Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Excerpt Reveal - Manwhore + 1 by Katy Evans


So excited to share an excerpt for Katy Evan's upcoming release, Manwhore + 1 with you today. I'm so excited for this book and can't wait to get my hands on it!

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FOUR WEEKS

I’ve never been so hopeful as when I board the pristine glass elevator at the M4 corporate building. A handful of employees ride along with me, murmuring perfunctory greetings to each other and to me. I think my mouth must be on vacation because I can’t seem to force it to speak. But I smile in reply—my smile nervous, nervous but hopeful, definitely hopeful. My riding companions step out on their floors one by one until I’m alone, riding up to the executive floor on my own.

Toward him.

Toward the man I love.

My body is raging. My blood is pumping—my blood is storming—my thighs are shaking. My stomach feels filled with little earthquakes that just won’t quit, then they turn into a full-fledged roil when I hear the elevator ting at his floor.

Stepping out, I’m in corporate nirvana, surrounded by sleek chrome and pristine glass, marble and limestone floors. But I hardly have eyes for anything except the tall and imposing frosted glass doors at the far end of the room.

Framing those doors to each side is a pair of sleek designer desks, for a total of four.

Behind these desks are four women in identical black-and-white suits, sitting behind their gleaming dark-oak desks, working quietly behind their flat-screen computers.

One of them, the forty-year-old Catherine H. Ulysses—right hand of the man who owns every inch of this building—stops what she’s doing when she sees me. She arches her brow, then seems both tense and relieved as she lifts the receiver on her desk and murmurs my name into it.

I. Am. Not. Breathing.

But Catherine doesn’t miss a beat as she motions me toward the huge frosted doors—those intimidating doors—that lead into the lair of the most powerful man in Chicago.

The human being with the most powerful effect on me.

This is what I’ve been waiting for, for four weeks. This is what I wanted when I left a thousand messages on his phones and what I wanted when I wrote a thousand others that I left unsent. To see him.

For him to want to see me.

But as I force myself to step forward, I don’t even know if I’ll have the strength to stand before him and look him in the eye after what I did.

I’m wracked so hard with nervousness and anticipation and hope—yes hope, small but bright, even as I shake like a leaf.

Catherine holds the door open, and I struggle to hold my head high and walk into his office.

Two steps inside I hear the swoosh of the glass door shutting behind me and my systems halt at the familiar sight of the most beautiful office I’ve ever been in.

His office is all vast marble and chrome, twelve-foot ceilings, and endless floor-to-ceiling windows.

And there he is. The center of its axis. The center of my world.

He’s pacing by the window, speaking into a headset in a low, low voice—the kind he uses when he’s pissed. All I can make out are the words have to be dead to let her fall into his clutches …

He hangs up, and as if he feels me in the room, he turns his head. His eyes flare when he sees me. His green eyes.

His achingly familiar, beautiful green eyes.

He inhales, very slowly, his chest expanding, his hands curling a little at his sides as he looks at me.

I look back at him.

Malcolm Kyle Preston Logan Saint.

I just walked into the eye of the most powerful storm of my life. No. Not a storm. A hurricane.

Four weeks, I haven’t seen him. And he still looks exactly as I remember. Larger than life, and more irresistible than ever.

His striking face is perfectly shaven today, and his sensual lips look so achingly full I can almost feel them against mine. Six-feet-plus of perfectly controlled male power stand before me, in a perfect black suit and a killer tie. He’s the very devil in Armani; strong-boned, square-jawed, gleaming dark hair and those penetrating eyes.

He’s got the best eyes.

They twinkle mercilessly when he teases me, and when he doesn’t tease me, they’re mysterious and unreadable, assessing and intelligent, keeping me guessing about his thoughts.

But I had forgotten how cold those eyes used to be. Green arctic ice looks back at me now. Every fleck of ice in those eyes gleaming like diamond shards.

He clenches his jaw and tosses the headset aside.

He looks as approachable as a wall, his shoulders stretching his white shirt, which clings to his skin like a groupie. But I know he’s not a wall; I’ve never wanted to throw myself at a wall like this.

He’s walking towards me. Every step he takes makes my heart pound as he moves with that quiet and confident own-the-world stride of his.

He stops a few feet away and shoves his hands into his pants pockets; and he seems so big all of a sudden, and he smells so utterly good. I drop my eyes to his tie as the little candle of hope I walked in with starts to flicker with doubt.


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Eeep! How great is that? Pre-order links are below as well as a pre-order bonus incentive. Click on the link for all the details!

#SaintVsSinner

PRE-ORDER SURPRISE!
Submit your proof of pre-order and get an early peek at Ms. Manwhore, the last of Saint and Rachel's passionate love story. Click here to enter: http://www.katyevans.net/pre-order-bonus/

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Cover Reveal - The Connection by Adriana Locke


I'm so excited to be a part of the Cover Reveal for Adriana Locke's The Connection. This cover is absolutely gorgeous! Check it out and there's a pretty cool giveaway going on too.







He was the bad boy she didn't need.
She was the exception to his rules.

When Jada Stanley and Cane Alexander met, it was lust at first site. As much as they fought it, it became so much more.

Now that they've stopped fighting it and made their own rules, a little respite is needed. Las Vegas is the destination of choice.

Despite what they say, not everything that happens in Vegas stays there.















Sunday, June 14, 2015

Spotlight Sunday - Booking Through Summer Reading Challenge


Hello, hello! Today's Spotlight Sunday is the Booking Through Summer Reading Challenge. The challenge is hosted by two of my very good blogger friends Kim from kimberlyfaye reads and Betsy from BookNerd Betsy. The challenge is a summer-long event that will have mini-challenges, giveaways and author & blogger features. I'm excited to be a part of it! 

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Spell It Out Challenge! 

I chose to use my name for my spell it out challenge and I used books that I've recently read and loved or are on my must read TBR pile! 


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Now it's your turn!

The Rules
  1. Use the first letter in any book you’ve read or want to read to spell out a word. You can choose first name, initials, your birthday month, or your zodiac sign.Take a picture, make a graphic, be as creative as you want! 
  2. Share your word on your blog, Facebook, Twitter or Goodreads using the hashtag #bookingit and tag @calstephanie
  3. Submit your link in the Rafflecopter for a chance to win an ebook of your choice (Amazon or B&N) up to $10 USD. 

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Wait, there's more...

Once you've entered my giveaway, you can head on over and enter the event-wide giveaway for another chance at some awesome prizes! You can find that here: Booking Through Summer Reading Challenge Giveaway

Have fun with the challenge! I can't wait to see what you come up with. And be sure to follow kimberlyfaye reads and BookNerd Betsy for all the awesome challenges, features and prizes this summer.

Friday, June 12, 2015

Blog Tour & Giveaway - Sweet Ache by K. Bromberg

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I'm so excited to be a part of the blog tour for Sweet Ache by K. Bromberg. Such a fabulous book! Read on for info about the book, the author, an excerpt and an unbelievably awesome giveaway that you don't want to miss out on! 

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The New York Times bestselling author of Slow Burn turns up the heat when a sexy bet turns into so much more.....
sweet ache cover.jpgHawkin Play, the bad boy rock star with a good guy heart, has lived a lifetime of cleaning up after his twin brother’s mistakes. Hunter’s most recent screwup could land Hawke in jail and risk the band’s future. Hawke agrees to guest lecture at a local college to stay in the judge’s good graces—and a bet with his bandmate to seduce his sexy teaching assistant is icing on the cake.
Quinlan Westin is harder to bed than Hawke imagined. She knows his type and is determined to avoid the rocker at all costs—even if their attraction runs deeper than simple lust.
Just as Hawke might finally be winning over the girl, his brother has other plans. When Hunter realizes his twin finally has a weakness, he’ll stop at nothing to take advantage....

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Nook | Kobo | iBooks
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Hawkin
I keep my eyes fixed on the freeway in front of me as I let the comment resonate, knowing it’s truth despite the constant tumult that burdens me. A part of me sags in relief at her observation, knowing that someone else sees the cracks in my resolve while the other part of me begins to question again.
And the scary thing about questions are they usually result in a revolution of some sort. I’m just not sure if I can withstand an overhaul of principles without it resulting in casualties.
sweet ache teaser 4.jpg“Am I the reason he’s like this Q? How did this person I’ve been with since conception . . . how can we experience the same tragedy but be so completely different? Did I try too hard, protect him too much, throw him to the wolves when I shouldn’t have and end up proving I’m just like Dad?” I speak the questions floating around in my mind aloud, throw them out there even though I know there’s no way in hell she has the answers.
She does nothing more than reach over and lace her fingers with mine, staying silent, but her unconditional support is deafening. Except even with someone beside you, the quiet has a way of smothering you when you’re left alone with just your thoughts. And of course mine turns to where we are headed right now.
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kristy bromberg.jpgNew York Times and USA Today Bestselling author K. Bromberg is that reserved woman sitting in the corner who has you all fooled about the wild child inside of her—the one she lets out every time her fingertips touch the computer keyboard.


K. lives in Southern California with her husband and three children. When she needs a break from the daily chaos of her life, you can most likely find her on the treadmill or with Kindle in hand, devouring the pages of a good, saucy book.


On a whim, K. Bromberg decided to try her hand at this writing thing. Her debut novels, Driven, Fueled, and Crashed of The Driven Trilogy were well received and went on to become multi-platform bestsellers as well as landing on the New York Times and USA Today lists. Her other works include a short story, UnRaveled, and a companion piece to The Driven Trilogy titled Raced. She is currently working on three stand alone Driven novels, Slow Burn, Sweet Ache, and Hard Beat. She also plans to release a novel addressing the 10 year gap at the ending of Crashed in late fall 2015




Sunday, June 7, 2015

Spotlight Sunday - Caleigh Hernandez


Today the spotlight is on author Caleigh Hernandez! Caleigh is the author of the Truth About Love Series which includes Love Takes Your Breath Away and Love Turns With Twisted Fates. Both great reads! 






What happens after the happily ever after? Is that all there is? Marriage, career, kids, and you're set? 

Life, love and the pursuit of happiness doesn't stop at "'til death do us part." For Izzy & Diego it's just the beginning.

"Forever and ever, I do" is not as easy to accomplish as is saying it. In real life, there are ups and downs, ins and outs. Along with the good comes the bad. With health, there's sickness. Is love enough? Is it forever? Will it survive?

Our story starts with the proffered happily ever after moment: a bride in a dress, a groom in his tux, a best man, a maid of honor, vows of love and forever and Elvis. Like most fairy tales, Diego and I were still madly in love after saying, "I do." Hell, the man has turned loving me into an art form. Not a moment is wasted. With him there's a surprise at every turn, and just when I think he couldn't get any better, he takes my breath away.




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With passion and promise, his love took my breath away. Our story continues to be as storybook as they come. Or so I thought. We are living our happily every after. Well, not exactly. Life in a new home, in a new city, in a new country is full of surprises. This can’t be my reality. When we committed to ‘til death do us part, I wasn’t expecting this. We are the Beauty and the Saint, but can we survive our twisted fates?









Stephanie: Do you have any interesting writing quirks?

Caleigh: If you asked me this after writing Love Takes Your Breath Away, I'd have come up with something simple like: I write on or with whatever it feels right at the moment. This is still true. Nothing really quirky. But with Love Turns With Twisted Fates done and in the midst of writing "Truth About Love" Book 3, I have found my quirky. 

Let me explain: With LTYBA, I had it fairly well outlined and there were very few surprises as I wrote the story. Every piece was written in order, aside from the prologue for it being pushed to the prologue of LTWTF. This was my small piece of quirky, I suppose. It just gets a little weirder with LTWTF. I had NO OUTLINE. I had a general idea of what I wanted to happen, but honestly, I was winging it. With the prologue written from LTYBA, I went with my gut. There were several times that certain scenes were begging to be written and it was long before I was at that part. I resisted and resisted, but then I caved to the scene. With Book 3, I have discovered the quirky. As I answer this question, I have 2 yellow legal pads flipped to the last page I've written on both: one is my outline summary, the other is my ramblings and ideas as they come. I also have a notebook with dialogues and chapter pieces I want to include. Then, as you visualize this paper mess in front of me, picture 25+ large index cards with chapter ideas written on each, some with more detail than others. 

Stephanie: What is the hardest part of writing?

Caleigh: The hardest part of writing? OMG...where do I start? LOL. I suppose the hardest part of writing, for me, is making sure my story lines up from chapter to chapter to book to book. If you haven't read LTYBA and LTWTF, my story goes back and forth in time. I'm paranoid that things might not line up or something I've already written doesn't work well with what I have planned in the current and/or future books. 

Stephanie: If Love Takes Your Breath Away and Love Turns With Twisted Fates were to be made into a movie, who would play Izzy and Diego?

Caleigh: Seriously? UGH! I don't think I can pick. LOL. Damn it! This isn't as easy as the previous questions and all I need to do is provide you with a couple of names. 

Izzy - Eliza Dushku (She's perfect.)
Diego - William Levy (I had no clue he was Cuban. With dark hair, he'd be perfect}

Stephanie: If you had a theme song, what would it be?

Caleigh: Fuckin' Perfect by P!nk

Stephanie: If you had a superpower, what would it be?

Caleigh: Slow down and/or stop time. There just isn't enough of it. 





I love my teams. Go A's!!!Caleigh Hernandez is a not-so-perfect mom of 2 beautiful daughters, a terrible housekeeper, and sometimes, a doting wife in Silicon Valley, California. A few years ago, she decided to take life by the horns and throw caution to the wind. She went back to school, earning a degree in Web & Multimedia Design where her long-time passion for writing was reignited with a creative writing class. It was during her final term when she conceived a story she just had to tell.

When not buried in the ridiculousness of every day life, you can find Caleigh curled up with her Kindle devouring a book, watching crime dramas (she’s obsessed), screaming at the TV while watching her SJ Sharks, Oakland Raiders or Oakland A’s, getting cozy with a good superhero flick, or getting her adrenaline fix on a roller coaster. She hates cleaning and loathes laundry. She’s a shoe whore that lives in flip flops and loves to be barefoot.
In the immortal words of her husband, “Caleigh Hernandez is a bad ass bitch.”


For a chance to win a Kindle copy of Love Takes Your Breath Away, comment below and tell me what kind of quirky habits you have? 



Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Blog Tour - Trusting Liam by Molly McAdams

TrustingLiam

You guys! I have been so excited waiting for Trusting Liam to release. When Molly first announced she was writing it, I was a little scared, especially since she didn't initially say who he was going to end up with. If you've read Taking Chances, I'm sure you can understand my trepidation. And then she announced that the heroine would be Kennedy from Forgiving Lies. That just raised my excitement level because Forgiving Lies tops the list of my favorite Molly McAdams' books. I seriously can NOT wait for y'all to get your hands on this books. I'll have a longer review on release date, but you are definitely going to want to read this! While you're waiting, scroll on down to get all the details, check out the excerpt and enter the awesome giveaway! 


trustingliamFrom the New York Times bestselling author of Taking ChancesFrom Ashes, and Stealing Harper, comes the new unforgettable adult romance Molly McAdams’ fans have been waiting for—the sizzling story of a young woman who must place her trust in the one man who can break through her defenses.

A night they will always remember…a connection neither can deny…a secret that could destroy it all…

When Kennedy Ryan moves to California, she never expects to come face-to-face with Liam Taylor—the intriguing man who has haunted her thoughts for a year. A man who led her to breaking every one of her rules for a single night of passion that ended up meaning more than it was ever supposed to. Accustomed to disastrous experiences with men, Kennedy shields herself before he can break down more of the carefully built control she’s clung to for the last four years. But every time she sees Liam, she feels her resolve weakening.

Liam Taylor has been asked to help socialize his boss’s nieces. But what he thinks sounds more like a babysitting job ends up leading him to the only girl who ever slipped away before morning—a girl he thought he’d never find again. And now that she’s within reach, Liam’s determined to never let her go.

But when a secret from her past tests their relationship, will they be able to cling to the trust Liam has worked so hard to build?



"Trying not to wake him, I slowly slid out from under his arm and off the bed to search for my clothes. Once I was dressed, I told myself to just leave, but I couldn’t help it—I turned to look at him in the light. I needed to be sure I hadn’t made him up. 

The images from last night tore through my mind again when I saw the large, tattooed arm resting where my body had just been. The muscles were well defined even relaxed, and the face had a boyish charm now that he was asleep. Such a difference from the predatory stare and knowing smirk I kept seeing in my mind. Before I could stop myself, I gently ran my fingers through his dirty-blond hair that, now in the sunlight, I could see had a red tint to it. And I knew if he opened them, those arctic blue eyes would once again captivate me. 

But I couldn’t risk that. 

I’d already stayed too long; I’d already made a mistake with him. Drunken one-night stands weren’t my thing. Drunken one-night stands with strangers in Vegas were even worse.

Straightening, I turned and walked quietly from the room."-- Molly McAdams, Trusting Liam


mollyMolly McAdams grew up in California but now lives in the oh-so-amazing state of Texas with her husband and furry four-legged daughters. Her hobbies include hiking, snowboarding, traveling and long walks on the beach, which roughly translates to being a homebody with her hubby and dishing out movie quotes. When she's not at work, she can be found hiding out in her bedroom surrounded by her laptop, cell, Kindle and fighting over the TV remote. She has a weakness for crude-humored movies, fried pickles and loves curling up in a fluffy comforter during a thunderstorm...or under one in a bathtub if there are tornados. That way she can pretend they aren't really happening.