This blog is for those 18 and older.

Friday, October 30, 2015

A Halloween Song. Do you know this one?

I've always loved Halloween. Probably why I have a number of romances with pieces of Halloween in them :-) 

This holiday has come a long way. There are such cool ways to carve pumpkins now (like this one in the picture that one of my readers did) and children's costumes are so improved over 20-30 years ago! Even adults get into the spirit now by decorating their yards and homes and even dressing up to give out candy, or to go to  those fun adult Halloween parties ;-) Dressing up is my favorite part of the holiday. But one thing I've noticed that I don't hear anymore is the Halloween songs we learned in school. I only remember two, but I always sing them at this time of year. I've posted my favorite. Do remember this one?

Witches on brooms with cats and bats
Ride round after dark in their funny black hats.
How queer are the noises on Halloween Night,
And there in the window I see a strange sight.

Great shinning eyes and a great, big nose,
I sit close to mother and curl up my toes.
It's old Jack o'Lantern as he peeks through the room.
A worse looking sight than a witch on a broom! 

I'm doing this from a very old memory, so I hope I got it right :-} Do you remember any Halloween songs?

Always, Lexi
www.lexipostbooks.com 

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

The Hidden (Krewe of Hunters) by Heather Graham



Some suspense novels need help from the “other side” or as we like to call the viewable dead-ghosts!

Scarlet Barlow loves her job as a curator at the Conway Ranch near the Rockies of Colorado.  She found this sanctuary after she left her FBI husband, Diego McCullough.
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Scarlet had reasons for leaving her husband, but I always find it hard to understand why problems aren’t worked out when it’s obvious that the couple still loves each other. 


Scarlet and Diego will fill you in on their story when Scarlet is a suspect in a murder case and she calls for his help.  Yeah, that means they have a chance!

The heinous murders of the owners of the Conway Ranch in the 1850’s are now being replicated starting with relatives to the original victims.  Unfortunately, Scarlet is a descendant and she needs Diego’s help along with unexpected assistance from the ghosts created as new victims fall.

Heather Graham tells a story that I recommend if you love the spooky atmosphere of Halloween.  Romance, ghosts, and murder fit her series of Krewe of Hunters to a “T.”

Happy reading,

Dawn


Sunday, October 25, 2015

Marie Patrick Interview, Release of Kiss in the Shadows and a GIveaway


Lexi: I’d like to welcome our own Historical Romance author Marie Patrick who is giving away an ecopy of A Kiss in the Shadows. Be sure to answer her question for a chance to win! This book is up for pre-order and releases tomorrow!

Welcome, Marie. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? 

Marie: I was 14 and had just started reading historical romances (Jennifer Wilde, Love’s Tender Fury was my very first romance…..The Flame and the Flower was the next and boy, was I hooked!). Now, what made me think I could write? I have no clue….still don’t, but for reasons I can’t explain, it’s my passion and I have to do it. 

Lexi: Which authors inspire(d) you? 

Marie: Well, you, for one. Jennifer Ashley, Kathryne Kennedy, Shirlee Busbee, Judith McNaught, Victoria Alexander, Kathleen Woodiwiss, Caris Roane and the list goes on. There are so many talented authors out there (and not enough time to read them all!). 

Lexi: Aw, you are so sweet. What are you working on now? 

Marie: Right now, I’m working on Book 2 of the MacDermott Brothers. This one is about Eamon, the youngest of the MacDermott boys. He’s proving to be as difficult as his older brother, Brock, was! 

Lexi: I’ve read A Kiss in the Shadows and Brock is definitely the strong silent type. Can’t wait to meet his brother! Why did you choose this sub-genre of romance? 

Marie: I love history and often feel like I was born at the wrong time. That being said, I think I would have a hard time with all the clothes the women between 1850 and 1900 wore. I couldn’t imagine having to drag on a corset (even worse, having it laced up tight!) and several petticoats…and that’s just the underthings! And the hoops beneath some gowns…..I will admit, I am not the most graceful person….I can just imagine what would happen if I wore hoops! 

Lexi: I totally agree. Way too many clothes in that time! Of all the books you’ve written, which is your favorite character? 

Marie: Oh, my! So difficult to choose….I’ve loved them all for who and what they are (at the time I was writing them and now), but after much deliberation, I’ll go with Joey Darling from A Scandalous Woman. She was the most daring and the most fun with her love of disguises. 

Lexi: I remember that book. You’re right, that heroine was very brave! Thank you so much for telling us a bit about yourself. I know your fans can’t wait until tomorrow when A Kiss in the Shadows releases.

For a chance to win Marie’s newest release, in the comments section, answer this question: What’s your favorite time period to read?

A Kiss in the Shadows blurb: 
     Danger and redemption lurk in the mountains of New Mexico. A killer with no conscience is on the loose, one who seems to be one step ahead of the law.
     Sheriff turned Bounty Hunter Brock MacDermott knows exactly what Zeb Logan is capable of because he has the scars to prove it. In an ambush eighteen months ago, Logan killed Brock’s brother, sister-in-law and their son. Brock has never forgiven himself for failing to keep them safe. Driven by his single-minded mission to find Logan and make him pay, hoping that by doing so he can finally find peace, he rides from town to town on his lonely quest—always careful to keep emotional attachments at arms length…
     …until Stevie Rae Buchanan insists on joining him. She upsets his careful plans with her kindness, courage and strength of mind, making him long for a different life, one with her by his side. But she, too, has seen first hand what this ruthless killer can do and she’s determined to stop him, with or without Brock’s help.
Amazon

Marie Patrick has always had a love affair with words and books but it wasn’t until a trip to Arizona, where she now makes her home with her husband and two furry, four-legged “girls”, that she became inspired to write about the sometimes desolate, yet beautiful west. Her inspiration doesn’t just come from the wild west though. It comes from history itself. She is fascinated with pirates and men in uniform and lawmen with shiny badges. When not writing or researching her favorite topics, she can usually be found curled up with a good book. Marie loves to hear from her readers. Drop her a note at Akamariep@aol.com or visit her website at www.mariepatrick.com. She can also be found on Facebook

Friday, October 23, 2015

BRAIN-DEAD CUSTOMER SERVICE

Hey guys!  Good to see you all again.  So, how ya be?  I’m great at this end.  Kicking butt and getting butt kicked, so it’s situation normal for me.  LOL


Okay, today’s topic is rules or processes that make absolutely no sense and the people who blindly enforce them—and have I got a doosey!  My mother’s internet has been down for two months…that is 2 freaking long months, and it’s taken an act of God to get the local land line company to send someone out to look at it.

You’d think filing a trouble report would be easy—but you would be wrong.  Not with this company.  Maybe if you live in the perfect world with no challenges, your interactions with them go smoothly.  But I don’t live in a perfect world and neither does anyone else in my family.  In fact, we have extra challenges—and this company CANNOT handle challenges.


So, just to make sure you all know the challenges here, my mother is deaf.  She’s been deaf her entire life and speaks sign language, so communication is challenge number one.  Challenge number two is that she’s 83 years old, and still lives in her house with the support of a Life Alert device.  Challenge number three is that she needs a walker to get around. To communicate with the outside world, she uses a video phone that works through her internet connection.  When she makes a call, a translator intercepts the call and acts as the go-between to read her signs and translate to another person on a normal telephone, and vice versa.


Now, if you’ve been following all this, you will understand that if her internet has been down for two months, so has her phone.  Remember when I said she’s 83 years old and uses a walker? Yeah, that means she’s not very mobile and because she is on a fixed income, she stays home most of the time.  So her video phone is her only contact with the outside world, and her biggest means of socialization…not to mention it’s how her Life Alert unit works.

So now you have an 83 year old woman stuck in her house with no way to communicate with the outside world.  Sad but true.  So you’d think when her daughter places a call to the land line company to tell them her internet service has been down for a month, they’d bend over backward to help an old woman out.  But nooooo…not this company.  Instead of being compassionate and sending a technician right out, they are focused on the fact that her daughter (me) is not listed as a contact on her account.

Now, keep in mind that this is a phone company.  It’s not a bank or a credit card company.  I’m not trying to steal her millions (as if she had some).  I’m not trying to create havoc by vindictively having the phone company cut off someone’s service.  I’m not trying to hack into her credit card or order merchandise on her nickel.  It’s a freaking phone company, people!  I’m just trying to get her phone repaired.

I patiently explain to the first guy that I need to have a repairman out to her house.  He says he can’t take that order from me because I’m not designated on her account.  I ask him where I can send in a copy of the Power of Attorney and he says there is no way to do that.  What??!!  Okay, then how can we get this resolved?  His response?  Priceless!  They will have to talk to her personally.  I explain to him again that she’s deaf.  He says that’s okay, she can call them using a TDD number.  Seriously?  Uh…she’s still deaf.  I explain (still patiently) that because she’s deaf, she uses a video phone which works over her internet, which is…wait for it…DOWN! He says they either have to talk to her or I have to be there with her when I call them.  I tell him I’m not making a 40 mile round-trip drive just to get a technician dispatched.  He can’t help me then.  Really?  I need to talk to a manager.

Okay, now I’m on a minimum 20 minute hold because part of their process is to punish you for wanting to speak with someone that’s empowered by putting you on criminally long hold times.  So I hold and finally a supervisor comes on (even though I’d asked for a manager).  I start all over at the beginning with this guy and the story is the same.  They can’t take a request from me because I’m not listed on the account, there is nowhere to send a copy of the Power of Attorney, and I have to be there with her in order for them to take the request from me.

Now I’m becoming a little less patient (translation…about to sail over the edge).  I ask if they can see the line is down from their end and he puts me on hold again.  When he comes back, he confirms that yes, they can see the line is not working.  So I say great…can you just send someone out to fix it?  Uh…no…because I’m not listed on the contract.  Freaking seriously?!  So I asked him how can we get this resolved?  He suggests she call them herself at the TDD number.  Again with the TDD number?  I explain yet one more time that she uses a video phone that works over the internet…no internet, no phone. He’s apparently reading from the same script as the first guy because he suggests she go to a neighbor and borrow their phone.  Uh…no, she is still DEAF and does not have the equipment it takes to use their phones.  Oh, well then maybe a neighbor can make the call for her.  Really?  I’m surrounded by ijits!  I explain that she is deaf and the neighbors cannot speak sign language…so how the hell is she supposed to even talk to the neighbors?  I ask if they can’t make an exception this once since they can see all the challenges we are facing.  Uh…no.  Okay, I’m done with you…I need to speak to a higher level manager.

Alrighty then…another 20 minute hold while they punish me even more for wanting to talk to an empowered/intelligent human being.

Finally I get a manager on the line and we go through all the same crap yet one more time!  She’s deaf, I’m not on the account, we can see the line is dead but we can’t send a technician on your request, she can use the neighbor’s phone, she can get the neighbors to call for her…SHE IS FREAKING DEAF!!!  This is the point at which I sailed completely over the edge and began cursing and hinting that they have processes in place that discriminate against the deaf.  I figure I’m gonna start with a hint and move (quickly) up to a full-fledged threat if I have to go up another level.  But this guy is much smarter than the first two.  So after we move through all the same levels of suggestions and countering, he finally starts looking for ways he can help me without breaking their rules.  This is different!  So when I tell him I can log into her online account and give him any piece of information he needs and he can see that it is my phone number and email address specified as primary contact, he finally hits on the solution.  So he asks me what the profile name is on her online account…I give it to him.  Eureka!  Now he’s willing to dispatch a technician.  Mind you now, we are also now two freaking hours into this phone call!!!

Okay, now we fast forward to two weeks later.  The technician never showed, and the phone is still dead as a doornail.  So I have to call again.  Imagine how tickled I am about this!  So I steel myself and I dial the phone…but this time I do it from mom’s house so she is sitting right there next to me just like everyone on the previous call suggested, which assures they will take the request from me.  Right?  Oh, silly girl!


This time I get a woman who puts me through all the very same suggestions that I encountered 3 times on the previous call…and my mother is still DEAF.  So I remind the woman that their policy is that they can take the request from me as long as I have her with me.  Uh…no…apparently that policy only applies if she’s NOT deaf and…well, she’s still DEAF.  Crap!  I need to speak with your manager, please.


You guessed it…20 minute hold while they punish me yet a third time for wanting them to actually provide the service my mother is paying through the nose for.  I get a guy this time that seems to be on a par with the last guy from the first call…these two are at least riding the long bus.  But, alas, he’s no more empowered than the first woman.  So after going (for the fourth time) through every stinking objection and suggestion on their standard script, and confirming that the first three people were wrong and sitting next to my mother only works if she can hear, I thank him (for being of absolutely no help) and ask for his manager.

Aw crap!  I keep forgetting about the mandatory 20 minutes in the penalty box for expecting customer service.  All right, it’s been an hour and I’m due to a meeting in a half hour.  There is not enough time to sit on the 20 minute hold and go through all the objections again before my meeting.  So I’m forced to hang up.

There must be another way.  Sweet baby Jesus, this is more painful than a root canal and natural childbirth put together!  And keep in mind that we are now almost 2 months down the road and this poor old woman is still a victim of a phone company who charges top-tier prices for crappy service.

So, the bottom line is that one week later, the technician finally shows up at the house.  It takes him 5 minutes to discover that the line from the pole to the house is dead and he has to call out a crew to fix it, so he’s not sticking around.  They should have it fixed in a day or two.  Seriously?  How in hell am I supposed to believe that?  In the meantime, they have also sold this poor old woman trying to get by on a fixed income a $100 modem because they were so certain that it was a faulty modem (even though they had not been out to properly diagnose the problem).  Thank you, phone company, for your outstanding customer service!  (NOT)



Well, I think I can safely say that their service truly does stand out from the crowd.  I’ll let you know later if the phone ever gets fixed.  If not, you’ll probably see my mug shot on the 9pm news as they haul me off in handcuffs.



How about you?  Ever had an experience similar to this where you encountered stupidity so rampant that it deserved an Olympic medal?   Leave me a comment with a brief description of your brush with stupid.  Misery loves company and I’d love to hear your story too!

That’s my story, bone-headed and braindead, and I’m stickin’ to it.  Hang on tight now, ‘cuz we’re gonna go real, real fast!

Love ya,

Kayce

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

I love the rain!


         It’s raining! It’s pouring! The old man is snoring!
         Sorry, couldn’t help singing that to myself. Yes, it’s raining outside. And thundering too. Not very loud yet, but enough that my dogs (my big, ferocious dogs!) are hiding in the bathroom (neither one of them is fond of loud noises and I swear, they can tell when a storm is coming long before it arrives).
          It’s been a strange weekend here in Phoenix. Dark, ominous clouds have been playing hide and seek with the sun for the past couple days. Thunder has rumbled and lightning has streaked across the sky on and off since Friday. Rain—sweet, wonderful smelling rain—has been falling. In some parts of the valley, the rain was vicious, pouring down in buckets like the sky just opened up (I heard there was hail toward the west and wind gusts strong enough to knock down trees and power lines). Here in my little corner of the world, the rain has been gentle (and at one point, it rained in one part of my yard, but the sun was shining in the other…I know! So strange!). I've seen quite a few rainbows these past few days. They were so vivid!
          I love the rain and yes, even the thunder (not so fond of the wind though) but it wasn’t always that way. When I was a kid, thunderstorms terrified me. Of course, I slept upstairs in our little house, so much closer to the noise! My mother tried very hard to put my fears to rest and explained that thunder was just the angels bowling in heaven (no, I didn’t believe her). That all changed for me when I turned eight. For my birthday that year, my mother redecorated my room. We painted the walls a beautiful lilac AND I got a new quilt for my bed. I loved that quilt! It was magic. White with purple speckles and little ballerinas dressed in purple tutus, I knew that as long as it was on my bed, the thunder couldn’t hurt me and I started to like the sound as it rumbled across the sky.
          I’m much older now and I no longer have that magic quilt but I still love the rain and the sound of thunder. It’s perfect for curling up in my DH’s rocker/recliner and reading a good book.

 As always, happy reading!
Marie

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Pre-order Pleasures of Christmas Past and enter to win a Venetian Mask!

Whoohoo! My latest manuscript has been turned in! I had so much fun with Duncan Montgomerie, the hot Scotsman from the early 1800s and Jessica Thomas, the dedicated American social worker who is serving as the Spirit of Christmas Past to Holly Douglas.

This book is available for pre-order for $2.99.


This month has had me steeped in paranormal romances. First Masque re-released on October 1st (link) and then Passion's Poison re-released on October 15th (link) and now Pleasures of Christmas Past has been completed and is up for pre-order.

Of course, that means I'm on the look out for another classic piece of literature to be inspired by for another paranormal book. I think a series would be good this time, but I need to find the right story. Any suggestions? If you have any, please leave them in a comment and be sure to preform the other Rafflecopter tasks for a chance to win this hand decorated Venetian mask made in Italy. This is 1 of only 2 more I'll be giving away this month, so be sure to enter.  Good luck!

Always, Lexi
www.lexipostbooks.com


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Sunday, October 18, 2015

Interview with Dylan Newton and Giveaway!

Alexis: Today we have paranormal romance author Dylan Newton! Welcome Dylan.

Dylan: Thank you so much for having me today on HEAT! I’m so excited to be here…plus it’s my favorite month of the year, so I have a GIVEAWAY: a signed, print copy of my steamy, paranormal romance, ANY WITCH WAY for one lucky reader in honor of the upcoming Wiccan holiday, Samhain (Halloween)! See the bottom of this post for the easy-peasy Rafflecopter entry!

Alexis: Tell us Dylan, when did you know you wanted to be a writer?

Dylan:  I started writing my first book in middle school, when I’d finally ‘aged out’ of my school’s library and was going through a really tough time in my home life. I discovered I enjoyed writing books as much as I did reading them, and that it was a form of escapism and therapy for me. There’s nothing like creating and immersing yourself in a fictional world to take your mind off your troubles!

Alexis: Speaking of immersing, everyone has their own writing process…how they come up with ideas, how they name their characters, how they choose the setting. Can you describe your writing process?

Dylan: I’d love to say that my writing process is full of detailed outlines and carefully plotted first drafts…but that would be a big, fat lie! I would say I’m more of a ‘pantser’ with my novels, although I’m striving to become a ‘plotter’ when I grow up! I’m inspired by people I meet, settings I’ve visited and situations I’ve lived through—and of course, by my vivid (and often dirty!) imagination. The first drafts of my books are a little like Frankenstein’s monster—all cobbled together and somewhat terrifying. Revisions are where my novels are really created, and that’s where I spend a great deal of time smoothing out those rough edges to ensure my scenes sing to my reader.

Alexis: And they do sing. I read DESPITE THE GHOSTS and loved it! Of all the books you’ve written, which is your favorite character?

Dylan: LOL, I’m always nervous to answer this question. It’s like admitting you have a favorite child. I love all my heroines and heroes, but I do have a favorite heroine. She’s from my last book, DESPITE THE FANGS. I adore Aribella Lupari—she’s an Alpha werewolf (because the world needs more female Alphas, IMHO) with a bad attitude, no tolerance for B.S. and a love of carbohydrates that rivals even my own! I think she’s my favorite because she is so driven and passionate about life—I love the way she does her own thing, never mind the consequences. Don’t we all want that sort of freedom?

Alexis: Oh, she sounds fantastic! Looks like I’m adding another book to my To-be-read pile :-) What has been the most memorable fan comment you ever had?

Dylan: I treasure every review and comment my fans take the time to provide—even the bad ones! The only way we grow as writers is via feedback, after all. My most memorable comment, though, is a fan who wrote that she couldn’t put my book down. As a writer, that’s the best compliment, EVER! But…then she went on to say that it almost got her in trouble at work! She’d brought my book to work because she hadn’t finished it yet, and stashed it on her pull out keyboard tray so she could read while it looked like she was typing away. Luckily, she wasn’t discovered before she’d finally finished, so there was a happy ending for her. I was so humbled and thrilled by her comment! 

Alexis: I can see why. That is a wonderful testimony to your book. Okay, time for your GIVEAWAY! Tell me a little about ANYWITCH WAY. Where did you get the idea for this story?

Dylan: ANY WITCH WAY was a writing challenge I had with a group I used to critique with in Tampa. We all decided to write a story that culminated on Halloween. I’d read a Wiccan ritual once called the “Five Fold Kiss” and thought it was beautiful…and very different from any other religious service I’d ever attended, LOL! I decided to write a paranormal romance about a cursed graduate student and a male Wiccan who was sent to save her…and this book was the result! (And yes—the “Five Fold Kiss” does make an appearance in the book!)

GIVEAWAY TIME!! I do love giveaways, and this one is easy! Just complete the Rafflecopter form below, and the winner will be randomly chosen for a signed, print copy of my steamy paranormal romance, ANY WITCH WAY by Saturday, October 24 at midnight, EST. Good luck, and thank you to Alexis Walker and the gals at HEAT for having me today!

About Dylan:
Dylan Newton was born and raised in a small town in Upstate New York where the local library was her favorite hang-out. Despite earning a degree in English Literature, Dylan spent more than a decade sidetracked by an executive position in corporate America where she swears she contracted testosterone poisoning. After leaving, she dedicated herself to more estrogen-rich passions, like motherhood, writing romance novels and her never-ending quest for the perfect date night.

Dylan married her high-school sweetheart and they are busy living out their own happily ever after in sunny Florida with their two incredible daughters. 


Check out her books at your favorite e-tailer or follow these links below:
The Wild Rose Press:  http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=762

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