Sunday, March 24, 2013

Springtime




Springtime in the Northwest

            It’s springtime here in the Northwest. Trees and flowers are blooming all around us. After a winter of rain and dark skies it’s uplifting to see the blue sky again. At the end of a challenging day it’s refreshing to go for a walk when it’s still light outside. 
            With the new season my family is going through a time of change. My mom has had some health issues which has caused her to move into a care center. For a woman who's always been strong and independent it is hard to see her so frail. During her stay in the hospital, she kept asking me to bring her books to read. 
           As I gathered books for her to read I thought of long ago when she gave me a romance book to read. I had graduated from high school yet I struggled to read. Reading those early Harlequins I discovered the joy of reading.
Little did I know that book would change my life so drastically.

           This week’s featured book is Everlasting Love the third in my Forest Ridge Series. 
          When Miranda Cummins borrows a friend's cabin to finish writng her long overdue book, she's surprised to find the one-room retreat already occupied by Kevin Mathews. Though she feels a spontaneous attraction for Kevin, Miranda has recently escaped a controlling husband and isn't ready for a long-term relationship.
         Unsatisfied with his occupation, Kevin is at a crossroads. Miranda understands and encourages him to look at the direction his life is going. Fired up on more, Kevin returns to Forest Ridge to resume his firefighting career.
         When Miranda is threatened by her ex-husband, Kevin realizes he will do anything to protect her. Miranda has shown Kevin a new passion for life. Can he fan the flames of passion into an Everlasting Love?




Saturday, March 23, 2013

Cliffhanger from Everlasting Love

           

 Cliffhanger from Everlasting Love by Rosemary Indra.

            In a small town he had to be cautious. Driving too close to his intended victim would be obvious. He’d lagged back allowing more distance between his car and the one in front of him. When several vehicles exited the highway, he hung back even farther. His prey was no longer insight but he knew the Chevy was still there. He gripped the steering wheel tighter and tried to be patient.
            As the city gave way to the mountainous forest, he saw his opportunity; pressing on the accelerator he started to close the space between them. Now, in this isolated wildness, he needed to move in for the kill.
            No one would find a body or the missing vehicle for some time. This was the perfect setup. No witnesses. No surveillance cameras. For once and all, he could loosen the chain around his neck and live a carefree life again.
            He sped up and still no sign of the other tail lights. The driver must have turned off to another road. He’d passed countless roads since entering the highway. Finding which road the other vehicle used would be impossible.
He wiped his hand across the back of his neck. Pulling over to the side of the road, gravel crunched beneath his tires. He pounded his fist on the steering wheel. He’d quit his search for now. He’d find his victim another time. Then he’d free himself from his burden.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Allana Angel Presents: How Was Your Week?



Makin' Energy


Time to pay the piper! How did you do?

This is the Rogue's Angels weekly check-in. Every Thursday we encourage the Angels and visitors to let us know how their writing is going.



How well are you doing?



Had problems this week? That's ok. Just sit down this coming week and write. Whatever you do, don't let difficulties from the week before get in your way this week.



Every word is one word closer to the finished product.

Finally getting my mojo back. I've had a slow week but Wednesday was beginning to get a little more energy. Wednesday I wrote my page and edited more than my twenty-six pages. Tomorrow perhaps I will get started on my photo images again.

I've been doing a lot of thinking about my antagonist. Yeah, I have motive and contact. Now all I have to do is write it. Hoping to finish WIP by mid-April.



Had a great week? Keep it up, the momentum is on your side.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

ST. PATRICK'S DAY WITH THE O'SHEA FAMILY!




(Excerpt from PICTURE PERFECT LEGACY, copyright Genene Valleau, writing as Genie Gabriel)

"There's an old Irish custom that might be of help in this situation." Patrick stood, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. "When a man expresses an interest in an Irish lass--you are interested in Marly, aren't you, Mr. Browning?" 

"Very much so." Dawson wondered what trick this seemingly easygoing priest would pull out of his vestments. 

"Irish custom states when a man declares his intent to court a lass, he must meet certain requirements from the lass' immediate family." 

"You're all adopted and we're not Irish," Marly stated. 

"Ah, lass, you wound me." Patrick placed a hand over his heart. "We are family in action and Irish in all ways that matter." 

"Spare me the theatrics." Marly rolled her eyes. 

"The right of refusal belongs not to the lass, but to the prospective groom." Patrick turned to Dawson. "Arise, my son."

Slowly, Dawson stood, feeling like a small child caught stealing from the church plate. The wily priest's intent, he assumed. 

"For the honor of courting this fair lassie, you will be required to meet a challenge from each of her seven brothers--" 

"No." Marly stood and placed herself squarely between Dawson and her brothers. 

"What are the challenges?" Dawson nudged Marly to one side so he could see around her. 

"I will make my own decision of who I will and will not marry." Marly fisted her hands on her hips. "You are not going to engage in some display of testosterone with me as the prize." 

"You're not acting like much of a prize, little sister." 

The brothers laughed. 

"You're every inch a prize to me," Dawson spoke quietly to Marly. 

"Then you agree?" Collin asked. 

"Dawson, you don't know what these barbarians are capable of." Marly clutched Dawson's arm. 

"I can beat these wimps at their own games," Dawson declared. 

Marly groaned as interest stirred among her brothers. Their eyes lit with excitement as the rumble of their conversation grew louder. 


Saturday, March 16, 2013

CLIFFHANGER EXCERPT FROM SHADOW OF THE LEGACY



Cliffhanger excerpt from SHADOW OF THE LEGACY
(copyright by Genene Valleau, writing as Genie Gabriel)
Small town courtship romances with a shadow of mystery


Johnny loved riding his brother's big bike. Though not as maneuverable as the smaller dirt bikes, its power more than made up for that. However, true to his boast, Thomas never fell far behind Johnny, showing his expertise from many hours spent riding a motorcycle. 

As they neared the dredge, and the only open area on their route, Thomas made a move to pull ahead of Johnny. Laughing, Johnny gave the bigger bike more gas and kept the lead in a loop around the dredge. 

As he leaned into the corner, something slammed into his chest with the force a steam locomotive. He spun out of control and the bike skidded on its side, leaving Johnny's with the thought, Thomas is going to kill me for wrecking his bike…

~ * ~

Rochelle sat in the waiting area--never her favorite pastime, and even less so 
knowing the man she loved could live or die. She had progressed from buddies to maybe a relationship to how could she live without Johnny in a very short time. Was she making another mistake about a man? 

The surgeons finally came out looking grim. "We've done all we can. It's in higher hands now." 

So Rochelle's vigil began. 


Friday, March 15, 2013

Rogues Angels Presents: Dylan's Song

Please welcome p.m. terrell author of Dylan's Song.

p.m. will be awarding a Celtic Key Necklace identical to the one Dylan gives to Vicki in Dylan's Song to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

Please comment for a chance to win this beautiful necklace.









DYLAN'S SONG
By
p.m. terrell

BLURB:  

Dylan Maguire returns to his native Ireland with psychic spy Vicki Boyd. Their mission: to locate and extract a CIA Agent who disappeared in Dublin while on the trail of a known terrorist. But when Dylan receives word that his grandmother is dying, he is plunged into a past he thought he’d left behind forever. His mission and the dark secrets he’d sought to keep hidden begin to merge into an underworld that could cost him his life. He must now confront his past demons and the real reason he left Ireland—while Vicki harbors a secret of her own.

Suspense Magazine says, “p.m.terrell’s writing is powerfully written and masterfully suspenseful; you have to hang on for the ride of your life.” Midwest Book Review says the Black Swamp Mysteries series is “page-turning action, unforgettable characters, breathtaking descriptions and unexpected plot twists.” And syndicated reviewer Marcia Freespirit says the series is “riveting, spell-binding, sexy and intense!”







EXCERPT: 

“Why are you so adamant about not going back?” Vicki said. “I don’t understand.”

He strode to the back door. With his hand almost on the knob, he stopped abruptly and turned around to face them. “The flight is a hundred hours long.”

“It’s six hours,” Sam said.

“I’ll have jet lag for weeks!”

“Two days, tops.” Sam’s voice was becoming quizzical.

“Are you afraid of flying?” Vicki asked.

“No!” he bellowed. He opened the kitchen door. “The weather there is atrocious!”

“I can’t believe you’re acting like this is such an inconvenience for you!” Vicki shouted.

“In me whole life,” he said as if he hadn’t heard her, “it’s rained once.” He held up his finger. “One time!”

“Really?” Vicki said. “Once?”

“And it’s lasted for thirty years!” With that, he marched outside and slammed the door behind him.

Vicki and Sam stared at the door for a long moment without speaking. Then she turned to him. “I’m at a loss here.”

He continued staring at the kitchen door as if he hadn’t heard her.

“Do you know why he doesn’t want to see Ireland again?” Vicki asked.

“He can’t refuse a mission,” Sam said quietly. “You can’t pick and choose your missions in this line of work.”

Vicki turned to stand directly in front of him.

“Do you know,” she said in a stronger voice, “why he doesn’t want to see Ireland again?”

He looked at her as if seeing her for the first time.

“You know, don’t you?”

He looked away from her. His eyes roamed the kitchen as though he was searching for something. Vicki stood her ground until he said, “No. I have my suspicions; that’s all.”







AUTHOR INFORMATION:

p.m.terrell is the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 16 books. Vicki's Key, one of the first books in the Black Swamp Mysteries series, was one of five finalists in the 2012 International Book Awards (Mystery/Suspense) and 2012 USA Best Book Awards (Mystery/Suspense.) River Passage, an historical work based on her ancestor's migration to Fort Nashborough in 1779-1780, won the 2010 Best Fiction & Drama Award. The Nashville (TN) Metropolitan Government Archives determined it to be so historically accurate that they entered the original manuscript into their Archives for future researchers and historians.

Prior to becoming a full-time author in 2002, terrell founded and operated two computer companies in the Washington, DC area. Her clients included the United States Secret Service, CIA, Department of Defense and federal and local law enforcement. Her specialty is in the areas of computer crime and computer intelligence. Her experience in these areas have greatly influenced her books' plots.

She is the co-founder of The Book 'Em Foundation, whose slogan is "Buy a Book and Stop a Crook" and whose mission is to raise awareness of the link between high crime rates and high illiteracy rates. She founded Book 'Em North Carolina Writers Conference and Book Fair, an annual event to raise money to increase literacy and reduce crime.

For more information on Book 'Em North Carolina, visit www.bookemnc.org and www.bookemnc.blogspot.com.

p.m.terrell's website is www.pmterrell.com and her blog is www.pmterrell.blogspot.com.

She can be found on Twitter @pmterrell