Leading Her Witness - Book Tour & Giveaway

 

 

Hiya guys! Welcome to my tour stop of Leading Her Witness by Cheryl Ann Smith. Make sure to check out this book on GoodReads, Barnes & Noble and Amazon, enjoy the interview and go enter the awesome giveaway.

 

 

Goons, deadbeats, and murder: A tenacious process server's unconventional techniques get her into loads of trouble. So much so that her boss jokes that he keeps the coroner on speed dial just in case. Still, most of Andie Dixon's job is pretty tame if she doesn't count snapping dogs and homeowners squirting her with garden hoses.

That changes when she serves papers on a notorious crime boss and puts her life in real jeopardy. But despite this close call, Andie will not let threats keep her from doing her job. She puts the matter behind her until a hunky U.S. Marshal tracks her down and solicits her help to find the fugitive. Again. At first Andie adamantly refuses, but eventually agrees when she's swayed by the Marshal's persistence and rather dreamy brown eyes. However, when crime boss Sammy Gilroy finds out she's back and close on his heels, he threatens to make her disappear for good this time.

Marshall Colin Navarro needs to find Sammy Gilroy before the man vanishes forever. Colin is certain that the notorious crime leader was involved in a shoot-out with the FBI that injured his sister. But he never expected that he'd have to sway a newbie process-server to help, or that she'd turn out to be stubborn, aggravating, and an all-around pain in the ass. Yet despite her shortcomings, he cannot figure out why she's taken over his thoughts and is front and center in some very hot fantasies. But can he keep her from getting herself killed as they edge closer to catching the fugitive? Then again, the crime boss and his goons don't know who they're messing with.

With Andie on the case, Colin is beginning to believe that justice may be served after all.

Interview with Cheryl Ann Smith:

GloriousBooks: Thanks for stopping by the blog! I'm so excited to dive into this read.

Cheryl: I'm excited to be here!

GloriousBooks: Can you give everyone a brief description of your book?

Cheryl: Process server, Andie Dixon's unconventional techniques get her into loads of trouble; so much so that her boss keeps the coroner on speed dial - just in case! Truthfully, the job is pretty tame if she doesn't count snapping dogs and garden hose-toting homeowners with lethal aim. That changes when she serves papers on a crime boss and narrowly escapes death at the hands of his thug-bodyguards. Worse, the serve has opened up a cold case, put her life in peril, and draws the attention of a hunky U.S Marshal, who wants to help her finally put the crime boss behind bars. But Andie isn't about to put herself in danger again. If the wanted felon finds out she's back and close on his heels, he might make her disappear - for good!

GloriousBooks: What's the inspiration behind your book?

Cheryl: I've always wanted to write a humorous contemporary romance and give the heroine a job that's outside of the norm. She can work around questionable characters as a process server. I love putting my heroines in danger just to see what they'll do!

GloriousBooks: Are there any moments in the book that were inspired by real life experiences?

Cheryl: As and Investigation Discovery junkie, I probably take a lot of inspiration from many crime stories. Although LHW isn't dark, I do love seeing how crimes are solved and pass that on through my books.

GloriousBooks: Did you have to do any research before writing a particular part of the book?

Cheryl: I looked up what process servers do and how much they make. For the character 'Frack' I did research on him for his big reveal. I can't say more than that or I'll give his surprise twist away!

GloriousBooks: What was the most challenging aspect of writing 'Leading Her Witness'?

Cheryl: Cutting out some scenes so the book wouldn't be too long. I wanted Andie and Colin's story to go on forever!

GloriousBooks: Which character do you feel you can most relate to and why?

Cheryl: I love Andie's feistiness. She's who I'd want to be if I were a book character. But Maude is one of my favorite ever characters. She's so cranky that she makes me laugh!

GloriousBooks: What's next for you?

Cheryl: I'm working up a new series with three heroines who get into all sorts of mischief, and maybe a little danger too. It's all about the readers having fun!

GloriousBooks: It was great having you!

Cheryl: Thanks for having me!

Looking for more Dead to Right fun? Then be sure and check out 'Murder,Mayhem and Perfect Hair', coming October 27th from Tulip Romance!

Check out Murder, Mayhem and Perfect Hair on Goodreads.

About Cheryl Ann Smith:

Website | Twitter | Leading Her Witness on Facebook | Tulip Romance

 

 Cheryl Ann Smith loves mystery and adventure and always includes both in her books. And when she's not putting her heroines in danger, she's watching true crimes shows or spending way too much time on email with friends. Cheryl lives in Michigan with her family and several pets.

Giveaway info:

Tulip Romance is generously offering up a $120 gift card (Amazon, B&N, iTunes) to one lucky winner! To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter form. Giveaway is open internationally.

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Tour Schedule:

• Monday, June 22nd - Seeing Night Reviews - Guest Post
• Tuesday, June 23rd - Book Referees - Guest Post
• Wednesday, June 24th - The Book Whisperer - Guest Post
• Thursday, June 25th - Books Glorious Books - Author Interview & DANIELRIDING.com - Guest Post
• Friday, June 26th - Life With Two Boys - Teaser

• Monday, June 29th - Rainy Day Ramblings - Book Review
• Tuesday, June 30th - Bewitched Bookworms - Guest Post
• Wednesday, July 1st - Supernatural Snark - Guest Post
• Thursday, July 2nd - Spiced Latte Reads - Teaser
• Friday, July 3rd - Gwyn Plum - Author Interview

• Monday, July 6th - Curling Up With A Good Book - Teaser
• Tuesday, July 7th - BB's Book Reviews - Guest Post
• Wednesday, July 8th - The Book Cellar - Author Interview
• Thursday, July 9th - Book Splurge - Review together with Interview
• Friday, July 10th - We're Jumpin' Books - Guest Post & Obsessed by Books Review together with Guest Post

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The Frenchman - Book Tour & Giveaway

 

 

Hi guys! Welcome to my tour stop of The Frenchman by Lesley Young. Make sure to check out this book on GoodReads and Amazon, enjoy the excerpt and go enter the awesome giveaway.

 

 

Fleur Smithers rarely veers off the straight and (excruciatingly) narrow. So moving to the seaport town of Toulon to live with her newfound biological mother—an inspector with the French National Police—for one year is a pretty major detour.

Son of France’s crime royalty family and international rugby star, Louis Messette, is devoted to his sport, famille and nothing else. But the saucy American he meets one night changes everything. She sparks a desire in him like no other. Possession takes root. She will do as he commands.

Bit by bit Fleur slips into the Frenchman’s realm of wanton pleasure agreeing to his one condition: that she keep their affair secret. She serves up her heart without reservation in the hub of the glittering Côte d’Azur, and the along the soulful Seine in Paris, unaware of the danger she is in. For her new lover’s “family business” will pit her against her mother, the police woman sworn to bring down the Messettes. And by then, far more than Fleur’s heart will be on the line.

Book Excerpt:

 After a moment, when I steeled my resolve, the door opened. 

 Not Louis.

 A man with salt and pepper hair, a nasty scar above his lip and astute eyes, scanned me. “Oui?” he asked rudely.

 I hesitated, but then thought, I’m all in.

 “Je suis venue pour voir Louis.”

 He scanned me much more carefully, and his dark eyes stopped at the cash in my hand. After his eyebrows rose, ever so slightly, his face relaxed and a side hitched up. He shrugged and opened the door wider.

 I stepped into another foyer, encased in a marble, circular partition. With one last wave of jacked-up energy, I barreled around the wall, quickly scanning the, holy massive, space, hesitating only to admire the incredible view provided from floor-to-ceiling windows everywhere. Gorgeous kitchen, too. I sucked in a waft of cooked chicken. God I missed meat. Pausing to get my bearings—this was an extremely large suite—I followed the faint sound of the television sports game. There was the living room. I spotted a giant flat screen against a wall, blinds tugged down around it.

 My heart was going a mile a minute, my hands shaking. I couldn’t turn back now. I stepped down the two stairs, powered across the empty dining room area, into the living room space, aiming straight for the middle, where . . . my eyes scanned quickly . . . there were others present, two, I think, standing behind one sectional. 

 Ah-ha! 

 There sat Louis, legs wide apart, on a giant leather sofa, a remote in one hand and an empty plate of chicken bones beside him. He was in a pair of track pants and nothing else. To say he was shocked, when he realized the girl standing in front of him was not a cute American announcer suddenly on his TV screen, was an understatement.

 “Fleur,” he exclaimed sitting forward, absolutely no fat bunching at the waist.

 “What the hell is this?!” I shouted at him, waving the cash.

 I watched red sprout in his cheeks as he glanced around at the chilled room, and back on me. His eyes took in the money, and my other hand on my hip. He stood up to his full, mighty height, extra slow, his eyes steady on me. 

 But I wasn’t intimidated. Not in the least. He was way out of line.

 “You know what? In America, you pay—” I shook the wad of cash at him “—after you’ve finished the transaction.” I threw the money at him but it didn’t get very far. It kind of fluttered to the floor. 

 Holy cow. Did I really just say that? That is not what I had meant to say. It just came out.

 Waves of regret rippled through me as he pulled his head back, and his lips bunched up, contemptuous. Disgust spread on his face like ink.

 And who could blame him? There I was, standing in his living room, lamenting the fact he had not bopped me. Oh sweet mercy.

About Lesley Young:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Lesley Young is an award-winning Canadian journalist by day, and obsessive novelist by night. Her debut novel, Sky’s End (Soulmate Publishing, 2013) hit #9 on Amazon’s sci-fi romance paid best-seller list in its first three months of release. 

Not too long after that, she started dreaming up quirky heroines who lose their hearts to extremely powerful, flawed heroes, only to find out what love really is while on a dangerous adventure abroad. She called it the Crime Royalty Romance series, and landed herself a pretty big agent at Spencerhill Associates. Never one to take the obvious path, Lesley ultimately decided to self-publish. She’s never sure who or what will pop up in her imagination next. The Irishman? The Spaniard? The Hawaiian? Anything’s possible, and she loves suggestions (or recommendations of really hot, er, talented, actors to work as a muses).

Stay in touch with her and feel free to forward on decent options at Facebook.com/LesleyYoungBooks and @LesleyYoungBks (note: Charlie Hunnam’s already taken the lead role of The American—#3 Crime Royalty Romance...coming soon!).

Giveaway info:

Lesley has provided a fantastic giveaway, including a $25 Amazon gift card and 20 ebook copies of The Frenchman! To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter form.

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Tour schedule:

• Monday, March 9th - BOOKS REVIEWS ETC & Lite-rate-ture 
• Tuesday, March 10th - Living In Our Own Story
• Wednesday, March 11th - Book Swoon
• Thursday, March 12th - Pretty Sassy Cool
• Friday, March 13th - Curling Up With A Good Book 

 

• Monday, March 16th - Total Book Geek & Obsessed by Books
• Tuesday, March 17th - Mythical Books
• Wednesday, March 18th - My Favorite Things & Books and Things 
• Thursday, March 19th - Margay Leah Justice
• Friday, March 20th - A Lick Of Romance 

• Monday, March 23rd - The Golden Mantle & Bewitched Bookworms
• Tuesday, March 24th - Books Glorious Books
• Wednesday, March 25th - Seeing Night Reviews 
• Thursday, March 26th - The Mama Games
• Friday, March 27th - Sultry, Steamy Reading

Check out more at the Tour Page below:

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The Accidental Empress Blog Tour - Excerpt & Giveaway

 

 

 

Here it is! My blog tour stop of The Accidental Empress. Make sure to check out more this book on GoodReads, enjoy the excerpt and go enter the awesome giveaway.

 

 

Buy:

Allison's Website | Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Books A Million

New York Times bestselling author Allison Pataki follows up on her critically-acclaimed debut novel, The Traitor’s Wife, with the little-known and tumultuous love story of “Sisi,” the Austro-Hungarian Empress and captivating wife of Emperor Franz Joseph.

The year is 1853, and the Habsburgs are Europe’s most powerful ruling family. With his empire stretching from Austria to Russia, from Germany to Italy, Emperor Franz Joseph is young, rich, and ready to marry.

Fifteen-year-old Elisabeth, “Sisi,” Duchess of Bavaria, travels to the Habsburg court with her older sister, who is betrothed to the young emperor. But shortly after her arrival at court, Sisi finds herself in an unexpected dilemma: she has inadvertently fallen for and won the heart of her sister’s groom. Intrigued by Sisi’s guileless charm and energetic spirit, not to mention her unrivaled beauty, Franz Joseph reneges on his earlier proposal and declares his intention to marry Sisi instead.

Plucked from obscurity and thrust onto the throne of Europe’s most treacherous imperial court, Sisi has no idea what struggles and dangers—and temptations—await her. Sisi upsets political and familial loyalties in her quest to win, and keep, the love of her emperor, her people, and of the world.

With Pataki’s rich period detail and cast of complex, compelling characters, The Accidental Empress offers a captivating glimpse into the bedrooms and staterooms of one of history’s most intriguing royal families, shedding new light on the glittering Habsburg Empire and its most mesmerizing, most beloved “Fairy Queen.”

 

 

Book Excerpt:

 

Prologue

Budapest, Hungary

June 8, 1867

 

“Empress, we are ready for you.”

 

She turns, a small nod and a flourish of her hand. “Time to assume the role.” She slips her narrow arms through the sleeves. The silken fabric, expertly stitched and tailored, molds around her curves. My, but she has never quite grown accustomed to how heavy these things are. Heavier, it seems, than her own tired frame.

 

All around her nervous footmen and chattering attendants fuss, bickering like frantic bees in the hive that encircles their all-important leader.

 

“Fluff her skirt!”

 

“Mind the trim!”

 

“Time to go!”

 

“Can’t be time already, can it?”

 

“Ready, Empress Elisabeth?” The imperial hairdresser stands before her, the ancient crown poised between two fingers, its diamonds catching a glint of candlelight. As delicate as the wisps of a spider web. And yet, durable enough to have survived the centuries, to have persisted longer than the royal heads on which it has rested. Heads now embalmed, hairs now gray and fallen out.

 

“Ready.” She nods, lowering her chin so that the diadem can be nestled into her chestnut curls—curls that have been named the most valuable crown jewels in all of the Habsburg collection. The curls, they say, that won her the emperor’s heart.

 

The crown in place, she glides forward and glances at herself in the full-length mirror. She does make an arresting vision; even she has to admit it.

 

The gown is of white and silver brocade, laced with rows of diamonds and stitched to hug her narrow figure. The long cape of white satin drapes effortlessly over her shoulders before tumbling to the ground. But it’s her face that they always want to see, more so than any imperial stitching or ancient tiara. They’ve all heard of her slanting, honey-colored eyes. Her smoothly sculpted cheekbones. Her lips, the lips that the emperor once declared as “fresh as strawberries.” The emperor. Her heart lurches forward. God, but she is tired. Will she have the energy to survive this day?

 

A knock, and her heart trips once more. She glances up, her eyes darting to the heavy oaken door. Which one of them will it be on the other side? Will it be the emperor? Or will it be . . . him? Her cheeks grow warm at the thought, and she chides herself. Even after everything she has been through, she still reddens like a girl of sixteen at the thought of him, the mention of his name. Her own husband doesn’t pull such a scarlet blush to her cheeks.

 

The door lumbers open, groaning like a sluggish guard woken from his midnight watch after too much ale. In an instant, she sees him, and he sees her. He takes her in. She can tell from his face that she has succeeded in beating the breath from his gut; he wears the look of a stunned animal.

 

“Sisi” is all he manages to say. “Sisi.” He throws his arms up, wide, as if to pull her into him. But he checks himself, takes note of the servants bustling about.

 

“Your Majesty.” He clears his throat. “Are you ready?”

 

She inhales, considering the question. Is she ready? No. She never really was ready, she supposes. That was the problem, wasn’t it? But she lifts her chin, throwing her shoulders back.

 

“I am,” she answers, one quick nod. She glides forward. The dress drags—its splendor too heavy for her exhausted body. But she sighs and continues across the room.

 

She can already hear them on the other side of the walls. Not so much the individual cheers and cries, but a dull, persistent throb. Constant. Like the crush of the sea waves on the earth: unyielding, unceasing.

 

He offers his arm and she slides her own through it, her soft flesh pressing into his heavily starched uniform. The doors open wider now. She blinks, longing to pull a gloved hand upward. To shield herself, to hide her face from all of those direct, inquisitive eyes. . . . Eyes that will study her and take her in, as if she is theirs for consuming. But she checks her impulse. Stands a bit taller.

 

And then she hears it. “Sisi!”

 

A breath inward. A moment to fortify herself as she turns to him. “It is time.” And it was. At last, it was time.

 

***

 

Also from Allison Pataki:

Read more about The Traitor's Wife on GoodReads.

 

Buy:

 Amazon | B&N | Indiebound

About Allison Pataki:

Allison Pataki is the author of the New York Times bestselling historical novel, The Traitor's Wife. She graduated Cum Laude from Yale University with a major in English and spent several years writing for TV and online news outlets. The daughter of former New York State Governor George E. Pataki, Allison was inspired to write her second novel, The Accidental Empress, by her family’s deep roots in the former Habsburg empire of Austria-Hungary. Allison is the co-founder of the nonprofit organization, ReConnect Hungary. Allison is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post and FoxNews.com, as well as a member of The Historical Novel Society. Allison lives in Chicago with her husband. To learn more and connect with Allison visit www.AllisonPataki.com or on Twitter.

Website | Goodreads |  Twitter | Facebook

Giveaway:

Thanks to Allison Pataki and Simon & Schuster, one lucky winner will receive a $120 gift card to the ebook retailer of their choice (Amazon/B&N/iTunes)! Please enter via the Rafflecopter form. Giveaway is open internationally.

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Tour Schedule:

• Monday, February 9th - Reader Girls - Guest Post 
• Tuesday, February 10th - Sassy Book Lovers - Excerpt 
• Wednesday, February 11th - Fine Lines - Author Interview 
• Thursday, February 12th - Reading Reality - Guest Post 
• Friday, February 13th - Fiktshun - Author Interview 

• Monday, February 16th - The Maiden's Court - Guest Post 
• Tuesday, February 17th - Bewitched Bookworms - Author Interview 
• Wednesday, February 18th - Fire and Ice - Guest Post 
• Thursday, February 19th -  Bookish - Author Interview 
• Friday, February 20th - Curling Up With A Good Book - Author Interview   

• Monday, February 23rd - Books and Things - Guest Post 
• Tuesday, February 24th - Books Glorious Books - Excerpt 
• Wednesday, February 25th - Sara In Bookland - Author Interview 
• Thursday, February 26th - Historical Fiction Obsession - Guest Post 
• Friday, February 27th - Library of a Book Witch - Author Interview

Check out more at the Tour Page below:

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