Happy 4th!

I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy fourth of July! I hope everyone enjoys the fireworks and time with their family and friends! Please be safe!

Amber

http://www.argrosjean.com

What's So Great About Vampires?

Vampires--What's the big deal?
What is it that makes readers crave vampire stories and, apparently, the more erotic the better? I gave my niece who barely reads a menu a set of Sookie Stackhouse vampire books and she is reading these books like eating chocolate. She even carries one in her purse (okay a big garment bag looking purse) and reads them at red lights. I only pray it's at red lights any way.
Thing is, I wonder what makes vampire stories so in demand? Is it because being bitten on the neck and having the blood sucked out is similar to a sensual or even erotic sex scene?
Is it because vampires are immortal and we all want to live forever? Perhaps it's the tortured soul thing. Vampires we love are looking for redemption or making a great sacrifice for the one they love by not actually killing them.
Or maybe vampires have lived long enough to en mass a fortune and some nice property. Money is power.
So, all you vampire authors, what's the big attraction? Why do you write about vampires and what do you think draws readers to stories about them?
Sarah J. McNeal
www.sarahmcneal.com

Lasso That Cowboy

LATEST FROM LYNDE LAKES
Hi, everyone, I’m delighted to announce my newest romantic suspense/thriller release, the 2nd in the Ryan Ranch Trilogy, LASSO THAT COWBOY. Book # 2 has joined COWBOY LIES on Amira Press’ book shelves.

LASSO THAT COWBOY, Book # 2 excerpt.
www.amirapress.com

Amber rubbed her throbbing head and fought a wave of dizziness. Running away felt like a bad choice to start a new life. But waking up next to a lifeless, bloody body told her that if she’d stayed in San Antonio, sooner or later, she’d be jailed, or worse yet…dead.

Elmer, the trucker she’d hitched a ride with, pulled his flatbed semi into the center of a complex of ranch buildings. “This is as far as Betsy can go to make an easy wide turn,” he said in his thick Texas drawl.

He had the fierce look of an albino gorilla, but Amber had learned in their hours riding together that he had the heart of a teddy bear. Elmer hauled lumber and fencing supplies into the Bar R cattle ranch, and she’d lucked out getting a ride with him from San Antonio to this nowhereland about a hundred miles north of the Mexico border. She had ignored the no riders sign painted on his door and told him she was broke and needed a lift to get a job. Elmer sized her up and gestured for her to get into the cab. She’d felt comfortable with him from the moment she settled into the passenger seat. The pictures of his wife and two teenage daughters tucked into the visor over his head suggested he was a family man, and the gentleness in his voice when he talked about them warmed her heart.

“You gonna be all right?” he asked.

Amber nodded. The dizziness had passed. Now she felt empty, lost. The activity behind the roar of ranch machinery and grange trucks should’ve made her feel not quite so alone. But she was alone. Totally alone. She had no ID in her wallet, no pictures of loved ones. A woman with no past. She’d better get used to it.

She sighed, grabbed her suitcase and slid from the cab. Elmer moved his truck ahead. He circled slowly until the driver’s side of his polished, black cab came parallel with her.

“If this job falls through,” he said, shouting over the idling engine, “be out by the dirt road in front of the bunk house at 5:00 AM sharp. I won’t wait!”

The June sky was light blue, cloudless. Amber shaded her aching eyes from the blinding morning sun and looked up at him. The upward tilt of her head sent pain shooting up the column of her neck into the base of her skull. “You know something about this place that I don’t?” They were both yelling over the head-splitting engine noise now.

“It’s just that…if Luke Ryan’s gonna be your boss, you maybe oughta ask for your pay up front.”

Mating Season's first review!

Rating: 5 Cups

No Place to Run

Lin Chen is on the run in a futile effort to save her family from her ex-husband's wrath. Caught by a snowstorm in a foreign land she finds her way to Prairie Knights Casino and Resort and Kyle.

Kyle has unexplained powers. He is determined to save Lin Chen from the man who abused her no matter the cost.

Kyle just may have what it takes to save Lin once and for all. Lin must choose to believe in him and stand and fight the enemy that is far stronger than she could ever imagine.

Regina Paul is an outstanding writer who takes the time to round out a story. Never leaving the reader wondering how or why something occurred. No Place to Run showcases this talent to the extreme.

Flights of Fancy

Fancy McKee has lived under the shadow of her mother’s reputation for many years. Accustomed to what people think of her she opens her own unique bakery regardless of the town’s opinion.

Business was good but Tate Hildebrandt is better. Tate has no cares regarding the opinions of a narrow-minded town and he is determined he will be the last man for Fancy.

Fancy will have to prove that she is better than the gossip in order to hang on to her man. Tate will not stand for anything less than total commitment.

Fancy is such a sweet but realistic character. Dahlia Rose takes on the subject of gossip with great skill and knowledge demonstrating how gossip should not dictate the path of life. Flights of Fancy is an outstandingly written story which inspires the reader to stand up for the underdog.

Midnight Shift

Lori and Chase are forbidden lovers. He is a shape-shifter and she is a human as well as the daughter of the biggest anti-shifter rights political activist.

Just when they have determined that they will become secret lovers her father has pushed through a law that makes it illegal for them to be together.

Unable to marry, have babies, or even be intimate they have decided to live in the wild outside the bounds of civilization.

The characters and storyline are unique but closer to the realities of the acceptance of paranormal beings in mainstream society. Brenda Steele skillfully ended the story so that although I was left wanting to know the rest of the story; I felt no disappointment in the ending.

A Hare’s Breadth

Robin is a shape-shifter who had despaired of ever meeting her mate. That is until she sees Vincenzo performing with his family.

Vincenzo has a secret that may prevent them from ever being together. He is on the run from an enemy who will never give up.

Each have their own unique power but combined they still may not be enough to vanquish the evil determined to keep them apart.

The shape-shifters in this story are fascinating because they are able to shift into animals you will not normally find in shifter stories. The ability to become transparent was a truly inspirational slant to such a common subject in today’s market.

Mating Season is a well rounded anthology. There is a little of everything for everyone’s taste; life lessons, shape-shifter, forbidden lovers, and panty wetting sex. All of the stories are worthy of high praise. By themselves the stories are outstanding and together they make the book a keeper.

Delane
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance & More

http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/BookReviews/matingseason.html

Demons

Crymsyn Hart, Dahlia Rose, and Anastasia Rabiyah have a bit of a Demonic Obsession! Check out our new release in print from Amira Press entitled Demonic Obsessions. Get your very own copy from Amira's Amazon store today!

Demons can be literal or not so literal as in the trials we face, the temptations we resist, or the torment that plagues us daily. Discover demons of another sort by going on a scavenger hunt. Beginning June 1, 2009, head on over to Crymsyn Hart and Anastasia's Rabiyah's web pages and seek out 18 hidden demons. Find them all and enter to win.

Sometimes you don't have to look too far to find your very own demon...

Happy Memorial Day

This is my best friend's company in Iraq. They are nurses and doctors serving as medical evacuation. They dodged bullets to bring the injured to safety.

I just want to take a minute to say Happy Memorial Day to everyone. My heart goes out to anyone who has someone still fighting in Iraq or Afganistan. I hope they stay safe. I appreciate all the men and women who have served our country to keep us safe.

Sarah

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Whether you have kids or pets or nieces and nephews, I want to wish you a wonderful mother's day.

Sarah McNeal

http://www.sarahmcneal.com/