Perfect Pending (+Giveaway)

* Perfect Pending
* By Lucia Ashta
* (Witches of Gales Haven, #1)
* Publication date: April 1st 2020
* Genres: Adult, Paranormal, Romance

Marla’s ancestors saddled her with frizzy red hair, sarcasm on tap, the Gawama last name, and the urge to run from her problems.

Her bloodline was also supposed to guarantee she’d be a powerful witch.
She isn’t, not by a long shot.

Only those with magic are allowed in her hometown. Now that her teenage children are awakening, and sparking enough power to be a fire hazard, she’s headed back.
Even if she isn’t ready. Even if she’s fresh out of divorce court.

Home is where her family is. Her nan is head of the council, and her aunts claim multiple orgasms are the source of their limber joints.

But then Marla and her kids all but blow up the town on day one. And her first boyfriend, the one who broke her heart long before her ex did, seems better than ever.
He has his eye on her…

So does everyone else.

Somehow it’s on her, and the magical creature who won’t get out of her head, to save Gales Haven. Before her former mother-in-law redecorates the town in baby pink … and breaks the centuries-old spell that keeps it safe and hidden.

Perfect Pending is a Paranormal Women’s Fiction novel. If you love snarky stories with women so empowered they’re a force to be reckoned with, then you’ll love Perfect Pending, the first book in the Witches of Gales Haven series.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

Clyde pointed forward, brushing the unruly hair he inherited from me from his forehead. “What’s that?”
My heart sped up. “What’s what?”
“Those wavy things in the air.”
I exhaled loudly, tension I hadn’t even realized I was carrying relaxing from my shoulders. “Damn.” “Damn?” he and Macy parroted at the same time.
“Yeah, damn. You had me freaking out there. Those waves distorting the air are magic. If Clyde can see them, we’re in the clear.”
“How come I can’t see them?” Macy asked.
“You must just not be looking right,” I said, though I didn’t know how exactly she could be looking wrong. The barrier was ahead of us, in plain sight. Anyone with magic should be able to see it. Even those with weak magic could find the town limits well enough to enter.
“I must not be looking right,” Macy repeated, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
My favorite.
“Right there.” I pointed ahead just as Clyde had. “It’s like heat waves coming off the pavement.” “Only they go all the way up to the sky,” Clyde added, and a bit more tension oozed from me.
Macy shook her head. “I don’t see anything. Seriously.”
“That’s …not possible,” I said.
She crossed her arms and turned the full brunt of her sass toward me: “I’m telling you, there’s nothing there. You think I’m lying or something?”
“Of course not. There’s no reason to lie. Actually, there’s never reason to lie to your mother.” I arched my brow at them in my I’m-dead-serious look.
Clyde chuckled. Super encouraging.
“I don’t know what to tell you, Ma,” Macy said. “I don’t see anything but more pot-holey road.” Clenching my fingers around the steering wheel, I debated what to do. I couldn’t call my family. There were no cell phones or landlines in the entire town, a fact I’d purposefully omitted in my brief rundown to my kids of what was to become their new home. They would’ve fought me to leave even harder if they’d realized their beloved iPhones were about to be rendered useless.
The barrier dome that protected Gales Haven from discovery behaved as a gigantic Faraday cage. No electromagnetic pulses got in, and none got out. The concentration of magic in the community interfered with connections to the outside world. Every time landlines had been attempted, the result was the same: crackle.
My options were twofold: I could drive through and hope like hell the protective barrier didn’t zap my daughter. Or I could turn around and abandon all hope that Macy would get the help she needed, guidance she could only get from my family.
I’d never heard of someone with magic not seeing the barrier’s signature shimmer. I had no idea what it meant.
“When your magic erupts like it’s been doing,” I asked Macy, “what does it feel like?” “Like I stuck my entire hand in an electric socket and shocked the shi—”
I gave her my mom glare.
“Like I get a monster shock every time,” she finished.
Nodding, I nibbled at my lip. “Okay. Good,” I said, mostly to myself.
“What’s good?” Macy asked.
“If your magic’s too weak, the barrier won’t let you through. I assume it also won’t let you see it. But if it’s shocking you like that, you’ve got enough. For sure.”
I hoped.
“What about me?” Clyde asked. “Do I have enough?”
“If you can see the barrier, we’re good.” I nodded to convince myself that everything would be smooth sailing from here on out, and kept right on nodding to myself when I didn’t fully believe it. Nothing had been particularly easy in my life.
Didn’t mean I didn’t kick ass and take names. I did—all day long.
I’ve got this.
I eased the car back onto the road and crawled toward the shimmer, throwing constant glances at Macy. With her big brown eyes and long, dark straight hair, she didn’t look much like me.
Maybe twenty feet from the barrier, I asked, “Still nothing?”
“Nope,” she answered, popping the p.
“I can’t believe you can’t see it,” Clyde said. “I can see it tons.”
“It’s not like that makes you better than me,” Macy retorted right away.
He hmmphed, and Macy swiveled in her seat. She gasped. “I see it! When I turned my head, I saw it out of the corner of my eye,”
“Good enough for me.” I exhaled loudly and pressed down on the accelerator.
I might have left Gales Haven under less than auspicious circumstances, but nineteen years had passed since then. Long enough to discover that in this world—magic or not—we make our own luck.
I had no desire to be some shrinking violet. Or the meek wife Devin had expected and tried his darnedest to mold me into.
I was returning to town on my own terms—sort of. And not a single woman in my family had ever done anything meekly—or quietly.
I gunned the engine, and yelling out “Towanda,”I crossed the shimmering barrier.

Author Bio:

Lucía Ashta is the internationally top 100 bestselling author of young adult, new adult, and adult paranormal, urban fantasy, and contemporary romance books, including the series Magical Creatures Academy, Sirangel, Magical Arts Academy, Witching World, and Supernatural Bounty Hunter.

When Lucía isn't writing, she's reading, painting, or adventuring. Magic is her favorite, but the action, romance, and quirky characters are what keep her hooked on books.

For more on Lucia and her writing, visit the following sites: 

Website / Goodreads / Facebook Page / Facebook Group / Instagram / Bookbub / Newsletter

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Don't you just love snarky stories?

GIVEAWAY!
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Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas {+ Giveaway}

I’m always delighted to showcase a new release by author Terry Spear. Her latest book is DREAMING OF A WHITE WOLF CHRISTMAS, and the first installment in a new series.

To celebrate the release Terry is sharing an excerpt for your reading pleasure and you have a chance to enter her tour-wide giveaway for a copy of A Very Jaguar Christmas.

◊ Title: Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas

◊ Author: Terry Spear

◊ Series: White Wolf, #1

◊ Pub Date: October 3, 2017

May all your Christmas wolves be bright…

Romance writer Candice Mayfair never missed a deadline in her life—until the playful bite of a werewolf puppy accidentally turns her into an Arctic wolf shifter. Talk about a life-changing event! Candice is at the end of her rope with the unpredictable shifting, a strong desire to howl, and the need to vacuum constantly to keep the shedding fur under control.

          Enter werewolf private investigator Owen Nottingham. Owen has a new mission: convince the pretty she-wolf she needs to join his pack in time for Christmas…and be his mate. It’s the only way he can think of to keep her safe…

USA Today bestselling author Terry Spear has written over sixty paranormal and medieval Highland romances. In 2008, Heart of the Wolf was named a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year.

A retired officer of the U.S. Army Reserves, Terry also creates award-winning teddy bears that have found homes all over the world. She lives in Spring, Texas with two Havanese puppies.

Find Terry Online:

Website: http://www.terryspear.com/

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

Twitter: @TerrySpear

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/421434.Terry_Spear

To Buy: https://terrylspear.wordpress.com/werewolves/

Now an excerpt from Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas for your reading pleasure.

Candice had been writing for two days straight, working on her publisher’s book deadline, when she wrote the ending, smiled, and set the book aside. She would start proofing it tomorrow after she’d given her brain a break. Now she’d do what she always did when she finished a book or reached a good stopping point in one. Clean house. Check her backlog of emails. Pick up some more groceries. And take a run on the wolf side.

She finished vacuuming and dusting, swearing every window must let in all the outdoors, and then started a batch of gingerbread cookie cutouts to celebrate the Christmas holiday season and finishing another book. While they were baking, she finally settled down to check her emails. Fan mail always came first, and one from her website got her attention right off. She opened it and read:

Hello, I’m Owen Nottingham, private investigator for White River Investigations, White River Falls, Minnesota. My client, Strom Hart, hired me to locate you. Your parents, John and Cynthia Hart, left you an inheritance, and you need to see the lawyer about it so you can claim it. I need to verify that

you are the right woman first. Is there any way we could meet and get this taken care of so you can collect your inheritance? Strom Hart will be the one to receive it by the end of the month otherwise. His assistant, Jim Winchester, said Mr. Hart is your uncle.

Candice reread the message, not believing her eyes, tears filling them. She quickly looked at the date of the message. Two days ago! She knew she shouldn’t have neglected her emails, but when she was into a story, she couldn’t break away.

She ground her teeth, raised her fingers to respond, and heard a knocking at her door. No one came here. Never. Ever. Not even salesmen.

She glanced at her phases-of-the moon calendar. The waxing gibbous was just beginning. She should be fine. Just to be on the safe side, in case the person at the door was trouble, she pulled a can of mace from her desk drawer and headed for the door. She peered through the peephole. Waiting at the door was a handsome black-haired man with rugged features and intense blue eyes. He was dressed in a black suit, a red shirt, and a dark-purple tie covered in red, purple, and gold Christmas balls. She raised her brows.

“I’m Owen Nottingham,” he said to the door, holding up his PI license and driver’s license. He couldn’t know that she was watching him, so he must have hoped she was there, observing him. “I tried getting ahold of you through the contact form on your website about your inheritance. Your contact form might not be working, so I had to locate you in person.”

So this was the man who had sent the message. Was he for real? He had to be. He wouldn’t have come all this way to see her if he wasn’t. But how had he found her?

Candice opened the door, the bells jingling on her Christmas wreath, and the man glanced down at the can of mace in her hand. He smiled, his gaze holding hers with such intensity that it was as though he could see clear through to her soul. “Really, just a PI doing my job.”

A chilly breeze carried his scent to her. Wolf scent. All at once, she felt so light-headed that she grabbed the door to keep herself upright and dropped the can of mace on the tile floor. It clattered, but she couldn’t have reached for it if her life depended on it.

Oh. My. God.

This couldn’t be real. He couldn’t be real. No wonder he’d been talking to the door. He must have heard her footfalls as she’d approached.

He took a deep breath at the same time, and when he smelled her scent, his eyes widened in surprise. His hand shot out to grab her arm and steady her. For a minute, she tried to control her breathing and her heart rate, neither of which she could steady. She felt like she was going to pass out.

“Hell, you’re the wolf I saw across the White River, aren’t you?”

Her jaw dropped, and her knees buckled. He swept her up in his arms and she wanted to object, but he slammed the door behind him with his hip and carried her into the house. He was the wolf she’d seen across the river that day on the camping trip in Minnesota two years ago, sipping from the water? She still remembered it like it was yesterday. Him looking up and seeing her staring at him while she’d believed she was hallucinating.

Until the next night, and then she knew she hadn’t been dreaming at all.

Enter to win a copy of A Very Jaguar Christmas by Terry Spear. Thanks for stopping by. Aren’t those blue eyes something?

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Dating the Undead {+ Giveaway}

It’s a delight to be participating in author Juliet Lyons’ Spotlight Tour for her upcoming release, DATING THE UNDEAD.

There’s something about the cover that just looks inviting with a wickedly fun sense of humor. To make the tour even more fun you can enter to win one of 10 copies of DATING THE UNDEAD being given away. Please see the end of the post for more giveaway details.

Title: Dating the Undead

Author: Juliet Lyons

Series: Undead Dating Service, #1

ISBN: 9781492645306

Pub date: May 2, 2017

Genre: Paranormal Romance

WOMAN SEEKING VAMPIRE:

Likes to keep things casual

Absolutely no poetry

Zero romance required.

          Silver Harris is over clingy men—maybe men altogether. But when she shares a toe-curling kiss with a sexy Irish vampire on New Year's Eve, she wonders if maybe it's human men she's fed up with. Silver turns to the popular vampire dating site, V-Date, only to discover that vampire men are just as unimpressive as their mortal counterparts. And her mysterious hottie? He’s nowhere to be found.

          Can’t a girl catch a break?

          Logan Byrne can't get that sassy redhead—or that kiss!—out of his head. When his boss assigns him to spy on V-Date, he meets Silver again. Turns out, the police are recruiting humans to snitch on vampires through the dating site. As the snark and sparks fly, feelings between Silver and Logan deepen. But, when old demons resurface—literally—Logan isn't sure he can shield either of them from the dangers that have been lying in wait for centuries.

If you ever wonder about the person you’re dating, Juliet has an interesting take on whether they are mortal or not.

10 ways to tell if your date is actually a vampire

1.      They only want to meet at night, using the excuse that they’re not ‘a morning person’.

2.     On a date to the beach, you catch them harassing the lady in the mini mart to check the stock room for Hawaiian Tropics factor 500.

3.     When you get a papercut, they’re oddly excited.

4.    They’re still not over their ex. Even though the latter has been dead for two hundred years.

5.     Every time you mention a church wedding they recoil in horror*.

6.    They often refer to Eric from True Blood as someone who ‘has their shit together.’

7.     They drink a lot of red wine, but never seem drunk. Wait—is that actually wine?

8.    They have pale, flawless skin despite the fact you’ve never once seen them cleanse and/or moisturize.

9.    When watching any kind of sporting event, they constantly scoff and sneer at the athletes. ‘Please! Is that the best they can do?’

10.                        They are particularly keen to remind you that the neck is a top five erogenous zone...

*Does not necessarily mean they are a vampire. Mortals—particularly males—are also prone to behaving in this way.

Does this sound like anyone you’ve ever dated? If so, just be careful.

Author Juliet Lyons, photo by Sharan Rai Photography

JULIET LYONS is a paranormal romance author from the UK. She holds a degree in Spanish and Latin American studies and works part-time in a local primary school where she spends far too much time discussing Harry Potter.

Since joining global storytelling site Wattpad in 2014, her work has received millions of hits online and gained a legion of fans from all over the world. When she is not writing, Juliet enjoys reading and spending time with her family.

For more on Juliet and her writing, visit her website and connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, and Wattpad.

DATING THE UNDEAD is available HERE.

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Enter to win one of ten copies of DATING THE UNDEAD by Juliet Lyons. Just click on the Rafflecopter widget and follow the instruction. The widget may take a few seconds to load so please be patient.

Thanks for stopping by today. What tips would you include to tell if your date is actually a vampire?

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