My Life in Black and White and Sometimes Gray: June 2013

$2.99 to $0.99

Fifty Shades of Jungle Fever by LV Lewis

$3.99 to $1.99

A Kiss of a Different Color by Bettye Griffin

$2.99 to $1.49

Framing Felipe Holley Trent

$2.99 to $0.99

Donor by Ambrielle Kirk

$3.99 to $0.99

Jaded Hearts by Olivia Linden

$3.90 to $2.50

Abandoned But Not Alone by Theresa Henry

$3.99 to $2.99

Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing by Chicki Brown

$2.99 to 1.99

D.N.A. -Nothing Would Ever be the Same Again

Don't forget to let your friends and family know about this sale. Have a great Juneteenth celebration.

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Confessions of a Romance Author: Loving in 2013

AND THE WINNER IS....

Laurie!

Thank you everyone who commented!

It's been too long since I last confessed...

I'm going to be honest. It never really crossed my mind to write MC or IR romances. Let me rephrase, I never really thought of my books as IR/MC romance until it came time to market them. It has a lot to do with I grew up mainly in CA. For the most part it's one big ol' melting pot of folks of differences, backgrounds and lifestyles. I wrote what I saw. The things that shaped me, the things that shaped my family members. I took from the books I loved and read and tried to write the same kind of stories. That lasted until I found my own voice through humor.

So, for the most part, none of these things had anything to do with race. It was a non-issue unless we were smacked in the face with the differences. I'd always walk away from those situations knowing it was an injustice and the other person was pretty much clueless Jim Crow and such laws had happened eons ago.

Mind you, I was nineteen when I first started to write and I can attest it's a completely different generation. And then I spent two years of my life studying the law. I fell in love with employment law. Surprise, surprise majority of the cases revolved around discrimination in some form or fashion. Very little involved an employer just not following their own procedures.

So...why, when I'm keenly aware race and racism do I choose to make it a non-issue in my romances? My answer is simple: I write contemporary romances. My characters are of many shades of color. The prevailing problem is that they've made mistakes in their life that they need to recover from. Who hasn't? People of color don't love differently. Interracial couples don't love differently. Their family, friends, and mistakes they've made are what I'm interested in. I choose to write romance first and last. If someone makes a different chose I don't begrudge them. That in and of itself is the freedom we've fought for. To be who we want to be with. Do what we want to do. It's an honor and privilege to be able to write a romance where the hero is white and the heroine is black, or vice versa, and race is a non-issue.

Plus, I'd rather have my heroine too distracted with his humor and rock hard abs to dwell on much else. Folks, really, it's the little things that make me happy.

To find out more about me and the books I write you can check out this blog or my website and Facebook page:

Facebook

Hey, wait! Don't click out yet. There's also a giveaway. I'm leaving the choice up to you. You can win my latest release, Bad Boy Next Door (Bad Boy Shorts series), or one of the books in my Modern Fairy Tale series, Double Dare or Twice Smitten. Leave a comment with your email addy to win.

Check out the next blog hop author KoboBrown for another chance to win.

Blurb for Bad Boy Next Door:

After a lifetime of dating too many Mr. Nice Guys, Penelope Copeland is ready to shed her good girl persona. She's looking for a little adventure, with a sprinkle of fun and whole lot of naughty. Unfortunately, most bad boys won’t give her the time of day. They only see her as a sweet kindergarten teacher. Now, all she has to do is convince Ryan Pollard, her self-proclaimed bad-boy neighbor, that she's not as sweet as she looks.

Ryan Pollard is not one to follow conventional rules. His job as a crime reporter doesn't leave him with much use for them. Yet, he's managed to keep his relationship with Penelope platonic with just a hint of flirtation—until tonight. She says she wants an adventure, a walk on the dark side, and he's more than eager to give her one.

When their adventure takes a turn from playful to serious, Ryan and Penelope must choose between pretending the night never happened or embarking on the greatest adventure of all—love.

Excerpt

Buy Links:

Amazon
Barnes and Noble
ARe
Smashwords
Kobo

LV LEWIS Takes Over The Blog

Author L.V. Lewis revisits the world of Keisha Beale and Tristan White from her Fifty Shades of Jungle Fever to increase the book from a novella to a novel!

Fifty Shades of Grey meets Keisha from the block!

Keisha Beale is a quarter of a million dollars away from realizing her dream of opening her own recording studio. A botched attempt at securing the funding required from venture capitalist Tristan White leaves her without many options... until Tristan White makes an indecent proposal. As Keisha navigates the treacherous environment of the billionaire's secret kinky lifestyle, she discovers surprising things about herself and unleashes demons from her past she thought were long resolved.

L. V. Lewis doesn't have the means of Tristan White, but she wouldn't want readers to go away from this cover reveal empty handed, so she's giving all viewers the chance to win one (1) of three (3) gift cards ($25, $15, $10 from either Amazon, B&N, or iTunes) at the conclusion of the reveal!

The giveaway will run from June 11 -19th. During this time, Fifty Shades of Jungle Fever will be on sale for $.99!

DISCLAIMER: If for some reason the new version doesn’t load on all the platforms by the time the sale begins and you purchased the novella previously, you will receive an invitation to download the new version from Amazon, at the very least.

So without further ado, here's the fabulous new cover of Fifty Shades of Jungle Fever!

Cover Design by:

Kristy@Ambrosia-Arts.com

Photo Credits:

Male Image – © Sweet Trade Photography

Female Image – © Jazmin La.Shae Photography

Chicago Skyline – © Grzegorz Kieca via Dreamstime.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

L. V. Lewis has one foot in South Georgia and the other in North Florida. She's been blessed with a husband who's put up with her for a lot of years and has given birth to four children, two of whom she has raised to adulthood and one to near adulthood. She delights in her almost empty nest status so much that she writes the kinkiest novels she can conjure up.

L. V. Lewis’s Exhaustive List of Contact Info:

Email: lv.lewis148@gmail.com

GoodReads, Twitter, Facebook, The Block, & Pinterest

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, June 09, 2013

Juneteenth Sale!

It's June and you know what that means? It's hotter than hades outside. It also means Juneteenth is right around a corner. And THAT means it's almost time for the Juneteenth sale I'm a part of it.

Why Juneteenth?

The simple fact is there was a time in America's history where folks would get fined, punished or thrown in jail for teaching people of color to read. More specifically, teaching slaves to read. The general fear was if you taught slaves how to write they might, you know, think about their lot in life. They may not be happy about it. They just might educate themselves. And then the nightmare would begin: they might educate others.

What I do every day as a passion, for a living was illegal in the United States. Took some time for the word to get out that slavery had been abolished and that was just one step closer to where I'm sitting now. I don't know about you, but I think that's cause for a celebration. It's worthy of taking a moment.

Why a group sale?

Who doesn't love a sale?

When?

June 13th-19th

Who?

The following authors are dropping their prices for this one time event.

$1.79 to $0.99

Bad Boy Next Door by Melissa Blue

$2.99 to $0.99

Fifty Shades of Jungle Fever by LV Lewis

$3.99 to $1.99

A Kiss of a Different Color by Bettye Griffin

$2.99 to $1.49

Framing Felipe Holley Trent

$2.99 to $0.99

Donor by Ambrielle Kirk

$3.99 to $0.99

Jaded Hearts by Olivia Linden

$3.90 to $2.50

Abandoned But Not Alone by Theresa Henry

Facebook Page

$3.99 to $2.99

Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing by Chicki Brown

Website

$2.99 to $1.99

D.N.A. -Nothing Would Ever be the Same Again

If you want to find out more about these authors and their books you can check out their website. Stay tuned for the official sale.

Tuesday, June 04, 2013

Bad Boy Next Door: Excerpt

Bad Boy Next Door Excerpt

Bad Boy Next Door by Melissa Blue

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

Cover Art by Melissa Blue

Jesus Christ.

No wonder Ryan had a thing for her. She'd coaxed her hair into big, spiral curls that framed her heart-shaped face. Her rich, dark brown eyes were lit with a laugh that tugged her full mouth into a smile. Skin, just as dark brown as her eyes, looked soft and touchable. The simple black dress gave more than a hint of the femininity beneath. The silver heels elongated slender legs that had no end.

Tonight, and any night she went out on a blind date, Penelope looked like something he should bite just to have her taste fill his mouth. But he never did. Never would.

He spent a lot time with a lot of bad people. He always felt tainted by his life whenever he was around her. Although she didn't look it tonight, Penelope should be with someone who didn't own a set of lockpicks just in case a closed door needed to find itself conveniently opened.

Still, he couldn't help but flirt back like he'd done for the past two months. It was driving him a bit insane to not close the distance in the hallway and kiss her already. He persevered, leaning heavily on his doorjamb.

He needed a damn medal, both for restraint and stupidity. “What did the door do to make you go postal?”

“Not a thing. I'm just a rage-aholic. You should see how I rip into paper when I get on a tear.” She grinned at the intentional pun. “What are you doing home this late at night and stalking me?”

“Got a tip and was heading to a secret meeting. Stepped out and here you were destroying property with your head. I decided to announce my presence and make no sudden moves.”

“Oh.” Her shoulders slumped. “I won't hold you up then.”

He didn't want to leave. He never did whenever they had a moment alone. “My source is always late. I've got a few minutes to help defuse your rage.”

“It's nothing really.” She shrugged. “My roommate is convinced I should only date nice guys. I just came from another one of those disastrous dinners. You caught me in a moment of pure frustration.”

“Frustrated and angry.” He paused. “At yourself, your friend, or the date?”

She shook her head and the curls brushed along her face. “All of the above and I don't know why.”

He scoffed at her answer. “Yes, you do.”

She laughed softly. “Why do you think that?”

“Because I know human nature.” And that was the truth. Ryan had witnessed more than his fair share of it. “I see the seedier side, but it's all the same.”

Penelope made a noncommittal noise and then said, “Your job has left you all noir.”

“Somewhat.” Which was why Ryan kept his feet planted in his doorway. “Doesn't change the fact you're probably angry at yourself for going on another date. Angry at her for offering. And at him...don't know why. Probably a jackass. It's not rational, but it's human nature.”

“It's petty,” she argued.

“I repeat—human nature.”

She laughed as he'd known she would, and the sound did wonderful things to his spine. Stay against the doorjamb. Don't move. Not one goddamn step. “Ah, are you feeling better now? Will it be safe for me to leave my apartment, knowing it won't be torched?”

She bit the corner of her mouth to contain the flirtatious smile. “Your valuables will be safe from me.”

“My work here is done.” He felt safe that his craving for her had been fed and he wouldn't do anything stupid.

Ryan turned to close his door, and her heels clicked against the hard wood floors of the hallway. She was going inside. He'd sighed in relief from dodging another bullet, but when he faced her again, Penelope had closed some of the distance between them. Enough for him to know intimately her perfume had a light musk. The scent filled his head with nonsense about leaning down and slanting his mouth over hers.

She moved closer and her hand ate up the last of the distance. Light as a feather, her fingertips rested on his arm. If she kept them there one second longer, he'd do something dumb and irrevocable. It would lead down a road where he wouldn't take her rough, but he'd damn sure would take her every which way but loose.

She glanced up at him, mouth parted, about to speak. His gaze fixated on her bottom lip. Pink. Her mouth definitely looked like something he should bite into. Just once to get it out of his system. Her eyes widened and the sweetest, softest noise fell from her lips, but she didn't step back. Yeah. He shouldn't close the distance.

But...one time would be enough, right? He'd warn her off after that. If he had to, Ryan would pick Penelope up, dump her into her apartment, and make sure she'd lock the door tight to keep him out.

But...goddammit, just this once, he'd kiss her.

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