Update: The winner of YOURS, UNEXPECTEDLY is…Yadira A. Congratulations!!

Do you like sexy, fun romances?  Then I’ve got a treat for you! Fellow Brava author Susan Fox is my next guest–and the lady has a gift for writing great contemporary romances.  One lucky commenter is going to find out all about that gift…because Susan is giving away a copy of her new book, YOURS, UNEXPECTEDLY.

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It’s release day, and Cynthia and I are release sisters with Kensington Brava. How exciting! And thanks, Cynthia, for inviting me here today.

My new Brava is Yours, Unexpectedly . It’s the fourth and final Wild Ride to Love book. This is a sexy “planes, trains, automobiles, and a cruise ship” series. In the first three books (Sex Drive, Love, Unexpectedly, and His, Unexpectedly), the three older Fallon sisters travel home for their baby sister Merilee’s wedding.

In families, siblings each tend to find their own niche. Growing up, Merilee felt like she was in the shadow of her larger-than-life sisters – until she met Matt at age seven. She found her soul mate and her special niche: she was the Fallon sister who was lucky in love.

She and Matt are M&M, and Merilee’s always known they’d get married. At least until her sisters arrive home one by one, with exciting guys and passionate new romances. Suddenly, her relationship with Matt feels a little . . . flat. They’re only 21, yet they act more like a comfortable middle-aged couple than people who are passionately in love. Is this what she wants, for the rest of her life?

You can see what’s coming, right? This is a runaway bride story – with a twist.

When Merilee calls off the wedding two days before the ceremony, she needs to get some distance and perspective, to be alone and think. Because the Mexican Riviera honeymoon cruise is non-refundable, she decides to go.

But Matt has the same idea. And neither of them will back down and go home.

The idea behind the Wild Ride to Love books is that travel is a journey in more ways than one. And so it proves for M&M. It’s time to stop being joined at the hip – even though they’re stuck sharing a cabin – and find out who they are as individuals. As adults. Yes, it’s time to grow up, and to discover whether that means growing apart or growing together.

I hope readers will enjoy M&M’s wild ride from Vancouver to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan, Cabo San Lucas, and back home again.  As they redefine themselves and explore new opportunities, they find that they’re still drawn to each other – even more deeply and passionately than before. And now, the idea of a lifetime together looks like the most exciting, romantic adventure they can imagine!

I’d love to hear your comments about travel, how to keep a long-term relationship fresh, and anything else that strikes your fancy. And, last but not least, I’m giving away an autographed copy of Yours, Unexpectedly.

Bio:

Susan Fox, who also writes as Susan Lyons, is the award-winning author of “emotionally compelling, sexy contemporary romance” (Publishers Weekly). She is published by Kensington Brava, Berkley Heat, and Harlequin Spice Briefs. A resident of both Vancouver and Victoria, B.C., Susan has degrees in law and psychology but would far rather be writing fiction than living in the real world.

Update:  The 3 winners of THE NAUGHTY LIST are…Lisa B, Jenny S, and Ashley Applebee. Congratulations!!

At this time of the year, with all the crazy hustle and bustle, sometimes, you just want to step back and relax. Or maybe you want to step back, relax…and sink into a good holiday book.

I’ve got that holiday book for you.  Actually, I’ve got 3 copies of THE NAUGHTY LIST that I’d love to giveaway today. (I can give you a print copy or gift you a digital copy from Amazon. And speaking of “gifting” a copy…if you’ve already read this holiday anthology, you can win it for a friend. It can be an early Christmas present!)

THE NAUGHTY LIST includes three sexy tales of holiday fun. Come on…couldn’t we all use a little bit of holiday fun?  To enter this giveaway, just tell me–are you on the nice list?  Or have you made the naughty list this year?

Thanks for entering the giveaway!

Cynthia

Cynthia Eden
www.cynthiaeden.com
ANGEL OF DARKNESS–Available now from Kensington Brava
When an angel falls for a vampire, all hell breaks loose…

Update:  Donna’s prize winner (lucky lady!) is…Diane Sallan.  Congrats, Diane! I will send your contact information to Donna.

I’m so pleased to have Donna Grant as my first guest author today. Not only is Donna one fabulous writer, but she’s a very special lady, too. I love her stories–can’t read them fast enough!  Donna, thanks so much for joining me today!

Congratulations to Cynthia on her newest release!  And thanks, Cynthia, for inviting me over to celebrate.  It’s double the fun for me because I also have a release today – Echoes of Magic, the second book in my Sisters of Magic trilogy.

Whereas Cynthia loves the horror stuff, I’ve always been drawn to the historical and the paranormal/fantasy.  You can’t imagine how I rejoiced when Lord of the Rings came to theatres. 🙂

There’s just something about a man who can fight with a sword.  It’s dangerous yes, but also so compelling to me as an author and a reader.  Knights were supposed to be the most chivalrous of men.  The ones who would also be there to help those in need.

So, it was no wonder my heroes in the Sisters of Magic trilogy are none other than knights.  In Echoes of Magic, we have Grayson.  He’s been acting as a commander to his friend and lord, Drogan, but in fact, Grayson is a lord himself.

He’s been hiding from his past, but there comes a point in every man’s life where he has to face that past.  That’s exactly what Grayson does.  He never expects to come face to face with the man responsible for ruining his life, or to find a woman who can heal more than wounds suffered in battle.

Adrianna is part of a dying race of witches.  She knows as soon as she sees Grayon that he’s different, that he’ll change her life forever.  Is she willing to test Fate to discover if she can beat the curse placed on witches?

Grayson and Adrianna must endure many trials, and its only with each other that they can truly face  – and win – them all. 🙂

Here’s the blurb and cover for ECHOES OF MAGIC!

Hiding a secret so awful that his only hope for survival is to remain hidden, Grayson has lived most of his life pretending to be someone he isn’t. After years serving as a commander to his lord and friend, Grayson can no longer hold back the past. He leaves in search of answers only to find evil awaits him. Until he discovers an achingly beautiful woman who stirs his deepest passions and all-consuming need.

Adrianna knows what her future holds for her as a witch – loneliness and heartache. She has accepted that. Until she discovers Grayson near death in the forest. Saving him is her only choice, and even as she falls deeper into the attraction surrounding them, can her magic be enough to stop Fate or the evil that awaits them.

What is your favorite romance genre to read?

I’ll be giving away an ebook copy of SHADOW MAGIC, the first in the Sisters of Magic trilogy to one lucky commenter!

To learn more about the Sisters of Magic trilogy or my other series, see book trailers, and sign up for my newsletter please visit me at www.DonnaGrant.com.

Hugs,

D

Update:  Thank you for all the wonderful comments!! I randomly picked the gift card winner and that commenter is…Patty C.! Congrats, Patty!

Thanks so much for coming to my ANGEL OF DARKNESS release party. Lots of great guests will be checking in today with fun posts, excerpt, and, of course, giveaways. To get things started…

I’ve got a $20 Amazon.com gift card up for grabs. I’ll email this card directly to the winner, so the lucky commenter can get started spending on Amazon right away. To enter this giveaway, just tell me…why do you think bad boy heroes are so appealing?

Because the her of my new novel, ANGEL OF DARKNESS, definitely falls into that bad boy category. Sure, he’s an angel, but he’s an angel with one very dark side (um, yeah, there’s a reason he’s called the ANGEL OF DARKNESS–the guy isn’t full of goodness and light). He’s not about guarding and protecting people. He’s about death. Destruction. Or at least he was about those things…

Until the day Keenan fell for a vampire.

EXCERPT FROM ANGEL OF DARKNESS

Darkness.

Keenan blinked and found himself on his knees. He’d been tossed onto a gleaming marble floor. Keenan knew who would stand before him even before he allowed his gaze to lift.

Azrael. The leader of the angels of death.

“What have you done?” Azrael—Az— demanded.

Keenan closed his eyes and saw a woman bleeding out in an empty alley. Shivering with cold. “She still lives.” He rose to his feet, letting his wings spread behind his back.

Az shook his head. “No.”

Fear gripped him. “What? I didn’t touch her, I didn’t—”

“You confess to disobeying your orders.” Az’s face tensed. “You disobey—”

She was dead? Determined to get back to Nicole, Keenan spun away from Az. No one else would take her over, not after what he’d risked.

“You knew the penalty for such an act.” Az’s words froze him.

Yes, he knew he had to answer for taking the vampire’s soul, but—

“I’m sorry, Keenan. You… you were a good angel.”

Were. Keenan whirled back around to face the blond angel. “I didn’t—”

“No, you did not. That’s the problem.” And there was sadness cloaking the words, when there was never any emotion in the angel’s voice. Never much emotion in any of them.

No love. No fear. No hate. Only duty. That was the way it should have been.

Except when I looked at her, I …felt.

“Temptation can destroy us all.” Az’s all- seeing bright blue gaze raked him. “You had the chance to obey. You knew when the moment of her death was at hand, but you killed one not on your list.”

“He was a vampire!” The rage was new—something that had developed only when he saw the pain Nicole suffered. “He was torturing, killing, he deserved—”

“We all get what we deserve.” Az’s chin lifted. “Beware, my friend, this will hurt.”

What?

“I’ve heard it’s the fire that makes you scream the loudest.”

There was no fire—

The wind hit Keenan again, wrapping around him, but this time, its grasp felt like the edge of a hundred blades.

Az watched him with a hard stare. No more emotion. Maybe it had never been there. “Did you think we did not know the lust you held in your heart?”

What would angels know of lust? What would they know of anything but following orders, protecting the weak, living in that vast, blank world of nothing?

“Why do you think she was given to you?” Az asked.

And he finally understood. A test. One he’d failed because he hadn’t been able to watch Nicole slip away.

“You broke our rules. You took a life not yours to extinguish.” Az’s cold voice floated to him. “And you failed in your duty.”

To take Nicole’s life. But, no, Az had told him that she didn’t live; he’d said—“Where is she?” He’d had to shout to be heard over the fury of the wind.

But there was no answer. Nothing but the wind howling. And then the fire came.

The fire ripped through his body, starting at his feet, burning up, up, even as Keenan fell, plummeting from the sky.

Expelled from my home.

He flapped his wings as he tried to fight that controlling wind, but—

He cried out in agony as the fire spread to his wings. This was no phantom fire—real flames ate at his skin and burned his flesh. Burned his wings, his wings— No!

He’d never known pain, but after this day, he would never forget it.

The wind stopped. His body hovered in the air, his shoulders hunched and his wings burning. He tried to move his wings, tried—

He dropped, falling straight for the earth below, and he burned as he fell. Burned and burned.

Az had been right. The fire made him scream the loudest as he became the one thing he’d always dreaded.

A Fallen.

Thanks so much for coming by and joining the ANGEL OF DARKNESS release party!  Just scroll below to see the new posts and giveaways. All giveaways will remain open until noon (Central time) on 11/30/11.  I hope you enjoy the party!