Someone took the time to compile this list and to help promote it, I'm publishing it here.
Thank you, Keira Des Agnes thinking of it, taking the time to do it, and for all the work involved.
Check it out - many of them are free. Amazon
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Friday, October 4, 2013
A few lines from Mystic Mountains by Tricia McGill
"So, you're filling out a bit, I see." He tightened his grip just below her breasts. "A full belly hasn't improved your temper though. Now, be still, little bundle. I'm your master an' I have the right to do as I like with you."
"Do as you like?" Isabella squirmed away from him. With violently shaking hands she straightened her skirt. Her cheeks flamed when she looked up to see he watched her every movement closely, as if it was his right. The twinkle in his eyes made her temper rise. "I'll kill myself if you take what you see as your rights. Anyway, what would you want with the likes of me when you have so many other women chasing after you?"
"Oho, so you've heard the tales of my exploits with the fair sex, have you? I feel I must set you straight on that account. There aren't that many. But you're right on one thing. I wouldn't fancy you in a fit. I prefer my women to be amenable." He placed his hands on his hips, returning her stare with the arrogance that set her teeth on edge.
"Then I'm saved from a fate worse than death, for amenable I'll never be." Isabella stepped out of his reach. But to her horror he made a grab for her, grasping her hand. She tugged but he refused to release it.
"Now then, which fruit did you want?" he asked, his tone now quite pleasant. "Perhaps I can reach it without resorting to climbing the tree."
Isabella stared at him, then pointed to a bunch within easy reach for him. "That one, and those there." She breathed a small sigh of relief when he finally let her go then reached up to pluck them.
"Hold out your apron," he ordered, dropping the apples in. "There, will that satisfy Thelma?"
Pulling free the cloth tied round his neck, he used it to wipe his brow. As he retied it he watched her like a cat stares at a cornered mouse.
"I ... I think so." Isabella gathered her apron to her chest and turned to flee, but he caught her by the arm again.
"Bella. Satisfy my curiosity, will you?"
His soft tone made her suspicious. She watched him cautiously. "How?"
"Are you happy here in my household?" he asked softly, those strange eyes of his searching hers.
"As happy as any woman can be working for an Englishman." That was a dreadful lie, for she'd seldom been happier.
"You're not yet a woman, Bella. You have a lot to learn about how real women behave."
She disagreed, but wasn't about to go into that argument now.
Mystic Mountains is available here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFE5UL6
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
Free today
After her husband leaves her for a younger woman, Erica Morris starts a group for ex wives of deadbeat dads. Little did she know just how many there were. In the process of rebuilding her life, someone tries to blackmail her. Can she put the past behind her or will it catch up to her?
EXCERPT:
Does
everyone start out married life with rose colored glasses? I'm sure no one
thinks their marriage will end in divorce. I certainly didn't. Mine was the
perfect love, the perfect marriage, I was going to have the perfect life, and
it was an absolutely perfect day for a wedding. The sun streamed through the
window as I walked down the aisle on my father’s arm. Johnny looked so handsome
standing at the altar waiting for me.
Oh, I
knew we'd have our ups and downs. I've always been a realist. I know nothing in
life is perfect. But we came darn close. At least that’s what I thought. So how
did I end up divorced, fifteen years later? If
anyone would have told me about the turn my life would take I’d have laughed at
them.
Oh, I’m Erica Morris. Well, I was Erica Morris until recently.
Now I’m divorced and left to raise two kids. Johnny, my husband left me for a
younger woman. Not a new story, I know, but that doesn't make it hurt less. To
top it all off, he cut himself off from our kids and left me to be the bearer
of bad news. To make matters worse, he refused to pay child support. Not that
he couldn't afford it. Believe me, he could well afford it, and then some. But he left us penniless? I need to back up a bit. I remember calling the meeting of other
single mothers to order.
Friday, September 27, 2013
A Few Lines From: The Bookstore Lady by Diane Bator
“Hi.” She nodded.
The drugstore opened at eight every morning and it was now quarter to ten. Must have been a slow morning if he had time to stand in the doorway with a large cup of coffee rather than hanging out behind the back counter. “You’d best convince Ray to get some air-conditioning for that store before your new books curl up and warp. It’s beyond me how he’s never lost half his books every summer.”
“Dust absorbs the humidity.” She smiled wryly. “I don’t think we can afford air-conditioning this year.”
“I know a guy who’ll give you a quote. He’s not bad looking once you get past the bug eyes and scars. I can call him, if you’d like.”
“Maybe some other time.” Like when hell froze over.
He waved and went back into the drugstore.
Katie drew in a deep breath. The air was fresh from last night’s rain and the hint of a breeze mussed her hair. In two months, the only thing to find her was the sunshine and a case of withdrawals that made renovations hell. Nate, bless his heart, had had more compassion while she fought “the flu” than any man she’d ever met.
She blew a strand of stray copper hair out of her mouth and jiggled the door lock. Another thing that needed to be fixed before winter. She should have done it during renovations, but it hadn’t seemed as important as books and workmen. Luckily, Nate worked cheap and she hadn’t had to dig into the money from Dunnsforth. The money was tucked up in a box in the backroom, fastened with half a roll of duct tape. She’d ask him to fix the lock when he delivered her order later.
The door opened with a groan. “It’s about time.”
Available at: Amazon
Come back next week for a few lines from Tricia McGill
Friday, September 20, 2013
A FEW LINES from COLD GOLD by Victoria Chatham
“Well, look ‘ee here!” The first rider grinned at her, revealing a mouthful of stained and crooked teeth that reminded her of broken tombstones. “New blood in town.”
“Hello, fancy lady,” the second rider said. “You goin’ to share a drink wi’ me before we share somethin’ else?”
The other riders dismounted and gathered around her, jostling Serena until her back flattened against the wall of the saloon. Her mouth quickly dried up. Her heart pounded. She smelled their sour breath and sweat-stained clothes, felt their anticipation and wished she had paid more attention to Sheriff Johnson’s warning.
“Oy, you lot!” Every head turned at the strident tone of a woman’s distinctly English voice. “Jasper, you idiot, you don’t know a real lady when you see one. Cal, you wouldn’t know what to do with one anyway. Tom, Walt, Clarence, stand back and give the lady some room. Clear off, the lot a’ ya.”
Grumbling, the men turned away and walked into the saloon. Serena closed her eyes and sighed with relief.
“Are you stupid, or what?”
Serena pushed off the wall and faced her rescuer. The force of the expression in the woman’s blue eyes almost caused her to take a step back again.
“I...I wasn’t thinking,” she stuttered.
“That was perfectly obvious,” the other woman retorted. “Come on, we need to get you off the street. This way.”
The woman took Serena’s arm in a strong grip and hurried her along the boardwalk in the opposite direction to the Eldorado.
“In here.” The woman opened a door and pushed her into a store redolent with the warm and wonderful aromas of coffee and fresh baking. “Go on, straight through that door facing you. I’m right behind you.”
Her rescuer’s hand, firm on her back, gave Serena no choice but to go where directed. The moment she passed through the second door, she spun on her heel.
“Just who are you?” she demanded. “And what gives you the right to push me around?”
“Well, pardon me for breathing.” Anger spiked the woman’s voice and blazed in her blue eyes. “You’d rather be pushed around by a bunch of randy miners, would you?”
“No, of course not. And I do thank you for coming to my aid, but who are you?”
“Someone you shouldn’t be seen with, that’s for sure.”
“Why shouldn’t I be seen with you?” Serena looked her rescuer up and down and might have been looking in a mirror, so similar were they. The woman was her height, dressed in clothes as fashionable as her own. Tendrils of hair, blonde rather than dark brown, framed the woman’s face and, just like Serena’s own skin, the woman had a fresh, clear complexion.
“Because I’m Lorelei Sutton and I own a brothel just outside of town.”
Visit Victoria Chatham at
Join us next week for A Few Lines from Diane Bator
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
All in the Family
Hi, I'm Callie Johnson, heroine of All
in the Family. I'm a cop. Well, I was a cop until the Mayor of Smytheville
called and told me Jim Landry, the current Police Chief, was retiring and did I
want the job. Did I? Talk about a dream come true. I'd wanted to come back to
Smytheville for some time. Big city life wasn't what it was cracked up to be.
Besides, I missed my family, crazy as they were. So of course I accepted.
I really thought coming back to Smytheville as the
new Chief of Police would be a piece of cake. I mean, really, nothing much
happens in a small town. At least that’s what I thought. Boy was I in for a
surprise. One of the first things I ran into was my grandmother had been
arrested. For murder, no less.
Not that the present chief believed it. Not for a
minute. Besides being a judge, the chief was sweet on Gram. He’d been trying to
talk her into retiring for a long time, but Gram wouldn’t budge.
Of course, it didn’t faze her a bit bugging me to
get married. Her and everyone and their brother. Especially my aunts. One in
particular. Aunt Beatrice Lulu fixed me up with every single man she came
across. How she managed to talk them into meeting me, I’ll never know. Thing
is, even though she vouched for them, she never bothered to check them out. Heck,
one was even married.
No matter how I begged, she wouldn’t quit.
Encouraged by her sisters, Aunt Emma and Aunt Lottie, she continued to insist I
meet these men. Even after I told them I met someone, she still wouldn’t quit.
My aunts are something else. Actually the whole family is. From my grandmother,
mother, to my sister. But the aunts, well, let’s just say they’re special. A
more fun loving group you’ll never find. The things those ladies think to do.
But I can’t say more because I don’t want to spoil the book.
Back to me thinking being Police Chief was going to
be easy – I couldn’t have been more wrong. From vandalism to kidnapping, from
drunk and disorderly to murder, even an attack on me, I had my work cut out for
me.
All in the Family is available from Amazon –
To learn more about me and my books check out my
website – www.roseannedowell.com or
my blog – http://roseannedowellauthor.blogspot.com
Friday, September 13, 2013
Friday's A few lines from Joan Hall Hovey
The teenage girl hurried along the darkening street, head down in a vain attempt to divert attention from herself as she headed for her bus stop, still over a block away. The car behind her was a soft growl in the still, warm air. The day was fast fading, the sky a light mauve, only a sprinkling of stars yet. Soon it would be dark... Ignore them, she told herself. But it was impossible to do with the car following so close that the heat from the motor brushed her bare legs, like a monster's breath.
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