Love Knows No Bounds

As if my publisher ENTANGLED PUBLISHING wasn't awesome enough, they have just realised an anthology supporting autism, where 100% of net profits are being donated to Autism Speaks.

The stories are:

TWEET by Boone Brux

When ultra-shy pushover Faye Albert decides to live a little, she inadvertently binds her soul to Satan by following him on Twitter. And overnight, her dreams of being confident, beautiful, and adored by men are coming true. No longer is she overlooked, pushed out of her place in line, or just plain pushed over.

But it comes at a price: if she doesn’t figure out how break the contract, she’ll lose her soul to the Dark Prince forever.

With time running out, and no idea how to unfollow Satan, she enlists the help of Christopher White, a gorgeous photographer from work. All the while, Satan’s little helper dogs her every step and offers her things she’s only dreamed of, tempting Faye with a lifetime of earthly treasures. And unconditional love. But will she say yes to a love that knows no bounds?


BITTERSWEET by Brooke Moss

Anna Kirkpatrick isn't looking for love. Being a single mom to Bowan, her eight-year-old autistic son, takes up all of her time...leaving no room for romance. Willing to do anything to help her son come out of his shell, Anna agrees to take Bowan to cooking classes with a world class chef.

Motorcycle-riding pastry chef Leo Mancini isn't exactly searching for "the one", either. After losing every penny he had, his business, and his girlfriend, he's moved to northern Idaho to sulk, restart his career, and pay his sister back for a loan that no amount of money could ever really suffice.

When Anna and Leo discover that Bowan's fondness for the kitchen extends beyond his peculiar cookbook collection, Leo quickly becomes the one person who can break through his barriers. But will Leo and Anna's attraction lead to more than just a weekly cooking lesson?


REMEMBER ME by Nina Croft

Unable to bear the thought of losing his mortal wife, Caden Wolfe steals the Elixir of Life and offers her eternity. But the theft is discovered, his wife is slain, and Caden is stripped of his angel wings and cast down into the Abyss.
Having drunk of the Elixir of Life, Phoebe Little's soul is tied to the earth in a perpetual cycle of death and rebirth. Unaware that she has lived countless lives, Phoebe is haunted by the loss of a love she has no memory of.

Caden has spent a thousand years searching for his wife. Now he has found her, and only Phoebe's love can redeem them both. But Phoebe fell in love with an angel, and Caden is now a demon of the Abyss. Can she see past what he has become, remember the love they once shared, and have a second chance at forever?


BUY HERE 

WEEKEND BOOK CLUB: How to Win the Dating War

I love discovering new authors and becoming hooked on their books.
Aimee Carson is now one of those authors.

I read How to Win the Dating War last week and it blew me away (especially as this is Aimee's 2nd book!)

Here's the blurb:

In the men’s corner.. Cutter Thompson – Miami’s hottest ex-racing car driver – believes that action always speaks louder than words. Participating in a celebrity dating competition, where his every text is analysed to death, is his worst nightmare! 


Flying the flag for the girls... Divorcee Jessica Wilson has built her life – and her dating service! – on the premise that communication is the key to happiness. Cutter might not think he needs her help to flirt successfully, but her professional radar says otherwise... 


But this battle of the sexes gets complicated by an intense, sizzling attraction! Will it be game, set and…match made in heaven?


This was my first book by Aimee Carson and I can sum it up in one word: WOW!

How to Win the Dating War is a sexy read with two mismatched characters that create major sparks.

Cutter has to be the hottest hero I've read in a long while. 
He's brash, blunt and incredibly drool worthy.
Jessica is a little prim and proper, and the perfect foil for his rough around the edges appeal.

The sexual tension sizzles off the page!

I loved every minute of this story and can't wait to read more from Aimee.


Highly recommend.


What are you reading this weekend?

I've sold to a 4th publisher!

In late March, I had a surreal week.
Within 5 days, I had offers from 3 different publishers for 3 different books.

After negotiations, I'm thrilled to announce I've sold a category length contemporary romance to CRIMSON ROMANCE (the new romance division of Adams Media, a long-standing publisher of non-fiction titles including Writers Digest books.)

The tentative title is FALLING FOR FLYNN and it's a returned soldier/reunion romance set in my fabulous home city Melbourne.

Release date to be confirmed (but will be within the next 6 months.)

Stay tuned to hear loads more about this story!

And if you're a writer, Crimson Romance are actively acquiring manuscripts (I'm thrilled I encouraged a friend of mine to submit and she has been contracted too!)

They're after talented authors with fresh voices and engaging stories: smart, heartwarming romances for the sophisticated reader.

So what are you waiting for?
Check out the submission guidelines here

The Prom

Lisa Burstein is celebrating the upcoming release of her contemporary YA novel PRETTY AMY on May 15th by giving away designer evening dresses!


PRETTY AMY starts on a prom night that goes horribly and hilariously wrong. Prom night or any special night doesn’t always go as planned. There is a lot you can’t control: the weather, your date’s breath and sometimes even the whim of a policeman. 

Luckily, you can control the way you look and PRETTY AMY wants you to look good.
Designer good. $200 Designer good!
Lisa is giving away 3 Size 8 Phoebe Couture evening dresses, generously donated by Kay Unger and 2 $20 Sephora gift cards.
4 lucky people will win! Contest starts 4/17 and goes until 5/17.

Enter here

To make this even MORE fun, some brave Entangled authors, editors, publicists and interns have given Lisa their prom photos. She will be posting them on her FB page over the next month.
(and yes, me included, complete with pink satin and frizzy hair. While we don't celebrate prom in Australia, graduation dance is the equivalent roughly, so that's the pic you'll see. It's a doozy!)

Getting there

Thanks for being so patient with me.
I'm getting there with my PC stuff...picked up Mac yesterday and I'm in love!

For everyone who told me once I had Mac I'd never go back? Yep, you were spot on!
Even though it's taking me a while to figure everything out, I absolutely adore it!
Utterly fab!

So I will resume normal transmission here soon...as soon as I catch up.

Mac attack

Bear with me a few days while I'm mostly offline.

After being a PC user for years, I've taken the plunge and bought a MAC.

Yes, I'll be clueless for ages but I intend on making the most of my tutorials, just as soon as I make a dent in the mountain of work I have, including starting a book due at the end of May!

Back soon!

Going Brazilian!

Once again through the power of Twitter I've met a wonderful lady who reads and reviews romances.

The lovely Beta is celebrating her blog's 7th anniversary and she asked to interview me.
The result is here

I love seeing her reviews of my books and always hope Google does a good job of translating for me!

Here's a little more about Beta.

Roberta, 33, Brazilian. Journalist. The most unpredictable mix of a Scorpio and a Gemini ascendant - always surprising myself. Starting reading romances at 12, maybe 13 or 14 years old to never stop. I can forget anything but there is always a book around. I prefer romantic and funny books, sometimes sobrenatural ones and never horror. One day I'll travel to Italy, specially Florence - for now, just the romances take me there :)


About my blog: in 2005, I started a blog called Literatura de Mulherzinha (the portuguese translation of "chicklit"). I become tired to research about books I liked to read in internacional sites. I guess it is one of the first blogs about books in Brazil. In the beggining, the idea was just share comments about my books and series I've found. But I found lots of friends, found lots of authors and books and now it is one of most important parts of my life. Abril 16th is the 7th anniversary and I intend to keep it for a long long time.

I hope so too, Beta!

Casting call

If I didn't love Twitter for the general chit-chat and keeping abreast of current affairs and hanging out with friends, I'd love it for the new people I meet.

Danielle Gorman is one of those people and she's celebrating her blogoversary in conjunction with Romancing Rakes, by asking authors who'd they'd cast for their books if Hollywood came calling.

You can check out my leading men at RAMBLINGS FROM THIS CHICK and ROMANCING RAKES FOR THE LOVE OF ROMANCE.

And yes, you can win free books!
-Interview with the Daredevil
-Busted in Bollywood

Good luck!

The Write Tools

Today I'm visiting DAMON YOUNG'S blog.

I met Damon via Twitter and he invited me to take part in his Write Tools series. I love hearing about the processes of other writers so check it out in the sidebar of his blog!

Damon is an Australian author, philosopher and commentator. He has published features in the The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, The Herald, The Australian Literary review and BBC. He's a regular columnist for the ABC and Canberra Times.
Check out his impressive credentials.

And yes, I'm his first romance writer guest!

WEEKEND BOOK CLUB: No Dress Required

NO DRESS REQUIRED summed up in a word? Fabulous!

Part of the shorter 'Flirt' series for Entangled Publishing, No Dress Required packed a powerful punch and left me hankering for more.
No surprise it hit the USA TODAY bestseller list, it's a wonderful story.

Here's the blurb:

After years of ho-hum dating, Noelle Gregory is tired of fooling around. There’s only ever been one guy for her—Jake Conroy, her best friend’s older brother. Now that Jake’s back in town, she’s headed to his sister’s New Year’s Eve party to make her move. Purse full of condoms? Check. Sparkly dress guaranteed to show Jake the sexy woman she’s become? Check. Carjacker that makes off with both two hours before the party? Check.

When Jake finds Noelle stranded on the side of the road—looking sexier than ever in her striped socks and silly holiday shirt, damn it—he’s glad for the snowstorm that cancels his sister’s party. His and Noelle’s friendship has tormented him for years, and now, Jake wonders if he should dare to sample what he’s always wanted…and if he’ll be able to walk away when it’s over.

I devoured this in one sitting!

Absolutely sensational read!

Cari Quinn has a unique voice that sucks you into the story from the very beginning.

For a shorter read, the emotional and sexual tension between Noelle and Jake is top rate.
Love, love, loved the fireworks they created! Steamy yet sweet.
The kind of story I wished could go on forever.

I can't wait to read Jake's sister Alexa's story, in a longer format, yay!

Highly recommend.

FRIDAY FLICKS: Puss in Boots

Kidlet adored movies from the age of 2 but his younger brother not so much.
When PUSS IN BOOTS released last year, it was the first movie preschooler sat through with some interest.
Since then, he has watched Shrek 2 & 3 a hundred times for one reason: Puss in Boots.
He thinks the cat is super cool and I have to agree.
With the movie just being released on DVD (and yes, I had to buy it yesterday) I thought this review is timely.

PUSS IN BOOTS is a prequel to Shrek 2, where Puss first makes an appearance.

In this movie, he teams up with the mastermind Humpty Dumpty and a street-wise cat Kitty Softpaws, to go after the outlaw couple Jack and Jill who have the magic beans he's been searcing for his entire life. 
Beans that can lead to the giant's castle hiding valuable golden goose eggs.

Sounds like fun, huh?
The movie is a rollicking good adventure, made easier on the ears by the dulcet tones of Antonio Banderas who plays Puss.
Salma Hayek is fabulous as Kitty Softpaws.
And Jack (Billy Bob Thornton) and Jill (Amy Sedaris) are seriously scary!

I won't give away any plot points but needless to say, there are many twists and turns in this fun film.
Kids will love it.
And if you're like me and mainly see kids' flicks these days, adults will enjoy it too.

Sold! My Young Adult debut...

Hot off the press from Publishers Marketplace, the announcement I've been dying to shout out:

April 9, 2012



Children's: Young Adult

USA Today bestselling author Nicola Marsh's debut SORORITY OF THE SUN, in which a sixteen-year-old supernatural misfit, bound to the Celtic sun god and his Druid-driven Sorority, enters a boarding school for the freakishly gifted, discovers powers she has no idea what to do with, and battles coming-of-age issues while embarking on a quest to recover an icon that may change her family and the world as she knows it, to Georgia McBride at Month9Books, in a three-book deal, for publication in November 2013 (World).

I adore this book.
Really, truly, adore it.
And I can't wait to share it with readers!!!

Still pinching myself Georgia had the same vision for the series I did...I'm going to be a Young Adult author, woo hoo!!!!!!!!

COVER REVEAL: Greta and the Goblin King

Another fabulous cover reveal for a fellow ENTANGLED PUBLISHING author, Chloe Jacobs.

Chloe Jacobs is a native of nowhere and everywhere, having jumped around to practically every Province of Canada before finally settling in Ontario where she has now been living for a respectable number of years. Her husband and son are the two best people in the entire world, but they also make her wish she'd at least gotten a female cat. No such luck. And although the day job keeps her busy, she carves out as much time as possible to write. Bringing new characters to life and finding out what makes them tick and how badly she can make them suffer is one of her greatest pleasures, almost better than chocolate and fuzzy pink bunny slippers.


GRETA AND THE GOBLIN KING releases November 13, 2012.

Here's the blurb:

While trying to save her brother four years ago, Greta was thrown into the witch’s fire herself, falling through a portal to a dangerous world where humans are the enemy, and every ogre, goblin, and ghoul has a dark side that comes out with the full moon.


To survive, seventeen-year-old Greta has hidden her humanity and taken the job of bounty hunter—and she’s good at what she does. So good, she’s caught the attention of Mylena’s young Goblin King, the darkly enticing Isaac, who invades her dreams and undermines her determination to escape.


But Greta’s not the only one looking to get out of Mylena. The full moon is mere days away, and an ancient evil knows she’s the key to opening the portal. If Greta fails, she and the lost boys of Mylena will die. If she succeeds, no world will be safe from what follows her back…

Goodreads
Barnes and Noble pre-order
Twitter
Facebook
Website

Lucky 7 meme

I got tagged for this by the lovely Kathy Bradey, YA writer and Sydneysider who I love chatting with.

The Lucky 7 Meme Rules

■Go to page 77 of your current MS/WIP

■Go to line 7

■Copy down the next 7 lines–sentences or paragraphs–and post them as they’re written. No cheating.

■Tag 7 authors

■Let them know

So here's mine from NOT THE MARRYING KIND (Entangled Publishing Indulgence series) releasing soon!

She wanted him, wanted this, whatever this was.



He plundered her mouth, long, hot, moist kisses that left her boneless and mindless with desire until all she could do was sag against him, soft and pliant and wanting. So much wanting.


An eternity later his lips eased away, lingering long enough to place a surprisingly sweet kiss on the corner of her mouth.


“So what do you say?” He traced her bottom lip with a fingertip, the residual tingle from his kiss intensifying as he stared at her with the determination of a guy used to getting his own way. “Marry me?”


She wanted to say no.


She wanted to tell him where he could stick his proposal.


Instead, she nodded, a reluctant “yeah” tumbling from her lips a second before he claimed them again.


Tagged:

Natalie Anderson
Liz Fielding
Rachel Firasek
Cathryn Hein
Kate Hardy
Rachel Harris
Rachael Johns

FRIDAY FLICKS: The Bext Exotic Marigold Hotel

I love entering a movie theatre knowing absolutely nothing about the film I'm about to see.
No expectations to fall short.

That was the case last week when I took my folks to see THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL. I knew nothing about the film and when my mum mentioned it was set in India, I was hooked!

So that's all I knew: the location.

And what a rollicking good time I had.
I laughed out loud continuously throughout the movie, though it isn't a comedy per se.

It's a poignant 'fish out of water' story about English retirees 'outsourced' to a rundown hotel in India.
Each character has a satisfying growth arc from start to finish, with plenty of romance thrown in for good measure.

With an all-star cast and excellent acting, I dare anyone not to enjoy this feel-good film.

My rating: 8/10

Quickie interview

The lovely Donna Newton invited me to do a quickie 30 second interview over at her blog (which has loads of fab articles.)

Check it out here

True grit as a writer

Great post today at Bob Mayer's blog, discussing the heirarchy of goals in writing.

Having a strategic goal is crucial and Bob has some absolute gems that will resonate.

Go check it out here

(I'm still rapt I got to hear Bob speak at the RWAus conference last year in Melbourne. He really inspired me to become a hybrid author willing to take chances in this ever-evolving publishing industry. He's brilliant! If you ever get a chance to hear him speak, grab the opportunity, you won't regret it.)

My 31st Harlequin book sold!

Funny how many books I write are inspired by one picture, usually of a hot celeb.

In the case of my 31st category romance for Harlequin Mills and Boon, a picture of Brad Pitt inspired my hot surfer dude Archer Flett.

I've just had word WEDDING DATE WITH MR. WRONG (Harlequin Romance) will be released in North America in October this year (with UK release date to be confirmed.)

The brand new excerpt has just gone live too!

I still pinch myself every time I sell a book, because it feels like only yesterday I sold my first.
Time flies and I'm so lucky to have the best job in the world!

WEEKEND BOOK CLUB: Fury

I hadn't heard of this YA novel when I picked it up.

The cover and the blurb sucked me in.

It’s winter break in Ascension, Maine. The snow is falling and everything looks pristine and peaceful. But not all is as it seems...


Between cozy traditions and parties with her friends, Emily loves the holidays. And this year’s even better--the guy she’s been into for months is finally noticing her. But Em knows if she starts things with him, there’s no turning back. Because his girlfriend is Em’s best friend.

On the other side of town, Chase is having problems of his own. The stress of his home life is starting to take its toll, and his social life is unraveling. But that’s nothing compared to what’s really haunting him. Chase has done something cruel...something the perfect guy he pretends to be would never do. And it’s only a matter of time before he’s exposed.

In Ascension, mistakes can be deadly. And three girls—three beautiful, mysterious girls—are here to choose who will pay.

Em and Chase have been chosen.

This book had me riveted. Could hardly put it down.

Intriguing premise, with revenge being the underlying theme.
Revenge with a paranormal twist!

The author nailed the YA voice perfectly too and the teenage angst really sucked me into the story. Excellent characterisation.

Very unusual plot twist at the end to lead into more books in this series.

Enjoyable read.

What are you reading this weekend?