Nino Gugunishvili & 'Friday Evening, Eight O’Clock' @NinoGuguni @GoddessFish #WomensFiction

Today we have author Nino Gugunishvili visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* Nino Gugunishvili holds an MA in arts and has worked in film and television industries. Friday Evening, Eight O’Clock is her first published work of fiction. She lives in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Today I'm interviewing author Nino Gugunishvili.
What do you do when you’re not writing?
* Oh, I’m not the most disciplined person you’ll know. When I’m not writing I’m reading, or going out with my friends, walking in the park, or forcing myself to attend my fitness class and of course I’m waiting for the new episodes of my beloved shows to watch.
What was your favourite book as a child?
* “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas, Jerome K. Jerome’s “Three men in a boat (to say nothing of the dog), Jack London’s short stories and novels, Mark Twain’s works, O.Henry’s short stories, and many, many more….
* My father had an incredible library, so I often sneaked there to lose the sense of time while reading.
Where do you get your ideas?
* Ideas may come from everywhere… Even from our dreams, from places we visit, form impressions and our own experiences. In my opinion, the stories we write about reflect our inner life and accumulate everything that is stored in our memory. When the right moment or an impulse comes, it nourishes our imagination and the story is born.
Are you a planner or a pantser?
* I guess I’m a pantser. While working on “Friday Evening, Eight O’Clock” I haven’t planned anything in terms of story or plot development, but there were certain things which I knew. I knew for example that the main protagonist Tasha would have a dog, a Labrador - retriever, or that another character, Balthazar Hamish would have a headache in the opening scene, or, that he’ll have a deputy - Liz Foster. I also knew that Tasha would be straight-forward, unconfident and funny.
Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published?
* When I decided to publish my book, I had to learn and research as much as I could in the field of publishing. All of it was a brand new, extremely challenging, sometimes unnerving, but at the same time a very enriching and positive experience that lasted for three years, starting from the process of writing a book to the final stage of its publication. I’m deeply grateful to the “Archway Publishing” team who made it all possible. They were very supportive all through my publishing journey.
Do you have any advice to give to aspiring writers?
* Don’t be afraid, believe in yourself, trust your abilities, read as much as you can and write, do not wait for a perfect moment, a muse or n inspiration, just write!
What has been the toughest criticism you’ve been given as an author?
* I think that the toughest one is still to come either in a form of review or a verbal remark and I’m trying hard to get used to it. It’s the most difficult part of presenting your writing to the outside world, to the audience… that’s the moment when you have to realize that not everyone will fell in love with your book instantly, if at all. Someone will say that it’s not what they expected, or that it’s too long and dull and boring, or that the situations in the book are too unrealistic… You definitely need to have guts to cope with criticism, judgmental views or a bad review, especially when you’re a debut author. You’re certainly not prepared or used to it. You’re not immune to it and probably will never be… But I hope that there will be readers who’ll enjoy this book and for me this is the most important and encouraging thing.
What has been the best compliment?
* When readers say that they couldn’t put it down! When they say that they didn’t want it to end or that they laughed to tears! A friend of mine told me that reading my book was like watching a very good movie!
What sort of writing environment do you create? I.e. music or not? Pen and paper or laptop/PC?
* My writing environment consists of a couch, an HP mini black laptop, a muted TV and my dog beside me. Oh, and I forgot about a mug of a hot coffee. A look into...

~ Blurb ~ * Tasha is a dreamer in search of a new dream.
* She's bored with Pilates. She's never tried yoga. She doesn't even have a driver's license. She lives a pretty ordinary life as a freelance writer who battles the occasional flow of melancholy with the regular flow of martinis. Nestled into her couch, her television remote in one hand and a cold adult beverage in the other, she's found a favorite way to pass the hours on a Friday evening. It's comfortable and familiar, but it's not exactly an exciting way to live. With two of her closest friends, a bossy mother, an eighty-two year old grandmother, and Griffin, her fat yellow Labrador at her side, she knows that there has to be something better out there.
* But where?
* When she gets an unexpected offer to relocate to France to write a magazine column, she thinks her circumstances are improving. But life in a new country isn't all pêches et la crème. Now far away from her comfort zone, Tasha must find the inner strength to start a new career and navigate the bizarre and unknown world of professional jealousy, intrigue, and conflicting personalities in a very foreign land.
* It's enough to make a girl yearn for those quiet nights on the couch. ~ Excerpt ~ * “Hey Liz, it’s me, what’s up?” Balthazar finally got through to her. “Listen, where did you get it?”
* “Get what?”
* “That unromantic goddess piece. Very nicely done, Liz. Find the author as soon as possible, please. I need her here. You can do it, right?”
* “Sure I can, Balthazar. The only thing is, she lives in another country. It will probably take time.”
* “Hope you can arrange everything, her work permit, visa, and all. I need her as a columnist. I’m thinking of starting a new column right away. Well, that’s all I wanted to say. See you later, Liz.”
* What an asshole! thought Liz, with her lips pressed to her old cell phone. She didn’t have time to buy a new one. She barely had time for anything more than her job lately. She was becoming a workaholic and hated herself for that discovery. Okay, fine! I will try to reach the unromantic goddess by phone and send her an email. That’s it. Come on, Balthazar, the new issue is just a week away, and I don’t think it’s perfect timing for a newcomer to come in. I’m not your secretary, after all!
* Liz took a last sip of coffee and suddenly brightened. A good cup of coffee always changed her mood.
* She opened her laptop and easily found what she was looking for in her database of new authors. There she was. Her name was Tasha. She looked young and wore big glasses. Her haircut was simply awful.
* That’s fine. Her haircut can be changed, Liz thought as she started typing an email. Buy Friday Evening, Eight O’Clock here... Archway Publishing | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play Find Nino Gugunishvili here... Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter Thank you for joining us here today, Nino Gugunishvili! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Nino Gugunishvili will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave a comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops for a greater chance of winning!

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Erin Cawood & 'Maybe Tomorrow' @ErinCawood @GoddessFish #Contemporary #WomensFiction

Today we have author Erin Cawood visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?
* Erin Cawood is a commercial women's fiction author, with a taste for dramatic storylines and a passion for strong lead characters she really gets behind, cheering on right to the very end of their story. Her focus? Taking romance into the darker, edgier side of contemporary fiction.

Today Erin Cawood will be talking about what sparked the idea for the story.
* I actually don’t remember what sparked of the idea for Maybe Tomorrow. It was around April 2013, not long after I’d finished the first draft of Never Forget (Behind Closed Doors 6) and I remember waking up one day with this great sense of loss, an immense amount of guilt, and a deep sense of conflict. Keon was already there trying to explain to his daughter why he was leaving her.
* I already knew at that point, that this was the turning point of Keon’s story, the climax right before the happy ever after, the point where he realised that if he didn’t go after the woman he loved, it was a decision he’d regret for the rest of his life.
* The thing was, the more I got to know Keon the more I understood that he’d never leave Lily. Likewise, Darcy, would never put either of them through the pain of watching her suffer from the effects of liver failure and therefore, she would never stay with them.
* What that meant for Maybe Tomorrow was that Keon and Darcy had a very limited amount of time before they would go their separate ways once again. And if Darcy’s imminent death wasn’t tense enough, I threw them into an environment where the odds, and the other characters, are against any reconciliation. No one is more vocal in those objections than Keon’s opinionated sister, Kiera, who reminds Darcy that she doesn’t deserve to be with Keon and Lily at every chance she gets.
* Darcy doesn’t want anyone to know about her condition, so when she appears with him at his family’s weekend away, everyone – even her parents— are concerned. They can see that Keon is torn apart about Darcy’s presence and they want to protect him. Keon is totally thrown by this idea wants to die and his own reaction to her pending death. He initially attempts to reason with those feelings; he’s a doctor, he saves lives and that is who he is and he can’t just give up like she wants. He soon realises that his feelings are much deeper than that. Darcy was his first love, and she broke his heart. And despite the failure of a second marriage, Keon realises that he’s never healed from that broken heart, and later than he still loves her.
* As far as second chance romances go, Maybe Tomorrow is a true against all odds kind of story. It’s a story about bad decisions that lead to a lifetime of regrets, it’s about learning to forgive yourself and others, and finding closure. And given the serious nature of its main theme, it’s a lighter story than what I’ve written in my previous series. Therefore, as a reader you can expect to go on an emotional rollercoaster as you join Keon and Darcy in the fight for a tomorrow they may not have. A look into...

~ Blurb ~ * Does a heart ever really heal from its first break?
* On an unseasonably hot night in late September, Dr. Keon McGowan is called away from a family gathering to a hospital emergency. Amongst his patients that night is a blast from his past he’d rather forget. He’ll certainly never forgive butterfly hunter Darcia Davenport for leaving him alone as a single father while she chased butterflies through the Amazon rainforest.
* Coming face to face with the woman who broke his heart after all this time, Keon realises that he has never fully healed from it. But any chance of finding closure is ripped away when Darcy chooses to end treatment and live her final weeks without regret. Can Keon let her go? Or will he fight for the tomorrow they might never have? Maybe Tomorrow is an emotional journey of love caught between fate and destiny. ~ Excerpt ~ * He stood on the pier, hearing her words all over again. He watched her lips move and didn’t quite understand what she was saying. It was the opportunity of a lifetime. She was sorry, really sorry, but she didn’t want this life. She had never wanted it. She wanted action and adventure, to climb the Himalayas, to shower under waterfalls, and swim in turquoise waters. She wanted to stand amongst the Monarch butterflies in Mexico as they migrated. She was sorry, really sorry, but she couldn’t stay with him. She’d only grow to resent him, their life, and any children they had. (Of course, Lily hadn’t been born by then. The news of their baby had come as a shock to Keon, almost a full nine months later.)
* Pain gripped his chest, as fresh as the day she’d left him. He’d drunk himself unconscious a thousand times, prayed for her return, would have given anything to have her say she'd take it back. When the pain turned to rage, he wanted her dead.
* But not like this. Never like this. His Darcy, the light of his life, was going to die. Everything he'd ever wanted to say to her, all the anger he'd felt since that day, had just vanished. The thought of losing her crushed him.
* Permanently. Buy Maybe Tomorrow here... Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads Find Erin Cawood here... Facebook | Twitter Thank you for joining us here today, Erin Cawood! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Erin Cawood will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave a comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops for a greater chance of winning!

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A look at Firi Kamson & 'Ere's Secret' @tmkamson @LoveBitesSilk #Contemporary #romance

Ere's Secret by Firi Kamson

Genre: Women's Fiction, Contemporary Romance

I have a secret.

In three days, I'll be turning 40 and I'm in love for the first time. Decades ago, I sacrificed my life for the good of my family. But tragedy struck too close to home, reminding me of the brevity of life.

Now I have a choice to make: continue living in shadows or allow my true self to emerge.

Amazon US | Amazon UK | iBooks | B&N | Smashwords

My life was uninteresting and would have stayed that way until I met Luke. This was a chance meeting and I could say we were destined to meet, who knows. It was a Sunday evening and I was at this point tired of my life and living my life as society wanted it to be lived. It was the day I defied all odds and subdued my nerves as I went into my closet and put on a black pair of pencil jeans and a black loose fitting Tee-shirt, that Cassandra, my oyibo Canadian neighbor who never took no for an answer, even though she had been unsuccessfully trying to invite me for coffee at hers for years; gave me. Surprisingly, when I put this on, it struck me how much weight I had lost. I looked like a skinny school girl instead of a 38 year old mother of three. Ignoring the inquiring looks my boys gave me, I told them I was going out with my friends. Further ignoring the equally curious look I got from Musa, our old reliable gateman who refused to leave us when Opuada died and was content with whatever I could pay him. With a straight face, I told him I was going out and would be back in a couple of hours. 

Firi Kamson was born in Nigeria, where she grew up. Becoming a lawyer, a writer and a pilot was her childhood dream, she dropped the lawyer part and got a B.A. in foreign languages and literature speciality French. Worked as a freelance translator and a photographer for a couple of years before she decided to explore the creative world of writing. She writes a column for www.sabinews.com, as Tee, an online Nigerian based magazine, where she journals her experiences in south east Asia. The dream of becoming a pilot is still there and who knows one day it would be fulfilled. She lives in South East Asia with her nerdy husband and very active daughter and son. Ere's Secret is her first work.

Firi Kamson would like to hear from her readers so you can send her an email phiri@secretlilies.com or check out her site www.secretlilies.com 

Or follow her on Twitter @tmkamson 

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A Look At Iris Dorbian & 'Diary of a Mad Club Girl' @IrisDorbian @GoddessFish #Contemporary #Fiction

Today we have author Iris Dorbian visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* Iris Dorbian is a former actress turned business journalist/blogger. Her articles have appeared in a wide number of outlets that include the Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Venture Capital Journal, DMNews, CFO.com, Playbill, Backstage, Theatermania, Live Design, Media Industry Newsletter and PR News. From 1999 to 2007, Iris was the editor-in-chief of Stage Directions. She is the author of “Great Producers: Visionaries of the American Theater," which was published by Allworth Press in August 2008. Her personal essays have been published in Blue Lyra Review, B O D Y, Embodied Effigies, Jewish Literary Journal, Skirt! Diverse Voices Quarterly and Gothesque Magazine. She has a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.

Today Iris Dorbian will be talking about how she became a writer and what inspired her in regard to the story she's promoting.
* I think I was always a writer in my soul yet it wasn’t something I fully acknowledged until later on in life. Certainly, my love of words and storytelling guided me toward that path. But it wasn't until I attended Columbia's Journalism School that I truly become a professional writer.
* Of course, some creative writing stalwarts might blanch at the notion that through journalism I became a writer, thinking those two disciplines are diametrically opposed. However, that kind of thinking is faulty. Journalism gives me the tools to tell a story, to ask the relevant questions, fill in the necessary details albeit within a factual context. Writing a novel is almost the same except the material you’re dealing with isn’t a news story but a story forged within the crucible of the imagination.
* In the case of “Love, Loss and Longing in the Age of Reagan,” I had been wanting to write for the longest time a coming of age novel based on my experiences as a very callow and naïve student attending NYU in the early 1980s. There were so many things that transpired during those four years, things which left a lasting psychological imprint on me, that I knew if I was going to write fiction it would have to start with those years. Plus, it was truly a very fascinating period—MTV was in its infancy, the internet did not exist, yuppies were ruling Wall Street and cocaine was the drug du jour. And in the first NYU dorm I lived in, I was surrounded by people who were so gifted they would later become this social, political and artistic crème de la crème. To give you an example, Bill Wilhelm (whom New Yorkers know better as Mayor de Blasio) was the president of the dorm! I remember when he campaigned for the spot and I just couldn’t understand why anyone would want that position!
* So in many ways, “Love, Loss and Longing in the Age of Reagan” is a roman a clef although a lot has been fictionalized. It’s also my affectionate tribute to a long-lost bygone chapter in my life. A look into...

~ Blurb ~ * It's the early 1980s, MTV is in its infancy, the Internet does not exist, Ronald Reagan is president and yuppies are ruling Wall Street. Edie is a naïve NYU student desperate to lose her virginity and to experience adventure that will finally make her worldly, setting her further apart from her bland suburban roots. But in her quest to mold herself into an ideal of urban sophistication, the New Jersey-born co-ed gets more than she bargained for, triggering a chain of events that will have lasting repercussions. ~ Excerpt ~ * After sleeping through the next two days, I found myself wide awake, playing the grooves out of Flock of Seagull’s “Telecommunication” on my roommate’s turntable. For some inexplicable reason, I always felt compelled to play this vinyl disc as nightly ritual in preparation for my job at the Ritz.
* As droning synthesizers ushered in this song, which sounded like something George and Jane Jetson would listen to on crack, I’d pull out from my bureau the short and slightly pleated black skirt I got at Macy’s at the Garden State Plaza mall in Paramus, New Jersey. The store was having a special “New Wave” sale and I, eager, to fortify my loyalty to the passing trends of my volatile youth, bought up some stock that consisted of a yellow lame dress that I had convinced myself looked like it came out of the ‘20s and a really cool Betsy Johnson sweater skirt that had purple and pink butterflies strewn all over it. Because Ritz management decreed that all waitresses wear black, I shoved my legs into black Capezio tights and threw on a black sweater whose sleeves and collar were trimmed with a furry boa I adored.
* Usually by the time the tune ended, I was ready to go, dressed head to toe in full Ritz regalia. This was my cue to turn the needle back to where it started, scratch it up some more and play the ditty yet again. I fed off every detail of this clockwork ritual, the way a diabetic feeds off insulin. It was a necessary prelude to an evening rarely without consequence. I was steeling myself for the possible insanity that awaited me. Buy Love, Loss and Longing in the Age of Reagan: Diary of a Mad Club Girl here... Amazon Find Iris Dorbian here... Website | LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook | Muckrack.com Thank you for joining us here today, Iris Dorbian! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Iris Dorbian will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave a comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops for a greater chance of winning!

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A Look At Elyse Douglas & 'The Summer Diary' @douglaselyse @GoddessFish #romance

Today we have author Elyse Douglas visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* Elyse Douglas is the pen name for the married writing team Elyse Parmentier and Douglas Pennington. Elyse grew up near the sea, roaming the beaches, reading and writing stories and poetry, receiving a Degree in English Literature. She has enjoyed careers as an English teacher, an actress and a speech-language pathologist. She and her husband, Douglas Pennington, have completed five novels: The Other Side of Summer, Christmas for Juliet, Wanting Rita, Christmas Ever After, The Christmas Town and The Christmas Diary.
* Douglas grew up in a family where music and astrology were second and third languages. He attended the Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music and played the piano professionally for many years. His two detective books include Death is Lookin' for ELVIS and Death is a TAPDANCER. His great, great grandfather lived to be 132 years old, and was the oldest man in the world when he died in 1928.

What are you going to tell us about today?
* My story, The Summer Diary. A look into the story

~ Blurb ~ * After her best friend and husband are killed in an airplane crash, a young woman finds her best friend’s diary and learns that she was secretly in love with another man, a soldier. Determined to find the secret lover, Keri sets off on a journey and discovers the key to her destiny. ~ Excerpt ~ * Seconds later, the tension returned. She saw Big Pete, and a tall younger man emerge from around the back of the house and start toward her. His dogs, Brownie and Tippie Toe, were right behind. She steadied herself with effort, and combed back her hair with stiff fingers.
* Under the bold yellow sunshine, Ryan seemed to approach in slow motion, in easy unhurried strides. The playful wind scattered his long, sandy-blond hair, and he pushed a hand through it and removed his sunglasses, squinting her a look as he slowly closed the distance. He wore a sleeveless blue T-shirt, denim cut-off shorts and faded black Keds sneakers. He had considerable breadth of shoulder, a wide chest and gleaming muscled arms that suggested an athlete in the prime of his career.
* This was not the same man Keri had seen in the photograph at Sally’s house. There was a force about this fully present Ryan—an elegant masculinity that completely pushed Keri off balance. This big tanned man standing before her had impact, he captivated, impressed; he aroused intrepid desires. Keri felt a warm animal response. There were little tremors in her legs, her chest, her fingers.
* Ryan stopped, standing five feet away from her, staring, waiting. He had a noble hero face, all sharp lines, a sharp jaw, a strong muscular neck.
* Keri’s thoughts stalled. She saw his intense sea-gray eyes probing her, checking her out. His expression was a blank page.
* Big Pete spoke up. “Keri, this is Ryan. Ryan… Keri.”
* Keri had the urge to leave. She had the urge to run. She’d never felt so ill at ease. Her façade of indifference melted away whenever she looked at Ryan. He was a magnetic wonder, whose reserve and mystery further amplified his attraction. Buy The Summer Diary here... Amazon Find Elyse Douglas here... Amazon Author Page | Twitter | Website | YouTube - Book Trailer Thank you for joining us here today, Elyse Douglas! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Elyse Douglas will be awarding a $50 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave a comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops for a greater chance of winning!

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A Look At Laura McNeill & 'Center of Gravity' @LauraMcNeillBks @GoddessFish #suspense

Today we have author Laura McNeill visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* After six years behind the anchor desk at two CBS affiliates, Laura moved to the Alabama Gulf Coast to raise her family. Her accolades in broadcasting include awards from the Associated Press, including Best News Anchor and Best Specialized Reporter.
* Laura works at Spring Hill College as the school’s web content and social media manager and is active in her community—participating in fundraisers for the American Cancer Society, Ronald McDonald House, and Providence Hospital’s Festival of Flowers.
* Laura was recently awarded a 2-book deal with Thomas Nelson Publishing, a division of HarperCollins. Her novel, Center of Gravity, set in Mobile, Ala., will be published in July of 2015. Laura is represented by Elizabeth Winick Rubenstein, president of McIntosh and Otis literary agency in New York. Her writing awards include those from William Faulkner-Wisdom Creative Writing Competition, Writer’s Digest, RWA, and the Eric Hoffer competition.
* She holds a master’s degree in journalism from The Ohio State University and a bachelor’s degree in English from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. She is currently pursuing a second master’s degree in interactive technology from the University of Alabama. She is a native of Upstate New York and currently resides near the Alabama Gulf Coast with her two children.

What are you going to tell us about today?
* My story, Center of Gravity. A look into the story

~ Blurb ~ * Her whole life, Ava Carson has been sure of one thing: she doesn’t measure up to her mother’s expectations. So when Mitchell Carson sweeps into her life with his adorable son, the ready-made family seems like a dream come true.
* In the blink of an eye, she’s married, has a new baby, and life is grand.
* Or is it?
* When her picture-perfect marriage begins unraveling at the seams, Ava convinces herself she can fix it. It's temporary. It’s the stress. It’s Mitchell’s tragic history of loss.
* If only Ava could believe her own excuses.
* Mitchell is no longer the charming, thoughtful man she married. He grows more controlling by the day, revealing a violent jealous streak. His behavior is recklessly erratic, and the unanswered questions about his past now hint at something far more sinister than Ava can stomach. Before she can fit the pieces together, Mitchell files for divorce and demands full custody of their boys.
* Fueled by fierce love for her children and aided by Graham Thomas, a new attorney in town —Ava takes matters into her own hands, digging deep into the past. But will finding the truth be enough to beat Mitchell at his own game?
* Center of Gravity weaves a chilling tale, revealing the unfailing and dangerous truth that things—and people—are not always what they seem. ~ Excerpt ~ * The road rushes under the wheels. I rearrange snippets of the frantic conversation. Gash. Some blood. Breathing fine. Emergency room. A few more miles to the hospital.
* I flash back to this morning. Packed sack lunch, flop of dark hair across his bare forehead, navy backpack slung over one shoulder. A surge of pure love courses through my heart. A stab of worry steals my breath. I force myself to focus.
* The traffic light ahead flashes green to yellow. Intersection’s clear. I push the accelerator to the floor, glance in the rearview mirror. Air from the open window catches Sam’s wisps of hair. He smiles, showing off his first few baby teeth, and reaches a chubby hand at the rays of sunshine streaking by, trying to catch the light.
* Thump. Thump. The Jeep jerks to the left. I guide the wheel, hold it steady, and take my foot off the gas. When I pull over and brake, the abrupt stop sends up a dust cloud.
* “Uh-oh,” Sam says.
* I unbuckle, jump out, and survey the damage. A glance at the tire confirms it. Flat. Dead.
* Hands on my hips, I bite my lip.
* Tentatively, I grab the jack from the back of the Jeep, the weight of it solid and heavy in my hands. I can fix this. After all, in my former life, as a school counselor at Mobile Prep, I was the problem-solver, crisis manager, and shoulder to cry on. I always handled situations. And I didn’t need help.
* Then my eyes fall on Sam as he babbles and blows bubbles in the back seat. I hesitate, gripping the metal between my palms. As the sun beats down on us, heating my skin, my pulse begins to race. Maybe I was fearless because I didn’t know any better. I wasn’t a mom then. I didn’t have two children depending on me. Trusting me to do the right thing, be on time, and not screw up. Buy Center of Gravity here... Amazon | Barnes & Noble Find Laura McNeill here... Blog | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter | Website Thank you for joining us here today, Laura McNeill! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Laura McNeill will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave a comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops for a greater chance of winning!

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A Look At Virginia McCullough & 'The Chapels on the Hills' @VEMcCullough @GoddessFish #contemporary #romance

Today we have author Virginia McCullough visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* Bestselling author Virginia McCullough’s fiction titles include Amber Light, Greta's Grace, Island Healing, Book 1 of her St. Anne's Island Series, and The Chapels on the Hill. The Jacks of Her Heart, which releases in May 2015, offers a lighter take on romance in middle-age. Her novels offer hope, healing, and plenty of second chances—and her characters always share some fun and laughter along the way, too.
* A lifelong writer, Virginia has written over 100 books as a ghostwriter or coauthor. Her clients include well-known doctors, lawyers, professional speakers, and individuals with a story to tell. She’s come to see that her nonfiction work also offers readers hope and healing. Virginia coauthored (w/Lynda McDaniel) Write Your Book Now and Storytelling Toolkit, both available on amazon.com. She currently lives in Wisconsin. Visit Virginia online.

What are you going to tell us about today?
* The Chapels on the Hills. A look into the story

~ Blurb ~ * When tragedy struck, Sonia and Aaron’s reason to be together seemed to slip away, along with the love they once shared. Both believe they’ll find closure at an event dedicating a music pavilion to their son, allowing them to say a final goodbye and freeing them to commit to new relationships. But instead of finding peace, memories of the life they shared with their son, Matt, stir up unexpected feelings, prompting them to relive both sweet and painful times of their shared memories of the life they shared…
* And they can’t forget Matt’s special gift…
* By age five, Matt’s cello teacher declared him a child prodigy. But life with a prodigy can become complicated and even strains Aaron and Sonia’s marriage. Sonia is forced to balance her commitment to Matt and his music with running Chapel’s Botanical Garden, a business she created to save Aaron’s family’s land. Aaron’s law practice leads him to high-profile cases all over the country. Aaron is concerned about music dominating Matt’s childhood, but he eventually understands his son’s gift is already leading him to a life far away from their home in Lady’s River, Wisconsin.
* When Matt is taken from them unexpectedly, Aaron and Sonia turn in different directions, eventually going their separate ways. It seems to be working…or is it? For Sonia and Aaron, only a trip through the past will allow them to redeem the future—perhaps even find a shared future again. ~ Excerpt ~ * He had to make a decision and stick to it. For days, Aaron had shifted back and forth between a firm choice to attend the dedication of the pavilion and an equally strong conviction to skip the event altogether. Nothing worked harder on the knot of tension in his gut than indecision.
* He picked up the announcement and scanned it once again. It had Sonia’s fingerprints all over it. Well, not literally, but the neat, easy-to-read embossed lettering matched her taste. Aaron no longer followed the Unity Flight Family Group’s activities as closely as he once had, but when he’d first heard their plan to build an open-air pavilion on the site of the plane crash he’d known instantly it had been Sonia’s idea. The dedication of this final memorial also marked the five-year anniversary of the day they lost Matt forever.
* Aaron pushed his chair back from the desk and made his way to the window that spanned the outside wall. On a clear day, he could look down from his twentieth floor office and see the Chicago River below, but that afternoon heavy rain pelted the glass, blocking the view he usually found comforting. He’d lived most of his fifty years in a small town where a river served as the one constant, a reference point for home. Maybe that explained why he’d been drawn to the river in his adopted city, the place where he’d resolved to start over and build a new life.
* Absently slapping the announcement into the palm of his other hand, he rationalized that he could use the weather as an excuse not to go to the dedication ceremony. Or, he could beg off because of scheduled weekend depositions. Buy The Chapels on the Hills here... Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords Find Virginia McCullough here... Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Website | LinkedIn Thank you for joining us here today, Virginia McCullough! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Virginia will award one randomly drawn commenter a digital copy of one of her fiction books! So be sure to leave a comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops for a greater chance of winning!

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A Look At Noelle Adams & 'Reconciled for Easter' @NoelleAdams3 @GoddessFish #contemporary #romance

Today we have author Noelle Adams visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?
* Noelle handwrote her first romance novel in a spiral-bound notebook when she was twelve, and she hasn’t stopped writing since. She has lived in eight different states and currently resides in Virginia, where she teaches English, reads any book she can get her hands on, and offers tribute to a very spoiled cocker spaniel.
* She loves travel, art, history, and ice cream. After spending far too many years of her life in graduate school, she has decided to reorient her priorities and focus on writing contemporary romances.

What are you going to tell us about today?
* My contemporary romance story, Reconciled for Easter.

A look into the story

~ Blurb ~ * Abigail has been separated from her husband for almost two years. After a marriage that brought her only insecurity, she seeks a life now of peace and independence with their six-year-old daughter. Thomas wants to put their marriage back together, because he liked the wife he used to have, but she never wants to be that person again.
* She might need his help with their daughter and start to enjoy his company again, but she just can't trust him with her heart. Even when she discovers that her heart still wants him for a husband. ~ Excerpt ~ * She was leaning back against the counter, and Thomas was standing far too close to her. Once again invading her personal space. And this time she easily recognized his tone as snide. “What the heck is your problem?”
* Thomas had one hand on the counter beside her, bracing himself as he stood just a few inches away from her. She would have scooted over, but that would have been a surrender.
* His green eyes were intent on her face, and she saw his nostrils flare just a little. “You smell like him.”
* Abigail gasped, mostly from shock and outrage but also with the faintest trace of arousal at the intimacy of the words. “What?”
* “I said,” he gritted out, edging even closer until the fabric of his shirt brushed against her arm and one of her breasts, “you smell like him.”
* “Well, what do you expect?” she demanded, her anger blazing quickly. No one could rile her up like Thomas could. “I spent the evening with the man.”
* Something grew even tenser in his expression. “Did you?”
* She knew him well enough to understand the resonance in his words. “Damn you, Thomas,” she said in a harsh whisper, making sure her voice didn’t carry past the kitchen. She’d never used such language before they’d gotten separated. “You have no right to act this way.”
* Clearly Thomas too was conscious of not waking Mia, since his murmur was thick, rough, and soft. “I’d like to remind you of the fact that you’re still my wife.”
* “And what makes you think I need any sort of reminder of that?"
* His lips tightened into white. “I saw him walk you to the door.”
* She sucked in an indignant breath and clenched her fists at her sides. Thomas was still far too close. She could feel the heat radiating off his body, sense the leashed tension in his stance, hear the fast, uneven breaths he was taking. “So someone isn’t allowed to be polite to me now, because I’m still your wife?”
* Thomas made a guttural sound and braced his other hand on the counter, imprisoning her in between his arms. He leaned forward, pushing her back, and he rasped against her ear. “That man wasn’t just being polite. You know it as well as I do.”
* She was so angry now she could hardly think straight, and it was worse to know that he was right. She’d been foolish in not recognizing what Jim was thinking long before now.
* But worst of all was a familiar feeling building beneath her belly. She knew how to recognize it. Knew it was triggered by the proximity of Thomas’s lean, hard body, his familiar scent flooding her senses, his piercing eyes and thick voice.
* Her body was primed for sex with him, even as she wanted to scratch lines down his slightly flushed face.

Buy Reconciled for Easter here...
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo

Find Noelle Adams here...
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Book Trailer

Thank you for joining us here today, Noelle Adams! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Noelle will be giving away a $25 Amazon/BN Gift Card! So be sure to leave your name and email with your comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops (find them here: goddessfishpromotions-book-blast-reconciled-for-easter) for a greater chance of winning!

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Welcome special guest: author Heather Heyford ~ @HeatherHeyford @GoddessFish #Romance #contemporary

Today we have author Heather Heyford visiting.
What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* Heather Heyford learned to walk and talk in Texas, and then moved to England. ( “Ya’ll want some scones?”) Now a recovering teacher, Heather writes love stories, feeds hardboiled eggs to suburban foxes, and makes art in the Mid-Atlantic.
* Additional Bio: Born in the Northeast, Heather Heyford learned to walk and talk in Texas, and then moved to England. (“Ya’ll want some scones?”) While in Europe, Heather was forced by her cruel parents to spend Saturdays in the leopard vinyl back seat of their Peugeot, motoring from one medieval pile to the next for the lame purpose of ‘learning something.’ What she soon learned was how to allay the boredom by stashing a Cosmo under the seat. Now a recovering teacher, Heather writes love stories, feeds hardboiled eggs to suburban foxes, and makes art in the Mid-Atlantic. She is represented by the Nancy Yost Literary Agency (NYLA, @nyliterary) in New York City. The first book in her Napa Wine Heiresses Series from Kensington Publishing, A Taste of Chardonnay, is now available!

So, Heather Heyford, What/Who inspired you to become a writer? When did you attempt your first story? What length was it? What's become of it? How many stories did you complete before you sold your first?
* Ever since I wrote A Taste of Chardonnay, people have been asking me if I always wanted to write. The answer is, no! I didn’t start writing until about five years ago, when a love story rolling around in my head wouldn’t leave me alone. Naively, I thought, “I can do this. I went to college.” Ha! I had no idea what I was doing. I made every mistake a writer could possibly make in that book. It was my teacher. I got a bunch of rejections—deservedly so—but I also got a lot of positive feedback. After that, I studied hard, including researching the market to see what people wanted to read. I ended up selling my second effort, the Napa Wine Heiresses series.

What are the best and worst pieces of writing advice you ever received?
* Oh my goodness, I’ve received so much help along the way from other writers. The romance writer community is the most generous group of people I’ve ever met. Probably the best piece of advice I ever got was to “show, don’t tell.” It’s so obvious once you know that, but it had to be pointed out to me. The worst advice? For me personally, it would be to join a critique group. That never felt right to me. Why would an amateur take the advice of other amateurs? Besides, I sure didn’t want to be responsible for steering someone wrong! Now, I know lots of writers who swear by critique groups, and a clutch of experienced professionals is something entirely different from a group of newbies trying to find their way.

The book you’re promoting, is it a stand-alone story or part of a series?
* The Napa Wine Heiresses series consists of 4 books: A Taste of Chardonnay, A Taste of Merlot, A Taste of Sauvignon, and A Taste of Sake. It’s best to read them in that order, though they can stand alone. They are all about how the four daughters of Napa’s’ most notorious vintner carve out their own niche in the world…and find love along the way, of course!

What sparked the idea for the story/series?
* I was inspired to write the series after my husband took me on a dream-come-true trip to the California wine country. After all, most romance readers are just like me. Our favorite things are reading, romance, travel and wine. What could make a better series than those?

*** Now for some fun info… ***
Would you/have you own(ed) a snake or some other exotic pet?
* My daughter’s guinea pigs outlived all her friends’. Why? Because long after she lost interest in them, I continued to care for them out of my love of animals…even though the slightest scratch from their long nails gave me big, red welts.

Which do you prefer: rain or sun & warm weather or cold weather?
* Oh, I’m definitely a sunshine kinda girl. I lived in England for three years as a child, and it’s true what you’ve heard about their gray skies. Once when the sun shone for three days in a row, it broke some kind of record.

If you could live anywhere in the universe, where would it be and why?
* Are we talking pure fantasy? I’d have three houses: a ranch in Wyoming, an apartment in London, and a villa in the Caribbean!

If you were stranded on a desert island and were only allowed to have five modern conveniences with you, what would they be?
* I can see it all now…me sitting under a rustling palm with my Kindle in my hands, watching the sun go down. On a little table next to me are a lamp and a laptop. Inside my hut is a TV and fridge stocked with wine. What time’s my flight?

*** About Heather Heyford’s book… ***

~ Blurb ~ * When the richly bred, poorly raised daughter of a notorious Napa Valley winemaker competes with Hollywood’s hottest man in an unlikely race to see who can do the most good, who will win? ~ Excerpt ~ * A single black-and-white car, lights flashing, passed them going in the opposite direction.
* “Thanks,” she said in a subdued voice.
* “You can’t afford any more notoriety.”
* Char lowered the ice pack and turned to him. “How do you know?”
* Here it came. She braced herself for his accusations.
* When he didn’t respond, she asked more sharply, “What about my notoriety?”
* It was making her crazy, not knowing what he knew.
* In the dark, he sighed audibly.
* “My mom told me some stuff. She’s lived in Napa city all her life. She knows everyone. Hears everything.”
* “Like what, exactly?” Char braced herself for the worst, taking scant comfort in the idea that he couldn’t be that outraged, or he wouldn’t be here, driving her home. Or—to wherever they were headed.
* “It’s not important.” Whatever dreck he’d heard, he was downplaying it. That much was for sure.
* “How’s your cheek? Keep that ice on it.”
* “Just tell me what you’ve heard. I’ll tell you which parts are true or not.”
* He slid down the windows, letting in the night air—unusually balmy for early June—and combed his fingers through his hair.
* Char sat stiffly, waiting. But after a few minutes, the steady whoosh of tires on pavement helped normalize her heart rate, and her spine relaxed a bit. There, in the shadowy cab of his truck, his striking good looks were obscured. And he couldn’t see her, either…or her top-of-the-line running shoes…her one-of-a-kind silver jewelry. For the moment, he wasn’t an egotistical movie star, and she wasn’t an empty-headed heiress. For just this moment, she could almost pretend they were ordinary people with ordinary lives.
* And ordinary, if powerful, feelings.

***Buy Heather Heyford's book here***
Kindle | Nook | Kensington Publishing | Print: Available Oct. 13, 2014 from Amazon

***Find Heather Heyford here***
Website | Facebook | Twitter

Thank you for joining us here today, Heather Heyford! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your work.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Heather will be awarding a digital copy of A TASTE OF CHARDONNAY to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave your name and email with your comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops (find them here: goddessfishpromotions-vbt-taste-of-chardonnay) for a greater chance of winning!

a Rafflecopter giveaway