New Release! Stolen Wife by Carina Blake!

I’ll do whatever it takes to get her in my arms, even kill my brother.

 I’ll do everything in my power to destroy all who came between us.

 The second I held the wedding photo of Giada with my brother, my revenge became tainted with possessiveness so profound that I grew colder. Calculating. Obsessed.

 I’d do anything to get my desire. To taste her.

 Giada is mine, and it didn’t matter the how or why, because she just is. I'll play her name in my head—my sirens song—as I remove her from my brother’s grasp and take her for my own.

 One by one, I’d get my vendetta on those who sent me away while claiming what was never theirs.

 

Buy Links:

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Excerpt:

I wake up groggily with my head fuzzy, but from the looks of it unharmed. Maybe last night had all been a dream. Did I really dream about Santino kissing me? I’m glad Rafael didn’t come in and hear me if I did. I roll over onto my back when I hit a large frame. A frame much larger than Rafael’s. I reach out and feel a muscular chest. I open my eyes and see Santino with his elbow propping him up as he looks at me.

“Good morning.” The smile on his face almost makes me forget the danger we’re in.

“Good morning? Are you nuts? What are you doing in my bed? Rafael will kill you. Oh my goodness. I wasn’t dreaming.” My heart’s racing as fast as my mind is. I can already picture Rafael and his goons busting down the doors and shooting up the place on principle alone. Or maybe they’ll just torture us to death. I look into his eyes and all I see is mirth, which pisses me off as much as it turns me on.

“You thought you dreamed of me, baby?” He slides his hand over my hip and under my nightgown. My skin tingles from the gentle grip he exerts. God, how am I getting turned on?

It makes me mad how hot he is, and I become flustered with his touch. I shove his hand away and glare at him. “That’s not what I meant.”

“It doesn’t matter. You’re not in your bed at the compound. You’re in our bed in my home.”

“What?” I flip around and look. This isn’t my room. The room is made of clean lines, greyish-blue walls with a large television mounted to the wall. I’m confused and taken aback by this. Slamming my eyes shut, I take several deep breaths and then pinch myself.

“You’re not dreaming. I took you, and you’re here. End of story.” He sits up in the bed, and it’s the first time I notice that he’s ripped from his shoulders down to his…oh my goodness. He’s extremely hard right now. I turn to look away. “Are you hungry?”

“I’m not sure,” I respond with a barely audible whisper. My confusion has only grown. I stand to get some space between us and then it dawns on me that I’m not in my nightgown anymore. Instead, I’m in a big tee shirt with my hard nipples pressing against the letters.

“You took off my clothes? Are you trying to get us killed?” I cover my chest, like it does me any good. The man took off my clothes last night. Did he do anything else to me?

“I’m not afraid of any of them. And yes. Do you think I’d let you wear something my brother probably has fucked you in? I don’t want anything of his tainting my home.” I’m seeing a change in his mood. His temper’s slipping past that cool, calm, sexy façade. It’s as if my heart’s breaking, which makes absolutely no sense since I’ve never had a chance for love to come and tear it apart.

I glare at him and test his actions. I have to know who I’m dealing with. “Well, then, I should go, since I’m his.” He jumps off the bed and crosses the distance between us. Unable to stop myself, I flinch, waiting to feel the sting. He’s much larger than his brother and father, and I know this will hurt more, and not only physically.

“I’m not him and you’re not his,” he growls, dragging me with one arm around my waist and the other in my hair. His mouth slams down on mine. God, that kiss had been real. Before I can melt into him, he pushes off of me.

“That was wrong,” I say as I watch him get dressed. Santino slips on a white undershirt and a pair of grey dress slacks before sliding on a crisp white dress shirt.

He turns around to face me with the shirt still wide open. I’m amazed by the feral look in his eyes. From head to toe this man is perfection, but his mouth on mine was the most insanely sexy thing in the world I’ve ever experienced.

He stalks toward me, but this time I don’t flinch because I’m ridiculously hoping for another kiss. He tips my chin with his thick thumb, pulling my bottom lip from under the grip of my upper teeth. “Felt fucking right to me.” My body heats up and I breathily look up into his eyes that are trained to my lips, waiting for more. Instead, he steps back and says, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a call to make. Please eat.” He points to the trays on the table that’s in the middle of the room.

“So you’re going to leave me up here locked away?” I ask, changing one cell for another.

“Damn right,” he growls, nodding his head as he grabs his phone and gun.

 

Social Media Links:

Email: carinablakewriter@gmail.com

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Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Carina-Blake/e/B088SGRYWL

 

 

The Evernighties Weekly Blog Challenge - Week 26

Your Characters: Full Figured or Always Slim?

The title of this challenge may target "characters" but it's really about the heroine. Unfortunately, we still have a stigma about the size of women, perpetuated by a myth that only thin women are sexy. There are some authors out there that are trying to break that stereotype, like Sam Crescent, who's heroines are always full figured. She's found a niche in the genre that had been overlooked, and women flock to her books for great story-telling and relatable heroines living out a fantasy.

Most of the time I try to write normal females, which the average weight is about a size 12, but sometimes you have to write what the story dictates. For instance, if you're writing an apocalypse story, where food is scarce, more than likely you're not going to have a heroine that's full figured. And on the flip-side of that, think of the movie "Wall-E"...where everyone lived on floating platforms and never walked. Evolution diminished their bones and rendered them large people unable to get up if they fell off their beds.  

The way your characters look in context of your story is just as important as their mental and emotional development. If you're writing a historical, set in the past, the women back then were shorter and thin. Modern day has brought processed food, ready made deserts, and a softer living...so if your heroine is from the 1700s, thin is more appropriate for that time period.

The Evernighties Weekly Blog Challenge - Week 25

Your Characters - How do you Build them & Flesh them out?

Character development has be organic. A lot of the time, I will have an entire background of a character fleshed out before I begin writing him or her. These little details, although they may be unimportant to the overall story, does help bring definition to your character.

The best way to write a story is to establish motivation. If a hero/heroine is angry, then why? If they're seeking revenge...why? You can apply this question to every emotion and facet of your character and this gives depth to any situation. It's what readers want and what they expect.  Characters should have flaws, whether or not they are physical imperfections or emotional, because scars give context. No one is cookie-cutter perfect.

So here's where I plug one of my books by giving an example.  In my latest story Come With Me, the heroine Lainey has survived for a year in the apocalypse because she'd been alone her whole life. She grew up in the foster care system, never had anyone close, so when a virus comes along to wipe out humanity, she has the tools in place to survive by getting away from everything and every body. She doesn't need human interaction because of the tools she learned growing up.

When you write a story like that, you have to ask yourself lots of questions. Why was she in the foster care system? What career could she take on that reflects her isolation? Is she capable of taking a life? Does her background make her stronger in this area but weaker in others? 

Another way to flesh out your characters is to place yourself in their shoes. If I were Lainey, what would I do? 

The key to character development is really thinking about their motives. You can NEVER overthink. If your characters are real to you then they'll be real for your readers.

The Evernighties Weekly Blog Challenge - Week 24

Favorite Charity and Why...

My favorite charities involve animal rescue. I have one on my blog that I raise money for. I abhor people who abuse defenseless animals, and only a real psychopath can stare into the face of a creature in pain and not feel anything. 

Right now I'm not in the position to offer shelter or fostering, but I hope to one day be able to have a large enough place to help animals in need. 

Flashback Friday ... Lily Roar

Lily is the link to ending the human trafficking ring. Now Branch and Charlie must do all they can to protect her.

Book four in the Red Wolves Motorcycle Club series

Lily has almost given up believing she can escape from the clutches of the Master, the man who holds her as a sex slave in his mansion of degradation. When she has the opportunity to flee, she races into the night with a crippling fear that she could be captured.

Branch Barrigan, the enforcer of the Red Wolves Motorcycle Club, and Deputy Charlie Earenflight might be on opposite sides of the law, but they don’t hesitate to punish those who hurt women. Branch and Charlie make a pact to hunt down the head of the human trafficking organization. When they find Lily, they are unaware she’s the link they’ve been searching for.

The two men do all they can to protect her. In the process, they come to love her quiet strength. But Lily needs to learn to roar if she’s to survive the pain of her past and confront the evil that can rob her of a future.

"FiveStars
Loved this book just as much as the last one. I really enjoy Beth's writing style."

"This story has a bit of everything, action, drama, interesting character backgrounds and scorching hot sex scenes."

AMAZON * TOTALLY BOUND * BARNES & NOBLE

The Evernighties Weekly Blog Challenge - Week 23

Ever Been Through a Renovation (or watched one on TV)? Your Thoughts...

Why yes! I've done a home renovation plus I watch them all the time on HGTV. I actually like learning about home renovations. Back when I was in high school my mother decided to redo our bathroom. I lived in a three bedroom, one bathroom house. We didn't actually change the layout of the bathroom, but we did repaint and add shelves. Here's a pic of me scraping the old (probably lead) paint off the walls:

I think mom and I painted it a bluish-grey color with white trim. Big improvement from this dingy yellow. BTW, yellow is my least favorite color. Mike and I like watching home renovations on tv and we always discuss our own tastes. I dislike the modern, sterile décor that seems to be popular. I prefer color. My dream kitchen would be gunpowder grey cabinets and a backsplash design of red tile, with white quartz countertops.  

I would also like a place to store appliances. I detest having small appliances sitting on my counters, taking up space. I understand they are a necessity, but there's got to be a better way to display them. 

One day I'd like to have a home Mike and I can renovate into our own dream place.