A Hive of Secrets and Spells Blog Tour

  

Welcome to A Hive of Secrets and Spells Blog Tour! We're excited to share with you this brand new release that's sure to add some magic to the Halloween season!

Synopsis for A Hive of Secrets and Spells:

Cupcakes, romance, and lovable canines abound in Heather and Sinead’s next adventure, but it isn’t all fun and games. The girlfriends are investigating a very personal kidnapping, and the threatening notes left behind accuse Sinéad and her punk-rocker twin brother of hiding something.

But after solving their first mystery together last Christmas, this one should be a piece of cake.After all, no one’s been murdered this time, and their witch-sorcerer rivalry is a thing of the past.Except it turns out there is a murderer, and a jewel thief as well, and why on earth does everyone keep talking about bees?

It appears Starford is a lot more exciting than Heather’s home town of Old Wetchhaven, and Sinéad’s insistence that Heather move in with her brings a whiff of trouble to their private paradise. Can Heather adjust to life near the big city? Or will the mounting secrets prove too much and turn their second case into their last?

A Hive of Secrets and Spells is a witch cozy mystery with a sweet lesbian romance and heart-warming magic.

Order now!

Amazon

Enjoy this excerpt:

Heather stared at the wall in front of her, eyes unfocused. She was sure she’d done nothing wrong, but the heavy lead in her stomach turned over rapidly, making her question everything about those blurred few days. Out of the corner of her eye, the rain cloud thundered harder than ever. With the timing of its dramatic antics, it was almost as if it had known what was coming, though Heather wasn’t sure how it could.

Had it predicted this? The spell she designed shouldn’t be able to predict anything. And anyway, why did it still act as though something bad hid around the corner? After Roger Branson’s call, nothing worse could come of today.

Then she looked over and saw Sinéad frozen in horror, staring down at a sheet of paper in her hand. It didn’t look as though she’d heard any of Heather’s conversation, which at least explained why she hadn’t been demanding Heather pass her the phone so she could unleash her outrage.

“What is it?” she asked, reaching out to rest a hand on her girlfriend’s knee.

“It’s a letter,” Sinéad said slowly.

Heather resisted the urge to poke fun at her for stating the obvious. Something was very wrong.

“It says they’ve been taken, I’m being watched, and I need to meet with him so we can work together before it’s too late.” Her voice caught on the words with a faint edge of panic that didn’t suit her.

“Who’s been taken?” Heather asked, fear rising in her chest. Her hands shook where they pressed against Sinéad’s knee, but she wasn’t sure which of the two of them was causing it. “Who do you need to meet with?”

Who could worry Sinéad so much? Sinéad’s close friends were few and far between, and as an orphan, she had no family to worry about.

“My parents.” Sinéad looked up, her eyes wide and startled. “And I need to meet my brother.”

Behind them, the rain cloud shattered in a crack of lightning two foot tall, then disappeared.

About the Author:

Ellen Jane Phillips is an Australian indie author of wlw romance. She loves writing about LGBTQ women who experience complex lives, emotions, needs, and desires. Her books are written for people who crave love stories where friendship is just as important as romance, and who want to experience cosy warmth with a hint of mystery, magic, and emotion.

You can find her writing under two pen names: Ellen Jane, and E.J. Phillips. If you like light, cosy wlw romance suffused with magic and mystery, Ellen Jane is the pen name for you. If you prefer something a little heavier, and you like your wlw romance tinged with magic and tender angst, E.J. Phillips is the one you want. When she isn't writing, you can find her walking the dogs, playing D&D, or bemoaning the number of days since she last ate nachos.

Author Links:

Website     I     Instagram     I     Tumblr     I     Twitter

Hard Chrome Release Blitz

Book synopsis

He’s tough. But she’s tougher.

Tanner Ellis left American Heavy Metal in her rearview mirror. She didn’t see the beauty behind the grease stains and the polished chrome until it was too late. Now she’s back, determined to save her father’s legacy—and bring the South’s premier classic-car shop into the new century. Nothing is going to stop her—especially not the sexy tech who refuses to follow her lead.

American Heavy Metal is the only home Duke Wilson’s ever known, and no high-heeled, sharp-tongued princess is going to take it away. He tolerates Tanner’s advice, and it’s fun to push her buttons, but she doesn’t belong in the shop—never has, never will. The sooner she realizes that, the sooner he can find his new normal.

When Tanner falters, revealing the pain beneath her bravado, Duke comforts her the only way he knows how. And when violence from his past threatens their future, she’ll be there for him, offering him the one thing he’s always wanted—a shot at a real family. He just has to convince himself to take it.

This book is approximately 49,000 words

One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise : all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise! 

Warnings

Hard Chrome deals with subjects some readers may find difficult, including domestic violence,

animal cruelty, drug use, and teen pregnancy.

All buy links or pre-order links 

Books2Read I Harelquin I Amazon I B&N

Kobo I Google Play I Apple Books

 

About Vanessa North

Vanessa North is a romance novelist, a short fiction geek, and a knitter of strange and wonderful things. Her works have been shortlisted for both the Lambda Literary Award and the RITA© Award, and have garnered praise from The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Publisher’s Weekly. She lives in Northwest Georgia with her family: a Viking, twin boy-children, and two large dogs. 

Connect with Vanessa

Vanessa's website     I    Books2Read     I     Newsletter     I     Bookbub

Twitter     I     Instagram     I     Facebook

Giveaway

     

Vanessa North is celebrating the release of HARD CHROME with a big giveaway! Three prizes are up for grabs: (2) $10 Amazon Gift Cards and (1) Signed Paperback of Hard Chrome + some serious auto-shop inspired swag! 

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Teaser

Since I never met trouble I couldn’t land in face first, I stand and follow Tanner out to the kitchen.
 She’s leaning over the sink, her eyes closed, breathing slow like she’s in a yoga class. Elbows locked, knuckles white. I get the feeling if she let go of that countertop, she’d crumple to the ground.
 “Are you okay?” I ask softly.
 She nods, not opening those pretty eyes for a long moment; then she turns and she stares right at me. “Do you know what it’s like to have everyone counting on you? And you know you’re going to let them down, but you can’t say no, so you just let it happen?”
 And I’m twelve years old, testifying against Clifton for beating Ma.
 And I’m fifteen years old, doing it again.
 And I’m twenty, when they finally lock him up for fighting dogs.
 And I’m tired and relieved when he gets time added to his sentence for punching a guard, because it means I don’t have to stand up there again and watch my mother’s heart break when all I ever wanted was my family to be safe.
 And still he got paroled.
 “Yeah. I know what it’s like.”
 “You don’t think I can do it, do you? You don’t think I can run the shop?”
 Can she? I don’t know. Tom Ellis didn’t raise no fools. Maybe she’s looking for an out, any excuse to cut and run, and she just needs someone who isn’t her family to give it to her.
 “I don’t think you want to. I don’t think you love the cars, or the work, or this town.” I swallow, hard.
 “Families are fucked up, all of ’em. I get why you want to stay. I just don’t get what hurting yourself and them to prove something does for anyone.”
 She scowls then turns back to the sink and her yoga breathing. My fingers itch to touch her, to comfort her somehow, but I can take a hint. Besides. I don’t even like her.

Tequilla Sunrise by Layla Reyne Release Day Blitz & Giveaway

If you haven't read the Agents Irish and Whiskey Series, you've been missing out.  In this installment we get to see Mel's story.  I'm so excited to share this book with you all!  

A brilliant return to the Irish & Whiskey universe with nonstop excitement and a badass heroine. It was so gratifying to see a fearless character like Mel who didn't sacrifice love and tenderness toward a significant other just for the sake of being strong and powerful. --Nora Sakavic, author of the All for the Game series

About Tequila Sunrise:

Release Date: 11/13/17

Publisher: Carina Press

Series: Agents Irish and Whiskey

Blurb: True love perseveres in this Agents Irish and Whiskey spin-off novella from author Layla Reyne

Former FBI agent Melissa "Mel" Cruz spent years skirting the line between life and death, knowing the next assignment might be her last. Back from overseas and eager to enjoy life outside the Bureau, she's ready to give Danny Talley a Christmas Eve he'll never forget. 

A proven asset in high-stakes missions, Danny's known for having the skill and brains to get the job done. When the Talley flagship is hijacked during the company holiday party, he'll do anything to save his family, his love and everything they've all worked so hard to build. But their enemies have a secondary protocol—leave no survivors—and that plan is already in play.

Navigating through a tangled web of lies and betrayal, Mel and Danny race against the clock to retake the ship before their future goes up in flames. As the seconds tick down, they're forced to face their greatest fear—losing each other.

     This had to be karma, retribution for sleeping his way through his teens and twenties. Don Juan Danny, Mel had once called him. Then of course he’d fallen for her, the resident badass who could break his neck as easily as she could break his heart. Which almost happened last spring when she’d nearly died, twice.

     He could still remember her unconscious form, thrown against the wall and hair singed off by an explosion. And not twelve hours later, her blood, her life, pooling under his hand and staining her white sweater, bleeding out from the gunshot wound she’d taken to save his brother and their niece.

    Miraculously, she’d pulled through, both times, and so had they, but Mel refused to be caged, and Danny knew they’d never last if he tried to put her in one. Granted, he got a stomach ulcer for it, no matter how calm he seemed on the outside, but if that was the price he had to pay for being with her, so be it. Having come close to losing that love, to losing her, he didn’t want to experience that awful feeling again for many, many years.

        Years. They’d have years together, a lifetime, he reassured himself...

About Layla Reyne:

Author Layla Reyne was raised in North Carolina and now calls San Francisco home. She enjoys weaving her bi-coastal experiences into her stories, along with adrenaline-fueled suspense and heart pounding romance. When she's not writing stories to excite her readers, she downloads too many books, watches too much television, and cooks too much food with her scientist husband, much to the delight of their smushed-face, leftover-loving dogs.

Connect with Layla: Author Site | Twitter | FB | FB Group | Pinterest | Tumblr | Instagram | Goodreads | Newsletter

Giveaway: any back catalog ebook by Layla Reyne + a secret swag pack full of Agents Irish and Whiskey goodies and gift card! 

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Scorpio Hates Virgo by Anyta Sunday Release Day Blitz, Giveaway, and Review

This year is all about healing the heart, Scorpio. It’s time to leave negative attitudes and stoic facades at the door and let others see the real, more vulnerable you.

Percy Freedman is not grieving. Absolutely not, take that back at once. No, he’s entirely sure that selling his dead aunt’s home and leaving the neighbors he’s known for years is the sane thing to do. Who in their right mind would keep the house that smells like all the hugs he’ll never have again?

Nobody, that’s who.

Well, except his cul-de-sac neighbors. They all seem to think some paint and new furniture will clean the emotional slate. They all want him to stay.

Even his old nemesis, Callaghan Glover.

Especially his old nemesis, Callaghan Glover.

Lured into a game of Sherlock Gnomes, Percy finds himself hanging out with his neighbors more than might be considered healthy. Along with juggling new and surprising verbal grenades from Cal, and his burgeoning friendship with Gnomber9, Percy is starting to wonder if selling might have been the grief talking after all . . .

That’s right, Scorpio. With a little patience, heartbreak might be a thing of the past . . .

“Scorpio Hates Virgo” contains sarcasm, sexual content, a slightly sappy HEA, and an unhealthy obsession with dinosaurs.

It can be read as a standalone.

Excerpt:

Cal rocked up to his Jeep all business-casual, in form-fitting jeans, polished leather shoes and matching brown satchel, and a dark jacket that covered a beige T-shirt.

“You got a meeting or something?” Percy asked, slipping his sunglasses on.

Cal opened the passenger door and looked at him over the roof. “No.”

Sunlight did very striking things to Cal’s hair. Made it look positively copper. Not as red as his cheeks were getting, though.

A cheerful cry startled Percy and he ripped his gaze away from Cal. Crystal was waving at them from her opened kitchen window.

“Good morning,” she called.

After another restless night, he could hardly call it good, but . . . “Morning.”

She leaned further out the window, her dressing gown gaping a little too much down the front. “Are you out for the day?”

“A couple of hours. Taking Callaghan here to work, then nipping past the Home Depot.” To get the home ready to market, he needed to spruce up the place. Paint the living room and bathroom, put in a new vanity, replace the door handles of the kitchen cupboards, change the faucets and showerhead and put in a new toilet seat.

“You at the Home Depot?” Cal murmured. “Sure you’d even know what to buy?”

Percy gestured for him to get in the car. “High time I get you to work.”

As he slipped into the driver’s seat, Crystal called out after them. “Good to see water and earth spending time together!”

Over his sunglasses that had slipped down his nose, Percy looked at Cal. “See, this is why we’ll always be nemeses.”

Cal hitched his brow, and Percy turned the ignition and peeled out from the curb.

“Together we’re mud.”

Review:

Scorpio is book 2 in the Signs of Love Series.  I loved the first book, Leo Loves Ares, so I had high expectations for Scorpio.  I wasn't disappointed.  Cal and Percy are sarcastic idiots and I love them.  The only place you will find two more clueless men are in Leo Loves Ares and luckily you get to see Theo and Jamie in Scorpio being their idiot selves, so all is right in the world.

This series is definitely slllooooowww burn, but the sarcasm and wit before you get there keeps you incredibly entertained.  The geeky movie, book, and dinosaur references were amazing.  I have so much love for the geekiness!  

I thoroughly enjoyed these boys blustering about and trying to find their way.  The cul-de-sac crew are hilarious supporting characters, but it's really Cal and Percy that make this book such a delight to read.  I couldn't put Scorpio down (which was bad when I was reading it during lunch at work...) and it was over too soon.  I can't wait to see what's next in the Signs of Love series.  I hope you love it as much as I do!  

Author Bio:

Slow burn romance that quickens the heart.

Anyta is a big, BIG fan of slow-burn romances. She loves to read and write stories with characters who slowly fall in love.

Some of her favorite tropes to read and write are: Enemies to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Clueless Guys, Bisexual, Pansexual, Demisexual, Oblivious MCs, Everyone (Else) Can See It, Slow Burn, Love Has No Boundaries.

Anyta writes a variety of stories, Contemporary MM Romances with a good dollop of angst, Contemporary lighthearted MM Romances, and even a splash of fantasy. Her books have been translated into German, Italian and French.

Member of Romance Writers of America.

Connect with Anyta: Website | Twitter | Facebook

To receive a free e-book, sign up for Anyta’s newsletter here!

And last, but certainly not least, enter to win a copy of your very own!  

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ABROAD Book Spotlight

Happy Thursday! Today we're shining the spotlight on the upcoming ABROAD by Liz Jacobs. This first book in her series of the same name will arrive in June. Read more about it below where you can also find the pre-order links.

About the book:

Nick, a Russian-Jewish immigrant living in America, doesn't know where he belongs. Socially anxious, intensely private, and closeted, he feels like a collection of disparate parts. When he goes to study abroad in the UK, he is forced to be honest with himself for the first time. If only he can speak to other people without wanting to throw up.

Dex knows exactly who he is: a black queer guy who doesn't give a toss what anybody thinks of him. He's got his friends, his family, a glittering future. All right, he also has a bit of a broken heart that he's been nursing for a while, but he is absolutely, one hundred percent, totally fine. Apart, maybe, from his family's abrupt move to an affluent, largely white town. Or his younger brother feeling increasingly isolated as a result. Or that persistent broken heart.

When Nick and Dex meet, both find themselves intrigued--and afraid. The last thing Nick wants is to face his deepest secret. The last thing Dex needs is another heartache. But through endless late night talks, both find it harder and harder to resist the terrifying pull of attraction. 

But Dex has had to fight too hard for his right to be where he is; Nick isn’t even sure where he’s from. So how can either of them tell where this is going?

Order now:

BMP I Amazon

About the author:

Liz Jacobs came over with her family from Russia at the age of 11, as a Jewish refugee.  All in all, her life has gotten steadily better since that moment. They settled in an ultra-liberal haven in the middle of New York State, which sort of helped her with the whole “grappling with her sexuality” business.

She has spent a lot of her time flitting from passion project to passion project, but writing remains her constant. She has flown planes, drawn, made jewelry, had an improbable internet encounter before it was cool, and successfully wooed the love of her life in a military-style campaign. She has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize for her essay on her family’s experience with immigration.

She currently lives with her wife in Massachusetts, splitting her time between her day job, writing, and watching a veritable boatload of British murder mysteries.

Connect with Liz:

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