October Fest Blog Hop and Giveaway

This month I am proud to be joining in the Reading By The Book October Fest Blog Hop.

For many October signifies the beginning of fall. Here in New England October is the time when the leaves change color and begin to fall from the trees. I have to admit fall is one of my favorite times of the air.

Photo provided by puttsk at http://www.freedigitalphotos.net

To celebrate this great time of year I am getting ready to re-release The Teacher's Billionaire, which is the first book in my series The Sherbrookes of Newport. I originally published this book in March of 2012. Since then I have gone back and added in scenes that I believe add to the story.  Since much of the book takes place in Rhode Island, also known as the Ocean State, I thought I would tell you a little about the place where I was born and lived until I was 25.

Let’s start with some interesting facts you may not know. Rhode Island is the smallest of the 50 states. Yes, it is even smaller than Delaware. Despite its size it actually has the longest name. Few know this but the official name of the “Ocean State” as it is often called is The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

Rhode Island is the home of Newport. At one time Newport was the summer playground of the wealthy. Families like the Vanderbilts and the Astors had “summer cottages” along Bellevue Avenue. Today many of these mansions are open to tourist. If you are ever in the area, I suggest you visit some. They are breathtaking.

Every state is well known for a certain type of food or drink, and Rhode Island is no different. In fact, in 1993 coffee milk became the official state drink. I must admit I love coffee milk. I grew up drinking it. For those who don’t know what it is, think of chocolate milk but instead of chocolate syrup it is made with coffee syrup. In fact the town I grew up in, Lincoln, which is also the town the heroine in my new book lives, is the home of Autocrat, which produces coffee syrup.

Providence is the largest city in Rhode Island as well as the capital and many scenes in my books take place there.  Today the city is a beautiful place to visit, but that was not always the case. On September 21, 1938 The Great New England Hurricane swept into Rhode Island and submerged the city under more than 13 feet of water. Yes, I said feet. Today when you walk downtown you will often spot plaques on the older buildings marking the level the waters rose that day.

Honestly, I could go on and on with facts that I find interesting about Rhode Island, but for this blog post I will end with the final three. Rhode Island was the first state to officially declare its independence from the British Crown. Since that is true it only seems right that the town of Bristol, Rhode Island is the home of the country’s oldest 4^th of July celebration. Last but not least, while Rhode Island was the first to declare its independence, it was the last of the 13 original states to sign the United States Constitution.

I hope you’ve enjoyed these little tidbits about my home state and the setting for many of my books in The Sherbrookes of Newport Series. If you find that you just can not get enough of the East Coast with the current six books in that series,  I  have a second series also set in New England. My other series is called Love On The North Shore and those books take place in a fictitious town called North Salem in Massachusetts. I hope to have the third book in that series out by the end of the year.

What starts out as a plan to keep a family secret out of the media soon turns into so much more for billionaire Dylan Talbot as he falls in love with elementary school teacher Callie Taylor.   But when Callie learns the truth about her relationship with the confirmed bachelor only complete honesty can save their love. 

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Today's Book Feature: The Book of Hours

Do you love a good romantic suspense? Grab The Book of Hours

For artist Gabriela Martinez, psychopaths do hit twice. What did she ever do to deserve this? 
An unscrupulous arts dealer covets Gabriela’s work to the point of madness, Richard Harrison is willing to do anything to get her back in his life, and if Richard and Gabriela don't stop this new threat, their chances for a future together will go up in flames. 

A LOVE IN JEOPARDY 
In 1993, artist Gabriela Martinez almost lost her life to a sociopath’s twisted vision. If not for Richard Harrison, the operative sent to protect her, she would have ended up dead. The dramatic showdown pushed them together, but there were too many obstacles temporarily pulling them apart. 

A NEW THREAT 
After catching a glimpse of Gabriela’s new work, The Book of Hours, Arnold Wickeham has been like a man possessed. Now, he will do anything—anything—in order to claim it, and nothing, especially not Gabriela, will stand in his way. 

THE PAST IS CATCHING UP 
Richard Harrison has never given up his true love, Gabriela. Now someone new is threatening her life, and he will risk everything to protect her. But the stakes are now higher, and there is much more to lose. And, if he doesn’t stay one step ahead of the danger, her life, but especially, their future, may very well go up in flames. 
Set in California and London, The Book of Hours, the follow-up to The Coin, is a story about greed, obsession, family duty, and, especially, deserved second chances.

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Celebrating Re-Release Today

If you have not already grabbed this one it is Free for all e-readers.

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Today's Book Feature: Destiny's Plan

New Release by Debut Author Victoria Saccenti

When Raquelita Muro and Matthew Buchanan meet by chance on a Greyhound bus between Texas and Tallahassee, neither suspects Fate is about to take over. 

Raquelita, a gentle girl under the heel of her abusive mother, finds this kind young man a miracle. Matthew, an idealistic young soldier, discovers this sweet-natured girl is an angel in need of a guardian. However, the next stop on Matthew’s journey is Fort Benning to report for deployment to Vietnam, while Raquelita’s destination is set at her mother’s whim. Regardless of the forces tearing them apart, they discover a way to secretly span the distance, to end up closer than ever. But Fate is rarely kind. The vagaries of war—and the unstable tempers of Raquelita’s mother—intervene, leaving both ill-fated lovers feeling there is no hope for their love. 

Set in the turbulent era of the Vietnam War, Raquelita’s and Matthew’s story is one of love, loss, lost faith, shattered memoires, deferred dreams and broken promises. Will Fate tear apart these two damaged souls, leaving them desperately alone forever, or will they finally overcome Fate, their bond stronger than they ever thought possible? 

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Teaser Tuesday With NY Times Best Selling Author Ana E. Ross

It's Teaser Tuesday Time Again.

THE DOCTOR’S SECRET BRIDE

ANA E ROSS

Excerpt from Chapter Two: My heroine, Michelle, is waiting to see if she has been hired as nanny to Erik, the hero’s seven-year-old daughter, Precious:

Michelle stared at a collection of Monet landscapes lining one wall of the study. A smile ruffled her lips at the idea that she and the stiff-shirt doctor had something in common. He’d probably choke on that bit of info, she thought, her smile spreading to her eyes. What, a girl from the other side of the river with an acquired appreciation for fine art?

See, that’s the trouble with people, she thought. You think you know them until they surprise the heck out of you by doing something totally unimaginable.

Take her father for instance. He’d been a rotten parent throughout her childhood. In spite of his neglect and abuse, she’d earned a four-year college degree in three years by working two jobs and attending night and summer school. She’d landed a great job as Manager of Customer Operations at a well-established company, and moved into a nice apartment on Elm Street. She had a new car and a so-so boyfriend. Since she had no college loans to pay back, she was able to save a substantial amount of her salary.

Then it was all blown to smithereens one night when her father knocked on her door. He had knocked on her door before, and she’d offered him a little food here and there—never money, because she knew it would end up in the cash register of the nearest liquor store. Once in a while, if she were in a good mood, she would let him take a shower and sleep off his intoxication on her sofa.

Michelle wiped her hands down her face. She wished she’d been in a bad mood that night. If she hadn’t been so nice to her father, when she was unexpectedly laid off a few months later, she would not have found herself penniless, homeless, and free-loading off her best friend, Yasmine.

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Before you go check out Ana's Upcoming Release

Loving Yasmine, a spinoff of The Doctor’s Secret Bride, will be available for pre-order on September 28, with an official release date of December 21. Loving Yasmine tells the story of Robert (Michelle’s brother), and Yasmine, (her best friend), and their journey to Happily Ever After.

Blurb:

Robert Carter survived an abusive upbringing from an alcoholic father to become one of the most brilliant and successful orthodontists in Boston. Now, financially secured and emotionally stable, he’s ready to settle down and raise a houseful of kids to prove to himself that he can be a better father than the one who raised him. But the one woman he desires to make his dreams come true has other ideas about love and marriage.

As a little girl, Yasmine Reynolds fantasized about raising a family with Robert, her best friend’s older brother. Now all grown up, and in demand as one of the best divorce attorneys money can buy, Yasmine realizes that love and marriage isn’t the bed of roses she imagined it would be. She becomes even more cynical when a relationship she thought strong enough to weather any storm unravels before her eyes.

Is Robert’s unwavering love enough to convince Yasmine that Happily Ever After does exist, and free her to reveal the dark secret she has been hiding from him? Or will she allow her fear of failure to send this hunk of a man tumbling into the arms of another woman?