January 2010On Sale: January 1, 2010Featuring: Abby Whitman; Jason Coble400 pages ISBN: 044655684XEAN: 9780446556842Mass Market Paperback$6.99 Romance Suspense Buy at Amazon.com Sleep No Moreby Susan Crandall DANGER NEVER RESTSThe night was always Abby Whitman’s enemy. As a young girl she walked in her sleep, and one night, started a fire that scarred her sister for life and left Abby with unbearable guilt, and a loneliness that echoes within her AND EVIL NEVER CLOSES ITS EYESNow Abby has begun blacking out again—with apparently fatal results. A car accident has killed the son of a prominent family. Even though the evidence seems to exonerate her, Abby is plagued by doubts—and soon by mysterious threats. A young psychiatrist, Dr. Jason Coble, is intrigued by Abby and offers to help her explore the dark recesses in her mind. Through this terrifying journey, Jason’s interest turns to passion, and he yearns to give her the love she craves. But first, Abby must trust him—and shed light on secrets that will rock this Southern town and reveal a danger that threatens them both. Excerpt Prologue The house where Abby Whitman’s family lived wasn’t like the plantation houses in the movies. There was no sweeping staircase and…

Several years ago my husband and I took a two week trip to Alaska, one week by bus and train, one by cruise ship. I was surprised how much I loved “America’s Last Frontier,” and realized it would be a great place to set a romantic suspense novel. Not only was the scenery awesome, but it could easily become dangerous, especially if-hm, let’s say a south Florida heroine visiting there is somehow swept down a wild river. And then, what if Mitch Braxton, her former fiancé, who owns a lodge nearby, risks his life to rescue her in a kayak, but then they are stranded in the wilderness… Ah, yes, the eternal “what if” of a fiction writer. During our trip, I met and interviewed many unique Alaskans, some of whom thought nothing of holding down two or three part time jobs for the privilege of living in their beloved state. Besides meeting the human denizens, we were astounded to see so much of nature up close and personal: moose walking down the street; bears grabbing migrating salmon out of a wild river. To read more of What I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION-(AND HOW IT INSPIRED MY NOVEL). Visit…

December 2009On Sale: December 1, 2009Featuring: Adrianna Barrington; Gage Hudson384 pages ISBN: 1420100289EAN: 9781420100280Paperback$6.99 Romance Suspense Buy at Amazon.com Dying Screamby Mary Burton It’s the last sound you’ll ever make… NO ONE WILL FIND YOU. An aspiring artist. A high-school senior. A stripper. Three women who seemed to have nothing in common except their sudden disappearance. But one man knew them all. Wealthy, privileged Craig Thornton even claimed to love them. And for that, they paid the ultimate price. NO ONE WILL SAVE YOU When Adrianna Barrington receives an anniversary card from her husband Craig, she assumes it’s a some crackpot’s idea of a joke. After all Craig is dead. But then come phone calls, flowers, messages…all reminding her how much Craig misses her. While Adrianna begins to doubt her sanity, grisly remains are found on the Thornton estate. Detective Gage Hudson is convinced the bodies are linked to Craig. But the biggest shocks are yet to come. NO ONE WILL HEAR YOU SCREAM A psychopath has taken up his chilling work again, each death a prelude to the moment when she is under his control at last. And the only way for Gage and Adrianna to stop him is…

t’s time to reveal something you may or may not know about me. I am quite serious about series. For more years than I can count I’ve been told I really needed to read the Born In trilogy by Nora Roberts. For a variety of reasons these three books never made it to the top of my TBR. However I finally downloaded them in audio from the library and have totally enjoyed listening to all three titles. Another series I’ve put off reading was the Grace Valley series by Robyn Carr. When I finished the first two books in the series I had been entertained and didn’t feel like I had wasted my reading time, but still pined for more from her popular Virgin River series instead. Then I finished Down By The River and went “Oh I get it now” I now fully understand the need for more books in this series. To read more of SERIOUS ABOUT SERIES please click here. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

When you’ve read in a genre for over five years you’ll find that some of your favorite authors seem to stop writing or no longer publish books. And it makes one wonder, whatever happened to…? This month I’ve stumbled across that phenomena when I was entering the books for the Montana Mavericks series being re-issued by Silhouette. This was one of the last continuity series I ever collected, sorry, continuity series are not my favorite thing and as I can read out of order, collecting before reading misses the appeal with me. But for some reason, I’ll blame the first Fortune family, in 1994 I collected a year’s worth of the “Mavericks.” But when I looked at the ones in the series I realized that nearly half of the authors are no longer publishing. And I wonder, what happened. Did they retire? Did they die? Did their books go out of style? Seriously, what happened? Am I getting to be an “old” reader? This could be a serious problem. I always assumed reading kept me going, learning new things, going new places, learning a new lingo (which is probably a very dated term, ah well). So, let’s examine the Montana…

Hellions Of Halstead Hall #1 January 2010On Sale: January 19, 2010Featuring: Maria Butterfield; Oliver Sharpe384 pages ISBN: 1439167516EAN: 9781439167519Mass Market Paperback$7.99 Romance Historical Buy at Amazon.com The Truth About Lord Stonevilleby Sabrina Jeffries The first novel in Sabrina Jeffries’s new Hellions of Hallstead Hall series, featuring Oliver Sharpe, the eldest of the Sharpe siblings. In the two decades since a tragic “accident” took the lives of his parents, Oliver Sharpe, the Marquess of Stoneville, has survived the scandal surrounding the fateful night by living as an unrepentant rakehell. And with his grandmother vowing to disinherit him if he doesn’t settle down and wed, he plans to fulfill the bargain n true Sharpe style–by bring home a fake fiance from a brother. But Oliver’s scheme is derailed when he rescues an American beauty in a dire predicament. Maria Butterfield came to London to track down her groom-to-be, who has gone missing. But her engagement won’t stop Oliver from getting what he wants: her, in his bed. His rebellious masquerade may call his grandmother’s bluff, but it’s soon made all too real — by a love that tempts him to be a hellion no more. Excerpt Chapter One Ealing 1825 Oliver stared…

I’m going to my first RT Booklover’s Convention this April and no sooner did I click Send on the registration form than I went out and bought a red dress. Unless you know me, this might not seem like a significant event but ninety-five percent of the items in my closet are black. There’s a blue suit and a brown dress and a lilac one-shouldered number that I had to buy because it’s Armani and was on sale, and it looked terrific on me eight years ago when I bought it but it’s never been worn outside of my closet. (Did I mention it has sequins?) I don’t know what possessed me. I’d gone to Macy’s to buy a bra – forget Victoria’s Secret – Macy’s has the best selection on the planet. Anyway, bras are on the sixth floor and some marketing genius must have realized that by having only escalators (and no elevators) in the building a shopper would have to pass lots of other merchandise they aren’t really looking for on the way to the thing they are looking for. There it was, on the fourth floor. Red. Sleeveless. On sale. And calling to me. It’s one…

November 2009On Sale: November 1, 2009Featuring: Roderick Cherbon; Michaela Fortune352 pages ISBN: 1420102435EAN: 9781420102437Paperback$6.99 Romance Historical Buy at Amazon.com Taming the Beastby Heather Grothaus It will take more than a woman’s beauty to tame this beast… After years of turmoil, Roderick Cherbon has left the Crusades to return to the home he loves. But the wars have changed him, and the heir who thought to heal his father’s injustices has become a vicious beast of a man, scarred inside and out. He will speak to no one, see no one; he leaves the shadows of his ruined keep only under the darkness of night. And even in death his father mocks him: to retain his land and title, Roderick, the Beast, must marry. Lady Michaela Fortune is reviled for her poverty, ridiculed for her dreams, and preyed on for her soft heart. Humiliation and want dog her beloved family, and her pride is an indulgence she can ill afford. Cherbon and its shattered lord offer a solution. But to court a man who has fallen so low, Michaela will need all her grace and beauty to harbor any hopes of taming the beast… A courageous beauty falls in love with…

November 2009On Sale: November 1, 2009Featuring: Caroline Huntington; Alex Trentham320 pages ISBN: 1420104578EAN: 9781420104578Paperback$5.99 Romance Historical Buy at Amazon.com All He Desiresby Anthea Lawson Not what he expected, but … then he kissed her… Far from home and her noble relatives, Miss Caroline Huntington has been injured in a fall from her horse. Called to her side, Alex Trentham knows he must assist her, though he has not practiced as a physician for a long while. Just to see so lovely a woman in a state of undress is a hard test of his self-control. Caroline is all that is warm and feminine, beautiful and pure. Brave to a fault, she does not flinch under his hands, and soon she is on the mend. To hide his feelings becomes impossible and Alex cannot. Her radiant innocence is dangerous to a worldly man…and she seems achingly eager to experience all the pleasure he could show her… Excerpt Chapter One Crete, March 1848 Caroline Huntington was falling. The distance from saddle to ground took on a dreadful expanse as her horse reared. Flung backward, heartbeat doubling in her throat, she clutched at the pommel, but the smooth leather slipped beneath her palms….

First of all, believe you can write. Don’t let anyone’s opinion convince you otherwise. Poor contest scores or bad critiques can make you think about ending your writing career before it even gets started. My worst critique was done by a woman who said I had so many errors that she didn’t have the time or energy to critique more than a chapter, let alone a complete manuscript. Thankfully, I thought this was a rather outlandish thing to say to someone, sloughed it off and kept trying. It is a well-known fact that if you continue to write you get better. My writing improved and my manuscript went on to sell. Not everyone is going to like your writing, it is really all subjective; people don’t all like the same type of story. What should I write about? Don’t worry about writing the type of story that is selling right now as something else may be in vogue when you finish. Instead, write the kind of book you love to read and add what you know or are interested in learning. Further, stretch your horizons. I thought I could only write fiction, but then found I could also write an…