Very late last night, I decided to jump into the shower before I hit the sheets. I’d cleaned house all day and needed a little “freshening up.”  Hubby had gone to bed about twenty minutes before me and had already achieved dream lift-off. (Let me just add that Hubby could have gone to bed twenty seconds before me and be asleep! I need a stopwatch to time how long it takes for him to fall asleep.) As I lifted my face toward the water, a HUGE (and I mean HUGE!) spider waved one of his long legs at me from the bathroom ceiling. I started hollering for Hubby. I don’t usually have a spider phobia (although I’ll confess there is no love loss), but being naked and wet with nothing to kill it with left me feeling a little defenseless. My knight got out of bed (dress in nothing but white boxer briefs) with his sword to defend me (okay, it was a shoe, not a sword, but I tell lies for a living!) WHAM! A minute later, the toilet flushes. I’m safe.

But spiders aren’t my biggest phobia. I can smash a spider. For me, it’s snakes. Unfortunately, Hubby tells me that we have a big one near our dock, or at least he’s seen it a few times. AND it’s a BAD snake. We’re thinking it’s a water moccasin. Very poisonous and deadly. You’d think with two dogs in our yard that snakes would find a more receptive yard. If he continues to hang around, he’ll be D-E-A-D. Couldn’t happen to a better snake!

As bad as that snake is, take a look at this…

 This is an 18′ 8″ PYTHON killed in Florida this week. Weighed 128 pounds. Want to read about how the guy pulled it from the bush with his bare hands? Click here  I’ll be honest…I could not lie beside this snake even after death! EEK

So you have a phobia you’d like to share?

I was thrilled to be invited to review this novella by the author herself and I have to say it was a great read! CJ Archer has a great feel for historical fiction and weaves a wonderful story with interesting characters while staying true to the time period in which they live. I found Rose to be strong and forthright. She understood what was expected of her but that didn’t mean she had to like it or agree with it. Thomas, on the other hand, realizes that he blew the best thing that had ever happened to him and must find a way to rectify that. The story may be set in the 1500’s but the relationship issues are just as fresh today as they were 500 years ago! Men are so often clueless and women must teach them how to behave if there is going to be any hope of a relationship between them. CJ handles these relationship issues with humor and understanding, making her books real page-turners. I have read a few of her stories now and have loved every one!
Courting His Countess is in all formats so get on over to your favorite book seller and purchase a copy today!

Voodoo for Two #2 by Elle James

Determined to marry the most eligible bachelor in the parish to save her family, Lucie LeBieu turns a “love bug” loose to cast its Voodoo spell. What she doesn’t count on is hitting two targets—the golden boy congressional candidate and her Cajun-hot ex. To set things right, she must undo the spell before she falls into bed—and back in love—with a certain down and dirty heartbreakin’ cop or breaks another man’s heart.

Undercover investigator Ben Boyette is back in Louisiana on special assignment when he runs across his old flame, brewing up trouble as usual. But when hometown threats turn deadly, Lucie’s life is on the line. Determined to protect both her and his politician assignment from falling victim to a murderer, Ben finds that he’s the one who’s falling hard for the irresistible bayou temptress.

Lucie gave up her dream seven years ago when she broke up with Ben Boyette so he would follow his.  Lucie is overwhelmed, looking for a way to save her grandmother’s house and get out of the bayou and her heritage may be just the answer.  The only problem, every time she has tried to use voodoo in the past, it has backfired and caused more trouble than good.  A simple love spell is the answer to her problems; she just hopes it will work this one time.

I was pulled into this story right from the beginning.  The characters are interesting and funny and I couldn’t wait to see how the story was going to end.  I loved Lucie’s from the start, she has a good heart and tries to do the right thing but she just goes about it wrong.  She sees Eric as the answer to all her problems but the more she is around him, the more she realizes that what she is doing is wrong.  She and Ben have a history that just won’t go away and neither will he.  In the end she does the right thing for everyone, including herself and everything works out.

Ben and Eric have been friends for a long time and now Ben has returned home to help protect Eric from the crazy stalker following him.  The only problem, how can he protect Eric when he can’t even protect his own heart?  He knows that he is playing with fire with Lucie but he just can’t seem to stay away from her.  Eric has also fallen hard for her, which has put a strain on Ben’s friendship with him.  After several near misses on Eric and Lucie’s life, Ben is even more determined to have her again if he can just convince her.

This story was full of humor and comedy; it had me laughing at Lucie’s antics trying to find that ladybug.  She got herself into some really sticky situations and Ben always seemed to be the one to rescue her, even though she thought Eric was her knight in shining armor.  I have to admit in the romance triangle between Ben, Eric and Lucie; I was rooting for Ben and Lucie.  Eric is a good guy but he just didn’t seem the right person for Lucie.  The intrigue was always in the background but it was important to the story and kept it interesting.  Overall it all worked well together to make a wonderful story.

Overall I enjoyed this story very much and have even picked up the first book in the series.  I give Voodoo for Two 4 Flaming Hearts.

THEN, my husband and I fly to China for them thar two weeks.

THEN, we come BACK to the midwest, gather the sons (but NOT the 8 days’ worth of luggage!) and drive back home.

THEN, I catch up with some of you at the Annual Reader-Author Get-Together in Cincinnati, OH. I’ll be the jetlagged one faceplanted in her nachos at the hotel bar.

THEN, we have one week of day camp (in the day) and vacation Bible school (in the evening), after which the five of us immediately climb onto a plane to Colorado FOR…

Eight days in the Rockies with my in-laws (who will be driving in our luggage from the Midwest).

And a week and half after that? Those in-laws are coming here (and bringing home those 80 stinky socks)

…wait…where am I again? Oh, yeah. Kentucky…

….HERE for our annual fourth of July bash.

So, you tell me: On Saturday, when I’m making last-minute trips to the drugstore. TJ Maxx, and/or Hell, what is the one thing I should make sure not to travel without?

I beg your indulgence for one blog. Only one, I promise.

After 16 years of writing, my debut book releases in less than two weeks! God knows, I’ve had lots of time to get ready, but I’m not sure you can truly prepare for an event that momentous. In a few days, I’ll start worrying about sales (or lack thereof,) reviews and track records, but for now, I’m just going to wallow in the feeling.

Like a proud mother, I want to show my baby off to everyone. It’s a compulsion; I can’t help myself.

So here goes:

Here’s what The Sweet Spot is about:

Charla Rae Denny’s role as a traditional ranch wife and mother fits her like custom-tailored Wranglers. When her only son is killed in a tragic accident, Char retreats to a world of grief and Valium. Her reeling husband takes up with a blonde buckle bunny half his age. Their ranch, which supplies bucking bulls to the Pro Bull Riding circuit, is split up in the divorce. Jimmy gets the bulls, Charla, their valuable semen.

All her county fair ribbons won’t help Charla now. She’s alone, addicted, ill-equipped, and has no one to blame but herself. In spite of her fear of horses and smelly cows, she stands up, takes off her apron, and learns to run a ranch. She and Jimmy have lost their way. But through months of hard work, tears, and some hard knocks, they both learn to forgive — themselves and each other. Together, they find their way back, to life, to love, to the Sweet Spot.

 Here are a couple of excerpts :

The grief counselor told the group to be grateful for what they had left. After lots of considering, Charla Rae decided she was thankful for the bull semen.

***

Charla rolled over, pulling the covers up to block the light, but it was no use. Consciousness was as relentless as the dawn that inched across the ceiling, highlighting the crack above her bed. It had been painted over many times, but the lightning-shaped fissure had been a constant of her mornings as far back as her memory reached.

She felt around the edges of her mind. She’d forgotten something. Something important. It barreled from a tunnel and slammed her to reality. The hollowness in her chest made her gasp and she hugged herself, afraid she would implode.

Benje is gone.

She pulled the covers up and curled into a ball. Another day to face, when her reason for facing it was gone. Why bother?

She heard the answer in the shush of slippered feet passing her door. Daddy. The grief counselor pointed out that they still had responsibilities. She had to go on for those. Dashing the tears from her cheeks, she threw back the covers and shouldered the sunrise.

***

She stood before the mirror, buttoning blue flannel pajamas with shaking fingers. Fluffy white cartoon sheep bounced across the material on her chest. Oh, nice. You’re a forty-year old woman, taking a man to your bed for the first time in forever, and this is the best you can do? How sad is that? It’s going to put a damper on the mood if he’s laughing his head off.

It would almost be better to walk out naked. She reached for the top button before she remembered. He’s used to a twenty-year old! Her hand dropped. Better flannel sheep than floppy boobs and a poochy belly. He sure hadn’t traded up in the body department.

Her panicked gaze darted the room, searching for an alternative. My robe! She reached for it. Yellow terrycloth, it covered her from neck to ankle. She looked closer. In spite of numerous Shout applications, the sleeves were stained grey, and snagged strings dangled everywhere; it looked like a shedding bison. A yellow shedding bison.

She groaned.

A soft tap at the door made her jump. “Charla? You okay in there?”

She shot a look to the ceiling. You got me into this. I hope you’re amused. She pulled open the door . . . and forgot everything.

***

She’s no longer your wife. He crossed an ankle over his knee to give some room in his Wranglers. Maybe not, but her pheromones still called to him from across a room, touching him places no other woman’s ever had.

He wanted her. Sexually obviously, but also in ways he’d forgotten until he found himself outside her world, looking in. He missed the way she used to look at him; a corner of her mouth lifted in a girl-next-door-centerfold way. He missed the sight of her dancing in the kitchen, when she thought herself alone. He missed having the home she’d created wrapped around him, giving him strength to go out in the world and do things.

Char glanced at her watch, straightened, and pulled her shoes from under the couch.

He missed all those things. It was the changes in her that kept him awake, staring out of the screened walls to the night. She was stronger now. Stronger than before the accident. Stronger than he’d ever seen her. And he liked it.

Sigh — my baby. In case you’re so inclined, you can buy it here.

Laura Drake is a city girl, who never grew out of her tomboy ways, or a serious cowboy crush. She writes both Women’s Fiction and Romance. The Sweet Spot, the first novel in her, ‘Sweet on a Cowboy’ Series, released by Grand Central in May of 2013, Nothing Sweeter, in December. Her ‘biker-chick’ novel, Her Road Home, will be released by Harlequin’s Superromance in August, 2013.

Laura resides in Southern California, though she aspires to retirement in Texas. She gave up the corporate CFO gig to write, full time. She’s a wife, grandmother, and motorcycle chick in the remaining waking hours.

http://LauraDrakeBooks.com

Twitter: @PBRWriter

http://WritersintheStorm@Wordpress.com

My husband and I often say that we have the kind of relationship where it feels like we’ve been together forever. In the best way possible.

We were reminiscing about back when we were dating… how everything was new and exciting and a little scary. It was the stuff love stories are made from. In fact, my husband still wants to make a shirt that says, “I’m her HEA” and wear it when we go to RT 2014. Yes, he wants to go to RT with me. He says it sounds like fun…and it coincides with our anniversary next year. I think he just wants an excuse to eat beignets, but I could be wrong.

Those days of newfound love are fun to remember, but I wouldn’t want to go back there. What we were discovering back then, we now know. We’ve been through the ringer more than any couple should have to in the two years that we’ve been married. We’ve been tested and come out stronger for it. We’ve shared joy and I think we’re finally learning what Happily Ever After means. What for better or worse means. It’s still exciting. I still can’t wait for him to get home. He still makes my heart flip over. But there’s a steel spine under it all that holds us together. I am looking forward to the future, not because I think there will be no problems, but because of the problems we have faced together, I know I have a partner by my side.

That is the best kind of Happily Ever After.

And the best wedding picture ever:

Although I’m kinda fond of this one too:

Fifty-nine.  FIFTY-NINE!!! 59!!!  One year shy of the big 6-0.  Three adult children.  Two grandsons.  I have clothes in my closet older than some of you reading this.  Does my age make me out-of-touch with the younger reader?  Maybe, but in my 59 years, I’ve lived a lot and have encountered plenty of interesting situations to bring to the writing table.

I’ve loved and lost, but I’ve also loved and won.  I had a ten-year marriage that ended in divorce, and I have a twenty-seven year marriage that gets better and stronger every day.  I have a child and was a single parent for several years, then I married a man with two children (one was a teenager!), so I’m a step-mom.  I’m also a daughter, a sister, an aunt, a mother-in-law, a sister-in-law.

I’ve traveled extensively, love research, and am well-read.

It’s my life experiences that give me the insight to write good stories, and the older I get, the more life experiences I have to draw on.

So, like so many other myths that I once believed, I’ll tuck the writer/age thing into the file under “Debunked.”

Then maybe I’ll go drink a glass of milk with a fish sandwich and swim immediately afterward.

EDITED BY CYNTHIA D’ALBA: In honor of Pamela’s birthday, I’ll give away a digital copy of Pam’s RITA nominated book OUT OF THE DEPTH to one lucky person who leaves a comment on this post by midnight Wednesday (May 15, 2013). Good luck and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PAMELA!!

Lady Francesca Darling has known what—and who—she has wanted since she was five years old. Doted on as the only girl in the family her entire life, she has grown up much-loved, self-confident, and with a decided knowledge of how the world of men works. And the man she has decided that she wants is none other than her Uncle Rake’s best friend, Devlin Ross, the Duke of Hereford and the tons most eligible bachelor. She proposes to him and he delights her when he accepts her proposal, but she is then subsequently crushed when he informs her that it will be a few years before they can actually marry. After all, she is only five!

Thirteen years later, however, it’s a different story. Devlin returns and Fanny discovers that her innocent crush for her handsome hero has not only NOT gone the way of most childhood infatuations but has developed instead into something very akin to love. She is surrounded by an incredible family, who allow her to be herself despite the fact that it wasn’t usually acceptable in that time to be affectionate with each other or to have a loving marriage. Fanny’s parents prove to be the exception to that rule and are determined that she will marry for love, not out of duty. As a debutante Fanny is courted by many men who want nothing more than her sizable dowry and think little of the woman who comes with it, but Devlin Ross is different. He sees the sparkle of Fanny’s indomitable spirit and realizes that he may have found the one woman who can make him turn from his libertine ways and keep his heart at home. Determined to overcome the demons that still haunt him from his childhood, Devlin decides that she will be the perfect wife and mother for his children, as long as he stays out of the picture.  Fanny, however, has other plans for him and their family and it is only through her own determination that she can break through his fears and make him see what he can’t see for himself—that family is the most important thing in life and that he is needed to make theirs complete.

This is Jennifer Wenn’s debut novel, and I was honored to be asked to review it. A Family Affair is a wonderful book. I absolutely love Fanny! She is fun and sassy, someone I would love to be friends with. I am seriously hoping that Ms. Wenn will write more books about the characters in this story—I would really like to know how Rake and Penelope’s story ends, and what about Sin and Sebastian? So many men, so many love affairs to be had! There is plenty of humor, some pretty hot sex, handsome men and strong women—what more can you want in a romance novel?!

To say that I loved this book is an understatement! Ms. Wenn tells a story with wit, humor, and a wonderful sense of who her characters are. I couldn’t help but fall in love with all of them and found myself smiling or laughing quite often over the happenings in the story. Fanny is by far one of my favorite heroines ever! This book will definitely be one that I will read time and again. I am pretty sure I have found a new author that I will be enjoying for many years to come!

A Family Affair will be released July 19, but for now it is part of the KDP Select Program and available to buy on Amazon.  It will be free for a few days starting May 21^st, so if you are leery of buying a new author by all means pick it up then, but I don’t think you will be disappointed. Jennifer Wenn is an amazing author and I believe A Family Affair is only the first of many more great novels to come.

Today is Mother’s Day. Probably the sappiest and most over-wrought holiday on the calendar Millions will be spent on mushy cards, flowers, perfume, and jewelry as we all try to find just the right thing for our beloved Mothers, the epitome of all that is good and right with the world…

Well, I am a mother and let me tell you, it’s not all sweetness and light from where I am sitting! Being a mother is one of the hardest jobs in the world. Not only are you entrusted with the care and raising of a completely helpless human being, you are given this task without the proper manuals and guide books needed to really do it right. Instead you are told “Oh it’s ok—you’ll get the hang of it!” as they pat you knowingly on the back and leave, snickering behind their hand as you stare down at this drooling, pooping, crying little soggy hot mess of humanity and panic. What if you get it wrong?! Then what?!

Well guess what. I was one of the lucky ones and got blessed with two of the most amazing daughters God ever put on this earth, but that doesn’t mean it was easy! I am pretty sure God took a look at me and my husband and said to Michael, “Hey—go easy on those two. Give them a couple of the old souls we have hanging around up here or they could really jack them up!”  So Michael went down the list and found two girls that fit the bill. Intelligent, strong-willed, with just enough sass to make them interesting but not enough to have me tearing out my hair—well, not too much any way!

My ideas about parenting weren’t found in any books. In fact, I pretty much just remembered everything that my parents had done to me and did the opposite. Natural consequences worked so much better than beating the tar out of them so I hardly ever raised a hand to the girls, despite the old adage that had been drummed into me since early childhood: “Spare the rod and spoil the child”.  I raised them with understanding, discipline, respect, and copious amounts of love instead.  Go figure—it worked! My girls today are kind, compassionate, self-reliant, opinionated yet respectful. I’m actually quite proud of them!

So today is Mother’s Day. Not sure what we will do—I am sure there will be gifts and maybe dinner out—but whatever it is I will enjoy myself because I will be spending time with two of my most favorite people in the world! Actually that is a gift in itself. As they grow older their lives become busier and I find that they are often gone living those lives without me. That is ok—as a parent I want them to become independent and move on. But I can’t help but be a little saddened as I watch them take these next steps that will bring them fully into adulthood.   My babies are growing up and don’t need me to be their mother any more. That part of our lives is over. But maybe, just maybe, I can be their friend who also happens to be their mother.  Mother’s Day. Enjoy the fruit of your labors!