Welcome to the town of North Pole, Montana…where the weather is cold and the romance is red-hot. But be careful, you never know where danger will lurk.
Get ready for MISTLETOE AND MAYHEM…An anthology of brand new, short, and steamy Christmas romances. The anthology includes:
CHRISTMAS RECRUIT by Janie Crouch
FALLING FOR A HITMAN by Katie Reus
WHEN THE SNOW FALLS by Isabel Jolie
FEELING FROSTY by Ivy Beck
WHEN HE SLEIGHS by Cynthia Eden
Hot times are ahead in North Pole, Montana! Forced proximity, second chances, and a bit of naughtiness are on the Christmas romance agenda. Happy reading!
Happy Halloween! I hope your weekend will only be filled with the very best kind of treats.
Speaking of treats…for Halloween weekend, I have made my romantic suspense, LIE CLOSE TO ME, a FREE read over at Amazon! LIE CLOSE TO ME is in my “Lazarus Rising” series–books about super soldiers.
They’re strong, they’re sexy…they’re the government’s secret weapons. Ready to meet the Lazarus team? Super soldiers have never been so hot…or so deadly.
He’s Lazarus, and so is she. What happens when their worlds collide?
He’s hunting her. Maddox Kane has one goal—track Luna Ashton. He’s the best hunter on his team, finely honed and designed by Uncle Sam to be an unstoppable killing machine. He’s a super solider—faster, stronger, and deadlier than anyone else. Maddox keeps his emotions under careful lock and key because he can’t afford to feel. Feeling is too dangerous, and the attraction Maddox feels for Luna is positively lethal.
Luna has no memory of being in the labs with Maddox. She doesn’t remember the connection they shared when they were trapped in hell. She doesn’t remember escaping the facility. She doesn’t remember him. So when Maddox hunts her down, she’s terrified of him…and of the strange psychic and sensual connection they seem to share. Surely she shouldn’t want him so much?
Luna is different from the other Lazarus subjects, and Maddox isn’t the only one hunting her. She’s a dangerous threat to Project Lazarus, and Luna isn’t going to be allowed to just slip away from the U.S. government…or from the other super soldiers who are also desperate to find her. Every Lazarus subject has incredible psychic gifts. Some Lazarus subjects can make people see their worst fears, some can control minds…but Luna’s gift—she can show people their memories. Luna has the ability to restore memories to all of the other Lazarus subjects, yet she can’t see her own past.
And if you can’t see your past…then you never know what danger is coming, what killer is standing right next to you, touching you, lying to you…not until it is too late.
Paranormal romance RERELEASE news! I told you recently that I was working to rerelase some of the titles that I had previously published–and I’ve got one of those romances available for you now. Just in time for Halloween!
WICKED WAYS was originally released all the way back in 2008 (it was in the WHEN HE WAS BAD anthology that was published by Kensington). I received the rights back to the story, and I’m excited to bring it to readers again.
This is one of my earliest published works–and I hope you enjoy stepping out on the wild side with Cain and Miranda.
I’m too dangerous for her. I know it, but I can’t get my sexy new neighbor out of my head. When I hear her scream one night, the absolute last thing I expect to see is Miranda Shaw—star of my hottest fantasies—being attacked by a vampire.
𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐨.
Now the undead jerk is after her, and I’m the only thing standing between the beautiful lady and a killer who just won’t stop. Well, too bad for him, because that vamp has just made the worst mistake of his afterlife–he’s tangled with a shifter.
𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞.
And Miranda, well, she’s so busy watching out for him that she won’t see me closing in on her—not until it’s too late—and I’m about to show her just how wild I can get…
I’ve been working on a secret project… (Long post ahead!)
Each year, I like to release a holiday romance—it’s become a Christmas tradition for me. But, *this* year, I thought…let’s mix it up a bit. I was chatting with my buddy Katie Reus, and we decided it would be super fun to invite other romantic suspense authors to participate in a holiday romance anthology with us. The rules were simple: All of the stories would be set in the same small town (North Pole, Montana), and each author would contribute a NEW, short story for the collection.
And we wanted to make this anthology FREE for readers. FREE—as in, our Christmas gift to you.
That’s how MISTLETOE AND MAYHEM was born.
MISTLETOE AND MAYHEM will be officially releasing on November 10, 2026. The entire collection contains over 100,000 words—and, again, our goal is to give this anthology to readers as a free gift.
Right now, you can pre-order MISTLETOE AND MAYHEM for free at Nook, Google Play, and the Amazon US store. Please note—for my international readers—the international Amazon stores are NOT showing the free price at this time. I am working to try and get the international Amazon stores to price match for me. However, my international readers can currently pre-order the anthology for free at Google Play.
Also, when the book is released, it will be available at Kobo Books and Apple Books (and both US and international readers will be able to download the book for free at these retailers). Apple Books and Kobo do not allow pre-orders on free books, so that is why you do not have a pre-order option at those retailers. But rest assured, when the title goes live on November 10th, it will be free at Apple Books and Kobo.
MISTLETOE AND MAYHEM will contain five stories:
CHRISTMAS RECRUIT by Janie Crouch
FALLING FOR A HITMAN by Katie Reus
WHEN THE SNOW FALLS by Isabel Jolie
FEELING FROSTY by Ivy Beck
WHEN HE SLEIGHS by Cynthia Eden
My contribution to the anthology, WHEN HE SLEIGHS, is actually going to be a “Protector and Defender Christmas Romance” novella…and here’s the blurb for you…
US Marshal Flynn Krane has one item on his holiday to-do list—protect Kate Sawyer. Two years ago, he gave gorgeous Kate a new identity, a new home, and he walked away—even as it broke his heart. He fell hard for Kate but staying with her wasn’t a possibility.
𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤.
Kate’s criminal ex has found her—and sent a hitman to take her out. But Flynn is not going to let that happen. He’ll guard Kate, they’ll set a trap for the contract killer, and, if he’s lucky, Kate will give Flynn a second chance to win her heart. Because this time, nothing will make him walk away.
I am super excited for this anthology! You guys all know how Christmas obsessed I can be.
Thank you all so very, very much for the support and encouragement that you have given to me over the years. I hope that you enjoy the holiday gift!!
It’s book release day! My new romantic suspense, ICE COVERED HEART, is available now!
“A perfect October read!! This book was so much fun. I was hooked from the prologue.” -AvidReader, GoodReads
His dream woman just walked right through the front door…and now Hunter McQueen has to figure out a way to keep her. Keep her alive. Keep her close. Keep her…forever. Good thing he’s good at strategizing.
Hunter McQueen is a former Ranger, a part-time Ice Breaker, and an all-around badass. It’s not like he looks for trouble—more like, trouble looks for him. And this time, the trouble that has come to hunt him down appears in the beautiful form of Shelby Carter, the famous “final girl” who survived the Sorority Seven Killer and sent the perp to death row.
Once he manages to pick his jaw off the floor, Hunter wants to know how he can help Shelby. Also, how in the hell he can convince the woman to go out on a date with him? Fan boy much? Embarrassing but…yes. If there is one thing that Hunter respects, it’s strength, and Shelby has a spine of steel.
She fought alone before, but this time, she needs…him.
The big, dangerous stranger is supposed to be the protector that Shelby needs. He’s also supposed to be the man who can help her uncover the truth about a night that still torments her. Seven years ago, Shelby took down a killer who murdered her friends. During the attack, Shelby lost the hearing in her right ear. She avoids crowds, she trusts no one, and she spends her days and nights alone.
But new memories are cracking through the darkness in her mind—a darkness left behind by the attack that wrecked her world—and she is now wondering…is the right man on death row?
He’ll help her find the truth. And she’ll thaw the ice around his heart.
As they begin investigating the past, deadly attacks plague Shelby. It’s clear someone does not want her digging up the truth, but there is no way Hunter will let Shelby be hurt. He’ll be her full-time bodyguard, her hired gun—he will be whatever she needs him to be. Simply put, Hunter intends to stand between her and any threat. He will eliminate all of the threats to her.
As for Shelby, desire burns through her with each touch and kiss that she shares with Hunter. Shelby is not interested in some slow burn romance with him. She wants passion. She wants desperation. She wants a desire that breaks past all control. And with Hunter, that’s exactly what she will get.
Provided, of course, that the killer closing in doesn’t take out the final girl on his list…
Author’s note: The Ice Breakers are back! Time for cold (and current) case solving as Hunter McQueen falls first and falls hard for a woman who has survived hell and lived to tell the twisted story. Shelby doesn’t expect to want Hunter as badly as she does, but the Ice Breaker sneaks past her guard. He’s dangerous, unpredictable, and a vicious fighter—exactly what she needs and soon…he’s everything that she wants.
My new romantic suspense, 
