A Visit with A Vampire

There's a chill in the air letting us know the long nights of winter are on the way. That means staying inside and reading some delicious new romance books. And when I think of a cold winter night, what could be more fitting than a visit to Vampire-land! 

This week's guest author in My Writing Corner is Linda Nightingale. She was born in South Carolina but she has lived in England, Canada, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Atlanta and Houston.  She’s seen a lot of this country from the windshield of a truck pulling a horse trailer, having bred, trained and showed Andalusian horses for many years.

She has won several writing awards, including the Georgia Romance Writers Magnolia Award and is the mother of two sons, who are two of her favorite things, along with her snazzy black convertible, and her parlor grand piano.  She says she loves to dress up and host formal dinner parties.

Her newest book is Morgan D'Arcy, A Vampire Rhapsody. Linda, how about a visit to Morgan's house?

Morgan, the POV character in Morgan D'Arcy: A Vampyre Rhapsody, lives in a Mews House. He lives in  Eaton Place Mews in Belgravia, London. Pricey is a mild word. If you are interested, here is a real steal for only 6.75-mil pounds.   Mews House Belgravia

The term Mews is primarily British. Mews Houses were once carriage houses below and living quarters above, built around a paved yard or court, or along a street, behind large city houses during the 17th and 18th centuries. A 2015 survey of the Mews in London estimated that there were 433 Original/Surviving Mews properties still in existence.  

London's charming mews streets provide a wealth of unique and attractive houses. Typically set back from busy roads and often with their own indoor garage space, they provide a secluded, elegant haven from city life. They are now choice property and quite in demand. Mews owners describe the sense of community they enjoy, making these some of London's friendliest and welcoming streets to live on.  Let's go visit Morgan, shall we?

Here's the blurb:

The greatest enemy of a vampire is boredom. Four centuries of existence have taught Lord Morgan Gabriel D'Arcy to fear nothing and no one. Humans and their weapons have little chance against his preternatural speed and arcane powers. Vampires are viral mutations of human DNA. Still, the Vampyre code requires secrecy, and he has learned to hide his nature from the world.

The lure of mortality, of a life in the sun, puts Morgan again and again at the mercy of calculating human women though they fail to consider his charm and determination into the equation. However, even grooming a future bride from infancy proves to be fraught with heartbreak. And second chances are not always what they seem unless... you are Morgan. Immortality and beauty, aren’t they grand?

Buy Link:  Morgan D’Arcy: A Vampyre Rhapsody

Contact info for Linda: 

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/LNightingale - @Lnightingale

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/LindaNightingaleAuthor

Web Site:  http://www.lindanightingale.com – Visit and look around. There’s a free continuing vampire story.

Blog:  https://lindanightingale.wordpress.com/ - Lots of interesting guests & prizes

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4839311.Linda_Nightingale

Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.com/lbnightingale1/

Thank you, Linda, for bringing us Morgan's story and the story of the Mews houses.  Any comments or questions for Linda?

A Time Travel Romance To Enjoy

As we wind down the summer reading I'm starting to look for fun new books for the fall. As the days grow cooler and I want to simply sit inside with a good book there are lots of new offerings out there. This week in My Writing Corner, I am featuring the work of Isabella Laase.


She lives in Pittsburgh with her husband and what she calls two yippy little dogs, but says she loves to travel every chance she gets. Isabella is the author of sophisticated, naughty, romances and tells us she enjoys getting lost in her stories and her characters' lives. Her passion is creating strong female protagonists who make choices and sacrifices to find their way in the world. Isabella dates her love of writing all the way back to her childhood dollhouse days. She says, "The novel format allows you to move your characters in any direction, wear any clothing, and experience anything you want. Only your imagination slows you down!"

Her first book, Tamed by the Virginian,  was just released in August. Her next work,  Training Tia, is due to be released in the fall of 2016.


Eighteen-year-old Jory Logan has made more than her share of bad decisions, but things come to a head when she is involved with a robbery that goes horribly wrong. Facing a long prison sentence, she decides to play along with a mysterious woman who claims to be able to offer her an alternative to jail--four years in the past, learning the lessons she was never taught in her own life. Then she will be free to return to the present day with a clean slate. When she awakens in Virginia in the year 1785, alone and unable to fend for herself in a world so different from her own, she is relieved to be taken in by frontiersman Nial McKay and his brother. She soon discovers, however, that life on a farm is hard work.


Nial is determined to keep his relationship with Jory chaste and proper, but as time passes he is forced to admit that he is falling in love with the beautiful, spirited girl. Can he bring himself to claim her as his woman rather than his ward, or will his hesitance cause him to lose her forever? And when her four years is up, will Jory be forced to leave everything she has grown to love behind in the past?


Buy Links


LINK FOR AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/Tamed-Virginian-Isabella-Laase-ebook/dp/B01JSM5PW8/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1472158522&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=tamed+by+the+viginina#nav-subnav

Link for Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tamed-by-the-virginian-isabella-laase/1124282787?ean=2940157093945

Contact Information:

isabellalaase@gmail.com

www.isabellalaaseromance.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/isabella.laase

Thanks, Isabella for being my guest today.   Questions or comments?

Get Ready for Holiday Reading

As we wrap up the summer and the school bell rings, it's not too early to start planning for our holiday reading. Today we welcome to My Writing Corner, Leigh Riker  the authors of a new holiday boxed set from Harlequin Romance, which is available now for pre-order.

What's in A Name

I admit it. I have a thing for character names—meaning the absolutely perfect name. Nothing else will do. I have several name-the-baby-type books, and I even used them to name my own two real-life boys. Those books are a bit dog-eared by now but still come in handy. And whenever I see a list of current favorite names in a magazine or the newspaper, I always save it. Right now Charlotte seems to be very popular, presumably after Prince George’s baby sister, the adorable new little princess in Great Britain.


Oh, and what about movies? TV shows? The rolling credits often contain some really interesting names that just might fit into a story someday. I like to jot them down.

But sometimes serendipity also plays a big part. Recently, I had to come up with the just-right name for my hero in this year’s A Heartwarming Holiday and voila, there was Asher Kincaid. Easy-peasy. Ash just popped into my head. My heroine was even easier; Jill Morgan appeared last year in A Heartwarming Christmas as the best friend of my heroine. Right away I knew Jill, a young widow, needed her own story.

But then, I hit a snag. Serendity doesn’t always save the day, and it failed to provide names for some  of the secondary characters who weren’t being cooperative. This time I renamed several of them more than once to finally get the effect I wanted. In my story, Thankfully Yours, Jill and Ash, a wounded former Navy SEAL, struggle to find their new place in the world and, along with those supporting players now under control, I had such fun helping them work things out. Through the renovation of a rundown ski resort, they come to deserve their happy ending and I was more than happy to give them one. Like all the stories in A Heartwarming Holiday mine takes place in Christmas Town, Maine. I hope you’ll enjoy it and the other two novellas in our pod called Holiday Heroes (more Navy SEALs!) by authors Tara Randel and Cari Lynn Webb.

These stories should certainly get you in the mood for the coming holiday season from Thanksgiving to Christmas to a New Year’s wedding. Enjoy! They will be coming from Harlequin n October but they are available for preorder now.

This holiday season, warm your heart with 15 connected sweet, clean & wholesome holiday romances set in Christmas Town from 15 Harlequin Heartwarming authors who are USA Today, national bestselling, and award-winning authors.

 

There are five connected books in A Heartwarming Holiday. That means each set of three novellas shares characters and storylines! This collection of PG-rated holiday romances are all set in Christmas Town, Maine, a location introduced in the 2014 Harlequin Heartwarming release Christmas, Actually.

 

 A Heartwarming Holiday will bring you laughter, tears, and happily-ever-afters.

 

Book 1: Once Upon a Holiday by Anna Adams, Anna J Stewart & Melinda Curtis: Three former college roommates start a business to bring the magic of the holidays to everyone in Christmas Town.  

Once Upon a Thanksgiving by Anna Adams, award-winning, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Once Upon a Christmas by Anna J Stewart, award-winning, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Once Upon a New Year’s Eve by Melinda Curtis, award-winning, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Book 2: Holiday Heroes by Leigh Riker, Tara Randel & Cari Lynn Webb: Three former Navy SEALs come together to restore an outdated resort.

 

Thankfully Yours by Leigh Riker, award-winning, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Cooking Up Christmas by Tara Randel, Barnes and Noble bestselling, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Countdown to Romance by Cari Lynn Webb, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Book 3: 24 North Pole Lane by Carol Ross, Amy Vastine & Cheryl Harper: Romance is being delivered to 24 North Pole Lane this holiday season.

 

Hers by Thanksgiving by Carol Ross, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Peace, Love, and Baby Joy by Amy Vastine, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Never Say Never on New Year’s by Cheryl Harper, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Book 4: Magic Moments by Tara Taylor Quinn, Shirley Hailstock & Liz Flaherty: Three different times, three different stories. They all bring magic to Christmas Town.

 

Christmas Past by Tara Taylor Quinn, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

It Only Happens in Christmas Town by Shirley Hailstock, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

The Magic Stocking by Liz Flaherty, USA Today bestselling, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Book 5: Nutcracker Sweethearts by Dana Mentink, Roz Denny Fox, & Amie Denman: As the stage production of the Nutcracker unfolds in Christmas Town, three couples find love with the help of a little holiday magic!

 

Thanksgiving Duet by Dana Mentink, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Christmas Curtain Call by Roz Denny Fox, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

Set for New Year’s by Amie Denman, Harlequin Heartwarming author.

 

If this boxed set appeals to you, look for our previous holiday anthology: A Heartwarming Christmas.

 

Amazon http://ow.ly/nXVO302pwTe

Kobo http://ow.ly/5S0Y302pwOE

Google http://ow.ly/Ki7b302pwJH

iTunes http://ow.ly/sajU302pwWP

 

And don't forget, included in A HEARTWARMING HOLIDAY is an exclusive coupon worth $1.00 off any Heartwarming title from Harlequin.com.  

Returning to a Favorite Read

When reading isn't occupying my time, usually writing does.  This summer I am having a great time working on a sequel to my novella, Shadows from the Past.  Shadows was one of my favorite books, set in an old mansion in the Northwest called Redfern Manor.  For some reason that fictitious location kept calling to me and I have decided to write another book featuring it.  Fittingly, the story is named Return to Redfern.

What I am enjoying about writing this story (beyond being able to return in my brain to a favorite place) is that it is allowing me to again write a shorter story.  These days many novels seem to be getting shorter, and many readers seem to prefer a shorter read.  Return to Redfern will also fall into that shorter, novella category. If you haven't hread Shadows from the Past, here's a quick introduction:

When Stacey Moreno goes looking for answers to a friend’s mysterious death at spooky Redfern Manor, she finds trouble instead. She doesn't like being drawn to her sexy, mysterious new boss, Mack Warren. From the moment they meet, the sparks fly, but Mack is looking for escape, not romance. He'd rather be in love with a ghost!

Stacey is no super heroine like the cartoon character she draws, but she may have to become one to survive the secrets… and suspects… of Redfern Manor. Can she save them all from the  shadows from the past that threaten to destroy the future?

Here's an excerpt:

Mack sighed and Stacey could feel the vibration of his frustration. The fire had taken a toll on his work, and he probably blamed her best friend for the loss. 

            Stacey attempted a smile. “If you’re worried about trusting me...”
            His eyes shot to her, blue spheres, as cold as ice. “I don’t trust anyone. The sooner you learn that, the better we’ll get along.”
            Stacey licked her dry lips, uncertain what to say. “Why…why wouldn’t you trust me?”
            His gaze pinned her to the back of the chair, blazing with something she couldn’t define. “I spent years as a journalist. I figure everyone has something to hide.”
            Her heart skipped. She felt as though he could see into her brain and discover her connection to Helen.
            Then a corner of his lips twitched into a smile. “But then, you’re probably the only person in the world who couldn’t hide anything. Your face is like reading a lie detector readout. It turns bright red every time you get flustered.”
            Stacey brushed her hand across her cheek. It was burning right now, which meant it was probably the color of a valentine.
            “I’m sorry if I sound like an evil tyrant,” he continued, his face softening. “Peg had to fire my first assistant and the second just left. Now this thing with Helen Stanton…”
            There had been other assistants before Helen? “Yikes, and you’ve hired me?”
            “What does that mean?”
             She wiggled her nose, making a face. “I guess that’s my secret. Mom calls me a jinx. My first employer was shut down by the city. My second job lasted three months before I got laid off and my last employer closed after 93 years in business.”
              His gaze grew so intense that for an instant she feared he might fire her on the spot. Then he inhaled sharply and lurched to his feet. “As long as you do your work, you’ll be fine.”
              Obviously he didn’t want to bring up the puzzling death of his last assistant. But she was here to find out the truth.

Buy Links
The Wild Rose Press
Amazon.com
BN.com

If you have an questions, please email me at

rebeccagrace55@gmail.com

and follow me on
Website      Twitter    Pinterest  Facebook