Romance, Reading and Relaxation
Aug 03, 2020 7:41 pm
On The Double Dare Front
Happening Now - Promos!
Can’t Miss Reads
Stuff I Love - Destress
Hey There Insider,
Still surviving these unprecedented times? I hope you are finding new ways to take care of yourself, connect and thrive. I suggest a few in my "things I love" section today. But first...
Many many thanks to those of you who purchased, downloaded, read and especially reviewed Dare to Hope. I hope the wonderful reviews will encourage more of you to jump on the Double Dare Romance bandwagon.
A few of you have been guessing which Crazy Eight would be featured next - a lot of bets were on Harper and her relationship with Danny Heywood. I hope none of you put down a wager, because you would have lost. I actually gave you plenty of hints in my last newsletter.
In fact, Avery - our painfully shy, cat lover – is next up in the second book in the Double Dare Romance series. Dare to Risk will find Avery forced to date FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER in her effort to avoid losing the dare and paying her forfeit. I know you will love this marriage of a "first love/second chance at love" story.
I am hard at work on the novel now, but watch for it later this year.
FYI, right behind Avery's story, Cassie's story is coming together as well. Which Crazy would you like to read next??
Blog Tour and Contest
The Dare to Hope new release blog tour is in full swing - with opportunities to visit terrific romance authors who have generously agreed to promote my novel. Stop by their websites, check out their books and enter the Dare to Hope eBook contest. You could win a chance to name a character in an upcoming Double Dare Romance Series novel. For stops on the blog tour visit Reviews by Crystal. Enter the contest on any of the blog tour hops or on my blog before the end of the month.
Free and Discounted Romances
Running in August, an opportunity to select up to 24 romances and enter a contest to win a gift card good for more! Check out this Book Cave promotion, Forever Yours Free Contemporary Romance
For your Kindle Unlimited readers - here's a promotion just for you. New Adult & Contemporary Romance Kindle Unlimited August Reads began August 1st with dozens of titles to choose from in KU - included three of mine that you may not have read yet - Bedazzled, the lead off in my Beguiling Bachelor series and the novel that started. it. all; Broken Time, a standalone time travel novella set in jazzy 1950's Chicago; or the newest release and the start of the new Double Dare Romance series, Dare to Hope.
Unlimited Romance Reads just kicked off this week with over 150 romance reads in every genre. The promotion runs the entire month of August, but why wait?
Hot and Steamy Reads offers almost 100 steamy romances for free throughout the month of August. Pick a few right now.
Summer is for Lovers continues through August 31st so you still have time to find a great read or two here as well.
Of All Places: A Contemporary Romance by Lily Baines
She’s an introverted, self-conscious librarian, he’s an out-of-her-league sexy man. Can love be found in an unexpected place, time, and partner?
Librarian Melanie Allen has read all about romance but never found love. After a rough year, longing to escape a string of bad dates and boring days, she jets off to picturesque Montenegro for a one-week tour. But when she encounters a stunningly handsome man, she acts impulsively for the very first time and changes her plans.
Still unsure how she managed to capture the striking man’s attention, who she senses is holding back emotional wounds, deep down Melanie knows she must dare more and transform her self-conscious ways if she doesn’t want to repeat the painful mistakes of her past.
Will Melanie overcome her self-doubts and have a real chance at love with the man she unexpectedly found could be her one?
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Work and Pleasure: Short, Sweet and Steamy Romance by Ella Cooper
An Insta-Love Alpha Billionaire, Sexy Woman Steamy Romance
Melissa drifts through life – she has no aims, no goals. Her friends want her to find that “special someone” – but she’s happy enough. Then she meets a man who lights a fire under her emotions – but he has a secret that threatens to drive them apart. Will love be enough for her to overlook his past?
Samuel has everything – the money, the looks, the career – but he also has a secret. A secret so dark that it could destroy everything. Melissa walks into his life and shows him a new perspective, a new direction – but could his secret be the end of them?
Can they both look beyond the past, and look into their future? Is there a secret so big that it will destroy them both? Is love going to be enough? Could they lose everything they have found because of one mistake?
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Kingpin by Eden O'Neill
"I'm going to have fun breaking you, beauty queen."
They call him kingpin. A blond titan with the looks of a god, the wealth of a king, and the influence of the mob. Lance Johnson is the guy you go to when you want anything on Woodcreek University's campus.
And I mean, anything.
He's got more than one dean in his pocket, as well as nearly all the university's staff--the professor I'm a TA for included.
He's got grown men and respected scholars by their balls, but he doesn't have me.
I have a direct hand over his academic future and not only does he know that, he gets off on it. He tests me in any ways he can. He plays with me and pushes our boundaries to the point of their brink. He doesn't care that I control his grades.
And definitely doesn't care that I have a boyfriend.
He says I'm nothing but a perfect, little beauty queen. A plaything he can't wait to break. He sets his sight on me and I'm a target of the most powerful man I've ever seen.
He has to be if I let him kiss me.
Kingpin for adults and comes with the following warning and additional information (read more)
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Knee Deep: Love in the Suburbs #4 by D.E. Haggerty
*Special new release price of just 99 cents!*
Just when I think I've got it all figured out - BOOM! - in walks trouble.
It's taken me years, but my life is finally back on track - new job, new friends, a complete new Violet! I don't even cry myself to sleep every night anymore. But then he walks through the front door of my new workplace. How dare he come in here and ruin everything for me - again!
Luke Freaking Bauer. Not the boy who got away. Nuh-uh. Not even close. The boy who tossed me aside when I needed him the most.
But when I look deep into those hurt eyes, I forget I'm the one who was wronged. Oh boy. I'm knee-deep in trouble and sinking fast.
Knee Deep is book 4 of the Love in the Suburbs series but can be read as a standalone.
Stress Relievers
These days everyone is trying to manage their stress, get enough sleep, make time for family without killing them, find time for friends without toddlers screaming in the background...you name it, it's become more difficult. And with discussions about starting school (whatever that looks like!) shifting into high gear, stress is at an all-time high. I am on the board for a mental health organization and we discuss keeping people safe constantly, physically and mentally. First and foremost, if you need professional help - get it. Reach out to a psychiatrist or psychologist, or even your family physician and just say "I need help."
But if all you need is a little self-care, a chance to escape the runaround of life for a few minutes, obviously I recommend escaping into a Madison Michael romance novel ;)
But here are a few other ideas that keep you grounded, cozy and laughing.
Grounded – All of my friends who are gardeners are raving about their garden's ability to keep them from losing it. Consider a container garden or indoor plant if you like in an apartment like I do. Pull weeds for an hour and get the kids to help you. I have wonderful memories of weeding the lawn with my mother and the incredible satisfaction when it was finished.
Cozy – Try Cuddleduds clothes. I am not getting paid to suggest them, but I am wearing them as I type this. They are easily purchased on the Cuddleduds website where they are having a big sale, or on Home Shopping Network (HSN). Seriously, they are so soft you will feel like you are wrapped in bunny rabbits, without the mess. The styles vary widely, as do the colors and sizes. Mine - no surprise - are a kitty-cat pattern. The clothes will make you smile, and feel sensational.
Laughing – pull out the board games or the bingo, select silly themes for your next Zoom call (we just did baby pictures and it was so much fun. Zoom meetings and connections mean more hours on the computer - find ways to bring the simpler days back into the mix. We have played Zoom Bingo (everyone prints a free card from online) and one person with a bingo set calls numbers, and recently I have rediscovered my love of Bananagrams and Scrabble. Tell ghost stories by flashlight, or family stories that you have never shared. Keep it simple and remember it's just for fun.
Stay safe, and happy reading,
ARE YOU CAUGHT UP ON YOUR MADISON MICHAEL?
The Beguiling Bachelor Series:
The B&B Billionaire Series:
The Double Dare Romance Series
Standalone Stories:
Broken Time: A Time Travel Romance
