New Release: Where Rainbows End by AnneMarie Brear

“I’m not a man, but that won’t stop me. Just you wait and see.”

It’s 1850 and the Noble family have arrived in Australia to start a new life after scandal drove them from their native England. Headstrong Pippa Noble is determined to reclaim their honour by making her father’s plans for a successful stud farm a reality.

Pippa is immediately spellbound by the untamed outback landscape, although she learns the hard way about the unforgiving nature of the bush – sometimes with devastating consequences. When circumstance leads to Pippa tending the new farm alone, it is the steadfast friendship of neighbouring country estate owner Gil Ashford-Smith that helps her through.

Then an unexpected visitor from England arrives, putting Pippa’s dreams in jeopardy. But she refuses to let go. She will hold onto her family’s land and make her mark, even if it means losing everything else …
 
Excerpt:

‘Pippa! Come look!’ Davy ran into the stables. ‘There’s a carriage coming with two shiny black horses with white feathers on their heads.’ He grabbed her hand and pulled her outside. ‘A carriage!’
Intrigued, Pippa frowned at Robson as he came to stand at her side. They both stared along the valley track. Indeed a large, shiny black carriage pulled by magnificent horses rumbled beside the creek towards them.

‘Who could it be?’ Pippa glanced at Robson for his input.

‘Nay, miss, I know of no one with such a carriage in this district.’

Davy jumped up and down, clapping his hands. ‘It’s a Prince!’

Pippa gently pushed him towards the house. ‘Go to your mother.’

She and Robson walked away from the stables and waited under the big gum tree near the footbridge. On the other side, Davy and Millie watched the carriage approach.

The driver halted the fine pair and drew the carriage to stop. The door was flung open and Gerald popped his head out. ‘Pippa!’

Pippa’s eyes widened in disbelief. ‘Father?’

Gerald exited the carriage and handed Hilary down and then the maid, Cissie. ‘We’re here at last!’ he shouted, reaching back into the carriage.

Hilary ran up to Pippa and hugged her. ‘It’s good to see you! Have we surprised you? How are you? Mother fainted! As soon as we started the descent into the valley, she screamed that we would all fall to our deaths and then fainted.’

Blinking rapidly to make sure of her vision, Pippa let Hilary’s words wash over her. Her family here! She couldn’t believe it. They’d sent her no word of their impending arrival.

‘Come, come, Esther. Pippa wishes to greet you,’ Gerald cajoled his wife out of the carriage. ‘You’re safe now, so stop your hysterics.’

Pippa stepped forward and kissed her mother’s pale cheek. ‘Welcome, Mother.’

Esther, fanning herself with a white handkerchief, sniffled. ‘What a journey, Philippa, what a journey.’ Slowly she raised her head and gazed about. Her eyes widened, her mouth dropped open.
The heavy weight of guilt sunk Pippa’s happiness at her family’s arrival. Her mother’s rigidness confirmed her fears. She hated the valley. ‘Mother—’

‘You …’ Esther turned to scan the whole valley and all it contained, her eyes filling with tears.

‘Gerald …’ She blinked, her chest heaving as though she struggled to breathe. ‘You brought me here?’

‘Mother—’

‘Esther—’

‘How could you?’ Esther’s voice lowered in anger. ‘I’ll not spend one night in this god-forsaken backwater!’ She spun on her heel, re-entered the carriage, and slammed the door.

Pippa stared at her father, whose cheeks flushed beet red. He stormed to the carriage and jerked open the door. ‘Get out at once!’

Hilary silently came to Pippa’s side and took her hand as, in disbelief and with acute embarrassment, they watched their parents argue and wrestle. At last, Esther emerged from the carriage, dishevelled and indignant.

‘I will stay but one night, then I am returning to Sydney to the Talbots.’ She marched past them all and crossed the footbridge. Hilary hurriedly followed her.

Sighing, Gerald walked away, around the other side of the carriage, and, after a glance at Hilary, Pippa went to join him.

‘I’m sorry, Father. I didn’t expect you. Hilary’s letter said it could be another month as Mother had engagements. Inside the house is not complete yet. I kept the men working on extending the stable block.’

‘I do not blame you in the least, dearest.’ His eyes softened and he slipped his arm around her waist to hug her to him. ‘In fact, I’m so very proud of you.’ He gazed out over the valley, at the cluster of buildings, the horses and sheep grazing. ‘What you’ve achieved here in such a short time is inspirational, my dear. You have the courage of a lion.’

Pippa kissed his thin cheek, aware that his ill health had taken its toll on him. ‘I did it for us all, Father. This is our home now, and we’ll be successful, I know it.’

‘I have no doubt about it, not with you in charge.’

‘Oh, but Father, I’m not in charge now you’re here.’

Gerald shook his head. ‘No, Pippa. This is your dream, your future.’

She stepped back, frowning. ‘But it’s yours, too. We share it together.’

‘Yes, but I don’t have the youth, the energy, the heart that you do.’ He shook his head and sighed. ‘All I wanted to do here was to make money. You wanted to make a home.’

She touched his arm, frightened by how old and defeated he looked. ‘We can do both, Father.’

He remained silent for a long time, staring out over the land.

‘Please don’t be dispirited, Father. We can be successful. The mistakes made in England do not have to be repeated here.’

‘My health is failing, but I tend to think that is a good thing.’

‘No—’

Gerald held up his hand. ‘Hear me out. I insist we have honesty if nothing else after so many years of lies.’ He paused and took a deep breath. ‘If I were hale and hearty and a few years younger, there would be no stopping me, but no doubt that would have led to our ruin as it did back home.’

‘Father—’

‘I’ve had time to think while bedridden and holed up with the Talbots, and I’ve made a decision.’ He took both her hands in his and smiled. ‘I was going to tell you this later, but I might as well do it now and be done with it.’

‘What is it?’ Pippa braced herself for bad news, for his tone was the same he used in England when he would admit failure in some investment or when the bailiffs came to clear the house of their belongings to repay his gambling debts.

He sucked in a deep breath. ‘The valley is yours to do with as you please. I’ll sign it all over to you, with the provision that you support your sister.’

Pippa blinked. ‘But what about you and Mother?’

‘We shall return to England.’

‘No!’

To buy Where Rainbows End
All Amazon Kindle sites; myBook.to/WhereRainbowsEnd  
 Kobo UK: https://goo.gl/24Tir1

 

Australian born AnneMarie Brear writes historical novels and modern romances. Her passions, apart from writing, are reading, researching, genealogy, roaming historical sites, buying books, and gardening. She is an author of historical women's fiction, contemporary romance, and several short stories. She is currently living in England. You can find her on the web at the following sites.

http://www.annemariebrear.com/
http://annemariebrear.blogspot.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/annemariebrear
Twitter @annemariebrear

New Release: Joy to His World by Clare Dargin

Chris Spinell, Jilly Reimers, and Chris 'Nate' Poole are happily married. Now, living in a small town run by The Love Play Matchmaking Service, Chris Spinell hopes his family is safely away from the possible dangers that come from living in a big city.

Jilly and Nate cherish the life they have with Chris. They even love the fact that he is their Dom. BDSM gives them the structure and sense of belonging they've always wanted. However, life in Minaqua doesn't give Chris the peace of mind he needs in order to quell his anxieties. The scars from his time in Afghanistan run so deep, Chris' PTSD will not allow him to escape the fears that his family is at constant risk for harm.

When a stranger comes to town seeking to harm Jilly and Nate, Chris' protective instincts are put to the test. Will he deal with this reasonably, or will he do whatever it takes to defend his family, including breaking a solemn oath?

EXCERPT

He thought about how far his life had come in such a short time. In less than ten years, he’d gone from an ex-Special Forces soldier searching for his place in the world, to an MIT graduate, to owning the second largest independently owned and operated software integration firm in Michigan. But all of that was nothing compared to the real change that happened when his sister had recommended that he join a dating service to cure his less-than-stellar love life. And Love Play had done that and much more. In their own mysterious way, they’d managed to look into his heart and find the man and woman of his dreams. Literally. The images of Jilly and Nate had haunted his dreams after he returned from Afghanistan. During that time, he didn’t know it was them, but after he met them and they spent the night together, he knew they were the ones.

How his Eros, his matchmaker at Love Play, had known baffled him. Nevertheless, he was profoundly grateful that the man or woman, or whoever his Eros was, had put the three of them together. Now, they were married, and he was happier than he’d ever been in his life. Add to it that their love had become so deep that it had blossomed into a beautiful dominant-submissive relationship with them.

The car’s internal phone rang. It was Jilly. He pressed the icon on the car’s dashboard screen and answered.

“Hi, honey, what’s up?” he asked. He was always glad to hear Jilly’s voice.

He grasped his chest, hoping the ache would fade as he longed to see her.

“I was going over the arrangements for the party,” she said. Her sweet voice was a dulcet tone that calmed him.

“I’m thinking about how people should dress,” she said, “and the basic rules for the party.”

Jilly had the great idea to plan a Christmas party for them and their BDSM friends to be held at Love Play’s mansion. When she’d mentioned it in August, he hadn’t been wild about the idea. But after a lot of cajoling from her and Nate, they’d convinced him, and he’d given her the permission to go for it, which meant they were going to attend, too.

“High protocol is not something we do, but there’s no reason that should stop other Doms from having that with their submissives. As for clothing, you know my rules for you, too. You aren’t allowed to wear anything too revealing. The only person allowed to see your ass is me and Nate, and that’s when he’s not in trouble.”

It wasn’t as if he made them walk around with bolts of fabric hanging off their bodies, but their sexuality belonged to him.

“Dueño, that was a long time ago,” Nate said, pouting.

“It won’t happen again.”

Right after Chris had collared them, Nate bought Jilly a pair of tight jeans, high heels, and a shirt that was so form fitting it showed everything the Lord had blessed her with in the chest and told her to wear his prized choker collar. Chris had damn near had a heart attack when they came home from a late lunch in Cutlerville.

“Dueño, I know what your rules are for us. What about the party? Kink for everyone?”

He had no appetite for that yet. He cared for his friends, especially his army buddies, the Propietarios who were into BDSM, but he wasn’t ready to see them go all out.

“This is casual, vanilla only. Leather is permitted but please do not go all out,” Chris said.

“All right, got it.”

“How are you feeling?” he asked, worried. “Still feeling worn down?”

She was at home trying to get over the remnants of a cold that lingered, giving her all sorts of problems like a fever and upset stomach. She’d feel good one moment, and then, wham, she’d have to rest because she’d be too tired to move. Despite his protests, she refused to go to the doctor again.

“Somewhat.”

He sighed. “Don’t wear yourself out today. Get some rest. That’s an order. If you aren’t better by tomorrow, we’re going downtown.”

The DMC, Detroit Medical Center, was the major medical complex in the area. It was over an hour away, and he would gladly drive her to find out what was wrong. He was not willing to risk her well-being for her selfish pride or a dumb party. He hated when she was not feeling well or was in pain. He wanted to be able to shield her from the worst the world could give so she’d be able to live a life of love and happiness. She deserved that much and more. To say he loved her would be an understatement. Heck, it wouldn’t even describe the depths of his intense feelings for them. They owned him as much as he owned them. It didn’t feel right if they weren’t healthy and safe.

“I will take it easy.”

“Okay. I love you,” Chris said.

“Love you, too,” she replied. “Love you, too, Nate.”

“I’ll call you later on to see how you are doing,” Nate said.

Chris ended the call.

“Do you think she’ll obey?” Nate asked.

Buy Link http://www.bookstrand.com/book/joy-to-his-world

Blog Links
Clare's Blog 2: The Haven- https://claresblog2thehaven.blogspot.com
The Embraced: Scribal Love- https://theembraced.blogspot.com

Social Media Links
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/clare.dargin
Twitter http://www.twitter.com/claredargin
Google Plus https://plus.google.com/u/0/104105806378510076277

Debut Novel: A Hundred Kisses by Jean M. Grant

Character Interview with Alasdair Montgomerie

Where are you from? Did you have a happy childhood? I hail from near Eaglesham, Scotland. My childhood – uh, no. My mother’s dead. My father, well, he’s the one who had her killed. And he’s a -. Yeah. I’d rather not talk about it. Next question?

Where do you live now and what do you do for a living? Is there something you'd rather be doing? I prefer to not disclose where I live right now. Keeping a low profile, traveling as a trader, you see. Secretly, I fight for the Cause to restore the rightful heir upon the Scottish throne while a ruthless English King slays all the Contenders. I’ve got a vile baron hunting me, too.

What's going on in your life right now? I’m making my way to the isles to relay pivotal information for the Cause. [coughs] I mean, uh, I’m traveling to the Isle of Uist for trade – salt and fish. Yes, yes. That’s right. And my name – could you scratch that above? It’s actually Sir Aleck Stirrat. Hey, don’t look at me that way. It’s complicated, aye?

Is there someone special in your life? Well, on my way to the isles, I encountered an enchanting lass, Deirdre, near the village of Dornie. There’s a fire about her from which I can’t pull myself.

How did you meet? What's his/her family like? She’s mysterious, breathtaking. But, her cook and confidante told me that Deirdre’s cursed – she needs to be wooed by a hundred kisses or something like that. Her father, the Laird of Eilean Donan, seems pretty eager to see his daughter married. Something fishy going on there. But like I said, she’s a captivating lass. Lots of spunk. Not your typical lady.

What's keeping you two apart? A few too many secrets. I sense that she has a few of her own.

What one thing could you do that would make you feel like the relationship will work out? Well, I need to tell her about my haunted past. And, by cravens, I lied to her about my identity. For the Cause’s sake, I’ve needed to travel under a guise, and well, she doesn’t know who I truly am. I surely messed it up, didn’t I?

Any last comments? Look, are we done? I need to get going to Uist. My friends are waiting for me there.
Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/Hundred-Kisses-Jean-M-Grant-ebook/dp/B06XPH5XX2
The Wild Rose Press Ebook: http://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/all-titles/5014-a-hundred-kisses.html
Paperback: http://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/paperback-books/5070-a-hundred-kisses-paperback.html

Interview with Jean M. Grant, Author of A Hundred Kisses.

What made you decide to be an author? My love of words and the fictional worlds that I can get lost in. Diana Gabaldon and JK Rowling are my inspirations. I could also be called a daydream believer.

What do you like best about being a writer? What do you like the least? Being able to write anything I want and using paper as an emotional outlet. It’s cheaper than therapy. What I like least? The long road of querying and rejection. But it all pays off in the end and I become a better writer for it.

How do you think your life experiences have prepared you for writing? I’ve been fortunate to travel to some amazing places, meet interesting people. I love to use them in my stories. I also have been working on a novel that uses my science background and family experiences.

Have you ever felt as if you were being dictated to while you wrote a book--as if the words came of their own accord? If yes, which book did that happen with? I think all books (and characters) speak to us. We’re not sure where our characters are going sometimes, but it’s a remarkable ride!

You’ve written 3 unpublished, and 1 published novel and are working on a 5th (querying that one; mainstream women’s fiction) and 6th novel (prequel to A Hundred Kisses). What’s your favorite time management tip? Nooks and crannies. Write when you can. I love early mornings. No need to write every day, but do be intentional with your writing time. You have to make the time for it.

Are you a plotter or a pantser, i.e., do you outline your books ahead of time or are you an “organic” writer? I am a plotter first, but sometimes I go pants-ing, typically in the middle of my book. Sometimes scenes will pop into my mind, so I write them and find a home for them later. I do love a good outline and GMC chart. I tend to plot heavily first, then fill in the character development.
If you had one take away piece of advice for authors, what would it be? The three P’s: Patience, Perseverance, and Putting in the time. Don’t give up on your dream, no matter how long it takes.
Did music help you find your muse with this book? If yes, which song did you find yourself going back to over and over again as you wrote? I love Enya, and movie scores

Tell me more about A Hundred Kisses.
1296
Two wedding nights. Two dead husbands.
Deirdre MacCoinneach wishes to understand her unusual ability to sense others’ lifeblood energies…and vows to discover if her gift killed the men she married. Her father’s search for a new and unsuspecting suitor for Deirdre becomes complicated when rumors of witchcraft abound.

Under the façade of a trader, Alasdair Montgomerie travels to Uist with pivotal information for a Claimant seeking the Scottish throne. A ruthless baron hunts him and a dark past haunts him, leaving little room for alliances with a Highland laird or his tempting daughter.

Awestruck when she realizes that her unlikely travel companion is the man from her visions, a man whose thickly veiled emotions are buried beneath his burning lifeblood, Deirdre wonders if he, too, will die in her bed if she follows her father’s orders. Amidst magic, superstition, and ghosts of the past, Alasdair and Deirdre find themselves falling together in a web of secrets and the curse of a hundred kisses…

How about an excerpt from A Hundred Kisses?

She sensed no colors in the murky, lifeless water, and it was freeing. All breath escaped her. Muted visions passed before her eyes—her mother, her father, Gordon, and Cortland. Just a moment longer, she thought…

Suddenly, a burst of warm light invaded her thoughts as air filled her lungs. Red-hot hands burned her shoulders and ripped her from her icy grave. She breathed life into her body. She coughed, gagging on the change.

Muffled words yelled at her.

Oh, God, so hot. His fingers were like hot pokers. Her head pounded as she slowly returned to the present. Heat radiated from her rescuer. Somebody had pulled her from the water.

“Wh—?”

“Hush, lass. You nearly drowned.”

His voice was as soothing as a warm cup of goat’s milk on a winter’s day. A red-hot glow emanated from his body. Never before had she felt such a strong lifeblood, and it nearly burned her. She struggled in his arms to get free. She blinked, only seeing a blurry form before her. “Release me!”

She splashed and wriggled, and he did as told. She clambered to the shoreline. Numb and shaken, she began to dress. It wasn’t easy as she fumbled with slick fingers to put dry clothes over wet skin. She instantly regretted her naked swim. She pulled on her long-sleeved white chemise first.

She faced the forest, away from her rescuer. He quietly splashed to shore. His lifeblood burned into her back. He wasn’t far behind, but he stopped. She refused to look at him until she was fully clothed, not out of embarrassment of her nudity, but for what had just happened. He released a groan and mumbled under his breath about wet boots. His voice was not one of her father’s soldiers.

When she put the last garment on, her brown wool work kirtle, she squeezed out her sopping hair and swept her hands through the knotty mess. She fastened her belt and tied the lacings up the front of the kirtle. Blood returned to her fingertips, and she regained her composure. Belated awareness struck her, and she leaned down and searched through her bag for her dagger. She spun around.

She gasped as she saw the man sitting on the stone-covered shoreline, his wet boots off. Confusion and the hint of a scowl filled his strong-featured face. She staggered back, caught her heel on a stone, and fell, dropping the dagger. Dirt and pebbles stuck to her wet hands and feet, and she instinctively scrambled away from him.

His glower, iridescent dark blue eyes, and disheveled black hair were not unfamiliar. Staring at her was the man she had seen in her dream—it was the man from the wood.

Jean Grant is a scientist, part-time education director, and a mom. She currently resides in Massachusetts and draws from her interests in history, science, the outdoors, and her family for inspiration. She enjoys writing non-fiction articles for family-oriented and travel magazines, and aspires to write children’s books while continuing to write novels. In 2008, she visited the land of her daydreams, Scotland, and it was nothing short of breathtaking. Jean enjoys tending to her flower gardens, tackling the biggest mountains in New England with her husband, and playing with her sons, while daydreaming about the next hero to write about...

Website: http://www.jeanmgrant.com
Twitter: @JeanGrant05
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeanmgrantauthor/

Jean, thank you so much for being with us here today. I know my readers will enjoy your work and your interviews.

TROUBLED SPIRITS SPIRIT VOICES SERIES – BOOK ONE By Sandy Wolters

Jody has been a conduit for ghosts her entire life. Not only do they come to her for help, but at times she experiences what they feel when they die. This gift or curse comes at a high personal cost—especially when a child is involved. There’s not a man alive who is willing to compete with troubled spirits.

Jared, a wealthy and determined high-powered P.I., has lived without love his entire life. In business if he wants something, he goes after it with a vengeance and is usually not denied. His life experiences have taught him that believing and trusting in others is a dead end street.

But on one magical night Jared meets Jody, and they soon find themselves on the brink of falling in love. But will the spirits surrounding Jody relinquish their hold on her in order for Jared to stake his claim or will their love disappear in an ethereal puff of smoke?

Excerpt 

Chapter One

Startled from a deep sleep, Jody opened her eyes to find a young child’s misty form sitting on the bed—tears streaming down her face. As it often happened with kids that cry for any length of time, the poor little girl’s sobs were punctuated with hiccups.

Groggy from sleep, her first instinct had her reaching out to embrace the small girl and offer whatever solace she could. Tendrils of unease spiraled through Jody’s body when her fingers unexpectedly encountered cold air instead of warm flesh. Her mind roused instantly. She knew at once this child was dead. Spirits had none of the warmth of the living—though they possessed all the same passions.

As she rose to a sitting position, her heart couldn’t help but break for the tiny, cherubic girl who somehow had found a way onto her bed. The heavy weight of the child’s despair settled squarely on Jody’s shoulders. As the realization of the spirit visitation hit home, she found herself in the unenviable position of having no clue how to appease the little girl. She’d just have to stay the course and watch as the child exhausted her pain-laden tears enough to calm herself and speak her mind. Maybe that was all the little angel wanted from her.

Waiting through the weeping and hiccups proved to be agonizing. Several tense minutes passed until finally this beautiful little girl with auburn hair raised her cobalt blue eyes to gaze into Jody’s soul. “I’m Fiona. I want to talk to my mommy and daddy.”

Purchase Links:

Amazon Pre-Order Link: https://www.amazon.com/Troubled-Spirits-Spirit-Voices-Book-ebook/dp/B06XPRBH97

The Wild Rose Press Purchase Links:

               Digital: http://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/all-titles/5009-troubled-spirits.html

               Print: http://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/paperback-books/5049-troubled-spirits-paperback.html

Author Links:

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_ebooks_1?ie=UTF8&text=Sandy+Wolters&search-alias=digital-text&field-author=Sandy+Wolters&sort=relevancerank

Twitter ID: @SandyWolters

https://twitter.com/SandyWolters

Blog Link: Sandy’s Spotlight

http://sandywolters.weebly.com/sandys-spotlight

Website Link: http://sandywolters.weebly.com/

Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4772120.Sandy_Wolters