His Witness by Tami Lund

 Fit in with the neighborhood.  That includes Christmas lawn decorations.  Don't stand out.  Leave your former life behind, and you'll be safe.  Rules of the Witness Protection Program must be followed.

Anna Lewis is a rule follower, but fitting in didn't help her this time.  The teenager next door takes too many pictures, and they end up online.  With Anna in a neighborhood Christmas photo, she's spotted by the cartel that wants her dead.

Diego Mendez is sent to protect her until she's relocated with another identity.  It would be less of a problem if the holiday wouldn't slow the process down.  Worse yet, the cartel has already found her.

During the time Anna and Diego are forced into a claustrophobic relationship, small personality traits are revealed.  Anna has not gotten close to anyone, let alone a man, since she witnessed an admission from a human trafficker and testified against him.

Now, trust is a must in order to stay alive.  Trust develops into a caring and loving emotion under some circumstances.  Can it be pursued?  Can love last?  

Running for your life while falling in love is a grand scale to test your future.  Let's root for a passing grade on this test!

Happy reading,

Dawn

So Busy!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Oh my gosh! Life has gotten so busy…let me rephrase that….life has always been busy…it’s just more so now and somehow, I thought, mistakenly, that as one grew older, it just wouldn’t be. It’s pretty harsh realizing I lied to myself. 

        The day job is crazy busy. So much to do, not enough time to do it in. You’re all familiar with the phrase ‘do more with less’? Yeah. That.

         And the writing—the thing that keeps me sane—has been busy, too. I am ready to submit The Marshal and Mrs. Morgan to my publisher (you don’t know how happy it makes me to say that after having been without a publisher since before COVID) and I’m working diligently on The Madam and Mr. MacLean (I’ve already run into a snag on that, but I’m fixing it). AND Wife by Surprise is up for pre-order, releasing on April 25. 

                https://www.amazon.com/Wife-Surprise-Wives-Bravado-County-ebook/dp/B0F3VGGFB6

        Of course, when all these moving parts are moving, the ideas keep coming (not sure how that works, but my brain is a very strange and odd place). I’ve been working on two more (possibly three) stories for the Matchmaker Mischief series because, you know, can’t stop the wheels from turning. It’s a good thing I carry notebooks around with me because you never know when an idea will hit or a character introduces himself. I have actually stopped in the middle of the grocery store to jot down notes (I do try to stay out of people’s way)! I’ve also pulled into a parking lot to make notes because some of my best ideas occur when I’m driving (I don’t use a recorder of any kind because the playback is filled with ‘ums’ and I sound like Minnie Mouse). 

        And that’s all for me. Gotta get back to writing…the thing that keeps me sane (although the jury might be out on that). 

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

        Marie

Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams

 Whenever you have a nemesis, you want to be as far away as possible.  As a responsible adult.  Avoid conflict.

As a second-grade teacher in Rome, Kentucky, Emily Walker pretends to be in control of her animosity to another teacher, Jack Bennett.  They sparred with words since college, right into teaching at the same school. It was a lot easier when he moves away to get married.

A short year later, he appears nearly on her doorstep.  I say nearly because he moves back to town, purchases her neighboring house, and reclaims his teaching job.  And he's alone.  No marriage certificate or wife in hand.

Emily likes to keep her life very controlled and in line with her objectives.  

Jack's arrival throws everything out of whack, which deems her the authority to put it back at her free will.  

And the sparring begins.  

The funny thing is, for some reason, The intensity of their rivalry includes a crumb of humanity.  They begin to notice good qualities in each other, insecurities, and a few humorous scenes.  Granted, the good points are hard to acknowledge.

And that's the problem.  Quit covering emotions and pretending to not need a shoulder for laughs and sorrow.  If Emily and Jack can figure this out, they have a good chance!

Happy reading,

Dawn

Cover Reveal...and more

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        A couple things to tell you (and yes, I’m excited about all of it)! I finished rewriting the last two chapters (even tweaked the epilogue) of The Marshal and Mrs. Morgan. I think it’s better. I hope it’s better. I finished on Saturday and sent it off to my critique partner (the wonderful and talented Lexi Post). Now I wait to find out if I hit the mark with my changes or if I need to rip out again. 

        While I was doing that, I was also reading through the print version of Wife By Surprise, the also wonderful and talented D.H. Thompson sent me. You know, it seems that no matter how many times you read something or edit something, you can still find a mistake or two. I wish I knew how that happens. I am now reading through the ebook version so it’s ready for release in April (I have not decided on a day yet, but will soon). 

        This is the cover (thank you, D.H.)! I’m so pleased! I think it came out beautifully!

        With all that going on, I haven’t had any time to work on The Madam and Mr. MacLean BUT I did figure out the basic plotline and characters for the next book in the Matchmaker Mischief series (and perhaps the fifth book, too). It seems that when working like this, one idea begets another idea…and another…and another. It’s all good…I just wish there were more hours in the day (or that I was already retired…only two years, nine months to go)!

        And that’s about all from here…I really need to finish my read-through of Wife By Surprise.

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

 The world appears small when you try to run away from problems.  Troubled minds don't see it that way.

The Allbright family cannot see it that way.  Husband, Ernt, has been affected by violence which his mind brought home after Vietnam.  His wife Cora will follow him and support him no matter what the situation.  Daughter, Leni, loves her parents, but knows the stress cannot continue.

In the early 1970's, Ernt repeatedly loses jobs.  His last resort at an attempt to provide for the family is to relocate to Homer, Alaska.  He states his volatile moods will disappear if they are off the grid, grow and catch their food, and live on love.

Leni wants the best for him and her mom is her soulmate, so she wants to help make this idea work.  Initially Ernt's temper is assuaged, and he makes a go at living in the wilds.  He makes enemies fast, though.

One enemy is Matthew Walker's father.  The problem with this is, as young teenagers, Matthew and Leni have grown to like and care for each other.  

As winter inevitably overtakes the land, Ernt's dark mood descends and there's little to curb his violent actions toward his family and the surrounding village people.  Leni is forced to hide any contact with Matthew.  It's emotionally draining on Leni, but she knows it has to be no matter what her heart wants.

Arguments and physical fights erupt, people are hurt, and people are killed and damaged for life.  Cora and Leni have one last chance to live or die in the catastrophic winter off the grid.

Their choices change a lot of lives, leaving a new opportunity to start fresh.  Leni's love for Matthew and his for her is pushed aside until an opportunity to rekindle is offered.  The problem is whether their love will bring them together again or the pain endured will hold them back.

The Great Alone creates an unimaginable life, hardship, strength, and weakness that love finds a way to rebuild when the hearts are true.

Happy reading,

Dawn

 

Rock-A-Bye Cowboy by Lexi Post has released!

 

Rock-A-Bye Cowboy 

by Lexi Post 

has released!

He’s done with everything changing on him. But what if she was the change he needed?

Amazon | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA

Jackson Dunn has come home from his deployment with a baby he didn’t know he had, only to find the family cattle ranch is becoming a dude ranch, his oldest brother has married their enemy’s daughter, and his robust father is now in a wheelchair. That’s far more change than he’s willing to handle. He’s not even sure how his brothers think he can work when he has a tiny, pooping machine to take care of and his mind keeps jumping back to the war zone. To make matters worse, the first “guests” arrive and the last thing he has time for is a woman who keeps wandering away from the activities she’s supposed to be at.

Danielle “Dani” Hubbard has burned up her Mr. Right checklist and plans to enjoy two weeks at home watching movies, eating ice cream, and sleeping. Unfortunately, her friend whisks her away on a two-week vacation she won to a dude ranch, and Dani finds herself sleeping in bunkbeds, getting up before dawn, and chowing down with dozens of others. Intrigued that one of the Dunn brothers, who own the ranch, appears about as happy to be there as she is, she makes her vacation more interesting by investigating the sullen cowboy. The more she discovers about him, the more she’s convinced he’s the perfect Mr. Wrong.

As much as Jackson doesn’t want to admit it, Dani is actually helpful, from her advice on taking care of his daughter to putting in fence posts. That their physical attraction is off the charts, just makes their time together more enjoyable. She’s also much easier to talk to than his family, and only she has witnessed his flashbacks. Unfortunately, she’s a guest and has to go back to her life three hours away. Now, he has to decide if he’s opened up to her because she’ll be leaving and he won’t have to face her, or if it’s something else…something more.

Just her luck, she discovers too late that Mr. Wrong could well be Mr. Right. 

For a chance to win Shotgun the raccoon, enter the rafflecopter.

Lexi Bio:

Lexi Post is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of romance inspired by the classics. She spent years in higher education taking and teaching courses about the classical literature she loved. From Edgar Allan Poe's short story “The Masque of the Red Death” to Tolstoy’s War and Peace, she's read, studied, and taught wonderful classics.

But Lexi's first love is romance novels so she married her two first loves, romance and the classics. Whether it’s sizzling cowboys, dashing dukes, hot immortals, or hunks from out of this world, Lexi provides a sensuous experience with a “whole lotta story.”

Lexi is living her own happily ever after with her husband and her two cats in Florida. She makes her own ice cream every weekend, loves bright colors, and you’ll never see her without a hat.

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Rewrites, rewrites, rewrites!

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        As you may know from my last post, I finished The Marshal & Mrs. Morgan and sent it off to my beta readers….and well, now I’m fixing it based on their comments. That is to say, I’ve ripped out the last two chapters (oh my, it was a lot of words, too!) and I’m rewriting them. 

        Quite frankly, I was not happy with those chapters anyway (and I knew it when I sent it off...perhaps, I was just anxious to finish on my own personal timeline and didn't give it my best). It went in the wrong direction. Completely. And my beta readers, who are the absolute best, called me out on it. 

        Tresia, my heroine, is no shrinking violet. She’s a kind woman, but—what is that saying? Don’t mistake my kindness for weakness. Yeah, that’s Tresia so I’m rewriting…and it’s going well (I think)!

        Also, my friend, D.H. Thompson, who runs Bella Media Management is working on my cover for Wife by Surprise. I love it. She does such good work but I’d like to know how she can read my mind! I gave her the bare essentials of what I’d like to see and boom, she gets it! There is some tweaking (very little, mind you because she’s that good) that needs to be done so I’m not quite ready for a cover reveal but it’s coming.

        What else? I’ve had to put The Madam and Mr. MacLean on the back burner for a bit while I do the rewrites for The Marshal & Mrs. Morgan, but that’s to be expected. Still, the story is in my head (I love when that happens) and I’m looking forward to getting back to it. 

        And that’s all from beautiful Arizona! Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie