Love at Christmas @BonnieEdwards #RomanceGems

I don't think there's a more love-filled season than Christmas. Even if your holiday is blue, as mine is this year, love fills us. For me, it's love for my sister who passed away in June. And it's love for my brother who is suffering terrible pain from his cancer as I type this. Yes, some years Christmas is hard.

We all have years like the one I'm living. That, oddly, is a comfort. The idea gives me strength because hey, if everyone else can survive Christmases like this one, I can, too.

But this post is about love, not grief. It's the love I feel for my other siblings, for my children, and their children that will help me through. I remind myself every few minutes of all there is to be grateful for. My health is good and so is my husband's. We're planning a winter getaway and we're looking forward to lots of family time and fun over the holiday.

I'm blessed. I truly am.

My first Christmas romance is titled Not-so-Blue Christmas and is about grief and love and second chances. I'm pleased to have written it. Even now, I take comfort from Kirk and Miranda's story. I hope you do, too.

Love at Christmas contains three outstanding, warm-hearted Christmas romances that readers love.

In these stories love straddles the American/Canadian border and brings joy to three unique couples…

AMAZON EXCLUSIVE

Not-so Blue Christmas:  In this second chance at love romance, Kirk Fontaine can't bear to talk to anyone, let alone enjoy Christmas. Away from home, in a small harbor city in Canada, broken-hearted Kirk's lost and alone until one small dog refuses to give up on him.

Vibrant widow Miranda Bailey is ready to move into the next phase of her life, except this Christmas is shaping up to be the worst since her husband's death. But instead of hiding, she takes charge, and drags Kirk into her Christmas miracle.

Invitation to Christmas: Tom and Jordyn
Jordyn Bailey kissed Tom Fontaine last Christmas.

But their parents are engaged...

For Jordyn keeping secrets in a family determined to mesh their lives is all kinds of crazy. Secretly sleeping with Tom could get messy because she's on the baby track while he's on the party track.

If they're careful and keep their attraction under wraps maybe it will burn out and they can be friends.

Now...It's Christmas again and Tom wants to unwrap everything, including Jordyn.

One Crazy Christmas: Cade and Karyn
Between them, they have five daughters. They live in different countries. But love doesn’t give a fig about that because this is One Crazy Christmas…

Karyn Whyte is a busy single mom of two, the owner of Whyte’s Christmas—a woman who would like to meet a convenient man—one who lives nearby, has no baggage and makes no demands. Oh, and he must like curvy women.

Cade Devine’s a devoted single dad to three little girls. Sure, he’s got his hands full, but that doesn’t mean he wants to be alone. At a mutual friend’s wedding, interest flares at first sight. Enticed and attracted, they break free of their constraints for one long weekend of passion and deeply satisfying companionship.

With five other hearts at stake Karyn and Cade accept that responsibility must win over the love they’ve found. Fate can be cruel and sometimes love hurts. Accepting an invitation to Christmas with their newlywed friends brings Karyn, Cade, and their children face-to-face and anything can happen when love and family come together on one crazy Christmas…

Don't forget to enter our RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY We're being extra generous this month to help our readers celebrate. 

Announcing the Secret Gifts Release! by @SatinRussell #RomanceGems

Happy October, everybody. I hope your month is going well. This happens to be my favorite month of the year. I love Halloween and things that go bump in the night.

Today I want to introduce my new holiday novella which will officially be published on November 1st. As I've mentioned before, Secret Hunger and Secret Need are the first two books in my Harper Sisters Series. This novella takes place after the second book. I consider it number 2.5 in the series.

So, what is Secret Gifts about? If you’re familiar with the books, then you’ll recognize Jackie and Tom from Secret Hunger. They were the couple who got together behind the scenes.

Well, this holiday novella picks up with them one year later. Tom is ready to take their relationship to the next level, but will Jackie’s past keep them from having a future?

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BLURB:

Jackie Davis is no stranger to hardship. After a strict upbringing, her parents abandoned her when she got pregnant out of wedlock. Years later, she’s the co-owner of a successful café, mother to a beautiful six-year-old daughter named Abby, and dating a man who makes her heart race. For the first time in a while, she’s excited for the holidays.

When Tom Molsem applied as a cook at the local café, he wasn’t looking for a relationship. Haunted by demons from his military service, he was just happy to have a job he could handle. Now he’s the co-owner of that same restaurant and dating a woman who helped lay those ghosts to rest. With the past buried, he wants to build a future with his newfound family.

Tom and Jackie are eager to celebrate Christmas, but when Abby goes missing, the two must band together and discover the true gifts of the season: love, forgiveness, and new beginnings.

EXCERPT:

The beeping of the coffeemaker promised caffeine and lucidity. Jackie brought down the oversized red mugs she liked to use during this time of year because they had a snowflake pattern. As she began to pour, two strong arms snaked around her waist.

“You’re lucky I’ve got a steady hand,” she said, leaning against the hard chest behind her.

Tom moved her closer and nipped her earlobe. “Mmm, you’re right, I am.”

It took a little more concentration not to spill the strong brew when he kissed down the length of her neck, but she didn’t mind. Sometimes, it was difficult to believe she got to wake up with this man every morning.

If anyone would have suggested she’d be here a year and a half ago, she would have told them they were crazy. She and Tom had worked together for years, but she had no idea he’d harbored romantic feelings for her the whole time.

She’d always assumed that such a quiet and intense person wouldn’t possibly be attracted to someone like her. Her life was loud and hectic and crazy and completely disorganized. Half the time, she didn’t know what she was doing or what she was feeling. How could a man who kept his emotions so contained want a life like that?

Jackie turned and ran her hands up Tom’s arms, stopping to revel in the strength of his biceps before looping them behind his neck. His eyes were the color of her favorite dark roast and currently warm with desire. They shot a jolt through her system that was stronger and hotter than any cup of coffee. His hands traced the sides of her waist, sending shivers down her spine, and she raised her mouth for another kiss.

Maybe they should have stayed in bed.

Pounding at the front door made them jump. Tom’s muscles tightened beneath her hands as he raised his head. He rushed toward the door as another spate of knocking blasted the morning’s peace.

After checking the peephole, Tom opened the door, his large frame blocking the person from Jackie’s view.

“Can I help you?” She suppressed amusement at the way Tom’s voice had deepened with irritation. If this was a missionary or political canvasser, they certainly had their work cut out for them.

“I want to speak to Jackie.”

What? Who would want to see her so badly that they’d pound on the door this early, especially on a Monday morning? Any of her friends would know better. She peeked past Tom’s shoulder, but he didn’t move. If anything, his stance grew broader.

“Who are you?” Tom asked.

“Let me talk to her. I know she’s here.” Something about the other man’s voice scratched at her memory, but she couldn’t quite place it. Then it hit her.

“Randy?”

Tom glanced back over his shoulder at her. “You know him?”

She bit her bottom lip, trepidation sitting in the pit of her stomach. At one time, she thought she knew him.

She’d been mistaken.

I hope you enjoyed the excerpt. Be sure and pre-order a copy of Secret Gifts today! Secret Gifts Ebook Preorder link: https://amzn.to/2m2Dlrw

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Every Day is Treat Day in October!

I'm going to do something a little different this time. I'm offering one (U.S) winner a signed physical copy of Secret Gifts. (Due to postal costs, international entries will get an ebook copy, instead.)

To be entered in the random drawing for Secret Gifts, leave a comment with your email address written out - not as a hot link. (ex: janedoe at gmail dot com)

Since the release date is November 1st, I'm going to leave the contest open for longer than usual. The deadline to be entered is October 27th. I’ll draw the winner's name on October 28th, 2019 and notify the winner by email and by leaving a comment on this post.

By the way, in case you wonder why Authors give away books, it’s simple. We give away books to introduce new Readers to our writing. The best way to thank an Author who gives you a book is to post a review of the book. Just a few sentences saying why you liked the book is all that is needed!

This is especially important for new releases!

Click Here to enter our No Tricks—JustTreats Rafflecopter today for a chance to win Amazon Gift Cards. Enter often and tell your friends! (You can also click Monthly Giveaways on the Menu Bar of the blog to see details of the current month’s Rafflecopter and to enter it.)

Pitbulls, Photos, & Cover Art by @BonnieEdwards #RomanceGems

Long ago, covers were often painted portraits of real people in costumes against an appropriate backdrop for the romance. I had one of those covers. Artwork by Pino, a famous cover artist of the time graced my first book titled This Heart of Mine (Kensington Books). 

Then, stock photos came into use and I got one of the first sensational, groundbreaking ones on The Hard Stuff, another Kensington title. This cover burst onto the scene like a meteor. It was discussed all over the media; from CNN to Geraldo Rivera. "These aren't your grandmother's romance novels," was heard in each and every news story.

And then suddenly, I was self-publishing a book that had never been published anywhere before. A book of my heart. Figuring prominently was a pitbull named Razor who was a bit battered, but happy and loving. Naturally, he was based on my own dog who'd already crossed the rainbow bridge. I was able to scan a 35mm picture of him and have him used as a cover model. I've never loved working on a cover project more.

Amazon Exclusive

From the  Reader Letter:

If you’re an animal lover, you’ll recognize how much I loved my pit bull, Beau, whose image I got to use on my cover. He was young, fit, and always happy to play when that photo was taken. Time took away his glossy black patches and filled them in with gray, but his eyes never lost their adoring gaze. Too many of the bully breeds suffer at the hands of irresponsible people, but our Beau lived a joyful life...and never once growled or threatened another living being: human or canine. In fact he tolerated a rather dramatic cat who found ways to torture him, but that’s another story for another day.

Today only I have another book that's free on Amazon. This is a collection of three stories set at Christmas and feature a matchmaking mutt named Bella. You guessed it, she was based on another family dog, a poodle cross who passed away just before the last book was released. Bella was a dancer and a cuddler who gets mentioned in reviews. Sweet girl is playing with my Beau...

FREE TODAY

Don't forget to enter our Monthly Giveaway This time, it's winner's choice with a lovely bunch of prizes from which to choose. Have a look and happy reading!



p.s. If you decide to read either Love in a Pawn Shop or Love at Christmas, I'd love to hear your thoughts in a quick review. BookBub is the perfect place because it's so easy. You can follow me here: Bonnie on BookBub

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Who writes dogs into their books and why. @BonnieEdwards #RomanceGems

August's theme is dogs and pets. It is an old knowledge now that dogs on covers sell books. This knowledge is from before the internet and before self-publishing became a viable choice for authors. This conclusion came from focus groups. They gravitated toward cover art with dogs. (And horses and children, too)

Dogs were not really characters then, but sometimes they'd show up as a means to get the protagonists together on the page.

Today, in my books at least, the dogs I feature have real purpose in the stories. The books wouldn't be the same if they weren't there.

They are matchmakers. They are heroes. They are sources of conflict and resolution. They are sounding boards. They are tools used in a romantic suspense. They have opinions they seemingly express with gas emissions, smiles, nudges, and effective glares.

Also, the dogs in my books mean something to me, personally. I bring some back to life to live again between the pages. (I sniffle when I write them.) Some are still alive and part of my life today. One passed away while I wrote a trilogy of books with her having a starring role.

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Which brings me to Love at Christmas, A Collection. These three stories span the Canadian/US border and Bella features in each one. She was a sweet poodle-cross who chose the hero for her owner. Bella brings more people together in the following two books.

Love at Christmas is always a bargain at half the cost of separate purchases of the trilogy.

And it's August already...Christmas is around the corner. (say 4 little boys I know)

In Love in a Pawnshop, I introduce an opinionated pit bull, named Razor. But one book wasn't enough for my Beau (more about him on the 15th) and he's been a big part of my Return to Welcome series starting with Finding Mercy.

He appears briefly again Loving Logan but in Craving Jake he rises to hero status when he saves lives and warns of danger. Craving Jake will be released in early September. When I return from a much-needed holiday, I'll be sharing links for a pre-order to my newsletter subscribers. You can sign on here:  Bonnie's Newsy Bits

I'm excited this month to kick off our Monthly Giveaway here:  a Rafflecopter giveaway For contest rules and a list of prizes check out our Monthly Giveaway Page.