More Oldies But Goodies! -- Spotlight on Wild Rose Press books #spotlight #twrp

 

Another weekly special by The Wild Rose Press. More oldies but goodies. Take a peek, read an excerpt and maybe you'll find something to peek your interest. I've read them all and loved each one. Loved. Each. One!!!

By Alison Henderson

 

Alone on her farm in the middle of a blizzard, young widow Lisa McAllister labors to give birth to her first child. Help arrives in the form of a stranger with a six-gun. Lisa has no reason to trust this man who makes a living by violence, even if he is on the right side of the law. Men and their guns have already claimed the lives of her father, brother, and husband, and she's determined to protect her son at any cost.

Jared Tanner, a security agent for the stagecoach, has been on his own since he was twelve. With Lisa and her baby, he's finally found something worth fighting for --- a family of his own. But a fresh wave of violence threatens to tear them apart. Can their new love survive?

(Pages 294) Spicy

"I don't know where this is going, but we have to find out."

"I don't want to find out." But a small voice inside denied the words. Part of her had to know.

"I think you do, and I know I do. I'm not going to offer to leave, even though it might make some things easier, not unless you can convince me you really want me to go." He cupped her face in both hands and searched her eyes. "Do you?"

Lisa knew she should say yes and remove the unbearable temptation of his presence, but she couldn't bring herself to speak the lie. She shook her head. "No."

Jared's lips moved in a tiny smile, then his serious expression returned. "I can't tell you I'll never kiss you again, or touch you, or that I won't want to get even closer to you, but I promise I won't press you for anything you don't want to give. I'd never do anything to hurt you. You know that, don't you?"

She nodded.

"Good. Now it's time for you to get some sleep." He led her to the bed and tucked her in, his hands lingering as he smoothed the quilt across her. Then he leaned over her, his expression rigid and deadly serious. "I want you to know leaving you tonight is the hardest thing I've ever had to do. But I want more from you than one night in your bed."

BUY LINK: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=176_146&products_id=4272

By Beth Trissel

Taken captive by a Shawnee war party wasn't how Charity Edmonson hoped to escape an unwanted marriage. Nor did Shawnee warrior Wicomechee expect to find the treasure promised by his grandfather's vision in the unpredictable red-headed girl.

George III's English Red-Coats, unprincipled colonial militia, prejudice and jealousy are not the only enemies Charity and Wicomechee will face before they can hope for a peaceful life. The greatest obstacle to happiness is in their own hearts. As they struggle through bleak mountains and cold weather, facing wild nature and wilder men, Wicomechee and Charity must learn to trust each other.

(pages 334) Spicy

Charity swiped angrily at a tear. She'd run away, if she had anyone to run to. It wasn't right they were all dead.  On impulse, she jumped to the ground. "I'll go anyway," she muttered. "Eat nuts and berries and live in the woods."

"Will you go alone?" a low voice asked.

Sucking in her breath, she whirled around. Less than twenty feet away, grasping his musket, stood a tall young brave. Stripes of red and black paint blurred his striking features. His dark brown eyes riveted her in place. This warrior was like no other and the most savagely handsome man she'd ever seen.  God help her. She should flee now, but could only stare, open-mouthed.

She swept her disbelieving gaze over the loose black hair brushing an open buckskin vest that revealed his bronzed chest and shoulders molded into contours of muscle. An elkskin breechclout left a great deal of his hard thighs exposed. Despite the dread hammering in her chest, a fiery blush burned her cheeks. But it was the sheathed knife hanging on his left side and the lethal tomahawk slung on his right that snapped Charity from her near-trance.

In a rush of memories, she recalled the stories of her father's death under the scalping knife and neighbors who'd suffered the same violent fate. No Indians had been spotted in their settlement since the Shawnee grew hostile and war had erupted nine years ago, but the warfare had ended. Hadn't it? Clenching ice-cold fingers, she dug her nails into her palms. "What in God's name are you doing here?" she forced past the dry lump in her throat.

"Watching you."

BUY LINK: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=176_135&products_id=4213

 

Gwyneth Greer

 

 

After thirty years of marriage, Jean Kingston is freshly divorced and rediscovering the joys of being an independent woman as well a talent for interior design. Having a new man in her life is not part of the plan.

Nick Cameron, prominent attorney and long-time widower, would like to change Jean’s mind and include him in her plans. Their adult children don’t approve of either plan, and are determined to keep Jean and Nick apart. Does their opposition include staging personal attacks against them? Could they really be desperate enough to stalk the couple on a weekend getaway? Or is there a deeper evil at work?

Rating: Sensual, Page Count: 326

The peal of the doorbell startled both of them.

“This could look bad,” Nick said.

“Not if it’s Selina. She went to look at some of those ice cream parlor tables I was telling you about last week.” Jean eyed him critically. “Button your shirt.”

“It’s pretty rumpled.”

“Button it anyway.” She brushed past him on her way to the door. “Maybe you should disappear.”

“Are you serious?”

Jean sighed. “No.”

At the front door, she peered through the viewer and let out her breath in dismay. Juliana stood on the porch, her jaw set, looking primed for battle. Jean unlocked the door and opened it. “What brings you here so early, Juliana?”

“I had some errands over this way. Aren’t you going to ask me in?”

Jean stepped back. “Yes, of course. Come in. I have a guest.”

Juliana’s eyebrows met her hairline. “A guest? I am interfering with your sleeping arrangements then.”

Jean made a quick decision not to defend herself. “Come in the kitchen. I’m making waffles.”

Nick rose hastily as the women walked in.

“You must be Nick Cameron,” Juliana snapped.

“Guilty.”

“My mother’s lover.”

“Juliana!” Jean felt the blood drain from her face. “How dare you!”

Nick’s eyes flashed, but his voice was courtroom courteous. “I spent the night on the sofa.”

“Of course, you did.”

His mouth twitched. “But if I’d spent it in your mother’s bed, it would have been her business, not yours.”

BUY LINK: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=175_140&products_id=4460

Sandra Dailey

Ginny Dearing has finally realized her goal of teaching, but finding a position is proving impossible. After exhausting all possibilities, an Internet ad is her only hope. In a small town hundreds of miles away there is a job with one huge string attached...a husband.

Burned by love once, Brett Silverfeather finds his bachelor life more than satisfying. He’s facing re-election for sheriff, but this time the voters are looking for a family man. Brett finds himself pursuing a marriage he doesn’t want. Ginny and Brett are opposite in every way, but opposites do attract. Can Brett protect his heart as well as he does his town? Can Ginny hide a secret past that could possibly destroy her future?

Rating: Spicy, Page Count: 202

“Why do we need a fire?” Ginny asked.

“We need all the elements.” Brett motioned toward the lake, the sky, the ground, and back to the fire as he said, “Water, air, earth and fire.”

“Is this a Native American thing?”

Brett lowered his head and shook it. It was becoming a gesture she recognized as him gathering patience. He did it a lot around her.  “Yeah, in your language this would be called a truth telling.”

“What would your people call it?”

“A truth telling. Now will you pay attention?” Brett stretched out on the blanket with his head resting on his saddle. “Come down here and make yourself comfortable.”

Ginny copied his pose, and then asked, “What’s next?”

“I’m going to ask you a question and you have to answer it, honestly and completely. After that, I’ll answer a question you have. What is said will stay here when we leave.”

“What’s your question?”

Brett turned his head to look at her. She’d never seen him look so serious.  “Why is it such a bad thing to be married to me? I know I’m no prize, but you look as if you’ve just received a death sentence.”

Ginny thought for a long moment. “I don’t know if it will be bad. I don’t really know you. I just hadn’t imagined myself being married to anyone, ever.”

BUY LINK: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=175_133&products_id=4927

 

A Star From Author Amie Louellen ~ Vonnie Davis

Amie Louellen, author of endearing romantic comedies like TEN REASONS NOT TO DATE A COP--an awesome read, by the way because I loved, loved, loved her hero, sigh folks, just sigh--has nominated this blog for its fourth star. Thank you, darlin'. Amie is one of those genuine, down-to-earth people who takes time out from her busy day to write you a long, lovely note of explanation or encouragment in response to a question you've asked her. She's done that for me several times and I value not only her opinion, but also her friendship. If you haven't been to her blog yet, please visit to get a taste of her warmth and humor. http://amielouellen.com/blog/

This award is unlike other awards that you can only add to your blog once. This award can be updated with additional stars. For every time your blog is nominated, you get to add an additional star.

There are a total of “6” stars to collect. Which means that you can check out your favorite blogs—and even if they have already been given the award by someone else—you can still make your opinion count and pass it on to them again and help them (or me) reach the maximum of “6” stars.

The rules of the award are simple:

1. Select the blogs you think deserve the 2012 Blog of the Year Award.

2. Write a blog post and tell us about the blog(s) you have chosen—there’s no minimum or maximum number of blogs required and present them with this award.

3. Please include a link back to this page: Blog of the Year Award. http://thethoughtpalette.co.uk/our-rewards/blog-of-the-year-award/ and include these rules in your post. (Please don’t alter the rules or the badge!)

4. Let the blogs(s) you have chosen know that you have given them this award and share the rules with them.

5. You can now join our Facebook page – click the link here. ‘Blog of the Year 2012’ Award (http://www.facebook.com/groups/BlogoftheYear/) and then you can share your blog with an even wider audience.

Here are the blogs I've chosen to receive this award:

AJ Nuest at http://ajbooks.blogspot.com/ When I think of AJ, a vision of a hot-pink-whirlwind comes to mind. She has all this energy she freely doles out to everyone. And the girl can come up with one-line zingers that make me laugh out loud. As a writer, editor and friend, she's phenomenal. I just love her to pieces. She is constantly encouraging others and helping them strive for more. If success could be heaped on a person's head as a reward for all they've done for others, AJ would have an abundance of it.

http://laverneclark.blogspot.co.nz/ is the blog of a warm and engaging New Zealand author, LaVerne Clark. She, too, is a very supportive person, always encouraging others. I value her highly and simply adore her sweet spirit. I know without a doubt, she'll always be in my corner; how does one quantify  a person like that? You can't. You simply cherish them. Her blog is always open to other authors. If you haven't read her gripping AFFINITY, you're missing out. Truly.

I think my favorite historical author is fellow Virginia resident, BethTrissel. Her blog, http://bethtrissel.wordpress.com/ is a wealth of well-researched historical facts. I first met Beth through the Virginia Romance Writers and it was her devotion to The Wild Rose Press that led me to submit. But, folks, it was her crisp prose that reached out and plucked the heart-strings of my soul. Her writing, at times, is almost lyrical. She literally takes you to whatever era she's writing about. I can't praise her writing enough, and if you visit her blog and read over her posts, you'll see what I mean.

My First Book Cover -- Where are my tissues??

All writers imagine what their first book cover will look like. We make suggestions to the graphic artists or the publishers. We wait. We wonder. Then when the finished product wiggles into our mailbox like a cocoon about to burst, we take a deep breath and click on the attachment, eager to see the book cover butterfly that bursts forth on our screens. Smiles bloom. A whoosh of air escapes and we realize we've been holding our breath in anticipation...or fear. Our eyes drink in every aspect, every artistic nuance of the cover and then it lands on our names. A long-held dream come true: my name on the cover of a book. And the tears start. This was my experience last night.

Rae Monet, a talented graphic artist at The Wild Rose Press and the one I'd requested because of her beautiful cover for Beth Trissels's Enemy of the King, did a super job on my cover as well. She'd taken my garbled "wants" and turned them into a cover that is perfect for my contemporary romance set in the Hill Country of Texas. Did I cry when I first saw it? Does chocolate melt in your mouth?

Here's a blurb about Storm's Interlude:

Nurse Rachel Dennison comes to Texas determined to prepare her new patient for a second round of chemo. What she isn’t counting on is her patient’s twin brother, Storm Masterson.

Half Native American with the ability to have “vision dreams,” Storm dreams about Rachel for three nights before her arrival. Both are unprepared for the firestorm of emotions their first chance encounter ignites. Even so, Storm has two things Rachel won’t abide: a domineering personality and a fiancée.


Yet, ultimately, it is Rachel’s past—an abusive, maniacal ex-boyfriend—that threatens to keep them apart…and Storm’s dreams that bring them together again.


Thank you, Rae, for a job well-done. Doing the happy dance here in Lynchburg, Virginia. Hugs to you and your fabulous talent, Rae Monet.

BETH TRISSEL --

My guest on Vintage Vonnie today is Beth Trissel. Beth and I have struck up a friendship through VA Romance Writers and other online romance writers groups. She is a warm, supportive and interesting person. Her novels are rich with history, well researched and full of her beloved herbs and flowers. Welcome, Beth.    (Photo of Beth and her novels by Nikki Fox at The Daily News Record.)
Greetings and thanks for having me on Vintage Vonnie.  I'm a Virginia author of historical and light paranormal romance with the Wild Rose Press. I also write creative non-fiction pieces about rural life. The beauty of the Shenandoah Valley and surrounding mountains are my inspiration.  For more on me, my blog is the happening place: https://bethtrissel.wordpress.com/

~ ~ ~ ~

Today, I thought I’d discuss the real first Thanksgiving in the New World. When doing research for the sequel to Enemy of the King (postponed after the idea for Somewhere My Love came to me) my mother and I toured several of the lovely James River plantations. Two of these, Berkeley and Shirley, most influenced the home in Somewhere My Love, ‘Foxleigh.’

While visiting Berkeley originally called Berkeley Hundred and named after one of its founders, I was especially impressed by the wealth of history behind this beautiful old home and grounds. The magnificent terraced boxwood gardens and lawn extend a quarter-mile from the front door to the James River. The mansion itself wasn’t built until 1726, but the plantation’s history reaches much farther back into America‘s roots. I didn’t know that Berkeley was the actual site of the first Thanksgiving in America on Dec. 4th, 1619.

On December 4, 1619, a group of 38 English settlers arrived at Berkeley Hundred about 8,000 acres on the north bank of the James River near Herring Creek in an area then known as Charles Cittie. It was about 20 miles upstream from Jamestown, where the first permanent settlement of the Colony of Virginia was established on May 14, 1607. The group’s charter required that the day of arrival be observed yearly as a “day of thanksgiving” to God. On that first day, Captain John Woodleaf held the service of thanksgiving.

During the Indian Massacre of 1622 nine of the settlers at Berkeley Hundred were killed, as well as about a third of the entire population of the Virginia Colony. The Berkeley Hundred site and other outlying locations were abandoned as the colonists withdrew to Jamestown and other more secure points. After several years, the site became Berkeley Plantation and was long the traditional home of the Harrison family, one of the First Families of Virginia.

Benjamin Harrison, son of the builder of Berkeley and the plantation’s second owner, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and three-time Governor of Virginia. William Henry Harrison, Benjamin‘s third son, born at Berkeley, was the famous Indian fighter known as “Tippecanoe,” who later became the ninth President of the United States, in 1841. His grandson, Benjamin Harrison, was the 23rd President.

Many famous founding fathers and mothers were guests at this gracious and elegant estate. For more on Berkeley Plantation and a fascinating glimpse into early America visit:

http://www.berkeleyplantation.com/

http://www.jamesriverplantations.org/Berkeley.html

Red Bird's Song

     I'm quite proud to say I belong to the Virginia Chapter of Romance Writers of America. I enjoy our online support group. Through e-mails, blog posts and online classes, I'm absorbing valuable information from many of the published writers of our chapter. Last week I decided it was time I started supporting these talented authors by buying and reading their books.

     When Beth Trissel announced her recent novel, Red Bird's Song, was out and that it contained strong Native elements, I chose hers as my first read of VA-RWA authors.                    

     Within the first few paragraphs, the heroine, Charity, is off and running--and I am running with her. No slow start here, folks. Beth has me seeing, hearing, tasting, shivvering and feeling along with Charity. When a writer can transport me to another era--in this case, pre-Revolutionary War--on a magic carpet ride of words, I am an instant fan.

     Typically, one does not review a book until the thrilling end when the book is gently closed with a smile and a sigh. But those of you who know me know I march to the beat of my own flute. Red Bird's Song is a great read with a complex and charming hero and heroine, a believable cast of supporting characters and a compelling plot that moves the entranced reader along. Add it to your collection of literary enjoyment.