Mum's the Word: Happy Mother's Day from the Book Boost!

Mum's the Word!  
Win a bundle of "Mom-friendly" 

books this weekend at the Book Boost!

In honor of my mother and all the mothers in the world who have the toughest job they'll ever love, I invite you to share with me a story about you and your mother.

In exchange, I'll be giving away a book bundle to one lucky winner.  See below for details.

One of my fave memories of reading associated with my mother is our weekly trip to the bookstore.  We'd spend what seemed like hours (but probably wasn't really that long knowing how busy my mother truly was--I only know this now that I'm the mother of THREE little ones) browsing the rows and rows of books.  The smell of paper and ink.  The quiet murmur of patrons.  The lime green, 1970's style carpeting.  Those sexy covers with handsome hairy-chested heroes and thigh-baring ladies.  Oops!  I don't think I was supposed to be looking at those particular covers.

But, I'll admit to having an early liking for the taboo world of adult romance.  I was no more than a fourth or fifth grader but my desire for knowledge of the adult world of books was strong.

So strong, in fact, I'd sneak a peak at my mother's stash of tawdry, tattered romances whenever I was sure she wouldn't notice.  Like say...by verifying she was occupied elsewhere in the house and then crawling into her dark closet with my trusty Scooby Doo flashlight.  Digging out one of her new books and scanning the pages for the "bad words".

What did all those words mean?  I wasn't exactly sure but I knew it must be good.  My mother had stacks and stacks of the things.  From that point on, I was on a mission to learn more about these books.  These little nuggets of escape my mother clung to on the sofa, in bed, at the pool, on road trips and anywhere else she could find a moment or two to read.

Now, as an adult, a mother of many and a multi-published romance author myself, my love for reading has NEVER waned.  Not one single time have I ever uttered, "I'm tired of books."  And I fully understand my mother's love of the romance genre.

I love them, long for them, and eagerly seek the next dose of romance escapism that can be found between those sexy pages.  Of course, I don't have to belly crawl into a dark closet with a flashlight to read them these days.  I'll openly read them in public, flash those naughty covers in the doctor's office waiting room, and proudly announce to anyone who will listen...I'm a romance author and I'm proud of it!

But the scent of freshly laundered linens and the smell of my father's shoe polish will forever remind me of those secret days of romance reading from long ago.

Thanks Mom for introducing me to my favorite genre.  And if you did know what I was up to all those years ago--thanks for letting me get away with it. xoxo

As far as a fave "mom" character in a book?  I have so many the mind surely boggles.  But since I'm a huge Susan Mallery fan (and desire to cheer her on whenever given the chance), I'll share with you one of my fave mom characters from one of her books---her name just happens to be Kerri Sullivan (isn't that a grand first name, wink wink, nudge nudge) and she stars in the book Accidentally Yours.  She is one determined mom in search of a way to save her son who suffers from a chronic illness and nothing will get in her way.  What's not to love about that type of Mom?

Given that this very month, my own daughter will reach her 9 year milestone after being diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the tender age of 2.  How can I not root for any mom who must watch their child suffer and wish they could take the illness from them and endure the pain on their behalf?  Surely that would hurt less.

Sigh.  No one said being a mom would be easy.

Alas, on the lighter side of things...

I'll go ahead and share with you my mother's fave "mom" character in a book.

Her fave character would be Grandma Mazur from the Janet Evanovich series featuring Stephanie Plum.  She never fails to laugh out loud at Grandma and I thinks she's just the type of Grandma my mother hopes to be for my children.  Fun, rebellious, slightly nosy, and with an "all around town" type personality minus the gun toting tendencies!

I love you, Mom.  Happy Mother's Day!

Until next time, I remain...

Romance-Friendly Yours,

Kerri Nelson

Writer of Romance, Owner of The Book Boost,
 & Mother to Mayhem, Chaos, and Tantrums


Contest Time:

Share a story about you and your Mom or tell us about your fave "Mom" character in a book to be entered to win a book bundle of "Mom-friendly" books this Mother's Day Weekend!

**Winners for Book Boost prizes are drawn the first week of the following month and posted in the Recent Winners box in the right hand side of the blog. Check back to see if you are a winner and to claim your prize! Please leave your contact information in your blog post!**

A Newborn Author, Once Again with Guest Blogger Leslie Langtry

Win a new romantic comedy and 

give a special welcome to our 

2011 Book Boost Blogger of the Year, 

author Leslie Langtry!

She's here to tell us about her recent re-birth as an author and here's what she had to say...

My book is free.  And that makes me happy.  Not something you think you'd hear an author say, right?  Well, this is the new era of epublishing and crazy things are happening. 'Scuse Me While I Kill This Guy was the first book I sold to a New York publisher.  It came out in paperback in 2006.  In 2010, I requested my rights back from the publisher.  They didn't want to do any more books in the series (they pubbed four), and my fans were threatening to lynch me if I didn't write more. 

Anyhow - I put the e-book up at the end of that year and it did pretty well.  I didn't really understand how e-books worked, so I didn't really promote it the way I should've.  I promoted it the way I did a print book.  This doesn't necessarily work for an e-book.

After a year at $3.99, the book sales slowed down.  I needed new readers to find me - something called "discoverability" in e-talk.  So, last March, I lowered the price to 99 cents.  The sales perked up and did pretty well for a year.  But I was still having trouble getting "discovered" - something that sounds like I just hopped off the virtual bus in internet Hollywood with a suitcase and a dream...

A couple of author friends encouraged me to take this to the next level and make it free.  Okay, I thought, that doesn't sound great.  It's hard to get royalties out of $0.  But they persisted and told me that once a book goes free on Amazon - it reaches a level of discoverability that I couldn't get to otherwise.  So, after hemming and hawing and dragging my feet - I tried it - which felt more like getting off of a real bus in the middle of a desert wearing a sausage necklace. 

Within hours, my sales rank went from 14,000 at amazon to 244!  I hit #9 on the Humor bestseller list at Amazon.com! 

There might be something to this. I promise to come back and fill you in on what happens  I'm only going to keep it free for a short time - so you should download it and ask everyone you know to download it.  Pick up your free copy today!  Click here.

A Note from the Book Boost:  Leslie, I'm so happy for you and thrilled to hear of your recent successes.  Oh, and since we are going back in time to the baby-age.  I'll play in the sandbox with you anytime, my friend.>>Kerri, age 2>>

Want More Leslie?

Visit her on the web here:  http://www.leslielangtry.com/

Follow her blog here: 

http://www.killerfictionwriters.blogspot.com/

Contest Time:


Leave a question or comment for Leslie and be entered to win a copy of her newest book, The Adulterer's Unofficial Guide to Family Vacations.




**Winners for Book Boost prizes are drawn the first week of the following month and posted in the Recent Winners box in the right hand side of the blog. Check back to see if you are a winner and to claim your prize! Please leave your contact information in your blog post!**

Legends & Lore with Guest Blogger: Marsha A. Moore

Welcome author Marsha A. Moore 

to the Book Boost today!

She's here to discuss magical gemstones, superstitions and enchanted bookstores and here's what she had to say...


One of the monthly themes here at The Book Boost is the topic of superstitions since on May Day, young girls wanting to remove freckles from their faces, were encouraged to wash their faces in the early morning dew. The magical systems of my Enchanted Bookstore Legends use many such superstitions.

Even though my heroine, Lyra McCauley, is one of only five Scribes in all of Dragonspeir’s history and has inherited vast power, she needs more than that to survive the dangers she faces. Opening an enchanted book, she confronts a quest. She is expected to save Dragonspeir from destruction by the Black Dragon before he utilizes power of August’s red moon to expand his strength and overthrow the opposing Imperial Dragon. Lyra accepts the challenge because Cullen, the wizard she loves, will perish if evil wins.

Along with magical animal guides, Cullen helps her through many perils, but ultimately Lyra must use her own power to complete the quest. She gains additional energy to access her inherited strength from the stars, magnetics within the Earth, and from special forces contained in mystical gemstones. I’ll briefly explain the traditional lore and superstitions of gems as well as effects of these stones in my own legends.

Heliodor, also called Golden Beryl, has long been cut into spheres for scrying since it enhances the owner’s psychic awareness.

In Seeking a Scribe, Lyra is given a gift from each of the four Guardians—the Phoenix, the Tortoise, the Imperial Dragon, and the Unicorn—who are the four Chinese sacred animals that balance all of creation through their influences on the elements of fire, water, air, and earth, respectively.

The Unicorn’s gift to Lyra is a scrying stone of heliodor. The golden hue of the stone he matched to the unique color of her visible scribal aura. An aura is a glow of light that surrounds the entire body of a magical being. To use her heliodor, she concentrates on one single question about a future event. The stone answers with an image she must decipher.

Jade has long been revered as a symbol of love. In ancient China a prospective bride would present her betrothed a jade butterfly to seal their engagement. Likewise the bridegroom would give his sweetheart a gift of jade before their wedding. This gem is considered one of the most important symbols of purity and serenity. The ancient Chinese also felt that Jade helped to inspire the mind to make quick and precise decisions. The ancient trader would often hold this gem in the palm of his right hand while he engaged in business transactions.

In my legends, once love grows between Lyra and Cullen, it is visibly connected through a gift of the lovers’ paired jadestones. Only one set of these powerful stones exists in Dragonspeir. The gems are mounted into two ornate brooches, a male and female setting. The two call to each other and bond Lyra and Cullen’s magic, enabling them to use their combined magical powers as one extremely strong unit. This proves invaluable in many life-threatening situations.

Jet wards off dark magic by balancing the emotions of the wearer to protect him/her from possession.
It’s no wonder that a necklace of jet was created for the first Scribe to protect her from being mentally possessed by evil forces of the Dark Realm in Dragonspeir. After the Black Dragon first trajects his magic through Lyra, Cullen gives her that ancient necklace and initiates its magic once again.

Opal is considered to be able to confer the gift of invisibility on its wearer.

A mysterious benefactor sends Lyra a gift of a rare opal invisibility ring at just the right moment.
Blue topaz allows the wearer’s strength to increase so he/she may become more clear-sighted and dispel all enchantment.

Cullen wears a massive silver ring, wrought with the face of a dragon, having eyes of blue topaz. He uses the ring as a means to transmit incantations mentally rather than saying them aloud, particularly helpful when silence is necessary for safety.

Sapphire has been associated with divine favor. The Buddhists believed that the sapphire favored devotion and spiritual enlightenment. The ancient Greeks linked sapphire with Apollo, and wore it as an aid to prophecy when consulting oracles. It is worn and utilized in rituals to strengthen the ability to tap and send forth power.

Blue is the designated color of allegiance to the Alliance. The highest magicals in the Alliance each possess a sapphire, including each of the four Guardians. Cullen’s wizard staff bears a sapphire at its apex, which channels his power into sharp streams.

Amethyst can be used to increase psychic awareness, to sharpen the 'sixth sense.' Similarly, iolite stimulates the wearer’s spiritual awareness, guide him/her to a higher awareness, and awakens inner knowledge. Iolite helps its owner to open the door to the knowledge of the Universe.

Both of these purple gems are worn by several magical residents of Dragonspeir who don’t align their support with either the Dark Realm of the Black Dragon or the Alliance of the Imperial Dragon.

Colors are worn to display allegiance, red for the Dark Realm and blue for the Alliance. Purple, an intermediate color, indicates these individuals stand apart. Included in this group are the alchemists for both realms, as well as many of the magical nomadic tribal peoples who are sky readers. These renegades pose as much threat for Lyra as the Dark Realm, pursuing her for her unique scribal aura.

I’ve always enjoyed the legends and lore of gemstones. Their mystical qualities added another layer of magic to my legends. To see these amazing stones in action, read Seeking a Scribe: Enchanted Bookstore Legend One.

A Note From the Book Boost:  This is all very fascinating, Marsha.  Thanks for sharing both your research and your world building with us.  Please give us a taste of your book!

Blurb:

Lyra McCauley is a writer and loves fantasy novels, but when she opens a selection from bookstore owner Cullen Drake, she has no idea he’s a wizard character who lives a double life inside that volume…or the story’s magic will compel her from the edge of depression to adventure, danger, and love.

His gift to Lyra, the Book of Dragonspeir, was actually her copy, misplaced years ago. Lost in her pain following divorce and death, she fails to recognize him as her childhood playmate from the fantasyland. Friendship builds anew. Attraction sparks. But Lyra doubts whether a wizard is capable of love. She’s torn—should she protect her fragile heart or risk new love?

Opening the book’s cover, she confronts a quest: save Dragonspeir from destruction by the Black Dragon before he utilizes power of August’s red moon to expand his strength and overthrow the opposing Imperial Dragon. Lyra accepts the challenge, fearing Cullen will perish if evil wins. Along with magical animal guides, Cullen helps her through many perils, but ultimately Lyra must use her own power…and time is running out.



Excerpt (edited for length):

The smell of anise greeted Lyra as she opened the door to Drake’s bookstore. It took her back to happy childhood memories. Licorice-shoe-string-rewards for following her parents’ requests to stay on the dock while they secured the family’s pleasure boat to its trailer. The aroma brought a fleeting remembrance of times long gone, a treasure now that her folks had recently passed. At ease with the familiar scent, she settled into browsing through rows of antique bookcases.

The shop owner stuck his head around a set of shelves. “Do you like tea?”

"Yes, I do.” Before she could finish speaking, he disappeared. “Is that the wonderful smell?” she called out.

Kitchenware clinked in the back room. Receiving no answer, Lyra followed the noises, scanning collections as she walked. This bookshop appeared established, but surely she would have remembered it from her last visit to the Lake Huron village five years ago. Books were her passion, especially fantasy. She paused in front of that section and studied its titles.

The owner appeared, holding a pewter tray with a teapot, two cups, sugar jar, spoons, and napkins, which he laid on the corner of an old library table. She watched him carefully pour the tea and hand her a cup. He was about her age, mid thirties or a bit older, and handsome. His medium brown hair, peppered with gray at the temples, grazed his shoulders in wavy layers, and his beard was trimmed into a neat goatee. He wore long shorts, a knit golf shirt, and sandals—typical casual attire for this island resort community. 

She set down her bag from the drugstore and accepted his offer with a smile. “Thanks. My name’s Lyra.” She blew across the hot surface of the tea to cool it and then inhaled the anise-scented steam. She closed her eyes to fully enjoy the memory. “Ah!”

“Afternoons of boating and licorice with your parents? Right?” he asked.

Her mouth dropped open. How did he know that? 

He slurped from his cup. “Go ahead, take a sip. My folks gave me the same reward for taking my kid sister along on bicycle rides.” 

Forgetting all about the tea, she asked, “How do you know my childhood memory?” 

“Taste it.” His lips curled into a sly grin as he took another gulp.

She cautiously took a tiny sip, just enough to wet her lips and the tip of her tongue.  The flavor flooded her mouth, and her mind swam with wonderful memories. The taste transformed into that of gigantic popcorn balls the sheriff’s wife down the street made for Halloween trick-or-treaters, accompanied by images of Lyra’s costume—a red, fringed gypsy skirt borrowed from Mom. Next came a pumpkin flavor and vision of holding a cold piece of “punky-pie” in her five-year-old hand. Another swallow returned her experience back to anise. “What is this? How did you know?”

“Let me introduce myself.” His grin spread into a smile as his eyes met hers. He took a step closer.

“I’m Cullen, Cullen Drake, and I know many things. What I don’t know is what sort of books you like to read.”

Want More Marsha?

Visit her on the web here:  http://MarshaAMoore.com

Follow her on Twitter here: 

 http://twitter.com/MarshaAMoore

Pick up a copy of her book today!  Click here.

Win your Name in a Book & Help Cure Diabetes!

Bid on a chance to win your name 

in the sequel to Courting Demons 

& much more!

Every Tuesday this month we are featuring the annual Brenda Novak Auction for Diabetes Research.  Today's feature is on one of the items I've donated to the cause.  A very near and dear cause to me since my lovely 11-year-old daughter, Brooke, has continuously fought the battle with Type 1 Diabetes for 9 years as of this month.

Each year, I support the auction by bidding on fantastic items (I'm watching quite of few of these delicious treasures).  I also donate several items to the event.  This year, one of my items is the ever popular "name in a book".  If you bid on and win this auction, you'll get to add your name (or the name of your choice) to the sequel to my hot and humorous, paranormal suspense Courting Demons.

The auction also includes an autographed copy of Courting Demons!  But, if you already own your copy (and thank you, if you do), you can substitute in an autographed copy of the upcoming sequel...Appealing Angels! Coming in 2013!


Want to check out the auction and start bidding?

Click here to bid:

http://brendanovak.auctionanything.com/Bidding.taf?_function=detail&Auction_uid1=2473123 

Want to check out all the other amazing items up for grabs?

Click here to view the auction's home page:

http://brendanovak.auctionanything.com/

Here's a little blurb from Courting Demons to wet your appetite:

Paisley Barton was already having a bad day before she turned her husband into a rat.
 
First, she was fired by her boss and then came home to find hubby in the shower with a naked blonde chick. They say that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned but this break-up may just unleash hell on Earth when Paisley casts a spell of vengeance against her philandering husband.
 
After her spell casting inadvertently opens a portal between dimensions, Paisley finds her family home transformed into a nightly courtroom for settling disputes between demons of the underworld and she’s the judge! If that’s not enough, she’s got to deal with a charming, ancient demon named Camden who wants to be her personal bodyguard while trying to explain her husband’s sudden, mysterious disappearance to sexy police Detective Dalton Briggs.
 
But Paisley will show them all that an everyday working mom is better equipped than most to deal with the mystical mayhem…and with a tempting demon hottie and a flirtatious young detective vying for her affection, she soon learns that being single again isn’t so bad after all.
 
“Nelson’s novel is full of fun. Readers will love the hilarity and underlying danger that pushes the story forward.”  --Romantic Times Magazine
 
“Kerri Nelson offers up a lot of fun and wild magic in Courting Demons!” –Bestselling author, Linda Wisdom, Demons are a Girl’s Best Friend

“Poor Paisley, but lucky me…I laughed so loud…I heartily recommend this well-written, deftly plotted little gem.” --Margaret Fieland, Poetry & Prose Blog


Want a little more?  Click here for an excerpt:

http://www.jupitergardens.com/excerpts/kn_cd.html

Oh, and if that's not enough...here's a sexy teaser pic for Appealing Angels!  C'mon, you know you wanna know what happens next.

And, if you want to pick up a copy of Courting Demons or any of my books while you're waiting on Appealing Angels, you can always check out my website here for more details:

http://www.kerrinelson.com

Don't forget...anyone who bids, comments, or shares information about my Tuesday Diabetes features is entered to win 2 Dozen Autographed books--just for hanging out with me and helping promote such a worthy cause (details below).

Until next Tuesday, I remain...

Graciously yours,

Kerri Nelson
Mom, Domestic Goddess,
Author, and Owner of The Book Boost


Contest Time:

For those of you who stop by the Book Boost this month on any Tuesday and let me know that you've bid on an item, won an item, donated an item or otherwise supported our search for a cure, your name will be entered into a drawing for a huge collection of autographed romance novels from my personal collection. 

This lot includes autographed books from authors such as Lori Wilde, Vicki Lewis Thompson, Susan Mallery and many more!  All new, all autographed and all just for you.

Contest runs from May 1st through May 31st.  Winner announced in early June here at the blog.  You must post a comment on any Tuesday's post during the month of May to enter.  Be sure to leave your contact information so we can reach you if your name is chosen as the winner.

Do You Feel Lucky? With Guest Blogger: Meggan Connors

Win a copy of The Marker and 

welcome featured author 

Meggan Connors to the blog!

She's here to discuss her loveable longing for luck and here's what she had to say...

Do You Believe in Luck?

Logically, I shouldn’t believe in luck.

I come from a family of scientists, none of whom believe in luck. But for all of that, I’ve spent a considerable amount of time breaking down my heritage and deciding which nationalities are lucky and which ones are unlucky.

For instance, I’ve decided the Dutch are, generally, lucky. Score one for me! At the other end of the spectrum, the Irish are either tremendously lucky or horribly unlucky. There is no in-between with the Irish. And the English? They’re the “meh” in the luck sandwich. Sometimes, they’re lucky, sometimes they’re not.

My brother has Dutch luck. I’ve never met anyone who is as lucky as he is. It’s like he has a guardian angel looking after him, a leprechaun in his back pocket, and Ganesh is sitting on his shoulder. My brother can wake up in a foreign country with no pants, no shoes, and not a cent to his name, and leave with a new set of clothes, a bus ticket home, two new friends, and $500 in his pocket.

Sure, that sounds absurd, but it actually happened. (Don’t ask about the no pants part. It’s a long story.)

This is the same brother who will tell you he doesn’t believe in luck. In his opinion, we make our own fate, and we make our own luck.

Hmph. The lucky always say that.

As for me, I have Irish luck. It’s either really good or really bad. For instance, if I’m at a college or professional sporting event, and there’s even the remotest possibility that the ball could hit me in the face, I’m pretty much guaranteed that it will. I remember once, I was at a basketball game, and I was seated in the 15th row from the floor. Great seats. I looked over at my mother and said,

“Ma, we have to move. The ball is going to hit me in the face.”

She told me to stop being melodramatic. Or, rather, that’s what she was in the process of saying when…the ball bounced over all the people standing in front of me and hit me in the face. On TV, too. It was super awesome, because what senior in high school doesn’t want to be hit in the face by a basketball on national TV, while sitting next to her mother? It was more spectacular because I knew I’d be starting college there the following Fall.

This has happened often enough that I’ve learned that nosebleed seats aren’t so bad.

What are the chances of that? My oh-so-lucky brother may not believe in the Fortune smiling down upon him, but I certainly do. Because those of us who suffer under the yoke of unluckiness from time to time recognize Fortune’s smile, even when it’s not bestowed upon us.

But my luck has also been really, really good. It’s come through for me when I’ve needed it. And trust me, it was luck, chance, fortune… whatever name you decide to give it, it was all about luck. Not skill, not some innate ability, not positioning myself so that I could recognize and seize opportunity when it struck. No, it was dumb luck, plain and simple.

A few years ago (okay, more than a few), when my husband and I were flat broke, he took me out to dinner to celebrate my graduation. I knew we didn’t have a whole lot of money, since we’d been eating Ramen for the last month, but I didn’t know we were flat broke—I’d been ensconced in my study, writing my thesis, for the last six months, all while working two jobs and going to school. I hadn’t slept more than four hours a night in those six months, and I was exhausted.

But I’d finished the darn thing, and I had a job lined up that I would start two days later. Husband wanted to reward me for all my hard work, so he took me out to a dinner we couldn’t afford (at a coffee shop in a casino), and while we were there, he told me he wasn’t even sure we had enough money to afford a meal and drinks, so he warned me to “eat cheap.”

And so I did.

At the end of a terrible meal, we had a single dollar left over.

Outside of the coffee shop was a slot machine. One of the high paying ones. Out here, it’s known as MegaBucks. The payouts are over a million dollars, if you’re lucky and have bet the maximum you’re allowed, which is three dollars.

I had a buck, and, on a lark (and knowing the odds—I’d been doing stats for six months, after all), I went ahead and put that single dollar into the MegaBucks machine. I turned to talk to husband, so I never saw the eagles line up.

I heard an alarm, though, and, for a moment, I was convinced the place was on fire. That is until I glanced at husband’s face and saw he’d gone pale.

No, I hadn’t hit MegaBucks. I hit the MegaMini, the one just below the massive win. If I’d played three dollars, I would have won something like $150,000. As it stood, I won $7,000.

For two kids who had resorted to eating Ramen noodles for weeks on end, that $7000 was more money than we’d see in months.

What was that but Fortune, smiling on us, when we really needed it? I haven’t won anything since (I suppose you have to play more often than I do in order to win, though), and I don’t expect to. After all, Fortune, like lightning, rarely strikes twice. Well, more to the point, she rarely strikes me twice.

So while I think we have the ability to shape our own destinies, I believe in luck. I keep thinking I can pull another one out, and I’ll win the lottery or something (again, there is that whole playing the lottery in order to win it thing, but those are just details, right?). But the way karma works with me, I’m actually more likely to be struck by lightning a few times.

And, from what I’ve been told, it’s not worth it. I heard this from a friend who’s been struck not one, not twice, but three times. Talk about unlucky. And he doesn’t even have a winning lottery ticket to show for it.


A Note from the Book Boost:  Meggan, what a great post!  I love this story and it sounds just like my life!  I've been on the Ramen diet once or twice myself and I've never won anything on a slot machine--although I did win an Amazon Kindle once (back when they first came out)--that's my biggest prize yet and I'll take it!  But you've got to come back and tell us more about your brother's missing pants.  You can't just leave us hanging like that!  And it is your lucky day--the Book Boost will offer up an e-copy of your book to one lucky winner today on your behalf.


Blurb: 

When her father loses her in a poker game, Lexie Markland is sent to work in the household of Nicholas Wetherby for one year to pay off the debt. Innocent, but not naïve, she is savvy enough to know she must maintain her distance from this man, who frustrates her with his relentless teasing but whose kisses bring her to her knees. Because although she may be just another conquest to him, it’s not just her heart in jeopardy should she succumb to Nicholas’ considerable charms.

Since his brother's death almost a year before, nothing has held Nicholas’ attention for long—not women, not booze, not even an excellent hand at cards. Nothing, that is, until he meets the woman he won in a drunken night of poker. Intrigued by his prize and her chilly reserve, he makes it his mission to crack Lexie’s cool demeanor. But even as passion explodes between them, the question remains: will Nicholas be able to take the ultimate risk...and gamble on love?

Want More Meggan?

Follow her on the web here:  www.megganconnors.com

Pick up a copy of her book today! Click here. 

Contest Time:


Leave a question or comment for Meggan and be entered to win a copy of The Marker (courtesy of the Book Boost--spreading the love & the luck).


**Winners for Book Boost prizes are drawn the first week of the following month and posted in the Recent Winners box in the right hand side of the blog. Check back to see if you are a winner and to claim your prize! Please leave your contact information in your blog post!**

A Chat With Greta Van der Rol today at the Book Boost!

Welcome featured author 
Greta Van Der Rol 

to the Book Boost!

Recently, we chatted with Greta and here's what she had to say...

TBB: Welcome back to the Boost, Greta and congrats on being selected as our featured Book of the Month for May!  Please help us get to know you better.  Where are you from?

GVR:  I live near the beach in Queensland, northern Australia



TBB:  Ah, I've always wanted to visit Australia.  I lived in Japan for 2 years and that is as close as I've gotten.  Not quite there, though.  Tell us a little about your latest novel and how you came up with the title for it.

GVR:  Starheart is a science fiction romance – the 'heart' part works for that. But in fact there is a thing called a 'starheart' – a rare and much-prized jewel, which is an integral part of the story. Besides, it's short and fits well on an e-book cover.



TBB:  Well, that sounds both practical and clever.  Good job!  What are you working on next?

GVR: I'm waiting for a response to a sub on a paranormal contemporary romance and I'm girding my loins to start a new book, probably a sequel to Morgan's Choice.



TBB:  I love a good series.  Speaking of which, what are you reading these days?

GVR:   A fan-fic. It's interesting. The author's grammar is awful, the work is in serious need of editing – but I persevere because I love the story. This is my third read, so that tells you something.



TBB:  Sounds fascinating.  Do you have any advice for aspiring authors out there?


GVR:  Advice? The biggest one I've learned is to take the 'rules' with a bucket of salt. Every so-called rule has been broken. But before you break the rules, know what they are. Many, many rules could be considered sensible guidelines. For instance, 'never use adverbs' is a ridiculous rule. Rephrased as don't overuse adverbs and see if you can replace the verb/adverb combination with a stronger verb – that makes sense.



TBB:  Sage advice.  Thanks for sharing.  After all is said and done, what has been the biggest reward thus far in your career?

GVR:  When people 'get' it. When people really, really love what I've produced. I don't care what anybody says, writers write so readers will read. I know not everyone will like my books but knowing that I've connected with someone is priceless.
  


TBB:  I can totally relate to this.  There is nothing better than when someone really jives with your voice and gets your sense of humor.  So hard to find.  But when they like it--they really like it.  As a reader, what author would you most like to meet and dine with and why?

GVR:  Terry Pratchett. The man is brilliantly unconventional in his writing. I love his characters, I love his learning and I admire his approach to Alzheimer's disease.



TBB:  What about when you're not writing--how do you escape from the biz?


GVR:  I take photographs of the world around me. I share some of my pictures on my blog and I have some for sale on Dreamstime.



TBB:  I love that site.  Use it all the time.  I will definitely check those out!  Thanks for joining us, Greta.  Please tell us more about your latest before you leave.



Blurb:

She's lost her husband, her best friend is missing. What else has she got to lose?

Slightly shady freighter captain, Jess Sondijk, thought she had her life under control until Admiral Hudson's Confederacy battle cruiser stops her ship to search for contraband. His questions reopen matters she had thought resolved. What if her husband's death on his way back from Tabora wasn't accidental? Jess decides to investigate, while keeping Hudson at arms' length.

While he's attracted to the lovely Jess, Hudson is also concerned about what might be happening on Tabora and how that may involve the Confederacy's enemies.

Jess and Hudson's interests collide in more ways than one. But while Jess is more than willing to put her life on the line to protect what's hers, Hudson must balance the risk of inter-species war at worst and the end of his career at best, in a deadly game of political intrigue, murder and greed. At the end of the day, how much is he willing to lose for the woman he has come to love?


Excerpt: 

The path disappeared into another snowdrift. She shoved her way through, her leg muscles grumbling with each step. Her pants were wet to her thighs; she couldn't feel her skin anymore. No chance of stopping, though. The air burned in her lungs. So tired.

"Make for the trees," Hudson said aloud, "As fast as you can."

Another half a klick and the serious tree cover started. She shambled along, faster than a walk, not quite a jog, Hudson's footfall a reassuring counter-point. Another howl, exultant and eager, scraped over her nerves. And beyond that, a different sound, a low, mechanical hum.

"They've called in the air support," Hudson said. "We'll have to run."

Down here the path had widened enough for him to move alongside her. Holding the gun at his side, he gripped her arm with his free hand and almost pushed her along. The forest beckoned, a deep canopy covering a dusting of snow. The hum grew louder with each stride.

"We can do it, Jess, keep moving." He'd gone back to implant to conserve air. He was panting almost as much as she was.

The skin tingled between her shoulder blades. But it wouldn't be like that; they'd do what they did to Longford, shred them both with their cannon or maybe even fire a missile. She lurched in the snow as her foot drove through into a hole. Hudson dragged her back up. A few strides more. She stretched out a hand to touch rough bark. Thank the spirit. But he forced her on, away at an angle. 

The attacker soared over the forest, engines set to dead low, searching.

The attacker soared over the forest, engines set to dead low, searching.

Jess sucked air into her lungs. This wasn't the same as working out in a gym. She hadn't run so far, oh, ever. Hudson wasn't much better, his chest heaving with the effort.

"Back inside my jacket, sweet heart," he said. "They'll be using sensors. Let's try and move on before the ground support arrives."

He'd flipped up his hood, unfastened the jacket. She rested her back against his chest and let him fold the material around her, a warm, reassuring presence. Slowly, carefully, they walked forward, their backs to the hovering machine. The sound of it thundered in Jess’ ears, even muffled as it was by the thick canopy. If they fired a missile in the right place… The sound changed. 

"They're landing," Hudson said.

A howl reverberated in the air. Jess’ nerves jangled. "Fuck. They've brought the sniffert up." 

He released her from his jacket, urged her forward. "We need somewhere with shelter where we can fire back at them."

Aching muscles complained with every jolting step. "I don't know this place."

They could hear the beast now; eager, whiffling grunts albeit still distant. Shit shit shit. They couldn't keep up this pace and the people following were fresh.
  

Want More Greta?

Visit her on the web here:  http://gretavanderrol.net/

Follow her on Twitter here:  http://twitter.com/GretavdR

Pick up a copy of her latest today! Click here.

Multi-May Celebrations with Guest Blogger: Bev Irwin

Welcome featured author Bev Irwin 

back to the Book Boost today!

She's here to discuss her upcoming month of celebrations and here's what she had to say...

May is the month of ‘great celebrations. So what will I be celebrating this month? I’ll be celebrating the release of my latest book, Ghostly Justice, with Black Opal Books and the upcoming releases of my next two books, also with Black Opal.

Yes, I did say two new releases.  Missing Clayton will be coming out in June, and Without Consent, after that. I also had a romance novel, When Hearts Collide, which came out last December with Soul Mate Publishing. So I have a lot to be celebrating. Four books in one year.

And yesterday, to add to my excitement, my book, Ghostly Justice, came in the mail. How exciting to hold it in my hot little hands. I was so fired up, I thought I might burn the pages, LOL.

But really, it is the most exciting experience.

I was excited last fall to get a contract for my medical romance, When Hearts Collide, and have it put up as an e-book in December, but nothing, nothing, compares to having a real book to hold on to, and with your name on it.  I think I’ll just keep celebrating all month. The feeling is too good to want to let go of it.

Was it luck or fate? Do you believe in them?

Do I believe in luck, fate, destiny, coincidence?  Yes, I’m a big believer in luck, but I think that sometimes we make our own luck.

Take writing a book for instance. We start out with the urge to write, we test the waters a little beginning with some poetry, a short story, or maybe we’re energetic enough to start a novel.

Do we have the nerve to show it to anyone? Or do we hide it away for weeks, months, or years before we take it out and look at it again. When take it out again, we look at it with the benefit of having distance from it, and we see it with new eyes, sometimes called ‘revision.’ We decide then if it is good enough to do anything with it. Do we continue? Have we grow broad enough shoulders that we can share it with someone and bare our souls to criticism or ridicule.

So we decide maybe we have some writing talent. Now what do we do? Maybe we buy a writing book, or two or fifty. I love going to Chapters, or any book store for that matter, and seeing is there is one I don’t have on my shelves. I didn’t mention that I have an addiction did I? Well, I’m baring my soul here. I’m addicted to buying books. I also have an addiction to buying pens and cute little notebooks to write in.

So the writing books perused, our interest is peaked to take a writing course or two. Do we sign up at a local university or library? We meet other writers, hear their work, learn to critique, learn to be critiqued. Maybe we do it online and find other writers to share are work with. An online critique partner or group can be great. You can meet people from all over the world and you don’t have to see their face when they tear our work apart (just kidding). But sometimes it is easier to get critiques from people you won’t meet face to face.

Hopefully you read these critiques with objectivity and a grain of salt. You want to step back from your work and weigh what they have told you before you decide what is really helpful feedback and what is not. Try reading their suggestions out loud. Then read yours, pretending you have never heard it before. Decide which one sounds best. Sometimes reading is like poetry and how your words sound determines your voice. A great voice is what makes a reader want more and look for your next book.

So we work hard on our writing, develop our book into a product worthy of being  published, and we send it out to editors and publishers.  Then we wait for lady luck to arrive on our doorstep with a nice contract. So luck? Yes, luck has a part to play, but only after we have done a heck of a lot work.

So give a toast to sweat, tears, luck, and celebrate your own personal successes in your writing.

A Note from the Book Boost:  Bev, I agree that we make our own luck by hard work but it sure helps to have a fabulous editor who believes in you.  It always feels so good to get that encouragement from others in the industry and it looks like you're on a roll, my friend.  Congrats on all the new releases and viva la celebration!

Blurb:

Fifteen-year-old Daria Brennan doesn't want to hear people's thoughts. She doesn't want to see ghosts or talk to dead people. And she definitely doesn't want to help Amanda solve her forty-year old murder.

But Amanda wants revenge, and Daria is the first human contact she’s had since the day she died.

Now the killer is after Daria and her friends. Can they solve this Amanda’s murder in time, or will they become the next victims?


Excerpt: 

After all these years, I could finally feel something. It was as if a jolt of electricity surged through me, and my heart almost began to beat again. 

At first, I didn’t know what caused it. I only knew an undeniable force drew me to my bedroom window. With each step, the tingle of fingernails tracking down my spine increased. The thought passed through me, maybe I should be afraid. But really, what was there to be afraid of? It couldn’t get worse. What’s worse than being dead? 

I’d floated toward the window. Two girls walked in front of the house. They looked about my age, maybe younger – fifteen, sixteen. I was drawn to the one with the dark curly hair. Her friend called her Daria. I reached out my hand, called her name. She looked up at the window. She sensed me. I knew it. I saw her shudder, but she kept walking. 

I watched until they turned the corner at Colburn Street. Then the energy vanished and a profound sadness filled me. Even playing the piano held no joy that day. 

I have to talk to her. But how? 

I gave up trying to contact the living years ago. It became so tiresome – appearing in front of them, touching them, talking to them, yet never being noticed. 

Until now. 

Every day, I watch for her. Every day, I try to make contact. Every day I plead for her to look up at my window again. Two weeks have passed now. And every day, she hurries past; her gaze focused on the street ahead. 

I must talk to her. 

Daria is the first person I’ve been able to communicate with since the day I was murdered.

Want More Bev?

Award-winning author, Bev Irwin, lives in London, Ontario, with three assorted cats. One that hid in her car when she moved from the farm and two others dropped off by her daughter on two different occasions. Her three children have flown the coup, but her granddaughter, Jasmine, is a frequent visitor. 

As a registered nurse, she likes to add a touch of medical to her romance and mystery novels. She writes YA, children's, and poetry. She prefers spending time in her garden, writing, and reading to being in the kitchen.

Visit her on the web here:  www.bevirwin.com 

Or her alter ego here:  www.kendrajames.net

Pick up your copy of her latest today!  Click here.