Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Prime Time Blurb - 2nd

I included a blurb for my novel Prime Time yesterday and thought I'd follow up with another today. But this is it. For the rest of the story, you have to buy the book. :)

Enjoy!

Vicky B.

“Got it,” she muttered. Deena grabbed the belt, fed one end through the wall grill and tied the other end to her cot with a slipknot. Feet first, she climbed back into the vent, pulled the grill into place and tugged the bed back into place. Once there, she gave the belt a yank and it came away from the cot. The door to her quarters slid open as she pulled the loose end of the gi through the grill. She caught her breath and held still.

“Deena,” Jake called.

As quietly as possible, Deena scuttled farther into the vent.

She couldn’t see the room, but she heard Jake’s steps as he crossed the small space to her bathroom and heard him knocking on the door to the cubicle.

“Deena, come on. Talk to me.”

An inch at a time, Deena backed into the vent. To her ears, she sounded like a crowd of workers at quitting time. The vent’s soft lining scraped against her sensitive skin. Good thing I’m not claustrophobic, she thought.

“Deena!” Jake called. She could hear the touch of anger in his voice. “Zeus, open the door.”

Deena could hear Jake swearing as she worked her way deeper into the vents. She didn’t stop until she got to a junction where she could turn around. Six vents opened off the space.

“Eenie, meenie, miney, moe.” Deena chose the vent at front right. It was larger than the one she’d exited, but not by much.

She crawled until she arrived at another junction. Large enough for her to stand in, it had dozens of openings, some small, some almost high enough for her to walk in if she ignored her straight posture. A strong wind blew through the junction. She turned around until she found the strongest breeze.

“Thank you, Mom,” she whispered. Her mother had worked on the vent installations and taught young Deena all about them. The larger vents led to the public areas. Huge fans designed to circulate the air throughout the habitat hung at their wall ends. The smaller ones led to private offices and quarters. She chose a large vent. Once she got to a public area, she could get her bearings and get home. She’d endured Techie prejudices all her life, but at least in the Uppers she had some respect. Even a steady gig with Security wasn’t worth putting up with their insults and innuendos. She may be a Porter, but she’d be space dust before she’d let them treat her like one.

A short time later, she pushed the button and opened the trap door in her old room. Although the ducts were dust-free, the effort of getting through them was hot work. A quick sonic cleansing did much to revive her. The two weeks away from the Uppers seemed like a lifetime. She closed the shower door and strode into her bedroom.

“What took you so long?”

Deena spun around. Jake leaned against the wall next to her closet. “What do you want, Techie?”

Her heart beat so hard, she could hear it, but she refused to let Jake know how she felt. The wide-eyed ogle on his face reminded her that, except for her brief panties, she was naked. She strolled over to her storage chest and pulled out a pair of shorts and a tank top. She felt anything but nonchalant but refused to show him how nervous he made her. The unwelcome stab of interest in him fueled her anger. He was a Techie.

Posted by Vicky B :: Link :: 5:06 AM :: 0 Comments

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Prime Time

Greetings from cold, but sunny Pennsylvania! Last Thursday, the temperature was near 80 degrees F. Friday, we got ten inches of rain, ice and snow. Today is the first official day of spring - and everything is white. The poor robins probably think they should have stayed south!

So what better to warm up a cold day than a hot book? It's almost time for Prime Time. Okay, you can't get a copy yet, but you will be able to on Thursday. So here's a quick blurb for you just to whet your appetite. Enjoy!

Vicky Burkholder

Deena lay her head in her arms. Now what? Jake was still unconscious and now Sean was out of commission. She needed to make sure Sean was okay, but how to get past Jake? Even unclothed, there wasn’t much room between his chest and the top of the vent. She glanced at her chest. While she was thin, was she thin enough? There was only one way to find out. With a bit of difficulty, she skinned out of her clothes. Every millimeter counted. Jake’s head was closest to her. As gently as possible, she turned his head to one side and bit back a grin. It was a good thing he was out or this could get very interesting. She began her crawl. The tightest fit was chest to chest. For a few fleeting seconds, she was afraid she’d be stuck, then she exhaled as hard as she could and inched forward. A little farther and she smiled.

Very interesting.

She felt Jake shift under her. “Not now. Please, not now.”

Her face was at the vent, her legs entwined with Jake’s. A quick listen told her the room was empty except for Sean. She popped the vent off and stuck her head out. Sean was sprawled in a corner by the bed. His wide-open eyes tracked her as she dropped down.

“Are you okay? Once for yes, twice for no.”

His eyes blinked once.

“I’ll assume that’s a yes and not a wink. And I’ll take you to task for the leer later.”

“As will I.”

Deena spun around as Jake slipped out of the vent. “Jake! Are you all right?” She grabbed him when he swayed.

Posted by Vicky B :: Link :: 5:04 AM :: 0 Comments

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Finding Sarah is a Top Pick

Romance Readers at Heart awarded Finding Sarah its highest review category, a Top Pick Rose!

FINDING SARAH is the kind of book that will keep you up half the night, because it’s just that good!

FINDING SARAH is the smoothest of reads, and as I said, nearly impossible to put down. Sarah is a most sympathetic character and you will root for all her problems to be solved!

Read the full review

Bookstore link

That's it for me until next time, when I'll preview my next release, What's in a Name?

Remember the contest on my website -- choose your own prize.

Posted by Terry Odell :: Link :: 4:21 PM :: 2 Comments

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Another Finding Sarah Excerpt

Because time moves backward through blogger, if you haven't read the post below this one, you should do it first.

Seems like everything I write has at least one food scene. And a lot of my characters (wonder why) love ice cream, so I thought I'd share this one favorite ice cream scene with you. Randy and Sarah are on the way to his house as the scene opens.

*****

He opened the door for her and turned on a lamp by the couch. “You want dessert now?”

“Right after the ice cream.”

Randy chuckled. “I’ll serve. How about we eat on the couch?”

Sarah settled on the couch and toed off her sneakers and socks while she adjusted the three-way bulb in the lamp to the lowest setting. Candles would be better, but she hadn’t thought to bring any.

Randy appeared with two sundaes. “What are you thinking?”

“Nothing.”

“That was not a ‘nothing’ look, that was a ‘something’s missing’ look.”

“I thought candles would be nice. But they’re not important. The moonlight is enough.”

Randy set the ice cream down and disappeared down the hall, returning in a moment with a green foil gift box. He arranged half a dozen pillar candles on the coffee table and lit them. The scent of vanilla filled the air. Sarah turned off the lamp and picked up her bowl. An ice cream purist, she turned the spoon over as she put it into her mouth so that the initial sensation on her tongue was the creamy richness of the ice cream. She grinned as Randy followed her example, eyebrows raised.

“This way, you don’t get the metallic taste of the spoon,” she explained. The scent of the candles intensified the vanilla flavor of the ice cream.

Randy nodded in agreement, matching her bite for bite.

Sarah scraped the remains of the sundae from her bowl. She licked the spoon, enjoying the chocolate’s creamy sweetness. She glanced at Randy, sitting beside her on the couch in the flickering light. She saw a flush rise to his face as he set his bowl on the coffee table. Lowering her spoon, she glued her eyes to his and let her tongue dance circles around her half open mouth while she savored both the chocolate sauce and the thought of his mouth against hers. The look in his eyes made her forget the chocolate and her breath quickened.

Randy dipped his fingertip into the chocolate residue in her bowl and brought it to her lips. Her tongue swirled around his finger. Randy pulled his hand away and covered her lips with his own. She pressed deeper into the kiss, her tongue feeling the chill in his mouth turn hot. Somewhere in the distance, she felt him remove the bowl and spoon from her fingers, heard the soft thud as he placed them on the coffee table, but the kiss took on a life of its own, transcending awareness of anything else.

Terry Odell, www.terryodell.com
Finding Sarah, Available now from Cerridwen Press
Coming soon: What's In a Name? Starting Over

Posted by Terry Odell :: Link :: 7:58 AM :: 0 Comments

More from Finding Sarah from Terry Odell

Good Morning from the Courtyard Marriott in sunny Saint Petersburg, Florida. I've had a brief getaway, a nice change of venue, and have been working on my writing. Last time I blogged here, I said I'd have excerpts from Finding Sarah for you, and thanks to the wonders of the hotel's free internet service, I don't have to wait until I get home.

Here's the first:

Terry Odell, www.terryodell.com
Finding Sarah, Available now from Cerridwen Press
Coming soon: What's In a Name? Starting Over
www.cerridwenpress.com


Sarah Tucker’s hands shook with anger as she fumbled the keys into her gift boutique’s lock. Bad enough the bus driver stopped beside a puddle the size of Crater Lake, which she cleared despite the restrictions of her skirt and pumps, thank you very much. But when that head-banger in the heavy-metal-blasting SUV had sped through the muddy water, any satisfaction at her nimble footwork disappeared in a dousing of muddy water.

The cheerful jingle of the door chimes did nothing for her mood. Sarah rushed to her small office behind the glass sales counter and shrugged out of her coat to assess the damage. She dampened some paper towels and daubed at her mud-spattered shoes and stockings. She couldn’t go home and change and the last thing she wanted was to appear at the bank this afternoon looking like she needed a loan. If you needed money, you couldn’t get it, but if you had it, they’d give you whatever you asked for.

Enough negative thoughts. Sarah hung up her keys and tossed her instant soup packet into the basket by her coffee pot. Another gourmet lunch. At a knock on the door, she checked her watch. It wasn’t quite ten, but she’d open for a possible sale. Patting her windblown hair into place, she hurried to the front door.

Christopher Westmoreland stood there, looking impeccable as always. No head-banger would dare splash water on his perfectly creased trousers. His hair wouldn’t dare blow in the wind.

“Chris. What brings you to town?” She stepped back into the store and toward the register. “I’m getting ready to open, but if you need anything, I’ll be glad to get it for you.” As if he’d actually buy something.

“Not today. I’ve got some appointments over in Salem. Thought I’d say hello before I head out.” He strolled to the counter and leaned over its glass top, close enough for Sarah to smell his sandalwood aftershave and the cinnamon gum he chewed. “You haven’t returned any of my calls. I know things have been tough since David…died. I only want to help. Why won’t you let me? For old times’ sake, if nothing else.”

Memories of David flooded back. It had been over a year, but the pain lay just beneath the surface, waiting to engulf her. She shoved her emotions back into that metal strongbox in her brain, slammed the lid and turned the key. She was no longer Sarah, David’s wife. Or Sarah the daughter, or Sarah the high school sweetheart. She was Just Plain Sarah.

Sarah met his pale green eyes, the ones she’d found so irresistible in high school. “We’ve been through all this before. I need to do it on my own. I can manage without your money.” Even though he’d promised ‘no strings,’ Sarah knew if she took a dime from him, she’d be attached with monofilament line. The kind that cut when you tried to break it.

“Are you sure? You look like you haven’t slept in a month. And your hair. Why did you cut it all off?”

“Well, thanks for making my morning.” Sarah fluffed her cropped do-it-yourself haircut. “It’s easier this way.”

“How about dinner tonight? Come on, Sarah. We’re friends, right?” His eyebrows lifted in expectation.

Dinner with Chris or five-for-a-dollar Ramen noodles at home? Accepting dinner wouldn’t be selling out, would it? “Maybe. Call me later, okay?”

[…]

The way Chris had referred to David’s death churned through her thoughts. That horrible pause. The same one everyone else used. But Sarah knew it had been an accident. David would never commit suicide. This afternoon, she’d get a loan from the bank and re-hire the private investigator or find a better one. The investigator would get the police to reopen the case and they’d find out it wasn’t suicide. Then she’d get the insurance money, which would pay off the loan and the shop would be safe from foreclosure. It all made perfect sense. And maybe it would take away some of the guilt.

Sarah dragged her thoughts to the present, straightened her shoulders and found her professional smile again. Her customer was studying some silver picture frames. Expensive ones. She thought about how hard it had been to get Anjolie to display her work in the shop, that her work was too good for a mere boutique. She telegraphed mental messages to her customer—Please, show Anjolie she was wrong. Buy one. Buy six.

The woman set the frame down and turned away.

Sarah wouldn’t let her disappointment show. “Can I show you something else?”

The woman strolled back and fingered the frames again. “You know, I like this one.” She picked up the most expensive one, the one with the lacy pattern of roses and leaves. “And I think I’ll take the matching vase over there.”

Not good to let a customer see you jumping up and down clapping your hands. Instead, Sarah called up her most professional tone. “Excellent choices, ma’am. Would you like them gift-wrapped?”

“No, thank you. But if you have boxes for them, I would appreciate it.”

Sarah ducked beneath the counter for the boxes, calculating what the sale would mean to her bottom line. When she rose, she stared into a gun barrel.


And, because I think it's only fair that you should meet the hero, here's a bonus:

She looked into the detective’s face, saw an aquiline nose and scrutinizing brown eyes. A wayward lock of dark brown hair hung over his forehead, calling attention to a small scar above his left eyebrow. There was something vaguely familiar about him, but before she could bring a memory forward, the door chimed and she turned away.

A slender man sporting a stubble of beard, dressed in blue coveralls and baseball cap, stood in the doorway, taking a slow look around. He held a large metal case. Eyebrows raised, he looked at the detective. "You think we’ll get anything?"

"I’m not sure," Detective Detweiler said. "You’ll have to dry the clothes—I found them in a puddle."

"You get pictures?"

Detective Detweiler turned to Sarah. "This is Connor from the lab. He’ll dust for prints. Can you remember what she touched?"

"The silver over there." Sarah pointed to the table. "Those animal carvings and I think she was looking at the baskets. I know she was wearing gloves when she came in." She faltered. "I can’t be positive she still had them on when she came to the register. All I remember is the gun." Speaking the word aloud brought back the fear.

"I’ll need her prints for elimination," Connor said. He faced Sarah. "This won’t take long."

As if it were happening to someone else, Sarah watched Conner ink and roll her fingers. He slipped a card into an envelope and handed her a paper towel dipped in some gooey cleanser. She held it, transfixed, until she felt a warm touch and realized Detective Detweiler was wiping the ink from her fingers. She snatched her hands away and scrubbed them herself.

"Ms. Tucker can give me all the details over coffee," Detweiler said to Connor. "We’ll be at Sadie’s down the block."

"Is that normal police procedure?" Sarah asked.

"It is when the victim of a crime is in obvious distress. Where are your keys?"

"In the office. On a hook by the door."

His long legs covered the distance in three strides and he returned with Sarah’s coat as well. "Let’s go." He draped the coat over Sarah’s shoulders and held the door for her.

"The back door locks automatically," Sarah said to Connor. "You can go out that way when you finish."

The fresh air, damp with traces of rain, revived her and she navigated the short distance to the café with only an occasional hint of support from Detective Detweiler.

They found a booth in the back and the detective ordered coffee and muffins. "You want your usual decaf, Sarah?" the waitress asked.

"Please."

When the waitress left, Sarah eyed Detective Detweiler. "What? No doughnuts?"

"Don’t let it get out. I hate ‘em. Probably have to turn in my badge if anyone found out."

Sarah was surprised to feel a grin tug at the corner of her mouth.

The waitress appeared with coffee and a napkin-covered basket. Detective Detweiler lifted the napkin and pushed the basket toward Sarah. "Now, eat a muffin. We’ll talk later."

She broke off a small piece of blueberry muffin. The jittery feeling in her stomach hadn’t disappeared and she hesitated before putting it in her mouth.

"Please. Eat. You look like you’re bordering on shock." He took her coffee cup and stirred in a liberal amount of sugar. "The sugar will help. Cream?"

She nodded and he poured. "I skipped breakfast, that’s all."

"That and a gun in your face will do it every time."

Sarah swallowed a bit of the sweet muffin. Suddenly ravenous, she relished the rest of it. She looked up into those deep brown eyes again, glimpsing flecks of hazel this time. "Thank you. I guess I was hungrier than I thought."

"Eat another one and relax while I make some notes." He pulled out his notebook and started writing.

Sarah resisted only an instant before plucking a muffin from the basket. The detective seemed engrossed in his notes and she was grateful for his silence. Once she finished her coffee, she grasped the table’s edge. "I guess we’d better do whatever we have to do, Detective Detweiler," she said.

"Please. Call me Randy. Detective Detweiler doesn’t roll off the tongue."

"Then it’s Sarah." She studied his face again. "I’m sorry, but you look familiar. Have we met?"

His expression turned somber. "Briefly, after your husband’s…death. Are things all right?"

That pause again. Realization hit her like this morning’s mud puddle. This was the man who’d told her to hire a private investigator. That there was nothing they could do in Pine Hills because it was out of their jurisdiction and the Polk County cops in charge had closed the case. Had he thought she was right? Or was he trying to get her out of the police department’s hair when she’d demanded they keep investigating? The memories turned the muffins to lead in her stomach.


I hope you enjoyed them, and for anyone who's read this far, if you'd like to see the prologue to the book, one that was not submitted for publication--sometimes writers need to get things down for our own benefit, and I needed to know more about Sarah's past, so I wrote it--anyway, if you'd like to read it, all you have to do is either leave a comment here with your email, or send me an email to: terry (at) terryodell.com with "Prologue Please" in the subject line. Tell me you saw it on the blog.

Posted by Terry Odell :: Link :: 4:51 AM :: 0 Comments

Friday, March 16, 2007

Cards Never Lie excerpt 3

Hello, I am back today with the next excerpt for my first Heather Hiestand release, Cards Never Lie, available now at www.cerridwenpress.com. You can go back to the previous three Fridays in this blog to see back cover copy and the first two excerpts. You can also check out yesterday for a contest to win a free copy!

Today I have a kiss scene for y’all! Remember our hero, Rob, is CEO of a sex toy company which makes whips, manacles and that kind of thing…

Excerpt 3

“You know,” Rob said, closing the distance between them. “You don’t have to manacle a man to a post to get him to kiss you.”
“That isn’t why I did it,” Melanie protested. Rob leaned toward her and she took a step back, coming up against a wall. He put his hand on the wall next to her face.
“What would it take to get you to chain me up?” he asked, his voice hoarse. She bit her lip.
“Look at me,” he commanded. “What’s it going to take for us to get some time together, huh?”
“Time?” she asked softly.
“Yeah,” he said. “Time for this.” He brushed his lips against hers softly and she parted hers in response. He licked her soft bottom lip then, as she opened her mouth, took full possession of her. He groaned and put her hands on her waist.
After a potent pause, she moaned and ran her tongue down the length of his. Rob felt her hand sneak around his waist and grab his butt. He ground himself into her, unable to control his pounding need. As he thrust, he bent his knees to fit himself between her legs and she clutched at him, rotating her pelvis against him, matching his rhythm. Her other arm wove itself around his head, skimming his sensitive ear. “Oh Rob,” she whispered against him. “I can’t do this in public.”

Labels: romance novels "Cards Never Lie" Heather Hiestand Las Vegas Seattle

Posted by Heather Hiestand :: Link :: 9:33 AM :: 0 Comments

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Contest to win Cards Never Lie!

Anyone who posts on my blog between now and noon P.S.T. on Saturday, March 17th is eligible to win a contest! The randomly selected winner will receive an electronic copy of my novel Cards Never Lie in one of these formats - lit, html, rb, pdf, or prc.I will also send the entrants a link to sign up for my newsletter if they wish!

http://blog.heatherhiestand.com/

Thanks and good luck!

Heather Hiestand

Posted by Heather Hiestand :: Link :: 8:42 AM :: 1 Comments

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Night Visions Reviews

The reviews are coming in for Night Visions. I thought I'd share an excerpt from the latest one. Two Lips Reviews where Tara Renee gave the book 5 Lips and said:

Night Visions by Ariana Dupre is an interesting story. There are ghosts, visions, and love at first sight, threats, and passion. Ariana Dupre’s characters are well developed and very compelling. Angie is a strong woman who holds her own with playboy Jared. Jared is secretive and sexy. He and Angie have an amazing chemistry that enhances an already strong book. Night Visions is the first in a trilogy by Ariana Dupre and is a perfect start. I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the Visions trilogy.

For more reviews and updates visit my website at http://melissaa.com

Smiles,

Melissa Alvarez w/a Ariana Dupre

Posted by Melissa Alvarez :: Link :: 5:47 AM :: 3 Comments

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

MyWhat?

Well, I finally made the leap. Not sure how it will go, but curiosity got the better of me. I opened my very own MySpace account. It's still a work in progress and I'm discussing website and video design with the very talented Scrap Fairy Designs, but for now my MySpace is looking quite sad and lonely. I need a friend!;-) Please stop by and "friend me", or just leave a comment to say hello. Id' love to hear from you. My MySpace url is http://www.myspace.com/edenrobins

I hope to present a different kind of blog (perhaps one written by the one and only, sexy vampire and owner of Sundown Security, Vlad Maksimovitch!), as well as excerpts, contests and video in this new forum, and am excited about the opportunity. I've been touring around MySpace a little and it's quite a dynamic and interesting community of people.

Oh, I almost forgot! I'll be chatting and giving away a prize at Romance Junkies this Tuesday March 20th from 8-9 EST. Please stop by if you get a chance. www.romancejunkies.com/chat.html.

Until we meet again on March 27th, April 10th, and April 24th, I wish you and yours all the best!

Hugs,
Eden
www.edenrobins.com
AFTER SUNDOWN: SALVATION Now Available
AFTER SUNDOWN: REDEMPTION TRS CAPA WINNER 2006. RT Reveiewers Choice Award Nominee, 2006

Posted by Eden Robins :: Link :: 8:21 PM :: 0 Comments

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Glad to see so many other new authors here ...

My first book with Cerridwen comes out at the end of the June. I've got 2 others coming out this year, one the start of a paranormal/time travel series. I'm so glad to find other new authors here and on the various loops ...

Publishing is a somewhat isolating experience because we writers tend to work in solitude then toss things out, to see how others like what we've done. It's great to find others who are undergoing the same anxiety, nervousness -- and happiness -- at the whole process.

I've downloaded quite a few books from the folks on this loop, and I have to say I'm in very, very good company. I'm looking forward to various conferences so I can start putting names to the faces.

J L Wilson
Your Saving Grace, June 28, Cerridwen Press

Posted by J L :: Link :: 7:41 AM :: 2 Comments

Saturday, March 10, 2007

New Author Saying Hello

Good Morning, everyone:

I'm new to the blog, and learning the rules as I go. I checked the calendar, didn't see anyone else's name up for today, so I decided to go for it and post.

My first book with Cerridwen Press, Finding Sarah, was released on February 15th this year. Sarah was my first 'baby', and I'm a proud but nervous mama, setting her free in the world. I don't think I'm the only author who worries, "Will people like it?" "Will they buy it?"

The first time I saw an email that said, "A Review has been posted for Finding Sarah", I was almost afraid to open it. But, curiosity got the better of me, and I read what someone else had to say about the characters who had stolen my life for so many months.

Terry Odell’s FINDING SARAH is an amazing book. The suspense kept me on the edge of my seat and the identity of the criminal took me by complete surprise. Sarah and Randy fit perfectly together, like yin and yang. Randy's ability to see the entire picture without over looking anything out made me fall in love with him all the more. Sarah, though everything bad was happening to her is fiercely independent, courageous and stoic.

The Review was from Romance Junkies, and it got 4.5 blue ribbons. But more than that, I was so pleased that someone else "understood" what drove me to write the book. It was the character ever so much more than the plot. I started with a relatively simple premise. Take a very ordinary woman—none of this kick-ass superheroine stuff. Someone anyone reading the book could relate to. A woman who's had a normal, everyday life, and then little by little, things start falling apart. No major catstrophe. No life-altering single moment. How would she cope, how would she change, how would she discover the inner strength that keeps her going. The title, Finding Sarah, refers as much to her quest to see what she's made of as it does to the hero's need to find her when she disappears.

I've got more about Sarah on my website, where you can see some of the 'behind the scenes' moments that led to me writing the book. Here's a blurb:

Being robbed at gunpoint wasn’t part of Sarah Tucker’s business plan. Neither was falling in love with the detective who arrived to solve the case.

For police detective Randy Detweiler, a routine robbery investigation turns into the biggest challenge of his career when he falls in love with the victim and ends up having to save more than her business.

Finding Sarah

Cerridwen Press

ISBN: 978-141990782-1

Next time the calendar's free, I'll post an excerpt. I'm glad to be here.

Terry Odell

Posted by Terry Odell :: Link :: 5:06 AM :: 4 Comments

Friday, March 09, 2007

Cards Never Lie, excerpt 2

Hello, I am back today with the second of three excerpt days for my first Heather Hiestand release, Cards Never Lie, available now from www.cerridwenpress.com. You can go back to my previous posts in this blog to see back cover copy and the first excerpt.

In this excerpt, Melanie is still slinking around the adult product convention—and she meets our hero!

Excerpt 2:

The booth was deserted. Melanie realized the crowd had diminished considerably due to the hour. The conventioneers would be off at a comped lunch in one of the casino’s restaurants.
She sighed, knowing she needed to get back to Tommy Joe, who was probably through the line by now. But a bottle on a table in the back of the booth caught her eye and drew her closer. This bottle was slender and amber-colored. She lifted the vial, running a finger along its cork, which was wrapped with copper wire. It had no price tag. Perhaps it belonged to the premium line? She tugged at the cork and it came away easily in her hand. The scent was divine. Lemon and sandalwood. The kind of scent that energized you, made you want to snuggle into a Jacuzzi with a lover. She smiled. Tommy Joe just might be getting lucky that night.
“Admiring your own product? Is that how Shari recommends you bring in the customers?” said a deep male voice behind her.
Melanie twirled around. Her personal idea of Adonis leaned over the counter in the front of the booth. He was thirtyish, with a tight build, mischievous dark eyes and blond hair with ash brown streaks. “Considering the way you were fondling that thing, it would be worth a penny for your thoughts. Maybe even a buck,” he drawled.

Posted by Heather Hiestand :: Link :: 9:28 AM :: 1 Comments

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Exhaustion and Celebrate Romance

Now isn't that a title for a blog. LOL. Actually, I am pretty exhausted. My husband (the clever Irishman that he is) suggested that for my blog entry I write: blog blog, blog blog blog blog, blog blog, blog blog....

But you know, that's actually harder to type than real words so I'll stick to sentences.

I just got back from the most fabulous conference. Celebrate Romance took place in Kansas City this year--they move around every year--and this year we had a wonderful hotel, a prefect meeting room and a crowd of people who were there to enjoy themselves. The hotel staff were great. The food was gorgeous (Leanne always makes sure we have good food). And it was such FUN! This is a readers conference so everything is focused on the readers. But there's plenty for the authors to do.

I had the honor of giving the last talk of the entire conference, on Sunday morning just before the booksigning. And my talk was very different from anyone elses. I used my science background and spoke on Odd Sex in the Animal Kingdom. It was pretty fun. Everyone laughed and "eewwwwed" in all the right places. And apparently I was entertaining enough that everyone enjoyed it--which was a relief as I'd had a dream just the morning before that while I was giving my talk, the entire audience got distracted by a movie and Sean Connery and wandered off leaving me at the podium. But to be fair, I got distracted by Sean Connery too. LOL.

For anyone looking for small, fun conferences with excellent people, I can't recommend Celebrate Romance highly enough!

And now, on my husband's orders, I have to go to bed (to sleep you naughty people, to sleep!). More later in the month.

Enjoy your March and stay warm if you're freezing like we are in NY.
Isabo
www.isabokelly.com

Posted by Isabo Kelly :: Link :: 7:48 PM :: 2 Comments

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Cards Never Lie, excerpt 1

Hello everyone! I'm so excited, because my first novel is being released this Thursday morning!

I'm hearing the writers can't get into the blog to post this week, but for some reason I can, so to entertain you I thought I'd post my first excerpt a couple days early...

You can go back a week in this blog and see my posting last Friday for the back cover copy.

This novel is set in the Seattle area and in Las Vegas, because I lived in the Seattle area when I wrote this and I love vacationing in Las Vegas. I’m not much of a gambler, but I adore the sheer spectacle of the city! My heroine, Melanie, goes to town for a product convention and gets lured in by a product convention of the adult kind…

Excerpt 1:

Melanie walked through the crowd, mesmerized by the scene and the varied noise of slot machines and forgot her stomach. The look of the conventioneers appeared to be hair, piercings and brief yet uncomfortably binding fashion. She realized she had found a market for her company’s basic massage product line. If she came up with a fresh marketing plan for the old offerings, maybe she could increase her chances of keeping her job.
The trade show began inside the ballroom doors. Melanie squeezed in without anyone checking for her badge since so many people were crowding into the doors. She wandered by booth after booth of video producers, talent agencies and lingerie companies.
She stopped at one that featured bustiers, teddies and panties in fiery red and fingered a satin bra with cutouts where a woman’s nipples would be. If she bought the lingerie, would a man to appreciate it appear in her life?
A booth across the aisle caught her eye. Could it be food? Her erotic thoughts vanished instantly. She walked over, accidentally treading on a gladiator-sized muscle man’s surprisingly tiny foot. He opened his mouth to roar at her, but his exclamation of rage was lost in the noise of the crowd. Everyone here seemed to be talking louder than normal. The booth indeed held food. She reached eagerly for a cellophane-wrapped cookie, only to pull her hand away when she realized what the frosting on the cookie depicted - a naked woman in pink, black and red frosting. Pink for skin, red for lips and nipples and black for hair of all kinds.

Labels: romance novels "Cards Never Lie" Heather Hiestand Las Vegas Seattle

Posted by Heather Hiestand :: Link :: 3:50 PM :: 0 Comments

Thursday, March 01, 2007

New blogger Heather Hiestand

Hello! I will be with you on Fridays for the month of March to share details of my first Cerridwen Press release, Cards Never Lie. I’m so excited to have the release of my first novel only a few days away (March 8th).

But, back to Cards Never Lie... I actually got the idea from this book when I gave one of my college roommates a Tarot reading. I’m certainly no expert reader of the cards, and when they said her soul mate was the devil, I quickly scrambled to my interpretation books to figure out what it meant. At that moment, this book was born…

Here is the back cover copy of Cards Never Lie. I’ll return next Friday with the first excerpt!

LIFE ASSESSMENT
Seattleite Melanie Vanderpool needs to change her conservative ways and find a new, wild life. So why does a fortuneteller have to give her such bad news about her soul mate? The good news: passion is in her future. The bad news: her dream lover is going to be forceful and perverse. Hmmm…what can a girl do but jet off to Las Vegas and start hunting for her man?

CAREER ASSESSMENT
Melanie is going to lose her job if she doesn’t come up with some hot new products for her massage oil company. Can attending an adult movie convention give her some ideas? For sure, rubbing up against sex toy company CEO Rob Black is giving her some seriously amorous thoughts. But it will be hard to focus amidst the spies, handcuffs and mayhem.

A little about me: I write as Heather Hiestand for Cerridwen Press and Anh Leod for Ellora’s Cave. Eilis Flynn and I share a website at www.coffeeonsundays.info, and we’ve also started a newsletter which is an announcements-only Yahoo Group. The two of us decided we will only share a page one excerpt in our newsletter, so if you want to see the first page excerpts from our books, you’ll have to subscribe! Just click on “Join our newsletter” on the website to join. We expect to send out a newsletter around the release date of each of our books, and between us we have one almost every month in 2006 starting in March!

See you next Friday! Until then...happy reading

Labels: romance novels "Cards Never Lie" Heather Hiestand Las Vegas Seattle

Posted by Heather Hiestand :: Link :: 9:50 PM :: 0 Comments

Hope I'm not stepping on toes...

Thanks to technical difficulties, travels and deadlines, I've been a disaster for posting. I hope I'm not sneaking into anyone else's day on accident--just post over me if I am!

But I'm off to Celebrate Romance in Kansas City, MO this weekend (Friday-Sunday), and I wanted to post in case anyone is in the area and wants to attend. It's an excellent conference with wonderful readers and authors. Much fun is had. This is my third year attending, and I just love it. I'm even giving a little talk this year on the Sunday--Odd Animal Sex :) I'll be talking about some of the weird and wild sexual antics in the animal kingdom. And finally using my academic training a bit. Should be a bit of fun.

For those of you who can't attend, I'm due to blog again around the 8th of March so I'll be sure to talk about how the conference went.

Happy March, everyone!!
Isabo

www.isabokelly.com

Posted by Isabo Kelly :: Link :: 11:42 AM :: 1 Comments

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