Our WINNERS according to Random.org are:

1) The copy of Cynthia’s new release: DEADLY HEAT: #3, Theresa N.

2) The Dead Guy sticky notes: #8, Viki

Congratulations and thanks for playing everyone!

Hi, everyone! I am very excited to have debut Kensington Brava author Joan Swan as my guest today. Her upcoming Phoenix Rising series promises to be a perfect blend of the two genres I love the most: dark romantic suspense and sexy paranormal romance. Can’t wait to read them! Joan, thanks for blogging with me today!

***

“I don’t understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine’s Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon.” ~Unknown

That quote is for Cynthia in relation to the tweet she posted yesterday about her son.  You’ll have to check your tweets if you don’t know what I’m talking about.  <VBG>

What do you think of when you hear Deadly Valentine? Cynthia’s topic had me envisioning complex posts of serial killers, stalkers or Valentine’s Day murders. Anyone else have that reaction?

As you can see…that didn’t quite work out. After searching and searching for an angle, I just couldn’t find any new, cool information to share with you in any unique way. And worse, the more I searched, the more I saw how Valentine’s Day was linked to Domestic Abuse. It seems to be the holiday of choice to gain followers in their fight against domestic and/or teen violence.

Don’t get me wrong — those are both issues worthy of exposure. My daughter experienced the darker side of a high school relationship that ended in a restraining order against the young man. Horrible, stressful, fearful situation for her and for us as a family.  But, I just haven’t been in the mood to get all dark and intimate with the serial killer psyche lately. Go figure.

So, this post is much lighter, yet still interesting–at least I hope you’ll find it so. You might even get a chuckle or two.

I’ve left out many, many tidbits of Valentine’s Day trivia.  Everyone who can add a trivia tidbit in the comments (hint–Google or something you already know) will be entered to win one of these two gifts:

1) A copy of Cynthia’s new release: DEADLY HEAT (either print or eReader)

2) The ceeeeutest little note pad I’ve ever seen: Dead Man Sticky Notes.

Valentine’s Day Trivia

• The condom company Durex reports that condom sales are 20-30% higher around Valentine’s Day
• On Valentine’s Day 2010, 39,897 people in Mexico City broke the record for the world’s largest group kiss.
• There is no one accepted explanation for the connection between St. Valentine and love.
• According to Welsh tradition, a child born on Valentine’s Day would have many lovers.
• The saying “wearing your heart on your sleeve” is from the Middle Ages. Boys at this time would draw names of girls to see who would be their “Valentine” and then wear the name pinned on their sleeve for a week.
• A kiss on Valentine’s Day is considered to bring good luck all year.
• Studies have shown that people are twice as likely to tilt their head to the right while kissing.
• Famous couples married on February 14th:  Elton John-Renate Blauel, Meg Ryan-Dennis Quaid, Pamela Anderson-Tommy Lee and Sharon Stone-Phil Bronstein.
• Forty percent of the world’s almonds and 20% of the world’s peanuts are used by chocolate manufacturers for Valentine’s Day Candy.
• Men claim to prefer to received chocolates as a Valentine’s gift; women prefer dinner.
• Since the Aztec empire, chocolate has been considered an aphrodisiac used in the pursuit of love.
• Casanova, who enjoyed the title of “The World’s Greatest Lover,” ate chocolate to make him virile.
• There are towns in Texas & Nebraska called Valentine.
• There is a Love Valley, North Carolina, a Romeoville, Illinois & Loveland, Colorado.
• Each year 300,000 letters go through Loveland, Colorado, to get a special heart stamp cancellation for Valentine’s Day.
• In the United States, 64 percent of men do not make plans in advance for a romantic Valentine’s Day with their sweethearts.
• Venus is the Roman god of love and beauty.
• The red rose was the flower of Venus.
• Cupid is associated with Valentine’s Day because he is believed to be the son of Venus.
• Cupid is the Roman god of love. In Greek lore, Cupid is known as Eros.
• NECCO has been making heart-shaped valentine candies, with sweet sayings printed on them, since 1902.
• About eight billion candy hearts are made for Valentine’s Day each year.
• Nearly 10 new candy “conversation heart” sayings are introduced each year.
• Valentine candy “conversation hearts” have a shelf life of five years.
• In flower speak: Red means love, yellow means friendship, pink means friendship or sweetheart and lavender means love at first sight and enchantment.
• Red carnations mean admiration, white carnations mean pure love, red chrysanthemums mean love, forget-me-nots mean true love, primrose means young love, and larkspur means an open heart.

Share your Valentine’s Day trivia and WIN!!

*****

Joan Swan is a triple RWA® Golden Heart finalist, and a double Kiss of Death Daphne Du Maurier finalist. She writes sexy romantic suspense with a paranormal twist, and her first novel with Kensington Brava debuts April, 2012. Currently, she works as a sonographer at a one of the top ten medical facilities in the nation, and lives in magnificent wine country on the central coast of California with her husband and two daughters. When she’s not writing or working, Joan haunts the Twitterverse, runs her youngest daughter to the ranch to ride her horse, or texts her oldest daughter off at college.

You can find Joan here:
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Blog
Email

Update:

WINNERS: Colleen wins the copy of SOLO HONEYMOON; Michele wins the magnet for SURFER BRIDE; and MarnieColette wins the magnet for REDEMPTION FOR THE DEVIL.

If each of you would email me your address to JillianChantal@gmail.com I’ll snail mail your magnets to you and to Colleen, I’ll email you a pdf of SOLO HONEYMOON.

Thanks to everyone for commenting and playing along.

***

Hi, I’m Jillian Chantal. First I want to congratulate Cynthia on her release day yesterday! I’m so excited to read this next book in the Deadly series. Second, I want to thank her for including little ole me in this fun group of ladies posting in celebration of “My Deadly Valentine.” It makes me feel loved when I get invited to participate in awesome events! And now to the deadly valentine parts:

The patron saint of the holiday was subjected to a deadly end himself. Around the year 269-270 A.D., the emperor of Rome at the time made marriage illegal as there was apparently a law that married men couldn’t be drafted and men were needed for the army. Valentine continued to marry people in secret and when the emperor found out, he sentenced Valentine to be beaten and beheaded for breaking the law. So the holiday of love which was named for this martyr had its beginnings in death.

Fast forward to another deadly day associated with St. Valentine. Many centuries and a continent away, in Prohibition era Chicago, Illinois, seven men were killed in a gang war. It seems that Bugs Moran, the leader of the North Side Irish gang, had his men machine gun the headquarters of Al Capone, the leader of the South Side Italian gang. In retaliation, Capone hired some thugs to shoot into the warehouse where Moran’s men were gathered. It appears they thought Moran was there as well but he wasn’t. The hit order was on Moran but he escaped. The men who perpetuated the crime were never found, tried or convicted. This massacre occurred on February 14, 1929.

Now that we’ve talked about all this real death, let’s talk a bit about my new releases. I have two books coming out in 2011. One is called Surfer Bride and it’s with SirenBookStrand Mainstream romance and is slated to be released in April. The other is called Redemption for the Devil from Desert Breeze Publishing and is to be released in July 2011. I have one already out with BookStrand as well called Solo Honeymoon. Each of them are deadly in their own ways. I won’t ruin any of their plots but they have weapons, danger, death, and angst galore. I’m putting the trailers here if you want to look at them. No pressure!

I will be giving away three things today to three commenters: One will be a copy of the ebook Solo Honeymoon, one will be a “Live, Love, Surf” magnet for Surfer Bride and last will be a magnet with the City of New York and Cunard ships on it for Redemption for the Devil. I won’t even test you to see if you watched the trailers. I’ll just have random.org pick three winners.

Thanks again, Cynthia, for letting me play with you today!

Update:  Thank you all so much for the release day wishes and the great comments!  I think a lot of you are like me–you like reading about the FBI agents, but you aren’t sure you’d actually like the danger involved with being a real agent. But…there were some brave folks who were up to the challenge!

I randomly selected a winner, and the Amazon.com gift certificate goes to…Jennifer Mathis. Congrats, Jennifer!

***

Hi, everyone! It’s book release day!  DEADLY HEAT should be in a bookstore near you–or shipping from your favorite online retailer. (The e-book version of the book will be available on 2/1.)

DEADLY HEAT received a rating of 4 1/2 Top Pick from RT BookReviews, and the reviewer noted, “Deadly Heat is seriously hot! Taut conflict mixes with fiery romance to create a winner. Readers will enjoy a rapid-paced induction into the world of firefighters, arsonists and the FBI’s newest division. Deadly Heat offers the perfect amount of tension, character development and action-packed plot!” I sure hope readers enjoy the book as much as she did!

In DEADLY HEAT, fire fighter Lora Spade teams up with FBI Agent Kenton Lake in order to catch a serial arsonist. The attraction between Lora and Kenton is immediate–and it’s almost as explosive as the fires that they must face.

Here’s the blurb:

She wants revenge . . .

Six months after her lover died in an arsonist’s blaze, firefighter Lora Spade calls in the FBI’s elite Serial Services Division to track the elusive killer. When Special Agent Kenton Lake is lured into a violent inferno, Lora pulls him to safety and is stunned – not by the fire, but by her own searing attraction to Kent. For the first time in months, she longs for something other than vengeance.

He wants her . . .

Kenton’s interest in Lora should be purely professional. But one fleeting kiss and he can’t get her out of his mind. Her combination of strength and vulnerability makes him want to protect her, and that means solving this case – and fast. For even the passion igniting between them can’t hide a terrifying truth: Lora is the next target in a murderer’s sadistic, fiery game.

A vicious killer wants only . . .

DEADLY HEAT

******

Since I’m celebrating the release, I think that means we need a giveaway.  Want to win a $20 Amazon.com gift certificate? Then tell me why you would or wouldn’t make a good FBI Agent.  Maybe you should join the SSD!

Hi, Everyone!

I’m Sylvia Day. Tomorrow (January 25), is the release date of my latest book, Pride and Pleasure. It’s a story about a great many things, but at its core it’s a tale of two people who value privacy and solitude above everything… until they meet each other. Then they learn that life is more vibrant and wondrous when shared with someone you love.

This got me thinking about things I value, which led to me thinking about guilty pleasures. I’ll be hopping around the web this week (if you “like” me on Facebook, you can see where I’ll be), blogging and sharing about Pride and Pleasure, so I’ll spread pieces of my list around (and a few different excerpts). Each chunk will have a different prize, so you hope you’ll join me and share your guilty pleasures.

One commenter on this post will be selected (via random.org) to receive the first three books in my Marked series: Eve of Darkness, Eve of Destruction, and Eve of Chaos, along with some other goodies.

Guilty Pleasures (that I don’t feel all that guilty about…):

1) Good coffee. I’m addicted. Can’t go without it. Unless it’s swill, then I’ll pass. I confess I’m a bit of a coffee snob. In our house, we take coffee very seriously. From selecting the best beans to using the right coffeemaker for the job (we have a few). It’s all worth it when I lift a steaming cup to my lips and taste the exquisiteness.

2) Cynthia Eden books. Oh man… Love ‘em. I’m *rubbing my hands together* in expectation of the midnight download of my pre-ordered copy of Deadly Heat to my Kindle. Bring. It. On. So happy Deadly Lies releases right on its heels. Makes me one very happy C.E. reader!

3) Big, elaborate, blow ‘em action movies. I’m a romance novelist, yes. But I’m not a fan of romantic comedies. Actually, I don’t much like comedies, period. I prefer over-the-top action flicks with romantic elements. Actually, I can even forgo the romantic elements, but lots of explosions and crazy “whoa!” moments are a necessity for my viewing enjoyment.

4) Girls’ retreats. I try to go on at least one a year. It’s such a treat to spend uninterrupted time with dear friends, especially in lovely travel destinations. Freed from the pressures of family/cleaning/looking-after-everyone-but-yourself, you find a lightness of spirit that leads to lots of lovely, intimate discussions. Usually there is laughter and tears, wine and chocolate, spa trips and lengthy meals. Food for the soul.

5) Pedicures. These are a must for every woman. Seriously. We deserve them. The massaging, the pretty designs they can paint on the big toes, the foot soak…

Now it’s your turn! What are some (or at least one!) of your guilty pleasures?

Pride and Pleasure
January 25, 2011

Wealth has its dangers…

There are disadvantages to being an heiress, as Eliza Martin knows well. Fortune hunters flock to her, acquaintances lie and pander, and lately, someone is engineering “accidents” to propel her to the altar. But Eliza will not be bullied, and she will get to the bottom of this plot. All she needs is a man to infiltrate her assemblage of suitors and find the culprit. Someone not easily noticed; a proficient dancer, quiet, and even-tempered.

…so do certain men

Thief-taker Jasper Bond is entirely too large, too handsome, and too dangerous. Who would believe that an intellectual like Eliza would be seduced by a man of action? But the combination of her stubbornness and the mystery makes the case one Jasper can’t resist. Client satisfaction is a point of pride and it’s his pleasure to prove he’s just the man she needs after all…

Excerpt:

“Eliza…” Jasper came to sit beside her.

The air around her became charged with his energy.

I never feel so alive as I do when I am the object of a man’s desire, her mother had said, spinning like a giddy girl with her skirts held in each hand. The blood sings, Eliza. The heart races. It is the most glorious feeling in the world.

Why did Jasper have to be the man to awaken such reactions in her? Why did he have to prove, just by breathing, that she wasn’t immune to needing someone after all? She was so disappointed to realize there were indeed some shades of pleasure that could only be colored by another hand.

His dark eyes were warm with concern. “Please understand, I only wish to be thorough. Your safety is of the utmost importance to me.”

She nodded, believing the sincerity in his tone. A lock of her hair was dislodged by the movement, slipping free of her hastily tied ribbon to slide over her shoulder.

He stood. Holding out a hand, he assisted her to her feet. “Turn around.”

As Eliza pivoted, she disturbed the air, allowing the primitive scent that clung to him–horses and leather, tobacco and bergamot–to tease her senses. She jumped slightly at the feel of his fingers against her nape. Awareness of him swept outward, flowing across her skin like warm water. He lifted the curl from her shoulder and rubbed it between his fingers.

“Like fine silk,” he murmured. He loosened the ribbon securing her hair, returned the errant lock to its former place, and retied the whole more securely.

Her gaze darted around the room, hyperaware of her surroundings. Everything was rendered in brilliant clarity, from the crystals hanging from the many ornate candlesticks, to the inlaid mother-of-pearl glimmering from the tops of the end tables.

In the swirling confusion, she grasped the first thought that came to her… “Are you one of those gentlemen who have an unusually strong interest in red hair?”

“I have an unusually strong interest in you.” He pressed his lips to the bare skin between her shoulder and throat.

“Jasper,” she whispered, shocked by the violent quiver that moved through her. “What are you doing? Why did you come now… tonight… when I’ll be seeing you tomorrow?”

His hands fell to his sides. “I saw the way you looked at Montague. What he said made you see him in a way you haven’t before.”

Eliza faced him. He was more than a head taller, but his frame curved toward her in a way that made their proximity searingly intimate. As if he was about to twirl her into a waltz.

Her heart beat a little faster. Her breathing quickened. “I don’t understand.”

He cupped her chin and tilted her face upward. “You looked at him the way you look at me.”

“That’s impossible.” Montague incited none of this turmoil.

“I need you to regard me in the same manner with which I regard you.”

She was arrested by the way he looked her over. So intent. With a gaze that was fierce. Fervent. His fingertips followed the path of his perusal. Touching her forehead. Tracing her brows. Following the bridge of her nose.

Eliza, in turn, studied him unabashedly. His features were so perfectly formed, beautiful in their symmetry but masculine in their lines. It was such a pleasure to look upon him; he made her want to stare.

“How do I regard you now?” she queried breathlessly.

“Too aware. Trying to reason your way out of this attraction. Stop thinking,” he murmured. Tilting his head, he lowered his mouth toward hers. The approach was slow and deliberate. His grip was loose and without force. “Let yourself feel it.”

She stumbled back, panting because she couldn’t breathe when he was so close.

Jasper watched her retreat with hooded eyes. She was nearly beyond arm’s reach when he growled and caught her back. His lips sealed over hers with a boldness that stole what was left of her air. With one hand at her nape and an arm around her waist, Jasper took her mouth as if he owned it. Undeniably skilled and… hungry. A slanting, suckling, ferocious possession that stunned her completely.

Eliza sagged into him, unable to comprehend the ardor with which he kissed her. His body was astonishingly hard, like warm marble. From shoulder to thigh, he pressed unyieldingly against her. Without the barrier of her stays the sensation was… Dear God, she couldn’t describe the need she had to touch more of him. Her hands clenched and released at her sides, reaching for him, then falling away.

Where should–could–she touch him?

As if he understood, Jasper’s hand at her nape followed the length of her arm down to her wrist. His fingers circled it, then lifted her hand to his chest. Between his coat and waistcoat he urged her palm to splay over his heart. His skin burned through the layers of clothing between them. His heartbeat raced with the same recklessness as hers.

Her other hand clenched the hem of his coat and she whimpered, overwhelmed.

Her capitulation gentled him. The press of his lips softened and his grip slackened enough to allow her lungs to expand. Teasing rather than taking, Jasper licked the lower curve of her lip, goading her to taste him back. She did, trembling, uncertain.

At the first flick of her tongue, he captured it with soft suction. Startled, Eliza jerked in his arms, her breasts flattening against his chest. His groan vibrated against her, tumbling across sensitized nerve endings.

“Eliza.”

The clock on the mantel began to chime on the half hour, but Eliza was lost to time, focused instead on the luxuriant licks stroking deep into her mouth. Her hand moved across Jasper’s torso, feeling the muscles tense beneath her touch. A sound escaped her, a soft plea.

Jasper lifted his head, breathing hard. With heavy-lidded eyes, he studied her face.

“This,” he said gruffly, “is how you should look at me, the way you look at no one else. As if you long for me to finish what I’ve started. As if you ache to feel my mouth on you, my hands on you.”

She did ache. And felt unappeased, as if she had an unquenched thirst. Her skin was too sensitive. Her fingers trembled. She was far too hot.

He stepped back and turned away in a motion as elegant as it was powerful. She couldn’t help but follow him with her gaze. He was such a large and finely built man, yet he moved with such grace.

“Jasper.” Her pulse leaped at the look he shot her.

Happy Monday!

Today, I’m excited to have my Brava mentee, Dale Mayer, as my guest.  I was thrilled to be paired with Dale in the Brava Writing With The Stars Contest. She’s advanced to the final four now (go Dale!).  You can read the round four entries on the RT Site–voting is going on now.  Congrats, Dale, and thanks for blogging today!

***

Hi everyone! Dale Mayer here and I’m so happy to be back visiting with you all today. thanks so much Cynthia for the invitation. She’s been the best mentor (I’ve been lucky enough to have her as my mentor in the Brava Writing with the stars contest) I could possibly have!  I’m still in the contest and we’re down to just four finalists with one round left to go and I know it’s because of the help she gave me.  Now on to my blog about kick-ass heroines – a character I love to write!

The progression of sexualized and helpless female roles to the kickass curvy females of today is nothing short of miraculous.  It seems that since the last forty years women have slowly infiltrated the role to today’s continuous slew of kickass female roles.  I love it, don’t get me wrong.

The female heroes used to be defined by men.  Then women broke the mould.  Becoming much stronger in and more powerful in the real world, they also wanted to see their counterpart in the movie / book scene.  Who today would want the weak simpering Barbie of yesterday as their role model?

I hadn’t considered the role reversal to this extent until I read this blog.  It made me stop and think. I love strong female characters – in movies and in books.  And once I started researching about the differences between male and female action heroes I couldn’t stop.  There are huge differences! Male action heroes have a tendency to use brute force and heavy handed moves to make their desired end result happen.  According to this article, an investigation that the Henry J. Kaiser Foundation has carried out, only 19% of female characters in films used physical force while the male did in 53% of the times.

The articles and research I studied all agreed that female action heroes use their mind to get what they wanted first – they only resorted to physical violence when everything else has failed.  So women tend to use their brain first.  Gotta love it.  Women action heroes also show their feelings in movies and in books.  Compassion is also another trait shown by women and not just to their friends but also to their enemies.  It’s part of the female psyche and it works in these mediums to show that part of their nature.  Not so much for the males.

Women are allowed to and do cry in movies – even action superwomen.  They don’t cry like a weeping damsel in distress during the main fight scenes, instead they show tears up or cry and rage at injustices.  These actions actually help to round out the character and instead of feeling like the character wimped out on us as we might if a man had been doing the crying, we applaud her for being true to herself, and we pull for her even more.

Women have held high positions in the past but more a reverent type of powerful level than on a physical level.  Let’s be real our DNA is different.  We aren’t as strong or as big as our male counterparts.  But women of today are being trained better and we are seeing more and more women stepping into powerful roles.  In our books and movies, we are almost inundated with them.  The potential list is unbelievable.  I’ve always been a big fan of Ripley in the Alien series, Alice in the Resident Evil series or how about Selene from Underworld and then there’s the Laura Croft movies.

All of these women used their wits, their skills and their fighting skills when in a corner.  They also took care of those that needed them.  Ripley protected the child Newt in the second movie.  Alice cared for Angie. A distinctly female trait.  Have you ever seen an action heroine drag a child around the world saving others?  No.  Not likely because that wouldn’t be true to form for women.  Look at the cartoon move the Incredible.  Before Mrs. Incredible has a family, she gives up on being a superhero.  She doesn’t willingly drag her kids into the action – they hide away and get into all their own.

If you haven’t seen Salt yet – do.  I loved it.  Angelina plays another strong kick-ass female role that offers twists and surprises along the way.  However, Salt is smart, in control, and has no problem getting down and dirty to get what she wants.  Apparently the original character was supposed to be male until Angelina Jolie showed an interest in the role.  The character was also supposed to have a child.  However, that was changed as Jolie couldn’t see a woman having a child in that position.  The audience still has certain expectations that must be met!

In whatever we write, it’s important to have the audience relate.  If we need them to suspend belief in one area then we have to make it easy for them by making the actions believable and true to the character.

What about you?  What female action heroines do you like?  Males? Do you prefer to read (or write) about kick ass characters?  Or kick ass heroes?