Vonna Harper isn’t the real me. I created her to hide behind.

Vonna is a sexually liberated writer of many erotica and erotic titles who gives her imagination free rein while the real me writes much tamer stuff. For a long time I tried to keep the two separate, but today it doesn’t matter. Vonna’s creator needs to come out of the shadows and share something deeply personal about coronavirus’s impact on our family.

I suspect everyone who reads this has been touched by the pandemic in some way. Here’s my story. A little over a year ago the adult son I live with was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer. We (yes, both of us) have been through a year plus of hell highlighted by chemo, radiation, heart damage, two infections, three trips to the ER, countless blood tests, and countless sleepless nights.

He was scheduled to have the tumor cut out on March 26. We live over four hours away from the big city cancer center where the surgery would take place. He and his brother, my other son, insisted that Mom not subject her ancient immune system to what we acknowledge is a greater risk of catching the virus. My other son, an educator (what he’s going through is a story of its own), insisted on going with his brother and staying for the approximately five days he’d be hospitalized. I stayed home with the dogs and my thoughts.

The morning of the trip (the day before the surgery) my sons had just gotten on the road when the surgeon called to inform us that the operation was still a go and she was fighting to keep it on the schedule.

Four hours later as they exited the freeway, a second call came. Surgery had been canceled. No rescheduling until the hospital is no longer full of coronavirus patients and dedicated medical professionals.

My sons came home. We wait.

As almost an aside, I promise my erotica is a different experience from what you just read. For proof, I offer a couple of recent titles that include spanking scenes.  His Purchase and His Filly take place in The Society which is made up of Elites and Others. In other words, dominants and submissives.

Alia is an Other, a woman with secrets and few rights in a dark world controlled by The Society.

Kade is an Elite, a wealthy, powerful man who knows how to get the ultimate performance from Alia. Whatever it takes, he will bring his sexy, strong-headed acquisition into line.

When she defies him, Kade repeatedly applies his large hand to her bare bottom until it burns and she’s reduced to tears. Until she can’t fight her erotic reaction.

The next time she defies him, she refuses to explain why. He commands her to strip naked and submit to another harsh spanking. As if that isn’t enough, she has no choice but to let him place a butt plug inside her.

Alia wants to hate Kade for doing these shameful things to her, but his firm handling arouses her in ways she can’t deny or resist.

It will take all her resolve not to admit her deepest secret to this man who owns her.

Get your copy here!

Kali has no choice but to work for Boden, a wealthy, powerful Elite. As a vulnerable Other in a dark world of control and controlled, Kali knows her submissive position within the Society. But her vow to do everything she can to protect his valuable racehorses puts her on a collision course with the man who in essence owns her.

Boden decides to discipline the lovely, headstrong young woman via a hard bare bottom spanking. To her shock, she’s deeply aroused. She can’t hide her erotic response which he uses to his advantage.

The lessons continue to take place. Boden doesn’t hesitate to order her to pull down her pants and expose her vulnerable, naked ass. She shudders with every blow then moans when his all-knowing hands slide between her legs. She can’t stop him, can only submit.

Surrender.
Experience.
Want.

Wonder if anything will be left of her.

Get your copy here!

Equine Therapy and PTSD

PTSD has reached epidemic proportions in returning veterans. Repercussions of wartime experiences bring staggering rates of divorce, abuse, hopelessness, homelessness and suicide.

Experts report effects of PTSD are complex and deeply rooted. It affects nearly every facet of the mind, including cognitive and physical responses like reflexes, being easily startled, nightmares, irritability or rage. Having been exposed to consistent trauma such as war or combat, the brain rewires itself and locks out fear, guilt, reasoning and emotional reaction to the experience while in battle. This is the body’s survival instinct at work.

Domestic animals, like cats and dogs, are known for easing anxiety and depression and providing comfort to people. Horses have personalities similar to dogs, except they’re much larger. They’re recently becoming touted for their ability to ease post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms such as fear, anxiety, confusion, and depression. In many cases, therapeutic horseback riding, also known as equine therapy, can help significantly decrease PTSD symptoms like insomnia, flashbacks or panic attacks.

How?

Equine therapy uses horses to help promote emotional healing and growth of those with disabilities. Behaviors of horses and those with PTSD are similar. They meet on common ground. They’re both oversensitive, easily startled and hypervigilant to danger. Another person, especially in a medical setting, may not be able to provide such a relationship.

Horses, similar to PTSD sufferers, are hypervigilant and fearsome until they perceive they’re not in danger. One must gain their trust. Because of their own issues, a PTSD subject can easily relate to a horse.

Horses sense human emotions and start to emulate them. The horse acts as a mirror to their emotional status. Because of this, the person must work on their own problems to make progress with the horse.

Relationships

Working with horses stimulates spiritual, physical, psychological and occupational healing. Building a trusting, non-threatening relationship with the animal can further positive feelings of love, respect, empathy, patience, and safety in the human

The debilitating feeling hits a PTSD sufferer, and managing the condition means avoiding triggers or sleeping it off. Many find within a few minutes of riding symptoms ease, proving equestrian therapy offers huge benefits.

Equine therapy allows you to communicate with a partner who has no agenda. Horses are well-suited because of their instincts and the way they communicate. You get real-time feedback from the animal. Horses don’t question motives. They react to actions. You must change your actions in order to change results with your therapy partner.

There’s no fear of being exposed or judged by a horse. This accelerates progress. Many enjoy sessions and look forward to them. Retention rates are reported to be much higher than some other therapies, and the average number of sessions needed is fewer. Around the world, equestrian therapy has a solid track record of enabling results.

Many conditions such as addiction, substance abuse, mood, and behavioral disorders, eating disorders, learning disabilities, ADD/ADHD, autism, Asperger’s, grief or loss, trauma, sex addiction, compulsive gambling, bipolar and depression have benefited from equestrian therapy.

Benefits:

Assertiveness
Emotional awareness
Empathy
Stress tolerance
Flexibility
Impulse control
Problem-solving skills
Self-actualization
Accountability
Responsibility
Self-confidence
Problem Solving Skills
Self-control

2nd Chance Ranch

Captain Chance Gordon dedicates his life to service. The injured Navy Seal returns to his hometown where his future and life depend on the woman who owns his heart—the one he deserted. REVIEW:

♥ AMAZING!!! Lynda IS an amazing writer! I have read all of Lynda’s books and love them. I can’t wait for the next one. Once I start reading one of Lynda’s books I CAN’T put it down. ~Karen Dawn

Buy Link: https://www.lyndareesauthor.com/2nd-chance-ranch/
or https://www.amazon.com/author/lyndarees

Hi! I’m Megan Ryder and I write sexy contemporary romance with several series all with everyday heroes with deep wounds and feisty women with their own difficult pasts who must come together to heal and find love. My stories feature humor, deep emotion, and sexy times, all in a roller coaster to their happy ever after.

My current series features three foster boys who came to a ranch in Montana, found a home there and a place to heal, yet it took many years before they found what they all truly needed – a family and love of their own. The third book just came out, A Cowboy’s Song, and finishes the trilogy (though I will be returning to the town and the characters in subsequent books for more stories). This book is about the youngest, Ty Evans, who lost his biological family to a car accident when he was twelve years old, and was then placed in foster care. He held himself apart, and even gave up music for many years, unwilling to open himself up after the loss of his family. But now, his brothers have both found love and their own paths forward in their lives and he feels like he’s standing still. He’s feeling a bit lost and wants to find his own place at the ranch and in his life, only he’s not sure the ranch in his place.

Piper is the daughter of country music royalty, only she hasn’t quite lived up to expectations either. Her last tour and album was a bit of a snooze-fest and she’s feeling the pressure to keep up with her parents and older brother, yet she’s not feeling the passion either. She’s invited to the ranch to be in Tara Rawling’s wedding, Ty’s older brother, and she meets Ty.

When Piper and Ty sing an original duet that Ty wrote for the bride and groom and it’s recorded and goes viral, it seems like they both have a new path in life. Piper’s career has a boost and Ty might have a new path – in Nashville. But the romance they started at the ranch may not be strong enough to deal with the outside pressures of the music industry and their own past insecurities.

This book is about finding your passion, your place, and that one person who sees who you really are and loves you for that.

If you like country music, check out the song that was written and recorded for this book, “Ruined Plans Aren’t Always a Bad Thing” by Sierra Bernal. It’s featured in the book and is available on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon music etc. You can also check out my inspiration here on Spotify.

GIVEAWAY

As part of preparing for this book, I listened to a lot of country music, which had been my standard genre but I found I really liked it. This led me to developing the playlist above, so you can hear some of my inspirations for this book. For an ebook copy of this book, tell me what you think is the sexiest country song (or any genre of music) is!

Excerpt from A Cowboy’s Song

He put the travel mug down on the counter. “You call that a kiss? I lent you my dog, and everyone knows a cowboy needs his best friend. I hauled my ass out here in the cold spring night to chase coyotes away. And I apologized. And all I get is a tiny peck on the cheek? I’m feeling a bit cheated here.”

“You yelled at me, offered me your dog, and I never asked you to chase the coyotes. And I gave you my precious coffee. Twice. I’m not entirely sure why I owe you more.”

He pushed off the counter and gave her a lazy smile. “I never said you owed me, darlin’. Just maybe thinking you might want something a little more than that peck.”

A shiver ran up her spine. How could he tell that she wanted to know how his lips felt on hers, what it would be like to trace his muscles with her fingers, and see if his arms would hold her just right? She would be here for only a couple of weeks. It wouldn’t be awkward at all, even if it was bad, but somehow, she sensed it would be pretty damned awesome. And she could use some awesome in her life right about now.

She took a step forward, and his body radiated heat to warm her slightly chilled skin. Her hand reached out and stroked his arm, a tentative motion, then bolder when he stood still, staring at her with dark, fathomless eyes that seemed to see deep into her soul, to the secrets she held inside.

“You’re going to have to make the first move. I won’t have anyone say I forced you.” The deep rumble in his chest startled her in the quiet of the cabin.

She took another step until she was almost flush against him, until just a sliver of air separated them. She rested one hand on his chest, letting her fingertips curve around the muscle of his chest, his heart pounding just under the skin. Her head tilted, and she wet her lips and sucked in a breath. Why had her courage suddenly deserted her? She was inches away from the most desirable man she had seen in years and she was about to back out.

He ran his hand down her cheek and traced her lips with a fingertip then ran them under her chin, lifting her a little more. She parted her lips and her eyes fluttered shut as he pressed his lips on hers, a gentle, introductory kiss. She slowly relaxed under the unhurried tasting, opening her lips a bit more when his tongue stroked against hers. His hand circled her waist and pulled her flush against him, the hard planes of his body fitting neatly against her soft curves, and his tongue dueled with hers, parlaying and dancing in a tangle of passion.

Slowly, he pulled back and she found her hands painfully twisted in his shirt, holding him close, almost climbing him to get closer. She disentangled herself from him and smoothed the fabric of his flannel shirt, trying to ignore the muscles underneath, and the fact that she had a bed just a hallway away.

“I’ll see you in a few hours.” His voice sounded gruff and hoarse with passion.

A Cowboy’s Song

Can they build a future on a shaky foundation?

Tyler “Ty” Evans lost everything in a car accident when he was twelve, retreating into his shell so tightly that it took months for him to come out again. Music and the ranch saved him, and he will always be grateful to his foster family for saving his life. Now, with the ranch on financial tenterhooks, he wonders if he can use his music to contribute to the solution.

Piper Raines is the daughter of a legendary country music family. While her parents and brother are all famous, her attempt at an independent career went off the rails, and, with exhaustion and stress and bad press dogging her every step, she needs a place to recover. When Piper is invited to vacation at the ranch, Piper and Ty connect through horses and music. After a video duet of Piper and Ty goes viral, they’re invited to sing in Nashville, which also provides added pressure, stressing their new relationship.

Universal Links: https://books2read.com/ACowboysSong
Amazon: https://amzn.to/32kRGRr
B&N: https://bit.ly/37Fbos4
KOBO: https://bit.ly/2HG8QiQ
iTunes: https://apple.co/2SWvcle
GooglePlay: https://bit.ly/2xyBm43
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2HK41EV
Bookbub: https://bit.ly/2P9yNeA

Much like the 1960s, the Regency was a special time. It was not as freewheeling as the Georgie period before it, nor was it as straight-laced as the Victorian era that followed it. It was a time of new ideas and thinking. Political groups ranged from the Tories, who supported the monarchy and the old way of life on one side and on the other side were the Whigs who supported a more liberal approach to the new United States, granting more rights to the common man, more educational opportunities, and better working conditions. Then there were the Radicals who supported universal suffrage and the abolishment of the peerage.

Philosophers like Mary Wollstonecraft, Jeremy Bentham, and others were on the ascendant. And, thanks to authors like Jane Austen, the new idea of love matches was taking hold. Once a lady was married and had delivered her husband an heir and preferably a second son as well, she was free to engage in discreet affairs. Yet, young unmarried ladies still had to adhere to a strict set of rules least they be ruined and forced to spend their lives as spinsters, or worse, outcast from their families in a time where it was not easy for a lady to earn a living.

In my latest book, The Most Eligible Lord in London, the heroine, Lady Adeline Wivenly is now faced with putting into practice what she has spent a lifetime learning. Balls and other social events were full of pitfalls for a young lady making her come out. But there were also a few rules gentlemen had to follow as well. Chief of which was not to introduce themselves to a lady. In order to meet a lady, a man had to find someone who knew her and would provide an introduction. Another was to agree to dance with any lady his hostess wished him to. There was no dodging that duty if he wanted to continue to be invited to entertainments. Some gentlemen were able to get around the duty by arriving late and departing early, thus becoming the despair of any hostess.

With everyone in full knowledge of their obligations, what could go wrong?

“Lords Turley and Littleton are coming toward us,” Georgie whispered and glanced at Dorie, who was talking to a worthy-looking gentleman.

Adeline slid a look across the assembly room. Drat. Georgie was right. To make it worse, he was even better looking in evening clothes. No rakes. “I have no objection Lord Turley, but I do not wish to have anything to do with Lord Littleton.”

“You cannot refuse to dance with him.” Georgie’s tone had lowered even more.

“If he even asks me.” Perhaps he would not. “He might ask you or Augusta instead.”

“I do not think so.” She pasted a polite smile on her face and curtseyed. “My lord. Good evening.”

Lord Turley bowed. “Miss Featherton, might I ask you for this dance?”

“It would be my pleasure.” He held out his arm and she took it, leaving Adeline to face Lord Littleton all by herself.

“My lady”—his voice was low and seductive just like a rake’s, and his bow was elegant, but it was his deep meadow green eyes that held her plain gray ones as they had that afternoon. They still made her feel as if she was the only lady he saw. “Would you do me the honor of being my partner?”

She curtseyed and kept her tone cool. “I would be pleased”—not delighted—“to dance with you, my lord.”

The Most Eligible Lord in London

In this captivating new Regency trilogy, bestselling author Ella Quinn picks up where her beloved Worthingtons series left off, as three Lords of London discover true love at last . . .

Handsome, rakish, incorrigibly flirtatious—Fredrick, Lord Littleton, is notorious. Lady Adeline Wivenly is resolved to keep him at arm’s length during her first Season—until she overhears another woman’s plot to trick him into marriage. Even a rogue is undeserving of such deception, and Adeline feels obliged to warn him—only to find herself perilously attracted . . .

In the past, Littleton’s charm nearly got him leg-shackled to the wrong woman. Now he’s positive he’s found the right one, for Adeline is everything he wants and needs in a wife. Her sense of justice is so strong she agrees to help him despite her mistrust. But can the ton’s most elusive lord convince the lady he is finally serious about marriage—as long as she will be his bride?

Buy Links
Amazon US https://amzn.to/31ZVGWS
Amazon UK https://amzn.to/2XtWS5c
Amazon CA https://amzn.to/2x9wcYC
Amazon Germany https://amzn.to/2FpphPG
Google Play https://bit.ly/2utSE0Q
B&N https://bit.ly/2XBP7KR
BAM https://bit.ly/2TTxbsD
Kobo https://bit.ly/2RmDKCp

Hi! I’m Sierra Brave. I write sizzling romance across several genres. Currently, my favorites places to let my imagination run wild are romantic suspense and paranormal romance. My Horse Mountain Shifters series features rugged men and curvy girls.

The new and nasty COVID-19 virus has everyone locked inside their houses—and with good reason. As the mother of a chronically ill child, I’m all for everyone staying home, staying well and keeping infection rates as low as possible! Today, I’m going to share five ways to pass the time during self-isolation.

• Spring cleaning – not a lot of fun but now’s a great time to go through those old clothes and other household items, deciding what to keep, what to pitch and what to donate when we can venture out again—and lots of people will be in need so having charitable donations at the ready is a good thing.
• Sewing (or crochet, needlepoint, or any of the hobbies lots of us used to enjoy before cellphones/computer games started providing a quick, convenient way to pass time) – Some talented people are even making facemasks out of old bras. If you have some fabric and elastic around the house, there are lots of other facemask patterns online as well.
• Learn a new language – Back to those cellphone and iPad apps – Some pretty decent programs for learning to communicate with people from another country exist and are available through the Apple Store. We can’t travel right now, but there’s no reason not to prepare for when the fine medical experts of the world find a vaccine and cure or create a treatment for us.
• DIY with YouTube – tons of tutorials are available for everything from home maintenance to manicures. My daughter used to love this one from the well-named, Cute Girl’s Hairstyles.
• Finally, the best way to pass the time is to read! Please check out my new release, Saving Suki, and grab your copy today while it’s still on sale.

Saving Suki

Title: Saving Suki
Series: Horse Mountain Shifters
Release Date: April 1, 2020
Genre: Paranormal Romance; Romantic Suspense; Contemporary Western;

Pain Drove Him Away. Her Heart Couldn’t Forget.
Tragedy Brought Him Back. Will Fate Bind Them Together?

Last Day to Buy at the Introductory Price ($.99 US): April 1, 2020
Buy Links:
US https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085X1HZST
UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B085X1HZST
CA https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B085X1HZST
AU https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B085X1HZST

An abusive childhood and an accident in his teens left stallion-shifter, Malcolm Patterson, with a distrust for his father and a lot of holes in his memory. When his dad passes away, Malcolm returns to Horse Mountain to fulfill his obligation to settle his old man’s affairs but finds the shifter community’s near hero-worship of the late doctor disquieting. He’s further shaken to meet a curvy beauty at the funeral who makes his heart gallop and his primal instincts take over.

Suki Marks has been in love with handsome and noble Malcolm Patterson ever since he saved her from bullies who called her an abomination when she was ten. He was the first person to be straight with her about the reasons some people shunned her family and he was quick to debunk those prejudices as the ignorant folktales and stupid superstitions they were. Even after Malcolm graduated high school and left town, she couldn’t forget him, but becoming Doctor Patterson’s live-in nurse in his last year of life was a coincidence. She never expected to be named in the wealthy physician’s will.

Malcolm assumed he’d be disinherited, but even from the after-life, his father continues to turn the knife, using his will to set up an elaborate scheme to taint Malcolm’s feelings for the woman who might be his fated mate. To make matters worse, a dangerous shifter-purist movement is brewing among a small segment of the Horse Mountain Clan, and they’re determined to prevent Suki from passing on her genes to a new generation. Will Malcolm be able to work through his past in time to secure his and Suki’s future?

Warning: Saving Suki is a smoking hot romance with graphic, put-you-in-the-moment love scenes. If you’re offended by sexual language, you might want to consider another book. The book can stand alone without reading the others in the series, but reading Horse Mountain Shifters 1-3, will add to the enjoyment of the experience.

Excerpt from Saving Suki

Malcolm looked through the glass of the refrigerated pie case at the old McGillacutty Dinner as he perused the offerings. He wasn’t about to show up to Mama Carol’s completely empty-handed. A bright yellow flyer attached to the outside of the dessert case with scotch tape caught his eye. He studied the image of the missing girl printed above the lettering spelling out her name, age, and where she’d last been seen along with a phone number and offer of a reward. She was nineteen, blond and had a nice smile, but since he didn’t recognize her and couldn’t be of help, he turned his attention back toward the pies.

After deciding on the chocolate chess, he paid and headed out. He held the box with his desert under his left arm as he wrapped the fingers of his free hand around the glass door’s handle. As soon as he pulled back enough to let in the slightest breeze, the sweet all-consuming aroma from earlier hit him like a ton of bricks. Almost immediately, his heart thumped so hard his chest ached. His mind blanked, his cock twitched and his senses nosedived down into some dark, primal place he hadn’t realized existed. He might have involuntarily shifted right then and there if he hadn’t nearly knocked right into the curvy, brunette beauty who’d spoken with him at the funeral.

Her dark eyes widened and her eyebrows lifted as she gasped and reached out, saving his dessert by a narrow margin. Her hand briefly brushed against his fingers as she steadied the box. Perspiration misted his forehead and the back of his neck as he regained control of his mental faculties.

“Sorry. Are you okay?” He managed to force the words up from his suddenly dry throat.

Shakily, she looked up at him through long, dark eyelashes and nodded. “Uh-huh.”

For what seemed like an eternity, the two of them stood staring at one another until an old lady with a tight, gray perm came up behind Malcolm and demanded, “Move it, sonny.”

He stepped out of the way, holding the door for the elder woman as she shuffled out holding hands with a short, old guy wearing a flapjack hat. Malcolm couldn’t help but smile. He’d always imagined there were couples who’d found each other and stayed in love for all their lives even though none of his relationships seemed to last longer than a month or two. In the last few years, he’d only dated humans which didn’t allow for complete openness or a deeper intimacy.

Malcolm watched as the man walked his lady over to a white Toyota Avalon and opened the passenger-side door for her. As he glanced at the brunette, she tore her gaze away from the same couple and his line of vision synced with hers. For some reason, as if they’d somehow understood they’d been sharing the same thought, a warm blush covered her cheeks. Malcolm looked away as his face burned.

Other Books in the Horse Mountain Shifters Series:
Horse Mountain Heat
US UK CA AU
Real Cowboys Love Cats
US UK CA AU
Bridling Lucy
US UK CA AU

About Sierra

Sierra Brave is a multi-published author of smoking hot romance. Her love of erotic fiction started in her last year of high school when she read the sensual classic, Fanny Hill. She felt so naughty yet liberated with her copy tucked away in her book bag and hopes her work will have the same delicious effect on her readers.

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Want free Romance?

Sign-up for Sierra’s newsletter. Never miss a new release, sale or freebie, and she’ll send you a copy of Fevered Dream for FREE! Click here to claim your free book.

UPDATE: The winners are…Pansy, Michelle, Colleen, bn100, Jennifer, and Debra!
*~*~*

Here’s hoping you’re all doing well, not going stir-crazy, and that you’re actually taking this stay-at-home stuff seriously! I know it feels like the world is ending, but we can do things to keep connected—aren’t you ecstatic we have things like FaceTime?!

We’ve battened down the hatches. Our only constant concern is my SIL, the cop, bringing the disease into the house. We loaded him with Lysol wipes and hand cleaner. He has his PPE kit. He heads straight to the bathroom after getting home to strip and shower, and his clothes go right into the washing machine. That’s as much as we can do to try to keep the virus out.

My son turned 38 today—my how time flies! Wish I could be with him. I gave him a He-Man blanket. Made his day. That was his hero when he was kid, and he’s a little nostalgic. I had a thing for He-Man, too, but it had more to do with the guy who played him in the movie. Whew! 🙂

Anyways, here’s a game for you! Play and you’ll be entered to win your choice of one of my recent releases. And I’ll pick three winners! Keep safe and have fun! ~DD

Tell me a story!

I bought this little brainstorming tool years ago at some writers’ conference. “Story Cubes” is a brainstorming game. You roll the dice and whatever pictures appear face-up are the ones you use to riff off a story.

Here’s the roll…

Do any of these symbols tell you anything?
You can pick some or use all of them. 

Thanks so much, Delilah, for giving me this chance to connect with your readers!

My Book Nirvana series is set in a bookshop in Eugene, Oregon, U.S.A., a wonderfully quirky college town with a lively arts scene. One of the pleasures of writing fiction is the chance to immerse yourself in “what if?”—for example, what if I lived in this cool town, or in the mountains, or on the beach? What if, instead of being a soldier, a teacher, and then a writer, I’d chosen other careers that tickled my fancy?

I’ve had so much fun exploring my fantasy careers while writing this series. Like most booklovers (maybe all?), I’ve fantasized about running a bookshop, which is what Clara, heroine of Through the Red Door, does for a living. For this first book in the series, I combined all the best bits of my favorite bookshops to create Book Nirvana: colorful artwork on the walls, a coffee shop next door, and a friendly shop cat named Lulu. Okay, no bookshop I’ve visited has an extensive historical erotica collection behind a red door; that’s purely my imagination. The owner of King’s Books in Tacoma, Washington gave me lots of insight into running a bookshop.

In fantasyland, with unlimited time and money, I’d take ALL the art classes and become a multi-media artist. Alas, my time and $$ are limited, but through my characters, I get to explore various art forms.

Laurel, heroine of Runaway Love Story, Book 2 in the series, loves art but believes she has no talent, so she aspires to run an art gallery. During the course of the book, she learns photography and discovers she does indeed have artistic talent. I loved giving her some artistic mentors, especially her 90-year-old great-aunt Maxie, surrogate grandmother to many young artists. In addition to online research, I interviewed professional photographers for this book. Fascinating! An art photographer in Palm Springs, California, told me that, for an aspiring photographer like Laurel, the best camera choice was the current smartphone.

Margot and Elmer, heroine and hero of the upcoming Book 3 in the series, are both young artists: graphic arts for her, ceramic arts for him. In Love, Art, and Other Obstacles, they compete for an art grant that could launch his art career, or hers, but not both. Two young graphics designers generously let me pick their brains for this book, as did the women who run Spun Clay Arts Studio in Tacoma. I even made a pot—okay, with lots of help—which refreshed my memory of the sights, sounds, smells, and squishy textures of a pottery studio.

I’ve loved the hands-on aspect of my research for this series, and hope readers will enjoy the artistic details.

About the Books

Through the Red Door

Letting him inside could be her salvation…or her undoing.

Widow Clara struggles to keep her indie bookshop afloat. Professor Nick comes in search of historical erotica from her famed collection but stays for the lovely bookseller–until a scandal from his past shatters her trust.

Universal book link for Through the Red Door: https://storyoriginapp.com/universalbooklinks/f5b623fe-5b0d-11ea-9891-7fdb05370a2e

Runaway Love Story

Fierce passion or long-cherished dreams…she can’t hang onto both.

Chasing a big-city art gallery job, Laurel detours to Eugene, Oregon to help her spitfire great aunt into assisted living. While on a run, she’s harassed by a group of teens until a tall, broad-shouldered hottie rescues her by pretending to be her boyfriend–with a kiss that makes her wish it were true. But she’s only passing through.

Their fierce chemistry burns up the sheets—and the couch, the shower, the woods…but falling in love could cost Laurel more than she’s willing to sacrifice. She can’t stay in Eugene, and he can’t leave. His only hope is to convince her those big-city lights have nothing on her inner sparkle.

Universal book link for Runaway Love Story: https://storyoriginapp.com/universalbooklinks/f1245ec4-5b11-11ea-a19d-5b4dd30bdf4a

Love, Art, and Other Obstacles
Coming this spring from The Wild Rose Press!

She’s a free spirit. He’s a one-woman man.

Rejected by her family for her bisexuality, graphic artist Margot DuPont yearns for a life with no fences, no limits, and no family ties. Between college, work at Book Nirvana, and an art competition, she barely has time for her part-time girlfriend, much less a flirtation with her competitor.

Dumped into the foster system at a young age, ceramics artist Elmer Byrne craves a big, loving family of the heart. His artist family almost fills that need, but something is missing…until Margot. But when he offers his heart, her thorny defenses shatter him.

Thrown together in an art competition that could jump-start one artist’s career, but not both, their irresistible attraction forces them to reconsider the meaning of success.

About the Author

Ever since her first kiss, Sadira’s been spinning steamy tales in her head. After leaving her teaching career in Germany, she finally tried her hand at writing one. Now she’s a happy citizen of Romancelandia, penning contemporary romance and cozy mysteries from her home in Washington State, U.S.A. When not writing, which is seldom, she explores the Pacific Northwest with her charming husband, enjoys the local music scene, plays guitar badly, and gobbles all the books. Visit Sadira at www.sadirastone.com.

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