We have a very special guest visiting today in honor of Mother’s Day.  I want to thank Samantha, from JKS Communications, for giving me the opportunity of hosting Mr. Johnny Tan.  Welcome to the group!

JOHNNY TAN

Johnny Tan lived a life of unconditional love for the last 33 years. His journey began when he started college in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Adopted at birth by his Malaysian mom, he realized the rich spiritual connections that resulted from meeting his foster mom in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and 7 other women who would play important roles in his life. They represented his teachers, coaches, and counselors. Guided by his business achievements and his 9 moms, Johnny experienced the passion to compose From My Mamaʼs Kitchen to honor his moms and mothers everywhere. Released with the endorsement of the National Association of Mothers’ Centers, the book has won five awards and made the Amazon Best Seller List in several categories.

The bookʼs success lead Johnny to establish a powerful platform. He launched his consulting and speaking career to teach strategies on how to use the power of unconditional love to attain harmony. Johnny is also a featured host of a weekly Internet radio program, FMMK Talk Radio, which ranks in the top .1% of Blog Talk Radioʼs most popular shows. Guests have included The New Times number one best-selling authors and experts from the U.S. and other countries.

Johnny’s leadership experience extends from being a former corporate executive for eight years to owning his own business. He also served his community as chairman of Baton Rouge Area Convention and Visitor Bureau in 2001, commissioner of Baton Rouge Sister Cities Commission in 2000, chairman of Louisiana Restaurant Association Education Committee in 1998, as well as chairman of Project Baton Rouge 2020—a Vision of Opportunity with a World of Possibility in 1997, and president of Louisiana Restaurant Association Baton Rouge Chapter in 1995.

Vision and Mission Statement

Johnny believes the best way to know him is through his personal vision and mission statement, which he composed in January 1996.

For Myself: Using my gift of creativity and imagination, I will continue to invent the future by expressing my visions courageously in words and actions. I will always be a professional – honoring integrity, justice, kindness, and will always be humble and have a sense of humor in everything I do.

For My Family: They are my treasure. I will always promote and take the lead in building healthy and loving relationships that allow each of us to become his or her best.

For My Professional Life: I will create a learning environment that is fair and honest. I will cultivate and inspire others to greatness and success by acting as a catalyst in a shared vision.

For My Community: I am committed to enriching the lives of all who cross my path. I will let potent leadership permeate through the community. I will join hands with my brothers and sisters respecting everyone’s rights. I will support the people I represent, and endeavor to bolster their spirits and the good of the community.

Connect with Johnny Tan at these sites:

GUEST POST

Celebrating Mother’s Love

The Mother’s Day that we celebrate today tracks back to ancient times. The Greek’s spring festival honored Rhea, wife of Cronus and mother of many deities in Greek mythology. The Romans used their spring festival, Hilaria, as a dedication to Cybele, a mother goddess. Early Christians celebrated the fourth Sunday of Lent in honor of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of Christ. England later designated it to be Mothering Sunday, to honor all mothers.

Various observances honoring mothers existed in America during the 1870’s and 1880‘s. However, the modern Mother’s Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother in America. She secured a trademark creating the Mother’s Day International Association in 1912. Thanks to her courageous effort, today, over 140 countries around the world celebrate Mother’s Day some time during the year. President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the first official Mother’s Day on May 9, 1914.

From My Mama’s Kitchen –“food for the soul, recipes for living” celebrates Mother’s Day throughout the year. Mothers all over the world share an abundance of unconditional love for their loved ones. The power of unconditional love transcends all religious beliefs, genders, cultures and ages. It reminds us that we are all part of the bigger world, and we all have potential to succeed in life.

The content of my book pays tribute to my 9 moms and moms everywhere. What started as a project of collecting recipes evolved over seven years into a collection of 30 timeless recipes for living I received from his 9 moms. The book reminds each of us that a strong home team supports us and our efforts of learning and growing. It rekindles those incredible feelings we shared with our mothers and those we considered as mothers. When love is given without regard to conditions it provides us with the empowerment that drives our ambition to succeed.

How did I manage to have 9 moms, you ask? Most of the time, before I have a chance to answer, people would follow up with, “Is it a blessing or a curse?” My answer is always a blessing, a tremendous blessing. Adopted at birth by my Malaysian mom, I spent the first 18 years learning from her. Among the many things she taught me, everyone of us holds a seed of greatness—the key to success in life. The gem of this seed is the asset that develops our dreams, goals and wishes. At 18 I came to the United States to attend LouisianaStateUniversity in Baton Rouge. Here is where I began to meet my eight other moms one at a time over a period of the next 18 years. Starting with the first, my Southern Belle mom, Eleanora Carter, to the last, my German mom, Dianne Heise, they were my teachers, coaches, and counselors, always available to listen to my ideas and console me during need. Most of my 9 moms have since passed away, but each of them has left me with a valuable lesson that collectively formed the basis of my success.

Many look forward to this Mother’s Day with anticipation to express love for their mom. Whether it is an expensive gift or a just a nice dinner that mom doesn’t have to cook, she will know it was from the heart. Mothers have a way to mould the soul and guide the heart. For those whose mothers have passed on, Mother’s Day gives us a chance to recall those magical loving moments. It is this unconditional motherly love that makes us who we are. The book offers solutions and provides the skills and wisdom to assist us to become better teachers, coaches and counselors to our loved ones.

ABOUT THE BOOK

From My Mama’s Kitchen book is dedicated to the realization and mastery of the power of unconditional love as potent leadership. It offers a wealth of wisdom, practical living skills, and effective communication techniques.  The book reveals 30 timeless recipes for living, ranging from the power of relationships to the nature of love and the meaning of life brought to the reader in the nurturing comfort of a kitchen setting. From the virtue of spiritual awareness to self-actualization, Johnny Tan’s 9 moms have nourished him with their wisdom to become a person defined by his thoughts and actions.

Released with the endorsement of the National Association of Mothers’ Centers, the book has won five awards: Mom’s Choice Awards, Mr. Dad Seal of Recognition, Publisher’s Choice Awards by Family Magazine Group, International Book Awards, and National Indie Excellence Book Awards. The book also made the Amazon Best Seller List in the following categories: Parenting & Family Relationships: Parent and Adult Child, Self Help: Spiritual and Motivational, and Cooking, Food & Wine: Essay.

Designed as a keepsake for all occasions, meant to last and inspire forever. The book has a dedication page for readers to inscribe their own loved one’s name, and a space where readers can record their recipes for living.  At the end of the book, Johnny incorporates nine of his favorite food recipes.

BOOK DETAILS:

Paperback: 150 pages
Publisher: THC Investments (January 19, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0982023502
ISBN-13: 978-0982023501

PURCHASE LINKS:

THANKS TO SAAMANTHA AT JKS COMMUNICATIONS,
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We have a very esteemed and award winning guest today.  So without further ado, welcome Dr. Joan Steinau Lester!!

JOAN STEINAU LESTER

Connect with Dr. Lester at these sites:

GUEST POST

Being a fulltime writer is a strange occupation. I work all day alone in a tiny cottage behind my house, hunched over my computer, lost in an imaginary world. If I weren’t producing coherent literature, some might consider this behavior peculiar, at best–or worthy of psychiatric intervention.

Even at night my characters follow me, so real are they. I hear their voices, worry over their troubles, wish they hadn’t decided to do that.  “Oh no,” I want to warn, while I grit my teeth and let them have their way.

Odder yet, I’m always maintaining a dual perspective, for at the same time I feel enmeshed with my fictional people (“Ruby, please call home!”) I am simultaneously aware of my role as their creator, and consumed by technical issues. Take verb choices, for instance: which one will give the most accurate and vivid picture of my characters’ reality? Does Solomon, the father in my novel Mama’s Child, stride into a room, lope, or guiltily sidle in, after he misses an urgent parent meeting with the head of his daughter Ruby’s school?

Yet despite my sometimes sleepless nights as I mull over the best possible word to describe my character’s behavior–words in harmony with the kind of person he is–I love the solitary life, creating worlds over which I have total control.

And then, another oddity of the writing life occurs, if one is successful: after years of happily laboring alone, growing intimately acquainted with my characters’ lives over a span of time (in Mama’s Child we watch the family fracture and reassemble over forty years), then, suddenly, it’s publication day! Now a whole big world comes tumbling in. Reviewers, readers, interviewers–everyone has a response, everyone wants their say. My private imaginary world is suddenly a public one.

Even as I’m thrilled to hear others’ enthusiasm for Elizabeth, Solomon, Ruby, and Che, my characters in Mama’s Child, I mourn that quiet period when they were my creatures alone. Like a parent whose child is growing up, leaving home, I have to say Good-bye, knowing that I have done my absolute best to prepare her for the world, and let her go.

ABOUT THE BOOK

BOOK DETAILS:

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Atria Books; Original edition (May 7, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1451693184
ISBN-13: 978-1451693188

PURCHASE LINKS:

THANKS TO SAMANTHA AT JKS COMMUNICATIONS,
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Renee, from WOW!, is visiting for the first time and is here to introduce us to another talented female author.  So I ask that you help me in giving them a warm welcome to CMash Reads.  Welcome Ms Jennifer Richardson!

JENNIFER RICHARDSON

Jennifer Richardson is a writer whose first book, Americashire: A Field Guide to a Marriage, is out now. In addition to her initial experience with multiple sclerosis, Americashire chronicles the three years Jennifer spent living in a Cotswold village populated by fumbling aristocrats, gentlemen farmers, and a cast of eccentrics clad in corduroy and tweed. She currently lives in Santa Monica, California along with her British husband and her royal wedding tea towel collection.

Connect with Jennifer at GoodReads, Pinterest and these sites:

GUEST POST

Life with My So-Called Chronic Disease

In my kingdom of the sick, the emperor has no clothes

With one obvious exception, the word chronic never refers to anything good. Someone is a chronic liar or a country is in a chronic state of civil war. Or someone has a chronic disease. Like me.

Four months into my multiple sclerosis diagnosis—and four years since the first symptoms that caused a neurologist to warn me that such a diagnosis might be coming—it still feels weird to acknowledge the fact that I am sick. I don’t feel sick. Unlike those diagnosed with other chronic diseases, like, say, rheumatoid arthritis or Chron’s disease, I endure no pain from my illness. My symptoms—some mild slurring, followed by numbness on half my face—have only impacted four weeks of the last four years and, while annoying, were neither debilitating nor readily detectable to anybody I was interacting with.

In fact, the entire infrastructure of the disease has been far more annoying and debilitating than any of the symptoms. Navigating the various doctors’ offices, insurance companies, drug companies, and pharmacies that comprise the US healthcare system experience for someone like me—that is, someone who is lucky enough to have good health insurance—is not an activity fit for someone who has just been diagnosed with a disease. You are flighty and distracted and can’t remember to ask your doctor important questions, but that is the exact moment when the execution of your own healthcare requires you to have the steely nerves of a crane operator combined with the determination of a blood hound. Even when you’ve charted a course through that labyrinth, any sense of victory is diminished by a nagging concern over what it would be like without your prized health insurance and the eight months still to go until the pre-existing conditions clause of Obama Care kicks in. (To put a number on that anxiety, consider that the latest MS treatment, a pill that has more or less been around for twenty years to treat psoriasis, was recently released at a wholesale price of $54,900 per patient per year.)

Faced with this you naturally wonder, as do people who should know better, like your husband and your shrink, if you should even bother taking medication for your mostly invisible disease. Surely you are about to wake from the absurdist dream you’ve been having where you, a needle phobic, are now supposed to shoot up a medicine every Thursday that makes you feel like you have the flu for sixteen hours in order to treat a disease that is currently presenting zero symptoms. But then the second opinion neurologist, the one who is a foremost expert in the field, tells you in her calm Texas drawl that, yes, you have to take the preventative medicine; that first neurologist you saw wasn’t just making that up. Your disease may feel like a fraud now, but MS has the astonishing potential to morph from an annoyance to, say, paralysis, an outcome you don’t want to dice with much.

In her recent book, In the Kingdom of the Sick, Laurie Edwards writes about her experience growing up of frequent doctor appointments to treat what was eventually diagnosed as a chronic and very rare lung disease. She notes that she never perceived her experience then in terms of a chronic illness. Rather she experienced each incident separately, in a reactionary mode, and only as an adult did she make the emotional adjustment to acknowledge the long-term nature of what she was dealing with. This, she says, “is the most daunting aspect of any chronic illness, whether you are the patient grappling with a diagnosis or a healthy person who hopes it never happens to you: It isn’t going to go away.”

And she is right, especially the part about the healthy people. This explains why most my friends never ask me much about my MS. I am a living, breathing incarnation of what they hope never happens to them, and they’d understandably rather not talk about it. Frankly, it is a preferable state of affairs to those who do ask me about it because, invariably, these types want to know if I am going to change my lifestyle. This, of course, is just a polite way of asking me if I am going to drink less wine. I am not, both because I like wine and because drinking wine does not cause MS (I asked my neurologist). But as I once was, these people are desperate to believe that there is something I (read: they) can do to control bad things, like MS, from happening. Deep down there is some little part of them desperate to believe that there must be a reason (read: something bad I did) I got MS.

I am neither surprised nor angered by this reaction, but that is probably because MS has not yet, and hopefully never will, made me very sick. Just the other day I heard a reasonably intelligent person imply that the rise in women’s cancers is due to women letting themselves get burnt out. On behalf of the three women in my life who have recently lost both their breasts to cancer, I wanted to ring this woman’s neck, or at least buy her a copy of Susan Sontag’s Illness as Metaphor. Thirty-five years have passed since Sontag pointed out the lunacy of using romanticized language to create an acceptable way to blame the victims of disease and, yet, it is still fairly commonplace to hear people imply stress or bottled emotions or some other similarly nebulous thing is to blame.

I, however, am not blameless when it comes to hiding behind language to deal with my disease. In my book, Americashire: A Field Guide to a Marriage, I write about renaming the permanent lesions on my brain—the main physiological manifestation of my MS:

In the absence of any answers from science I turned to the transformative power of language. Lesions were for lepers or people with venereal disease. They simply would not do. Therefore, I decided I had les ions, pronounced lā-ē-uh, with a trademark French grunt on the last syllable. It still sounded vaguely scientific, yet at the same time foreign and alluring. And best of all, it made me feel, just for a moment, like I was in control.

Despite my wariness over the use of flowery language when it comes to illness, I am giving myself a pass on this one. I liken it to the same rule of the universe that makes it OK for me, but nobody else—especially my husband—to make fun of my immediate family. After all, MS is my disease, and I can call it anything I want.

ABOUT THE BOOK

When an American woman and her British husband decide to buy a two-hundred-year-old cottage in the heart of the Cotswolds, they’re hoping for an escape from their London lives. Instead, their decision about whether or not to have a child plays out against a backdrop of village fêtes, rural rambles, and a cast of eccentrics clad in corduroy and tweed.

Americashire: A Field Guide to a Marriage begins with the simultaneous purchase of a Cotswold cottage and Richardson’s ill-advised decision to tell her grandchild-hungry parents that she is going to try to have a baby. As she transitions from urban to rural life, she is forced to confront both her ambivalence about the idea of motherhood and the reality of living with a spouse who sees the world as a glass half-full. Part memoir, part travelogue – and including field guides to narrative-related Cotswold walks – Americashire is a candid, compelling, and humorous tale of marriage, illness, and difficult life decisions.

BOOK DETAILS:

Perfect Paperback: 164 pages
Publisher: She Writes Press (April 23, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1938314301
ISBN-13: 978-1938314308

PURCHASE LINKS:

THANKS TO AUTHOR, JENNIFER RICHARDSON
and RENEE FROM WOW!,
I HAVE ONE (1) COPY TO GIVE AWAY.
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WOW!!  How time flies.  It has been quite a while since today’s guest was here, back in July of 2010, but am delighted that she is visiting again today.  A very warm welcome back to Ms. Jackie Fullerton!

JACKIE FULLERTON

Jackie Fullerton is a successful businesswoman and attorney who grew up in rural Ohio.

A mother of five, Fullerton returned to college when her last child was in grade school. She graduated summa cum laude from both Franklin University, where she earned her BS degree in business, and Dayton University, where she earned her MBA. Fullerton later attended Capital Law School, where she graduated cum laude. She was admitted to the Ohio Bar in 1993, the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio, in 1995, and the Supreme Court of the United States in 1996. Although she is not in active practice, Fullerton volunteers her legal services at a local homeless shelter.

An active member of the Columbus, Ohio, community, Fullerton has served on several boards and commissions, including the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Abuse; Franklin County ADAMH (Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health) Board; Community Shelter Board; Habitat for Humanity Board; and Court Appointed Special Advocates of Franklin County, Ohio (CASA).

Fullerton divides her time between Ohio and Florida, with her husband, Tom, and their dog, Flash.

Connect with Jackie at these sites:

GUEST POST

Creating Anne Marshall

For me, creating my characters is the easiest part, or at least the most fun.  Since I write fiction, I can be as creative and outlandish as I want.  However, my basic characters do tend to come from personal experiences. People I know, either intimately such as friends and family, or casually like the lunatic who works in the pod next to me. I might change the color of hair, or even the sex, but the basic personality is the same.

My protagonist, Anne Marshall, is me—or my alter ego. Alright, Anne is young and I’m in my 60s; Anne is slim and in shape while I am overweight and find exercise hazardous to my health; Anne has dark hair and dark eyes where I am a blond with blue eyes. Other than those minor differences, we are one in the same. We shared the same experiences of balancing work, school and relationships while attending law school at night. We have the same deep friendships with study group members, and the same need to continually fix other people’s problems.  And, most importantly, neither of us has the good sense to avoid danger.

For Anne’s trusty sidekick, it made sense that it should be her father. Their relationship was unique and extraordinary; I just didn’t realize he was dead until I was halfway through the first book, Piercing the Veil. This was one of those 3:00 in the morning realizations I seem to have more often than not. By making Anne’s father a ghost, I was able to give Anne the superhuman qualities an amateur sleuth needs, while exploring the father-daughter relationship in a way I could not if he were alive.  I could also pull on my relationship with my own father. Many of the conversations between Anne and James are ones I know my father and I would have.

During the writing of my second Anne Marshall book, Revenge Served Cold, I realized I had the wrong killer. In fact the real killer had not even been introduced yet. So I had to create a woman from the suspect’s past. A sultry and vengeful woman who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted. That was fun. Then I had to create and weave in the back story. Don’t be afraid to go back and rewrite your book, no matter how far you are in the process.

Since Anne Marshall is the same character throughout my books, the most challenging aspect was to continually create Anne. Readers expect to see growth in the characters, otherwise they will become stale. Conflict is a good way to show growth, so I introduced a handsome sexy detective in Ring Around the Rosy to test Anne’s relationship with Jason. That was more fun than it should have been.

Don’t be afraid to characters. You will find if you just jump in, they have a way of developing on their own.

Jackie Fullerton is now retired and living in Florida with her husband, Tom, and dog, Flash. Flash makes his debut in Ring Around the Rosy, the third book in the Anne Marshall mysteries.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Law student and amateur sleuth Anne Marshall and her attorney fiance Jason Perry leave their Midwestern town for a Florida vacation at the home of Jason’s parents. When they land in Florida, they find that Jason’s father has discovered the murdered body of his wife’s best friend, Maude. The only clue left behind is a note pinned to her that is the second verse of the nursery rhyme Ring Around the Rosy.

Unable to pass up the opportunity to investigate a juicy murder, Anne soon discovers that Maude’s brother was killed in a hit-and run accident several months before. The first verse of Ring Around the Rosy was pinned to his chest. Anne thinks the perp is a serial killer who will strike again.

When Maude’s son, Ron, is brutally attacked and left for dead, Anne knows his work is just beginning. Racing against the clock, Anne soon finds herself in a serial killer’s crosshairs while battling an untimely attraction to homicide detective Don Reynolds.

Ring Around the Rosy takes you on an adventure from present to past and back again as Anne and her crime-solving partners shift in to high gear to stop a killer before he strikes again!

BOOK DETAILS:

Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Thomas House Publishing (December 14, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 098438152X
ISBN-13: 978-0984381524

PURCHASE LINKS:

THANKS TO REBECCA AT THE CADENCE GROUP,
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You may remember today’s guest because her last visit here was this past October.  And she is returning, which means one thing, another book for us to read.  Welcome back Ms. Lori Foster!

LORI FOSTER

Since first publishing in January 1996, Lori Foster has become a Waldenbooks, Borders, USA TODAY, Publishers Weekly and New York Times bestselling author. She also received the Romantic Times “Career Achievement Award” for Series Romantic Fantasy and Contemporary Romance. Lori believes it is important to give back to the community as much as possible, so she routinely arranges events among authors and readers to gather donations for various organizations.

Connect with Lori at these sites:

Q&A with LORI

Where do you do most of your writing?
My office is in the downstairs of our house. It’s like an apartment – 2 bedrooms, bathroom, kitchenette, French doors facing the pond, big screen TV, treadmill… it’s where my 2 youngest boys were before they moved off to college. Since they’re all grown and on their own now, we had custom desk built for the space and while we’re in town, I write there.

We also have a lake house we bought last year, and we’re in the middle of having part of that space remodeled to include a better desk area for me. Before the remodel, I wrote from the patio table in the sun room at the lake house, facing the lake. J

Who is your favorite literary character?
I have several. Hard to pick just one. I guess currently it’d be Nucking Futz Nix from Kresley Cole’s “Immortals After Dark.” If she doesn’t write that book soon, I’m going to insane! LOL. Love all her work.

What is, in your opinion, the key to a great romance novel?
Great romance!!! I don’t care who the characters are, what their backgrounds are, the conflicts – both emotional and external – that they have to deal with. If the romance is there, popping off the page, then I’ll love it. We as readers have to feel it, and we have to believe it.

What is, in your opinion, the key to a great romance in real life?
I’ve only had one real romance – my oh-so-wonderful hubby – so I can only speak from my own experience. He’s my best friend, always there for me, supportive beyond belief, committed to our family, hilariously funny, very, VERY aware of me as his wife. J He constantly gives me compliments I don’t deserve, and I know, without a single shadow of a doubt, that he loves me. No matter what else happens, knowing that makes it okay.

Do you have any tips for readers who are looking to become published authors?
Write what you love. Don’t share you work with anyone until it’s DONE. Don’t give up.

Can you tell us something about yourself that not a lot of your readers know?
Hmmm. I’m artistic. I love to doodle and paint (water colors and acrylics are my faves.) I LOVE being on or near the water, as in a lake, on a boat, tubing or skiing. I write with very loud hard rock music playing. Kid Rock and KORN are faves.

You are constantly writing–do you have any quirks that come out as a result of that?
My mind wanders. You might be talking to me, and I’m off listening to dialogue in my head. It’s sooo rude. I try not to, but… it happens. Movies help. When I’m at the movies I can get engaged in even a mediocre flick, mostly action and horror, but I do see other things.

What is your favorite part of the writing process?
Starting a book. I love those first few scenes, getting to know the characters. Least favorite part is doing any type of edits. Bleh. I especially detest copy editor remarks. I don’t know why.

Which author inspires you most?
I started writing out of a love of Linda Howard, Catherine Coulter, Johanna Lindsey, Julie Garwood, Jayne Ann Krentz… They all inspire me!

Do you think that romances with dangerous elements are more fun to write?
I love writing romances with kick-ass characters. Whether there is real danger or not, I want to know that a character can handle him/herself. Alpha dudes are my favorites. I sort of like the woman-in-distress, guy to rescue theme. But I also enjoy the broken wing hero (emotionally hurt) who needs a strong woman to break past his barriers. Fun, fun.

All of it is fun! Writing is a blast. It’s almost a crime that I get paid to do something I enjoy so very much. J

· A cop’s craving to know more about the woman next door could prove fatal in the steamy new novel from New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster. As the person responsible for taking down a brutal human trafficker, Alice Appleton fears retaliation at every turn. No one knows about her past, which is exactly how she prefers it…until the sexy cop next door comes knocking. Detective Reese Bareden thinks he knows what makes women tick, but his ever-elusive neighbor keeps him guessing like no other. Is his goal to unmask Alice’s secrets? Or protect her from a dangerous new threat? One thing is certain: their chemistry is a time bomb waiting to explode. And with no one to trust but each other, Reese and Alice are soon drawn into a deadly maze of corruption, intrigue and desire-and into the line of fire….

ABOUT THE BOOK

As the person responsible for taking down a brutal human trafficker, Alice Appleton fears retaliation at every turn. No one knows about her past, which is exactly how she prefers it…until the sexy cop next door comes knocking.

Detective Reese Bareden thinks he knows what makes women tick, but his ever-elusive neighbor keeps him guessing like no other. Is his goal to unmask Alice’s secrets? Or protect her from a dangerous new threat? One thing is certain: their chemistry is a time bomb waiting to explode. And with no one to trust but each other, Reese and Alice are soon drawn into a deadly maze of corruption, intrigue and desire—and into the line of fire….

WATCH THE TRAILER

BOOK DETAILS:

Mass Market Paperback: 480 pages
Publisher: Harlequin HQN (April 30, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0373777612
ISBN-13: 978-0373777617

PURCHASE LINKS:

THANKS TO VERONICA AT MEDIA MUSCLE/THE BOOK TRIB,
I HAVE ONE (1) COPY TO GIVE AWAY.
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Ever since meeting Jodi, from WOW!, I have had the opportunity of hosting  many talented authors.  Today is no exception.  Jodi is stopping by to introduce us to Ms. Jadie Jones.  Welcome ladies!

JADIE JONES

Young-adult author. Equine professional. Southern gal. Especially fond of family, sunlight, and cookie dough.​​

I wrote my first book in seventh grade, filling one hundred and four pages of a black and white Mead notebook. Back then I lived for two things: horses and R.L. Stine books. Fast forward nearly twenty years, and I work with horses as a coach for the Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA) and hoard books like most women my age collect shoes. Its amazing how much changes… and how much stays the same.

​The dream of publishing a novel has hitch-hiked with me down every other path I’ve taken (and there have been many.) Waitress, farm manager, road manager, bank teller, speech writer, retail, and more. But that need – the call from within to bring pen to paper – refused to quiet. Finally, in 2009, I sat down, pulled out a brand new notebook, and once again let the pictures in my head become words on paper.

​Then I got married. Moved. Life sped up the way that it does, claiming each day faster than the last. I became a mother, and my manuscript reverted to something I would do one day. Thankfully, babies take naps, and there’s only so much daytime television a person can stomach. And Tanzy, that main character of mine, was shouting at me from my office: “Hellooo? We aren’t done yet, Jadie.” So I pulled her out. I read our story. I tore it to pieces. And then I put it back together again.

​As a child, my grandfather would sit me in his lap and weave tales about the Cherokee nation, and a girl who belonged with horses. His words painted a whole new world, and my mind would take flight. My hope – my dream – is that Tanzy’s journey does the same for you.

​Confession time: Jadie Jones is not my name. It’s a pen name I created to honor two fantastic women who didn’t get the chance to live out their professional dreams. First, my grandmother – a mother of four during post World War II America, who wanted to be a journalist so bad that even now when she talks about it, her blue eyes mist and she lifts her chin in silent speculation. And second, a dear friend’s mother who left this world entirely too soon. To Judy Dawn and Shirley Jones, Jadie Jones is for you.
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GUEST POST

I recently returned from a weekend event in New York, where I got to spend a lot of time speaking with Moonlit enthusiasts. Seeing someone’s eyes light up when they ask me about my book is one of my favorite things in the world. Several times, I was asked if any of the characters are based off of anyone I know. My answer always comes as a surprise: Tanzy’s horse Moonlit and the relationship they share was inspired by a horse I had in college named Luna.

Tanzy loses Moonlit to her mother’s grief: in a drunken rage, her mother sells Moonlit to a stranger for one dollar (fun fact: the sale of a horse is only official and legal if there is proof that at least $1 changed hands.) I didn’t lose Luna that way, but I did give her up when I really, really didn’t want to. She had a cancer virus that affects horses, and developed a large tumor (about the size of a grapefruit) above her knee. I spent every dime I had on surgeries, chemotherapy, and a treatment called cryonic freezing. But nothing worked. I was out of money and the vet was out of options. He said she had months to live. So I posted an ad online, seeking help. A couple of weeks later, I gave her away to a woman in Florida who promised she’d do everything she could to save her.

She did. An experimental treatment removed the tumor on Luna’s leg, which was the biggest threat because it had started warping the bone underneath, and a horse can’t live on three legs. She will always carry the virus, but many measures are in place to lessen the chance that new tumors will erupt. Since then, she’s given birth to many babies, most of which quickly earned national titles. Luna herself earned the title “Horse of the Year” several times over.

In retrospect, my journey with Luna, losing her, and the wonderful things that happened because of it had a hand in inspiring the plot of Moonlit in two ways. One, the ripple effect of a single action, and how often times our paths are circular. And two, for better and for worse, nothing comes without a cost.

ABOUT THE BOOK

From Amazon:  Eighteen-year-old Tanzy Hightower knows horses, has grown up with them on Wildwood Farm. She also knows not to venture beyond the trees that line the pasture. Things happen out there that can’t be explained. Or undone. Worse, no one but she and the horses can see what lurks in the shadows of the woods.

When a moonlit ride turns into a terrifying chase, Tanzy is left to question everything, from the freak accident that killed her father to the very blood in her veins. Broken and confused, she turns to Lucas, a scarred, beautiful stranger, and to Vanessa, a charming new friend who has everything Tanzy doesn’t.

But why do they seem to know more about her than she knows herself?

BOOK DETAILS:

Paperback: 310 pages
Publisher: WiDo Publishing (April 16, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1937178331
ISBN-13: 978-1937178338

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Today is old friends day, which means a new book to put on our TBR list.  TJ was here this past November, which you can see here, and is back to tell us about his newest book.  So without further ado, Mr. TJ Cooke!!!  Welcome back!

TJ COOKE

TJCooke, otherwise known as Tim, was formerly a legal executive and adviser to the BBC’s Eastenders. Since then he has dovetailed his career between advertising copywriting, freelance journalism, screenwriting and novels.

Tim has written numerous television and radio commercials for a variety of well known companies. He has written many hours of broadcast drama, notching up writing credits for some of UK’s most popular series, including London’s Burning, The Bill  and Bad Girls.

His debut novel ‘Kiss and Tell’ is available via Amazon Kindle.  Tim currently lives in Devon.

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Q&A with TJ Cooke