Naughty and Nice Blog Hop

Welcome to the 2013 Naughty and Nice Blog Hop sponsored by Safari Heat Book Tours. The hop runs from Dec. 11-16th. All the rules and how the hop will work it listed on the Safari Heat site. Follow the link above.

Grand prize is a Kindle Fire HDX 7” plus books to go on the winner’s new Kindle.

Prize Rules:
Winners that win prizes that have to be shipped need to be in the US or Canada. Sorry this is because of shipping cost. But ebooks (and my e-gift card) can be won by anyone, anywhere. Winners are chosen using Random.org. All the prizes on the hop page except the books for the winner’s Kindle will be given daily. The hop coordinator, Carey, will be randomly popping into blogs to pick winners.

My prize is a $10.00 e-gift card of the winner’s choice: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Starbucks, whatever, and will be awarded at the end of the hop.

For today, I thought I’d share some quick facts about the main character of The Best Present, my holiday short story in Sweetwater Springs Christmas: A Montana Sky Short Story Anthology by Debra Holland and Friends.

Ten-year-old Allison Harcourt's life has been turned upside down since her father lost his job and her beloved grandmother died. She's not looking forward to Christmas, especially since she can't figure out how to finish the scarf she's making for her mother. An unexpected stop in Sweetwater Springs brings her and her parents to the boarding house of the widow Murphy. Sometimes sweet things can be found in the most unexpected places.

Birthplace: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Current residence: Sweetwater Springs, Montana, but only for Christmas
Family: Mother and Father but no siblings
Nickname: Honeybee
Hobbies: Reading
Favorite book: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Talents: Baking and knitting (well, sort of, see blurb)
Favorite holiday treat: Fudge
Favorite carols: Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem and The First Noel
Pet peeve: Adults lying to children “for their own good”
Most treasured possessions: Books given to her by her grandmother
If you could ask your author one question, what would it be? Why didn’t we get to stay at the fancy new hotel instead of the old boardinghouse?

Sweetwater Springs Christmas: A Montana Sky Short Story Anthology is available at Amazon. 

What’s your favorite holiday treat? Leave a comment below to be entered in the drawing for the $10 e-gift card. If you’d like extra chances to win, you can follow this blog, like my Facebook page, or follow me on Twitter (@LyndiLamont). Let me know in the comments if you did any of the extras. (These last 3 are optional but the comment is not. You must comment for a chance to win.)

Comment Example:
Name: Jane Doe
Email: janedoe at yahoo.com
Comment: candy canes
Twitter: Followed
FaceBook: Followed
Blog: Followed
Country You Live In: USA

To keep hopping follow the link below:
http://safariheatbooktoursandauthorservices.blogspot.com

Happy holidays!

Linda McLaughlin

Hot Autumn Nights

UPDATE: We have a grand prize winner! The winner Is Valerie K. chosen from this blog. Congratulations to Valerie and to Donna N. who won my $10 Gift Card. Thanks to everyone who participated in the hop, and esp. to H.D. and Caris for organizing it.

Linda

Welcome to the Hot Autumn Nights Blog Hop sponsored by authors H.D. Thomson and Caris Roane. Grand prize for the hop is a $70.00 gift card for Amazon or Barnes and Noble. At the end of the hop, the organizers will choose the grand prize winner using random.org by putting in the number of blog sites that participated. From there, they will use random.org again to choose a winner from the winning site, so the more sites you visit and comment at, the better your chance to win.

My prize is a $10 e-gift card of the winners choice: Amazon, BN, Starbucks, etc. Leave a comment to enter. You can earn additional chances to win by liking my Facebook page, following me on Twitter or signing up to the this blog. Let me know in the comments if you have earned additional points.

Now to the fun part. What does a hot autumn night mean to you? Is it snuggling before a roaring fire with your sweetie? That's a classic scenario, and one I used in my historical romance Rogue's Hostage.


His hostage... 

In 1758 the Pennsylvania frontier is wild, primitive and dangerous, where safety often lies at the end of a gun. Mara Dupre's life crumbles when a French and Indian war party attacks her cabin, kills her husband, and takes her captive. Marching through the wilderness strengthens her resolve to flee, but she doesn't count on her captor teaching her the meaning of courage and the tempting call of desire.

Her destiny...

French lieutenant Jacques Corbeau's desire for his captive threatens what little honor he has left. But when Mara desperately offers herself to him in exchange for her freedom, he finds the strength to refuse and reclaims his lost self-respect. As the shadows of his past catch up to him, Jacques realizes that Mara, despite the odds, is the one true key to reclaiming his soul and banishing his past misdeeds forever.

In this excerpt, Mara shows up when Jacques is at his lowest point with a bottle of wine and Swiss fondue:

She bustled over to the table and began arranging the items on the tray. “Have you ever had fondue before?”

He shook his head and stared doubtfully at the melted cheese mixture.

Mara picked up a fork, speared a cube of bread, dipped it in the fondue, and held it out to him.

He took a bite and nodded his approval. “Delicious.”

“It would be even better if I had real Gruyère cheese, but this will have to do.” She handed him the fork. 

“Now you try it.”

He mimicked her actions, but when he pulled the fork out of the pot, the bread was gone.

“Ah,” Mara said, “now you must pay a forfeit.”

He turned to her with an amused look on his face. “What kind of forfeit?”

She cocked her head to one side, a teasing look on her face. “Sometimes it is a bottle of wine.”

He clapped a hand to his forehead. “I knew it, you are after my vintage Bordeaux.”

She giggled. “Since I am still not overly fond of wine, I will not demand a forfeit.”

“Is there no alternative?” he asked. When he saw a blush creep up her face, he pressed the point. “What are you not telling me, madame?”

“Sometimes it is a kiss.”

He drew in a quick breath. “A much better idea, do you not agree?”

She looked at him uncertainly. “I suppose so.”

Jacques’s heart began to pound in his breast. It had been more than six months since he had kissed her, that last night at Fort Duquesne. Careful not to alarm her, he cupped her chin with one hand and lightly touched his lips to hers.

“I think I am going to like fondue very much,” he decided.

He pulled out a chair for her, and inched his own close so that their knees touched under the table. When she dipped her fork in the pot, he jostled her elbow, and she lost the bread.

“You did that on purpose,” she accused him with a smile.

He shrugged. “A forfeit is a forfeit. It is your turn to kiss me.”

She shook her head but complied with his request, kissing him sweetly but tentatively.

Jacques lost more bread than he ate, and soon he was intoxicated on wine and kisses. With each kiss, he grew bolder, slipping his tongue inside her mouth, savoring the tangy taste of cheese and Bordeaux.

Finally she put a hand on his chest. “Enough.”

He smiled lazily. “Oh, no, madame. I will never get enough of your kisses.”

Buy now from Amazon, All Romance eBooks,Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo and Smashwords.

Rogue's Hostage is also part of the Romance Super Bundle, ten full-length romance novels for one low price. Available at Amazon, All Romance eBooks, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, iTunes and Smashwords.

Don't forget to leave a comment below to enter my giveaway with your email address. For extra credit, follow this blog, like my Facebook page or follow me on Twitter (@LyndiLamont). Just let me know what you did in the comments for extra chances to win.

What's your idea of a hot autumn night?

Linda

Follow the linky list below to keep hopping!

Hot Autumn Nights

Welcome to the Hot Autumn Nights Blog Hop sponsored by authors H.D. Thomson and Caris Roane. Grand prize for the hop is a $70.00 gift card for Amazon or Barnes and Noble. At the end of the hop, the organizers will choose the grand prize winner using random.org by putting in the number of blog sites that participated. From there, they will use random.org again to choose a winner from the winning site, so the more sites you visit and comment at, the better your chance to win.

My prize is a $10 e-gift card of the winners choice: Amazon, BN, Starbucks, etc. Leave a comment to enter. You can earn additional chances to win by liking my Facebook page, following me on Twitter or signing up to the this blog. Let me know in the comments if you have earned additional points.

Now to the fun part. What does a hot autumn night mean to you? Is it snuggling before a roaring fire with your sweetie? That's a classic scenario, and one I used in my historical romance Rogue's Hostage.


His hostage... 

In 1758 the Pennsylvania frontier is wild, primitive and dangerous, where safety often lies at the end of a gun. Mara Dupre's life crumbles when a French and Indian war party attacks her cabin, kills her husband, and takes her captive. Marching through the wilderness strengthens her resolve to flee, but she doesn't count on her captor teaching her the meaning of courage and the tempting call of desire.

Her destiny...

French lieutenant Jacques Corbeau's desire for his captive threatens what little honor he has left. But when Mara desperately offers herself to him in exchange for her freedom, he finds the strength to refuse and reclaims his lost self-respect. As the shadows of his past catch up to him, Jacques realizes that Mara, despite the odds, is the one true key to reclaiming his soul and banishing his past misdeeds forever.

In this excerpt, Mara shows up when Jacques is at his lowest point with a bottle of wine and Swiss fondue:

She bustled over to the table and began arranging the items on the tray. “Have you ever had fondue before?”

He shook his head and stared doubtfully at the melted cheese mixture.

Mara picked up a fork, speared a cube of bread, dipped it in the fondue, and held it out to him.

He took a bite and nodded his approval. “Delicious.”

“It would be even better if I had real Gruyère cheese, but this will have to do.” She handed him the fork. 

“Now you try it.”

He mimicked her actions, but when he pulled the fork out of the pot, the bread was gone.

“Ah,” Mara said, “now you must pay a forfeit.”

He turned to her with an amused look on his face. “What kind of forfeit?”

She cocked her head to one side, a teasing look on her face. “Sometimes it is a bottle of wine.”

He clapped a hand to his forehead. “I knew it, you are after my vintage Bordeaux.”

She giggled. “Since I am still not overly fond of wine, I will not demand a forfeit.”

“Is there no alternative?” he asked. When he saw a blush creep up her face, he pressed the point. “What are you not telling me, madame?”

“Sometimes it is a kiss.”

He drew in a quick breath. “A much better idea, do you not agree?”

She looked at him uncertainly. “I suppose so.”

Jacques’s heart began to pound in his breast. It had been more than six months since he had kissed her, that last night at Fort Duquesne. Careful not to alarm her, he cupped her chin with one hand and lightly touched his lips to hers.

“I think I am going to like fondue very much,” he decided.

He pulled out a chair for her, and inched his own close so that their knees touched under the table. When she dipped her fork in the pot, he jostled her elbow, and she lost the bread.

“You did that on purpose,” she accused him with a smile.

He shrugged. “A forfeit is a forfeit. It is your turn to kiss me.”

She shook her head but complied with his request, kissing him sweetly but tentatively.

Jacques lost more bread than he ate, and soon he was intoxicated on wine and kisses. With each kiss, he grew bolder, slipping his tongue inside her mouth, savoring the tangy taste of cheese and Bordeaux.

Finally she put a hand on his chest. “Enough.”

He smiled lazily. “Oh, no, madame. I will never get enough of your kisses.”

Buy now from Amazon, All Romance eBooks,Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo and Smashwords.

Rogue's Hostage is also part of the Romance Super Bundle, ten full-length romance novels for one low price. Available at Amazon, All Romance eBooks, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, iTunes and Smashwords.

Don't forget to leave a comment below to enter my giveaway with your email address. For extra credit, follow this blog, like my Facebook page or follow me on Twitter (@LyndiLamont). Just let me know what you did in the comments for extra chances to win.

What's your idea of a hot autumn night?

Linda

Follow the linky list below to keep hopping!

My Tortured Hero: Updated

This was supposed to be my portion of the Tortured Hero Blog Hop, which unfortunately had to be cancelled. However, that's no reason for me not to talk about the hero of my newest release.

There's something about a tortured hero that appeals to a woman's tender nature. She can't help but wonder what made him the way he is and what she can do to ease his pain. But he never makes it easy for her, does he?

We all know how to recognize a tortured hero when we see one, right? He's the bad boy who thumbs his nose at authority and hides his pain under a  don't-give-a-crap attitude. Or the brooding loner or drifter who shuns society to nurse his wounds.

Or maybe not. He could also be a charmer who hides his inner angst with a flirtatious manner or a polite smile.

Stephen Chaplin, the hero of Lady Elinor's Escape, falls into the latter category. A respectable barrister with ties to the ton, on the surface he seems like a well-adjusted Regency gentleman. A paragon of virtue, in fact. But inside, he's torn up by guilt over the death of his first love Deborah at the hands of her abusive husband. He's also unable to forgive her brother, his former friend, Marcus Knightley, for not helping them to elope. Stephen's distrust of Marc complicates matters considerably when Lady Elinor is reported missing.

Stephen has tried to make up for his failures by helping other women in distress, which is why he's unable to resist the heroine when she rushes into a rural inn, desperate to catch a coach to London. But Stephen is not the only one hiding secrets, and trust doesn't come easily to a woman like Lady Elinor.

Lady Elinor's Escape
by Linda McLaughlin
Sweet Regency Romance 

Lady Elinor Ashworth always longed for adventure, but when she runs away from her abusive aunt, she finds more than she bargained for. Elinor fears her aunt who is irrational and dangerous, threatening Elinor and anyone she associates with. When she encounters an inquisitive gentleman, she accepts his help, but fearing for his safety, hides her identity by pretending to be a seamstress. She resists his every attempt to draw her out, all the while fighting her attraction to him.

There are too many women in barrister Stephen Chaplin's life, but he has never been able to turn his back on a damsel in distress. The younger son of a baronet is a rescuer of troubled females, an unusual vocation fueled guilt over his failure to save the woman he loved from her brutal husband. He cannot help falling in love with his secretive seamstress, but to his dismay, the truth of her background reveals Stephen as the ineligible party.

Lady Elinor's Escape is now available at Amazon, All Romance eBooks, and Barnes and Noble. Coming soon to other retailers.

What draws you to the tortured variety of hero?

To celebrate the reissue of Lady Elinor's Escape, I'm giving away a $10.00 gift certificate of the winner's choice: Amazon, BN, Starbucks, etc. Winner will be notified on May 6. There are several ways to enter.

1) Leave a comment here. If you are commenting anonymously, please leave an email address so I can find you if you win!

2) Friend me at Goodreads

3) Join my YahooGroups announcement list.

Linda McLaughlin

Website: http://www.lindamclaughlin.com/

Blog: http://flightsafancy.blogspot.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LyndiLamont

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/lindamclaughlin

New Release Plus December Blog Tour

To celebrate the release of How To Woo... A Reluctant Bride, I'm doing a blog hop & mini-tour next week, with prizes. (see below)

How To Woo… A Reluctant Bride
(Romantic Historical Short Story)
by Lyndi Lamont
http://www.lyndilamont.com/ReluctantBride.html

A marriage contract, nothing more...until darkly handsome Evan Channing and demure Lydia Blatchford meet. Yet the rules are simple for an arrangement such as theirs. There should be no misunderstanding, no illusions of anything more.

But the rules are about to change when Evan is gifted with an intriguing copy of the Kama Sutra.  He sets out to win his high-born bride, blending seductive heat with exotic lessons in love-making. With a little help from Sir Richard Burton's new, provocative translation of ancient wisdom on seduction and arousal, the cold marriage bed of an arranged union is about to combust into a blazing flame of desire

(Previously published under the title Love… By the Book - this new version is less erotic but more romantic)

4 Angels...” a scintillating mix of lust and sexual exploration… Ms. Lamont has done a very nice job of bringing a bit of the exotic into her writing.” - Dawnie, Fallen Angel Reviews

Disclaimer: This is a short 30 page romantic short story. Contains scenes of Victorians breaking rules, hot marital sex and ancient wisdom from the Kama Sutra.

Available now for only 99 cents at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. Coming soon to iBooks, Kobo and Sony.

For the Secret Santa Blog Hop, I'm giving away a $15.00 Gift Certificate of winner's choice. (Amazon, B&N, iTunes, etc.)
.
The Grand Prize for the Blog Hop is a Kindle Fire HD 7" preloaded with books by authors on the blog hop, including a copy of my latest release How To Woo... A Reluctant Bride. Must be 18 to win. Details can be found at http://tabithablake.blogspot.com /

I'll also be giving away two ebooks of the winner's choice at the other blog stops from Dec. 20-22. Leave a comment on any of my blogs and you will be entered.

Here is the schedule:

Dec. 17-19, Secret Santa Blog Hop (A Victorian Christmas)  
http://lyndilamont.com/blog/2012/12/16/secret-santa-blog-hop/ ‎

Dec. 20, Servants of the Muse blog (Kama Sutra)
http://servantsofthemuse.blogspot.com/

also: also: Sunlight Sucks blog featuring a special giveaway of Deception, Historical M/M Romance
http://sunlightsucks.com/ 

Dec. 21, The Romance Studio blog (Victorian Wedding Customs) http://theromancestudio.blogspot.com/

Dec. 22, Love In A Book Reviews (Excerpt from How To Woo... A Reluctant Bride) 
https://loveinabookreviews.wordpress.com/2012/12/22/how-to-woo-a-reluctant-bride-from-lyndi-lamont/

I hope some of your will be able to participate and win some prizes.

Happy Holidays!

Lyndi Lamont