback. Nick Saunders is in a hurry to escape a family argument and also to return to his Army base in Wagga Wagga. He doesn’t need another complication. Rachel Garth is a woman with a broken down car, a small girl, a deadly snake, and a baby on the way. She needs Nick’s help. He doesn’t know it, but he needs hers, too.

In award-winning author Anne Krist’s The Miracle of Coming Home, Army PFC Tom Stabler wins a trip to his parents’ Nebraska farm for Christmas. He needs the time away from the war. Lately, he’s been feeling lost and too alone. Trouble is, being home is almost as bad. Then Susan Swensen arrives, just as sweet and pretty as he remembers. Can Susan help him find himself again, or will it take a miracle?

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Excerpt:
Finding a Christmas MiracleA Miracle in the Outback
Noelle’s face turned red as she let out another loud wail.

Ellie pointed to the crib. “Mum, Noelle’s crying.”

“I know, I know.” Rachel closed the sliding glass doors and pushed the hair out of her eyes.

Another louder squeal.

“Mummy, Noelle.”

“I can hear her, Ellie,” Rachel snapped, and went to the sink to wash her hands. “The whole bloody street can hear her.” She picked up the little noise machine and felt the wet clothing. Pulling off the soaked nappy, she reached for a clean one to wrap around the squirming baby.

“Scream, feed, and pee,” she muttered as she opened her blouse. Like an alarm clock, every three and half hours, day and night. So different from quiet, placid Ellie and she was so tired. As soon as the little piranha finished feeding, she’d give Ellie colouring pencils and toys and try to snatch an hour’s sleep.

Rachel rested her head against the back of the sofa and reached over to Ellie. “You are such a good girl, come sit next to me. When we go shopping tomorrow, I’ll buy you a present for helping me with this noisy baby.”

Twice a week, she pushed the pram, with Ellie sitting on the toddler’s seat, to the shopping centre. Always early to avoid the heat and between feeds so Noelle would, hopefully, sleep. Then wash the pile of baby clothes and nappies. She’d take a few more dollars from her stash and buy more disposables.

Fifteen minutes later, Noelle had fallen asleep against her breast. She gently laid her in the crib, turned on the fan, and lay on the sofa.

A shrill noise jerked her awake. Blinking, she sat up and rubbed her eyes as the front doorbell shrilled again. No way was she climbing the stairs to see who it is. They can come back later when her mother was home. Probably the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Last week it was the Mormons and she’d told them where to go in very blunt language.

She lay back down and felt herself drifting off when footsteps on the side path made her sit up. Two men in suits were walking towards the sliding glass doors. They looked around the back garden before knocking.

Now alarmed, Rachel hesitated before opening the door a couple of inches. The two men produced ID badges.

“Rachel Garth?” The tall man with piercing eyes asked.

“Yes.”

“Detective Thomas and”—his hand flicked to the man beside him—“Detective Jones. Sydney City Police. We’d like to talk to you.”

 Finding a Christmas Miracle

The Miracle of Coming Home
Susan Swensen flew into the small three-bedroom house she shared with Carol Buley and Mildred Hammersmith. “I won!” she shouted. “I won, I won, I won!!”

Carol stepped out of her bedroom and into the hallway, brushing her hair and already In her blue flannel pajamas. “Won what?”

Susan dropped an envelope on the scarred coffee table and threw off her wool cape, tossing it onto the used couch dressed up in a winter slipcover. A Christmas tree displayed prominently over the center cushion. Brightly wrapped gifts beneath a midnight-blue sky scattered with stars filled out the rest of the space. This was the second year the women had used it to hide the worn arms and cushions of the sofa, and it saddened Susan somewhat that it would be the last. The three would graduate from nursing school in June and go their separate ways.

She reached to remove the pins that secured her white cap to her blonde curls and then slid the bobby pins onto the edge of the cap before placing it carefully on the table. Then she picked up the envelope and removed the letter she’d read three times already.

“Susan Swensen. This is to inform you that your submission to the Home for Christmas contest sponsored by WCHI Radio Chicago has won one of seven prizes. WCHI has confirmed that PFC Thomas J. Stabler will be transferred from Saigon, South Vietnam to Norfolk, Nebraska (via Omaha, Nebraska) on or about December 16, 1970 until December 27, 1970. The Department of Defense is relaying this information to PFC Stabler’s commanding officers and to him. WCHI is happy to be a part of this Christmas homecoming. Thank you for your heartfelt submission. Merry Christmas! John Marbury, President, WCHI Radio.”

Susan looked up at Carol with a smile that felt like it might split her face. “Tom is going to be able to come home for Christmas.”

A little about us:
Author Jan Selbourne:
Jan SelbourneJan Selbourne was born and educated in Melbourne, Australia and her love of literature and history began as soon as she learned to read and hold a pen. After graduating from a Melbourne Business College her career began in the dusty world of ledgers and accounting, working in Victoria, Queensland and the United Kingdom. On the point of retiring, she changed course to work as secretary of a large NSW historical society. Now retired Jan is enjoying her love of travelling and literature. She has two children, a stray live in cat and lives near Maitland, New South Wales.

 Author Dee S. Knight:
A few years ago, Dee S. Knight began writing, making getting up in the morning fun. During the day, her characters killed people, fell in love, became drunk with power, or sober with responsibility. And they had sex, lots of sex.

After a while, Dee split her personality into thirds. She writes as Anne Krist for sweeter romances, and Jenna Stewart for ménage and shifter stories. All three of her personas are found on the Nomad Authors website (www.nomadauthors.com). Fortunately, Dee’s high school sweetheart is the love of her life and husband to all three ladies! Once a month, look for Dee’s Charity Sunday blog posts, where your comment can support a selected charity.

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