Weddings Are So Last Month by Laura Hunsaker

 I know June is typically known for weddings, but with my own wedding anniversary coming up in a couple of weeks, I wanted to share anyway!

My husband and I were married on the hottest day of the year...in Las Vegas. You realize that means it was like 122 that day, right? We had the craziest day! Not just the wedding, but weird little things that went wrong...

So we were young. He was underage. Someone replaced his champagne flute with a sippy cup. The flowers were delivered to the wrong place. The groomsmen...AND THE GROOM all left before the wedding. Someone had broken down and they went to the rescue. But they all had two-seater cars and were picking up a van-ful of guests. One groomsman got stuck out of town, so we had an emergency replacement. I mean...it was wild how many random things went wrong. But by the end, we had a lovely wedding, everyone was on time, the bride certainly didn't have a panic attack watching the groom leave the church before the wedding (oh wait, I really did). And they lived happily ever after.

With my characters getting married in one of my books, I decided to write a short bonus scene for my readers and while I was starting it, the first thing that popped onto my page was that the flowers had been delivered to the wrong place. Well, it looks like I will be writing my first non-fiction book ever ;) 

But seriously, all the things that happened to me, will probably make it into this short story, because wow, it really does read as if it were a Rom Com.

This will be a bonus for Kate and Kyle's wedding, and will fit after Dark Past, and Dreams of the Past, but before Dangerous Past which I'm finishing up right now.

Enjoy a small excerpt from the beginning of the story:

The weather was gorgeous. A light fog wrapped around the gazebo, sneaking its fingers in between the leaves and flowers that were woven into the slats that decorated it. One last cool foggy touch before the morning sun burned it off.

The warm, buttery yellow sunlight hitting the tall trees of the Sierra Nevadas was the most beautiful backdrop she could think of for the day she married her love. She could marry him inside an old shed, and she wouldn’t care. She just wanted to start her new life.

And after the year she had had? She deserved something nice. They all did. She wanted the day to go smoothly, not so much for herself, but for her fiance Kyle. He had risked his life for her, he knew all her secrets and skeletons in her closet, and miracle of miracles, he loved her. She wanted today to be perfect.

She glanced up at the picturesque view once more. By the looks of it, today would be perfect.

Kate took one more look before turning back inside. She trusted that her family and friends had a handle on things. She could breathe. With a deep breath, she released the stress of the day and went to join her bridesmaids. Today was going to be fine.

***

Nothing was fine.

The flowers had been delivered to the wrong location. How on earth had the flowers been delivered to the wrong place? The town had 2,000 people on a good day, so how had they been delivered to the wrong location?

And don't forget to check out Dark Past and Dreams of the Past which are both on sale now!

Dark Past: Amazon  |   Barnes & Noble  |  Kobo  |  Google Play Books  |  Smashwords

Dreams of the Past: Amazon | Kobo | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Smashwords 

April Showers Bring Lovely Flowers by Laura Hunsaker

You know how they say beauty is in the eye of the beholder? I feel like that same saying can be applied to romance. I was chatting with a friend recently and we talked about how my husband had sent me roses at work. (He has never done this and has only sent me flowers a handful of times in our almost 20 years together). She was cooing over how romantic it was, and she said how lucky I am to have such a romantic husband. That made me think that I would never really consider my husband romantic.

He doesn't give me sweet talk, or sing songs to me (he plays guitar), or put on a show when we're with friends. He doesn't like a lot of attention and other than holding my hand in public, that's about as romantic as he gets...

But...I started to think that I don't really want a guy who writes me songs (I had that once and I felt so awkward when he sang to me). I don't want poetry, or all the things that are typically considered "romantic" because I have my guy who is romantic in other ways. Ways that I didn't realize were romantic when we were younger. 

I had back pain a lot after having our youngest, and writing in our bed was making it worse. So he bought me a desk that folds down and can fit in our room. He doesn't love the amount of books I have, but he built some amazing bookshelves for me. I look back at all of the things he's built or done for me, and while building an Ikea desk may not shout "romance!" to most, it absolutely does to me. It meant he listened when I'd complain about my back, and he cared enough to help me out. 

So circling back to those roses...when I thanked him for the roses, he literally said, "Oh were they roses?" I said, "Uh yes?" He replied, "I just saw that they were your favorite color." I mean, such a clueless comment...but he knows my favorite color. And the roses are beautiful. 

If you want a happy, sweet, and sexy story that Alexandra Ivy calls, "A story with charm, heartache and the promise of love that will bring a smile to your face..." then check out my latest DREAMS OF THE PAST. 

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Smashwords | Goodreads

She needs rest, he needs relaxation… 

Jenny Travers wants a fresh start. Leaving the nightmares of her past behind her, she heads to Last Chance Beach. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds peaceful and relaxing, which is exactly what she needs. 

 What she doesn’t need is a man. 

Lieutenant Commander Scott Gordon was injured by an IED on his last mission, and while his leg has healed, it’ll never be strong enough to stay on his SEAL team. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds like the perfect place to figure out how he’s going to handle his new normal. 

He never expected to find a woman in his bed. 

A mix-up at the rental agency means Jenny and Scott are both renting the small cottage. Sharing a space with a stranger should be hard, yet they both feel more at peace than they have in months. 

Will their summer romance last, or is the magic of Sea Glass Cottage all they’ll have…

What's Luck Got To Do With It by Laura Hunsaker

Lucky In Love 

If you saw my comment on the Coffee Chat, you'll see that someone was unlucky enough to have me as his Valentine's Day date (click here to read it). But while that was unlucky for him, I guess it was lucky for me. I met my husband shortly after that disastrous date.

My husband and I will have been married for 19 years this summer. For a man who doesn't believe in love at first sight, he says he took one look at me and knew I was the one. Our almost 20 years together seem to have a pretty solid basis for the fact the he at the very least believes in love at first sight with me ;)

Our story is a fun one. We met on the Las Vegas Strip one night and the rest is history. I was in the back of a Jeep with my friend and a boy she liked. Some cute boys in a red car kept hollering at us (we ignored them). 

At a red light, one of them yelled, "Hey! Is that your boyfriend up there?" I rolled my eyes at him and said, "If he were my boyfriend, he'd be sitting next to me right here." I patted my seat. That cute boy hopped out of the car and climbed in next to me!

I was like, "Uhh...do this a lot?" as I pressed myself against the side of the seat away from the weirdo who had just jumped in. "No, first time. So what are you doing tonight?" I was sassy, and told him, "Dropping you off at the next corner." "He laughed and said, "Okay, but you should let me buy you dinner sometime." 

I wound up staying out until 4am with him (not alone, in our group!), and luckily he had absolutely no other creeper tendencies. I kept thinking I'd just gotten out of a relationship (See bad Valentine's Day Coffee Chat again) and I didn't really want a boyfriend...but he was pretty awesome and here we are almost 20 years later. We have our own Happily Ever After ending right now, and I thank my lucky stars he was bold enough to hop into the back of that Jeep with me. 

If you'd like to read a happy story where the characters are lucky in love, grab my short story DREAMS OF THE PAST for $.99.

 

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Smashwords | Goodreads

She needs rest, he needs relaxation… 

Jenny Travers wants a fresh start. Leaving the nightmares of her past behind her, she heads to Last Chance Beach. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds peaceful and relaxing, which is exactly what she needs. 

What she doesn’t need is a man. 

Lieutenant Commander Scott Gordon was injured by an IED on his last mission, and while his leg has healed, it’ll never be strong enough to stay on his SEAL team. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds like the perfect place to figure out how he’s going to handle his new normal. 

He never expected to find a woman in his bed. 

A mix-up at the rental agency means Jenny and Scott are both renting the small cottage. Sharing a space with a stranger should be hard, yet they both feel more at peace than they have in months. 

Will their summer romance last, or is the magic of Sea Glass Cottage all they’ll have…

How to Prepare for Valentine's Day Articles by Laura Hunsaker

With Valentine's Day coming up, I've decided to gird my loins and prepare for all of the obnoxious articles that poke fun at Romance. How, you ask? Well I'm aiming for comfort. I plan on grabbing my softest throw blanket and coziest socks and burying my nose in a book. 

I refuse to read one word about Fabio or Fifty Shades of Grey. Not because I hate them, but because I swear every single article written about Romance novels always includes Fabio (who hasn't been relevant in decades!) or Fifty Shades (Try a new book!) Or better yet try not bagging on Romance! Ugh, I'm worked up again. Okay back to being cozy. As we all know from my post on Hygge I am all about being cozy. 

My cozy no-negativity starter pack:

(Links are to amazon in case you want to create your own)

Soft cozy blanket

Cute Bullet Journal

Some Cool Gel Pens

Funny Coffee Mug

Fuzzy Socks

Enjoy your Valentine's Day and grab a book to read:) Books always make everything better. Here's my latest- DREAMS OF THE PAST a short story with a guaranteed happy ending and not a derogatory word about romance anywhere.

Happy Reading!

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Smashwords | Goodreads

She needs rest, he needs relaxation… 

 Jenny Travers wants a fresh start. Leaving the nightmares of her past behind her, she heads to Last Chance Beach. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds peaceful and relaxing, which is exactly what she needs. 

 What she doesn’t need is a man. 

 Lieutenant Commander Scott Gordon was injured by an IED on his last mission, and while his leg has healed, it’ll never be strong enough to stay on his SEAL team. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds like the perfect place to figure out how he’s going to handle his new normal. 

 He never expected to find a woman in his bed. 

 A mix-up at the rental agency means Jenny and Scott are both renting the small cottage. Sharing a space with a stranger should be hard, yet they both feel more at peace than they have in months. 

Will their summer romance last, or is the magic of Sea Glass Cottage all they’ll have… 

*Some links may be affiliate links

Treat Yourself by Laura Hunsaker

Today is the day! Dreams of the Past is out in the wild! If you'll recall, I have some brand new covers for my Fatal Instincts series (you can check them out here). Today you can see what all the fuss is about! Our theme for the month is Winter Wonderland, however I am dreaming of the warm summer days. And this book takes place on Last Chance Beach...enjoy your chilly day by the fireplace dreaming of the beach.

Since it's a Tuesday, and it's book release day, I will be buying books. But also it's my Release Day, so I intend to treat myself a wee bit extra. Maybe I'll buy my coffee today instead of making it, or maybe I'll pick up that lipstick I've been waiting on since we wear masks now. As you can see, I treat myself with books, coffee, and makeup, some of my favorite things.

I want to ask what you'd treat yourself to?

Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Kobo  |  Google Play  |   Smashwords  |  Goodreads  |  Newsletter

Read the story that Alexandra Ivy calls, "A story with charm, heartache, and the promise of love..."

Readers are saying, "a jam-packed story...I loved it." -Goodreads Reviewer

"It's short but really cute..." -Netgalley reviewer

She needs rest, he needs relaxation… 

Jenny Travers wants a fresh start. Leaving the nightmares of her past behind her, she heads to Last Chance Beach. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds peaceful and relaxing, which is exactly what she needs.

What she doesn’t need is a man. 

Lieutenant Commander Scott Gordon was injured by an IED on his last mission, and while his leg has healed, it’ll never be strong enough to stay on his SEAL team. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds like the perfect place to figure out how he’s going to handle his new normal. 

He never expected to find a woman in his bed. 

A mix-up at the rental agency means Jenny and Scott are both renting the small cottage. Sharing a space with a stranger should be hard, yet they both feel more at peace than they have in months. 

Will their summer romance last, or is the magic of Sea Glass Cottage all they’ll have… 

Cover Reveal! by Laura Hunsaker

 I have some exciting news! With the end of summer so came the end of the Last Chance Beach: Summer's End box set. As sad as that is, I'm very excited to share that my story Dreams of the Past has new content and a fresh new cover! But how could I give one book a new cover and not the other? My Fatal Instincts series has a fresh new look courtesy of Author's Write Hand. 

Original covers:

New covers:

What do you think? I'm so excited for the new and updated look! Dreams of the Past is up for pre-order now and releases January 12, 2021. Look for the next in the Fatal Instincts series, Dangerous Past, coming this summer... Come read the story that Alexandra Ivy is calling "A story filled with charm, heartache, and the promise of love..."

DREAMS OF THE PAST

She needs rest, he needs relaxation… 

Jenny Travers wants a fresh start. Leaving the nightmares of her past behind her, she heads to Last Chance Beach. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds peaceful and relaxing, which is exactly what she needs. 

What she doesn’t need is a man.

Lieutenant Commander Scott Gordon was injured by an IED on his last mission, and while his leg has healed, it’ll never be strong enough to stay on his SEAL team. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds like the perfect place to figure out how he’s going to handle his new normal.  

He never expected to find a woman in his bed. 

A mix-up at the rental agency means Jenny and Scott are both renting the small cottage. Sharing a space with a stranger should be hard, yet they both feel more at peace than they have in months. 

Will their summer romance last, or is the magic of Sea Glass Cottage all they’ll have…

A FREE Christmas Gift for YOU! @karilemor #RomanceGems

It’s the most wonderful time of the year…or is it?

Several years ago, I wrote a story that was originally published in the WORST HOLIDAY EVER anthology. A bunch of us authors put together stories of terrible holidays, distressing situations, and ridiculous relatives. The result was amusing, to say the least.  

Because this year has been extremely stressful, today I'm sharing this story FREE. It's not on every retailer, but you should be able to download it to most devices.

Here's where you can get this cute little story.

Prolific Works  (your choice of mobi, pdf, or epub)

 Kobo

Google

Barnes & Noble

Books2Read

You don't need to sign up for anything to get this FREE story. I'm happy to give it to you just for coming here today to join the Romance Gems. 

Just FYI, the characters in this, Dave and Tina, are secondary characters in my romantic suspense novel, Wild Card Undercover. You'll hear more about that soon!

I wish everyone the most Merry Christmas ever and nothing but great and fabulous things in the New Year! 

Love 

Kari

Hygge by Laura Hunsaker

I love being cozy. I mean who doesn't, right? Well the other day I saw a post on Instagram by my local library talking about swinging by and picking up a Hygge Pack. A what pack? That's what I said too! Some of you may be ahead of the game and know all about "Hygge Life" (my sister knew! I guess I'm not cool lol). 

Hyggye is "Hygge is a Danish and Norwegian word for a mood of coziness and comfortable conviviality with feelings of wellness and contentment." Well shoot, a mood that is all about being cozy? I am in.

I'd already bought a soft throw blanket, and some very soft slipper-socks now that I'm working from home, and I think I'm ready to level-up to Hygge. I started with fluffy socks, my soft throw blanket, my comfiest yoga pants, a cardigan since my upper half needs to be presentable on Google Meets, my writing gloves, and grabbed a scarf. Not just any scarf...but the softest merino wool scarf ever! It's lovely and warm and I was so cozy it was ridiculous! I grabbed my coffee and dogs and went to work.

I don't know if I'm doing it right, but I don't even care. Coziness for all!

I think I'm going to really enjoy living the Hygge Life...

So what do you think? Hygge for Life? Do you have a cozy fave? A blanket? A candle? Fuzzy socks? What's your cozy must have?

In January, my story from the Last Chance Beach box set will go live. I've added a scene and freshened up the covers in the series...stay tuned for the new cover!

Dreams of the Past

Pre-Order now!

The story Alexandra Ivy called,"A story filled with charm, heartache and the promise of love that will bring a smile your face. Jenny and Scott are the perfect couple."

She needs rest, he needs relaxation… 

 Jenny Travers wants a fresh start. Leaving the nightmares of her past behind her, she heads to Last Chance Beach. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds peaceful and relaxing, which is exactly what she needs. 

What she doesn’t need is a man. 

 Lieutenant Commander Scott Gordon was injured by an IED on his last mission, and while his leg has healed, it’ll never be strong enough to stay on his SEAL team. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds like the perfect place to figure out how he’s going to handle his new normal. 

 He never expected to find a woman in his bed. 

 A mix-up at the rental agency means Jenny and Scott are both renting the small cottage. Sharing a space with a stranger should be hard, yet they both feel more at peace than they have in months. 

 Will their summer romance last, or is the magic of Sea Glass Cottage all they’ll have…

Life Cycle of a Work In Progress by Laura Hunsaker

I did something amazing this past weekend. I wrote the words THE END on my latest book! This has to be one of a writer's favorite things.

The life cycle of a rough draft is nuts, I mean, you start out thinking that you have the best idea! You can't wait to write all the ideas down. You want them out of your head as fast as your fingers can type them. You know you can fix it when you edit, I mean Nora Roberts said, "You can't edit a blank page." So you write.

In your mind you see Henry Cavill as the Witcher! But on the page is...Ross in leather pants. 

Even worse, then you get stuck. And you procrastinate, and then you go back to it, then you poke around online a bit, then you go back to it, and throughout it all, your idea that you loved so much is still bright and shiny! You just need to climb out of this plothole over here, or jump over that speedbump in your story.

Then you're back to writing and you have a big moment coming up! It's amazing, it's brilliant, it...stinks. It really stinks. But-but the shiny! The best idea! All the words! Nope, they all stink, every last one of 'em. But you've got a deadline and you've gotten this far, so lets finish up the words.

Then something miraculous happens. You finish, you type the words THE END, and things make sense, they tie together, they work! Your book really is the best! The shine is back on it, and you think to yourself, "Huh, that doesn't stink after all." And that elation is the best. Then you celebrate! For me, it's a nap and some wine.

This got me thinking, what do other people do once they've reached a goal, or a milestone? So I ask you, what do you do when you've hit a milestone?

Join my Newsletter for a chance to get all my amazing milestones straight to your inbox! ;) Seriously, though, I only email you when I have something exciting to announce like a new cover or a new release. 

Sign up here

Meanwhile my latest release is called Dreams of the Past and you can get it for $.99 in the Last Chance Beach box set (also free in Kindle Unlimited)

There are 14 amazing stories in this box set all taking place on the tourist island of Last Chance Beach. Grab it now and escape the world for a bit! With second chance romance, love at first sight, mature romance, and enemies to lovers, there's a story for everyone!

Dreams of the Past

She needs rest, he needs relaxation…

Jenny Travers wants a fresh start. Leaving the nightmares of her past behind her, she heads to Last Chance Beach. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds peaceful and relaxing, which is exactly what she needs.

What she doesn’t need is a man.

Lieutenant Commander Scott Gordon was injured by an IED on his last mission, and while his leg has healed, it’ll never be strong enough to stay on his SEAL team. Renting the Sea Glass Cottage sounds like the perfect place to figure out how he’s going to handle his new normal. 

He never expected to find a woman in his bed.

A mix-up at the rental agency means Jenny and Scott are both renting the small cottage. Sharing a space with a stranger should be hard, yet they both feel more at peace than they have in months. 

Will their summer romance last, or is the magic of Sea Glass Cottage all they’ll have…

August Brings Good Times & Good Books by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

LAST CHANCE BEACH: Summer's End

August brings the culmination of a lot of hard work by half of our Romance Gems Authors. Back in June, I had a little free time and an idea that I could put together a box set of romance short stories, thus fulfilling one of my stated goals when I started Romance Gems in February 2019.

Free Time Is Dangerous

Wow! A little free time can be dangerous!

I thought it wouldn't be that difficult to do since I've been a part of 15 or 20 box sets in the last few years.

I knew about formatting, Kindle Digital Publishing, marketing—all of the required elements to successfully write and publish.

BUT, I had no clue how much work it would be. *LOL*

Endless emails. Organizing all of the elements.

Encouraging authors to learn what Nancy Fraser, Maddie James, and I wanted to teach. The list of things to learn was seemingly endless to many, and probably not of interest to Readers.

Somehow, we got everything done, and Last Chance Beach: Summer's End will publish on August 4 at midnight, for a measly 99 cents! That's right, only 99 pennies (plus tax if you're in a state that taxes online sales).

But Wait There's More

With Maddie James and Hannah Rowan in the role of Publisher, we created Cocktails on Last Chance Beach, a FREE companion book to the 14 Romance Short Stories Collection.

That's right, totally free! You can get your copy at Amazon, iBooks, or Kobo.

Click Last Chance Beach on the Menu bar to read all about it. Then rush out and buy your copy of Last Chance Beach: Summer's End and get your completely free ebook of  Cocktails on Last Chance Beach too.

Almost Forgot

I was so busy putting this project together and managing it that I nearly forgot I had to write a romantic short story too.

I had just finished writing The Key to Kristina, a mystery romance, for the Fortune's Favor: The Treasure box set so I was in the mystery mode.

I started writing a funny romance, but a little bit of a suspense element sneaked crept in albeit in a small way.

My story for Last Chance Beach: Summer's End is Hot August Night.

When they met it was hate at first sight for celebrity chef Zander Rojas and junk food loving police detective Chelsea Elliot.

They’re not just dismayed when they discover they each have a reservation for Blue Moon House.

They’re determined to make life miserable for the other and be the last inhabitant standing when the feud is over.

Imagine how horrified they are when they realize they have the hots for each other.

Romance Gems August Update

The Author Spotlight shines on Jan Scarbrough for August. Be sure and visit the page to learn more about Jan and her books.

This month, we're switching things up a bit because change is a good thing.

We'll be doing Comment and Win for the first time since last year.

Nancy Fraser will tell you more about it when she blogs, but the concept is simple.

The Daisy graphic to the left explains the rules so I hope you'll drop by every day and post a comment.

You just may be the August Winner of Sizzling Days & Sultry Nights.

Have a wonderful August. Make the most of the last month of summer. Stay safe. Be Social—at a safe distance.

Escape into the pages of books, the least expensive form of entertainment, and a peaceful Retreat from the world and its problems.

Visit Joan Online

Amazon Author Page * BookBub Author Page * Facebook Fan Page * Twitter * YouTube * Website 

Be the first to know about Giveaways, Bargains, and New Books, sign up for Joan's Free Subscription Newsletter.

You'll receive a free ebook upon confirming your subscription.

Happy Reading!

Vote For Dark Past

Dark Past has been nominated for a RONE Award! I am so so excited about this! But Dark Past won't win without your help!

Please vote for Dark Past in the novella category here

You have to make an account, but it takes a couple of seconds and you can opt out of emails. 

Voting is from May 11 through May 17, 2020. 

In D'Tale gave Dark Past a great review: Here is a screenshot, and a link for those with screenreaders

Some secrets won't stay quiet...

                                     

            Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Google Play Books | Smashwords  |  Goodreads

I also have a teeny bit of news: Amethyst Heat is free! This is a short story I wrote once upon a time, and it's got a spiffy new cover -I mean doesn't this just scream Highlander Take Me Away?

            Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Google Play | Smashwords | Goodreads

While out riding, Meg McMurray finds herself on unfamiliar lands. Gone are the long expanses of Oklahoma prairie, and in front of her are the wild Scottish Highlands. How did she come to be there, and did Aunt Gilly's amethyst ring have anything to do with it? A sweet romance set in the Highlands of Scotland.

Don't forget to enter the May giveaway! 

Maddie James Joins #RomanceGems by @JoanReeves

Somebody open the champagne! We've got a new Author on Romance Gems.

GIVEAWAY ALERT!
Details at the end of this post.

A new author joining our ranks is worth celebrating, but it's even better when that author is a longtime friend.

Please welcome Maddie James. Many of us already know Maddie so we know she'll be a valuable addition to our blog. You're going to love her books!

Maddie James: In Her Own Words

Maddie James writes to silence the people in her head—if only they wouldn’t all talk at once!

The author of 50+ romantic novels, novellas, and short stories, Maddie James pens romance and suspense fiction in contemporary and paranormal worlds. Her romance writing career launched in 1997 as a traditionally published author, and she has published with several traditional and small press publishers since then.

Currently an independent author, she publishes under her own imprint, Sand Dune Books. Besides romance fiction, Maddie writes non-fiction under another name with dozens of academic articles, briefs, chapters, and books to her credit.

Winner of the Calico Trails Cameo Award (Roses & Rawhide) and the Romance Book Scene’s Best Novella Award (Red: A Cajun Seduction Tale), Maddie has been listed as an Amazon Top 100 Contemporary Romance Author and an iBooks Rising Star of Western Romance.

Affaire de Coeur said, “James shows a special talent for traditional romance,” and RT Book Reviews claims, “James deftly combines romance and suspense, so hop on for an exhilarating ride.”

Visit Maddie Online

Website | Blog | Bookstore | Newsletter | Facebook | Twitter | Amazon | Bookbub | Books2Read

Harbor Falls Romance by Maddie James

For a limited time, you can get a Starter Set (Books 1 and 2) of the Harbor Falls series for only 99 cents at Amazon!

Currently, there are 14-books in this series so... 

Welcome to Harbor Falls! This two-book bundle is your series starter into the Harbor Falls Romance Series!

Enjoy the first two books in the series, sold at a discount, so you can meet and come to know many of the people, and the lifestyle, of Harbor Falls, North Carolina.

In this set, you'll find these two books:

• All of My Heart (Book 1) 
• Take My Heart (Book 2)

I hope you enjoy these stories! Love, Maddie

Blue Ridge Mountains by ChristianDevotions of Pixabay

About Harbor Falls Romance Series

Nestled in the rolling hills of the North Carolina Blue Ridge Mountains sits the small town of Harbor Falls.

The town that boasts a booming tourist industry laced with southern charm and grace, topped off with a host of quirky characters and one very busy resident by the name of Suzie Hart.

On the edge of town, tucked into the mountain foothills and on the shores of Falls Lake, sits a quaint Victorian bed and breakfast owned by small-town chef, Suzie Hart.

She calls her B&B Sweet Hart Inn, because well, Suzie is a chef of fantastic proportions, sweets are her forte, and of course her last name is Hart—which probably has nothing to do with the fact that she occasionally likes to dabble in matchmaking....

All of My Heart, Book 1

"True love conquers all—isn't that why we read these books?" EmmaRae, Romancing the Book (Review for All of My Heart)

Life is perfect.

When Suzie Hart inherits the lakeside Victorian cottage that eventually becomes Sweet Hart Inn, she imagines her life all planned out ahead of her. She will run the inn, write her recipes, conduct her cooking classes, and pick up an occasional catering job with her cousin Sydney Hart, who owns the local bakery.

Her life in Harbor Falls is predictable—a welcome change from the chaos of recent months—and that's the way she likes it. Predictability makes her happy.

And then chaos rides his bad ass Harley up to her bed and breakfast doorstep—and her perfect, predictable, and well-planned world starts crumbling like yesterday's blueberry muffins.

Brad Matthews has other ideas.

In fact, he has a plan. When Suzie worked as his sous chef in Asheville several months earlier, he had no intention of falling in love with the sassy chef—no room in his life for romance.

But when Suzie disappeared and took Brad's heart with her, his good intentions shattered. And even though Brad's plan involves making a lot of people in Harbor Falls angry (Suzie included), it is part of a bigger plan to get his own life and career on track, and to win Suzie Hart back into his arms—permanently.

But can Suzie let go of their muddled past, and her well-planned future, in order to finally find happiness with hunky Chef Brad? And can Brad alter his own plan, in order to get Suzie back?

"All of My Heart will have you up, down, hot and cold, and maybe just a little bit desperate too!" ~ Corrie, Lamplight Review & Promotion on Goodreads

Take My Heart, Book 2

The last thing Shelley Hart wants is to go home for the holidays. She left Harbor Falls years earlier and hasn't returned.

Her leaving humiliated her entire family and caused friction with her older sister, Suzie. Who could blame Suzie for being upset? After all, Shelley ran off and married Suzie's fiancé, Cliff.

But everything has changed now—and going home is her only option.

Harbor Falls Police Officer Matt Branson values being alone, even during the holidays. Dubbed the town hermit, he prefers the solitude of his mountain cabin to socializing with friends—friends who say he still pines after the woman who got away.

But the snowy day he pulls over an older model sedan speeding into Harbor Falls, things change. His gut slams against his backbone as a tearful woman rolls down the car window. His heart melts when she looks up into his eyes.

Shelley Hart is back in town—the woman who sent him into his cave in the first place.

Enter My Giveaway

(1) Prize: 1 box set of the Harbor Falls Starter Set

(2) Winner selected by Random Draw Name Picker App.

(3) How to enter. Leave a welcome comment for Maddie James along with your email address written out, not as a hot link, so you can be contacted if you are the winner.

(4) Comments close April 24, 8pm, Friday evening

(5) Winner notified April 27, Monday, at 8pm.

Thanks for visiting with me today! Remember to enter our April Read and Renew Giveaway. There are some very nice Amazon Gift Cards up for grabs!

Enjoy the rest of our "April Showers" month.

Be safe. Be happy. Be healthy!

Reinventing a Published Work by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

For the last couple of years, I've been trying to find the time to reinvent some published ebooks that had only a tenuous connection to each other. These are the short stories in A Moment in Time series.

The first of these stories was LuvU4Ever, written on a late December day when I realized I hadn't published anything that entire year.

You see, 2014 was a year of renovating the home we'd bought northwest of Houston (contractor said 3 months *ROTFL) then the unpacking.

By May, I was in the doctor's office. The rest of the year is a fog created by prescription muscle relaxers to help me deal with the pain of strained muscles in the rhomboid group of my right shoulder.

Back to My Story Reno

Writing the short story, set in December, gave me a boost. I decided if I couldn't get an actual book written, at least I could do a short story.

The story was also my way of dealing with a friend's depressing situation, kind of writing a reversal on what had happened in real life. That's what I love about writing fiction. I can wave my magic wand and make everything work out well in the end.

Time rocked along, and I wrote Last Chance New Year, my second short story.

Huh. Set at another holiday. Also, to my surprise, I found myself writing "in" the couple in the first short story. They played matchmaker for the second couple.

Plus, the new couple both worked at the company owned by the first story's hero. I hadn't planned that. It just happened.

A few months later, I wrote a third story, Blame It On Chocolate.

Geez! Another holiday and with some of the people from the other stories referenced.

Obviously, my Muse was trying to make a series out of these stories! The problem with that was her timing sucked!

A Valentine's story published in July? My Muse needs to get a calendar and/or get inspired before a holiday, not months after!

Planning and Timing

Last year, on my writing goal list, I put down "rewrite the 3 existing stories, reinforcing the links between them, and outline another 10 stories, each set during a monthly holiday celebration.

My plan was to end up with a 13 story series that began with a Christmas and ended with a Christmas.

I got to work on it this year. First I outlined all the other stories and created relationship links with everyone from the first book to the last! That was a job!

Then I had my cover artist take my original covers and incorporate the main art into a new cover. I branded better by consistently using the graphic style on each cover and also incorporated font consistency.

I've managed to get the first story, LuvU4Ever edited. The new version is on Amazon. (These short stories are wide, but I'm going to remove them from other channels until I have the other 2 edited.)

I had planned to publish a short story every month, but then I undertook the Romance Gems journey! As if that wasn't challenging enough, I accepted too many contract deadlines, and had a lot of life crap happen. *LOL* That's the way I rock and roll, it seems.

LuvU4Ever is free on Amazon and should be free on all Amazon Kindle shops, but I won't guarantee it.

Seems a reader in another country told me she had to pay whatever the equivalent of 99centts was. So if you go to grab a free copy, make sure it shows as free.

This next weekend, I'll have the other 2 short stories edited and uploaded. If you want to read them, wait until Sunday please to check them out.

So that's my Pop-Up Giveaway for you this month.

By the way, the snow scene on the cover of LuvU4Ever was taken near downtown Houston.

We've had a lot of freaky winter weather since 2013 including snow from 2013 through 2017.

Now let me tell you about our Fabulous July Giveaway.

Beaches and Book Boyfriends

Our Rafflecopter opens at midnight July 5 so as soon as you finish your July 4 fireworks, you can go online and enter. The Giveaway runs through July 25.

You can watch a video about our giveaway in Movie Theater or on YouTube. (I appreciate LIKEs and shares on your social media pages.)

The Monthly Giveaway page lists all the prizes. Enter often and tell your friends about Romance Gems.

Romance Gems July Rafflecopter Giveaway