Nancy Lee Badger Presents Author Sally Brandle

While a witness and FBI agent escape mobsters, they can’t escape falling in love. The Hitman’s Escape, released from Soul Mate Publishing June 27, 2018, is a clean, contemporary, romantic suspense story.

Book Blurb

She needs his trust. After Miranda Whitley stops crooked cops from assassinating a prominent Seattle judge, she’s next on the hit list, and her survival depends on the man she’s had one awkward encounter with—buff FBI Agent, Grant Morley. But can she find him in time?

He needs the truth. The last person Grant expects to discover on his annual horseback trip delivering supplies to a Montana mountain hermit is alluring Miranda Whitley, nearly dead from a bullet wound in her side. An accidental witness or the cold-blooded accomplice to would-be assassins?

Miranda must convince Grant of her innocence, evade the killers intent on preventing her testimony, and fight her unwanted attraction for the agent…an attraction which seems to be mutual. Fortunately, love thrives in Emma Springs. If you love sizzling chemistry, determined assassins, and Montana scenery, then you’ll love Sally Brandle’s galloping thriller.

The Author on Lance

Setting: Our heroine’s pruning indoor plants in the lobby of Seattle’s Justice Building after hours.

Soft taps came from a few feet behind her. She tilted her head.

Footsteps? From the stairwell? Miranda released her grip, and the tree limb sprang free. She swung her head and watched the branch skim the fly of the trousers on the man now towering over her right shoulder.

Not Ike. She froze.

“Oh, didn’t see you there—” he sidestepped, and her cup scrunched in protest under his big boot. The lid popped off and the double shot of Kona glugged into a mocha-scented pool.

He jumped to avoid the puddle. “Energy conservation put you in the shadows. Sorry, I nailed your coffee.” His swinging backpack missed her nose by inches.

She twisted her body and scooted her butt until her shoulder jammed against a carved pot.

“I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

“It’s okay,” she mumbled, keeping her head lowered to avoid further contact with the bag-wielding klutz wearing black trousers. Must’ve been him she’d glimpsed a few minutes ago, while the elevator doors had closed on the floor below Ike’s.

“I’ve never been attacked by a branch. Must say, you deployed it well,” the deep voice announced. He stopped directly in front of her.

His hiking boots made her size-nine high-tops appear dainty.

Not the shoes of a snobby lawyer or a lost, post-trial pimp trying to find his way out of the building. Still, the flailing branch served him right for sneaking up on her. “I didn’t hear you.”

“And I shouldn’t text and walk,” he said in a lighter, almost sexy tone. “I’m Grant.” He dropped his pack and stuck out his hand.

An FBI tag printed ‘GRANT MORLEY’ hung from the bag.

She peered from under her cap’s brim and gulped.

Him.

Agent of Interest. Her heart took off at a gallop.

BUY LINKS

Amazon     Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble PRINT

Amazon PRINT

Also check out:

USA Today Interview

Haynet (horse enthusiast) Review

Night Owl Review

5 Star Review from Tome Tender

More About the Author

Multi-award winning author Sally Brandle weaves slow-burning romance into edgy suspense stories. Sally left a career as an industrial baking instructor to bring to life stories motivating readers to trust their inner gifts. Her rescue Aussie is her companion during long spells of writing, bouts of tormenting weeds in her garden, or afternoons spent riding on the wind with her twenty-eight year old Quarter Horse. Sign up for her newsletter at www.sallybrandle.com for a free segment of her latest book, The Hitman’s Mistake. Watch for the second book in her Love Thrives in Emma Springs series, Torn By Vengeance, which will release on April 10, 2019. Connect with Sally here:

Website    Facebook    Twitter     Pinterest     Goodreads

Where This Writer Finds Ideas

The author & her sons

Time spent volunteering can turn into something I can take back with me and put into a book. The New Hampshire Highland Games & Festival is an annual event that brings my family together. We live in North Carolina and the others live in upstate Vermont (so close to Canada you can smell the snow). Meeting up in the White Mountains of New Hampshire gives us a chance to spend quality time together, while we help NHScot.org promote Scottish life. Yes, and it gives me ideas for many more books. 

The first book came to me while working the games and happens to be my biggest seller. My Honorable Highlander teams up a present day woman attending the fictional New England Highland games and the laird of a clan in sixteenth century Scotland.

The book is available in ebook, print and audio, and is followed

10 hour Audio Book is available

by other full-length stories pairing people from these different times. The central theme includes Highland games.

Check out the buy links of all the books HERE

More photos to come....

Nancy Lee Badger Presents Author Michelle Jean Marie

Author Michelle Jean Marie stopped by to share with us her new book. She is also published with Soul Mate Publishing. Take it away!

TEMPTING PASSION is an historical romance set in 1856 England. It is the sequel to TEMPTING FATE, my first published novel.  So if you’ve read the first book, you’ll recognize some of the characters in this one. Plus be introduced to some fun new ones! TEMPTING PASSIONS is available for pre-order now, with a release date of September 19^th. 

BLURB:

A Man Shattered

Marcus Clayton, Earl of Norbourne, has it all – power, wealth, respect, the freedom of bachelorhood, a woman’s companionship. Then in the space of seconds, his world is shattered and a life is lost. Blaming himself for the tragedy, Marcus Aurelius Clayton adopts the Stoic credo as his new way of life and vows to never again allow a woman to rule his passions.

A Woman Shamed

Miss Christel Fitzwilliam lives life with passion despite her simple life. Her father dotes on her, and her mother despises her because of it. After Christel’s father dies, a scandal is revealed, shaming the family. Christel’s mother blames her for the disgrace, and over the years, the scathing words wear down her resolve, until she too, questions her convictions.

A Goal Shared

When Christel learns of her mother’s plan to trap Marcus into an unwanted marriage with her younger sister, Christel vows to save the earl from a fate he doesn’t deserve. Marcus appreciates her concern, but having renounced all passion, is confident he can defeat the plan on his own. A determined and passionate Christel convinces him otherwise, and sets out to help him.

But in trying to save the earl, will her passion be her undoing?

EXCERPT

From Chapter One:

Removing her high-crowned hat, Miss Fitzwilliam tossed her gloves inside, wound the veil about the brim, and placed the bundle on his desk.

Her hair was the color of roasted chestnuts, Marcus noted. Pulled into a bun at the nape of her neck, it matched her full brows. The front of her coiffure draped loosely over her ears, and he discerned a shimmer of cinnamon within its waves. ‘Like Twilight’s, too, her dusky hair.’ 

He forced the image from his mind. He couldn’t risk entanglement. Not after his last fateful experience. The resulting pain had been unbearable. He hoped to never again experience such loss. And he wouldn’t if he kept his distance. If he kept his heart closed. “Pardon me if I’m not quite understanding you, but could we start at the beginning?”

“Certainly.” Miss Fitzwilliam plopped into his revolving chair, eyes widening in surprise when it swung sideways beneath her. She gripped the arms of the chair and planted her feet into the plush green rug. Wonder slowly dissolved into mischief as a hoydenish gleam danced in her eyes. Giving a tentative push with her right toe, she swung the chair back in the opposite direction.

Marcus caught the shimmer in her eyes as she pushed the chair back around again. He grinned. “It is an American contraption. I discovered it at the Exhibition back in ‘51.”

Her mouth quirked in amusement. “It is quite delightful. Papa would have loved one.” She gave the chair another push before turning to finally meet his gaze with shining eyes.

He inhaled sharply. It was a moment before he could breathe again. Speak again. “I believe you still owe me an explanation.”

“That I do.” She swung the chair back and forth in tiny arcs as she talked. “My mother is under the impression, erroneous or otherwise, that the reason you are hosting this house party is because you want a wife.”

He grimaced. “I wouldn’t say that, exactly.”

Miss Fitzwilliam brought the chair to a standstill. “You don’t want a wife, then?”

Marcus crossed an ankle over the opposite one, propping his front foot on the toe of his riding boot. A wife?

Buy Links:  Amazon 

More About the Author

After years of working in the Health Information Management field, Michelle became a stay-at-home mom to raise two adorable daughters and took advantage of her time at home to pursue a life-long passion--writing. While attending a romance writing workshop at a local library, Michelle was hooked. She cracked open the research books, turned on the computer, and started cranking out historical romances. In her early efforts, she was an RWA Golden Heart finalist and winner/finalist in many RWA sponsored contests.

 
After ending one marriage, seeing her daughters through college, opening her own business, and finally happily marrying her soul mate, she opened those old computer files and did some serious editing. She signed her first publishing contract with Soul Mate Publishing more than twenty years after writing it. Perseverance does pay off! Michelle lives in the Chicago suburbs with her husband and their three insane pups. Their two-legged children have all moved on to their own homes and careers. By day, she runs a professional organizing business, a virtual assistant business, and a research web site. Her favorite clients are authors! 

By night, she writes. She self-published "Researching the British Historical: The Victorian Era," "101 Organizing Tips for Writers," "I'm Moving!! Now What?" and co-authored "Nine Journeys: Stories of Women Who Found Their Own Paths to Success." 

In her spare time, she loves to read, take walks, and keep her mind sharp with Sudoku puzzles. She also does volunteer work for the Midwest Akita Rescue Society.
For more information about Michelle and her endeavors, connect with her here"

WEBSITE     FACEBOOK     TWITTER

PINTEREST     GOODREADS     BOOKBUB

NEWSLETTER     Amazon Author Page

Nancy Lee Badger Presents Author Jeanne Oates Estridge

Since I happen to LOVE demons and enjoy writing about them, I invited Jeanne to stop by and share her brand new book.Take it away!

The Demon Always Wins, the first book of my Touched by a Demon series, was released September 1st. It is a retelling of the story of Job as a paranormal dark comedy. Because what could be funnier than the story of Job? .

Book Blurb:

After beating Satan at poker, demon Belial takes on a new bet: If he can get God’s champion to curse God, within the agreed timeframe, Hell gains another soul and Belial earns a promotion to chief demon. 

The demon always wins, but this time the deck may be stacked against him. Widowed nurse Dara Strong, the granddaughter of famous demon fighters, has no problem recognizing Belial, so when he appears in her clinic in doctor’s disguise, she kicks him out.  

But Belial, the most successful soul-stealer in the history of Hell, is not about to give up so easily, and as their conflict escalates, so does their passion.  Caught between a victory-hungry Satan and an unforgiving God, Belial and Dara discover there may be only one way to ransom the soul of a fallen angel: sometimes you have to go through Hell to claim your Heaven.

Buy Link:   AMAZON    

:

More About the Author

Jeanne Oates Estridge wrote her first short story in third grade, a tale of birth-control-challenged bunnies who named their children in alphabetical order—Alice, Benjamin, Cathy, Dexter—all the way down to baby Zachary. Later that year, when given an assignment to depict what she wanted to be when she grew up, Jeanne drew herself in a floor-length, crayon-blue dress, sitting at a typewriter. Life has a way of handing us detours, though, and Jeanne wound up earning her degree, and her living, as a computer analyst. She continued to write at night and on weekends, but she could never quite manage to write anything that satisfied her. But she didn’t give up. In 2012, she returned to college to earn a Master’s Certificate in Creative Writing at the Nora Roberts’ School of Romance Writing at McDaniel College. Working under the mentorship of NYT Bestseller and former high school English teacher Jenny Crusie, Jeanne wrote a novel that went on to win the 2015 RWA^® Golden Heart^® for Paranormal. The Demon Always Wins, the first book of her Touched by a Demon trilogy, is now available on Amazon. Connect with her here:

WEBSITE     FACEBOOK     TWITTER

INSTAGRAM     PINTEREST

Amazon Author Page     Goodreads

Nancy Lee Badger Presents Author Susan Hanniford Crowley

I invited a fellow Soul Mate Publishing author to stop by and share her latest book. Take it away, Susan!

Thank you, Nancy Lee, for having me over on your blog. Writing Vampire Princess of New York was a huge adventure for me.

Noblesse is the daughter of Vampire King of New York Maximillion Vander Meer. You would think she’d be a woman, er.. vampiress that has everything. Well, it’s just not true. Whenever her father is away, she’s in charge of the vampires of New York as well as VMeer Industries, a worldwide conglomerate of corporations he started. Highly educated, Noblesse is very talented business-wise but also very clever and sweet when it comes to those she loves or protects. 

In the nearly 200 years, that Noblesse has been a vampire, she has not found a true love. She is also haunted by the fact that she never found her human mother who disappeared during the French Revolution.

Here’s an Excerpt!

Noblesse stayed within Donovan’s arms and reveled in his warmth. When she was sure he had fallen asleep again, she examined the wound Mina sewed. The King’s Elixir had nullified the poison, but the seam looked angry and red. Noblesse moved to lick that awful wound. The instant her tongue touched Donovan’s skin, he moaned in his sleep. She smiled. The man really didn’t like being licked. Still she continued licking the ragged edge until it looked less irritated.

Mina would take the stitches out in the morning. Noblesse figured he’d be healed by then. The guilt over his injury gnawed at her. If he wasn’t in her bedroom, he wouldn’t have gotten hurt. Donovan was her best friend, and she loved him.

Satisfied that he was rapidly on the mend, she moved back into place under his arm.

Thank you, Sha, he said to her mind.

You are supposed to be asleep.

How could I sleep through that? Normally I hate being licked. But you made it different, even enjoyable.

His baritone chuckle made her laugh. Then he pulled her close to him and kissed her. His kiss dissolved into slumber.

The next morning, Donovan sat up and pulled out his IV. The Arnhem Knights seated on chairs by the door, immediately stood up.

“You can’t do that.”

“Why?”

“Only the doctor can.”

Noblesse, still wearing the kaftan dress she fell asleep in, hurried around to the IV side. Searching for bandages, she found them and wrapped them tightly to stop his bleeding.

Next he reached for his clothes on the nearby chair. He pulled on his jeans and zipped just as Mina walked through the door.

“Donovan, what are you doing?”

“I’m better, Doc.” He pulled on his shirt and socks and shoes. “I’m going out to eat, and Noblesse is going with me.” He grabbed her hand and left the room.

“Really, Donovan, I must stop by my room and change clothes.”

“Okay.”

When they approached the door to her apartment, it was guarded by Arnhem Knights. “No one is allowed in.”

Noblesse stared at them. “Well, I’m an Arnhem Knight too. Step aside.”

Hatcher stood in her way. “Noblesse, I’m sorry, but Dr. Lucente says he’s still testing the place.”

“Hatcher, they shouldn’t have you pulling double duty.”

“I don’t mind. I promised Max I’d keep an eye on you.”

Leaning past Hatcher, she knocked on the door. Syd opened it a smidge. “Noblesse, I’m not done.”

“I need my purse, please.”

He closed the door and a moment later handed it out to her through the small opening.

“Thank—.” The door shut before she managed to get out the second word.

“What’s the plan, Noble?” Donovan zipped his leather jacket halfway up.

“First we’re going to go eat, and then I’ll stop by my office. I always keep spare clothes there.”

Donovan took her hand and they headed for the lobby. Curtis, the doorman, stood in their way.

“David said not to let anyone in or out.”

Noblesse frowned.

“What’s the problem, Curtis?” David walked up to them.

“Pardon me, sir, but your sister and Donovan Dupre want to leave.”

David was accompanied by several of the Arnhem Knights. “Noblesse and Donovan, we are still investigating what happened. You are to ease yourselves out without letting anyone in. Got it?”

*

Want to find out what’s 

going to happen next?

Buy Links

Amazon    AmazonPrint     Barnes & Noble

At a Groton Library booksigning

More About Susan:

All my books are listed on my WEBSITE and check out my 

Amazon  Author Page  

My Blog is Nights ofPassion  .I am on Facebook  Twitter and 

Tumblr 

Nancy Lee Badger Presents Author K.C. Bateman

K. C. Bateman, a fellow Romance Writers of America member, stopped by to share her newest book, which you can pre-order now! Take it away!

The Devil To Pay is a Renaissance Italy-set Historical Romance featuring a ruthless mercenary skilled in the art of conquest, an heiress who refuses to be tamed, and a devilishly sexy bargain . . . 

Release date 28 Aug 2018. It is available for $1.99 pre-order until release.

Not part of a series.

Book Blurb

Italy, 1492.

Cara di Montessori has a price upon her head. Her traitorous uncle has murdered her father and seized her home. Her only hope of survival, and of regaining her birthright, is an alliance with her childhood nemesis, the infamous mercenary Il Diavolo. The most irritating—and seductive—man Cara’s ever met.

Battle hardened and world-weary, Alessandro del Sarto has earned the sobriquet Il Diavolo. He needs a politically expedient marriage to secure the lasting peace he craves, but the simpering ladies of court hold little interest. More than anything, he longs for a challenge.

Headstrong beauty Cara has always been Il Diavolo’s only weakness, the one woman he’s never been able to forget. When she appears at his door begging for help, the two strike a devil’s bargain. In return for his assistance, for two weeks Cara must entertain his guests, relieve his boredom—and warm his bed. 

Cara has no intention of succumbing to del Sarto’s studied seduction, but the passion that simmers between them is more potent than her paper twists of gunpowder. Surrounded by danger and intrigue, she must choose between what she’s always thought of as her destiny, and what could be the greatest prize of all—her heart’s desire.

Excerpt from The Devil To Pay 

Chapter 1.

Central Italy, June 1492.

Cara di Montessori was sick of people trying to kill her.  

As a child she’d trailed her father through some of the most godforsaken places in Christendom, so it had been a rare week that hadn’t included a scimitar-wielding Saracen or bloodthirsty Moor trying to send her to the afterlife. But familiarity with the experience did not make it any more enjoyable. And besides, those instances had been impersonal, only to be expected of campaigning, whereas this attempt was personal in the extreme. ‘Uncle’ Lorenzo did not want her alive to dispute his seizure of Castelleon.

His men were proving annoyingly persistent. He must have offered a ransom to keep them on her tail, and though Cara doubted her life was worth a great deal, everyone had their price. In truth, she was staking her life on that very premise, about to make a pact with the Devil himself.

If she could reach him.

Alessandro del Sarto, ‘Il Diavolo,’ was the last person in Italy she would have chosen to ask for help, but engaging his dubious talents was her only hope of staying alive and regaining her home. He was condottiero. A killer for hire.

Cara wrinkled her nose in distaste. Mercenary described both del Sarto’s profession and his nature. Il Diavolo sold himself to the highest bidder. He didn’t care which side won or lost, or whether the cause was worth fighting for, only whether the victor could pay his exorbitant fees. Every monarch in Europe wanted him. And now she needed him, too.

‘Better to dance with the devil you know,’ Father used to say. Well, she hadn’t seen this particular devil in six long years, not since she was sixteen. He’d knocked her on her backside, then kissed her until she’d seen stars. She’d threatened to kill him in return. He’d haunted her dreams ever since.

Cara shivered. She hated being cold. At least if she ended up in hell for bartering her soul she’d be warm. She nudged her exhausted horse forward and wished—for perhaps the hundredth time—that she’d stolen a mount with a better saddle. The urge to slump over the animal’s scrawny neck was so strong. She hadn’t eaten for two days, hadn’t dared stop for more than an hour at most. Every jolt of the animal’s hooves reopened the wound at her ribs and brought a fresh wave of dizziness and pain. Perchance the quick slash of an assassin’s blade would be preferable to dying slowly of blood loss?

No. She would reach Il Diavolo. She had hundreds of things she wanted to do before leaving this world, and she’d hardly managed to achieve any of them. Quite apart from avenging her father’s death and regaining her home, she planned on dying a wrinkled old crone in a nice warm bed, surrounded by a huge and loving family. A young, heroic death was all very well in principle, but it looked extremely unappealing now it was a distinct possibility.

Whirling lights crowded her vision like fireflies and Cara shook her head. The stumbling horse crested a rise, and she let out a breathless prayer of thanks. There it was, outlined against the deepening twilight; Torre di San Rocco, the fortified city strongold of Italy’s most infamous son.

Cara kicked the horse into an exhausted trot. She would reach Il Diavolo, or die trying.

Buy Links:

Amazon     Barnes & Noble 

Ibooks      Kobo     Goodreads 

More About the Author

Kate Bateman, writing as K. C. Bateman, is the #1 Amazon bestselling author of Regency and Renaissance historical romances, including To Steal a Heart, A Raven’s Heart and A Counterfeit Heart. Her books feature feisty, intelligent heroines, (badasses in bodices!) wickedly inappropriate banter, and heroes you want to both strangle and kiss. When not writing, Kate leads a double life as a fine art appraiser and on-screen antiques expert for several TV shows in the UK. She currently lives in Illinois with a number-loving husband and three inexhaustible children, and regularly returns to her native England ‘for research.’ Connect with her here:

Website     Amazon Author Page 

Goodreads     FacebookAuthor Page 

Twitter: @katebateman     Pinterest

Also by K. C. Bateman...

Nancy Lee Badger Welcomes Author KD DuBois

Author KD DuBois stopped by to share her newest release with my readers. She is a fellow author with soul Mate Publishing. Tell us all about the book!

A meteorologist confronts a tornado god and discovers her future. My Book,  Daughter of the South Wind is a fantasy-romance influenced by Greek mythology. It was released August 1, 2018.

Back Cover Blurb: As if grad school wasn’t hard enough, Dawn Wynham battles her bossy sister’s interference with her private life and resists divulging one secret—her very realistic dreams about tornados and the man who morphs out of them, Nino. After chasing twisters for her meteorology degree, why not indulge in a little sexy fantasy to enhance the adrenaline highs?

Nino’s visits tantalize Dawn, his mythological viewpoints mysterious yet familiar. When make-believe blends into real-life, she must choose between the practicality of her mind and the yearnings of her heart or else lose everything she holds dear.

The most desirable path holds the greatest danger. Dawn knows what feels right in the depths of her soul—and hopes her decision doesn’t cast Nino away from her forever.

Excerpt:

As I spun back to the tornado, my dress coiled around me. Fear coursed through my veins, mirroring the emotions of the two who felt like parents. The face and funnel dissipated. A lean, muscular man emerged from its core. He ran to me.

The view narrowed to a small circle, my periphery non-existent. Life-force energy drained from my body in a rush. I crumpled.

Strong arms caught me. An almost complete golden disk of fire hung over the man’s shoulder. His black hair tickled my exposed skin. With great effort, I focused on his eyes. Different tones of gray swirled similar to the tornado which brought him to me.

I calmed. My soul knew he would keep me safe.

“Tira, I love you.” His rich baritone words carried over the thrashing gale.

Unable to fill with air, my lungs convulsed, causing my response of, “I love you, too, Nino,” to garble in an unrecognizable voice.

My sight pinpointed. Hot gusts mixed with a yellow-tinted cloud to surround us in comfort like a parental hug. The sun crested a distant hilltop.

A drop of water splashed on my cheek, a cool contrast to the heat of an invading force in my core. I concentrated again on those mesmerizing graphite eyes. Tears flowed from them.

“Tira, I promise you . . .” His voice faded as a power greater than my own tightened its grip and squeezed my essence into submission. Darkness overtook me while he uttered, “I will find a way to break the curse and bring you back.”

The world went black, silent. Balmy breezes converted to cold stillness. The struggle within to keep control of my soul ceased, and my tumult of emotions became nothing, empty in defeat. As if I didn’t exist at all.

Available on Amazon Kindle e-books 

and Kindle Unlimited HERE

More About the Author

KD DuBois writes fantasy mixed with a touch of romance. Her current book delves into mythology, giving obscure gods and goddesses their own stories. It’s the first of a series in a world she created called The Immortal Dimension.

Twenty-nine years in a military uniform took KD to many unique places around the country and the globe. But a few choice assignments in year-round mild climates spoiled any inclinations to retire where even a hint of snow might fall. Instead of settling down in her home state of Kansas, she planted roots in the perpetual sunshine of south-central Texas.

With the opportunity to start a second career in front of her, KD took a class and got inspired to bring the ideas in her head to life. Now she spends her time typing away and takes an occasional break to ride her bike to enjoy the sunshine. 

Connect with her here:

WEBSITE     FACEBOOK     TWITTER