The Year of Cecily by Lisa Lin blitz with giveaway
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The Year of Cecily
Lisa Lin
(From Sunset Park, With Love, #1)
Publication date: January 17th 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
This is the year of Cecily Chang.
San Francisco attorney Cecily Chang is ready to tackle the New Year head on, so she creates a list of resolutions guaranteed to reboot her life—right after her dutiful visit home to Sunset Park, Brooklyn, for the Lunar New Year. Cecily prepares to face her critical, meddling mother, nosy relatives, and the chaos and drama family togetherness brings. At least the food will be delicious. This holiday, Cecily vows to remain calm—as long as she doesn’t see him.
Jeffrey Lee deeply regrets how he ended things with Cecily ten years ago, but he felt it was best for her at the time. When he runs into her again during the New Year, he sees it as a sign. Now a successful screenwriter, Jeffrey is determined to win back Cecily’s heart.
But Cecily doesn’t believe in signs or second chances and embraces her new resolutions. This time, Jeffrey won’t give up—and he’s convinced he can write them a new Hollywood happy ending.
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EXCERPT:
Having escaped the madhouse, Cecily dutifully made her way down the street to the Lee residence. She knocked on the door and was greeted by Jeffrey’s younger sister Bethany. She was dressed in a soft blue sweater and jeans, with a bandana pulling her hair back.
“CeeCee!” Bethany exclaimed as she enveloped Cecily in a hug. Despite herself, Cecily couldn’t prevent a grin. She’d always had a soft spot for Bethany.
“You’re home for the weekend?” Cecily asked. Last she heard, Bethany was a senior at Columbia, majoring in biochemistry.
“Yep. Where else would I be?” Bethany readjusted her bandana. “Mom needs all hands on deck for the cleaning.”
Cecily made a face. “My mom’s planning a top-to-bottom deep cleaning today too. I’m on bathroom duty. She’s also grumbling because she needs to take me to Walmart later to buy new clothes. But you can’t fight tradition.” She rolled her eyes good-naturedly. It was a New
Year tradition slash superstition to clean the house top to bottom, get a haircut, and buy a new outfit. It was all about out with the old, in with the new and generating good luck and a fresh start for the Year of the Pig.
Bethany had no response, just blew out a breath and looked at her expectantly.
“Oh, right. Is Jeffrey around? I need to speak to him.” Speaking of the devil, he appeared behind his sister in the doorway.
“If you’re here to pay me for the Uber, think again.” He crossed his arms, and a stubborn look came over his face.
All right. If he was going to be a hard-ass about this, then so could she. She had plenty of experience dealing with difficult clients.
“It’s out of my hands, Jeffrey. You know that I can’t go into the New Year unless I settle all debts. You wouldn’t want me to start the Year of the Pig with bad luck hanging over my head, do you? You really want that on your conscience?” She gave her most innocent look and blinked disarmingly.
Jeffrey just scowled. “You always were a spoiled brat when it came to getting your way,” he muttered.
Cecily took immediate umbrage. “How dare you!” Such an unfair accusation. Besides, how did he know? They hadn’t seen each other in ten years. Maybe she had her moments, but didn’t everyone?
Jeffrey just raised an eyebrow. “Who was the one who told our moms I scalped her Barbie doll when she really was the one who decided to give it a haircut?”
“Really with that? I was five years old for God’s sake!” Seriously.
An implacable stare from him. “Did you or did you not get a new doll for your birthday?”
“To be clear, the statute of limitations for that has come and gone,” Cecily sniffed. “Not fair for you to throw that in my face now. It’s been thirty years, and I doubt your ability to accurately recall the event in question. Besides, whether or not I got a replacement Barbie doll is irrelevant to the current discussion.”
“And I was the one who got spanked for something I didn’t do.”
She continued to glare, and so did he.
Bethany just looked at them back and forth like she was watching a tennis match. “You two are weird,” she decided with a shake of her head. She walked away and disappeared back into the house.
Jeffrey ignored her. “But if you insist, it was sixty dollars.”
As Cecily dug through her wallet and purse, he added nonchalantly, “Oh and just so you know, Guillermo gave us a four and a half star rating.”
Her head snapped up and she stopped searching for the money. “Why didn’t we get five?”
“You were always so competitive.” He chuckled. He leaned against the doorjamb and put his hands in his pockets.
“Well, why didn’t we get five? We did nothing wrong,” she insisted, with her hands on her hips.
“Go ask him,” Jeffrey suggested, his lips twitching.
Cecily frowned and went back to her purse. Finally, she scrounged up thirty dollars and thrust it at him.
“There you go.”
“Glad I could help you start the New Year with a clean slate,” he drawled. “Happy now?”
She raised a warning brow. “You’re lucky I didn’t ask for a receipt.”
“Your faith in me is touching.
Author Bio:
Lisa has been an avid romance reader and fan since she read her first Nora Roberts novel at the age of 13 after wandering the aisles of her local bookstore. Lisa loves that romance has the power to inspire, and believes that HEAs are for everyone.
Lisa writes light contemporary romantic comedies with a liberal dash of snark and banter. She enjoys delving into the complexity of Asian and immigrant family experiences, and celebrates female friendships in her trademark dry, witty style. As an Asian-American author writing own voices Asian American stories, Lisa hopes that her books will show the diversity of the Asian-American experience, and the importance of every reader being able to see themselves represented on the page.
Having grown up in Pennsylvania and helping out at her parents ’restaurant, Lisa has never bothered to learn to cook. She has two liberal arts undergraduate degrees and a J.D, and in her former life she was an intern, then Legislative Assistant for a PA State Representative. She also worked as a paralegal at a boutique law firm. Lisa is a politics junkie (don’t get her started on the wonder that is The West Wing!), indulges in naps whenever possible, and believes Netflixing in her pajamas and ordering take out qualifies as the perfect weekend.
GIVEAWAY!
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Aspen Cove Series by Kelly Collins blitz with giveaway
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One Hundred Reasons
Kelly Collins
(Aspen Cove, #1)
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
A woman who wants to leave.
A man who has to stay.
And a love that won’t be denied…
Nurse Sage Nichols ’life isn’t going as planned. When a favorite patient passes away, Sage abandons her post for a few minutes longer than planned — and just like that, she’s without a job and a paycheck.
But Sage’s patient left her a parting gift: a creaky bed-and-breakfast in the heart of the Rockies. So, determined to sell the rundown property and return to Denver for a fresh start, Sage heads north to the mountains.
When Cannon Bishop’s mother died, he gave up his dreams of leaving Aspen Cove for good and returned to run the family business. As owner of the only bar and son to the town drunk, he’s got no room in his life for a woman. But when Sage Nichols breezes into town, she changes everything.
And if there’s one thing Cannon hates, it’s change.
Recruited by the local doctor, Sage finds herself more involved in small town life than she intended. But the warm welcome she receives from the locals does not extend to the man next door.
Then trust sprouts unexpectedly between them and when Sage’s plan to return to Denver falls through, she is left wondering if her future might lie in Aspen Cove after all.
Sometimes love gets in the way of the best laid plans…
Welcome to Aspen Cove, the tiny Colorado town where fresh starts, hope, and true love live…
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EXCERPT:
“This feels kind of perfect.”
He adjusted the blanket and pulled her closer. The arm of her chair dug into her side, but she didn’t complain. For the first time since she arrived in Aspen Cove, she wasn’t alone or lonely. It was an odd sensation to be so comfortable with a man who made her temper flare, and her insides turn soft. The most interesting thing was he made her feel something other than empty. She would take rage and passion over apathy any day.
They sat in companionable silence for minutes. Cannon turned toward her and tilted his head. A kiss was coming, and all her questions about his lips would be answered. She leaned in, relaxed her lips and inhaled. Just as the lids of her eyes fluttered closed, she felt him shift.
“I think they’re done.” He rolled to his feet, taking the blanket with him. “Let’s get you inside and warmed up.” He offered her a hand and pulled her to her feet. “I’ll clean this up.” With his arm at her back, he led her to the door.
Sage wasn’t ready to say goodbye, but it was the smart choice. There was no point in starting something that wouldn’t go anywhere. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. “Thank you. This was probably the best night I’ve had in a while.”
He held her close, and his lips touched the top of her head in a gentle kiss. “You need to get out more.”
“I do. I really do.”
“Tomorrow night, you should come to the bar.” He stepped back. “It’s karaoke night. Bring Otis.”
“Okay.” She nodded. It would be the first Saturday night where she wasn’t pulling a shift or spending it curled on the couch, watching reruns.
“It’s a date.” He stepped away and started down the stairs.
“Is it?” Did he mean a real date, or was he using it as a figure of speech?
“Just come to the bar.” He disappeared into the night. She watched his outline as he picked up the glasses and bottles by the water and moved toward his cabin.
She giggled as she walked into the house. Suddenly, nothing bothered her. Not her nose. Not the newlyweds going at it like rabbits. Not the thought of being stuck here until the house sold.
A voice from deep down told her she could be happy here if she’d let herself. Flopping onto her bed, she grinned up at the ceiling, thinking of the magical effect that a long hug and light kiss from the right man could have. She wasn’t sure if it was the wine talking or her hormones, but something was telling her to trust Cannon.
Author Bio:
Like FREEBIES? Join the VIP readers at http://bit.ly/KellyCollinsFreeBook for members-only exclusives!
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International bestselling author of more than thirty novels, Kelly Collins writes with the intention of keeping love alive. Always a romantic, she blends real-life events with her vivid imagination to create characters and stories that lovers of contemporary romance, new adult, and romantic suspense will return to again and again.
Kelly has sold more than a quarter of a million books worldwide, and in 2021 she was awarded a Readers’ Favorite Award Gold Medal in the Contemporary Romance category for A Tablespoon of Temptation.
You can learn more about Kelly at http://www.authorkellycollins.com.
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GIVEAWAY!
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Cover Reveal: The Scoundrel by Delta James
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The Scoundrel
Delta James
(Club Southside, #1)
Publication date: February 17th 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Danger and desire go hand in hand…
Welcome to Club Southside. Cerberus has opened an office in Chicago over the Club. The team takes on the jobs no one else wants. They handle everything from protection, covert rescue operations, cyber-crime to reconnaissance and more. These men are driven and deadly, willing to do what is needed to complete their missions and to protect the women they love.
A fast-paced romantic suspense series of interconnected standalone books that will leave you on the edge of your seat.
Author Bio:
As a USA Today bestselling romance author, Delta James aims to captivate readers with stories about complex,curvy heroines and the dominant alpha males who adore them. For Delta, romance is more than just a love story; it’s a journey with challenges and thrills along the way.
After creating a second chapter for herself that was dramatically different than the first, Delta now resides in Florida where she relaxes on warm summer evenings with her loveable pack of basset hounds as they watch the birds, squirrels and lizards. When not crafting fast-paced tales, she enjoys horseback riding, walks on the beach, and white-water rafting.
More about Delta, including a full list of her books and audiobooks, can be found at http://www.deltajames.com.
Her readers mean the world to her, and Delta tries to interact personally to as many messages as she can. If you’d like to chat or discuss books, you can find Delta on Instagram, Facebook, and in her private reader group https://www.facebook.com/groups/348982795738444.
If you’re looking for your next bingeable series, you can get a FREE story by joining her newsletter https://www.subscribepage.com/VIPlist22019.
Website / Goodreads / Facebook Page / Facebook Group / Instagram / Newletter / Amazon
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Against the Currant (Spice Isle Bakery Mystery #1) by Olivia Matthews #bookreview #mystery
**This post contains Amazon affiliate links which will allow me as an associate to earn a small commission on any purchase made through the link of the products I share. This commission in no way changes the pricing of any items for the buyer.**
Title: Against the Currant
Author: Olivia Matthews
Publisher: St. Martin’s
Publication Date: January 24, 2023
Page Count: 298
My rating: 4 stars
About the book:
In Olivia Matthews’s Against the Currant, the first Spice Isle Bakery Mystery, investigating a murder was never supposed to be on the menu…
Little Caribbean, Brooklyn, New York: Lyndsay Murray is opening Spice Isle Bakery with her family, and it’s everything she’s ever wanted. The West Indian bakery is her way to give back to the community she loves, stay connected to her Grenadian roots, and work side-by-side with her family. The only thing getting a rise out of Lyndsay is Claudio Fabrizi, a disgruntled fellow bakery owner who does not want any competition.
On opening day, he comes into the bakery threatening to shut them down. Fed up, Lyndsay takes him to task in front of what seems to be the whole neighborhood. So when Claudio turns up dead a day later—murdered—Lyndsay is unfortunately the prime suspect. To get the scent of suspicion off her and her bakery, Lyndsay has to prove she’s innocent—under the watchful eyes of her overprotective brother, anxious parents, and meddlesome extended family—what could go wrong?
Against the Currant by Olivia Matthews is the first book in the new cozy Spice Isle Bakery Mystery series. As with most cozy mysteries each book in the Spice Isle Bakery Mystery series will contain it’s own mystery that will be solved so they all could be read in any order or as a standalone if choosing to do so. There will be of course some character development that carries over from book to book.
Lyndsay Murray’s family originally came from Grenada, a small Carribbean island, and now they are living in Little Caribbean, Brooklyn, New York. Lyndsay wants nothing more than to finally open her new Spice Isle Bakery that her family will help her run and bring some of her heritage to her new home.
Just as the opening day at the Spice Isle Bakery comes comes though the day is ruined for Lyndsay. Claudio Fabrizi who also runs a bakery in the neighborhood comes into the shop and threatens to shut the new bakery down before it can even begin causing a loud argument between Claudio and Lyndsay. When Claudio’s body is found murdered the next day of course Lyndsay becomes a suspect and want to clear her name.
Against the Currant by Olivia Matthews was a fun opener to this new cozy Spice Isle Bakery Mystery series. I’m always on the lookout for charming and humorous new cozies and this one certainly fit that mold. While I enjoyed the main character in here I really enjoyed having the family involved and showing their Carribbean roots too. Will definitely be interested in continuing on with the next in the series.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
Find this book online:
About the author:
Olivia Matthews is the cozy mystery pseudonym for national best-selling and award-winning author Patricia Sargeant.
Patricia’s work has been featured in national publications such as Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Kirkus Reviews, Suspense Magazine, Mystery Scene Magazine, Library Journal and RT Book Reviews. She’s also been interviewed on podcasts including Destination Mystery with Laura Brennan, Conversations LIVE! with Cyrus Webb, Read You Later with Lasheera Lee and Katara’s Café with Katara Johnson.
Stay connected with Patricia:
Website: http://www.PatriciaSargeant.com.
Email: BooksByPatricia@yahoo.com.
Enewsletter: http://eepurl.com/cOOIPf.
YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Jmbp9E.
Twitter: @BooksByPatricia.
Facebook: @AuthorPatriciaSargeant.
Watch her author brand video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivASYzGogfs.
Patricia has been a keynote speaker and presenter at various events. She’s conducted numerous writing craft workshops for writers groups and book conferences, and offers online fiction writing courses through her The Write Spot website. To contact Patricia about attending your event, email her at BooksByPatricia@yahoo.com.
Copper Waters by Marlene M Bell book tour with giveaway
**This post contains Amazon affiliate links which will allow me as an associate to earn a small commission on any purchase made through the link of the products I share. This commission in no way changes the pricing of any items for the buyer.**
Welcome to the tour for Copper Waters: A New Zealand Cottage Mystery by Marlene M. Bell. Be sure to enter the giveway below!
Giveway Bundle ($225 Value)
- William Morris Design Tapestry Throw – Acanthus Leaves Made in USA
- 34 oz. Hammered Copper Water Bottle
- 5×7 Handcrafted Suede Journal (blank pages)
- $50 VISA Gift Card
- Autographed Copper Waters
Copper Waters: A New Zealand Cottage Mystery
Publication Date: December 7, 2022
Genre: Mystery/ Suspense/ Light Romance
Antiquities expert Annalisse Drury and tycoon Alec Zavos are at an impasse in their relationship when Alec refuses to clear up a paternity issue with an ex-lover.
Frustrated with his avoidance when their future is at stake, Annalisse accepts an invitation from an acquaintance to fly to New Zealand—hoping to escape the recent turbulence in her life.
But even Annalisse’s cottage idyll on the family sheep farm isn’t immune to intrigue.
Alec sends a mutual friend and detective, Bill Drake, to follow her, and a local resident who accompanies them from the Christchurch airport dies mysteriously soon after. A second violent death finds Annalisse and Bill at odds with the official investigations.
The local police want to close both cases as quickly as possible—without unearthing the town’s dirty secrets.
As she and Bill pursue their own leads at serious cost, the dual mysteries force Annalisse to question everything she thought she knew about family ties, politics, and the art of small-town betrayal.
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Excerpt
“Nothing’s sinking in.” I pass the note to Alec and prepare myself. “Would you mind reading it aloud?”
“She and Ethan traveled together.” He gazes at me.
“Okay, we’d considered that.”
“Kate has business to conclude in New Zealand before she returns to New York. She asks me not to mention this to you until she arrives in the States but didn’t give a reason. Kate says she’ll meet you in person when she’s ready.”
“Seriously? Where does she plan to live? With me in Greenwich? The Goshen farm could be sold by now. Does she mention Jeremy finding her another place?”
Alec scans the page randomly. “No, she didn’t.”
I scratch my scalp and shake my head. “Then my sheep station trip to New Zealand is perfect timing. I have to leave now and see if I can catch her before she skips out. Ethan must know where Kate is. If it’s all the same, we’ll hang on to the tickets for our April trip, and I’ll buy my own way for this flight.” Tugging at my sweatshirt with clammy hands, I take the note from Alec and sail it into the flames, watching paper crinkle and burn on the log.
He steps forward, his chiseled profile gawking at the fire in disbelief.
“Were you ever going to tell me about Kate’s message?” A sob chokes my windpipe. “If it weren’t for Ethan’s invite, I doubt that we’d be talking about Kate.”
“Babe, I thought by staying neutral…” He twists his lips and looks at his shoes. “Seeing your reaction now; it was a mistake not to tell you.”
“That totally blows.” I ball my hands into fists. “More like you were afraid that I’d run down there to find her.” I’m mad enough to send smoke signals, so I take slower, calming breaths.
“If I’d told you… Yeah, I worried you’d run off. The ordeal in Italy, then Peter Gregory terrorizing you, and Helga has had barely enough time to settle around here. Your safety doesn’t include encouraging you to hop on a plane to another country so soon after a trauma like that. Waiting for Kate’s return felt right to me. At some point, I hope you’ll see things from my side. Kate put me in the middle, but it’s you I worry about.”
Willing myself to relax, I take his hand to get him to focus on me instead of the floor. “I know that.”
Peter Gregory, an old coworker from my past job at another gallery, is responsible for a young woman’s murder in Lecce, near the Mediterranean Sea on Italy’s eastern shore. Alec and I went to Southern Italy for a working vacation that spun us into solving more than one homicide in order for Alec to sell his dad’s Signorile Corporation, a sports car company.
“After a shower, I’ll give your mom a call from the car on the way home. I might have trouble getting a flight out on the spur of the moment, but if I do, I hope you’ll help me.”
“Anna, we should discuss this.” He catches my wrist. “I’d like to go along. Say the word, and I’m on that plane with you. Allow what’s happened with Kate to simmer. You might feel differently in the morning.”
Grasping Kate’s locket beneath my shirt, I slide the chain over my head and cup Alec’s hand, dropping the necklace there.
“Hold on to my locket while I’m gone. It’s the most precious thing I own. That way, you’ll know I’m coming back to you.” On my tiptoes, our salty kiss calls a loneliness— In a flash, two people are about to have a hemisphere drifting between them from outside influences that want to manipulate us. “Gen will be here to see Noah in a few hours, and you have him until Sunday. Let me go, Alec, and please wait for me at Brookehaven. I have to make this trip by myself. If there’s the slightest chance that Kate’s with Ethan or he knows where she is, I have to go. I’ve already lost precious time.” I start for the drawing room doors and remember something left undone. “Oh, and sorry for the sticky mess in your stable office.”
In a dead run, I’m biting a quivering lip. On the way to Alec’s bedroom suite, I send Chase a text to hold Ethan’s box and note for me at the gallery. True to form, Kate shoves us all out of our comfort zones, where I’m certain to find a disaster waiting for me to book a ticket to New Zealand in a mad rush.
Available on Amazon & Barnes & Noble
About the Author
Marlene M. Bell is an eclectic mystery writer, artist, photographer, and she raises sheep in beautiful East Texas with her husband, Gregg, three cats and a flock of horned Dorset sheep.
The Annalisse series has received numerous honors including the Independent Press Award for Best Mystery (Spent Identity,) and FAPA— Florida Author’s President’s Gold Award for two other installments, (Stolen Obsession and Scattered Legacy.) Her mysteries with a touch of romance are found at marlenembell.com. She also offers the first of her children’s picture books, Mia and Nattie: One Great Team! Based on true events from the Bell’s ranch. The simple text and illustrations are a touching tribute of compassion and love between a little girl and her lamb.
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