[Book Blast] A Perfect Catch by Anna Sugden #Excerpt #Giveaway

A Perfect Catch

by Anna Sugden

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BLURB:

He's the perfect catch…for now!

When it comes to romance, Tracy Hayden is not looking for a rematch. She's had epic passion—and problems!—with professional hockey player Ike Jelinek. Brilliant on skates and magic in bed, his too-traditional-for-her views were like a bucket of ice water on their affair.

Then an injury takes Ike out of the game, and everything changes. Suddenly he needs her services-providing business—even though he once claimed it was their biggest problem. Tracy's determined to be professional, despite the sizzling attraction between them that won't go away. Maybe they need a second fling to fix that!

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EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT

Tracy wasn’t surprised to see Ike. The four Jelinek boys had grown up with Jake, and the men were like broth¬ers. Still, she’d hoped she’d get lucky and miss him.

Back when Tracy had been starting Making Your Move, her relocation business, she’d helped Ike find the perfect town house and they’d had a hot and heavy fling shortly after. Even though they’d been great together in bed—and a whole bunch of other places—the fire had burned out quickly when they’d realized they’d wanted different things from a re¬lationship.

The flip side of all that passion meant they rubbed each other the wrong way ever since. Unfortunately they couldn’t avoid each other. Even ignoring the family connection, Making Your Move managed all the Ice Cats’ relocation, travel and accommodation projects, so Tracy spent a lot of time with the team.

What surprised her was that every time she saw Ike, her body reacted to his broad shoulders, his powerful legs and his crooked grin as if they were still lovers.

No way. She knew better than to go down that road again.

“Hey, princess.” Ike caught Emily as she threw herself at him, lifting and twirling her around, much to the girl’s delight.

Laughing, they headed toward Tracy.

Ike’s smile faded when he spoke to her. “Con¬gratulations.”

“Thanks,” she replied politely.

Emily skipped between the two adults as they walked toward the hospital entrance. “Auntie Tracy, did you see that Uncle Ike bought exactly the same bear as you?”

Sure enough, the stuffed toy Ike clutched awk¬wardly by the arm was identical to the one in her gift bag, right down to the yellow ribbon tied jaun¬tily around its neck.

“You can’t have too many teddy bears.” She kept her voice light, even though she wanted to snap childishly at him to take his back.

Ike arched an eyebrow. “I wouldn’t have thought you’d get something as old-fashioned as a bear.”

The emphasis was intended to goad her. One of the reasons she and Ike hadn’t made it was she’d thought his attitude toward women and life were stuffy and old-fashioned. “Teddy bears are tradi¬tional. There’s a difference.”

The look in Ike’s green eyes said he begged to differ. “Uh-huh.”

“Auntie Tracy got me the same bear when I was born. Except mine has a pink ribbon.”

“A family tradition.” Tracy smiled sweetly.

“My tradition for new Ice Cat babies is to get them one of those all-in-one things with feet, with the team logo on it.”

“Shouldn’t they be called Ice Kittens, Uncle Ike?”

“I guess they should. But you wouldn’t want to confuse them with the girls who clean the ice for us.”

“Why? They’re only cheerleaders on skates.” Em¬ily’s lip curled. “Just because we don’t like their job doesn’t mean we should disrespect the ice girls, Em,” Tracy chided gently.

Ike shot a look of surprise at her. “I thought you’d disapprove of them. Women being used as—” he paused, glancing at Emily, who was following the discussion intently “—entertainment for the pre¬dominantly male audience.”

“I wouldn’t want to be one and, if I owned the team, I wouldn’t have them at all, but the job exists. As long as they’re not being exploited, good luck to them. Besides, I’ve seen how hard the Ice Kittens work. They have a lot of promotional and charity duties, on top of what they do at games.”

“Be careful—they’ll be taking away your femi¬nist badge.”

Tracy shrugged. Ike had always thought she was a bra-burning radical, rather than a woman who didn’t like to be pigeon-holed, dictated to or discriminated against because of her sex. “I believe in equality and that if you can do the job, you can do the job.”

“That means if I can play well enough, I can be an Ice Cat, not an Ice Kitten.” Emily nodded, with a satisfied grin.

Tracy bit back a smile as Ike clamped his jaw shut. Clearly, he didn’t agree with women playing in the NHL. Luckily, they arrived at the hospital en¬trance, so Emily’s attention turned to which floor her mother would be on.

A blast of warm air hit them as the automatic doors swished open, and the three of them hurried inside out of the chilly November evening. The lift was crowded with the start of evening visiting hours, but by the time they got to Maternity there were only a few people with new-baby gifts.

Jake met them in the waiting room, looking tired but exhilarated. They exchanged hugs and congratu¬lations before he led them down to Maggie’s room. Emily rushed ahead, chattering a mile a minute.

Ike caught the door and held it open for Tracy. She nodded her thanks as she walked past him into the room.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Harlequin SuperRomance author, Anna Sugden, loves reading and writing happy endings as much as hockey! When not reading or watching hockey, she loves football, good food & wine, making simple cross-stitch projects, and collecting memorabilia, penguins and fab shoes!

A former marketing executive and primary teacher, Anna lives in Cambridge, England, with her husband and two bossy black cats. Learn more about Anna, her heart-warming romances and her shoes at www.annasugden.com . You can also follow her on Facebook (www.facebook.com/annasugden.romanceauthor), Twitter (www.twitter.com/annasugden) Pinterest (www.pinterest.com/annasugden) and on the Romance Bandits blog (www.romancebandits.com

Buy Links:

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-perfect-catch-anna-sugden/1120111934?ean=9781460375983

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Catch-Harlequin-Superromance-ebook/dp/B00O94D47Y/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1418215436&sr=8-2&keywords=a+perfect+catch

Harlequin:  http://www.harlequin.com/storeitem.html?iid=56514

Anna will award a $15 Amazon GC to one randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter, as well as 4 signed copies of A Perfect Catch AND 4 exclusive A Perfect Catch notebooks. (international giveaway). 

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[Book Tour] Convincing the Rancher by Claire McEwen #Interview #Giveaway @HarlequinBooks

Convincing the Rancher

by Claire McEwen

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BLURB:

About that night…

Benson, CA, represents all that Tess Cole doesn't want. So she intends to keep her business trip there brief. Too bad her idea to quickly change the mayor's mind about some planning issues dissolves the moment she recognizes him! That one night with Slaid Jacobs remains a personal favorite for Tess—and for him, too, it seems.

Even though he's gorgeous and hot, it's clear to Tess that the single dad wants a commitment—something she avoids. It's also clear Slaid is bent on convincing her they can build a future out of their passionate past. And that's a very tempting offer…

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TESS WASN’T PREPARED for a Jeep that looked like an ice sculpture. With a pang of longing, she pictured her underground parking space in San Francisco, where even on the rare frosty morning she never had to worry about a frozen car. Reluctantly she opened her wallet and stared at her rainbow assortment of credit cards, wondering which one she could sacrifice as an ice scraper. The Saks Fifth Avenue card was nice and thick and would work the best, but she didn’t want to risk ruining it. Same with Bloomingdale’s. And there was no way she’d sacrifice Nordstrom—their annual shoe sale was coming up.

           

She finally settled for Talbots and started scraping at the frosted windshield. The ice came off in a spray coating her bare skin. “Ow!” she exclaimed and pulled her hand away abruptly, shaking it to try to get the frost off and the heat back in.

           

“Don’t tell me you didn’t bring gloves?” The deep voice had her whirling to confront the mayor. He looked warm and comfortable, his thick parka advertising the fact that he was prepared for the weather. The battered leather cowboy hat on his head was one more reminder that she’d left San Francisco far behind.

           

“It’s probably seventy degrees at home today,” she said by way of an answer.

“It’s seventy degrees in San Francisco most days. Didn’t you check the weather report before you drove out here?”

She hadn’t. She’d been in denial until she’d pulled into town yesterday. Despite all the arguments with Ed and the cramming she’d done to understand wind power, she’d ignored the fact that she’d be living in this tiny town in the middle of nowhere for the next month or so. Tess could safely say that denial was one of her strongest abilities.

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1) What sparked your interest in becoming a romance writer?

I am a total romantic, so the idea of immersing myself in romance was pretty appealing!  Plus, I wanted to tell stories about everyday people who were trying to figure life out, and contemporary romance is perfect for that.  The genre takes the characters on a journey of learning and growth. I also felt strongly that my stories had to have a happy ending. So romance seemed like a great match for me.

2) What is one of your favorite quotes?

I firmly believe that most of the best quotes on writing, or pretty much anything else, come from Anne Lamott.  If you haven’t read her book on writing, Bird By Bird, Some Thoughts on Writing and Life, I highly recommend it.  One of the many pearls of wisdom in this book is “Don’t look at your feet to see if you’re doing it right.  Just dance.”  You can apply it to almost any situation but for writing it’s truly perfect.  We can get so caught up in trying to make our work perfect, or pleasing to everyone, or a bestseller, or better than someone else’s, that we can lose our spark and dull our creativity.

3) Do you plan all your characters out before you start a story or do they develop as you write?

Well, they seem to show up out of the blue, but then I spend time writing about them in a notebook, learning their backstory.  For example, the heroine, Tess Cole, in my new release, Convincing the Rancher, walked into a scene in my first book, perfectly clear to me!  Not just how she looked, but her personality.  But to write her book I had to understand more about her. What had happened to her that made her the way she is?  So that took more focused thinking.  Then I had to figure out who the hero would be.  What kind of man would be able to capture her guarded heart?  Slaid Jacobs came into my imagination right away.  I knew he was the mayor and that he was a single dad.  I could see him sitting at his desk. But then again, I had to think more about what made him the way he is.  Why was he mayor? Why was he a single dad?  What about Tess appeals to him?  What about her makes him frustrated?

4) What type of book have you always wanted to write?

I love writing my contemporary westerns but I also love to travel in Europe and I’ve always wanted to set some books there.  So I started one of them recently.  It’s a romance, but with some art history and mystery thrown in.  It’s set in Paris and I’m stumbling through the rough draft whenever I get a chance to work on it.  It’s a challenge, but I love trying something new!

5) How did you get the idea for this particular novel?

It seemed like bits of my life came together and contributed to this plot.  We were trying to adopt a baby, so I guess I had adoption on my mind.  And some friends of mine who had adopted told me that they had paid for a PO Box for their child’s birthmother, so she’d always have an address where their child could write to her.  That was so poignant to me, such a beautiful thing to do, that I knew I had to put something like it in my book.  It really helped me develop the rest of Tess’s story.  What I’d first imagined as sort of a light-hearted book took on a lot more depth.  And as I mentioned before, I could picture Slaid in his faded jeans, cowboy hat and flannel shirt, with his cowboy boots up on a big desk with an American flag behind it.  I knew he was the mayor.  But I didn’t know what type of conflict he’d have with Tess.  Then my sister went camping in the Eastern Sierras and came home early because it was so windy everyday.  That’s when I knew the conflict would have to do with windmills and wind energy.

Flirting Questions 

1)Hey, baby! What’s your sign? 

I’m a Libra.  And the funny thing is, my husband is too. And one of the traits of Libras is that they can see both sides of every issue, which sometimes makes it really hard to make a decision. So you can imagine how difficult it is for my husband and I to get anything decided and done!

2) What’s an absolute no-no in a relationship?

Cheating!  I’ve been cheated on before and it feels so awful.  I guess I’m still processing it because it shows up in a lot of my books!

3) How did you meet your significant other?

Well, it’s quite an odd story.  I was going through a divorce and had sworn off men forever.  My sister and I attended a Pogues concert at the Fillmore (a historic club) in San Francisco.  She spotted a handsome man and dragged me over to stand near him, despite my protests.  I refused to even look at him.  But during the concert some drunk men started bothering me, trying to get my name and phone number.  They wouldn’t leave me alone, and finally the handsome man next to me intervened and got them to go away.  At the end of the concert I thanked him, but refused to speak with him any more than that.  My sister was so convinced I should meet him that she dragged me through the crowds in pursuit of him as he was leaving!  I was so mad at her and went the opposite way.  So I didn’t meet him. 

But a couple of days later, while searching online for an apartment to rent, I noticed a page on the Craigslist website called Missed Connections.  When I clicked on it, I found all kinds of messages from people trying to find someone they’d spotted around the city.  It was all very romantic and I kept reading, just for fun.  Much to my surprise, I found a message addressed to “You of the Curly Red Hair, at the Pogues Concert.”  I have curly red hair, so of course I clicked on it.  It was from the man next to me at the concert  - the handsome stranger my sister had been so sure I needed to meet.  It was such a bizarre coincidence that I realized my sister was right - I did need to meet this man!  So I answered the ad. And we’ve been together pretty much ever since.

4) If you could take a romantic trip, where would it be?

Well, as a parent, I think it would be really romantic to go to a nice resort in Hawaii that had fun kids activities for my son.  So then my husband and I could have a few hours alone together in a tropical paradise every day.  But last fall, my husband, son and I took a very romantic journey all together.  We rented an apartment in Paris for a week, then drove through France and stayed at an ancient castle for a few days, then went on to Italy to stay in Venice for a week.  It was such a lovely trip.  We were so surrounded by romantic beauty every day.  I’d love to take that entire trip again if I could!

5) Do you believe in love at first sight?

I believe in love at second sight!  The second time I saw my husband was when we had our first date - after the crazy coincidence where we found each other via Craig’s List.  I was walking toward the bar where we’d arranged to meet.  He showed up at the same moment and when I saw him walking toward me, something in me just gave a jolt and I thought “Oh no.  I am in trouble. I am going to fall in love with this guy.”  And I did.

Flirting Quickies: 

Facial hair or clean shaven?  I have to admit, I’m not a fan of beards.  I don’t mind when my husband is a little scruffy, but when he grew a beard earlier this year?  I wasn’t too excited about it!

Planner or Pantster?  I’m a strange combination of both.  I plan a bit, then I fly by the seat of my pants for a while, then I plan a little more.

White wine or red?  Red… it goes really well with dark chocolate!

Coffee or tea?  Coffee. I love it. It makes everything better.

Vanilla or chocolate?  Chocolate. There is nothing like dark chocolate truffles, or chocolate cake, or chocolate mousse… yum.

Laptop or desktop? Laptop. I do a lot of my work while drinking coffee in cafes!

Beach or mountains?  Impossible to choose! I live a block from the ocean and I never get tired of walking along the shore.  But I write about the mountains and love it there…

Cat or dog? Dog, for sure!  I love my wacky little terrier mutt.

Twilight or Fifty Shades?  Twilight.  I didn’t love all of it, but a few of the scenes, especially in the first book, were really romantic!

Backpacking or luxury hotel?  Over the years I’ve morphed from a hardcore backpacker to a luxury hotel kind of gal.  It’s just a lot more relaxing then schlepping my gear up a mountain!

Christmas or Halloween?  Christmas!  I love it all, the lights, the yummy smelling tree, church during advent, buying gifts for my son… it’s such a sparkly time of year!

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Claire McEwen lives by the ocean in Northern California with her family and a scruffy, mischievous terrier.  When not dreaming up new stories, she can be found digging in her garden with a lot of enthusiasm but, unfortunately, no green thumb.  She loves discovering flea-market treasures, walking on the beach, dancing, traveling and reading, of course!  Convincing the Rancher is her third book for Harlequin Superromance.

Website:  http://www.clairemcewen.com

Blog:   http://blog.clairemcewen.com

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7226137.Claire_McEwen

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/CMcEwen.writer

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/ClaireMcEwen1

Buy Links:

Amazon: 

http://www.amazon.com/Convincing-Rancher-Harlequin-Superromance-Claire/dp/0373608942

Barnes and Noble:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/convincing-the-rancher-claire-mcewen/1120019161?ean=9781460345924

Harlequin:

http://www.harlequin.com/storeitem.html?iid=55343

iTunes:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/convincing-the-rancher/id905982790?mt=11

Kobo:

http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/convincing-the-rancher

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Review: 4 Winks - Back to the Good Fortune Diner by Vicki Essex

ARC Review

Title: Back to the Good Fortune Diner

Author: Vicki Essex

Publisher: Harlequin Superromance

Date: January 2, 2013

Book Blurb:

Everville, New York — it's the town where Tiffany Cheung grew up, and the last place she wants to be. But after losing her job in Manhattan, that's exactly where she finds herself. Worse, she's working at her family's Chinese diner and feeling like the outsider she once was. The only bright side is that Chris Jamieson, the boy she used to tutor, is still around. Her high school crush is hotter than ever, and he needs her help… again. Tutoring Chris's son is the perfect temporary job. Except, Chris finally seems interested in her — and is hinting about a less temporary arrangement. Talk about bad timing! Because Tiffany's not staying and nothing will stop her from getting back to her real life. But maybe what's real is about to change.

Review:

No one likes change and that is so true for Tiffany Cheung. Having lost her job, she had to return to her nightmare of a hometown, live with her parents, work in her family’s restaurant and run into old “friends.” What I loved about the characters in this book was the uniqueness in them. From Poh-Poh, Tiffany’s grandmother, to Chris’s son Simon, the interweaving of complications between the characters was a true talent. Additionally, I’ve never read a romance with an Asian cast and it was wonderful to finally find one. It also aids to some conflict in the book. When Tiffany’s love interest, Chris Jamieson introduces her to his father, Will Jamieson, who reminds me of Frasier’s dad in the popular sitcom, he says some racy comments that has the reader steaming.

As for the hero, Chris, you can’t get much better. He’s a single dad who works hard, is environmentally friendly and sexy as hell. Tiffany used to be Chris’s high school tutor and her secret crush. They finally work around some issues and have a steamy romance that surprises both of them. However, when Tiffany ultimately gets a job offer, everything she worked for, she has to leave town and Chris. Later, she learns that maybe what she wants out of life isn’t quite what she believed she wanted. Change can be good.

Overall, I rate the book four stars (four winks). I enjoyed the conflict, the families, the unique characters and the small town. I would’ve liked to have seen more love scenes, but it’s normal for a Superromance to have a mixture of this in their books. You never know what you’re going to get. Vicki Essex wrote a fantastic story weaving in mixtures of personal discoveries from all the characters. Bravo!

Four Winks