Category: #amreading

Unlikely Merger’s SAM List

On By Betty OwensIn #amreading, coffee, comedy, faith, family, fiction1 Comment

Caribbean Beach2It all started on a Love Boat Cruise to the Caribbean. You might wonder how Mercy Lacewell ended up on a cruise like that with her semi-invalid father…

Well, that’s the kind of thing that happens occasionally, even in real life. It seems like the wrong place, at the wrong time, when it could just be wrong place at the right time. Or right place, wrong time. Anyway, Mercy went on a cruise with her dad. She met a young minister named Brent Teague and something happened to her heart. The almost-romance softened her heart a little and prepared her for what was coming next.

What was coming next–

Back home, Daddy and his assistant, Madeline, decide Mercy needs more life experience. They send her out as acquisitions analyst for Lacewell Limited. Her job: to assess the companies and businesses they find, and decide if the businesses are a good investment for the company. Sounds like fun, right? Except that it’s something Mercy has never done, never thought about doing, never wanted to do. She’s perfectly happy in Denver, taking care of Dad.

First trip out: wouldn’t you know they’d end up in Texas during a freak ice storm? Mercy and Lacewell Limited’s other acquisitions analyst (Dustin Rogers) never actually make it to the destination, but they find something better, and are able to add it to the list. And Dustin gets added to Madeline’s SAM list. What’s a SAM? Single, available male (remember that).

Next stop, Watkins Glen, New York, to check out an inn. This adventure includes snow, sledding, and Landon Gates. Now we’re ready for a warmer climate. How about San Diego, CA? Nice, very nice. And once again, Mercy bumbles through her first meeting with the owner of Montoya Olive Oil–yes, that’s MOO for short. Enrique Miguel Montoya, “Ric” for short–doesn’t seem to mind. He makes her feel very much at home among his clan in their beautiful home. Mercy learns not to bite an olive fresh from the tree, no matter how ripe it looks. Ric is a welcome addition to the SAM list.

alligator-439887_1280Staying with the warmer weather, Mercy is headed to Titusville, Florida, and a gator farm. Yes, you read that right. Adventure. For this one, she takes Uncle Thomas along. I don’t blame her. Mr. Mann welcomes her–Gabe Mann. Great name, huh? After a full assessment and a medical procedure, she says goodbye to Titusville, but Gabe finds a place on the list.

Headed north, Mercy stops in Madison, Alabama for a quick look at Diana’s Burger Bistro. Will this be a good investment? She has a rather unfortunate first meeting with the chef, a surfer-type named Talon Hawthorne. But he makes a nice save by cooking a meal that pleases her palate.

Fourteen Quarters Repertory Company is located in New Orleans, Louisiana. And Douglas “Digger” Grant is the contact. Chemistry! Mercy learns all about small productions and develops a nice friendship with a man named Icky. You’ll need to read the chapter to understand that one.

Chapter Eight takes place in St. Louis, Missouri, where Mercy looks at McBride Mortgage. She feels uncertain about this one and tries her best to talk Uncle Thomas into accompanying her. But…ends up on her own with the formidable Mason McBride, until she meets IT director, Levi Shepherd. Mercy was more than happy to spend quality time getting technical with this guy. Another addition to the SAM list!

Great Barrington, Massachusetts is Mercy’s next stop, to look at a trucking company. Ahhh, New England in the spring. Rob and Steve LeClerc of LeClerc Trucking, at your service. Mercy falls pretty hard for Steve. Or 9cb57-shutterstock_40179583maybe his dog.

All the way back across this wide country of ours, Mercy lands at LAX and hits the road for Santa Monica, CA. She quickly learns there is no avoiding L.A. traffic, but that’s nothing compared to the crankiness of St. Andrew. She ends up trapped in a very small room with Reuben Miller. For three hours. Kind of a crash course, ending with Rube Miller on the SAM list.

So that brings us to the final stop on Mercy’s itinerary–in Lexington, KY–land of blue grass, beautiful horses, and Knight-Link & Associates. After a near head-on collision with someone she believes to be a handyman or plumber, she meets with Philip Knight, the owner of the architectural engineering firm. He introduces her to his nephew Daniel Knight, aka handyman/plumber, who turns out to be a designer of equine habitats. And his cowboy charm wins him a place on the list.

11112210_858579607541022_8504991036842170166_oFinal chapter, readers’ choice. One of the ten handsome, young fellows you met in the above summary has won the chance to woo Mercy. Our readers voted for their favorite. Who is it? Well, you’ll just have to read the story to find out. Today, and for the rest of the 4th of July holiday weekend, you can download it absolutely free. Don’t have a Kindle? Did you know you can get a free Kindle app on your phone or computer? Just go to Amazon Kindle and check it out.

If you miss out on the free download, Unlikely Merger be available through the remainder of July for just 99 cents.

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Becky Wade – Authorview

On By Betty OwensIn #amreading, author, Authorview, award-winning, contemporary, historical, Romance2 Comments
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Becky Wade

Welcome to Authorview, Becky Wade. She is an award-winning writer of historical fiction and contemporary romance. Her latest novel, Book 3 of The Porter Family Novels, released May 5, 2015 –  A Love Like Ours (see below for details). I’m so excited to host one of my mom’s favorite writers! Can you tell I’m excited? I used an exclamation point to illustrate it. I know you will love her candid answers to my questions. Then read her bio, follow the link to her website and check out her books. If you’ve never read a Becky Wade novel, you’re missing out.

So Becky, tell us about yourself–

I am a…Mom, wife, writer, chocoholic. Just typing the word ‘chocoholic’ makes me wonder how many steps are currently separating me from the chocolate in my pantry….

You would like me when I’ve…Just finished a yoga class. I’m quite peaceful for the five minutes afterward.

You wouldn’t like me when I’m…Still trying to wake up in the morning. The process takes about two hours. It involves a lot of rushing around, trying to get the kids to school on time, and very little conversation.

What qualities I like to see in others:    Humor. An open, genuine spirit. Humility. Warmth. Kindness.

Favorite way to spend an evening:  At a show! It’s a rare treat for me, but I love to see musicals performed live.

Who I love to spend an evening with:  My husband.

Am reading:  A romance novel that I’m judging for RWA’s RITA awards.

If I had a hammer…I’d give it to someone interested in using it to repair my patio.

My favorite genre is: Romance.

My work-in-progress: Is a contemporary Christian romance that will become the fourth and final book in my Texas-set Porter Family series.

My favorite food is: Chocolate.

I’m a collector of:    Chocolate. I also collect Department 56 Dickens Village pieces and set them up each December for Christmas.

My favorite happily-ever-after:    My great grandparents had a wonderful, joyful, long marriage full of family and faith. I can remember them laughing together and the closeness and trust of their relationship. My great grandmother passed away first, my great grandfather soon after. It was almost as if, once she went to heaven, he was extraordinarily impatient to join her there.

I inherited their wedding band when I was a teenager. Years later, I had the inside of the ring inscribed with their initials and their wedding date in 1919. It became my own wedding band when I married and I’ve been wearing it ever since.

Betty: What a wonderful story! And readers, do you get the feeling she likes chocolate? I think the message is very clear. Becky, thank you so much for participating in Authorview. 

Now — more about Becky Wade:

Becky’s a California native who attended Baylor University, met and married a Texan, and settled in Dallas.  She published historical romances for the general market before putting her career on hold for several years to care for her three children.  When God called her back to writing, Becky knew He meant for her to turn her attention to Christian fiction.  She loves penning funny, modern, and inspirational contemporary romance!  She’s the Carol Award and Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award winning author of My Stubborn Heart, Undeniably Yours, Meant to Be Mine, and A Love Like Ours.

A Love Like Ours

LoveLikeOurs_mck.inddFormer Marine Jake Porter has far deeper scars than the one that marks his face. He struggles with symptoms of PTSD, lives a solitary life, and avoids relationships.

When Lyndie James, Jake’s childhood best friend, lands back in Holley, Texas, Jake cautiously hires her to exercise his Thoroughbreds. Lyndie is tender-hearted, fiercely determined, and afraid of nothing, just like she was as a child. Jake pairs her with Silver Leaf, a horse full of promise but lacking in results, hoping she can solve the mystery of the stallion’s reluctance to run.

Though Jake and Lyndie have grown into very different adults, the bond that existed during their childhood still ties them together. Against Jake’s will, Lyndie’s sparkling, optimistic personality begins to tear down the walls he’s built around his heart. A glimmer of the hope he’d thought he’d lost returns, but fears and regrets still plague him. Will Jake ever be able to love Lyndie like she deserves, or is his heart too shattered to mend?

http://www.beckywade.com/my_books.html

What’s Up?

On By Betty OwensIn #amreading, Betty Thomason Owens, fiction, Writing6 Comments

WorkinProgress-MeA work-in-progress. That’s what’s up with me. I’m always trying to improve myself and update my knowledge of various computer technologies. As a writer, I run into glitches all day long and have to solve problems and iron out difficult wrinkles in the system or on my webpage, etc. If I had to wait for someone else to do it…well…it might actually be quicker than me working through a learning process. But now I know how to do it myself!

As of yesterday, my website is now located right here. Moving from Blogger to WordPress was an adventure (extreme understatement). But I love the results! What do you think of it?

That is, if I can remember what I did.

I’m also nearing the end of a work-in-progress–my second book in the Legacy series, Carlotta’s Legacy. This has been a learning process also, and extended beyond my self-imposed deadline more than I care to admit. I’m pleased with how it’s turned out. I hope my editor and publisher agree.

Those of you who’ve read Amelia’s Legacy, will remember Nancy’s perky best friend Rebecca Lewis. Rebecca falls on hard times and has to make some tough decisions. She may have second thoughts, but backing down is not in her makeup. Though she’s knocked down again and again, she keeps getting back up and back in the game.

I have to admit, I’m kind of crushing on Rebecca’s love interest, Riccardo Alverá. He’s an Italian count faced with some tough decisions of his own. To prepare myself for this story, I watched several movies from the era (also set in Italy). In Love and War (a Hallmark movie), Tea With Mussolini, A Month by the Lake, and Enchanted April. There are numerous wonderful novels set in the pre-WW2 era. And fantastic YouTube films about everything from sailing on an ocean liner (in the 1920s & 30s!!) to harvesting olives.

512px-French_Broom2One of my absolute favorite websites, because it was so informative, was Anne’s Italy. And then I happened across a list on YouTube that included movies and photographs from Umbria, which is the setting for Carlotta’s Legacy. Oh the hours I spent watching these beautiful scenes! If I had a bucket list, visiting Umbria would be at the top.

As I write this post, I’m a matter of weeks away from the release of Annabelle’s Ruth. See information below. This story is close to my heart, because it’s fashioned after the Book of Ruth and loosely based on some of my mother’s life experiences. It’s set in a small town where I spent part of my childhood. Here’s a sneak-peek at the setting for Annabelle’s Ruth (Pinterest Board).

I’ll keep you posted on these releases. Follow this blog or like my Facebook author page, to keep up with what’s going on (and help me reach 500 likes this summer). For instance, next week, the Authorview post features Becky Wade and her hot new release, A Love Like Ours. You will want to be here for that.

bluetick-coonhound-2Annabelle’s Ruth is a 1950’s era “Ruth” story, set in the area of Trenton, Tennessee. Constance “Connie” Cross determines to follow her mother-in-law, Annabelle, east to Tennessee after their husbands perish in a fishing boat accident. After Southern California, 1950’s West Tennessee gives Connie culture shock. How will she adapt to her new life amid the cotton farms, rank with prejudice?

The Love Boat Bachelor Needs You

On By Betty OwensIn #amreading, bachelorette, comedy, contest, cruise, Jerusha Agen, Love Boat Bachelor, Romance, Write Integrity Press
As this posts, we’re moving in to the final two days of the chapter releases for The Love Boat Bachelor. I hope you’ve had a chance to read them. Maybe you already have a favorite! Well, after tomorrow’s chapter is released, you’ll have a chance to vote. Please do! It’s like Dancing With the Stars. The contestants perform, the judges give them points, but the callers choose the winner. 
Which chapter touched your heart? Which heroine belongs with Brent Teague? It’s up to you.
Team writing a story like A Dozen Apologies and The Love Boat Bachelor is surprisingly fun. It’s interesting to see where the other authors take the story. I feel both honored and humbled to work alongside such talented writers. 
Don’t forget, The Love Boat Bachelor will be available as a free download on Kindle, February 14th – 17th. 
After it’s all done, please check out other works by these authors. Several of them have multiple books published, and include a number of my favorite reads from the past year or so.
Jerusha Agen

Jerusha Agen brought Brent Teague to life in last year’s A Dozen Apologies. Her opening chapter in The Love Boat Bachelor draws you in to the story.

You’re there with Brent as he fights the temptation to flee before he ever boards the ship. Jerusha Agen has also written the Sisters Redeemed Series, —This Dance, This Shadow, and This Redeemer. She also collaborated on: A Ruby Christmas, and A Dozen Apologies.

For more information about Jerusha Agen, visit her Website and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

   Our greatest wish is that you are entertained and blessed by our stories. If you enjoy these books, please consider recommending them to your friends.

You don’t need a ticket for this cruise, just a link to the website, like this one:
Chapter Seven Port of Call: Barbados

E-mail to Roselle: From Barbados

Port of Call: Bridgetown, Barbados with Lacy Dickinson 

Monday’s Chapter Six:

Chapter Six Port of Call: Bonaire

E-mail to Roselle: From Bonaire

Last Week’s links