Cinder's Bride - Spotlight, Giveaway and Review

BOOK INFORMATION

TITLE – Cinders' Bride

SERIES – Mail Order Brides of Texas book one

AUTHOR – Kathleen Ball

GENRE – Historical Western Romance

PUBLICATION DATE – 7/2/15

LENGTH (Pages/# Words) - 50,000 words152 pages

PUBLISHER – me

COVER ARTIST – Aria Tan

BOOK SYNOPSIS

Mail Order Brides of Texas Book One
Shannon McMurphy travels to Asherville, Texas as a mail order bride expecting to marry a rancher. Instead, her intended is a saloonkeeper. Her refusal to marry enrages John Hardy and he slices her cheek with a knife so no other man would want her. She runs into the street and no one helps her until Cinders comes along.

Sexy, Rancher Cinders saves Shannon and offers her a job. To protect her reputation he marries her. They both agree it's a marriage of convenience. He admires her spunk and willingness to learn everything about surviving the Texas frontier. He waits for her to ask to go home but she never does.

They learn a lot about each other through, stolen horses, Indian troubles, a cattle drive and the busybodies of the town. Their attraction for each other grows, but can they learn to trust enough to love?

BUY & TBR LINKS

AMAZON KINDLE US –http://amzn.com/B010MH9DQ2

AMAZON KINDLE UK – http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B010MH9DQ2

EXCERPT

The world seemed eerily quiet as she pushed herself up from the hard packed dirt, only to fall back down. Her ankle hurt. Tears filled her eyes, as she glanced around. There stood the women from the mercantile, staring, and their eyes full of terror. She’d get no assistance from them.

John Hardy strutted into the street and laughed while he gestured for two of his men to pick her up. “Come on, honey, it’s time for our honeymoon.”

She heard the clomping of hooves and the turn of wagon wheels behind her but the wagon didn’t stop to help her either. By this time, a crowd had gathered and now there were men standing with the group of women. She tried to plead for help with her eyes but they glanced away.

Two men grabbed at her to haul her back into the saloon when a loud cocking of a gun erupted from behind.

“Put her down.” A man's voice threatened.

John stepped forward, thrusting out his chest. “Listen, Cinders, this is none of your business. It’d be in your best interest to leave things be.”

The world began to dim and spin, the smell of blood was the last straw. She fainted.

MY REVIEW

 Shannon's introduction to her new husband to be is not what she expected, and the rowdy saloon is certainly not what she envisaged when she answered the advert for a 'mail order bride'. Shocked that her prospective husband is not the rancher she was led to believe was waiting for her, she refuses to go have anything to do with John Hardly who slashes her face in rage and spite, taunting her that no other man would want her now.

A man called Cinders comes to her rescue. He gets her face sewn up and realises that he will have to take her back to her ranch as there is nowhere in the town for her to stay.  The townswomen are singularly unsympathetic. In order to protect her reputation they are obliged to get married. Now Shannon has the rancher husband she wanted, and throws herself into being a hardworking wife, even if they are man and wife in name only, and quickly earns the respect and liking of the ranch hands. She is very naive and innocent in some ways and has to lean on the ranch cook for support and advice when she is too shy to ask her husband.

There is plenty of action and suspense in this story, and a little humour too, as Cinders refuses to reveal his first name to his bride, and she tries unsuccessfully to guess it. The reason for his reluctance is not revealed until the end. Both Shannon and Cinders are well drawn, likable characters, and have to endure a lot of dangerous encounters and some misunderstandings before they achieve their happy ever after. The supporting characters are also well portrayed and easy to relate to. The women of the town are not very likable, and make little attempt to hide their prejudice and misinformed opinions of Shannon. There is plenty of action and suspense, and I found this a thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable short novel. I can recommend it to anyone who enjoys a romantic historical western with a strong but gentle hero and a feisty, but sweet natured heroine.

 Rating: Five comets
 *****

AUTHOR BIO

Sexy Cowboys and the women who love them...

Finalist in the 2012 RONE Awards.

Top Pick, Five Star Series from the Romance Review.

Kathleen Ball writes contemporary western romance with great emotion and memorable
characters. Her books are award winners and have appeared on best sellers lists including
Amazon's Best Sellers List, All Romance Ebooks, Bookstrand, Desert Breeze Publishing and
Secret Cravings Publishing Best Sellers list. She is the recipient of eight Editor's Choice
Awards, and The Readers' Choice Award for Ryelee's Cowboy. 

There's something about a cowboy....

***Order of my Books***
Lasso Spring Series

Callie's Heart
Lone Star Joy
Stetson's Storm

Dawson Ranch Series

Texas Haven- FREE
Ryelee's Cowboy
*Alice's Story- free prequel on my website

Cowboy Seasons Series

Summer's Desire
Autumn's Hope
Winter's Embrace
Spring's Delight

Mail Order Brides of Texas

FOLLOW LINKS

WEBSITE / BLOG – http://www.kathleenballromance.com

FACEBOOK –  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kathleen-Ball-Western-Romance/121300767916947

TWITTER – http://www.twitter.com/kballauthor

GIVEAWAY PRIZES

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This is the link of what it is http://www.marykay.com/kball8164/en-US/Gifts/Occasion/Bridal/Before-the-Big-Day-Set/10091930.partId?eCatId=10743

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Space cowboys and Indians

 Space Cowboys & Indians

Space Cowboys & Indians by Lisa Medley

Science Fiction Adventure Romance

Words: 37K * 175 pages

Series: Cosmic Cowboys Series, Episode 1

Amazon: $2.99 http://amzn.to/1QFLrOV

Kindle Unlimited: FREE http://amzn.to/1QFLrOV

Space Cowboys & Indians blurb
 
How can the chance of a lifetime go so horribly wrong?
Mining Engineer Cole Hudson signed up for NASA astronaut training, but after washing out short of getting his gold wings, he retreats to Alaska where he stakes out a gold claim. When billionaire entrepreneur Duncan Janson offers him an opportunity to join a mining team on an asteroid, Cole jumps at the chance.

But nothing is as it seems. Former NASA reject and rival classmate, Tessa Hernandez, is also a member of the team, and from the beginning of the mission test flight, things go wrong. They soon discover they’re not the only ones on the asteroid. As they try to escape, they are pulled through a wormhole and back to the early 1800s New Mexico desert where aliens and Apaches may be the least of their problems.

BUY SPACE COWBOYS & INDIANS

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Excerpt:

Chapter One

Alaskan gold mine, the Hudson Claim - the near future.

"Goddamn it, Hudson. The washplant is down again.”

Cole ground his molars together before he could unleash the torrent of swears coursing through his brain in reply. Of course the washplant was down. Again.

This claim would be the end of him.

“Show me,” Cole said.

His foreman, Todd Cargill, held up four shredded washplant screens with holes the size of bowling balls, useless now for the first step in screening for gold.

Cole squeezed his eyes shut and wondered for the eleven-millionth time this summer why the hell he’d come to Alaska.

Redemption, he reminded himself.

Wasn’t worth it.

“That was my last replacement screen. Be a week before the supply plane can bring us more,” Todd said. “No use running dirt until it’s fixed. This way, we’re only making mud.”

Most expensive mud he’d ever not made. A week in the bush with no work? He’d have to pay the crew, regardless, or he’d lose the whole lot of them. Hell, he still owed them from last month. They were running out of summer to mine, and they’d barely collected any gold so far.

“Shut it down. I’ll call in the order.”

“What do you want me to tell the guys?” Todd asked.

“Tell them—”

The chop, chop, chop of helicopter blades slowly pounded across the sky until the beast came into sight on the horizon. What the hell was a chopper doing out this far?

The copter landed on the flat several hundred feet from their dredge, stirring the dust up from the broken ground and tailings. Covering his face with his arm, Cole coughed into his elbow and waited for the cloud to settle. The copter blades whirled to a stop, and his small crew left their work detail to gather around him and see what was going on.

A white-haired man, maybe fifty, maybe older, emerged from the helicopter cabin, quickly followed by two men wearing sleek black suits, wrinkled from the tactical firearm harnesses strapped snugly across their chests. They were loaded for bear.

That wasn’t what concerned Cole. He knew he was in for trouble the second the guy’s thousand dollar cowboy boots hit the turf. The man swatted at the swirling dust on his white shirt and designer jeans then brushed his hands through his shoulder-length hair three or four times, shaking it out like the mane of a horse. He cranked up a smile as he made a beeline for Cole.

“Mr. Hudson?” the man asked.

“I’m Hudson.”

“You look exactly like your NASA application photo, Mr. Hudson. Haven’t changed a bit in the past five months. It was five months you were detained. Yes?”

Todd coughed loudly beside him. “Okay, I think we have things to do. Let’s go, boys.” Todd urged the crew back toward their office trailer.

Cole was going to have to give his foreman a raise. Right after he beat the dandy in front of him into a bloody pulp.

“Who exactly are you, and what the hell are you doing here? Surely you didn’t fly that deathtrap all the way out here just to insult me in front of my crew. Or did you? You with Montoya?”

The man appeared bewildered for a moment. “Oh my. Let me start over. I…this wasn’t the impression I intended to make. I’m afraid I started off badly. I’m simply so excited to find you. Out here.” He motioned toward the distant tundra. “It’s a very, very long way out here.” He flashed another smile at Cole and offered his hand. “Duncan Janson. You might know me from the airline ads?”

Cole stared at the man’s smooth, tanned hand. The guy had never worked a day of hard labor in his life if those hands told the right story—that much was obvious. He knew exactly who he was, now. Billionaire airline owner and profiteer. What he didn’t know was what he was doing on his little piece of Alaska.

“You answered the first question. Now answer the second,” Cole said, purposely not taking the offered hand.

Janson pulled his hand back then clapped them together, clearly proud of himself. “I’m here to offer you a job.”

“I have a job.”

“This would be quite a different job. Well, maybe not all that different. You’d still be mining, but you would also have a chance to partake in some of your other passions.”

Clouds slid past the sun, and a gust of wind stirred up a dirt devil near the copter, cooling the air noticeably.

“What is it you think you know about my passions, exactly?” Cole asked.

Janson twisted his expensive Rolex around his wrist nervously. “Was it not your passion for space that led to your gambling problem? Trying to raise enough money to continue in the program? Which led to your legal issues, which led to your detainment and now self-exile here in this godforsaken place? Isn’t your work here an effort to earn enough money to finance your first two passions? It’s a bit of a vicious circle, it seems.”

Cole could feel his blood pressure rising. This asshole was on his last nerve five minutes after meeting him and about one more sentence away from a shallow Alaskan grave.

“What if all of your skills could be utilized to fulfill each of those…passions? You’d be paid well. Very well.”

“Is this prospect legal?”

“Yes, but it’s not without risks. I want to hire you to do some mining for me.”

“Where? You have a claim in Alaska?”

“I’m afraid my claim is quite a bit farther away from here. Your gambling problem and detention might have gotten you booted out of NASA’s space program, but your personal problems are not a deterrent to me. Your other skills and expertise are exactly what are needed for my project.”

Skepticism scratched at the back of his mind, but Cole couldn’t deny he was intrigued. He hated Janson’s manner, but he could take his money. No problem. Hell, this job might be the financial boost he needed to finally make this claim profitable.

“How long is the job, and where is it?” Cole asked.

Janson smiled again, clearly certain he’d already sealed the deal. “I expect the job to take around six months. All expenses paid, of course. With an option to renew for a second mission after that, if you are so inclined. Your season here is winding down? Am I correct?”

Considering the ruined washplant screens? Yeah, winding down would be a kindness.

“You didn’t tell me where the job is,” Cole pressed.
“Ah, that’s the best part, Mr. Hudson. The job is on Amun. It’s an asteroid. I want you to mine it for me.”

Lisa has always enjoyed reading about monsters in love and now she writes about them, because

monsters need love too. She adores beasties of all sorts, fictional as well as real, and has a farm full of them in her Southwest Missouri home, including: one child, one husband, two dogs, two cats, a dozen hens, thousands of Italian bees, and a guinea pig.

She may or may not keep a complete zombie apocalypse bug-out bag in her trunk at all times, including a machete. Just. In. Case.

Website | Facebook  | Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads | Google+ | Amazon Author Page

FB https://www.facebook.com/lisamedleyauthor

Twitter https://twitter.com/lisamedley

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7824406.Lisa_Medley

Website http://lisa-medley.com

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Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/Lisa-Medley/e/B00I66M24M/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_ebooks_1

Happy Book Birthday to 

Love's Revenge!

Love's Revenge

Means of Mercy #2

Sweet, Historical Romance

By: Terri Rochenski

Publisher: Roane Publishing

Release Date: January 26, 2015

Embittered by betrayal, Anne MacKay flees London for America, where she learns she's pregnant with her abusive husband’s longed-for heir. In a society that doesn’t protect, or afford a well-to-do wife’s desire for divorce, Anne decides there is one way to exact revenge: deny the father any knowledge of his child.

Sought after by her husband’s henchmen, Anne travels by rail and horseback, far from civilization where silk and stays are worn, let alone thought of. Lies and deceit protect her identity for a time, allowing her to birth—and grow to love—the child who was supposed to be her vengeance.

With the help of her loyal and protective business partner, Jude Connagher, and the ranch hands in their Montana Territory valley, Anne attempts to rebuild her life under the shadow of her husband’s wrath.

One unwise decision lands Anne in her pursuers’ clutches, tearing her from the ranch, her child, and her growing love for the one man who could redeem her from bitterness. She's left with no choice but to finally face her husband, knowing her freedom and life hang in the balance.

Purchase Links

Roane Publishing

Createspace 

Amazon 

Amazon (UK)

Barnes and Noble 

Smashwords

Visit Roane Publishing's FREE READS page to download the first chapter of Love's Revenge!

Purchase Links:

Roane Publishing

Createspace
Amazon
Amazon (UK)
Smashwords

Love's Sorrow, Means of Mercy #1, ecopies are on sale at Roane Publishing for only $0.99!! 

AND print copies are only $8.40, a 40% savings!

Click on the image above for purchasing details.

> 

Terri started writing stories in the 8th grade, when a little gnome whispered in her brain. Gundi’s Great Adventure never hit the best seller list, but it started a long love affair with storytelling.

Today she enjoys an escape to Middle Earth during the rare ‘me’ moments her three young children allow. When not playing toys, picking them back up, or kissing boo-boos, she can be found sprawled on the couch with a book or pencil in hand, and toothpicks propping her eyelids open.
 Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads
 

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Love's Revenge

by Terri Rochenski

Giveaway ends February 06, 2015. See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

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Book Blitz and Tour-Wide Giveaway

Signed copies of Love's Sorrow and Love's Revenge, 

and a $25 Amazon Gift Card!

a Rafflecopter giveaway   Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code.  No purchase necessary, but you must be 18 or older to enter. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter, and announced on the widget. Winner well be notified by emailed and have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. The number of entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Roane Publishing's marketing department.