Edgar's Books: January 2023

Monday, January 30, 2023

Love All by Liza Malloy - Book Blast and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Liza Malloy will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

College students Nate and Olivia are a perfect match on the courts—and in the sheets. Everywhere else, they’re polar opposites and sworn enemies. But as the chemistry builds, a figure from Olivia’s past unexpectedly pops back into her life and the couple realizes they have more in common than they thought. Are these star-crossed lovers doomed to repeat their parents’ mistakes, or can they build a life together once the final set is played?

This book is a standalone, steamy, new adult/college, sports romance, 77k words. Tropes include enemies to lovers, he falls first, and billionaire.

Read an Excerpt

Olivia stopped abruptly and I nearly slammed into her chest as she swiveled to face me.

“I don’t get it,” she said. “Last night, you couldn’t have been less interested. And now you’re threatening to stalk me?”

I hadn’t expected that. “Not interested? I am the picture of interested when it comes to you. You just caught me off guard last night. I’m used to this—to you hating me. So when you suddenly seemed to be coming on to me, I just wanted to make sure it was for real and that you weren’t being forced to seduce me by some brilliant terrorist. Despite what you think about all of us guys, consent still matters to most of us.”

Her eyebrows furrowed together as she tried to piece together everything I’d just said. “I don’t hate you.”

“You’ve literally told me you hate me at least a dozen times.”

She rolled her eyes. “Well, I don’t. You’re annoying and arrogant and entitled and demanding and self-absorbed and—”

“Olivia,” I interrupted. “You started to tell me that you don’t hate me, but all of these words suggest otherwise.”

That earned me a half smile.

“You frustrate me. But I think I could see us being friends. Except…”

“Except you want to jump my bones every time you see me?”

She scowled.

About the Author:

Liza Malloy writes contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She’s a sucker for alpha males, bad boys, dimples, and muscles, and she can’t resist a man in uniform. Liza loves creating worlds where her heroine discovers her own strength and finds her Happily Ever After. When Liza isn’t reading or writing torrid love stories, she’s a practicing attorney. Her other passions include gummy bears, jelly beans, and the occasional marathon. She lives in the Midwest with her four daughters and her own Prince Charming.

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Wednesday, January 18, 2023

Last Chance by Darren E. Watling - Book Blast and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Darren E. Watling will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The earth's epilogue was a forgone conclusion.

Our World selects seven of the best human beings that man, woman, and other could put their faith in, to ensure human existence, each displaying traits of a master in his/hers/its field.

However, not all traits are in the best interest of humankind.

Out of this World places seven hospital patients on a Plan B shuttle. Life was difficult on Earth. A new planet presents new problems. The ex-Fruit and Nut Friendly Psychiatric Hospital patients are up for the challenge.

Into the Other World—The Twist. Not only a mid-1900s dance, it is also associated with a lemon, a warped shape, a frame of mind, a warped frame of mind, a face you pull from sucking lemons and an end of story, unexpected finish, not to be given away, glancing at the back cover.

Read an Excerpt

“In this year, 2125, alcohol is still promoted and consumed in large quantities by a generous portion of the world. In the years before, an organisation who called themselves The AAF tried to stop this crippling society drug. They originated in Ireland but were quickly run out of their own country. Next, they travelled down under, all the way to Australia, looking to set up a base camp for their plight. They were quickly run out of there too. (Some say the Aussies were pissed, while running the AAF out of the country). They bounced from country to country, finally setting up shop on the shores of the Arctic. The AAF would fight for fifty years. To give credit where it is due, the AAF held a sensible argument and for an extremely brief moment, a famous politician was subconsciously almost contemplating giving consideration of thought to what they were saying. They spoke of the excessive numbers of Alcoholic Anonymous meeting places. (One can conclude there are an excessive number of alcoholics). They drove the point of the number of alcohol-related road deaths. They touched on the alcohol-related child abuse cases and fired up at the mention of alcohol-fuelled wife bashings. The hospitalised, the alcohol-responsible cancer patients, the effects it has on the liver, kidneys and almost every other vital organ needed for existence. They fought a long, good, worthy fight, but alas, they were extremely outnumbered. The dream of the world adopting the same attitude as religion was lost, buried somewhere under the Vodka bottles with the members of the AAF that drank themselves to death in protest.”

About the Author:

Born Darren Edward Watling, Subiaco, Western Australia, 1966. Darren excelled in English, maintaining ‘A’s, throughout his schooling and wrote a play, ‘Laughing Gas’, for his school at the age of 10. Credited with one small, published article, Darren found inspiration and reward, arriving at his latest piece, ‘Last Chance’.

He completed an apprenticeship, as a fitter, at Princess Margaret Hospital, while continuing his passion for short story writing.

Traveling Australia for three years on a private bus gave Darren a beginning to the experiences and continued, humorous outlook he has on life.

Darren approached his mother Jill Stubbs Mills and asked for her blessing to take her short story, ‘Deception’, and rewrite it into a novel. (The feedback from her publisher about her story was exceptional). Jill agreed to her son’s request. Sadly, Jill now suffers with dementia, but, keeps her sense of humour.

Various forms of employment, including a movie extra, a welder on a crocodile farm, a drummer for a touring band and currently a roof plumber, gave Darren considerable ‘fuel’, for a fired up, comedic novel.

Darren has had several passions over the past 56 years while walking this Earth. Drums, Karate, tennis and continuing today- comedic writing.

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Monday, January 2, 2023

Any Fin For Love by Petie McCarty - Book Blast and Giveaway

This post is par of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Petie McCarty will be awarding an Autographed paperback copy of Cinderella Busted (US only) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on a tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

She could almost hear the fish laughing at her . . .

Cody Ryan’s father never missed fishing the annual Loon Lake tournament until his unexpected passing. So this year, Cody packs up her how-to fishing videos and her dad’s old johnboat and gives him one final entry.

Gage Connor needs some R&R away from his coast guard deployment catching drug smugglers along the Louisiana coast, so he borrows a bass boat from his buddy and heads to Loon, Alabama to do some fishing.

When Gage and Cody meet at Loon Lake, their attraction is immediate and intense—until the two discover there is only one boat slip left on the lake and they both need it, and there’s only one vacant hotel room left in Loon and they both want it. Thus, their competition begins. Both vow to keep their distance from the other to fight the temptation, but fate has other plans. The tournament pairing party picks the two-man teams and chooses Gage as Cody’s partner.

For two days.
Alone on a boat.
Working as a team.

Good things come to those who bait . . .

Read an Excerpt

Double damn!

Gage looked over Lila’s head and saw Cody stomping toward the dock, a big Igloo cooler in her arms, fire in her eyes, and steam escaping from her ears. Okay, no steam, but she looked mad enough for some. He swallowed hard and tried to pry Lila’s arms free, but she was having none of that.

“Now you just hold still, cutie patootie,” she drawled, “and let little ole Lila give you my special good-luck hug.” She crushed her barely-covered breasts against his abdomen, causing the neckline on her tank top to droop almost to her navel.

Cody had reached the dock and stomped so hard he could feel the vibration in the boards. Her glare could singe the fins off an alligator gar, and Gage had Lila stuck to him like a tick. He was a sitting duck.

Cody looked even madder now than when she left to get the rest of her gear, which could only mean . . .

Wait a minute! She’s jealous.

Of Lila.

Cody’s glare deepened upon final approach.

And Gage grinned for real.

Zeke Tumson, my ass. She likes me.

He stopped trying to struggle free of Lila and waited for Cody to get to the boat and the fireworks to begin. Lila felt his struggle cease and snuggled in closer, rubbing every inch of her breasts against his gut, then laying her cheek on his chest. A week ago, Lila’s antics might have elicited a very pronounced and noticeable reaction. Today—he glanced down to check—nothing. His gaze shot to Cody steaming down the dock. Had she done this to him?

“Mmmm,” Lila cooed and squiggled her body again, “good luuuuck.”

Cody marched mere steps away. When Lila purred, Cody hesitated for a heartbeat, made a sharp left, stepped down into the johnboat, and proceeded to hook up her livewell.

Gage waited a five-count, but Cody kept her head down and fooled with the tubing attached to the cooler. He knew he had to move. If he didn’t, Lila would be in his shorts any second.

Maybe he should let . . .

Nope, bad idea.

Cody would push him overboard later, then drive off and leave him. Heck, she may already be planning that.

He cleared his throat to be sure Cody heard. “Thanks for seeing us off, Lila,” he said politely.

No reaction from Cody.

“I didn’t come to see her off,” Lila sniped. “Just yooouu,” she cooed and rubbed her breasts against his gut again.

Cody missed it. She never looked up.

“All right, you get on back to your registration table, and let me get to my fishing.” Gage took Lila’s shoulders and physically set her back.

Still ignoring him, Cody finished with the livewell and picked up a fishing rod.

Lila batted her eyelashes. “I’ll be waiting when you get back, sugar. What say we have dinner tonight?”

No way would he answer that question. He just smiled and stuck a foot out to step down in the johnboat at the same instant Lila hooked her finger in his belt loop to tug him back.

Too late, Gage saw the butt end of Cody’s rod push off on the dock cleat, and the johnboat shot back the full three feet of loose bow and stern line.

His sneaker stepped into thin air, and he dropped like a rock.

Gage hit the water at an angle, and Lila followed him in, her finger still hooked in his belt loop.

About the Author:

Petie spent a large part of her career working at Walt Disney World—"The Most Magical Place on Earth"—where she enjoyed working in the land of fairy tales by day and creating her own romantic fairy tales by night, including her new series, The Cinderella Romances. She eventually said good-bye to her "day" job to write her stories full-time. These days Petie spends her time writing sequels to her regency time-travel series, Lords in Time, and her cozy-mystery-with-romantic-suspense series, the Mystery Angel Romances.

Petie shares her home on the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee with her horticulturist husband and an opinionated Nanday conure named Sassy who made a cameo appearance in No Angels for Christmas.

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