Humorous Hump Day Hook! March 20th

Thanks to everyone who visited with me on my Lucky in Love Blog Hop!  I had some great responses on what makes a hero yummy!  I wish I could have everyone be a winner but alas, I could only pick one…So congrats to Book Attict! 

Please stop back next month for The Tortured Hero Blog Hop!  My newest book, Otherworldly, will be released April 11^th (see below for the blurb), and the winner will get a chance to win it!

For this week’s Hump Day Hook, I wanted to spotlight some of the humor that I’ve incorporated into the McKnight, Perth & Daire stories.

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Charlotte slipped into the bathroom, checked to make sure she was alone, and then went into a stall and locked the door. Then she pulled out her cell phone and called her sister.

“Hey,” Holly greeted. “Are you on your way home?”

“No, new development,” Charlotte whispered.

“Why are you whispering?” Holly whispered back.

“I’m in a bathroom stall,” Charlotte said. “Why are you whispering?”

There was a slight pause. “I don’t know,” she finally said in her normal voice. “Why did you call me from the bathroom, or do I want to know?”

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Charlotte Perth is all about sass because her job is reminds her all too well the limits of human life.  She’s clairvoyant but her gift is unique.  She can only summon murdered souls and interprets the visions they send her.  When she’s hired by a wealthy woman to determine the fate of her great nephew, little does Charlotte realize this is one ghost that refuses to cross over.

Detective Jonas Daire feels Charlotte is a fake, out to swindle money from his rich aunt.  When Charlotte proclaims the nephew is not only dead but has been murdered, Jonas feels especially disgusted at Charlotte’s “profession”.  But when his cousin’s body is discovered in the place that she said it would be, with detailed accounts of how he died, he places her under suspicion. 

Jonas and Charlotte work together to find the killer.  As the two grow closer together, another malevolent force won’t stop until the truth is buried…until Charlotte’s ghostly visions are her own.

Otherworldly (Book 1 in the McKnight, Perth & Daire trilogy) comes out April 11^th! 

Make sure to check out the other Hump Day Hook paragraphs at: http://humpdayhook.blogspot.co.uk/

What Makes a Yummy Hero?

How can some authors write a handsome hero character that doesn’t push our Oh-la-la buttons and others write heroes that make us wish we were the heroine, pulsing and panting after the drop-dead-gorgeous hunk coming to life through pages?  I’ve read hundreds, thousands, of romances and yet there are only a handful of books I’ve kept because I want to lose myself within the pages time and time again.

"Ladies: An intelligent man will open your mind, a handsome man will open your eyes, and a gentleman will open your heart."  -Unknown

You can ask fifty different women what brand shampoo they use and you’ll get fifty different answers.  Heroes are no different.  I had an epiphany the other day about what makes a hero yummy…for myself.  

"I am as I am; whether hideous, or handsome, depends upon who is made to judge." -Herman Melville

The Bad Boy. Yes, that’s what I like.  A playboy, a man whore, a player…all who falls so in love with the girl that they are “reformed”.  Clichéd, I know, but what can I say?  My first bad boy love was Jason (#2) from the cartoon/anime Battle of the Planets when I was six years old.  I wanted Han Solo over Luke Skywalker because I loved every time he said something snarky to Princess Leia.  I love reading from the perspective of the man, going through his thoughts as he segues from self-depreciation to overwhelming need for his lady.  He’s still a bad boy…but just a fiercely devoted bad boy.

"Girls like bad boys because they think they can 'fix them', but they're not a broken car and you're no mechanic."    -Unknown

I’m still a relatively new author, one who really hasn’t found her niche.  But a nice yummy hero is what every author strives to present, one that grabs the read and makes some hearts swoon.  An unforgettable hero, heart stopping adventure…Yum. 
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Thanks for visiting me this weekend!  For a chance to win a free PDF ebook, winner's choice, of any of my titles, just leave a comment about what makes a hero yummy for you!  My trusty assistant (AKA: son) will pick a winner on Tuesday the 19th, so make sure to leave a way to contact you!  Also, please visit the others in the blog hop for a chance to win some great prizes!
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Book Review – Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

Print books can cost a helluva lot of money so when I buy one, I’m very careful to read all the reviews.  When I came across Wallbanger the premise intrigued me (so did the cover!) so I took a chance and bought it.  Published by Omnific, the book is 302 pages of roughly 490 words a page.  Yes, it’s a firmly condensed book, heavy but very worth the $19.99 price tag.

I want to point out that I really loved this book.  But to give a book review, I have to be fair, so I need to point out the bad and the good.  For me, the first forty-six pages of this book left me bored.  I would read a page or two and the crassness of the main character, Caroline, didn’t click with me.  But once Caroline and Simon finally met THEN I got invested and it was a hilarious ride.  So, let me go back and give a brief summery of what this book is about:

Caroline, an interior designer, moves into a new apartment, sublet from her boss.  She doesn’t know how very thin the walls are until that night and moans and thumps come from her neighbor.  She hears everything.  In fact, the wall is banging so hard it knocks her pictures off the wall.  This happens for three nights with three different girls.  By this time, Caroline is pissed because she hasn’t had any sleep (the banging goes on all night long).  So, dressed in a little pink nightie, she marches over to his place, bangs on his door and is confronted by a still turned on gorgeous man named Simon Parker.  Needless to say, this confrontation does start out too well and the war is on.

Wallbanger is written in first person, mainly from Caroline’s POV, although there are a few instances where we get some other head input.  This is my first Alice Clayton novel and I have to admit I loved her writing style, most of it I was laughing out loud.  I’m a sucker for dry humor and the wit and banter portrayed is a page turner.  I consumed the book in two nights!  Here are some of my favorite lines:

p.213  He was wooing me.  And I was letting him woo.  I wanted the woo.  I deserved the woo.  I needed the wow that would surely follow the woo, but for now, the woo?  It was whoa.

p.225 Could I spend a little more time trying to come up with a more clever name for Simon’s penis?  Probably.  It deserved it.  Mammoth Male Member?  No.  Pulsating Pillar of Passion?  No.  Back Door Bandit?  Hell no.  Wang?  Sounded like the noise those doorstopper things made when you flicked ‘em…

            I said it out loud to myself a few times, cracking myself up a little.  “Wang.  Wang.  Waaaang,” I muttered.

The texting between them is fantastic.  I was laughing so hard I was almost crying.  Chapter Nine is almost nothing but texting and Alice Clayton is brilliant with the dialogue.  The secondary characters are brilliantly written and really support the relationship that is building between Simon and Caroline.  There is so much in this book, so many little nuances, and yet everything flows very well together. 

Of course, with all stories of two strong headed misjudged people, they get into a fight and I found the fight that split Caroline and Simon apart for a time not quite believable.  I understood it, but I think it could have been written a little more strongly.  And the end dragged a little for me.  I kept waiting for that moment when I’m swept away but I didn’t really get it.  Through the whole book Caroline was missing her O (orgasm) and when the moment finally came for her and Simon to get it on, she ended up faking it.  Then, when he really gives it to her (and I mean in a very good way, this way and that) I expected to be swept into the O just like Caroline, but that moment sorta fell flat to me.  It was more comedic because she was baking and flour, honey, sugar, raisins, dough, go everywhere.  Everywhere! 

But I got my happy ending, as did Caroline (finally!) and I loved it.  This book is definitely going into my library as a keeper. 

Hump Day Hook- March 6th

I’ve been working hard on edits for Otherworldly, my new novel coming from Siren Publishing on April 11^th.  I’m so excited!  My editor has been fantastic and I think the book is really polished now. 

I decided for this Hump Day Hook to highlight a paragraph from Otherworldly.  I know I’ve posted excerpts before but I wanted to post from one of the edits.  Next week I’ll be participating in the Lucky in Love Blog Hop and I’ll be blogging about what makes a hero yummy.  So I wanted to give the hero of this book, Jonas Daire, a chance to shine. 

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She lay half draped over his waist which allowed his one good hand to run down her back.  She’d worn a tank top and tiny, frilly panties to sleep in.  His fingers were just able to stroke the soft skin where her ass cheeks played peek-a-boo with the elastic and her body shivered against him and it wasn’t because she was cold.  Knowing she was awake and knowing he had the power to make her shiver sent his libido into overdrive.  Heat flooded through him, causing his dick to spring to life.  He wanted her.  Holy Christ, he wanted her.  Would there ever be a time when he didn’t want her?

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Make sure to check out the others in the Hump Day Hook at: http://kerriannecoombes.wordpress.com/

Don’t forget to come back to my blog site for a chance to win one of my ebook novels during the Lucky in Love Blog Hop.  Plus my new novel, Otherworldly (McKnight, Perth & Daire 1), coming out April 11^th.

Blurb:  Charlotte Perth is all about sass because her job is reminds her all too well the limits of human life.  She’s clairvoyant but her gift is unique.  She can only summon murdered souls and interprets the visions they send her.  When she’s hired by a wealthy woman to determine the fate of her great nephew, little does Charlotte realize this is one ghost that refuses to cross over.

Detective Jonas Daire feels Charlotte is a fake, out to swindle money from his rich aunt.  When Charlotte proclaims the nephew is not only dead but has been murdered, Jonas feels especially disgusted at Charlotte’s “profession”.  But when his cousin’s body is discovered in the place that she said it would be, with detailed accounts of how he died, he places her under suspicion. 

Jonas and Charlotte work together to find the killer.  As the two grow closer together, another malevolent force won’t stop until the truth is buried…until Charlotte’s ghostly visions are her own.

Otherworldly Blurb

Today, Friday the 1st of March, I have nothing to bitch about! 

I discovered two new authors and I can’t wait until I have enough money to devour all their books.  I just read Breathe and Fallen Too Far from Abbi Glines and The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden by Jessica Sorensen…and love their style of writing!  I love angst!  The books have sequels, of course, but I like following characters I’ve come to love.

I saw a poll on Jessica Sorensen’s blog site that asked readers which paranormal creature they like reading about the most.  Vampires were the number one, followed by Witches, Fairies, and Ghosts.  I was surprised werewolves weren’t in there.  I’m hoping that people like ghost stories because I’m busy editing my first ghost story titled “Otherworldly”.  It’s book one in a trilogy titled McKnight, Perth & Daire.

Here’s the blurb:

Charlotte Perth is all about sass because her job is reminds her all too well the limits of human life.  She’s clairvoyant but her gift is unique.  She can only summon murdered souls and interprets the visions they send her.  When she’s hired by a wealthy woman to determine the fate of her great nephew, little does Charlotte realize this is one ghost that refuses to cross over.

Detective Jonas Daire feels Charlotte is a fake, out to swindle money from his rich aunt.  When Charlotte proclaims the nephew is not only dead but has been murdered, Jonas feels especially disgusted at Charlotte’s “profession”.  But when his cousin’s body is discovered in the place that she said it would be, with detailed accounts of how he died, he places her under suspicion. 

Jonas and Charlotte work together to find the killer.  As the two grow closer together, another malevolent force won’t stop until the truth is buried…until Charlotte’s ghostly visions are her own.

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The release date is April 11^th!  Look for a give-a-way!  And on that note, stop by on March 15^th for the Lucky In Love Blog Hop!