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Monday, 26 January 2015

@GoddessFish VBT - Classic Fairy Tales with Modern Heroines.Guest Post by Emelle Gamble: author of December Wedding.



Today here at Beyond My Writing Space we're talking fairy tales. I've been swept up in Frozen Fever ever since I saw the Let It Go teaser on Youtube long before the film was released at the cinema. So I asked Emelle Gamble, author of December Wedding, "Which fairytale would you most like to step into and why?" and I absolutely love her answer!

Cinderella is the ultimate fairy tale for me…
People who thwart your dreams and deny you what you deserve, a handsome prince who sees you from across the room and knows you are his one and only, and a good fairy to grant your fondest wish! And good clothes! What could be better?
However much I love this fairy tale, I’ve often thought that Cinderella is a bit old-fashioned. She does have to be rescued, and it takes a miracle to get what she wants. A friend is working on a more pro-active, futuristic version of this character, who relies more on hard work, courage and never giving up to win her Prince.
That’s probably what we modern readers want in a heroine, pluck and grit instead of glass slippers…but still, wouldn’t we all love having a fairy godmother for just one night?
Readers, if you did have one wish, what would it be? If it was me, a certain Mrs. George Clooney might find her hubby missing for the evening…

A December Wedding ... The Deets

Molly Harper is a movie star who fans think ‘has it all’. Cruz Morales is Molly’s true love, and he hates the media intrusions into their life. Molly and Cruz are going to have a baby. And throw a secret wedding for her brother Harry. What could go wrong? Read DECEMBER WEDDING, the sequel to DUETS and MOLLY HARPER, and find out if there really is a happy ever after for Molly and Cruz.

A Sneak Peek inside

Molly Harper lay beside Cruz Morales in the darkened bedroom, finally drowsy as the familiar night sounds floated in on the Santa Barbara breezes. She was on her second set of counting backwards from 100 to fall asleep, forty-two, forty-one…

“Will you marry me, Molly?” Cruz asked, his voice husky and close.

“No.” She’d said no to him a hundred times the last year. He told her last Christmas Eve he was going to ask her the last thing every night for a year before he’d give up. Saying no had been easy. Though meaning it was getting a little more difficult.

“Why not?”

“You know why not. I love you too much to subject you to a wedding.”

Cruz sighed. “Lame reason, chica. No one I know would think that’s a good reason.”

“They would if they remembered I’m an actress whose life attracts the press like a tub of honey attracts bees. And bees sting. You know what a zoo our wedding would turn out to be.”

“Not if we got married at the courthouse in Taos, or at your home there. People can get hitched the same day they get the license in New Mexico. I checked. We could keep it a secret.”

“A secret?  You know that’s impossible. Someone at the courthouse would tell their friend, who would call the newspaper or People Magazine or tweet it to thirty thousand of their closest friends.”

“Are you sure we’re still interesting to other people? I think the gossip about us has cooled down. People seem more interested in royal babies and the Jolie-Pitt clan now.”

“That’s true. There were only two camera crews outside the restaurant where we ate last Friday.” Molly’s brain reran a few snippets of the last two years, all recorded and available on the internet. Cruz struggling to recover from the motorcycle accident that nearly killed him. Her movie star husband leaving her for another woman. Her ex and the other woman having a baby.

Mother’s death.

All events which were played out on the front page of newspapers and websites around the world.

“Please? I’ll put a ring on it tomorrow if you say yes.”

Molly took a rattling breath. Tonight’s discussion was quite a bit more protracted than the three hundred plus nights before. “No, thank you. I don’t need you to do anything more to prove you love me.”

In the midnight shadows, his generous mouth softened against the hard curves of his face. “I do love you. I’ve always loved you. Every single moment since I met you. Even when we were apart.”

“Did you, Cruz? Did you really even love me then?”

He touched her nose with his finger and cleared his throat, which he always did when he recited a favorite poem.

“i carry your heart with me (i carry it in my heart) i  am never without it (anywhere I go you go, my dear; and whatever is done by only me is your doing, my darling) i fear no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)”
    
Molly’s eyes burned. “I melt when you recite love poetry, Professor Cruz. I hope you don’t do in class; all those cute girls will be trying to jump your bones.”

“I only recite for you, chica. I read e.e. cummings when I was recovering in the hospital. He brought you back to me.”


“Oh please,” she whispered. “Let’s not talk about those terrible times.”

“Why? They don’t matter now, they hardly mattered then. Once we got back together, I mean, the past was gone.”

“The past is never gone. It’s on Facebook and Entertainment Tonight.”

“No one looks at those things.”

That made her laugh, as he had hoped it would.


“Right. No one.” Molly embraced him, the sheets silky smooth, while Cruz was warm and hard, and then rolled onto her other side.




The Giveaway

Emelle will be awarding a $20 Amazon GC plus a digital copy of December Wedding to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during this tour and the Review Tour, here. A $25 Amazon GC will be awarded to a randomly drawn host also between the two tours.

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Who is Emelle Gamble..?

Emelle Gamble Bio : Emelle Gamble became a writer at an early age. As ‘M.L. Gamble,’ she published several romantic suspense novels with Harlequin Intrigue. She is now self-publishing and also working with Soul Mate Publishing  who have released  two romantic women’s fiction novels,  Secret Sister, in July of 2013, and Dating Cary Grant, an April 2014 release.

Always intrigued by the words ‘what if’,  Gamble’s books feature an ordinary woman confronted with an extraordinary situation.  Emelle celebrates the adventurous spirit of readers, and hopes each will enjoy the exciting and surprising journeys her characters take.


Emelle welcomes any reader interested in emailing her at emellegamble@aol.com and hopes they will visit her website, www.EmelleGamble.com ,  her FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/Emelle.Gamble or follow her on Twitter @EmelleGamble.

Posts you may have missed:

Emelle Gamble joined me back in Aug 2013




Thursday, 22 January 2015

@GoddessFish VBT - Don't Say No by Naomi Bellina



Today I'm joined by Naomi Bellina, author of Don't Say No.  So what does Naomi do when she's not writing?

I'm so glad you asked! Even though I'm not able to write as much as I'd like, I spend a lot of time thinking about writing or about things to do with writing. Here are a few ways I occupy my time when I'm not actually sitting at my keyboard typing furiously.
  1. I eavesdrop on strangers. You know when you're talking to someone else or on your phone, and someone is nearby, close enough to hear you, but they look like they're reading or playing on their phone and anyway, polite people don't listen to other people's conversation, so you ignore them. Yeah, that's me, and I'm all over that discussion you're having about your sister-in-law's date with her boss. Gathering material, taking mental notes. Yep.
  2. I get you to tell me juicy stories. If I even get a whiff of an interesting tale, I'll sweet talk the details right out of you before you know what happened. When you say "Oh, I really shouldn't talk about that", it's like catnip to me. I must have it. Don't worry, names are always changed to protect the innocent, and the guilty too.
  3. I read obsessively whenever I can. Sadly, it's not often enough, but whenever I'm not driving, working, or doing another chore that requires my full attention, I find something to peruse. If a cereal box is in front of me while I chomp breakfast, I read it. Standing in the grocery store checkout line, I'm thumbing through a magazine. At stop lights, if I'm not busy putting on my makeup, I've got my phone in my hand, reading something or other.
  4. I try not to get run over by cars. Walking helps me think but sometimes I get a little too involved in my thoughts and cross the road, totally oblivious to what's going on around me. Thankfully, I've managed to stay in one piece so far.
  5. Whenever I can, I go for a ride on the back of my honey's motorcycle and let the wind whip over me. It's a great place to be ponder ideas and I've worked out some tricky plot points on that Harley.
I'd like to say I get to spend hours every day at my keyboard but sadly, I do have to work, shop, cook, clean (not so much that last one), so I do live a relatively normal life. Sort of. I've made it my goal to always make the fun choice and seek adventure whenever possible.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy Don't Say No.


The deets...


Mixing business with pleasure has never been so much fun.

Amber’s life sucks. Her ex got her thrown out of college, then fired from her job. When she’s hired for a mystery shopping assignment, she hopes this is exactly what she needs to kick-start her life and get her back on track.

Jaeger is all business when he hires Amber to check out the spa he’s purchasing. If she can help him prove that the venture will be a success, then he can build his own future, not the one his family has mapped out for him. Becoming attracted to his sexy spy isn’t part of the plan.


Amber can’t see how she fits into Jaeger’s world, and he’s too uptight to ever fit into hers. Circumstances bring them together, in bed and out, but when a secret from his upper-class life is revealed, Amber must decide if she can trust him. Or is her life going down in flames all over again?


A Sneak peek inside...


She reached across the table and pinched his cheek. He caught her hand and held it. A little zing went up her arm at the touch. He had a nice, firm grip, and she enjoyed the sensation of his skin on hers.

“Thank you for doing this.” He didn’t let go of her hand, looking intently into her eyes.” It really is a good idea, and I know you're going to help us out a lot.”

“Well hell, thank you for hiring me. I'm actually kind of having fun,” she said, breaking his stare but not pulling her hand away.  The zing turned into a tingle that moved down her body, all the way to her toes.

He rubbed his thumb along the skin. “Such soft hands. Don't let them work you too hard, and make sure to wear gloves.”

As if he suddenly realized he was caressing her in the middle of a diner, Jaeger let her go.

They both bent their heads over their menus, though by now Amber almost had it memorized. A small smile crept to her lips. A little hand-holding was an unexpectedly nice way to start the day.


Get your copy of Don't Say No at:




Who is Naomi Bellina...?


I love spas! Even as an employee at several, I've always enjoyed the relaxing, pampering atmosphere in a place that's designed to be all about feeling good. This book is a work of fiction and most of the craziness that went on at Bella Sun doesn't really happen at spas. Mostly. I like to think there's always a romance or two going on behind the scenes. I've also been a mystery shopper, though I never received spa treatments on any of my assignments. Some girls have all the luck!

I hope this book encouraged you to not only search for your own true love, but to follow your dreams, no matter how many setbacks you encounter.

Reader Email: naomibellina@live.com

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Erin

Follow the tour

January 19: Musings From An Addicted Reader
January 20: Carpe_Diem
January 21: Yeah Books!
January 22: Beyond My Writing Space
January 23: Books and Other Spells
January 26: Romance Novel Giveaways
January 27: Writers and Authors
January 27: LibriAmoriMiei - review only
January 28: Hope. Dreams. Life... Love
January 28: Romorror Fan Girl - review only
January 29: Harps Romance Book Review
January 30: Unabridged Andra's

Wednesday, 7 January 2015

@GoddessFish Book Tour - My Turn by Jonathan Williams



This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Jonathan Williams will be awarding $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Silicon Valley is home to several large Technology and Pharmaceutical \ Biotech corporations. Chris moved to this area in early 2000. He has been handling data for prestigious companies for well over ten years. His work ethic and morals have kept him employed. During his tenure at a Fortune 100 company, he is offered a position at a small Biotech. It is not too long after taking this new position that he is promoted to Management. The IT Directory who Chris reports to gives him the choice of playing the corporate game or getting fired. Chris must either choose being ethical and getting fired or keeping his job by being unethical. After much thought, he realizes that honesty and integrity have kept him from achieving the American dream. Tired of living paycheck to paycheck he decides to play the corporate game. This decision will not only affect his professional life but his personal life as well.

Enjoy an excerpt:

From an early age, Chris understood that data was the key to everything. He didn’t need a 9/11 incident to tell him that certain systems needed to talk to each other. He also didn’t need a Wikileaks incident or an NSA leak to tell him that access to any kind of data must be reviewed with scrutiny.

About the Author: Jonathan Williams has worked in Information Technology for over twenty years. He has spent most of his career working in the Financial and Pharmaceutical \ Biotech sectors. He specializes in Database Management Systems.

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9794311.Jonathan_Williams

Buy the book at Amazon or Barnes and Noble Currenly FREE on BN.com

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The Legal Bit

All characters have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation to anyone baring the same name. They are not inspired by an individual known or unknown by the author and all incidents are pure invention.

The articles, excerpts, and other written work published under the pseudonym Erin Cawood are copyright protected by the author. Guest articles are published by arrangement and also copyright protected by the guest author.

Images of Erin Cawood are provided by Paul Miguel Photography.


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