We always know when we read a historical romance by Shana Galen, we’ll go on an adventure! Book Five in the Survivors Series, THE CLAIMING OF THE SHREW (available now) is no different! Shana’s also got a refreshing summer salad, that’s quick and easy to put together! Be sure to check out our other Summer BBQ Recipe Roundup posts all week! Day 1: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=10089 Day 2: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=10090 *** No Shrews in Summer No matter how much I try not to be, no matter how many promises I make myself, during the school year I turn into a bit of a shrew. The first week of school is fine, but then the newness fades and my daughter won’t get up and we’re running late and I find myself screeching for her to “Get up!” or “Hurry up!” or “Get your shoes! Put on your backpack! Eat breakfast!” But during the summer that awful shrew gets to go back into the cave where she belongs. Days are a bit lazier, mornings are a bit longer, and responsibilities are a lot fewer. Summer is also the time when families and friends get together. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the summer months are…

Caroline had faced many challenges in her life. She’d tackled some serious life-and-death trials. She’d persevered. She’d emerged if not victorious, then at least still standing. So why was she trembling in fear at this relatively minor task laid before her? It’s ridiculous. It made no sense whatsoever. “Are you ready?” Jackson asked. No! her inner self screamed. “Sure,” she said, lifting her chin. The music started. He emerged from behind the stage onto the empty dance floor at the Last Chance Hall. It is my last chance, Caroline thought. My last chance to bolt for the door. As a native Texan, it had been her biggest secret, her greatest shame. She didn’t know how to two-step. She’d never learned. She’d listened to pop music in high school and college. Robert introduced her to classical music, but he didn’t like to dance. So, she’d never learned. That, apparently, was about to change. Keen-eyed Jackson had noticed that she always made excuses not to dance at the Last Chance and called her on it. When she finally fessed up to her lack of skill, he’d declared himself her teacher. She wanted to learn. She did. So why was she so embarrassed…

The third book in my Sometimes in Love series, ONCE UPON A BAD BOY, is a second chance romance. Bo and Sadie, the hero and heroine, are childhood sweethearts who break apart as teens, but fate brings them together again eleven years later. I dedicated this story to my husband. It’s an appropriate choice, since our marriage is the result of a second chance romance. Well, since we broke up twice, it’s technically a third chance romance. But what’s that saying about the third time being the charm? When I met my husband when we were teenagers, like Bo, he was kind of a bad boy himself. A bit of a rebel who had long hair down to his waist and drove a brazen bright yellow car that he would park at wild angles in the back of the mall where we both worked. That lot was always almost empty, he wasn’t a jerk, he just liked to push the envelope on the rules, see what he could get away with. A trait (thank you, karma) our youngest daughter has inherited. Our oldest daughter is sixteen, the same age I was when I began dating my husband. I admit, the…

After yesterday’s delicious kickstart by Kendra Elliot, we’re so excited about today’s post from contemporary romance author, Laura Trentham because she has a delectable dessert recipe! The first book in her Highland, GA series, A HIGHLANDER WALKS INTO A BAR, will be in stores later this summer. Be sure to check out our other Summer BBQ Recipe Roundup posts all week! Day 1: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=10089 *** A Highlander Walks Into a Bar answers the age-old question: What would you do if your mother brought home a handsome six-foot tall Scotsman as a souvenir? (You thought I was going with, What does a Scotsman wear under his kilt, didn’t you? ☺) Our heroine, Isabel Buchanan, tries to her suspicions the man is planning to take advantage of her mother, because she has bigger problems. The annual Highland Festival is only three weeks away and she and her mother are in charge! Enter Alasdair Blackmoor, another handsome Scot who harbors his own suspicions about Isabel and her mother’s intentions with his uncle. Hilarity (and passion) ensues as Isabel and Alasdair spar and try to ferret out the truth. A Highlander Walks Into a Bar is a wild romp during a Georgia summer. I dare…

Growing up my favourite Disney movie was The Little Mermaid. I wanted to have Ariel’s signature red hair, and I loved shiny things like she did. I was fascinating with anything “underwater” like reefs and sharks and colourful fish. Basically, I knew if Ariel was a real person, we would totally be BFFs. I was also a huge fan of all the 90’s Disney movies: Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King… it was a good era for Disney. As I grew older, I assumed that fairy tales would lose their shine. After all, I knew what the real world was like and fairy tales were far from realistic…right? Well, maybe not. If you look past the themes of fairy tales to the message behind it, there’s something that still deeply resonates with me as an adult. Take Beauty and the Beast, for example. Belle had standards, she isn’t going to settle by living someone else’s dream. She most certainly wasn’t going to change all that because the people in her town thought she was an odd duck. As an odd duck with big dreams myself, I appreciated that. What about The Lion King where we learn about loyalty…

Get ready for some fun in the sun with our Summer BBQ Recipe Roundup! All week we’re featuring a different author each day who is sharing info about her latest book release, as well as a delicious recipe perfect to take to your next get together. Be sure to check back tomorrow (and all week) for another awesome author’s mouthwatering summer recipe! We’re getting things started with romantic suspense author Kendra Elliot, who has an appetizing appetizer to share! Her latest book, A MERCIFUL PROMISE, hits stores tomorrow. Remember, come back tomorrow for more! *** FBI Special Agent Mercy Kilpatrick has a secret. She was raised in Central 
Oregon as a prepper and survivalist and hides that she continues to practice that way of life. Her fiancé Truman Daly is the chief of police in the rural town where she grew up. He knows about and supports her secret because she is the woman he loves. In A Merciful Promise, Mercy uses her survivalist skills to infiltrate a militia amassing stolen firearms in an isolated forest community. It requires that she relinquish all contact with the outside world and live in a culture where suspicion is second nature. While she is…

Summer reads are my favorite kind of books. Being able to relax on the beach or sip sweet tea poolside with a new release in hand is what I look forward to all year. This month’s jewel, Amy Mason Doan, could not agree more. Her latest work, Summer Hours, is a novel about friendship, love, and ambition set in the mid ‘90s and 2008. Sometimes the path to achieving life’s dreams can be a little rocky as depicted in this thought-provoking book filled with hope and forgiveness. Go ahead, and grab a cold lemonade and get to know the superbly talented author behind the story, Amy Mason Doan.   What inspires you to write novels set in summertime? Summer seems like this lazy, golden season, but I think that’s deceptive. The summer months can be surprisingly intense. Summer is when we reinvent ourselves; I don’t think I’ve ever shaken off my shock over classmates who came back to school in September completely transformed. My mom has this long frame in her bedroom with a bunch of my pre-teen and teen yearbook photos in it. It’s held together with gold hinges, and I stare at it every time I visit her. I…

Christmas Eve Buddy was looking forward to this Christmas unlike any other Christmas in his entire life. Christmas growing up in Texas was exciting like it is for any kid. That is, until Kenny started to drink and beat his mother and just generally be an asshole to everyone…ruining their family. Then Christmas wasn’t so much fun anymore. It was just a short break from the loud, sad, horror show that seemed to hijack his interrupted childhood. Christmas, after arriving in North Carolina, seemed to be okay, but it took a while for Buddy and his mother to make their own new traditions for the holiday. They were living someone else’s life at that point, and so they were doing someone else’s traditions. They had no family to speak of, no one to go visit, no one to come visit them, no one to send Christmas cards to…not even to the nice ladies they met in New Mexico. There was no receiving a gift in the mail, such as a dress shirt that didn’t fit quite right, from Daniel Junior’s Uncle Frank and Aunt Nikki. It was a strange holiday now. Just – nothing, empty, voided – but with reds…

When I worked as an entertainment reporter for a television news channel, we weren’t allowed to file stories about the Windsors under ‘entertainment’. Instead, they were to go beneath the banner of ‘world’ news, besides elections in India and China trade tensions. There’s a reason that felt misplaced: because the British royals are unquestionably a source of entertainment, once described by a psychology professor as “one of the longest-running reality TV shows in history” (which means we’re currently on season nine-hundred-and-fifty-something). At the time of writing, Princes William and Harry are jousting for the highest number of Instagram followers (William has 9.1 million and Harry has 8.4 million—that’s around the same number as Walt Disney and Game of Thrones). Nearly 23 million US viewers watched Prince William marry Kate Middleton in 2011, with viewers tuning in from more than 180 countries. The acceleration of technology has handily turned the British royals into a global brand, with millions following them by choice rather than decree. Plenty of fans worship the Windsors to connect with their past and preserve British tradition, but why are the rest of us still so captivated by the Elizabeths, the Williams, the Henrys, the Georges, and the…

Hello! I’m Tina Gabrielle and I write adventurous historical romance featuring feisty ladies and bold heroes. I’m excited to be on Fresh Fiction to celebrate my new historical release, HOW TO BEST A MARQUESS, the second book in my Raven Club series. Writing a novel is not an easy task. I think of it as a rollercoaster ride of emotion. One day I can be struggling with the dreaded sagging middle, and the next day my fingers are flying over the keyboard. Writer’s block is also a dreaded phenomenon, and it can result in frustration and depression. I’ve experienced a form of it. Whether I’m staring at a blank screen or an empty piece of paper, it can be crippling. Thankfully, I’ve used helpful tips to overcome it. Exercising works best for me. I’m a lap swimmer, and I’ve found the quiet time away from the kids and work very helpful. I’m able to simply think. If this doesn’t work, I change my environment. I’m not a coffee drinker, but I go to my nearest Starbucks with my laptop and order a large iced tea. Something about being around people, without having to talk to anyone, helps me focus. I’ve…