I will start it out with a paragraph from my book Guilty Hearts published with Desert Breeze Publishing. Enjoy.
Dee's stomach did back flips, and she wished she'd never agreed to any of this. Since she
had, she needed to show all of them Matt didn't get under her skin. There was something about
Sandra that Dee couldn't put her finger on. Maybe she read it wrong. Otherwise, how would
Cody have turned out so well-behaved? Nate appeared quiet, as he let Sandra control the
conversation, while Matt teased the boys. It surprised Dee how well Matt handled the preteens.
She didn't remember him to be the type, or maybe he always was and she'd forgotten. After all,
wasn't he always the one to keep the peace between her and Steve? Dee watched him through
hooded eyes, while Matt appeared to ignore her. Was he slighting her? It made her edgy. She
didn't want to feel like this, but couldn't think of how to stop. Lori, her sister, insisted she still
had a thing for Matt, and those feelings hadn't died, or else she'd be married already. Dee didn't
know what to believe anymore. What she did know was seeing how he treated Cody and Jared
brought her a sense of peace. Whatever happened between them didn't appear to affect the way
he treated her son. If she could trust him to stick around for the two of them, she'd accept him
back with open arms. No matter how much she denied it, the resolve to keep him out of her heart
had weakened.
This is great, Susan. And I loved what I read so far. Can't wait to read the rest.
ReplyDeleteHere is mine:
If I Fail, A Jake Carrington Mystery
Relase date: September 2012
Marian Lanouette
Neither man paid attention to Jake’s weeping at their side. Jake couldn’t stop as he viewed his younger sister. He gently touched her forehead, her cheek, kissing her on the lips.
He turned away in grief, saw both his anger and his pain reflected in his father’s face. His father’s fists clenched, his shoulders racked with heavy sobs as he viewed the broken body of his daughter. Jake understood he looked with a father’s eye, not a cop’s.
Thanks, Marian. This intrigues me as well. I wish you many sales.
DeleteThanks for sharing excerpts! Here a quick bit from page 25 of A Legacy of Lies, available now;
ReplyDeleteIt was cold.
Too cold.
The eerie silence of a moonless, starless night engulfed him.
Jim shivered. It had been high noon only a few minutes ago. Had he fallen asleep? He
didn't remember being tired. He shook his head and tried to focus his groggy mind. He peered
around cautiously. Where was his horse?
A rustling sound in the bushes startled him. His eyes darted to investigate.
Nothing.
No, wait. There it was again. Off to the left. His eyes strained, searching for the slightest movement or shape. Something.Anything.
Silence.
He felt like a kid afraid of the dark.
Get a hold of yourself, man.
Fingers of fear teased along the back of his neck. The hairs stood on end. He shivered.
Where was that horse?
"Ciervo!" His voice sounded weak even to his own ears. He tried again. Now he was
completely hoarse.
Swallowing the panic rising from the pit of his stomach, he took a cautious step forward.
He heard stirring in the woods behind him.
Squirrels? He listened intently.
The noise came again. No. Definitely not a squirrel. Something was pacing in the woods.
Deliberate. Stalking. Jim's mouth went dry.
Mountain lion.
Very nice. I hope this opportunity will boost your sales. We published our books on the same day last March. Good job.
DeleteHere's what I found on page 25 of The Fire Starter, my book to release from Desert Breeze Publishing in August. Thanks for the cool opportunity.
ReplyDeleteHe rose more slowly, but with greater towering effect. He seemed closer. Hotter. Entirely bigger than she was.
She tilted her chin higher. What did he mean by even her? "Excuse me? I trust you just agreed to talk to my father." Every other man that she had spoken to in that tone tucked his tail and aligned himself to her wishes. The chill in the room should impress him. Now they would get back to business.
Molan's jaw clenched, then he whistled through his teeth. "Wow, Princess, you are beautiful."
Beautiful? Amaryllis blinked. Beautiful? Did he not hear what she had said? How she said it? "Beautiful!" She lost every bit of coldness she'd been so impressed with moments before. "Have you lost your mind?" She'd never heard of it happening to a man, but he was an off-islander.
"I never dreamed..." He leaned toward her, jaw angling down, lips parting.
By the fighting love of Ares, he intended to kiss her!
Amaryllis clasped both her hands together and swung them like a mallet at his descending head. A crack of pain ripped through her fingers, then her elbow, then her hip.
Congrats on your contract with Desert Breeze. I look forward to reading more.
DeleteThank you Susan. Here is an excerpt from my August 21 release from Desert Breeze, SECRETS OF WILLOW SHADE.
DeleteHe looked at her with eyes sadder than a stray puppy. "I can't. I can't sign away all we had by filling in a blank line."
"Stop being so theatrical. You signed away all we had a year ago with one stroke of infidelity." Maddy turned her back so Kenneth wouldn't see her bite her lips or her hands tremble. Her husband had lied and cheated and now she wanted to blubber because he put on a sad face?
"Okay, I admit I was a bit over dramatic, but I've tried every way I know to reach you. Can we just sit down and talk?"
"I thought we did that."
"Not really. I said, 'I'm sorry.' And you said, 'Get out of my sight.'"
"Kenneth, this is not a good time. Can't you see how busy I am?"
"Yes, I can see you're very busy." He rolled up his sleeves and dipped a rag into the cleansing solution. "I can be busy too. We can talk while we work. I've tried saying I'm sorry. I've tried begging and I've tried kowtowing. I won't press you to stop the divorce, but I need you to not hate me."
"Hate you? I don't hate you. You have to feel in order to hate. Why don't you just say the truth? You were unfaithful, and now you want me to ease your conscience by forgiving you. Well, I won't."
"All right, I will tell you the truth. Just please hear me out. I still love you. I always have. But you only see things in black and white. You never look for reasons."
"Oh spare me. Realities are black and white. Pretexts come in colors, attempting to pretty up the facts. Truths are all I want."
"I'm not sure you want to hear the truth, Maddy." He scrubbed the cobwebs off the back of the sideboard. "But you're going to hear it if I have to hang onto your coattail for the rest of the day."
"Try me." She scrubbed the piece of furniture so hard the paint faded. "I was a good wife to you. I never did anything to warrant your infidelity. I trusted you like I trusted my own daddy."
"I didn't want to be trusted like a daddy. I was -- am your husband."
"Not for much longer. You know I can get a divorce without your signature."
"And I destroyed your trust. For that, I'm sorry, but there's more than you know."
Her knee did a nervous jiggle. "You said that before. Now it's time for you to spit out what you want to say and leave."
"Maddy, do you even remember what our goals were when we first married? We were both working and going to college. And then you became pregnant."
"I became pregnant! I didn't do it by myself!"
Sounds like an emotional read. I love those kind of stories. I look forward to the release. Good luck.
DeleteWhat a clever idea, Susan. I wish you much success with your new blog. This excerpt (pg 25) is from the book The Landlord, published by Desert Breeze in e-form,available at most on line book stores.
ReplyDelete"Me either," added Brandy, who was equally pleased with her sugary choice. "In fact, I
got on the scale yesterday and I've put four pounds on in four months. At that rate, I'll double my
weight in ten years."
"Good grief. I've been avoiding the scale, but I can tell by my waistbands that it wouldn't
be pretty."
"A friend of mine joined the 'Y' in town. I've been thinking about joining myself, but I'm
afraid I'd never really be faithful."
"You know, if we both join, we can hold each other accountable. What do you think? Is it
expensive?"
"I'm not sure, but it would be worth it. Yeah, if you promise to hound me into going at
least four times a week, I might actually do it." Brandy took a sip of coffee and waited for a
response.
"Shake on it." Kristen held out her hand and they enthusiastically joined hands. "Let's
stop by on the way home -- before we change our minds -- and we can sign up."
"Terrific! Just let me get a little more butter to finish this muffin and we'll head over."
"Braaandy..."
"I know, I know. But I hate to waste anything. Besides, this is the last goodie for maybe
years."
After they finished their snack, they headed for the gym. A young woman walked them
through the membership requirements and benefits. The introductory price was do-able so they
signed on the dotted line.
As they headed back to the car, Brandy placed her membership card in her purse. "Now,
we'll skip Sundays, of course. But let's meet Monday after work. What time are you done
teaching?"
"I can be there by five," Kristen replied. "How about you?"
"Yeah, I can do that. I'll go in early to work so that I finish by four-thirty. It'll give me
time to drive over and change. My boss is cool."
"Good. I'm glad I have new work-out clothes. That will give me inspiration."
"Too bad it has an elastic band. Too easy to cheat."
"I refuse to cheat. I'm on a roll -- mentally, anyway." Kristen stood a little straighter as
she unlocked the car door. Maybe because a tall, good-looking jock just exited the building.
He was not ignored by Brandy either. "I think I'm going to like this."
"Now we have to stick with this and our diets. We're not here for the guys. Right?"
Kristen was determined to see this through.
"Right. I think there should be a penalty or something if one of us quits."
"Like what? A gift certificate to somewhere?"
"I don't know. Maybe treat to lunch if you lose."
"Oh, that makes sense. All that work and then eat out. I don't think so." Kristen shook her
head in disbelief.
"You're right. Okay, no penalty -- just loyalty."
"Agreed. We start day after tomorrow. We'll meet there at five sharp."
"Cool.
Just by this little excerpt I can tell this will be a story that many can relate too. I had to laugh. Here I am eating potato chips while I read it. Shame on me.
Deletethanks for opening your blog for this...
ReplyDeleteHere is a brief excerpt from Shadowed Dreams, the next in The Shadow Series, available Nov. 2012
"I did apologize," Clay spoke in his own defense. "I even tried to help you."
"Help me. You dropped me in the mud. You, you, buffoon."
"Buffoon!" Clay was exasperated as he leaned forward to confront her better. "You told me to let you go. Actually, you screamed your demand at me. I was only obliging you."
"Well, I never." Caroline turned quickly. Her chin went up as she gave what sounded like a royal edict, "I will not ride in the wagon with this, this, man, Matthew."
Sounds like this story will have lots of conflict. Nothing makes a novel more interesting than conflict. I look forward to reading more come Nov.
DeleteHere is what's on page 25 of Out of Time (currently available as it released in June 2012)
ReplyDelete"So go all out."
Donny remembered the odd feeling earlier that his friend was praying for him. "Jayce, can I ask you something else?"
"Go ahead."
"Have you been praying for me again?"
His friend chuckled into the phone. "I've never stopped."
"Thought so. My conscience seems to be having a flare up lately. Could you chill a bit there on the prayers? The last time you told me you were praying for me I had some bad luck with the ladies."
"Whatever it takes, buddy. That's what I pray for. Whatever it takes to turn your heart toward God and get your eyes off yourself."
He snorted, until he thought about what Jason had said. Could Bree be an answer to his friend's prayers? He shook off the thought. Why would God care about who he dated? "You're a hopeless case, you know? If it makes you feel better, you keep on praying."
"It'll take a miracle, but you know I love you, bro, even with your heathen ways."
Donny laughed. What a kidder. "Thanks. I'll call you in a few days and let you know how it went, okay?"
"Sounds great. Despite all the teasing, I'm proud of you for wanting to change. I'm here for you if you need me, okay?"
Sometimes he appreciated Jason being a therapist. Other times he found it annoying. Yet nobody knew him like his best friend did. He counted on it. "Thanks. I may take you up on it."
He disconnected the call and sighed. Sometimes he envied his friend's marriage. He'd never known a happier man. Other times he cringed at the idea of being constrained to one woman for life. Was it possible a decent marriage could make him content? Could a good woman get him to change his ways?
With marriage still on his mind, he strolled back to the patio and opened the sliding glass door. For about two seconds he thought about donning his swimsuit and taking a quick swim in his heated pool. A light breeze wafted by and helped him change his mind. Maybe he'd catch a football game on television before bed. Yeah, football sounded good. Anything to get his mind off the sexy woman next door so he could get some sleep. As he shut the patio door behind him, his phone vibrated in his hand. Paulette. Ugh. He touched the ignore call button and shoved his phone into his pocket. No matter how many times she called him, he wasn't talking to her tonight. The woman couldn't take no for an answer and it was starting to get on his nerves. He never should've slept with her. Now she wouldn't leave him
alone.
His phone vibrated again. He yanked the phone out of his pocket and pushed the answer button. "What the hell do you want?"
"Is this a bad time?"
He pulled the phone away from his ear and glanced at the number. It wasn't Paulette.
"Who is this?"
The woman laughed. "Forgot me already, did you?"
"Bree?"
"Yeah. Who'd you think it was?"
"The number you gave me earlier doesn't match this one. I didn't recognize the area code."
"Oh, sorry. This is my cell phone. It has a New York state area code."
A good way to keep us hanging and wanting more.
DeleteThank you ladies for coming out to play with me. I hope to do this more often in different ways to hopefully lure more readers to our books.
DeleteThanks for the opportunity, Susan.
ReplyDeleteHere's an excerpt from Page 25 of MUZZZLED, the second in the Kat McKinley mystery coming out with Untreed Reads next week.
By the time Terry had returned everything to its rightful place and followed this procedure with a liberal dose of antibiotic powder, I felt like I knew the insides of a jersy cow rather intimately. Especially after he persuaded me to insert my arm in the narrow passage and hold the bottle in place while he raced inside the surgery for a syringe and follow-up antibiotic injection.
What poor Bessie must have been going through during all this pain and indignity, I could only imagine. Or on second thoughts—holy catfish—no, I couldn’t.
After binning our coats in a laundry chute, we scrubbed up in the little bathroom set off from the surgery.
“Thanks, Kat. You’re a star.” Terry gave me a breath-robbing bear hug. A breath-robbing brotherly bear hug. “And remember, if you’re ever looking for a new job, there’s always one here with me.”
“Hmmm… I might give that opportunity a miss.” I gave an exaggerated shudder. “After today’s experience I don’t think I’ll ever eat tripe or brains or even spaghetti again.”
I love this excerpt. Congrats on your contract. I wish you tons of sales.
ReplyDeleteSusan, hope I'm not too late - I had to do household errands then it was off to work. This is from my sweet vintage romance, Journey of the Heart. It's 1946, Sonoma CA, and James has just returned home from World War II. Can he help Rachel save her winery?
ReplyDeletepage 25:
"Rachel, what do you think?"
"Full bodied and with a lot of flavor."
A slow smile filled with pride grew across Vito's features. "I agree."
"It's good, Miss Rachel," said Jose.
"What do you think, James?" she asked.
"I'm afraid I don't know much about tasting, but I like it."
Vito chuckled. "Rachel will teach you to taste – on Sunday."
"Vito, you are shameless."
BUY LINK:http://amzn.com/B008G1JI6C
Another great excerpt. Thanks for contributing, Steph.
ReplyDelete