Cover Reveal for My Wild Highlander Audiobook


Here is the new audiobook cover for My Wild Highlander. What do you think? I wanted it to be another version of the original cover. The audiobook should be released in a week or two. It's finished and I really enjoyed listening to it. I hope you will too! It will be available at Audible, Amazon and iTunes.


Lady Angelique Drummagan, a half-Scottish, half-French countess, has suffered much pain and betrayal in her past. She wants nothing to do with the sensual Scottish warrior that the king has ordered her to marry because the rogue could never be a faithful husband, but she has little choice in the matter. Dangerous, greedy enemies threaten her from all sides and she’s in dire need of his protection. 

Sir Lachlan MacGrath, known as Seducer of the Highlands, possesses a charming wickedness and canny wit which has earned him much popularity. After the king decrees that he wed the fiery hellion, Lachlan discovers there is one woman who can resist him—Angelique. Can he break through her icy façade and melt her heart, or will the dark secrets lurking in her past not only cost them their future together, but their very lives?

Thanks!
Happy New Year!
Vonda


Are Stand Alone Romances Dead?

These days, it seems that all we hear about are series. Series. Series. And I love a good series, I really do, I follow more than I probably should, given the time I have to read. I love revisiting a favorite world and group of people. But what about those books that stand alone? Romances that tell a story fully in one book? (And yes, I know unless we're talking about an on-going serial, each book in a series should be able to be read as a stand alone, but I'm using that term here for a non-series book.)

Some of my favorite books are single title, stand alone romances. Non-series romances. They don't contain tons of extra characters the reader can tell are there just to set them up for their own story. They focus on the current characters and tell their story. Period.

If you listen to the "experts" (and as a romance author, I do) we should be only writing series, as quickly as we can. Don't bother writing any books that can't be connected to other books in the same world/small town/group of friends/band of brothers/etc.

But to me, it's sad to think that if LaVyrle Spencer had been given that advice there would be no MORNING GLORY. We'd have nothing by Jennifer Crusie or many of the books by Susan Elizabeth Phillips and so many other great romance authors. How many wonderful romances might never be written now? Yeah, series are great but can't the romance market support those books that aren't as well?

I have written both series and non-series books. As we stand on the cusp of 2015, I'm sitting here trying to make my goals for the coming year. I have my royal romance series I will be continuing, but I need a new project. I want a new project. But are the experts right? Would I be wasting my time writing a single title romance with a plus-sized heroine coming home to heal after a bad relationship and the tattooed hero she was always a little bit afraid of back in high school - a don't-judge-a-book-by-it's-cover book that's been calling to me for a couple of years now?

Yeah, I know I could come up with friends who could have their own stories later on, but then, as the author, I have to be planning those from the beginning. I have to start thinking release schedules for future books and weaving in those secondary characters so they don't feel like they are there merely as a set-up, and I maybe I don't want to do that with this story.

But of course, I want to sell books. I want to write books the readers want to buy, and create characters the readers will fall in love with. Writing is my business and the reality of that business is that my practical side has to choose my projects with the bottom line in mind, while my creative side cries out to write the stories that call to me.

This is where I am now. Do I keep writing my current series and when I'm ready for a new project, start one of the other group-of-friends/band-of-brothers series I have planned out? Do I just suck it up and go with the current wisdom and just forget about that other book?

So what do you think? Are stand alone romances dead?

Natasha
The Cottage Next Door
Her Royal Masquerade
Her Royal Bodyguard
Her Royal Rendezvous
www.natashamoore.com

I am an Alien




Did I ever tell you I'm part alien?

Which part, you may ask.

It's the part that sets off those theft detection alarms in stores.

I'd rather have the part that gives me supernatural powers - like becoming invisible, or reading your mind, or causing my posts to go viral. But no, I merely set off detection alarms.

Last weekend, I was leaving J Crew with a couple of large bags full of merchandise. The store was very crowded and when the alarm nabs you, it's not fun times. The security guys comes over and asks if I bought jewelry. This is akin to asking if the Pope is Catholic, because I am standing there with three teenage girls. Of course I bought jewelry!

He checks the jewelry. That's not the problem. Then he has to take every item out of every bag to check for the security tags. I know he won't find them, and he doesn't. Although he doesn't find or fix any problem, he waves the bags by the door and the alarm is silent. (No surprise there, because he is not an alien.) However, the alarm likes me now that it has embarrassed me, so it lets me go at this point without shrieking its displeasure.

On we go to The Gap. I try to enter and the alarm is activated immediately. I scurry back out and decide to take my bags to the car. The alarm screams its displeasure when I return, empty-handed. So when I'm checking out, I warn the clerk that the alarm will go off when I exit, even though one of my kids will carry the bags. Surprise. The alarm system has been mollified by my embarrassed explanation to the clerk, and it is silent when I depart.

You see, the fun part for my inner alien is catching me off guard. I can go weeks never setting off an alarm. Then on some days, I'm viewed as a criminal caught in the act wherever I go. I've entered stores wearing nothing more than a t-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops, with another family member carrying my purse ahead of me. The guard can see that I couldn't possibly be stealing anything (aside from the fact that I'm entering the store, not exiting). Yet, the alarm is screeching like Satan himself has just walked in.

It's so bad that one day I left Macy's with a dress for my daughter that had the security tag still on it because the clerk had forgotten to remove it. But no one stopped me so I continued on my merry way despite the fact that the alarm was blaring. That was super-annoying when I had to return to the store to get the tag removed!!!

It's embarrassing. It never gets less so. I've been stopped everywhere from Wal-Mart to Kate Spade. I don't want to be an alien. So that's why I only admit to being in "my alien phase" on those days when the security systems and I are simply not getting along.

Does anyone else have this happen (please?)?

My Birds are Back!

I've been seeing a lot of my birds come back after the hawk trouble I was having.  And my neighbor's cat was prowling and so when I began to take two little puppies out all the time, the birds watched from the trees and shrubs. Then I saw the whole colony of cardinals feeding. Though I think they lost one of their brothers to the hawk when I was gone a while back.
But it was fun seeing them again. It was getting to be dusk, and I need to clean my windows, and I was afraid to get closer to the window to really be able to stabilize the camera, so my pictures weren't all that great, but it was so much fun seeing all of them I had to try and get a few that might have turned out somewhat.
How many cardinals do you see?
How many cardinals do you see?
All male cardinals
All male cardinals
This really was an amazing sight to me because the hawk got one and then another bird, I found red feathers, so one day I saw a cardinal on top of the feeder that sits in the shrub. He was so wary. This time, all of them were flying down, feeding, sitting in a tree and I couldn't believe it. I would have thought that me going out with the dogs constantly would have made it worse as far as the birds being skittish. But they must realize that we're keeping the hawk and cat away.
The birds eat a lot of bugs, so I'm glad to have them.
Cardinal in the tree closer to the kitchen window
Cardinal in the tree closer to the kitchen window
Happy New Year!
Hopefully I'll be back before that, but it's been so hectic with working on housebreaking Tanner, the youngest pup at 8 weeks. Max was housebroken when I got him at 5 1/2 months. And With company.
I started putting away some Christmas decorations, only because it's a chore with having two puppies underfoot. :) So I figure it will take me a while.
And I need to do another new release blog for Jaguar Pride. And I'm still working on Phantom Fae every day, have word count, just need to finish the book. But I have a confession. My daughter and SIL got me PC game Dragon Age: Inquisition. I love the Dragon Age stories, and I'm having a ball. Got all my characters killed off over fighting a dragon, so need to figure out how to do that, but hey, here I'm writing about dragon shifters in the fae world, so this is research. Right???
My daughter, Jennifer, and Max, me, and Tanner
My daughter, Jennifer, and Max, me, and Tanner
We had to take a lot of pictures of both her dogs and Mike and Jenn and my dogs and Jenn and me. They were all moving, or we were moving to hold onto them.
My birds are back. The puppies are the best. I had a lovely Christmas with family, and it's time to begin the new year with lots and lots more books to write and share with you.

Terry
“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”
www.terryspear.com
Connect with Terry Spear:
Website:
www.terryspear.com
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/TerrySpear
Wilde & Woolly Bears
http://www.celticbears.com

Merry Christmas to all!

I hope everyone woke up yesterday to find lots of Christmas presents stacked under the tree and experiencing the giddy excitement of tearing open wrapping paper to see what magic you'd received.

For me, I got the best Christmas present that a writer -- and an avid reader! -- could hope for: an iPad Mini.

Talk about excited!!! I spent most of Christmas day filling up my device with new books and old favorites:


And swooning over the cool keyboard that (as a writer) will let me WRITE books as well as read them:


(That's me behind the camera -- hi everybody!)

Given the fact that the iPad mini can do email, FaceTime, texting, search Google, find weather forecasts, has a GPS, camera, and that I can play the addicting Words With Friends, I may never let this device out of my hands.

BEST. PRESENT. EVER.

Frankly, I'm astonished I could drag myself away from it long enough to type this post.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Until next month,
Leigh
www.leighcourt.com


Peace, Love, and Joy and Happy 2015!

I just wanted to take a moment and wish all our readers and my fellow bloggers a happy, happy holiday and solstice season. No matter whether you celebrate anything in the winter or celebrate everything, I hope your days are filled with whatever makes you happy. For me, that's peace and love and joy. And writing, of course!

I'm not scheduled to post next week, so this will be my last post of 2014. It has been an amazing ride this year--up and down and up and down--and I look forward to 2015. My plan is to find a way to rejuvenate (by writing) and to relax more (by writing). Do you see a pattern? lol

Actually, I'm off right now to do a little writing before I start helping with dinner preparations with our oldest son. I'm excited about two new books that will be released in 2015 and am editing the first one right now. It's great to be back at it after having to squeeze writing time in among my work projects.

I hope your new year brings you plenty of reading and/or writing time. I'll be back January 8th, but until we meet again...

Happy Reading!

Cameo


Happy Holidays!!


 From all of us here at Fierce Romance, Happy Holidays!



Merry Christmas!



















Merry Christmas!!

This year we had a really different Thanksgiving as my son is Overseas for Christmas for a second year in a row, and so for Thanksgiving, the first time he's been here in years for Thanksgiving, we celebrated Christmas. So it seems strange to be having it again! Only this time with my daughter and SIL. So that meant decorating and cleaning BEFORE Thanksgiving, when we normally put up the tree the day after. It was great! I've enjoyed the decorations longer and it just is cheerful. Don't you think?



New puppies, Max, 5 months, Tanner, 9 weeks first meet at home.








Everyone had to get in on the act! The wolves, jaguars, teddy bears!

And this is the 2nd year that I've had a Christmas book out. Last year it was with the SEALs. This year, the Highlanders. And next year, the Silver Brothers. And after that with the jaguars.

This in for Jaguar Pride releasing in Feb!


JaguarPride_041714_B
From Night Owl Reviews!!! Score: 5.00 / 5 – Reviewer Top Pick

I loved Terry Spear’s Jaguar Pride. The story flowed so well and I was surprised when I finished it. I was completely absorbed and loved the characters. Any story with shifters involved is going to rock my world, but this one was just amazing. I found it interesting that the author went with poachers. Poachers are a big thing and it can get very dangerous to stop them because you are cutting into them getting big money. I truly enjoyed this book and can easily recommend it. I hope others will love it as much as I did.
 

In Jaguar Pride Huntley takes no prisoners and is one of a kind. He and his partner Melissa find shifter cubs, by themselves, on a mission he takes them under his wing. No one will hurt them under his watch and Melissa feels the same way.

Happy reading,
Wild Rayne
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/jaguar-pride-terry-spear/1119260026

Jaguar Pride
Terry Spear

4 Stars

ISBN: 9781402293795

RT Review: The unexpected surprises included in this installment of the Heart of the Jaguar series are enough to make readers’ jaws drop. Spear’s latest is chilling and thrilling from start to finish – and fans of bad-ass cats will revel in each minute, clawing their way to the finish.
http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Pride-Heart-Terry-Spear/dp/1402293798/




A Highland Wolf Christmas (Book 15)
(OCT 7, 2014)
Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo | Book Depo | GoodReads

I think I'm ready for Christmas, except I've got to get more food. :)

What about you? Are you ready?

Terry
“Giving new meaning to the term alpha male where fantasy is reality.”
www.terryspear.com
Connect with Terry Spear:
Website:
www.terryspear.com
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/TerrySpearParanormalRomantics
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/TerrySpear
Wilde & Woolly Bears
http://www.celticbears.com

Christmas at Grove Park Inn



One of the things that I like to do around Christmas each year is to visit the Grove Park Inn, which is now the Omni Grove Park Inn. It is a beautiful place to visit any time, with its amazing views of the surrounding mountains, but especially beautiful during the holidays, when you can also see all of the wonderful gingerbread houses on display. Here are some of the photos I took during my visit a couple of weeks ago.

Sit beside the fire
Lobby







Here are a few of the gingerbread houses on display.










This soldier opening a package from home was also one of the entries.






















I hope you enjoyed the photos! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Gwyn



A Sense of Duty


I hope this lovely winter season finds you happy, healthy, and enjoying family and friends. I'm trying to finish a major project at work, which A) cuts into my writing time (boo!) and B) cuts into my holiday festivity time. This doesn't make me happy, but I think we'll be done by Friday, so the next week should be all clear. All clear to just veg and relax, as the holiday shopping is done for this year.

Aaaaaah.

So, I'm going to find a cozy spot and pick up a favorite book, one I've ready many times, and just enjoy some much needed one-on-one with a favorite author.

On that note, if you're looking for a short romance to fill your reading time, A Sense of Duty is available at Amazon, and its Christmas theme might just hit the spot. Why not join Rick on his journey to capture Heidi's heart, even though she doesn't realize it's him under his Santa disguise?

Happy Reading!
Cameo



Iona Abbey Part 3

I have a few remaining photos from my visit to the Isle of Iona in Scotland. During past weeks I posted Iona Abbey Part 1, Iona Abbey Part 2 and Iona Nunnery.

Beautiful flower garden we passed along the walk toward the abbey.

Fuchsias 

Click to enlarge




Base of St. Matthew's Cross.


Click to enlarge.

St. Columba's Well?

The Great Church

Click to enlarge.

The Great Church
Click to enlarge.

Where the bake and brew house used to be.

Click to enlarge.

Abbey Garden

Ruin of the Bishop's House built in 1630s.



Abbot's House

Click to enlarge!

Iona Abbey and Church.
Thank you for checking out my posts about Iona Abbey!
Vonda

My Fierce Highlander is only .99 cents at Amazon for Kindle

Gwyneth Carswell, an English lady banished by her father to the harsh Scottish Highlands, wants nothing more than to take her young son away from the violence of two fighting clans--her own distant kin, the MacIrwins, and their enemies, the MacGraths. She risks everything to rescue the fierce MacGrath warrior from the battlefield where he’s left for dead by her clan. She only knows she is inexplicably drawn to him and he wants peace as she does. When her clan learns of her betrayal, they seek vengeance. Dare she trust the enemy more than her own family? 

Laird Alasdair MacGrath is driven to end two-hundred years of feuding with the MacIrwins. But by taking in and protecting Lady Gwyneth and her son, he provokes more attacks from his mortal enemy. As the danger and conflict surrounding them escalate, Alasdair and Gwyneth discover an explosive passion neither of them expected. With the arrival of a powerful man from her past, a horrible decision confronts her--give up her son or the man she loves. 

It is also available in audio and in French.