Robin Covington's Blog

Don't miss out on the giveaway of my next release - TAKING ON THE BILLIONAIRE -

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BLURB:

Will the woman he can’t resist be his downfall?

In the boardroom—and the bedroom—they’re on fire.

But will her secrets destroy them both?

Investigator Tess Lynch once helped Adam Redhawk find his Cherokee family. Now the self-made tech billionaire wants her to root out his company’s saboteur—and share his bed. But as passion builds between them, the private eye pursues a plan of her own—to get even for the way Adam’s adoptive father ruined hers. Until an unexpected pregnancy changes everything…

From Harlequin Desire: Luxury, scandal, desire—welcome to the lives of the American elite.

2016 Fave Authors and Books list

As an author with a full-time job my reading-for-pleasure-time is at a premium. But I love to read – it’s why I started writing! So, I wedged in books on my e-reader and I stepped up my audible usage because I could listen/read to a book while I cooked dinner or drove on my long Thursday commute or ate lunch at my desk. At the end of 2015 I joined the Goodreads reading challenge and pledged to read 75 books and I exceeded that amount and as I looked over my list I noticed a pattern – 2016 was a year where I binged on authors. When I loved their work, I gobbled everything they had (old and new) in every format possible (kindle, paper and audio) and some authors hit the trifecta and I owned certain books in all formats. Not all of the books were released in 2016 but these are the books/series/authors who rocked my reading world in 2016.

I also noticed that when I have my own reading time, I reach for male/male romance first and that I re-read lots of old favorites. 2016 was personally a very difficult for me with my own health issue in the Spring and then my father’s multiple brain surgeries in the late Summer/early Fall so I did a lot of comfort reading.

Annabeth Albert (www.annabethalbert.com) : I have loved her books for a long time but this year I started a re-read and then literally gobbled up everything she had out and impatiently waited for her next release. This year her #Gaymers series was a favorite and I acquired them in kindle and audio format. Her characters are different: beta, sweet, geeky, nerdy. Her books were such a refreshing break from the usual gangster/CEO/MC club member alpha male. Her characters are all male (don’t get me wrong) but they are individual and unique and not at all cookie cutter and I adored that about them. This series is low on contrived angst – the characters have real issues that they have to work to overcome and the sexy is hot and the romance breathtaking.


Santino Hassell (www.santinohassell.com) and Megan Erickson (www.meganerickson.org):  Okay, so their Cyberlove series is epically good. Fun, snarky, modern, fresh, sexy, and features those geeky/nerdy/cosplaying group I love. I inhaled these books in all formats and these two rose to trifecta status for me when I purchased both of the books in kindle, paper and audio format. (I still need to get you to sign my copies Santino!).  This series is evidence that their writing partnership is genius.


Santino Hassell (www.santinohassell.com): Santino is the only author that shows up twice on my list. This love is for his solo books – all of them. I have read everything he has out and I cannot rave enough about them. His ‘Five Borough” series has entered trifecta status for me and I think I re-read FIRST AND FIRST about 9 times this year (I love me some Oli and Caleb). His writing style is modern and fresh, scorchingly sexy and hilariously funny.


Karen Stivali (www.karenstivali.com): I adore her books but MOMENT OF SILENCE just killed it for me. I loved the utter uniqueness of this couple – an almost-Priest on a break and a Jewish man who runs a LGBTQ shelter.  The book could have been overdone and schmaltzy but it was touching and respectful and romantic and sexy and emotional. This book put Karen on my “auto buy” list – I don’t even read the blurb when she has new books out, I just buy it.

 

Kate Meader (www.katemeader.com) : Oh my. Kate and her “Hot in Chicago” series was one that I devoured from first book to the last.  I’ve always read Kate but this book about a foster family of firefighters grabbed me and had me anxiously looking for each new book to come out and I had a serious sad face when it ended. This is also a series that delivers from the first book to the last – I can’t pick a favorite because they were all sooooooo good.


Heidi Cullinan (www.heidicullinan.com) : If you haven’t read HC yet, you need to. She can go from sweetly romantic to deliciously dirty with expertise. Her book NOWHERE RANCH curls my toes in the dirtiest way and CARRY THE OCEAN is one that touches me down to my soul every time. I re-read her catalog in 2016 and it was wonderfully satisfying. An HC book for me is a comfort read because reading her is like hanging out with an old friend.

7.Lane Hayes (https://lanehayes.wordpress.com) :  A relatively new author to me at the beginning of the year, I literally inhaled all of her books on kindle and audio (love her narrators). These stories are comforting and sexy and romantic with characters you can relate to. I love the first person narrative and the way she writes distinctive characters and delivers a great read with low angst.

Rhys Ford (www.rhysford.com) : What the hell can I say about my love affair with Rhys Ford books that will do them justice? She is a trifecta author for me because she pairs up with the most amazingly talented narrators for her audiobooks and it makes it feel like you’re reading her wonderfully descriptive, funny, imaginative, sexy, and addictive books totally fresh and new. This year she delivered one of my favorite books (and the end of the “Cole McGinnis” series), DIRTY HEART, and I’ve not had a book in a long time that made me actually cry when reading it. I am so invested in Cole and Jae that I couldn’t help it.


Annika Martin (www.annikamartinbooks.com): My buddy Annika delivered three of the most deliciously dirty, damaged, sexy, over-the-top alpha males I’ve read in a long time. If you haven’t picked up the “Dangerous Royals” series, do it now. Now. Like, right now.


Roan Parrish (www.roanparrish.com): She gets the prize for books that gut me and give me a serious case of the writer jealousy.  Man, these stories just floored me with the amazing characterization. I needed therapy after book two, OUT OF NOWHERE and I’ve never been so happy to have my heart wrung out and stomped on.  Bravo!


Meghan March (www.meghanmarch.com): Thanks to my friends Tricia and Carla for recommending her to me. I devoured the BENEATH series and then started on her other books. Solid stories with realistic and flawed characters with sexy, sexy times and believable romance was delivered in every book. So, so good.

I’ll stop there before I basically talk about every book I read this year . . . tell me what books you loved and why!

 

Happy reading in 2017!!

xxxRobin

 

Holy Moly!  Grab these 99 cents romance deals while they last . . . . you know you want to . . .

 

THREE LITTLE WORDS: THE COMPLETE SERIES by Lauren Hawkeye- $0.99

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DELICATE INK by Carrie Ann Ryan- FREE

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GAME OF LOVE by Melissa Foster- FREE

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THE DARK ONES by Rachel Van Dyken- $0.99

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HIS SOUTHERN TEMPTATION by Robin Covington- $0.99

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Friends – I’m so excited to reveal the cover for my first erotic romance, THIRD.  It’s so hot and I am thrilled to feature a photograph of the sexy Darren Birks!  It will hit your e-readers on October 17, 2016!

Blurb:

Dr. Carla Androghetti is not interested in compromise. 

With a thriving psychiatry practice in Washington, D.C. and a fulfilling position as a sexual third in a threesome with couples at Club D, she’s living just the way she wants. When the murder of a famous former bedmate hits the headlines, her public and personal life are put under the microscope – especially she finds herself on the shortlist of suspects and in the sights of the hot cop on the case.

Homicide Detective Aiden Cross  takes no prisoners.

Reeling from a previous murder case he couldn’t solve and the sudden departure of his former partner, he’s laser-focused on solving the killing of a junior Congressman found with the sexy shrink’s business card in his pocket. When all the clues lead back to the elite Club D, he’s convinced that Carla’s particular kink has put her in the crosshairs of D.C.’s latest killer.

Passion will force them to take a risk.

Danger is on the loose in the city and Aiden has to decide if Carla is the killer or the next victim. When forbidden desire takes them to the edge of their personal limits, their walls will need to crumble if they have any chance surviving and any hope of saving their hearts.

 

Add it to your Goodreads shelf:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30746150-third

 

Can’t wait to meet Carla?  She was a character in RUSH. You can buy it at these retailers:

 

BLURB:

Atticus Rush doesn’t really like people. Years in Special Ops and law enforcement showed him the worst of humanity, making his mountain hideaway the ideal place to live. But when his colleagues at MacKenzie Security need him to save the kidnapped young daughter of a U.S. Senator, he’ll do it, even if it means working with the woman who broke his heart ¼his ex-wife.

Lady Olivia Rutledge-Cairn likes to steal things. Raised with a silver spoon and the glass slipper she spent years cultivating a cadre of acquaintances in the highest places. She parlayed her natural gift for theft into a career of locating and illegally retrieving hard-to-find items of value for the ridiculously wealthy.   Rush was the one man who tempted her to change her ways¼until he caught her and threatened to turn her in.

MacKenzie Security has vowed to save the girl. Olivia can find anything or anyone. Rush can get anyone out. As the clock winds down on the girl’s life, can they fight the past, a ruthless madman and their explosive passion to get the job done?

 

Buy Links:

 

Friends – things are super crazy in the Covington house as I prepare to head to San Diego in a couple of weeks for the Romance Writers of America conference and the glitzy gala for the RITA awards. In case you didn’t know, the RITA’s are like the Oscars – but for romance writing – and I’m still pinching myself that I got the call and that my book, ONE LITTLE KISS, was nominated in best novella category.

That calls for a celebration . . . right?  I thought so too.

So, for the next two weeks I’m going to feature one of my fellow nominees and give away their nominated book. And one very lucky reader will win a $25 Amazon GC!

Today I’m featuring the amazing ERIN QUINN – author of the nominated novella, THE RESURRECTION OF SAM SLOAN.

 

Give us your “call” story. Where were you when you got the RITA call?

I was at home watching Good Morning America when the phone rang. The call came on my house phone and was a number I didn’t recognize so I didn’t answer.  I was certain that my cell number was on the entry form, so it didn’t occur to me that they’d be calling the house phone.  I remember thinking that the telemarketers were starting early that day.  About ten minutes later, I’d finished my coffee and was headed for the office to start writing.  I remember thinking, guess it’s a no again this year on the RITA thing.  Then the house phone rang again, same number.  Knowing I was going to regret it and it was just going to be someone wanting to clean my carpets or fix my (unbroken) windshield, I answered.  As soon as I heard the Texas accent, I got goose bumps.  Once she said, “from RWA . . . .”  I nearly passed out.  Needless to say, the highlight of my year.


Everyone has a gateway romance novel that turned them into a diehard fan – what was your book and when did you first read it?

Pride and Prejudice. I loved it from the first word.  I still love it and read it every now and again.


What book are you working on right now?

I JUST finished The Seven Sins of Ruby Love which is third book in my Beyond Series, set in Tempe, Arizona. The novella that’s up for the RITA, The Resurrection of Sam Sloan, is also part of my Beyond Series.  More about Sam’s story below.




Tell us about your nominated novella!

Trapped in the body of a human, the Reaper is about to fall in love with a woman he was never meant to have . . .

Blurb:  When a reaper is trapped in Maggie’s estranged husband’s body, she knows only that the man with her husband’s eyes feels like a stranger . . . a compelling, seductive stranger who touches her in ways her treacherous husband never could.  She wants to trust him, but what about the ghost who haunts their home, implicating him in a gruesome murder . . . .

Excerpt:

“It’s not a game, Maggie.”

She shook her head, but her gaze had fixed on his mouth and the Reaper took the chance before she changed her mind.  Her lips were soft and silky.  Against his, they felt like nothing he’d imagined and everything he’d imagined.  There were no memories of this in Sam’s banks and he was glad for that.  He wanted this experience for his own.  Sensations shot through him in sharp, hot waves, a torrent of passion and lightning.

She made a soft sound of surrender in her throat, murmured something that sounds like, I’m a fool, and then her arms twined around his neck and she kissed him back.

The feel of her; the smell of her, the sweet intoxicating scent . . . .  All of it filled him, pushed out the vestiges of the man Sam had been, overwhelmed the foundation of the Reaper inside, and forced them both into the moment that was now.  Here.  Her.  Him.

Maggie tugged at his shirt, pulling it free of his jeans, then took his hand, leading him up the stairs and into the bedroom she’d banned him from.  The door closed behind them.  She locked it.

“I want you so much that that I can hardly breathe,” he said, that hint of accent that only appeared at rare times adding a husky rasp to his voice.  “I’ve been thinking about this since I opened my eyes.  Since I came to life.”

There were more words he should say, feelings begging for a voice, but the swamp of emotion made speaking an impossible feat.

He took her face in his hands, kissing her like this life that he’d never expected to have depended on the breath he stole from her.  She tugged at his shirt once more and he stepped back only long enough to strip it off.

Her eyes molten, her pulse beating away at her throat, she stared at his bare chest with a hunger that threatened to consume him.  His hands were big and clumsy as he gently pulled her shirt over her head when he wanted to rip it off.  He dropped it on the floor and simply stared at the perfection he’d unveiled.  Her skin was as smooth as alabaster, flawlessly beautiful.  A bra the same shade as her skin held her breasts in an embrace of lace and satin.  He touched one gently, groaning at the weight, the softness.  He bent his head and covered it with his mouth, sucking the hard nipple, letting the lace rasp against his tongue, acting on instinct he didn’t question.

“Take it off,” he asked, his voice so deep it throbbed against the quiet.

She arched back, hands meeting between her shoulder blades as she unfastened the bra and shrugged it off.  The stretchy pants came next without him even asking.  She stood before him in dainty pearlescent panties and his body went up in flames.

He’d never imagined that just looking at someone could make him feel so many things.  He wanted to take; he wanted to give.  He wanted to stroke, to bite, to kiss, to lick . . . to worship.

He lifted her up and turned her, laying her out on the bed so he could follow her down to the soft mattress.  Her body yielded to his and the perfection in the feeling wrenched another groan from him.  She was beautiful, inside and out.  He kissed her deeply, trying to slow his racing his heart.  Trying to experience each second, but everything came at him at once.  The sensations, the passion, the desire to please her.

He had her in bed, where he’d wanted her from the start, and he needed her like he’d never needed anything before.  She was gloriously naked and in his arms, where he felt she’d always belonged.  But fear suddenly crept in.  He’d never done this before and though he’d managed to toe the line between human and Reaper, he knew in a deep place that had been growing since the moment he’d opened his eyes, the time had come.

Reaper or human?  He couldn’t be both.

One came without the heavy burden of emotion, of mortality, of humanity.

The other came with Maggie.

www.erinquinnbooks.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ErinQuinnAuthor

Twitter: @ErinQuinnAuthor

 

New York Times bestselling author Erin Quinn writes dark paranormal romance for the thinking reader. Her books have been called “riveting,” “brilliantly plotted” and “beautifully written” and have won, placed or showed in the Booksellers Best, WILLA Award for Historical fiction, the Orange Rose, Readers Crown, Golden Quill, Best Books, and Award of Excellence. Go to www.erinquinnbooks.com for more information or follow Erin on Facebook or Twitter.

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Do you want to win a copy of Erin’s awesome book? Hop on over to my Facebook page and leave a comment on the post with her graphic. Here’s the link for my page.

And if you want to enter to win the $25 Amazon GC – use this rafflecopter . .

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friends – things are super crazy in the Covington house as I prepare to head to San Diego in a couple of weeks for the Romance Writers of America conference and the glitzy gala for the RITA awards. In case you didn’t know, the RITA’s are like the Oscars – but for romance writing – and I’m still pinching myself that I got the call and that my book, ONE LITTLE KISS, was nominated in best novella category.

That calls for a celebration . . . right?  I thought so too.

So, for the next two weeks I’m going to feature one of my fellow nominees and give away their nominated book. And one very lucky reader will win a $25 Amazon GC!

Today I’m featuring the amazing ALYSSA COLE – author of the nominated novella, LET IT SHINE.

 

 

Give us your “call” story. Where were you when you got the RITA call?

I was home at work. I live in another country, so when I saw the call coming I kind of knew. But then when I picked up, it was my friend Courtney Milan (who had randomly been assigned to call me!) and I FREAKED OUT. That made it really special. I would have been really happy to get the call from anyone, but because it was a friend, I was able to act like a complete fool. When I got off the phone, everything hit me and I just started crying from happiness, which my dogs did not understand at all and led to some canine confusion.

Everyone has a gateway romance novel that turned them into a diehard fan – what was your book and when did you first read it?

Honestly, this is pretty hard. I’ve always loved the idea of romance, for as long as I could remember, and sought it out in everything from fairy tales to movies. I started reading adult novels pretty early, but I guess one of my first romantic influences was Beverly Cleary’s Fifteen, which was the complete opposite of anything I knew as a kid growing up in Jersey City, but made me so happy.

What book are you working on right now?

I’m working on my novella for the historical I’m part of (Daughters of a Nation: A Black Suffragette Romance Anthology, with Piper Huguley, Kianna Alexander, and Lena Hart, out in November), and the second book of my Civil War romance series (the first book, An Extraordinary Union, comes out in early 2017).

Tell us about your nominated novella!

My novella, Let It Shine, was part of an anthology (with the fabulous authors I listed in my previous answer) called The Brightest Day: A Juneteenth Historical Romance Anthology. I’d had the idea for a long time though. A few years back, Mississippi released a lot of stuff that had been classified, and some of that was the mugshots of the Freedom Riders, nonviolent resistors who integrated the country’s buslines, most of them ending up in prison in Mississippi. Seeing the faces of these young people and reading their stories was really moving, and then I thought, “I bet some of them fell in love.” That’s how Sofie and Ivan were born. Sofie is a young woman who plays the part of the good black girl. Ivan is a Jewish boxer, and her former childhood friend (her mom worked as  a domestic for his mom), who knows that there’s more to her than the meek woman she’s become. They both get involved in Civil Rights activism, by chance, and fall in love in the process!

Find out everything about Alyssa on her website: https://alyssacole.com

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Do you want to win a copy of Alyssa’s awesome book? Hop on over to my Facebook page and leave a comment on the post with her graphic. Here’s the link for my page.

And if you want to enter to win the $25 Amazon GC – use this rafflecopter . .

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friends – things are super crazy in the Covington house as I prepare to head to San Diego in a couple of weeks for the Romance Writers of America conference and the glitzy gala for the RITA awards. In case you didn’t know, the RITA’s are like the Oscars – but for romance writing – and I’m still pinching myself that I got the call and that my book, ONE LITTLE KISS, was nominated in best novella category.

That calls for a celebration . . . right?  I thought so too.

So, for the next two weeks I’m going to feature one of my fellow nominees and give away their nominated book. And one very lucky reader will win a $25 Amazon GC!

Today I’m featuring the amazing JULES BARNARD – author of the nominated novella, BLUE STREAK.

 

1. Give us your “call” story. Where were you when you got the RITA call?

I was sleeping! I’m a night person, so I tend to stay up late working. In my half-awake state, I thought it was one of my publishing sub-contractors calling. Then I realized the RITAs were being announced, and that woke me right up! It took me a full day for it to sink in that I’d actually been nominated and it wasn’t a dream.

2. Everyone has a gateway romance novel that turned them into a diehard fan – what was your book and when did you first read it?

No laughing, but it was Twilight, probably for the same reason Fifty Shades of Grey (fanfic of Twilight) appealed to so many. There’s something about two people who have no business falling in love building this deep, life-altering connection against all obstacles.

3. What book are you working on right now?

I’m working on the second book in my romantic fantasy Halven Rising Series, Fates Entwined. This series was inspired by Stephenie Meyer, Rachel Caine, Richelle Mead, Karen Chance, and a ton of other fabulous paranormal/urban fantasy writers.

4. Tell us about your nominated novella!

Blue Streak is a part of my contemporary Blue Series. In this story the heroine is in love with one of her best friends—and he keeps her at arms distance. It’s driving her crazy, and she’s going to do something about it. Enter a hot tub, tequila, and a night neither of them can forget. But of course, there are bigger obstacles keeping them apart—and the reason the hero has kept his distance all this time.

 

For more information: http://www.julesbarnard.com/

Sign up for Jules’s Newsletter and receive access to FREE extra scenes: http://www.julesbarnard.com/newsletter/

Join Jules’s Facebook Fan Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/665630090237673/

Follow Jules on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julesbarnardauthor

Follow Jules on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jules_barnard

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Do you want to win a copy of Jules awesome book? Hop on over to my Facebook page and leave a comment on the post with her graphic. Here’s the link for my page.

And if you want to enter to win the $25 Amazon GC – use this rafflecopter . .

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friends – things are super crazy in the Covington house as I prepare to head to San Diego in a couple of weeks for the Romance Writers of America conference and the glitzy gala for the RITA awards. In case you didn’t know, the RITA’s are like the Oscars – but for romance writing – and I’m still pinching myself that I got the call and that my book, ONE LITTLE KISS, was nominated in best novella category.

That calls for a celebration . . . right?  I thought so too.

So, for the next two weeks I’m going to feature one of my fellow nominees and give away their nominated book. And one very lucky reader will win a $25 Amazon GC!

Today I’m featuring the amazing Merline Lovelace – author of the nominated novella, DESERT HEAT.

 

 

Give us your “call” story. Where were you when you got the RITA call?

This is kind of embarrassing but I had forgotten that March was notification month and was at the gym the morning the calls went out.  When I got home about noon I found several urgent messages on my phone.  RWA didn’t want to release the list of nominees until everyone had been notified but I was so late getting back to them that the list had gone out and I was already getting congratulatory emails and calls.  This is my twelfth nomination, but I have to say it’s still a HUGE thrill!

Everyone has a gateway romance novel that turned them into a diehard fan – what was your book and when did you first read it?

Well… I’m dating myself here but my older sister and I discovered Georgette Heyer during the summer of 1967.  Her husband was serving in VN, so she and her kids had moved back to Massachusetts to be close to home.  She and I were both so hooked that we drove to every library in Western MA to track down Heyer books.  Then we’d treat ourselves to pizza at our favorite Italian restaurant and read away.  That summer remains one of my fondest memories, and I’m a diehard Regency/romance fan to this day.

What book are you working on right now?

 I just finished a 3-book series for Harlequin Special Edition and needed a change of pace.  So I’m dusting off a medieval romance I started some years ago but put aside to work on other projects. It’s set during the early days of the reign of Richard the Lionhearted and has swept me back to that time of pageantry and tangled loyalties.

Tell us about your nominated novella!

DESERT HEAT is part of the COURSE OF ACTION series I did with the fabulous Lindsay McKenna featuring Special Ops hero/heroines from all different services.  The hero is an Air Force pararescueman on a joint training mission with the Royal Omani Air Force and the heroine is a mezzo-soprano performing at the opera house in Muscat when it’s attacked by terrorists.

The plot for this novella came to me in, like, thirty seconds when my husband and I visited the Royal Omani Opera House during an Indian Ocean cruise in 2014.  It’s really, really gorgeous and has hosted such greats as Pavarotti, Yo Yo Ma, and the American Ballet Company.  Actually, I loved everything about Muscat – the clean, graceful Arabic architecture, the incredible color and scents of the spice market, the friendly people – and knew I had to set a book there!  What made writing this novella even more fun was that I got to incorporate so many of my experiences during that memorable time in the hot, searing deserts of Oman and Dubai.

I should also add that I worked with pararescuemen (PJs) several times during my air force career.  These guys are tough, tough, tough.  They make the SEALs look like mere wannabes

Should folks so desire they can check my webpage at www.merlinelovelace.com or friend me on Facebook.

***

Do you want to win a copy of Merline’s awesome book? Hop on over to my Facebook page and leave a comment on the post with her graphic. Here’s the link for my page.

And if you want to enter to win the $25 Amazon GC – use this rafflecopter . .

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Friends – things are super crazy in the Covington house as I prepare to head to San Diego in a couple of weeks for the Romance Writers of America conference and the glitzy gala for the RITA awards. In case you didn’t know, the RITA’s are like the Oscars – but for romance writing – and I’m still pinching myself that I got the call and that my book, ONE LITTLE KISS, was nominated in best novella category.

That calls for a celebration . . . right?  I thought so too.

So, for the next two weeks I’m going to feature one of my fellow nominees and give away their nominated book. And one very lucky reader will win a $25 Amazon GC!

Today I’m featuring the amazing Madeline Ash – author of the nominated novella, HER SECRET PRINCE.

 

Give us your “call” story. Where were you when you got the RITA call?

I was away in the country (Australian bush) for the Easter weekend, writing. When my phone rang, I considered not answering because I didn’t recognize the number. I had no idea RITA finalists were announced so early in the year, so couldn’t think who might be calling me from the United States. Thankfully I answered, and the very friendly Renee introduced herself and dropped the news – and I tried to maintain my composure from where I’d sat suddenly on the floor!

Everyone has a gateway romance novel that turned them into a diehard fan – what was your book and when did you first read it?

For me, it was The Man She Loves to Hate by Kelly Hunter. She hooked me on category romance within the first few pages. Before reading that book, I’d read a lot of fantasy and young adult fiction, which tends to have strong romantic threads. It took me years to realize that I was basically reading them for the romance alone! The romantic fantasy that triggered this epiphany was Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier – an enchantingly beautiful romance based on the fairytale of the six swans.

What book are you working on right now?

Actually, I just submitted a manuscript last week, so I’m in that strange zone where I should take a break to nurture my Muse, but am already itching to start something new. As for what I just submitted, it was book #4 in a four-book series with Tule Publishing, hopefully out later this year.

Tell us about your nominated novella!

I’d love to! Her Secret Prince is a friends-to-lovers, royal romance. The leads are best friends in high school, but are then separated by the hero’s family secret. Years later, the hero Jed is seeking answers and tracks down Dee for her help. Neither character knows Jed is a prince until about halfway through, allowing for a foundation of ‘normal’ character conflicts – which are then turned on their head with the royal revelation. The novella is upbeat, fast-paced, and a bit quirky, and I loved writing it!

Thank you so much for having me on your blog, Robin, and congratulations on your own nomination. I’ve read One Little Kiss and adored it!  Awwww . . . thank you Madeline!

Website: http://madelineash.net/

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MadelineAshAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Madeline_Ash

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madelineashauthor/

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Do you want to win a copy of Madeline’s awesome book? Hop on over to my Facebook page and leave a comment on the post with Caroline’s graphic. Here’s the link for my page.

And if you want to enter to win the $25 Amazon GC – use this rafflecopter . .

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friends – things are super crazy in the Covington house as I prepare to head to San Diego in a couple of weeks for the Romance Writers of America conference and the glitzy gala for the RITA awards. In case you didn’t know, the RITA’s are like the Oscars – but for romance writing – and I’m still pinching myself that I got the call and that my book, ONE LITTLE KISS, was nominated in best novella category.

That calls for a celebration . . . right?  I thought so too.

So, for the next two weeks I’m going to feature one of my fellow nominees and give away their nominated book. And one very lucky reader will win a $25 Amazon GC!

Today I’m featuring the amazing Caroline Linden – author of the nominated novella, ALL’S FAIR IN LOVE AND SCANDAL.

 

Give us your “call” story. Where were you when you got the RITA call?

Walking my dog! I actually ignored the call at first, thinking it was sure to be a telemarketer or pollster. I had completely forgotten it was RITA day.

Everyone has a gateway romance novel that turned them into a diehard fan – what was your book and when did you first read it?

I read Harlequins and Signet Regencies in high school (sneaking them out of the library behind my mother’s back) but it was Lisa Kleypas and Julia Quinn who really blew my mind. Reading their books was a revelation, and made me want to write my own.

What book are you working on right now?

Two things: a novella which will be a sequel of sorts to a previous story; and a novel I’ve been planning for ten years. In my very first book, I wrote a secondary character called the Duke of Ware. It’s taken a long time to get to it, but this book will be about him. He had a wild, passionate love affair as a young man and got his heart broken when the girl disappeared without a word. Years later, he’s about to meet her again, in vastly different—but no less charged—circumstances. I’m loving writing it.

Tell us about your nominated novella!

It’s a Regency historical novella called ALL’S FAIR IN LOVE AND SCANDAL, part of my Scandals series. The hero is a jock—sports fan, athletic, fond of wagering. The heroine is mysterious and aloof. Someone suspects she’s the anonymous author of the notorious erotic stories titillating everyone in town (called 50 Ways to Sin) and the hero is goaded into a wager over proving it. Which means he has to get to know her—very, very well. But she’s no fool; she knows he’s up to something and she holds him at bay…until she can’t resist him any longer.

One of my guilty pleasures is the elaborately staged marriage proposal—those videos are my catnip—and so I wrote one into this novella, as an inside joke with myself.

 

Website: http://www.carolinelinden.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCaroli...

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Caro_Linden

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

Do you want to win a copy of Caroline’s awesome book? Hop on over to my Facebook page and leave a comment on the post with Caroline’s graphic. Here’s the link for my page.

And if you want to enter to win the $25 Amazon GC – use this rafflecopter . .

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway