New release: BREATHE FOR ME by Natalie Anderson

I'm thrilled to welcome one of my closest writing buddies to my blog today.

Natalie Anderson writes great contemporary romances for Harlequin Kiss and Entangled Publishing, and BREATHE FOR ME is her first indie release.

I was lucky enough to beta read half this book and it had me hooked!

Now, over to you Natalie...

Thanks so much Nicola for welcoming to your blog today so I can share some details and an excerpt of my newest release.

BREATHE FOR ME, my first indie hot contemporary romance, released this week. It’s the first in a planned series… 

Here’s the blurb for Xander’s story:

The last thing Chelsea Greene wants is to be rescued, but that’s exactly what happens when she’s caught wearing nothing but her swimsuit during a midnight emergency evacuation drill. Turns out her ‘hero’ is a former lifeguard who has no hesitation in offering the kiss of life. So not happening, right?
But for emotionally chastened Chelsea, one touch changes everything. She discovers a desire to satisfy this arrogant, demanding tease. Unable to express her own fantasies, she finds unspeakable pleasure in serving his.

Xander Lawson exudes easy charm. He likes a woman unafraid to match his appetite for unfettered fun. He doesn’t do complicated or emotional. But the raw need emanating from fragile Chelsea compels him closer. He can’t resist spinning a sensual fantasy world around them.
As passion spills outside their carefully selected boundaries, Xander learns Chelsea’s stronger than he first thought. But is she strong enough to handle the intensity he’s always kept hidden?

In this scene, Chelsea’s been caught out in a fire drill just beyond midnight. Her handsome-as neighbor has given her a carry down the stairs. Now that the drill is over she and the other residents are returning to their apartments and her ‘hero’ has oh so kindly loaned her his tee-shirt so she doesn’t feel so exposed in only her swimsuit…

Wearing his shirt was worse than underwear. She saw a few sly looks, and knew just what half the people in the lift were thinking, given most hadn’t seen her in the building before. Same as what she was thinking.

That she’d come from his bed.

The elevator stopped on every floor of course, people taking a painfully slow time to exit. She was awkwardly aware of him standing too close because of the crowd. But even as it thinned he didn’t step away. As she was sandwiched between him and the wall, she couldn’t back away. She grew hotter and hotter as insanely inappropriate thoughts raced through her head. She stared straight ahead.

Get a grip, Chelsea.

It was clear he wasn’t similarly afflicted—not with the joking words he shared with another resident. The heat burned in her cheeks as he walked with her out onto her floor—his hand on her back. Oh so polite. Except for the inordinate amount of skin they were both displaying.

As soon as the elevator doors shut behind them, she stopped and turned to face him. Oh mamma, it was damn hard to verbalize anything when confronted by that body.

“You really don’t need to see me to my door,” she said huskily.

He merely walked around her, strolling along the corridor before turning back to face her, right outside her apartment. His smile was shameless. “You’re wearing my favorite tee-shirt.”

“Oh,” she glanced down and walked the last few paces to her door—where he already waited.

Suddenly he was standing closer than he had in the elevator. She could feel the raw denim of his jeans brushing the outside of her thigh. Wicked laughter danced in his eyes. Too overwhelming.

She looked down at his bare chest. A sprinkling of hair. Flat brown nipples that she could easily reach with her tongue. And a tan. And she’d already experienced the warmth of it, and the hard strength. It was a chest for touching, admiring, tasting. She’d have it beneath her, above her, his arms around her. He had such sensuality emanating from him—challenging her.

A frisson of aggression rippled through her body. She’d never been challenged this way. Never met anyone so blatantly wanting with just a look and a smile.

She didn’t want blatant. When she got back in the scene, she’d be taking it very, very easy. Not squaring off with some playboy. She lifted her chin and pulled the tee-shirt off in a quick movement, letting it dangle on the end of her finger.

“Thanks,” she said, totally feigning moxie.

With a grin he lifted the shirt from her crooked index finger and hooked it into his belt so it hung like a rag down the side of his leg.

“My pleasure.” The polite rejoinder sounded way too intimate to be all that polite. It sounded dangerous. And tempting. He leaned closer, bracing his arm on her doorway—so he took up even more of her vision. Dominating.

“What are you doing?”

“Making a move.”

Oh my. How was that for blunt? “Isn’t there some code of ethics that stops you superhero rescue guys from getting involved with the people you save?”

“Not that I’m aware of.”

“There should be. Women might mistake gratitude for lu—something else.”

“You think you’re feeling ‘something else’ for me?”

“I… no.” Somehow she held eye contact. The way he was looking at her sent flickers of heat along every nerve cell.

“Anyway, I didn’t really rescue you,” he said. “You’d have slid down the banister or something if you’d had to. Really it was all an excuse to get my hands on you.”

“Oh, so you’ve no ethics then.”

“Guess not.” He had that total ‘whaddaya gonna do about it’ look on his face.

And it was obvious what he was going to do about it. The laughter in his eyes was wicked—and mesmerizing.

It was a game. She got that. Except the sizzle that she felt wasn’t entirely playful. It was intense. And as she stared up at him the smile in his eyes and on his lips faded as a predatory look hardened his expression. She raised her hand. Pressed her fingertips on his mouth. To stop him? To touch him? She didn’t really know.

BREATHE FOR ME is $2.99 at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Breathe-Me-Be-Xander-ebook/dp/B00CJ3UPTW

USA TODAY bestseller Natalie Anderson writes fun, frisky, feels-good contemporary romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon, Entangled Publishing and independently. With over twenty-five books published, she's been a Romantic Times Award nominee & a finalist for the R*BY (Romantic Book of the Year).
She lives in Christchurch, New Zealand with her husband, four children and what feels like a million ducks. Find out more at her website http://www.natalie-anderson.com and be sure to sign up for her newsletter. You can also find her on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/authornataliea

Wishing you mega sales, Natalie!

Vote for Best YA Cover

SCION OF THE SUN (releasing November this year) is up for Best YA cover on Aussie Owned & Read.

You can vote for my fab cover HERE.

Thanks!

National Readers' Choice Awards finalist!

I'm thrilled to announce MARRYING THE ENEMY is a finalist for the NATIONAL READERS' CHOICE AWARDS.

This prestigious award is notoriously hard to crack and I'm so excited that with my 10 year anniversary in publishing coming up, the favourite Harlequin book I've ever written has finalled!

And the timing is great, with the sequel to this book, HER DEAL WITH THE DEVIL, my first Harlequin Kiss, releasing next week.

If you love strong-willed heroines, sexy alpha heroes, sizzle in the bedroom and jewels, check out this duo!

Marrying the Enemy on Amazon and Barnes & Noble Nook
Her Deal with the Devil on Amazon and Barnes & Noble Nook

Weekend Book Club: It was Only a Kiss

You may think I'm biased in saying this, considering I write for Harlequin Kiss, but I'm absolutely hooked on this series!

It's fun, flirty and distinctive, with a lovely modern edge to all the books.
If you haven't tried one, please do. I'm sure you'll be hooked too.

I'm an avid reader and don't give 5 stars to every book, but this one thoroughly deserved it.

Here's the blurb:

The most distracting boss of all…...

For driven businessman Luke Savage success is the only option. So when gorgeous marketing intern Jess Sherwood waltzes into his office and casually informs him that his newly inherited vineyard has an image problem he's outraged! She's naive, overly ambitious, a know-it-all… And all Luke can do to stop her talking is kiss her senseless.

Eight years later the vineyard needs a boost—and Luke needs a hip new marketing strategy to save it. Jess may drive him crazy but she's the right woman for the job. Their only problem is how to keep their minds on work and off that kiss.

I'm hugely impressed by Joss Wood's third category romance. It's the first book of hers I've read and won't be the last. This book is sweet and sexy, with two strong-willed characters going head to head. Loved the sparks they created! And the secondary characters (the heroine's family) were hilarious. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. What are you reading this weekend?

Book Lovers Buffet

If you're a book blogger, make sure you sign up for the Book Lovers Buffet to win great gift card prizes.

Entry is simple.
Fill in a short form, then spread the word about the book sale between May 1-3.

Easy!

Sign up HERE

New contract!

I'm thrilled to announce I've signed a contract with ENTANGLED PUBLISHING'S Brazen series.

These books are sassy and sexy and oh-so-readable.

My first, tentatively titled SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY, will be released in October this year, with the 2nd book in the series out in Feb 2014.

Sleeping with the Enemy is one of those rare magical books that flew from my fingers in 15 days. Revisions are about to land any day now and I can't wait to tighten and polish this story.

And I can't wait for you all to read it!

Weekend Book Club: CRASH INTO YOU

I am neck-deep in deadlines at the moment...not a good time to start a book like CRASH INTO YOU.
Because I couldn't put it down.
Read it in 2 nights, staying up very late!

Here's the blurb:

Brynn LeBreck has dedicated herself to helping women in crisis, but she never imagined how personal her work would get, or where it would take her. Her younger sister is missing, suspected to be hiding from cops and criminals alike at a highly secretive BDSM retreat-a place where the elite escape to play out their most extreme sexual fantasies. To find her, Brynn must go undercover as a sexual submissive. Unfortunately, The Ranch is invitation only. And the one master who can get her in is from the darkest corner of Brynn's past.

Brynn knows what attorney Reid Jamison is like once stripped of his conservative suit and tie. Years ago she left herself vulnerable only to have him crush her heart. Now she needs him again. Back on top. And he's all too willing to engage. But as their primal desires and old wounds are exposed, the sexual games escalate-and so does the danger. Their hearts aren't the only things at risk. Someone else is watching, playing by his own rules. And his game could be murder.

I don't read a lot of erotica but couldn't stop reading Crash into You. Loved the strong character development, the intrigue and the unexpected plot twist at the end. Nothing sexier than a strong alpha hero and a strong-willed woman to match him in every way, even if she's his sub. The BDSM relationship between the hero/heroine was explored with tenderness, as well as being super sexy. Can't wait to read Jace's story! (which I just discovered is a RITA finalist in Single title romance this year: MELT INTO YOU.) Considering how great this book was, I'm not surprised! What are you reading this weekend?

Guest author: ROS BAXTER

I'm thrilled to welcome Aussie author Ros Baxter to my blog today.

Take it away, Ros!

The tail so far…

Sorry about the tail thing, but when you’ve written a mermaid mystery, it’s hard to resist the pun (even when your mermaids don’t have tails). 

Quick snapshot of Fish Out of Water: A mermaid from a secret underwater kingdom.  Living incognito in a small, dry frontier town.  Working as a cop; dating a solider-of-fortune (on and off); counting the days til her thirtieth birthday when time runs out (a clairvoyant told her 30 is the end of the road unless she can “change the course of destiny and save the world entire”).  Enter a mysterious dead blonde on Main Street.  A visit home to the deep sea for the first time in thirteen years. A smokin’ hot merman with secrets of his own.  And a ten thousand year old prophesy that seems to have her name written all over it.

Since penning my quirky mermaid mystery, the question I keep getting asked is: why a mermaid?   Was it watching too much Ariel with my four year old? Taking my Splash intravenously at ten? Well yeah, maybe.  But the answer is also both simpler and more complicated.

Firstly, there’s something endlessly romantic about mermaids.  From sirens to selkies they conjure magic, myth and mystery.  And it only got better as I started to research.  Like finding out about the Mariana Trench – the deepest place of the ocean floor, seven miles down and so dark and dangerous only four descents have ever been made. And about the Norse legends of Aegir, God of the Boundless Seas and his nine daughters, the billow maidens. And how whales make those songs.

Secondly, I love a good old fashioned juxtaposition.  A mermaid on the land.  An otherworldly creature of light and beauty kicking ass, packing heat and dating the wrong men. A tough girl with an over-developed protective instinct and secrets that make her vulnerable.

Third, it was her.  She just knocked on the door one day, pointed her glock at me and demanded I writer her story.  From her first line, I was hooked. Here’s a little taste of what she had to tell me.

Mermaids don’t wear nicotine patches.  They don’t drink Southern Comfort from a hip flask, inhale twinkies or watch Dr Phil.  Mermaids don’t pack heat.  And mermaids definitely don’t get their hearts broken by tattooed guys who look like pirates.  In fact, mermaids have always been kinda down on pirates... but that’s another story.  The cardinal rule is this: mermaids don’t live in bone-dry frontier towns. Ever.  But here’s the thing.  Me, I don’t leave home without my patches, hip flask and Glock.  My last moment of true moderation was back in kindergarten, when I stopped myself from using my awesome strength to rip Jamie Kennedy’s pecker off when he waved it at Julie Casey in the bathroom and made her cry.  And don’t even start me on my penchant for pirates.  But I am, in fact, a mermaid. So go figure. Well, technically, Mom’s folks call themselves Aegirans, and they don’t sprout tails, but they’re the closest thing to mermaids under the sea.  And, as much as it used to hurt, I’m what they call a dirt-dweller, seeing as Mom was a runaway, Dad’s Sicilian and we live on The Land.  But not for long.  You see, I’ve only got three weeks to live.  Give or take.

So, I’m wondering, what mythical creatures captured your heart at a tender age?  I’ve got a free copy of my mermaid mystery for the most interesting tale…

***

Ros Baxter has been writing since she was eight and penned a whimsical series of short stories about a race of tiny people who lived on a rainbow. While they were a hit in the playground, a few things intervened – including a career in social policy and four noisy children. Ros started writing again in earnest three years ago. In that time, Ros has secured a two-book deal with Harper Collins Australia, published Sister Pact (a romantic comedy co-written with her sister Ali) and Fish Out of Water (Escape Publishing on 1 April), been a contributing author to the e-anthology URL Love, and finaled in the STALI competition.

Ros writes fresh, funny, genre-busting fiction.  She digs feisty heroines, good friends, quirky families, heroes to make you sigh and tingle, and a dash of fantasy from time to time.

Ros also runs a successful business consulting to government and the private sector.  She teaches professional writing skills and has authored a writing guide, Clarity.

Ros lives in Brisbane, Australia, with her husband Blair, four small but very opinionated children, a neurotic dog and nine billion germs.

You can email Ros at rosbaxterink@gmail.com or find her at www.facebook.com/RosBaxterInk, on twitter @RosBaxter, or www.rosbaxterink.com.

Blurb:

“It’s  Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum meets Splash in a sexy, smart-talking debut about a mermaid in a desert, a city under water, and the secret that no-one is supposed to uncover.”

Fish out of Water Dirtwater's straight-talking Deputy Sheriff has a lot on her plate: a nicotine addiction that's a serious liability for a mermaid, a solider-of-fortune ex who's hooked on her Mom's brownies, a gorgeous, naked stranger in her shower, and a mysterious dead blonde with a fish tattoo on Main Street. Oh, and one other thing. She's scheduled to die on her thirtieth birthday - in three weeks - unless she can 'change the course of destiny and save the world entire'. Throw in a Mom who's the local Mayor and a Dad who's been locked in the county jail for twelve years, and that's all the trouble she needs without her mermaid roots coming back to haunt her.

Rania's heading home to Aegira for a family wedding but she's starting to have a sinking feeling that's got nothing to do with hydroporting seven miles under the sea and everything to do with some weird connections that seem to be emerging between her, the dead blonde, her Mom's shady past and a ten thousand year old prophesy. Now if she can just steal a corpse, get a crazy Aegirian priest off her case, work out who the hell's trying to kill her and stop sleeping with the fishes, she might be able to unravel the prophesy, the mystery of the missing choirgirls and the secrets hidden in her Mom's past. And maybe even save her own ass while she's at it.

Buy Fish Out of Water.
Find out more at www.rosbaxterink.com

Thanks for stopping by, Ros.

I wish you many sales to go with those tails! ;)

Goodreads giveaway: HER DEAL WITH THE DEVIL

HER DEAL WITH THE DEVIL releases in a few weeks and to celebrate, I'm giving away 2 paperback copies on Goodreads.

Click HERE to enter.

Bargain book, rural romance

If you're an Aussie who enjoys rural romance and loves a good bargain like me, go grab Rachael John's MAN DROUGHT today.

It is heaps off and priced at $1.05!!!

Here's the link

Enjoy!

COVER REVEAL: What the Paparazzi Didn't See

The new Harlequin Kiss covers are fun, flirty and bright.

My first Kiss is in May, HER DEAL WITH THE DEVIL (preorder at 15% off with free worldwide shipping!), closely followed by WHAT THE PAPARAZZI DIDN'T SEE, my WAG story, in July. (same cheap preorder deal as above!)

What do you think?

Quick pop-in

Quick pop-in to wish you all a happy Easter.

I've had a glorious 4 days offline, playing with my kids, visiting family, having picnics in the park, long walks and general fun.

And a much needed break from work!

But it's back to writing tonight as I have line edits for SCION OF THE SUN due shortly and a few other books that need to be written.

It's school holidays here at the moment so I'll be squeezing in my writing at night while playing during the day.
I love the lack of routine: no school lunches to make, no rushing around, no after school activities.
Bliss!

What do you like about school holidays?