Cover Reveal~Lexxie Couper~ Shadow Whispers

Shadow Whispers

Lexxie Couper

Release Date: August 12th, 2014

Synopsis

Temptation…

Jared died twenty years ago. Now he’s trapped between Heaven and Hell, sent back again and again to protect those whose time has not yet come. Never before has he been tempted by the desires of mortal flesh. But then, he never had to watch over Tess Darcy before. For Tess he’ll break every rule, even if it costs him his immortal soul.

Haunted by nightmares of the stalker who nearly killed her, Tess has buried herself deep in the Australian Outback to escape her past. But Kangaroo Creek isn’t quite the quaint little town it looked on the map. Nothing is what it seems here. Every night, the same incredibly hot erotic dreams visit her, leaving her wanting more. The Librarian’s channeling demons, and assures Tess the handsome hunk she just ran into is dead. The bookstore seems to have rather unusual clients, and destroyed photos have a way of reappearing over and over again.

Other than that it’s a peaceful little town… until the man who nearly killed her returns from the dead. Is Jared the man of her dreams? Can he save her from her nightmares, or will the magic that haunts this town consume them both?

Smashwords

Excerpt:

Jared watched her walk from the library. Anger rolled from her in waves of tangible heat, rivalling the blistering temperature of the day. His gut tightened. Something had happened inside the old building. Something he should have seen, should have felt but didn’t.

He frowned, tracking her progress down the library steps. The smoldering sulphuric-red hue of her anger floated around her like a thundercloud, staining the air a deep vile scarlet. He’d never seen that color about her before. Auras of pensive blue, yes. Overlays of uneasy, guarded grey and insecure muddied brown, but never this turbulent red. Tess was angry. Very angry.

He clenched his fists, studying the color enveloping her. It boiled about her head, writhing and contorting—like a living thing in the throes of extreme pain. His heart clenched, feeling Tess’s torment. As always, he fought with the overwhelming urge to go to her. To embrace her, hold her to his body and kiss away her pain. She’d been through so much, possibly faced so much more, alone. And yet, she never faltered in her determination to deny it all. He admired her strength. It was almost stubborn, a trait he understood very well. A trait he’d been accused of more than once himself. Tess wouldn’t bow to her grief. But she wouldn’t acknowledge it either, and that was dangerous.

Jared’s heart clenched again. The One Almighty knew that, yet still he was forbidden to help her. Sent to protect and observe and that was all. Denied longing flooded Jared’s being. He focussed hard on Tess as she made her way west, drawn to her innate sensuality and fragile resolve. What’s pissed you off so much, Tess? Why can’t I feel it?

A shower of brilliant white sparks suddenly erupted in Tess’s sullied angry aura, blinding him for a split second before disappearing again. Jared sucked in a hot, dry breath. She’d felt him. Her spirit had felt his presence. How had that happened?

How could that happen?

If her spirit sensed him…

His body stirring in a base, elemental way, he frowned at her back.

And she looked over her shoulder.

Straight at him.

His heart thumped into rapid life and, incapable of doing anything else, he stared straight back at her.

Time froze. For a glorious moment, Tess Darcy saw him. Deep, chocolate brown eyes held him prisoner before, with a distracted frown, she looked straight ahead again and continued hurrying along the street.

His pulse leapt into life and he felt the familiar tug on his being he’d experienced the second he’d laid eyes on her—like a fist around his damned soul. God, he was in trouble here. The last time he’d lost his heart to a woman, he’d had it destroyed. After so many months of watching Tess, of seeing her so deeply, knowing her soul so completely, his dead, shattered heart felt afire with life, with futile hope again. He couldn’t afford to fall for her. To do so would be just as dangerous as Tess’s stubborn refusal to acknowledge her grief. He couldn’t fall for her.

Yet he was.

And he was incapable of preventing it.

About Lexxie Couper

Lexxie Couper started writing when she was six and hasn’t stopped since. She’s not a deviant, but she does have a deviant’s imagination and a desire to entertain readers with her words. Add the two together and you get erotic romances that can make you laugh, cry, shake with fear or tremble with desire. Sometimes all at once.

When she’s not submerged in the worlds she creates, Lexxie’s life revolves around her family, a husband who thinks she’s insane, a indoor cat who likes to stalk shadows, and her daughters, who both utterly captured her heart and changed her life forever.

Having no idea how old she really is, Lexxie decided to go with 27 and has been that age for quite some time now. It’s the best of both worlds – old enough to act mature, young enough to be silly.

Lexxie lives by two simple rules – measure your success not by how much money you have, but by how often you laugh, and always try everything at least once. As a consequence, she’s laughed her way through many an eyebrow raising adventure.

Find out more about Lexxie Couper: Website // Facebook // Twitter // Amazon Author Page

Lexxie Couper~Getting Played~Available TODAY!

About Getting Played (Heart Of Fame #7) by Lexxie Couper:

After yet another month without a lead singer, the band Synergy is on the verge of calling it quits. Which drives Jaxon Campbell, keyboardist and perpetual player, to do something dangerous—hit up a woman with contacts—and curves—in all the right places. Trouble is, the last time he saw her, he kind of broke her heart. And stole her cherished, autographed AC/DC album.

Natalie Thorton, Dean of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, knows everyone who’s anyone in Australia’s music industry. She’s driven and utterly professional and doesn’t have room in her schedule for relationships.

When Jaxon strides into her office, all of Natalie’s suppressed sexual urges—the ones born in Jax’s arms—surge to the surface. He wants something from her? Well, she wants something from him. Orgasms. Lots of them.

How can Jax say no? He’s never forgotten her, and it’s not like they’re going to fall in love. But just who’s playing who? And whose heart is going to fall first?

Warning: Contains a sexual challenge involving sex in public places, sex in private places, sex in moving cars, sex against windows and sex in the company of an oblivious federal politician. So basically, we’re talking about getting laid. A lot.

Amazon // B&N  // Samhain

Release Date: July 22nd, 2014

The Heart Of Fame series by Lexxie Couper:

#1 Love's Rhythm

#2 Muscle For Hire

#3 Guarded Desires

#4 Steady Beat

#5 Lead Me On

#6 Blame It On The Bass

Excerpt:

“I’ll find you a replacement for Nick Blackthorne,” Nat said, her voice a raspy, rapid breath. It was as if she was having some surreal, out-of-body experience, except she suspected it was actually her body in charge of her brain and mouth and tongue and voice box. Her body, after all, had never forgotten what sex with Jax was like. And never forgave her for denying it more. “On the condition you give me—”

“Sex?” he cut her off, lips twitching.

Nat’s pulsed. Her nipples pinched tight. Her belly fluttered. Damn, there was no backing out of this lunacy now. Now, all she could do was take the upper hand, take charge of the situation and make him suffer. And by suffer, she meant make him make her come more times than she could ever hope to count.

The way he used to.

“Not just sex, Jaxon,” she corrected, her brain slowly catching up with her body’s licentious intent. If she was doing this—and it appeared she was—she was doing it big. The bastard had stolen her AC/DC album, after all. It was high time she got something back. “Mind-blowing, earth-shattering sex. Let’s call them a series of sexual challenges, shall we? For each challenge you achieve, I’ll introduce you to a possible candidate to replace Blackthorne.”

Jax studied her, his expression ambiguous. But there, in his eyes, was that promise. It made her sex constrict and her breath quicken.

Nat sucked in a slow breath. Damn, this was a risky move. But if she played it right, kept her heart protected, the payoff would be amazing. The best sex of her life with the only man who had ever truly satisfied her. She’d come dangerously close to falling in love with him all those years ago. It had only been a stubborn sense of self-preservation that had saved her, but she was older now, wiser, more jaded about romance. She didn’t want romance from Jax. She wanted sex. And he’d just presented her with the perfect way to get it.

Unattached, no-strings, make-him-suffer sex.

She bit back a soft whimper at the unnerving, enticing thought and cocked an eyebrow at Jax. Who she noticed hadn’t uttered a word since sex. “Well?” she said, leaning closer to him, heart fast, lips curling. “You said you’d make it worth my while.”

“Deal.”

About Lexxie Couper:

Lexxie Couper started writing when she was six and hasn’t stopped since. She’s not a deviant, but she does have a deviant’s imagination and a desire to entertain readers with her words. Add the two together and you get erotic romances that can make you laugh, cry, shake with fear or tremble with desire. Sometimes all at once.

When she’s not submerged in the worlds she creates, Lexxie’s life revolves around her family, a husband who thinks she’s insane, a indoor cat who likes to stalk shadows, and her daughters, who both utterly captured her heart and changed her life forever.

Having no idea how old she really is, Lexxie decided to go with 27 and has been that age for quite some time now. It’s the best of both worlds – old enough to act mature, young enough to be silly.

Lexxie lives by two simple rules – measure your success not by how much money you have, but by how often you laugh, and always try everything at least once. As a consequence, she’s laughed her way through many an eyebrow raising adventure.

Find out more about Lexxie Couper: 

Website // Facebook // Twitter // Amazon Author Page

Release Blitz & Review~4 Stars~No Regrets~Claire Kent

About No Regrets:

On my last birthday, I made one vow for the year. Live with no regrets. Eleven months have passed, though, and nothing has changed. I still sleep alone, spend my life working, and never move out of my comfort zone.

Then the loss of my dog throws my whole life out of orbit, and I end up in bed with a very hot and slightly-too-young veterinarian, who has recently made a vow of his own. Live with no strings. Josh is more than happy to help me with the things I’ve been afraid to try. Semi-public sex. Spanking. Anal sex. He’s a willing partner for everything I’ve wondered about, as long as I don’t demand more.

He’s serious about his no-strings philosophy. As serious as I am about living with no regrets. I can’t help but fall for him, even though I know better. So my biggest regret might be a broken heart.

Release Date: July 22nd, 2014

Michele's Review

4 Star

I went into this novel with no expectations, not being familiar with the author, and not a reader of the romance/erotica genre, I didn’t want to have my judgment clouded by my misgivings of what it would be.  I was drawn in immediately. Within 3 pages I was bawling my damn fool head off, sobbing like a child, I soldiered on and was rewarded with a tale of scorching hot sex, romance and friendship. I seriously finished this book in 2 hours in the middle of the night during a bout of insomnia. Glad I read it when the kids were in bed!

I would definitely recommend this book. There were only a couple of issues I found I didn’t care for with the story. The first was the repetition of some of the same words/phrases; I realize that sometimes there isn’t a way to avoid that considering the subject manner. Secondly, I want to know more of Josh’s story.  What happened to make him the way that he is, what did he see? What did he experience? That was kind of left to the reader’s imagination, I would have liked to have seen it fleshed out more into the story line. Overall, the characters were done well, I was empathetic with Leslie, and charmed by Josh when I didn’t want to knock both of them over the head for what was obvious. The opening scene of the novel was heart-wrenching and heart-felt and probably true to life.  Taking all of that into account, I would rate this book a solid 4 stars and would be happy to read more offerings from this author.

Check out more by Claire Kent:

The Namless series

The Escorted series

Seven

Excerpt:

I couldn’t stay on this park bench forever.

I hadn’t moved yet. I was still staring blindly at the dogs and people on the path when I noticed from the corner of my eye a man slowing down from a run and then jogging toward me.

Glancing over, I expected him to head past me toward the parking lot, but he seemed to be coming directly toward me.

When he got close, I realized it was Dr. Bennett.

He looked different than he had this morning. He wore a t-shirt and gym shorts, both wet with perspiration. His face and short brown hair were wet too. He’d obviously been running hard.

His eyes rested on me as he approached. Obviously, he’d recognized me. Before I’d recognized him.

“Hey,” he said, breathing heavily. “How are you doing?”

“Fine.”

It was a stupid question and a stupid answer, but that’s what people do. It was part of living in a civilized world. You made up nice-sounding lies and you said them to each other, instead of talking about how much the world sucked.

His face was flushed, and he was having trouble catching his breath. Bending at the waist, he rasped, “I better do a lap to cool down. I’ll be right back.”

“Okay.”

I had no idea why he’d bother coming back. We didn’t know each other. We had nothing to say to each other. And I wasn’t really in the mood for talking.

He’d killed my dog that morning, but I could hardly hold it against him.

He took a slow jog around the track and ended up back at the bench with a water bottle in his hand. His breathing was less ragged as he sat down beside me.

He didn’t say anything, and I felt a little strange. I didn’t know exactly what he expected from me. I certainly wasn’t going to cry on his shoulder, if that was what he was thinking.

So I just asked a casual question. “You’re done with your shift for the day?”

“Yeah. I got off at three.”

“Do you always come here to run afterwards?”

“Sometimes.” His vivid blue eyes rested on my face, searching or questioning or something. “It’s on the way home.”

“Have you lived in Lexington long?”

“I grew up here—in Versailles, actually. But I just moved back to the area.”

“Where were you before?”

“Vet school.”

“Oh.” I blinked, slightly surprised. I’d landed on his age as younger than me but still in his thirties, but he must be quite a bit younger if he was just out of vet school. “So you just got your degree?”

“Yeah.” As if he could see the surprise in my face, he added, “I started late. I didn’t go right after college.”

That made more sense. The conversation, as casual as it was, managed to distract me from thoughts of Polly, so I pursued it. “What were you doing before you went to vet school.”

He didn’t answer immediately, which prompted my curiosity. To take the edge off the silence, I said, “Bank robber? Computer hacker?”

He gave a low chuckle and smiled at me—not broadly, but it still transformed his face until he was almost unbearably attractive, even as sweaty as he was. “Nothing that exciting. I was in Chad.”

“Chad? In Africa?

“Yeah.”

“Wow.” My eyes widened in surprise. “What were you doing there?”

“International aid work. I started right after college and did it through most of my twenties. I was mostly in Chad and Sudan.”

“So what made you decide to be a vet instead?”

He gave a strange little shrug and looked away from me. “I couldn’t do it anymore. And animals…are different.”

I studied him, trying to read his expression, trying to interpret the paradoxically empty bitterness on his face. There was obviously more going on with him, but there was no reason to expect him to tell me.

There was no reason I needed to know.

“What do you do?” he asked, obviously trying to change the subject.

“Paralegal.”

“Who do you work for?”

We chatted for almost a half-hour, about my job, about how he was settling back into the area, about running—which I used to do, although not much recently.

Eventually, the perspiration had dried on his skin and his clothes, and we’d both faded into reflective silence.

I felt a little better—like I wasn’t on the verge of tears—but the thought of going home still filled my stomach with dread.

He’d been staring off in the distance, and he said without warning, “This morning was the first time I’ve had to do that.”

I glanced at him in surprise, realizing immediately what he was referring to. “Aren’t you supposed to be professional and distanced about the whole thing?”

“I guess. I thought I’d be able to keep the right perspective with animals, but it was harder than I thought. She seemed like a very sweet dog.”

I took a loud, ragged breath as emotion surged up. “She was.”

“I’m really sorry.”

“Thanks.” I took a few more breaths until I was in control again. “I really don’t want to go home.”

“Do you want to get a drink or something?”

I blinked. “Right now, you mean?”

“Yeah. Why not? I don’t want to go home either.”

I finally landed on an explanation for his mood. He seemed adrift, kind of lost, not emotional but torn in some way.

I wondered what he’d experienced in Chad. What it had done to him. Why he’d decided against working with people anymore.

Even yesterday, I would have said “no” to his invitation. For the last few months, I hadn’t done much of anything except go to work and take care of Polly. I hadn’t liked to leave her in the evenings.

It had been years since I’d had a drink with a guy I didn’t know, and this particular guy was too young for me anyway.

But it was just a drink. Nothing more. He wasn’t coming on to me. He was just being nice. And it would give me something to do with myself, other than go home to an apartment without Polly.

I felt a little better, talking to him. Like the world wasn’t about to pull me into some sort of black hole.

I remembered my vow, eleven months ago, on the day I’d turned thirty-eight.

I was supposed to be living with no regrets, and so far I hadn’t done a good job.

This would be something I wouldn’t have to regret.

“Okay,” I said. “Why not?”

About Claire Kent:

Claire has been writing romance novels since she was twelve years old. She has a PhD in British literature and, when she's not writing, she teaches English at the university level.

She also writes contemporary romance under the penname Noelle Adams.

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Rise Up Volume 2~Proceeds to Benefit Stephenie Thomas of The Indie Bookshelf

“We all know how fragile life is, especially when faced with a life threatening illness.” ~Nic, Flirty and Dirty Book Blog.

Fiction introduced us. Reality binds us together.

Stephanie Thomas—co-founder of The Indie Bookshelf—has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer called glioblastoma. Stephanie isn’t only a blogger; she’s a loving wife, and mother to three young boys.

In the independent author community, we have an extraordinary network of fellow authors, and readers. A special group of people who bridge this gap—helping authors connect with readers—is book bloggers. These men and women dedicate hours upon hours to reading and reviewing our works, and spreading the word to help us reach new readers.

Now, one of these women needs our help.

100% of the proceeds of the Rise Up anthology (volumes one and two) will go directly to Stephanie and her family to help them on this unexpected leg of their journey together.

Inside the pages of this collection, you’ll find amazing works of fiction. But please remember the reality, and help support Stephanie and her family.

Included in Volume Two of this collection are the following novels:

* 1. Always There - Carol Ann Albright-Eastman

* 2. Republic - Charles Sheehan-Miles

* 3. Seeds of Hate - Melissa Perea

* 4. In The Fields - Willow Aster

* 5. Bar Crawl - Andrea Randall

* 6. Totaled - Stacey Grice

* 7. Running from Forever - Ashley Wilcox

* 8. Crossing Paths - Melanie Stinnet

* 9. Going Home - Rhonda Dennis

* 10. Never Goodbye -  Kerri Williams

* 11. Without Boundaries - CJ Azevedo

* 12. Binds - Rebecca Espinoza

* 13. The Forgotten Ones - Laura Howard

Author Social Media Links

https://www.facebook.com/CarolAnnAlbrightEastman

https://www.facebook.com/CharlesSheehanMiles

https://www.facebook.com/authormelissaperea

https://www.facebook.com/willowasterauthor

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorAndreaRandall

https://www.facebook.com/staceygriceauthor

http://www.ashleywilcoxauthor.com

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMelanieStinnett

https://www.facebook.com/authorrhondadennis?fref=ts

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kerri-Williams-Author/347733968580393

https://www.facebook.com/pages/CJ-Azevedo-Author/348248455274917

https://www.facebook.com/rebeccanespinoza

https://www.facebook.com/LauraHoward78

Buy this Book!

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Release Day Blitz! Amber Lin's Falling for the Pirate

Title: Falling For The Pirate

Author: Amber Lin

Release Date: July 21st, 2014

About Falling For The Pirate (Men Of Fortune #2):

Vengeance is a dish best served in bed...

London, 1812

After the deaths of his parents and a dark, troubled childhood, Captain Nate Bowen vowed he would have his revenge. But he never expected to have the tool of his revenge dropped so neatly into his lap. Juliana Hargate is not only the daughter of his enemy, but is destitute, very much alone—and exquisitely desirable.

And now that Nate has saved her life, she’s at his complete mercy...

Captive. All Juliana wanted was to clear her father’s name. Instead, she’s been struck with amnesia—unable to recall even her name—and imprisoned by a tall, imposing, and entirely unscrupulous pirate.A pirate whose eyes seem to look past her skirts and many petticoats, and whose touch sends delicious ripples of desire through her. With every passing day, she finds herself tempted to give him the very thing he’s determined to take...

Amazon // B&N

The Men of Fortune Series by Amber Lin:

#1 Letters At Christmas (novella) : Amazon / B&N

Excerpt:

It was warm in the room. Too warm. The blankets were suffocating, and someone had built a strong fire. She could smell the coal.

Coal. There was something about coal, but she couldn’t remember what. Her head felt foggy, as if filled with water, her thoughts adrift in the murky dark. There was something important she had to remember. Floating just beyond her grasp.

Cuts and bruises all over her body made themselves known as she came awake, as if they awoke too, one by one. Her palms burned, as though she’d fallen and scraped them. Her ankle throbbed—possibly she’d twisted it. Her side ached. What had happened to her?

If she held herself very still, the pain dulled to a muffled roar, just quiet enough that she could focus on other things.

Such as where she was.

And who she was.

Her eyes felt glued shut. She opened them by force of will and stared at a plain drapery striped with light and dark blue. Pretty; serviceable. She was almost sure she’d never seen it before. Almost, because she couldn’t remember what she had seen before. She could only feel certain she hadn’t.

The furniture looked heavy. Good quality. Not ornate.

That detail seemed meaningful to her. Not ornate. As if she had once lived somewhere that was ornate—with fancy tapestries and delicately carved furnishings. Somewhere much colder than here.

A faint memory of freezing water and sinewy shadows came to her, tickling her memory. Sinking, drowning. But nothing moved beneath her now, and her throat felt utterly dry. If she’d been in the water at some point, she was most definitely on land now.

She looked around, letting her gaze sweep the cozy room before landing on a large wooden chair. More to the point, the man sleeping in the chair.

His legs were spread wide—bracing himself, even in sleep. His shoulders were well above the back of the chair, his head leaning against the wall behind. He seemed too large for the furniture, like a grown man sitting on a child’s rocker in a nursery. Only, this chair was quite average-sized.

She had a sense of familiarity, of having seen him before. Which was strange, because she didn’t feel like the sort of woman acquainted with pirates.

And this man was most definitely a pirate.

He wore no jacket. She felt faintly scandalized, except he was also alone in the room with her. He was alone in the room with her, which was far worse than being in shirtsleeves. And if that weren’t shocking enough, the ties at his collar hung loose, baring a portion of his chest. Tanned. Sprinkled with dark hair. And wholly inappropriate for her to see.

She looked away—and right into his eyes. He was awake now. He’d been watching her examine him.

“Who are you?” Her voice came out low and rough. What had she been doing last night to make her voice so raw?

And had she been doing it with him?

The pirate stretched slowly, wincing as his body straightened into order. She had the sense he was rolling himself back up, as if he were a tree he had to trim just to stand upright.

“You asked me the same question last night,” he remarked.

His voice vibrated with sarcasm. He didn’t sound happy to greet her this morning. And, in fact, her sense of familiarity was completely misplaced if she’d asked for his name just last night.

“What did you answer?” she asked.

A glimmer of humor shone from his eyes before they went black again. Black like his hair. Black like the sea. He smiled, and the smile was black, too—with irony and annoyance. “I didn’t,” he said. “I’m not in the habit of explaining myself to thieves.”

About Amber Lin:

Amber Lin writes erotic romance with damaged souls and deep emotion.

Her debut novel, Giving It Up, received The Romance Review’s Top Pick, Night Owl Top Pick, and 5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies. RT Book Reviews gave it 4.5 stars, calling it “truly extraordinary.” She has been published by Loose Id, Carina Press, and Entangled.

Amber married her high school sweetheart, birthed a kid who’s smarter than she is, and spends her nights writing down her dirty thoughts. In other words, life is good.

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