
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
Legacy by Jeanette Baker... A Review

Legacy by Jeanette Baker... A Review

Monday, 12 July 2010
Barely a Lady by Eileen Dreyer... A Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway!


Barely a Lady by Eileen Dreyer... A Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway!


Monday, 14 June 2010
Knight of Passion by Margaret Mallory... Blog Tour, Review & GIVEAWAY!


Today Margaret Mallory's makes a stop at Chick with Books on her Virtual Blog Tour for Knight of Passion! Margaret Mallory NEVER disappoints me with her historical romances. Her writing is wonderful, her settings are beautiful and she always adds a bit of humor to make us smile. Knight of Passion is HOT, filled with enough sexual tension and passion to ignite the pages of your paperback, and delivers on the historical side too, as it's sprinkled with historical places, people and facts that create a well-rounded story (and it never loses its sizzle even with a bit of history thrown in!)
Knight of Passion is the third and final book in Margaret Mallory's All The King's Men Series. This is the story of Jamie Rayburn & Lady Linnet. Jamie is the son of Lady Catherine Rayburn & step son of William FitzAlan, whom we met in the first book of the series, Knight of Desire. Jamie was just a toddler in Knight of Desire, but we did meet him again in the second book of the series, Knight of Pleasure, a little older and getting his feet wet as a squire. Finally Margaret gives Jamie his own story! And it was worth waiting for!
I loved Knight of Passion! It has all the qualities I love in a historical romance... A hunky knight, with a true sense of honor! A feisty heroine, who has a mind of her own and can take care of herself, but is still vulnerable. A love story that is not bound by time or place, but is filled with the missteps and passions of what every romance is made up of. Plus a good bit of adventure! Margaret Mallory creates characters that almost leap from the pages, with backgrounds and personalities that we come to love & know so well. The romance between Jamie & Linnet grows from when they are teenagers, develops into something more meaningful and is quite believable. And not only does her historical research touch on the politics of the day, and the proper etiquette when dealing with a queen, but also we get to experience the beautiful dresses of the day (along with how hard it is to get back into them with only 2 hands...)! There are wonderful twists & turns to the plot that will have your reading late into the night along with a bit of the supernatural & superstitions here and there. Love romances? Love historical romances? I would recommend Knight of Passion by Margaret Mallory! (She is one of my favorite historical romance writers!) Here's a something about her...

Margaret Mallory started out as a Midwest girl. Except for two years in Africa, she grew up in small towns in northern Michigan, where her dad was a county extension agent. She received degrees from Michigan State University and the University of Michigan Law School, and then headed to Washington, DC to save the world. When that failed, she packed up and moved to the Pacific Northwest for no reason except that it was beautiful and far from her last jobs and boyfriends. She admits to having a vague notion of finding herself a park ranger with a dog. The man she met was not a park ranger, but he was willing to get the dog. Marriage and children soon followed. Margaret spent many rewarding—but rather wearing—years in jobs devoted to improving services for abused children and care for the elderly. Not long ago, she surprised (shocked?) her friends and family by abandoning her legal career—and steady job—to write novels. She is thrilled to spend her days writing stories of love and adventure, instead of going to endless meetings. After all, she has always loved romantic tales, heroic deeds, and happy endings. And, at long last, she can satisfy her passion for justice by punishing the bad and rewarding the worthy—in the pages of her novels.
Did you know THESE Fun Facts about Margaret Mallory?
1. My husband has yet to read one of my books out of fear he might laugh at the wrong parts and not be forgiven.
2. My nineteen-year-old son made me cut out the love scenes — literally, with scissors-so he could read my book “without being traumatized.”
3. A male friend advised me, “If you had a different cover and different title, men might read this book.”
4. My father-in-law STILL thinks it’s funny to say the models on the cover look just like my husband and me — ha,ha,ha,ha.
5. They all love my sexy covers — whether they admit it or not.
What would Margaret Mallory like readers to walk away with after reading her books?
"I want to sweep my readers away to another time and place. Women need pleasurable escape reading. I want my book to help them forget about the hassles of their day and to leave them with a warm and satisfying happy ending."
Learn more about the author and her books at Margaret Mallory's website. You can also read an excerpt of Knight of Passion while you're there!
Would you like a chance to get your own copy!? Courtesy of Hachette Book Group I have a GIVEAWAY for 5 copies of Knight of Passion! Here's how to enter...
To Enter this Giveaway...
*For one entry leave me a comment with your email address!
*Get an extra entry for following my blog! Just leave a comment letting me know you're a follower! ( Not a follower yet? No problem, sign up by clicking on the 'followers" button on the sidebar to the left! Just let me know you became a new follower!)
*Blog or tweet about this giveaway and leave me the link.
This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents only (No PO boxes). The books will be shipped to the winners directly from the publisher. Contest ends 11:59pm EST on June 28th. I will randomly pick the winners the next day and email them! (please check your email.. winner must reply to me within 3 days! Thanks!) Good Luck!
*I want to thank Anna of Hachette Book Group for sending along a copy Knight of Passion to review!
KINDLE READERS! Want to Read the First Book in the Trilogy!? Knight of Desire is only $1.99 in the Kindle Store!
Wednesday, 19 May 2010
Ravished by a Highlander by Paula Quinn... A Review and a Giveaway!

Tuesday, 11 May 2010
Writing "Highlander" Romances in the 21st Century... a Guest Post by Historical Romance Author Paula Quinn

Today I want to welcome guest author Paula Quinn! She's the lovely lady whose book Ravished by a Highlander I just turned the last page on and was totally swept away by. If you love romance with a good Highlander and Historical Romance, you'll want to put Paula Quinn on your reading list... And that's what Paula is guest posting about today- how she writes those wonderful "Highlander" romances...
Writing "Highlander" romances in the 21st century, where Paula gets her stories and how she keeps them fresh...
It isn’t difficult for me to write Highlander romances in the 21st century because I don’t always live in the 21st century. One of my passions is the past. Give me a time machine and I’m outta here—at least, until I need an Advil. Not everyone would prefer to live a few centuries ago, but the Highlands and Scotland are synonymous with romance. It’s the whole wind-swept moors, rugged guy in a plaid who knows how to handle a big sword thing. The fact that these men no longer exist makes them more interesting to create—or read about.
I don’t usually start out with an idea of a story line/plot, but rather with a character. They always come to me first. People are what make history exciting. Once I know my hero or heroine’s goals and desires, I can build around it. Rob MacGregor came to me long before I began writing my latest release, Ravished By A Highlander. He was immediately dominant, taking full charge of my ideas and showing me the path he was meant to take. Some scenes weren’t going to fly, which upset my pragmatic, obstinate alpha male, but I’m the boss of him no matter how big his Claymore Still, I never plan how a story is going to proceed unless I have to do a proposal—which I dislike. Every scene has the potential to change the flow of the tale. I prefer to let my characters lead the way and I’ll polish up as we go.
Keeping my stories fresh can be a bit of a challenge. After all, there are millions of romances out there. How many different ways are there to fall in love? But I think that as an historical romance author I have a tiny advantage. Because my stories take place in the past, the possibilities are endless. I mean, I have eighteen centuries to choose from, each with a very unique flavor. In my new Children of the Mist series, the action begins in 17th century Scotland during the Stuart reign and will end with William of Orange taking the throne. I love the political intrigue surrounding the period, the social and religious unrest that give the tale more depth and pull the best, or the worst from a hero or heroine. Drop any character into a tumultuous era, test his loyalties, and watch him come alive. Give him and his lady an almost impossible obstacle to overcome before falling in love and a little free reign to do it, and the story will come to life around them.
I want to thank Paula for stopping by and sharing her insights into her historical romance writing today! It's so interesting to actually get a glimpse of the writing process and the history that motivates an author. Now about her latest novel Ravished by a Highlander...

Davina Montgomery is no ordinary English lady. For her own protection, she's been locked away from society, her true identity the Crown's most closely guarded secret. Until a shocking betrayal--and a bold rescue--land her in the arms of a fierce Highlander, a powerful warrior whose searing gaze and tantalizing touch awaken her body and soul.
As the firstborn son of a powerful Scottish laird, Robert MacGregor has no loyalty to the English throne, but he's not the kind of man to leave a woman in distress, even if she is English. He vows to deliver Davina to safety, unharmed and untouched. Yet one stolen kiss leaves them both smoldering with desire...and desperate for more. With Davina's secret threatening to destroy his clan, Rob must choose between everything he holds dear and the one woman he can't live without.
Ravished by a Highlander was HOT, fun and full of wonderful characters! Stop back this week to read my review of Paula Quinn's latest novel, Ravished by a Highlander, and there will be a GIVEAWAY too!
