KENNEDY STREATH IS IN THE CRIB TODAY!!!

Welcome to the my crib Kennedy! This is short and sweet, so take it away and show us what you brought for us today . . .

Thanks for having me. Roman started as a personal challenge, writing on the fly, 2-3 chapters per week and posting them blog style, never completely sure where the characters and the story would take me. As the project gathered fans (some rabid and very supportive) and a life of its own, I found that sweet spot where creativity and energy found synergy.
I hope you like the outcome.

Roman (Saints and Sinners) by Kennedy Streath

Genre: YA, paranormal, romance, fallen angels

BLURB:

Benedict Nowak bailed on his marriage, taking his son with him but leaving behind his five year old daughter. He had his reasons. He had no idea they’d come back to haunt him.

TJ Nowak had come to terms with the mother she despised, making those small concessions that made life bearable. But Eleanore’s death changed everything.

Her brother, Anton, was the parent missing in TJ’s life, until he found a calling in violence, and left his sister at the mercy of shrinks and a mother with ice in her veins.

Roman Rincon was the juvie rescued by Father Marcus and placed in the care of Benedict Nowak. With his records sealed, no one knew what happened that fateful night when Roman was only fourteen. All Father Marcus knew was the boy had confessed to a crime not even the cops would talk about.

In the small coal mining town of Montville, two teens whose lives have been shattered beyond repair must find a way cope … with school, with each other, with growing up marked as broken in a town dying under the weight of secrets and lies.

Warned off having anything to do with Roman, TJ is all too willing to agree, except for one little thing. The young man lives in the apartment above her father’s car repair business. Avoiding him will be a problem, wanting to will be almost impossible.

As for Roman, he will take his secret to the grave, no matter what the cost.

*****

EXCERPT:

Forced into making decisions no young girl should ever make, TJ must deal with her conflicted feelings for a mother who cared only for her career and a father who turned his back on his responsibilities. When TJ’s mother dies, the teen must go live with a father who is a stranger, in a town dying under the weight of poverty and ethnic divisions.

TJ’s father, Benedict Nowak, has given Roman Rincon sanctuary. Fresh out of three years in juvie, the only friend Roman has is Father Marcus. The priest convinced the court to remand the troubled teen to Benedict’s supervision. Roman has to keep his head down and his nose clean.

This excerpt is the scene when TJ finally gets to meet the elusive teen.

*****

“Come on in, Roman. I want you to meet...” Ben waved in her direction, “…my daughter, TJ.”

The teen stared, eyes a flat obsidian, framed by impossibly long lashes, the thick brownish black brows creased into a single, disapproving line. Deep set, those eyes were all she could focus on, commanding her undivided attention.

Ben rattled on, “TJ stands for Theresa Jane…”

Throat dry, TJ mouthed a ‘hi’ but it died before her lips could form the word. To her surprise her father wasn’t filling in the blanks like she might have expected, spilling all her particulars.

No … her mother just passed. I’m all she has. Well, Tony also. But Tony’s gone, back to his unit. She’ll be going to the high school. We’ll see the prin—

Instead he’d turned back to his task, shoulders rigid with tension. TJ wondered why.

But then she looked closer at the man hiding behind a boy’s lean and lanky frame, at the sharp planes of his high cheekbones, the cruel set to lips just on the edge of full, a hint of a dimple offset by the tilt of his head that spoke to defiance and self-sufficiency.

The hoodie masked all but his face. Short sideburns shadowed by the fleece suggested raven dark hair. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he wore it long, perhaps in a tail. He wasn’t as tall as her father or Tony, maybe five eleven, but she’d thought him bigger the way he commanded a room, like he’d emptied it of air and filled it with his presence, something physical … and something not. That something seemed to hover in the air currents, leaving her feeling like cannon fodder in a bad horror movie.

She felt the catch in her lungs, the sensation of menace, but refused to look away. She knew all about turf wars from her mother: the legal kind with briefs and a quick wit, the other with self-actualization on each side of a tennis court, the advantage always Eleanore. Mostly she knew about negotiating. About trade-offs. Being bought. Staying out of the way. Rigging the balance sheet so losses looked less like failure and more like incremental skirmishes.

Eleanore cooked the legal ledgers to get what she wanted. TJ leaned toward a slightly different interpretation but both had understood a zero sum game.

Roman had that very special knowledge also. But one thing about him was different: he needed no one, he feared nothing. Of that she was one hundred percent sure.

When he turned away and left without a word, she and Ben breathed a sigh of relief.

*****

BUY LINKS:

KINDLE: http://amzn.to/T8YFml

AMAZON (print): http://amzn.to/WhrLB0

SMASHWORDS: http://bit.ly/VSVvri

OMNILIT: http://bit.ly/TTOPpZ

B&N: http://bit.ly/13bWWS9

KOBO: http://bit.ly/V6axuj

WEBSITE: http://saints-and-sinners.weebly.com/index.html

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/KennedyStreath

Thanks for stopping by Kennedy and hope you stop by again when the next book is released.

Please leave Kennedy some love by commenting below.

BLACK FRIDAY BLOG HOP

WINNER HAS BEEN SELECTED!!! ACTUALLY I AWARDED TWO SINCE SUCH A GREAT TURN OUT -- CONGRATULATIONS TO LAURIE GOUDGE AND NATASHA DONOHOO!!!

I'm staying home today and not getting out into the craziness on the streets and at the malls to buy a gift or two. So, I'm offering a gift for one lucky commenter. Let me know what you're doing this "Black Friday" in the comments below. By Random.org I'll pick a winner and receive a $5.00 Gift Card to my publisher and you can shop on-line! As a great added bonus, Secret Cravings Publishing is having their own After Thanksgiving Sale with 25% off purchase! What a deal. But, you have to leave your email addy along with a comment.

DON'T FORGET--Follow the links to other participants for this Blog Hop and be entered into the Grand Prize!!!

Blurb for A Vampire's First Christmas - The Misadventures of Dick Grewcock
Due to Release December 3, 2012

Richard “Dick” Grewcock is a fledgling vampire, turned by choice on Halloween Night. He’s a computer geek, thirty-two years old, and thinks vampires are handsome, powerful, and have women falling over them—everything he’s not. Problem is, after he turns he doesn’t get any of those qualities and wants his money back. All he wants for Christmas is a girlfriend. Is that so difficult?

Christmas Eve he confronts his maker and as he argues to get his money back or at least fix his problem, a pretty young woman walks in and disrupts his train of thought.

Noelle St. Nicholas is on a mission to save her home and won’t take no for an answer. The only one who can save her is Dick, the nerd staring at her and looking really weird.

On his first adventure to find love, Dick Grewcock gets a Christmas present he won’t soon forget.

Buy Link:

http://store.secretcravingspublishing.com/index.php?main_page=products_all&filter_author=1

Thanks for stopping by!

Cynthia Arsuaga 

TODAY IS RELEASE DAY!!!!

The highly anticipated Book 2 of the Shifter Tales is here! Yay! Mike and I are excited to share this new installment of the case files from Drake Martin's stash. This tale takes place twenty-six years later and bring another whole array of shape-shifters to the reading audience. Here's the blurb and a little excerpt:

A Dog

Drake Martin, the Yorkie shifter, and Sufi of the North American Shape-shifters, returns and this time he has a new shifter to play tag with.

A Cat

Kady Martin, Drake’s wife, has a new alter-ego as Tabitha, the Russian Blue Maltese.

A New Game of Tag

Twenty-six years later, the dog and cat play more than tag when, with their son and mixed array of shape-shifting friends, battle a new monster in town. 

Death follows the happily married couple as carnage and mayhem run rampant in the streets of the Big Easy. With help from family, the shifter clan, and white magic the loving pair maneuvers through rebellious children, while battling the terminal illness of a dear friend, and the menace bent on bringing the city to her knees.

Oh boy!

EXCERPT:

The scent of fresh lavender and jasmine soap filled every sense. My arms hugged her to my expectant chest. Before she could react, I took immediate advantage by thrusting my tongue between her lips to taste the sweetness inside. Despite the thousands of times we’d shared love, the experience revealed a new and different surprise. She jolted at first, but soon relaxed under my gentle touch.

I peeled down my jeans and stepped out of them, and then removed my shirt. I stood before her naked, with cock jutting forth to show Kady how much I wanted her, no matter how many gray hairs she thought she had or extra pounds she hadn’t shed. I offered her a wicked grin and raised an eyebrow. “All for you, baby.”

At first, her expression was nondescript as she lowered her eyes and surveyed my nakedness. Then, a small smile crossed her face. I had her.

I removed the nightgown in one quick pull of the hem over her head. I think the erection I sported doubled in size at the sight of her nude body. I never grew tired of gazing upon the beautiful Kady.

I scooped her in my arms, lifted her from the vanity stool and holding her close, carried her to bed, covering her mouth with mine as I did. She panted softly as I released the embrace and reclined beside her on the mattress. We had danced this erotic tango many times, hot and intense, but tonight something seemed different. Kady wasn’t the same. She jerked again when I ran a warm palm over her full breasts, swollen from lack of nursing our son. I hadn’t seen her so sensitive toward my fondling in a long time. I pulled back until she relaxed and returned the caresses.

Slowly deliberately, I kissed her forehead, her nose, and then crushed her lips beneath mine. This time she didn’t tense. The passion flowed, and she surrendered to my kiss, parting her lips, accepting me without hesitation. I sensed the excitement tingling through her, goose bumps rose on her creamy skin as my hands smoothed down her arms then stomach. My tongue trailed from her chin, down her neck to between her breasts, then laved over to one nipple and circled it.

 

 Cynthia Arsuaga

I HAVE THE WONDERFUL DAISY DUNN IN THE HOUSE TODAY!!!

Today is the first blog guest for the 2012!!! Fellow Secret Cravings Publishing author, Daisy Dunn is in the crib to answer a few questions and sharing an excerpt from Hunger's Desire. Sit back, grab a cup of coffee, or something liquid, and enjoy the visit. Oh and make sure you leave Daisy some love and a comment at the end because she has a little somethin' somethin' when you scroll to the end. Now, let's get this going!!! 

CYNTHIA:  Okay, Daisy. Are you ready? The first question since the 2012 Mayan Calendar Doomsday Prediction is in the news again (if you believe in that sort of thing) I thought I'd ask this one:  If the world was to end tomorrow, what three things would be on your bucket list?

             

DAISY:  Good question…spend time with family, eat all the chocolate I want without guilt, and make love in a public place!

CYNTHIA:  OH (blushing) you're a naughty girl 'til the end, eh? Let's follow that up. If you came with a warning label, what would it say?

 

DAISY:  Danger, naughty writer…cover eyes if heat level is too much…LOL

CYNTHIA:  Okay, you're still being naughty lady. Let's change the subject and get to your writing and books.  Are there any authors who have influenced your work?

DAISY:  I have several, but top two most influential would be Christine Feehan and Cassandra Pierce. Love these two authors and their writing styles.

CYNTHIA:  Me too, love, love.  If one of your books became a movie, which celebrity would you like to star as your main characters?

DAISY:  If Hunger’s Desire became a movie, I would love Karl Urban to play Jesse Turner. He is so sexy with a devilish glint in his eyes…I absolutely love that. For the heroine, Nerida Manatos, I would have Ali Larter.  She’s beautiful, and can kick ass looking sexy the whole time.  Since my heroine is the vampire in this book, I think Ali completely fits the bill.

CYNTHIA:  Ali is a good choice. She is a very talented actress.  So, if you had to choose one person to have dinner with, who would it be? And why?

DAISY:  I would love to have dinner with either Christine Feehan or Cassandra Pierce. They are my idols!!

CYNTHIA:  Ahh, should have guessed. Favorite authors who influenced you, got it.  As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? Oh, let me guess, I think I know this one.

DAISY:  I always wanted to be a writer, but I never believed in myself enough and pushed the dream away.  I started to follow my dream on Jan. 1^st, 2011 and I now have 12 published  or soon to be published books under my belt. All I can say is follow your dreams!! 

CYNTHIA:  I knew it!!! LOL. Well that is a great accomplishment.  You go lady!  Can you talk a bit about your writing? What comes first for you:   Setting? Storyline? Characters?

DAISY:  Storyline always comes first. When I figure out the storyline, the characters and setting just seem to fall into place.

CYNTHIA:  As a follow-on, what main genre do you write in?

DAISY:  Mainly paranormal(vampires, werewolves, witches), but I also write contemporary, ménage, fantasy, and cougar.

CYNTHIA:  Wow, you sound like me, Daisy. I love me my vamps, but I've ventured out too. So if you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?

DAISY:  Nothing at all. I’m very proud of how the story turned out.

CYNTHIA:  And so you should be! What inspired your latest release?

DAISY:  It’s book two in my Hunger Series and since the first book was fresh in my mind, I jumped right into the second book.

CYNTHIA:  What do you have coming next? Anything you want to tell us?

DAISY:  I have a Valentine’s anthology coming out with Secret Cravings Romance. I’m not sure what the anthology will be called, but my story is called Accidental Valentines. In March, the first book in my Elemental Magic series will be released at Siren Publishing called Earth’s Desire. It’s the first of a four book series dealing with four elementals with the gifts of earth, air, fire, water and their search for their mates before their thirtieth birthday on the Summer Solstice. If they don’t find their mates by then, they lose their powers. The first book is the Earth Elemental’s story.

CYNTHIA:  Oh they all sound great. Look forward to reading them.  Do you have any suggestions for beginning writers? If so, what are they?

DAISY:  Do some research. When I first wanted to write a book, I search the web and all the different romance publishing houses out there. Once I finally chose a publisher, I researched the publisher to find out how to submit, what information they need and what they don’t need.

Make sure your book is as error free as possible. If I learned one thing, is that I used the words “was” and “that” way too much in my first books. Try to watch for those words and get rid of them if possible.

Don’t give up on your dreams. If one publisher says no, be polite and then send to the next one. If they give you a critique, don’t be offended, listen to what they say and learn from it.

CYNTHIA:  All great advice and you're an example of not giving up.  Okay, last question. What else would you like readers to know about you or your work?

DAISY:  I like to write in all kinds of genres and book lengths. I try to write a little something for everyone’s tastes. I hope you enjoy. I also love hearing from my fans. Here is where you can find me on the web:

Website: www.daisydunn.ca

Blog: www.daisydunn.blogspot.com

Email: daisydunn23@gmail.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DaisyDunn.author

Twitter: @daisydunnauthor

Thank you very much Daisy for putting up with my questions and honoring me with stopping by today. Okay, okay now what everyone has been waiting for~~your new release and don't forget to leave Daisy some love at the end.

HUNGER’S DESIRE

Book Two – Hunger Series

By Daisy Dunn

Buy link: http://store.secretcravingspublishing.com/index.php?main_page=products_all&filter_author=16

Blurb:

Nerida, an ancient warrior for the Orion vampire tribe, she served her clan faithfully but longed for more. She had searched for over one thousand years for her healer, soul mate to the vampire, to no avail. One night, she felt his presence, her healer was within reach. He called to her soul, and she responded by frantically searching for him. She desperately needed to make him fall in love with her. Only then would she transform him into the vampire lover fate ordained him to be.

Jesse Turner was an attractive fireman paramedic, who had built an impenetrable wall around his heart. A chance encounter had brought them together, and he was drawn to her with a fiery passion. However, with his vow to keep women at bay, he fought with his desire for this particular woman. He knew he needed to walk away and never look back.

Excerpt:

He couldn’t push her away. He wanted to know what she had to say, but he wanted something else from her first. Nerida walked to the couch turned around to face him and started to sit down. Jesse stopped her as he caught her free hand in his while her right hand still held the tiny towel in place.

What are you doing? This is too dangerous. Don’t do it. Jesse’s inner thoughts wreaked havoc in his mind. He let the thoughts drift off in to emptiness and let his heart take over for a little while.

With her hand in his, he brought it up to his lips and kissed the back of it. Electric currents seem to run through Jesse’s body and his erection became a painful reminder of what he truly desired. Still holding on to her hand, Jesse gently put it behind her lower back as he guided her body closer to his. The passion and innocence in her eyes melted the last piece of ice encasing his heart. She stood there before him, vulnerable and trusting. With both of her hands tied up, one behind her back, the other holding on to the barely there towel, he knew she had surrendered to him. Accepting her surrender was only a matter of time. He finally did.

He laid all his burdens, distrust, anger, and weariness on the ground and took a chance on Nerida. He took a step closer to her. Her body fit beautifully against his. He felt his erection push against her firm stomach, and she didn’t pull away from it. He couldn’t see fear in her eyes, only trust, and something else he didn’t want to face yet.

He slowly lowered his head to hers. She tilted her face up to his, seemingly in acceptance of whatever he planned to do to her. He couldn’t put it off any longer. He needed to know what she felt like. He placed his free hand on her cheek and caressed her soft skin lightly. With a fire raging within his whole being, he lowered his head all the way so his lips touched her quivering lips.

Author Bio:

 

Daisy Dunn considers herself a prairie girl, having lived most of her life in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. A hopeless romantic, Daisy fell in love with reading romance novels at age sixteen, when she bought her first one. She was thoroughly hooked and hasn’t stopped reading romances since.

Daisy always wanted to write, but life has a nasty habit of getting in the way of personal goals. Well, life finally stepped aside, and Daisy has started following her passion of writing erotica and erotic romances. Her favorite genre to write is paranormal, but she is not limited to it. She also writes erotica in ménage, fantasy, contemporary, and cougar genres and is hoping to tackle time travel and western someday soon.

Book One – Hunger Series

HUNGER'S PREY

Thanks Cynthia. 

GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

I will give the person selected the choice between Book One - Hunger's Prey and Book Two - Hunger's Desire. All you need to do is share what paranormal creature you like best...vampires, werewolves, shifters, etc. and leave your email address. I'll select the winner tomorrow.