A Very Lucky Daughter

This month we, the #Romancegems have been talking about luck. But it’s also my dad’s birthday. This year he’ll be 84 years young. Our family is blessed with longevity and I intend to be “lucky” enough to live a long and healthy life. 

I am very lucky to be my father’s daughter. When I was young my dad was a farmer and he only had every other Sunday off. Otherwise he was in the barn by 5 AM and worked until 6 PM most every day. Winters weren’t as busy so he seemed to be home earlier on the weekends. 

Invariably, I would find my way to the barn to ‘help’ Dad with his chores or milking time. At the age of 5 or 6 I’d follow him around, spread hay out for the cows and make sure they had water. Of course, there were soft velvet noses to pet and spiderwebs to avoid but I loved being at the barn with Dad. It was there I believe my work ethic was ingrained in me. 

Being a working man isn’t for the faint of heart and he worked hard up until he retired. Even then, he would build furniture to give to family members or to sell. In the last few years he’s slowed way down. But just this past weekend when I was visiting with him we were talking about my girls. He mentioned how they were both stubborn and hard working. I had to chuckle.  I pointed to him and said, “Tree. Then I pointed to myself and said limb and the girls are apples. We all originate from the same place. He just smiled and the twinkle appeared in his deep-brown eyes. “Baby girl, you might be onto something.” 

It’s in those precious moments that I know how truly lucky I am. 

Until next month 

Lucinda

Until next month ... stay lucky!!! Speaking of luck, don't forget to enter this month's Rafflecopter drawing for two Amazon gift cards. You can find all the details on our Monthly Giveaway page. Or, you can go straight to the Entry Form. Either way, it only takes a minute or two of your time for a chance to win!

Why We Love LOVE! @karilemor #RomanceGems

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Romance novels often get a bad rap. Sappy. Mommy porn. Cliché, Second rate fiction. Bargain bin of literature. Formulaic. It drives me crazy when I hear it called any of these things.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been at a book expo or event and when I talk to people walking by, the response is a nose in the air and “Oh, I don’t read that.”

I always want to say, “Why not? We could all use a bit more love in our lives.” But I usually don’t because the person has already scurried quickly past.

So why do I read (and write) romance if so many people look down upon it? I thought this meme explained it so well.

Romance has so many wonderful things in it. Two people who are fighting obstacles that seem too high or too hard to get through or around. But they give it everything they've got and manage to find a way to be together.  Why wouldn't we all want to read a story like this?








I also found some amazing quotes on love that are meaningful to me:

Love recognizes no barriers - Maya Angelou

Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies - Aristotle

We are most alive when we’re in love - John Updike

Love is friendship that has caught fire - Ann Landers

A simple “I love you” means more than money - Frank Sinatra

Everything I do, I do it for you - Bryan Adams

If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you - Winnie the Pooh

You know you’re in love when you can’t sleep because the reality is finally better than your dreams - Dr. Seuss

When you love someone, you love them as they are, and not as you’d like them to be - Leo Tolstoy

I love you not because of who you are, but because of who I am when I am with you - Roy Croft

You know it’s love when all you want is that person to be happy, even if you’re not part of that happiness - Julia Roberts

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Why do you love reading romance?  Comment below for a chance to win this month’s prizes.

And make sure to check out the 1st book in my Storms of New England series, 

ELUSIVE DREAMS. 
It’s on sale for only 99 cents - 

but the sale ends tonight so get it fast!

Our March Rafflecopter  (Click Here) has another month of Amazon Gift Card prizes. Be sure to enter often to improve your chances of winning. Please tell your friends about Romance Gems—our Authors, our books, our blog posts, and our monthly giveaway.

Lucky In Love? @ConstanceBretes #RomanceGems

I was a late bloomer when it came to finding love and my happy ever after. I was 40 years old when I got married, then shortly after that I went into menopause so no children for me.

I met my husband through a Christian single magazine. This was before we had internet. Each month I get the magazine and I would read the ads and write. I knew I was a plain Jane, but. surely, there was someone out therefor me. I wrote to this guy who was divorce and loved antique shopping. I was not sure about the antique shopping, but he sounded really nice. The only problem was that he was from Jackson. Where the notorious Jackson State Prison was. When I agreed to meet him, I told a co-worker, if I don't show up tomorrow, call the cops.

So, we met, had a nice dinner, then went to Builder's Square. as we walked around Builder's Square, I remember thinking to myself, is he odd?.Some of the things he picked out seemed weird to me. After we left, I pulled by car around the parking lot and went into a culvert then popped out again. Not only was I embarrass, but I hoped that he didn’t see me. I was really lucky that I didn’t damage my car. It took me a couple of years to tell him about that. LOL

After the date, we talked about once a week on the telephone. In March, we finally agreed to go out on weekends and the weather as perfect. The temp every Saturday in March was 45 degrees or warmer and sunshine. We went antique shopping, and I must confess, I started to really enjoy looking at antiques. I found an antique doll cradle to use for my cabbage patch dolls.

From there, it was going to art shows every weekend. You see, the guy I was dating was also an artist, and his work was displayed at various art shows where we would spend the weekend together doing the shows. By the end of summer, I knew it was love, but did he? I was so insecure and self conscious because I was also a person with a disability. I wore hearing aids and had a severe hearing loss. I was afraid he would not n interested in someone where he might have to be the ears at night when we were in bed. But my fears were unfounded, and he was in love with me as I was with him.

We were married in April 1995. In that month, the only sunshine and warm temperature was on our wedding day. So, lucky in love? I don’t know if it was luck. But more like God's hand. Either way, we’re still married, and this past few months I have come to realized what it means “for sickness
and in health.” As my husband took care of me the past few months when my health took a nosedive.

For this month, my book, Elkhorn in the Moonlight is on sale for 99 cents.

The search for stolen Sacred Arrows leads to much more.

Marcus Blackhawk is on a mission to locate the Sacred Arrows that were stolen from the Cheyenne Nation.When he learns that someone has seen the arrows he leaves immediately to track the person down and get more information.

Nicole Lancaster ekes out a living in a small town by helping her brother 

 run a motel and working part-time in a restaurant. Her mundane life suddenly becomes more exciting when Marcus arrives in town asking about some arrows that she came upon years ago while hiking in the Elkhorn Mountains. The gorgeous man makes her heart beat fast, but she knows he'd never be interested in a Plain Jane like herself.

When Marcus offers Nicole a large sum of cash to lead him to the cave where she saw the arrows, she takes him up on the offer. After a three-day hiking trip through the mountains they locate the cave, but then the unthinkable happens, and they find themselves trapped inside. As they wait, hopeful they'll be rescued, they give into the passion that's been simmering between them.

Will help arrive in time to save them? And if so, can their night of passion ever be anything more? Marcus has no interest in an actual relationship, and Nicole wants the whole nine yards.

Be sure to check out the romance gems video, and enter the rafflecoptor for some great prizes!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Lucky in Love and Money! by @BonnieEdwards #RomanceGems

Earlier this month, Kari Lemor used this title for her post: Luck of the Draw. I smiled when I saw it because one of  the boxed sets I had a book in was called just that. And lucky I was, too, to be included.

I was visiting Las Vegas on a tour of SoCal, Nevada, and Arizona for a winter break when I got an email inviting me into this set with several authors I’d worked with before. The catch? The book had to be written quickly and had to center around the idea of good luck changing a life.

ONLY 99C ON AMAZON

This is where you picture me plotting a story on my iPad as we fly across Hwy 8 from Nevada into SoCal. Pretty country! Understand please, I am not used to plotting books ahead of time, but I knew I had to have the bones of the characters and what they had to learn well before I got back home. I did it!

She's strong now. She's capable now. And no one can make her run away again. 

Ashlee Branton’s lottery win is giving her and her son a new, settled life back home.

Except that returning to Blaine, Washington means facing her son’s father, Brick Harcourt, in a most unsettling way. But Ashlee has two pasts now, one with Brick and one with an ex who wants to crash their reunion.

Will she run again or stay and sacrifice money for love?

The other thing I wanted to do was add to a series I’d written for Kensington Books. They didn’t realize it was a series but I always wanted to write about a family who’d had to pull themselves up and out of a trailer park childhood that was less than pretty. Two of the novellas were published by Kensington and the third (with different character names because my dream of a connected series was dead) was published by Carina Press.

So I felt as if The Brantons was incomplete (until I get the rights back from Carina, that is) and there was room for Whole Lot o’ Love.

So, this goes along with my feeling that luck comes to those who work for it and make sure they’re in places where it can happen. Connecting with other authors and editors is key to luck in publishing.

Speaking of luck, don't forget to hop on over to our Monthly Giveaway page to enter our Rafflecopter contest. If you're in a rush to get to the pot of gold you can also click on this Quick Link.

May the Luck O'The Irish be with you!

Bonnie

Friday the 13th—the SpooOoky Date is Anything but Unlucky—Especially for Love by Connie Vines

You know the deal: Friday the 13th is a ghoulish and distressing day that will bring bad luck our way. 

Stop screaming-- the opposite is true.

 Contrary to superstitions, the number 13 is actually an essential number for life. The Moon (the intimate feminine planet in astrology) has 13 orbits in a year, the average woman menstruates 13 times a year (at the most), and 13 is the number of the Great Goddesses (of past and current cultures).

Friday itself is known as Venus’s day—a moment of relaxation and embracing sexual desires. In numerology, the number 13 is a master number that helps us manifest our desires.

In other words: It’s fine. You’re gonna be fine!

Wikipedia-common use photo

This Friday the 13th is actually positive for romance and dating. It’s a fruitful day to connect with others and to embrace passions. The Grand Water Trine among the Moon, Mars, and Neptune will create a tender and seductive vibe—one we will all not want to miss out on. It’s a fabulous time to schedule a date to form a solid connection. Expect to talk all night and hold on to your date’s every word (and vice versa too).

Venus and Pluto link up on the 12th, and while some may say this conjunction can make for extra-intense emotions (when these two planets collide, sparks—the good kind—fly. Expect a deep commitment to form on Friday the 13th…or luck on a first date or a fun romantic interlude with our one and only).

Don’t fear Friday the 13th! It’s actually lucky!


As always, I love to add an easy to prepare meal for my readers to enjoy.

Line your sheet pan(s) with parchment paper, pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees.

Gather your fresh veggies: wash and toss in olive oil.

Pan 1: Fingerling potatoes, cut length-wise, peeled and chopped parsnip, broccoli, mini-carrots, cook for 20-30 minutes.

Pan 2:  Fresh green beans, 4 eggs in shells.  I begin this pan about 10 minutes later since cooking time is more difficult to gauge. When the eggs are a soft hard-boiled state, place in a bowl of ice water to stop cooking process.

(If you have veggies in the fridge looking a little past their prime, chop them up and adjust the cooking time.)

If I’m dining alone, I arrange the butter lettuce on a single dinner plate; dining with others, a decorative platter makes a colorful and appetizing display.

Top with: roasted veggies, heirloom tomatoes, olives, smoked or canned (wild-caught) salmon or tuna.  I prepare a mustard/mayo/champagne vinegar dressing and drizzle on top.  (you’ll notice I took the photo before adding the olives.)

Remember Romance Gems still has our March Contest if full swing!)

Need a touch of Gothic Romance, this Friday the 13th?  Download my novella,
“Here Today, Zombie Tomorrow”.  It's 1/2 price at Smashwords all month, too!

smashwords         bookswelove.net bookstore     books2read     

  

Or at your favorite ebook site!

Author Spotted In the Wild! by Laura Hunsaker

Every year my local library has a Local Author Showcase. It's been an amazing experience and I can't wait for this one.

If you're in the Las Vegas area March 28, you should stop by! I'll be selling copies of Icing the Puck and Going All In. The New York Empires series is a hockey series with romance, with a slightly paranormal edge.

In my latest, I'm joining Isabo Kelly, Stacey Agdern, and Heather Lire once more to bring you three new stories in the Empires world.

Each book has 3 stories, all stories play out with each other. You get to see the team from each author's point of view. We all worked really hard to make sure the books work well with each other and the timelines flow. You'll see major events from one story from a different point of view in another story. I think it's a really neat way to write a series.

Coming soon...very very soon...

We have the third New York Empires book coming out! Roughing It is currently undergoing it's second round of edits, so I'll have a solid date very soon. (keep your eyes on this site, I'll be showing you all the amazing cover here first!)

Guys...werewolf hockey players, female goalies, twin brothers who hide secrets from each other...there's so much going on and throughout the anthology? The Empires are looking for a new goal tender.

So the awesome thing about this book signing is that I'll be selling the first 2 books in the Empires series, and hopefully it'll create interest in Roughing It.

Here are some pictures from the past couple of Showcases, and don't forget to enter the monthly giveaway!

2018

2019

Our March Rafflecopter  (Click Here) has another month of Amazon Gift Card prizes. Be sure to enter often to improve your chances of winning. Please tell your friends about Romance Gems—our Authors, our books, our blog posts, and our monthly giveaway.

MARVELOUS MARCH by Kathleen Lawless @kathleenlawless #romancegems

March is a wonderful month in many ways.  The worst of winter is behind us with the days becoming noticeably longer.  Bulbs are poking though the ground, while trees and plants are starting to bud.  I am lucky to have several plants that bloom early, including this gorgeous Clematis.  Some years March hosts Easter.  (Please don’t ask me to explain why some years Easter is in March and some years it’s in April.  I kind of know, but have no easy, compartmentalized explanation)

March is also birthday month for a large percentage of my friends, who happen to be Pisces if you follow birth signs.  I can see no logical reason for this except Pisces is also a water sign like me (I’m a Scorpio), and they are easy-going enough that they put up with me. 

We Scorpios are pretty good at figuring out what we need and ensuring we get it.  ME time, Spa time, Friend time, Outdoor time, Chocolate time.  Wine time. On an intuitive level Pisces also know what they need, but they need to be reminded because they get busy doing for others. 

Which is why I was thrilled to learn about this dandy little book, The Little Book of Self Care for…(insert horoscope sign).  One of my many Pisces friends intuitively gave one to me and I love it, so have been sharing my enthusiasm by paying it forward to many of my friends.  Even the non-Piscians have said, “This is exactly what I need right now”.  Because if we can’t remind our friends to take care of themselves, who can?

Thus my gentle reminder to you, Dear Reader.  March is an excellent time to start taking better care of yourself, to slow things down and take a breath, to count your blessings and write down something every day that you are grateful for.  Even when life looks dark, you are beset with challenges and things are going sideways, you can always find one thing to be thankful for.

I’m thankful to be finished BENJAMIN’S BRIDE, Book 7 of my Seven Brides for Seven Brothers series.

Coming any day now to an Amazon store near you!  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084MP32SG

I am thankful to the readers who have embraced this series along with my previous work.  I am thankful to be part of this wonderful blog group of talented and supportive fellow authors. 

Comment below to share what you are thankful for today.  I’ll pick one random entrant to win an advance e-copy of BENJAMIN’S BRIDE. 

Don’t forget to try your luck with this month’s Rafflecopter draw.  Who can’t use an Amazon gift card? 

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/21df08a235/

If you’re following the Seven Brides series, I am currently working on PERCY’S HOPE, a novella which will soon be available free, exclusively to my VIP Readers of my Newsletter.  Sign up here, so you don’t miss the chance to find out what Percy got up to in Colorado Springs.    http://eepurl.com/bV0sb1

Thanks for being here!

Kathleen