Happy Book Birthday, Make Believe!

Today is the OFFICIAL launch day for the MAKE BELIEVE anthology.

Can I get a huzzzaaaaaaaaaaah!?

Yep, very excited about this one. Seems like eons ago that I wrote my short for this antho, Escort to Insanity. LOVE this story. It was heaps of fun to enjoy. And now I FINALLY get to share it with you guys!

Wheeee!

So, if you fancy a diverse array of tales, from fantasy to paranormal romance, all wrapped up in a beautiful wintry bundle, why not grab yourselves a copy.

You can do so here: Amazon  | Barnes & Noble | Amazon UK | All Romance  |  Diesel eBooks |  Books on Board

Aaaaand you can add it to your Goodreads by clicking on the pic ==>>

But that’s not all. Nope, because Blue Moon ALSO launched today. That blog post went live a little while ago, and you WILL want to check it out—especially as it contains an exclusive giveaway you won’t want to miss.

PLUS, check back in each day this week to read what went down when I interviewed the rest of the contributing authors for the Make Believe anthology.

AND be sure to follow along on the Make Believe Blog Tour, where there will be chances to win yourself a copy. First stop is over at Jennifer Bielman’s blog, and includes a giveaway. Full tour schedule can be found HERE!

Cheers, guys. As always, the continued support I get from folk means the absolute world to me.

Five copies of Make Believe ARC’s up for grabs over at J. Taylor Publishing’s Blog!

Yo, gabber-gabbers!

Yesterday I left my sick bed long enough to tell you about a giveaway for 5 Blue Moon ARC‘s over at my publisher.

Today, I’m leaving it to tell you they have ANOTHER giveaway going on–and this time they’re giving away 5 ARC’s of the winter anthology my short story, Escort to Insanity, is headlining.

For a chance to win a Make Believe ARC, just follow the link: http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/blog/?p=1125

And Good Luck!

#FreeviewFriday #MakeBelieve!

Welcome to #FreeviewFriday. This week’s snippet is brought to you from my short story, Escort to Insanity, due to release this December in the Make Believe anthology.

Following on from last time, this week we get to meet the bane of Cole’s life:

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For almost an hour, I avoided detection by said ‘letch’ before he finally caught up with me. As I stared at one of the auction pieces, my head tipped to mirror Benjamin’s beside me, the chill along my left side warned of Tony’s arrival.

His chest brushed my arm, lips infringed on my personal space, and breath sweated my ear with his whispered, “Figured out what it is, Cole?”

Benjamin shifted in my periphery, and a step brought him to face me in a way that spoke volumes, especially with his left hand claiming my waist. “Can I help you?” he asked.

Tony’s smirk faltered for a second before his smarmy façade reclaimed his face. As though Benjamin hadn’t even spoken, he turned to me. “I didn’t realise you were bringing a guest, Cole. You should have said.”

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Letchy etches are such delightful creatures, eh? Come back in a fortnight and I’ll reveal him a little more …

I hope you enjoyed this weeks snippet. See you next time.

As I have said before, any and all are welcome to join me in this weekly shenanigan. HOWEVER, if you do so, I URGE you to keep the shared snippets short and sweet. Mine will be a maximum of TEN (10) sentences. To help identification of these posts, I shall be hashtagging them (for Twitter purposes) as #FreeviewFriday. Feel free to knick said hashtag for your own Freeview Friday posts.

#FreeviewFriday #MakeBelieve!

Welcome to #FreeviewFriday. This week’s snippet is brought to you from my short story, Escort to Insanity, due to release this December in the Make Believe anthology.

Following on from last time, this week’s leads in with Benjamin rescuing Cole from having to deal with the delightful Angela we were introduced to:

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Before either Angela or I could protest, Benjamin’s arm tightened across my back and led me away.
“That was a little rude,” I said, once we were out of earshot.
“Yes, well . . . I’m not here to keep Angela entertained. My job is to ensure you have a good night. And you’d begun to look as though you’d rather be somewhere else.” Benjamin nabbed a flute of champagne from a passing silver tray and handed it to
me, grabbing a second for himself. “Now tell me, why have you come here tonight when you’ve been tense since the moment we stepped through the entrance?”
Because I have no choice. Because my father will probably disown me if I falter in my dance steps to his tune any more than I already have. “I thought being an escort meant you just nodded and smiled in all the right places . . .” . . . whilst warding off letchy exes who can’t accept I’ve moved on.

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Me already thinks there is more to this evening than meets the eye …

I hope you enjoyed this weeks snippet. See you next time.

As I have said before, any and all are welcome to join me in this weekly shenanigan. HOWEVER, if you do so, I URGE you to keep the shared snippets short and sweet. Mine will be a maximum of TEN (10) sentences. To help identification of these posts, I shall be hashtagging them (for Twitter purposes) as #FreeviewFriday. Feel free to knick said hashtag for your own Freeview Friday posts.

#FreeviewFriday #MakeBelieve!

Welcome to #FreeviewFriday (sorry but I almost forgot to post). This week’s snippet is brought to you from my short story, Escort to Insanity, due to release this December in the Make Believe anthology.

Following on from last time, right after Benjamin and Cole arrived at the charity auction, Cole has to deal with the first curiosity of the night. Hope you enjoy:

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I released a sigh. “Benjamin, this is Angela. Angela, Benjamin.”
Angela had yet to remove her gaze from my partner. “And you’ve been seeing Cole how long? What line of business are you in? You’re not a local boy, are you?”
Benjamin didn’t even bat an eye. His hand slid around my back, drawing me closer. “Coley snared me . . .”
I bristled. Coley?

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Heh, and this is only the beginning …

I hope you enjoyed this weeks snippet. See you next time.

As I have said before, any and all are welcome to join me in this weekly shenanigan. HOWEVER, if you do so, I URGE you to keep the shared snippets short and sweet. Mine will be a maximum of TEN (10) sentences. To help identification of these posts, I shall be hashtagging them (for Twitter purposes) as #FreeviewFriday. Feel free to knick said hashtag for your own Freeview Friday posts.

#FreeviewFriday #MakeBelieve!

Yay! Last week I returned to #FreeviewFriday with a snippet from Blue Moon. As promised, I’m back again, but this time with a piece from my short story, Escort to Insanity, due to release this December in the Make Believe anthology.

If you read the excerpt, where I shared the opening a few weeks back, you’ll know that Cole has booked herself a male escort for the evening. Well, this next scene shows their arrival at their venue. Hope you enjoy:

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Twenty minutes of evening-debriefing later, we stepped arm-in-arm through the entrance of Horton Gallery. Snow dusted the shoulders and hood of my scarlet coat and Benjamin’s black jacket, and an upward glance showed even more clinging to the tips of his hair like diamanté ornaments.
I shrugged out of the damp garment, and like the gentleman I’d paid him to be, Benjamin took it from me. After a promise to ensure it would be hung somewhere to dry, he weaved his way toward the cloakroom, leaving me to stand alone in the high-ceilinged foyer.
Beyond the double doors ahead, people milled about, nodding and smiling whilst their twitchy or glazed eyes exposed their boredom. Each and every one of them wore more in value than they’d donate when the charity auction began—if not in clothing, then most certainly in the adornments that battled with the overhead chandeliers for impressiveness.
No doubt my lack of jewellery would earn me a few stares.
“Ready?” Benjamin’s voice snapped me from my bitter appraisal.

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Something tells me she’s not looking forward to it too much.

I hope you enjoyed this weeks snippet. See you next time.

As I have said before, any and all are welcome to join me in this weekly shenanigan. HOWEVER, if you do so, I URGE you to keep the shared snippets short and sweet. Mine will be a maximum of TEN (10) sentences. To help identification of these posts, I shall be hashtagging them (for Twitter purposes) as #FreeviewFriday. Feel free to knick said hashtag for your own Freeview Friday posts.

Scheduling the Make Believe Blog Tour!

If you were about a fortnight ago, you’ll likely have seen my post about scheduling the Blue Moon Tour. Well, this week, I’m scheduling stops for the Make Believe Tour. And so, yet again, I’m ‘calling all bloggers!’

Make Believe is NOT a Holloway Pack novel, nor does it contain a Holloway Pack story. It is an anthology, with an alluring array of short stories by six different authors–which means the reader will get six totally different tales for their money. If you’d like to know a bit more about Make Believe, you can find details on its page HERE!

And here are the blog tour details:

I am looking for blogs to host tour stops between these dates:

• December 3rd – January 3rd

The post will need to be one of the following:

• Author interview
• Character interview
• Guest post
• Post a Review
• Other – if you have a better idea, feel free to hit me with it

Please note: the tour stops do NOT have to be just for me. As the anthology contains stories by SIX authors, participants are more than welcome to arrange stops for just ONE or ALL SIX of them–whatever best suits the post you’d prefer to host. Maybe you’ve read the blurb and connect better with one blurb than the others, and so have questions or post ideas for that particular author? That’s fine. Simply specify in the sign-up form which author that is, and we’ll try our best to accommodate that. However, please be aware that I’m not responsible for the other anthology authors contacting you once your request and details have been forwarded to them.

The Tour Page for Make Believe is already live. As soon as requests come in and are confirmed/scheduled, I shall try my best to keep that updated–though, please try and remember, keeping track of what six people are booking, rather than just myself, is going to be more difficult than I’m used to.

So if you’re interested in signing up and participating in the tour, please complete THIS FORM, and I, or one of the other authors, will get back to you as soon as possible. The sign-up form can also be found at the bottom of the Tour Page.

Cheers in advance.

And the Winner is …

Thanks to all who dropped by my excerpt from the Make Believe anthology and left comments. If you recall, I promised a signed Make Believe cover image for one lucky commenter. Well, I’ve made the draw this afternoon using a random number generator, and the winning comment is 13. Which means, I shall be sending the signed cover to ….

Carole-Ann!

Congratulations!

I’ll have your prize in the post as soon as possible.

Thanks to everyone who joined in. Remember to check back for more giveaways in the future–especially later in the year when I’ll be giving away plenty of Holloway Pack swag to celebrate the launch of Blue Moon.

Escort to Insanity Exposed!

Yep, the time has come to share another sneak preview with you all. You recall a week or so ago, you got to see the opening for the next Holloway Pack story, Blue Moon? Well, as Escort to Insanity is my short story for the Make Believe anthology, which just so happens to be releasing around the same time as Blue Moon in December, there have been a lot of posts chasing each other for the two.

Anyway, here we go. A little different to the other stories in there, and very much me, here’s a peek at my Make Believe offering:

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“Ugh.” I marched the width of my living room for the hundredth time before wedging my stilettos into the shag pile in front of the mirror. “Why do I subject myself to such …” I threw up my hands.

My tenant’s reflection stared back at me from over my shoulder. “Craptapular evenings just to keep your flipping family happy?” One brown eyebrow rose above the sardonic expression in Kellie’s hazel eyes.

“Yes, but …” I groaned and leaned forward, teasing my ebony fringe into perfect alignment and prodding at my French twist. “I can’t believe I let you talk me into this. I mean, an escort, for goodness sake.” A quick appraisal assured my black cocktail dress hugged where it should beneath my scarlet swing coat. “Like I’m some bloody saddo incapable of acquiring a date of her own.”

“You have nabbed a date. That’s the whole point.”

“Okay, incapable of nabbing a date that doesn’t cost me five grand for a few hours of his time.”

“Five grand? Holy frickin’ cow, Cole.”

I met her reflected gaze. “You gave me the bloody number.”

“Yeah, because they had prices starting from fifty quid.”

“Fifty quid was for a date with Quasimodo. No point doing this if I’m not going to take someone to keep the vultures off my back.”

“True.” She nodded. “Very true … but …” At the chime of the doorbell, she spun away as I whirled on the spot. “Forget it,” she said, already moving for the hallway. “I’ll see for myself what five grand worth of man looks like.”

Frozen in place, I could only listen as she vanished into the hallway, and her socked feet brushed over the floorboards. The catch twisted. The front door whooshed open.

“Nicole Harrington?” Disbelief tinged the deep, masculine tone.

“Would you like me to be?”

As I thought of what confronted him, Kellie in her Snoopy, fleece shorts, peeling and faded Iron Maiden T-shirt and hiking socks that had long ago lost any elasticity, I snorted out a laugh.

“Ignore her,” I said. “She’s just my tramp of a housemate. Come on in.”

“What’d you do that for?” Kellie said. “I almost had him.”

A deep chuckle preceded the delicate clop of a shoe on the floorboards. A moment later, one black clad shoulder peeked around the living room door, followed by a shock of honey blond hair and amber eyes.

Nice.

His left eyebrow arched up. “Nicole?”

Head tilted in an attempt to see the rest of him around the door, I nodded. “My friends call me Cole. Might be best if you stick to that this evening.”

He crossed the room in a few easy strides, his hand already outstretched. “Benjamin Gold.” He smiled down at me as I slid my fingers across his. “And I very much doubt you want to know what my friends call me.”

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Whatcha think? Sound like something you’d enjoy? You can add it to your Goodreads pile by clicking HERE! (or on the bookmark image above). Plus, all SIX excerpts are available to read over at the J. Taylor Publishing Blog. Go check ‘em out!

And to say thanks to those who stop by to read, I shall be giving away ONE signed* printed Make Believe book cover.

All’s you have to do is leave a comment before midnight on Sunday Aug 26th.

*please note: the won book cover will be signed by me only.

Freeview Friday: Taking a Short Break

As you’re all probably aware, my Freeview Friday posts over the past couple of months have all been from Eternal: Holloway Pack 0.5. Well, due to the fact Eternal has now released (yeee-hah!), I ceased to share those a fortnight ago.

And I’m afraid there won’t be any Freeview Friday posts for a little while—for these reasons:

- I don’t like to continue sharing snippets once a book has launched—I’m kinda hoping by that point I’ve enticed you enough to want to read it.

- The entire month of July I’m going to be pretty busy with the Eternal blog tour—which means a lot of my posts throughout the month will be directing peeps to my stops for that.

- My next book releases will be in December: Blue Moon (Holloway Pack 2) and Make Believe (anthology containing Escort to Insanity). And as I’m not scheduled to release excerpts for either of those until sometime mid-August, I’m going to hold off until then with sharing anything else for those titles.

However, come mid-August, Freeview Friday will kick back in again, when I shall happily reveal tiny teasers for Blue Moon and Escort to Insanity (either or both, maybe one then the other, or alternated weeks—I haven’t decided yet). Although, if I happen to be working on something I think will be fun to share, there’s always a chance I’ll let you in on my dodgy first drafts instead.

How about you? What have you guys got going on?