Read the Exclusive Excerpt from Lucky Puck!

Dear ,

Summer has arrived here in New Hampshire with a vengeance and reached 93 degrees!

It was so hot that my fingers were sweaty and sticking to the keyboard! I had to dip them in baby powder so I could work on Lucky Puck.

(wish I was kidding)

For all of you with kids or grandkids in school, I hope you're looking forward to the summer vacation. I miss those days of family trips, when we were all under the same roof and doing things together.

Maybe that's why I'm focusing on the small town close-family vibe in my new upcoming series Hockey Boys. Turns out even when they leave town to play hockey, they come back in the off season and the Jennings brothers are all in each other's business.

But they also have each other's backs--which turns out to be necessary because the family is up against a tough rival family...

Picture an updated tamer version of the Hatfields Vs. the McCoys in a seaside village and where all the violence (or most of it) takes place on the ice.

Because they all play hockey...and they all fall in love, hard and with difficulty.

As you can see, I've been distracted with plans for my new series, but I promise I'm very excited about Brody and Bianca in Lucky Puck!

They're finally at that kissing 💋 stage of the story where they cave in to the lust.🔥

Why don't I show you instead of telling you about it?

Check out the Exclusive Excerpt from Lucky Puck below ⬇️⬇️

Check out the COVER REVEAL for Patrick: The Jennings Brothers in my NEW Hockey Boys series Below! ⬇️⬇️⬇️

There's still time to check out Hockey Night in Romance Land and enter the prize giveaways! Details Below! ⬇️⬇️⬇️

Also this week I have another Yummy Featured Author for you Below!⬇️⬇️⬇️

Lastly, but not leastly, I appreciate your time and attention to my newsletter, and your support, very much. 💜

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At SQ's House

Last week we had our book club meeting, but we hardly discussed the book and I don't even remember the title. Sometimes it's like that.

Instead, we celebrated the birthday of one of our members because it was a milestone year. ➜➜➜➜

We're hitting milestone years left and right in my circle of friends and I'm glad we don't ignore them or play them down.

I think it's important to help us wrap our minds around where we're at in life, to recognize our age and where we've been and most of all, where we've gotten.

Luckily my friends are all in a pretty good place right now.

(And that's saying a lot because we have three women who became widows in the past 5 years in our group!)

Or maybe it's not luck. Maybe it's that we've mellowed enough and gained some wisdom about life so we can put things in perspective and deal with the difficulties.

You know, we're at that place where we really can "not sweat the small stuff", where we actually can "not worry about things we can't change", and where we finally have the time, resources and experience to do the things we can change.

Just a thought.

Here's a hint--when you look back at your life and take stock (no matter how far or not so far along you are--do absolutely NOT focus on the negatives. We all have some positive things we can dwell on. Then, look forward.

We all have something we can do to effect change in our lives and especially the lives of others.

Well, that's it from the pulpit of a romance author who's reached a certain age! Lol!

(I apologize for the preachy reflective nature of this note. I must be channeling my wise old lady self lately!) 💜

Read any good books lately?

💜

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I'd love you to join my team!

Join the SQ Team on Facebook Here!

You too could be one of my expert series consultants!

Plus it would be fun to get to know you better.

You'll get sneak peaks at draft book covers-and have a say in the final draft, we'll have contests and some behind the scenes writer stuff and of course, talk romance books--and whatever else we want. 💜

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Work-in-Progress

LUCKY PUCK - a hockey rom-com

Word Count Goal: 75,000

Current Word Count: 35,695

Percentage Complete: 48%

Once you lie about a thing like being married and it gets leaked to the public, the biggest problem is figuring how you get out of it.

Brody & Bianca realize this too late.

They never thought about their exit plan...

Pre-Order Lucky Puck for Only $2.99

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EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT: LUCKY PUCK

Bianca

“Don’t worry about me," Brody says. "I wasn’t too young to learn fast. Now I’m immune. So I guess it was a good thing I learned early, that I got inoculated against the Cupid virus when I was young.”

“You see love as a sickness?”

“It’s a fact. They call it lovesick for a good reason, don’t they?”

I nod and my tummy flips like it’s giving a nod of understanding and feeling the connection in every last little tummy cell.

“I guess I’ve been love sick too when you put it that way.” I try to shrug away my smile because he looks at me too closely, and I know he’s noticing there’s more than mild pleasure in my expression. I can feel the gravity of attraction right down to my flickering eyelashes, and I don’t mean physical attraction.

Holy hockey boy. I could be in trouble.

Brody flashes his boyish grin, deepening his dimple and his pleased expression looks genuine. I almost hiccup with nerves--the excited kind.

Trouble? What’s wrong with a little trouble added to the pot of boiling water I’m already in with him? May as well see what Brody boy has going for him behind that devilish dimple.

Even though I know these are the words of the bad angel sitting on my shoulder from hell, egging me on to make crazy decisions, I can’t do a thing about it because sometimes decisions are made for a person without rational input from the brain. I’ve been here before and no matter how much I regretted it then, I can’t seem to make that matter now.

Instead, I lean in and kiss him.

He springs into action, kissing me back and a whole lot more, like I’ve uncorked the most explosive and dizzying champagne ever and the top has blown off.

His mouth is hot and sensual and his invasion of me complete. When I could have sworn I initiated this kiss he takes over, in charge and all man.

How could I have ever thought of him as a kid or boyish in the least?

Well, maybe I didn’t. Maybe that was my self-preservation talking, trying to tell myself he was harmless. Some useless protective instincts I have—like waving a tissue against a rapier.

I’m gone, subsumed by his passion and I can’t help noticing his skill as he strokes me with his hands, slipping them under my t-shirt.

Now I feel self-conscious because he’s going to discover exactly how much of me there is to handle. Yet I don’t feel him slowing down. In fact, as he sprinkles kiss across my jaw to my ear and nibbles on my ear lobe, sending shock waves of sensation straight down to the exact spot that I’m surprised to discover hasn’t atrophied into oblivion, his hands cup my breasts and he lets out what sounds like a very pleased moan.

When his thumbs circle my nipples and then scrape over them, I’m letting out a moan made of one hundred percent needy desire.

“Oh my God… Brody.” My eyes are squeezed shut against the onslaught of my escalating dizziness, the fading of all coherent thought as he chuckles against my ear, making me involuntarily shiver.

But I’m not cold. I’m on fire and where my arms tentatively went around him before, now I hold him tight and pull him on top of me unceremoniously. I brace for him to crush me after my rash clumsy action, but he doesn’t.

He’s completely under control, bracing himself over me with one arm and still toying with one nipple as he stares down at my face. I want to close my eyes again because part of me is embarrassed that he’s found out how plump I am, how soft and out of shape, especially compared to his chiseled body. Inadequacy threatens to overwhelm me.

“I bet you don’t even realize how fucking sexy you are, do you?” his hoarse voice vibrates through me. It's as if he's read my emotional state, but they’re just words, right? He can’t really mean them.

But I don’t really care, do I?

Pre-Order Lucky Puck for Only $2.99

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NEW SERIES COVER REVEAL!

Hockey Boys - Patrick: the Jennings Brothers

The Details:

Genre: small town hockey romance

First Book - projected release November 2025

Patrick: The Jennings Brothers

“They call me Trick. I'm a middle son in a family of six extremely ambitious, extremely competitive hockey playing brothers. My trick? Escaping notice.

Playing goalie makes it easy. I wear a mask.

Also, I may be flirting with the treasured daughter of our

family’s long-time rival…”

Look for more about the Hockey Boy series in future newsletters.

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Still time to Enter the Giveaways!

Hockey Night in Romance Land!

VISIT HERE!

UPDATE: I'll be doing my Giveaway of an autographed print copy of He Has Charm Monday, June 9th!

SPECIAL DEAL for those ordering books-- swag! A Hockey Boys vinyl sticker and bookmark ➜➜➜➜

This is an on-line book signing event to celebrate the Stanley Cup and all things hockey and romance.

Here's how it works: You order books from attending authors through their order forms and then we signed the books live! Cool, eh?

YOU CAN STILL SEE IT HERE!

I'll be there and I'd be more than thrilled if you joined me--whether you're buying a book or not--we can talk hockey and romance books and hockey romance--you can tell me all your pet-peeves!

I'll also be signing book plates for anyone who already has books.

I'm accepting orders through June 12th!

**HERE'S MY ORDER FORM**

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Stephanie Queen's Featured Reviews

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“Everything you are looking for in a romantic thriller series: action, drama, romance and awesome characters!”

“Love reading this whole romantic detective series!! I seriously never want it to end, I love these people.”

Save 50% with this Coupon Code: Beachcomber50off

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Stephanie Queen’s Featured Author

Scandalous Vows - Zoey Beth Geller

She ran like hell itself was clawing at her heels.

Wrong time. Wrong place. Wrong alley in a city that eats secrets for supper and spits out bones by breakfast.

And yet, there she was. Barefoot, breathless, and covered in someone else’s blood.

Not mine. But close.

I didn’t kill him.

But I know who did.

And now they know she knows.

She looked at me like I was death incarnate when I pulled her into my car—like she didn’t know if I was saving her or finishing the job. Smart. Most people don’t get a second thought from me, let alone a second chance.

But something in her—maybe it was the way her voice shook when she said his name, or how her eyes didn’t blink when I put a gun on the dash—something made me take her in.

She’s here now.

My safehouse is her prison. My name is the only shield she’s got.

She’s terrified of me.

But not enough to run.

Not yet.

She doesn’t realize that in protecting her, I’ve marked her. That by sheltering her, I’ve signed her fate in blood and steel.

Because once I choose to keep something, I never let go.

And I’ve chosen her.

They want her dead.

They think she’s a liability.

They think she’s alone.

But they’re wrong.

She’s mine now.

And I’ll burn this city to ash before I let them touch a single strand of her hair.

Renatlo

READ NOW!

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SQ’s Featured Book Deals

BEACHREAD BOOK SALE!

JUNE BOUQUET OF ROMANCE

SUPPORT INDIE AUTHORS SALE!

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Thank you again for reading this newsletter.

Let me know what you think of the Lucky Puck excerpt when you have a chance. I'd love your feedback.

In the meantime, enjoy your reading and know how much I appreciate your support. 💜

Warmest Regards,