Well, It's Saturday Again...

I've been so totally bummed out lately that I have not been able to force myself to write much.  The first review came out for Uncertainly Yours...it wasn't terrible...it was a four out of five...but then a dear friend also mentioned that it certainly was not of the same calibre as my previous books.  I took that more to heart than most reviews I read.  

I have been in a writer's funk for over a year as it is, so that left me feeling even more uncertain of my skills as an author.  I supposed that nobody liked my latest book, especially since very few people have let me know they liked it.  Sigh...rather pathetic, huh?

So imagine my shock when I finally managed to get a download of Just Erotic Romance Reviews' latest newsletter and reviews, and found this:

 

 

Title: Uncertainly Yours

Author: Fran Lee

Publisher: Ellora’s Cave Publishing

Reviewer: Barbara McCormick

Rating: 5 Stars

Heat Level: O  (orgasmic)

Jacqueline O’Halleran’s Uncle Frank left her his ranch in Wyoming and a mountain of debt. Feeling terribly alone, she returns to her childhood home and starts selling off horses and other assets to pay off what he owed. She plans to sell the ranch, until the man who rejected her as a teenager explains that she can’t because her uncle didn’t own it. Lance Blackfeather has loved Jacqueline since childhood, but had to turn her away when she was sixteen because she was too young. He knows she can’t possibly love him, but the attraction between them is volcanic. Maybe he can trick her into staying with him anyway.

I love Western romances! Uncertainly Yours comes complete with rich descriptions of Wyoming ranchland, fine characters, and a love story spiced with some really hot sex. It’s a lovely combination. Jack’s anguish at losing her only relative is palpable, as is her certainty that Lance could never love her. Lance, on the other hand, is so desirable and so ready for another chance with Jack, even though he knows he’s killed any chance of her love. Even as they each think they are deceiving the other about their feelings, their smoking sensuality and steamy bedroom scenes will have you heading for multiple cold showers. 

Ms. Lee offers just enough of the main characters’ history to flesh them out and lead us to their current dilemma. When they finally start communicating their love for each other, it’s delightful. Uncertainly Yours is a wonderful, sexy Western romance to start the year.

Well, that sort of kicked my self-pitying ass. And I was SOO enjoying wallowing around in my sadness.  I guess I have no further excuse for not getting my fanny in gear and working on my wips.  Somebody out there loved my book. LOL!

Hugs!

Fran Lee

http://www.franleeromance.com 

Timeless Forbidden Passion from Afton Locke

Please welcome my special guest, Afton Locke!!

Plucking the Pearl

By: Afton Locke

Genre: interracial historical erotic romance

Publisher: Ellora's Cave Publishing

Release Date: 17 February 2012

eBook ISBN #: ISBN: 978-14199-38993

www.aftonlocke.com

Buy Link: http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9941-plucking-the-pearl.aspx

Video Trailer: Coming Soon!

Blurb:

When Pearl's sheltered life shatters in the 1930s when her mother dies, her only option is to move in with poor family relations and shuck oysters in the local plant on Oyster Island, Maryland.

Determined to live a morally proper life, the last thing she wants is an affair with a white man, but Caleb, the plant owner, knows a pearl when he sees one. The successful widower is the “oyster king” of the island, but his intense desire for his forbidden new employee, a woman of color, threatens everything he’s built.

What begins as a private sexual liaison flowers into strong feelings that don't fit the social mores of the island. When their secret is discovered, they risk losing everything. They dared to pluck the pearl, but will their love be strong enough to keep it forever?

Excerpt:

An Excerpt From: PLUCKING THE PEARL

Copyright © AFTON LOCKE, 2012

All Rights Reserved, Ellora's Cave Publishing, Inc.

“You’re standing awfully close,” she whispered.

“I am, aren’t I?” he whispered back. “Do you want me to move?”

Yes! No! Oh Lord, help me. I’ve never felt so weak.

“Show me the next step—with the oyster, that is,” she said quickly.

“Certainly.” He gripped her hand around the knife again and made deft movements to cut the meat from the shell. “Cut here and there. That’s all there is to it.”

“You make it look so simple,” she said, realizing he could pull her out of her shell just as easily.

When he stepped away from her, her legs nearly gave out. It was as if the hardness that had been nestled against her was the only thing that had been keeping her standing upright in front of the table.

He stepped beside her and she watched, fascinated, as he tipped the oyster half with the meat on it to his mouth. Watching the wet creature slide past the dark hairs of his moustache intrigued her in a way she couldn’t explain.

When he bent forward to kiss her, she was too aroused to refuse. His pale blue eyes came closer than they ever had and all she could do was stare helplessly into them. It was as if she floated higher and higher into the sky, never to set foot on firm earth again.

She felt his moustache first, hot and coarse, and then his lips, cooler and wetter. As his mouth worked over hers, something pushed between her lips. His tongue? She met it with hers, stroking with an abandon she refused to acknowledge as her own.

He tasted of the sea. No, not just one tongue. Two? She was too distracted by the heat boiling through her belly to care. When he removed his mouth, she realized he’d put the oyster inside her mouth.

Without thinking, she spit it out and it landed on the floor.

Caleb tipped his head back and laughed. It was a beautiful man’s laugh, musical and deep. Unfortunately she didn’t feel very amused.

“Now Ernie would have a fit if he saw you messed up his clean floor,” he said. “I take it you don’t care for oysters.”

She crossed her arms. “No, I don’t. I thought you had swallowed it. And you shouldn’t have kissed me.”

He wiped his hand on one of the clean rags nearby and she did the same. Then he leaned an elbow against the table and looked at her.

“Why not, honey? We’re not married.”

“In case you haven’t noticed,” she said, “we’re not the same color—or social class, for that matter. You’re the owner of this establishment and I’m just a poor—”

He put two fingers to her lips to quiet her. The lingering scent of oysters drifted from them, making her breathe faster. She was beginning to like oysters…

Afton Locke
Unlock your fantasies…
www.aftonlocke.com

Have a wonderful weekend!!

Tessie

www.tessiebradford.com

Dena Garson gets "Down To Business"

It’s my pleasure today to introduce a new Ellora’s Cave author and very sweet person to work with—Dena Garson.

Dena’s making her author debut in Ellora’s Cave steamy “Branded” Line.

Haven’t read a story from the “Branded Line”? You’re missing a lot of fun! Branded books are sexy stories about couples in committed relationships. If you enjoy erotic adventure after the knot is tied, you must sample the Branded Line and Dena Garson’s “Down To Business” is a great place to start.

I asked Dena what inspired her to write “Down To Business” and she said:

“I love romance - I love reading it and I love writing it. It's a form of escape and without it, I would probably be too cranky to deal with. LOL. By day, I am a Business Process Consultant (which means I help departments figure out what they're doing and how they might do it better). By night, I struggle to keep up with two rowdy boys and make sure the house doesn't implode from their antics.”

Obviously, Dena’s been “Branded” and knows all about the challenges of balancing career, family and keeping the torch lit. Good for her and fun for us!

Blurb: "Down To Business"

Leigh and John Templeton have plans for the upcoming weekend. Unfortunately, looming deadlines may prevent John from being able to get away. In particular, one very long and dull contract review.

When Leigh delivers dinner to John at his office, she makes him a deal to spice up the contract review process—for every page he completes, she’ll remove an item of clothing until she’s naked and waiting for him to claim his reward…

(That ought to speed work along! Lol)

“Down To Business” is available Wednesday February 22^nd from Jasmine Jade/ Ellora’s Cave.

http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9943-down-to-business.aspx

Have a wonderful week. Treat yourselves to a new author and you might discover a real gem.

XXOO Kat

procrastination as fear

Another procrastination job: do new promo!

Yep. As a died in the wool Obsessive Worker, I hardly ever suffer Procrastination Blues.
Not my style. Learned long ago to just put my a$$ in the chair and work it, baby!
BUT lately I have a tough time. I am doing that nut ball thing, questioning myself.
I would rather:

• go the gym (now you KNOW this is a bad case of put-it-off!)
• wash dishes (huh?)
• finish the novel I am currently reading which would make that a reward for playing hooky—and how could I possibly reward myself for not working? *headtodesk*
• think up a new series which, I must add, I have NO clue when I can write it given that I am up to that same a$$ in other stuff. (YES, you can see how I am constantly doing more than my 24 hours worth.)

IN fact, years ago, make that over 15 years ago, I had to promise hubby and the family that I would stop work at 5 or...at the latest 6 and not go back. Not Go Back.
I have kept to that.
But you know at night, I usually feel my fingertips itching for the keyboard.
So, is my procrastination really fear? Fear of Failure? Yes, might be.  BUT see me, hear me do this mantra now, I know that this too shall pass.
I have been here before.
Worked myself out of it.
Worked the work until it was great. (or in my estimation so it was. I have put 2 kids through college with my earnings so it does get me enough $$$ to verify me.)
So I guess this means that now that I have dumped my bucket on you, I will crack my knuckles and, for godsakes, Cerise, stop bellyaching and get back to work!
Thank you for listening. That was...um...cathartic.

Whoever said that writing wasn't a "real" job?

 Well...they were wrong!  It is a real job...and sometimes, it's a real pain...

 Look at all the stuff a writer has to go through to put out a book...

 It can be such a hassle...having to work out different plots and story lines...

And when you get through all the edits and the angst...and your book is out there...

Then you wait for the reviews...the scary ones that you hope aren't going to tear your book to pieces and tell the world that it sucked royally...

Then you have to figure out a totally new and different plot line for your next book...even though some fans get angry that your next book isn't the same as the first because they loved it so much they never wanted it to end...

And then you deal with it all over again...

Honestly some of my books just seem to bleed into one another, and I find my plots getting too mixed up with prior ones.  It makes me think I am running some sort of series, when I' m not! LOL!

I have been reading through all my old books and shaking my head.  Sigh.  It's truly hard to think up new stories and new heroes and heroines when you really loved the ones you finished.  Maybe it's a bad thing to read your backlist.  You can never recapture the flow of those books...the stories seem to etch themselves into your mind, and you stare at your new wip and wonder, "How am I gonna ever do that again?"

Ever had that happen to you?

Hugs,

Fran

http://www.franleeromance.com

"Even Though"

What with Valentine's Day happening this week and being bombarded with all things hearts and flowers, I find it extremely humorous that recently many of the 'loves' of my life are not filling me with the warm and fuzzies!!!

1.   I love being an author even though it causes me fits when I'm unproductive.

2.   I love my puppy, Butch, even though his newest behavioral quirk is attempting to dig to the center of the Earth throughout my back yard.

3.  I love being a wife even though hubby sometimes bugs the crap out of me.

4.  I love being a mom even though my offspring go out of their way to not hear the miraculous pearls of wisdom I impart.

5.  I love my day job even though I'm ultra-stressed by new responsibilities.

Love is not always a splendored thing!! It takes work, is unpredictable, and damn difficult!

I was watching the movie Parenthood (a favorite of mine) the other night. Close to the end, the grandmother tells a wonderful story about comparing the thrills and chills of a roller coaster to the safety and boring-ness of a merry-go-round. That scene never ceases to bring me to tears.

I love the character of Karen Buchman (Mary Steenburgen). "Life is messy", and "I happen to LIKE the roller coaster." are quotes that play through my mind on a regular basis.

Have a wonderful weekend!
Tessie

   

What Do Women Want?

Yesterday was Valentine's Day and I didn't get the chance to share my Valentine with you, so here it is. I hope you enjoy it.

I think we need more official "love holiday's" on our calendar.

XXOO Kat