So Much News!

Buckle up, folks. This post is going to be a wild ride, and it begins in 3…2…1…

BLAST-OFF…. WITH COE RODAS THIS FALL!

Great news for those waiting for Coe’s story!  NOT-SO-SHINING ARMOR has been offered a contract from Carina Press, according to a recent email from Angela James (who edited the novella in which Coe was introduced, STARTING FROM SCRATCH). At last, Coe gets a story and an HEA all his own! FYI, NOT-SO-SHINING ARMOR just might be the most romantic, swoon-worthy book I’ve ever written.  But of course, those who read it will be the ultimate judge of that, heh.  All I know is that I kept wishing a man like Coe was waiting in the wings to sweep me off my feet... with a bottle of milk in hand. (Okay, that doesn't sound very romantic, but trust me. It is. ^_^)

Now, as for when to look for Coe's book... Angela somehow worked a miracle in getting this Thanksgiving-themed book on Carina's publishing schedule this upcoming November.  I’m so excited about this, but even more than that I'm grateful she found a way to make this magic happen.  I get the feeling she must have jumped through flaming hoops to get the job done, so I think I might owe her wine or chocolate or something.  Any suggestions?

My inspirational pic of Coe and Miranda. This is just how they look to me.

The unofficial blurb I whipped up for NOT-SO-SHINING ARMOR:

Miranda Brookhaven is back in Bitterthorn for one reason—to return patent rights to their true owner, Coe Rodas. Years earlier, her father callously used her relationship with Coe to steal the design of an ingenious fuel valve. Now her father's dead, and she’s stuck with righting a wrong that lost her the two men who had once meant the world to her.

Coe’s dreams of hitting it big were gutted when Miranda, a little princess if there ever was one, stabbed him in the back and stole his valve. But to his surprise, Miranda is the one who feels she was wronged. To add to his confusion, the once-pampered princess can’t afford to buy milk, lives in a condemned trailer in that hellhole where he grew up, Garden Court… and everything he thought he knew might be wrong.

It’s irrelevant to Miranda that Coe believes her superpower is the ability to hold a grudge. What matters is that he can no longer get under her skin. But as Thanksgiving rolls around, the spirit of the season threatens to open her ferociously closed-off heart. Or maybe it's not the season at all.  Maybe it's Coe, who seems determined to play the role of knight in not-so-shining armor.

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BITTERTHORN, TEXAS

I received an email from Harlequin’s Carrie Holden with some neat news.  Since I keep basing stories in Bitterthorn, Texas, someone decided it should now be AN OFFICIAL SERIES!  Okay, big whoop, it was already pretty much a series anyway, but from this point on, all Bitterthorn books will be easier to find. Errr, at least I think that's all it means. *scratches head* But that still deserves a yay, right?

(Pssst!  Did you know I’ve sketched out at least five more books for this busy little town in Texas?  Yup, for reals. And, knowing how my brain works, those five are just the tip of the iceberg.)

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ONE HOT SECOND

Speaking of the Bitterthorn series, the third book, ONE HOT SECOND, is now up for pre-order everywhere, releasing August 4th!

Remember the Thorne Mansion that burned down in UGLY DUCKLINGS FINISH FIRST?  It’s time to rebuild it, but the ruin still has a few secrets in it that will reshape the town for all time.  Don’t forget to put it on your Goodreads TBR list!

Official blurb for ONE HOT SECOND:

Parker Radclyffe is up against a wall. Thorne Mansion, the mysterious Italianate castle she's come to Texas to restore, isn't the problem. No matter how intriguing the relic is, it's merely an ember compared to the blazing magnetism of its owner, Chandler Thorne.

When his family mansion burned down, Chandler had to watch over a hundred years of proud history go up in smoke. After more than a year, he finally has everything in place to rebuild, including a renowned conservation architect to oversee the restoration. But when he lays eyes on Parker he realizes he's gotten more than he paid for. Maybe more than he can handle.

Parker is a military brat who never sits still long enough to get burned. Chandler is her opposite, a man with deep roots and deeper family secrets. It won't be easy to find the common ground it takes to build a home together, but Chandler is a Thorne in every sense. He plans to stick with Parker until she sees that love is more than worth the risk.

Pre-Order Links:

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iTunes, Google Play, Kobo, BAM

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BLOG TOUR SIGN UP

I’m going to be doing a two-week blog tour/giveaway starting 08/04/14, and it needs bloggers!  If interested, feel free to sign up! I promise I’ll try not to be boring, heh. :P

ONE HOT SECOND sign-up

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INDIE WATERS, DEAD AHEAD!

In late April, a longtime buddy of mine called (seriously, we’ve known each other since those awkward teen years :D).  This friend wanted to know if I wanted to be a part of an indie anthology she was putting together revolving around the theme of tattoos. Opportunity was knocking and, as I’ve never been rude to opportunity before, I answered. I started the first draft of HOUSE OF PAYNE April 26^th, and wrapped it up June 20^th with a little over 62K words.  Not a bad haul for fifty-five days of work. :)

I didn’t mean for it to be as angsty as it turned out to be, and I confess that I went through two Puffs tissue boxes writing it. But the ending!  Oh, the ending. *satisfied sigh* I actually caught myself going, “Awwwww” as I wrote the HEA.  I love it so much when a book can wring that much emotion out of me.

By the way, wanna know who called me?  Jade C. Jamison, one of the hottest rock-n-roll romance authors Amazon’s got going. She’s my hero and I love her to pieces! I just hope HOUSE OF PAYNE will be worthy of being in her collection, which she's entitled INKED. It’ll be on sale as an anthology for a month, and then we get to do whatever we want with our individual books. I honestly don’t know what I’ll do with HOUSE OF PAYNE—dip my toe in the self-publishing waters on my own, maybe? *is bemused... and intimidated*

One thing I do know. I LOVE the world I’ve created in HOUSE OF PAYNE. I'm talking crazy-love here, folks.  Better yet, the characters within the House are starting to whisper to me.  I suspect there will be at least a couple more stories coming from that world, and probably more.  Can't wait! ^_^

INKED has an expected release date for August 25th -- don't miss it! :D

Offical blurb for HOUSE OF PAYNE:

Life is supposedly what you make of it, but that’s crap as far as 3D artist, Becks Delgado is concerned. She never wanted her brother to die in a car accident… or to be the one who was behind the wheel. Her external scars are nothing compared to the raw wounds inside, and death seems to be the only way to find peace.

Sebastian Payne took the concept of a tattoo parlor and transformed it into a sophisticated gallery of living art. The House Of Payne now caters to the rich and infamous, has garnered a worldwide following, and is run by Payne with an iron fist. He knows Becks is exactly what House Of Payne needs, but there’s a problem. The accident that changed her life left its mark on him as well, and whether he likes it or not, it’s time for Payne to put his House in order.

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ONE LAST THING…

I’d like to wish a very happy birthday to the part-time owner of my brain, Alyse Carlson/Hart Johnson!  She’s a great beta reader, the most prolific writer I know, and so brilliant in so many ways that when she finally decides to give back our shared brain, she’s sucked all the smarts out of it.  Happy birthday, Your Tartness!

A SHOT IN THE LIGHT
An AMAZING serial from Hart Johnson
Now in the final 5 in the AMAZON BREAKTHROUGH NOVEL AWARD!!!