Celebrate Friday the 13th, a Full Moon & Fantastic 99¢ Sale!
Friday, September 13th will be extra spooky this week in the Pacific, Central and Mountain time zones . The date associated with bad luck and haunted houses coincides with the full harvest moon creating a perfect storm for the superstitious! I’m not one of those, I long ago embraced Friday the 13th, and all things thirteen probably because it wasn’t done in my household. My mom was the queen of superstitious. She avoided ladders, tossed salt over her shoulder when she spilled some, never broke a mirror to my recollection, and would walk or drive blocks out of her way to avoid allowing a black cat to cross her path. Until that fateful day I brought home the cutest solid black kitten with the bluest eyes. Named him Panther after my high school mascot. He blessed us with his presence for twenty-two years. I miss that cat! LOL
Did you know that the full moon is called a harvest moon this time of year because the full moon is so bright the farmers can finish harvesting their crops by moonlight. Yep, so says the Farmer’s Almanac.
FYI – For you statistic types, The last time a full moon rose on Friday the 13th was October 13, 2000. The next time the spooky Friday the 13th falls under a full moon will be August 2049.
Click on cover to read more or purchase!
To celebrate, my Raven Award Finalist, AN ANGEL’S UNINTENTIONAL ENTANGLEMENT is on sale for 99 cents. You can’t beat that with a witch’s hat or an angel’s halo. Talk about good luck! LOL
After you chase a black cat that cut in front of you under the ladder and avoid the shards of glass from a shattered mirror you dropped, leave your ordinary world behind. Change your luck and be swept away into a magical, romantic fantasy adventure with an angel you’ll never want to leave. You don’t even have to leave your house, download your copy today. http://a.co/agG8vn2
A little about the award winning novel. Where Warrior Angel, Caden goes, trouble follows until he discovers a badly beaten woman barely clinging to life. Unprepared for the entanglement she brings to his doorstep, will he move heaven and earth to save her?
Sneak peek between the pages of AN ANGEL’S UNINTENTIONAL ENTANGLEMENT:
Screams of terror accompanied by mournful howls pierced the crisp night air as Caden Silverwind settled into his chair in front of the crackling campfire. Shadows from the flames danced across the dark tree trunks, curling and twisting in mesmerizing shapes. Caden had heard it all before, but tonight the usual ceremonial chants ended with menacing growls then sudden eerie silence, rather than the quiet winding down of previous nights.
Maybe he should investigate the unearthly sounds that echoed against the canyon walls, but he just couldn’t. The last battle with dark demons had nearly destroyed his body and shattered his soul. Once shimmering marble-gray wings, now hung charcoal black with his muscles barely able to bring them forth from his back to brush the air without severe pain and fatigue.
Against the advice of his superiors, he chose an indefinite sabbatical in the Colorado Rockies. Their rugged strength and majestic beauty allowed him the serenity to pick up the pieces, face his own fears, and contemplate the future, if there was one.
Enjoy your Friday the Thirteenth under the full harvest moon. Won’t happen again until 2049!
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Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged ANgel, Friday the 13th, Full Moon, Harvest Moon 99 cent sale, Shapeshifters, Tena Stetler by Tena Stetler with 2 comments.
Fortune’s Folly, by Author Cat Dubie an Interview
Give a warm welcome to Cat Dubie, author of Fortune’s Folly. Pull up a chair, grab a drink of your choice from the cooler, a Chocolate Chip or Peanut Butter cookie from the plate, and let’s find out a little about Cat and Fortune’s Folly.
Who would you recommend this book to and what should readers be aware of before reading it?
I’d recommend this book to those who enjoy historical fiction with a strong heroine, a strong conflict, and several spicy love scenes. Add a handful of supporting characters leading complicated lives whose stories intercept hers. There’s no HEA as that will occur in the sequel.
How long have you been writing?
I began writing in grade school, starting with poems, then short stories, longer stories, and novels. Set everything aside for a few years while I was raising a family, but as the kids got older and I had more time, the slumbering itch, the need returned.
What do you want your readers to take away from your books?
I’d love readers to close the book and think, “wow, what a story!” And if they aren’t wowed, I’d hope they connected somehow with the characters or the story essence, were entertained, or learned something new.
What’s your approach to writing? Are you a plotter or follow your characters flow (Pantser)?
Although not strict about it, I’m more of a plotter. My best plotting method is to create a timeline. This contains information on the characters—name, date of birth, place of birth, etc. Then the date on which the story starts, a brief line about events, and onto the next date/scene.
SPEED ROUND
Favorite movie: A Christmas Carol [the 1951 one with Alastair Sim] — a staple at our place.
Favorite book: To Kill a Mockingbird
Last book read: Against the Storm by Kat Martin
Favorite color: blue
Stilettos or flipflops: flipflops
Coffee or tea: coffee
Ebook or audiobook or paperback: Ebook
Pencil or pen: pen
Favorite song: The Alluvial Plains by Colin Chin
Streak or not: not
Favorite dessert: Tiramisu
Favorite junk food: pretzels
Favorite thing to do to relax: read
Champagne or gin: champagne
Paranormal or Historical: historical
Wonder Woman or Top Model: Wonder Woman
Favorite TV show: Criminal Minds
Hot or cold: cold
POV: 3rd person
I’d die if I don’t have: Wi-Fi
Review or Not: yes
Tell us a little about Fortune’s Folly.
In 1867, Eden Fitzgerald marries, not for love or money, but to persuade her influential in-laws to obtain her father’s release from a contrived prison sentence. Cleverly evading those who believe she, like her father, is a smuggler and Fenian collaborator, Eden does what she can, what she must to achieve her goal. When legal methods are exhausted, she dons a mask, carries a pistol and, using her wiles, wits, even her seductive beauty, robs wealthy citizens to amass enough money to arrange her father’s escape.
Her life grows ever more complicated by the lustful attentions of several men who profess to love her, and the one man she loves but dares not trust. As her crimes worsen, culminating in what may be treason, and her enemies grow more dangerous and determined to apprehend her, she must run for her own freedom.
A peek between the pages of Fortune’s Folly.
Jack Carver’s bearded face appeared when he brought the flame to the stub of his cigar. Eden clenched her teeth. Was this her moment of truth? His gaze shifted and he stiffened, tossed the match, stomped it out. “Anyone following you?”
Muffled footfalls now sounded an irregular pace: three steps, pause, three steps, pause. She whispered, “Yes.”
“Meet me tomorrow at this address.” He gave her a scrap of paper. She crumpled it into her reticule, and when she looked up, he was gone.
Moment of truth averted. She released her breath and moved to the right as Flynn had instructed. With skirts bunched over one arm, she advanced until faint lights materialized at the end of the lane. She stepped into a puddle. Hopefully rain.
The footsteps began again, the stealthy gait of a hunter. Had she dodged one bad fate for another? She darted across the lane and flattened herself against the wall of a building, slid along its rough length and edged into a recessed doorway.
A hand covered her mouth, an arm pulled her backward through a door that had opened without sound and closed the same way. A key turned in the lock. Unable to see anything, her heart thundering, she dug her nails into her assailant’s hand and bit at his fingers.
“Behave yourself,” Alex Banning breathed in her ear. “Don’t make a sound or Cavendish will hear you.”
Her instant relief she wasn’t about to be attacked by a ghoulish murderer was tempered with dread. Alex was the last person she had expected—or wanted—to see. He released her and she took a shivery breath. Someone thumped on the door, shook the handle. Low mutters, then footsteps faded.
Alex moved to the door and listened. “He’s gone. Let’s go.”
He unlocked the door. Eden held back. “Wait. Why are you here? Why is he here?”
“No time to chat. Keep behind me, close to the shadows. Your gown is a damn beacon.”
She crossed her arms. “I’ll not go anywhere with you.”
“You have no choice. You’re my prisoner.”
He opened the door, seized her wrist and charged toward the lighted street. She lifted her skirts again to keep from dragging them through filth. Without pause he hustled across the thoroughfare into another stinking alley. She was hot and out of breath when he stopped by a rickety wagon hitched to an ancient nag.
Their dash across the street revealed a man who looked nothing like the fastidious Captain she remembered. Unkempt hair, ragged beard, shapeless and threadbare clothes—a disguise? He tugged a cap over his head and lifted the wagon seat. “Get in there.”
Astonished and unnerved, she stared at the narrow box. “No. No, I won’t.”
Without a word, he hoisted her into the space. She banged elbows and shoulders, and scrambled to sweep up her voluminous skirts. He tucked in loose flounces and lowered the seat, leaving her in darkness. A tight confined darkness.
The wagon creaked and groaned when Alex settled on the seat. He rapped it with his fist. “Everything all right in there?”
“Of course not.” The words fell back at her from the wood, perhaps four inches from her face. Little cracks admitted glimmers of light, and the feeling of being in a coffin faded. But where was he taking her? Was she truly his prisoner? If so, what did he want?
Would she be locked away, imprisoned like Da? What would happen to her boys? Her innocent babies…
No. No panic. They were Fontaines and would be taken care of. And she meant to get free, no matter how many new lies she had to tell Alex.
The wagon jerked forward. “Keep still. This won’t be long.
Buy links:
Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SXBZBM2
About the Author:
Cat Dubie was the girl who always had her nose in a book, the one who read with a flashlight under the covers or, when the moon was full, sat by a window for hours laughing, crying, loving characters whose adventurous lives wouldn’t let her sleep.
She has traveled the world in books. She has traveled back to the dawn of time and far into the future in books. Her keen interest in history determined the nature of her books, and the first Historical romance novel she read, settled the genre.
After working for various levels of government, she retired and now lives in the beautiful province of British Columbia, where she indulges in her need for creating stories about romance, adventure, passion, mystery, love …
social media sites:
https://www.facebook.com/Cat-Dubie-Romance-Writer-1686578678099306/?modal=admin_todo_tour
@CatDubie https://twitter.com/catdubie?lang=en
https://www.instagram.com/catdubie/
https://www.pinterest.ca/catdubie/
Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17284451.Cat_Dubie
Blog
https://catdubie.blogspot.ca
Buy links:
Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SXBZBM2
It was wonderful having you with us today. Please feel free to stop by anytime. Good Luck with Fortune’s Folly!
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Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged Cat Dubie, Fortune's Folly, Historical Romance by Tena Stetler with 4 comments.
Dreams of a Fierce Heart Interview Author Danube Adele
Give a warm welcome to Danube Adele, author of Dreams of a Fierce Heart, Dreamwalkers Book Four.
Pull up a chair, grab a drink of your choice from the cooler, a Chocolate Chip or Peanut Butter cookie from the plate, and let’s find out a little about Danube Adele and her Dreams ofa Fierce Heart!
Who is your favorite character of all of the books you’ve written and Why?
All of my characters whisper in my ear, desiring their happy ever after, and after getting to know them, and know their struggles, I love them all. I work closely with them to understand who they are and what they need, so they all hold a special place in my heart. However, there is one character who sticks out for me, and that is Taylor Lane. She was my first wholly imagined character from my first ever book, Quicksilver Dreams, Book 1 of the Dreamwalkers series. She was a force to be reckoned with, the reason why this entire series was possible. She had just enough “in your face” bravado mixed with sweet vulnerability, and I knew I needed to help her find her way home. She was also the realization that I could sustain a compelling story and maybe dare to call myself a writer.
How long have you been writing?
There’s hardly been a time that I can’t remember having a love of writing. I think of all the ways and means that I tried to get someone to read my work and cringe inwardly because I was relentless. I was that girl who sat in class with my spiral-bound notebook neatly tucked within my binder, writing out my teenage fantasies, and it was great because it looked to the rest of the world like I was taking great notes on the lesson, you know? I was writing so diligently during the teacher’s instruction that anyone might have thought I was a star pupil. Of course, little did anyone know I was daydreaming on paper. Once, I wrote this long, seven or eight page outline and asked a teacher to look at it for me. She was very sweet. On top of her own workload, she took the time to read and give me good advice about not making a plot too obvious. Definitely, my mother was my first editor. I often took my stories to her. She was one of the first people to help me learn that I could edit a sentence to make it more exciting.
Do you see yourself in your characters?
Some of my characters share my values, and some have character traits I wish I could take on. For instance, there is a character in one of my new books that has no filter. She is outlandish in what she says, without remorse, because she has no filter. There are times I wish I were more like that.
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
I’ve always enjoyed going camping and hiking with my boys and my husband. Some of our regular stomping grounds are Joshua Tree, Carpinteria, and Mammoth Mountain. We’ve had the waves knock us around at Hermosa Beach when the surf was rough. Additionally, road trips have been a thing that led us not only to hiking and river rafting in Colorado and New Mexico, but it also led us clear up to Glacier National Park in Montana where we gamboled with mountain goats. The common denominator here is that we all spend time together attacking each new adventure. That’s what I like to do when I’m not writing.
A sneak peek between the pages of Dreams of a Fierce Heart.
“I’m not your problem. I’m not forcing you to stay. I didn’t ask you to do anything. You’re welcome to go finish your playdate with Ryder as far as I’m concerned. I didn’t invite you to sit at my table.” My own heart, acting like an innocent bystander, stuttered with dismay at my harsh words. It ached, squeezing painfully against my chest, but I needed to desensitize it. My heart was not in charge. It hadn’t been for years. If I was really going to move on, this had to be part of my therapy.
Nick stared at me in silence for a few moments, his gray eyes roaming my face briefly, searching for something. Whatever he saw prompted him to say in an undertone, “You need a keeper.”
“And if I did, it wouldn’t be you, Papa Bear.”
“Stop calling me that,” he snapped. “I’m not trying to father you.”
“The hell you aren’t. I’m having a perfectly nice time with a good guy, and you come stomping over and puff out your chest. You don’t have the right to tell anyone else whether I have plans for the night, and you sure as hell don’t have the right to threaten a guy with violence because he’s into me.”
“What does it matter? It’s not like you can date him. You don’t live near him.” He didn’t deny any of it. Wasn’t the least bit repentant.
I gave him my best, wicked smile, knowing this would thoroughly piss him off. “Maybe I just wanted to have sex with him. Sometimes, a girl needs a little skin-on-skin. Some body heat.”
His blue eyes turned glacial, flicking over the bodice of my dress where I’d grown more cleavage since my seventeenth year; his nostrils flared, and anger put a snarl to his words. “And we all know you aren’t shy about propositioning yourself.”
My smile never faltered when his poisonous dart hit the bullseye, but I had no control over the long-ago humiliation that washed my skin in violent, crimson shades, which he noted with a sudden frown, like he was about to take it back, but screw him. Throwing that in my face after all this time made my heart clench with a sense of betrayal. I kept my voice as light as I could, trying to brush it off. “That’s right. I did offer up panties to you long ago. I’d forgotten about that. How embarrassing, right? Because I’m like your sister.” I almost pulled it off but for the last word. My voice cracked, and the feeling of utter foolishness, something I was all too familiar with in relation to him, left me exposed.
About the Author:
It was wonderful having you with us today. Please feel free to stop by anytime. Good Luck with Dreams of a Fierce Heart!
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Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged Danube Adelle, Dreams of a Fierce Heart, Dreamwalkers Book FOur, Paranormal/Contemporary/Sci-fi Romance by Tena Stetler with comments disabled.
Books I Keep Meaning to Read #L&SR #WednesdayBlogChallenge 9-11-19
Books I Keep Meaning to Read (but haven’t) #L&SR #WednesdayBlogChallenge 9-11-19
Welcome to #L&SR’s #Wednesday’s Blog Challenge, Books I Keep Meaning to Read (but haven’t). Well the list is so long that I won’t burden you with them all. Sticking to only four, one being a series of seventeen books. Wow now that is biting off more than I can chew…I mean read.
Whuthering Heights – As the housekeeper sits and knits she spins the tale of the tempestuous love story of Cathy and Heathcliff, slowly but surely you are pulled in to all the machinations that the Lintons and Earnshaws and the orphan Heathcliff engage in across the cold, damp, windswept moors of the Yorkshire estate.
Okay now I remember why I haven’t gotten around to read it. One has to wonder state of mind Emily Bronte was in when she wrote the turbulent tale in 1847.
The Black Dagger Brotherhood Series by J.R. Ward. It’s my understanding there are currently 17 books in the series. That is a daunting task for a writer, with reviews due and deadlines looming. But….
Some of my books have been compared to hers several times by readers and reviewers. Are they crazy? So it’s time to check out just how tempting the night can be in these Black Dagger Brotherhood books. And whether there is any truth to the comparisons. One can only hope.
I have purchased the books so that is a step in the right direction, don’t you think?
Yes of course, my old standby, Molly Harper has a new book out, Silkies Are a Girl’s Best Friend, newest book from the Mystic Bayou Series. It’s on audiobook, so I stand a better than average chance of getting this one read or to be exactly correct, listened to in the near future. Is that cheating? Depending on the looming deadlines. LOL
Vendetta in Death, – J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts) I’ve tried a couple of her J.D. Robb novels and didn’t really enjoy them. Friends have said I just picked less than stellar ones. So I’ve been meaning to give the series a try again. We’ll see.
There you have it Books I Keep Meaning to Read (but haven’t). Any books you’ve been meaning to read but haven’t? I’d love to hear them. Please list them in the comments. Alas, I need to get back to my writing cave and the WIP, so let’s see what the other authors in this blog challenge claim as their Books I Had to Read in School and Liked: L&SR
Pssst… While you’re here, don’t forget to check out my paranormal romance/mysteries click here. Don’t miss my Autumn Sale! Another of my award winning books, AN ANGEL’S UNINTENTIONAL ENTANGLEMENT, on sale now for 99¢! Be swept away in a magical, romantic, fantasy adventure that you’ll never want to leave! download your copy today!
Teaser from An Angel’s Unintentional Entanglement – Where Warrior Angel, Caden goes, trouble follows until he discovers a badly beaten woman barely clinging to life. Unprepared for the entanglement she brings to his doorstep, will he move heaven and earth to save her?
Next week on the blog challenge I’ll reveal my Superpower. LOL Do you have one?
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Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog and tagged Books I Keep Meaning to Read (but haven’t), J.D. Robb, J.R. Ward, L&SR #WednesdayBlogChallenge, Molly Harper, Silkies Are a Girls' Best Friend, The Black Dagger Brotherhood Series, Vendetta in Death, Whuthering Heights by Tena Stetler with 19 comments.
