#ThrowbackThursday A Trip to Mexico

I’ve been very lucky that my day job has let me visit Mexico on a number of occasions. I’ve been to Mexico City, Guadalajara and Tequila. Fascinating places, great food and good-hearted people.

I’ve been fascinated by the Aztecs and the Maya since I read The Conquest of Mexico and Peru as a kid. It’s no wonder that I decided to set two of my books in Mexico: Aztec Gold and The Fifth Kingdom. The Fifth Kingdom in particular is one of my favorite books and it features the Sun Stone, a symbol of Mexico, in the story. That’s the Sun Stone in the bottom left of this photo! It was truly a pleasure to share with you how the Aztecs lived and their culture, as well as their gods and goddesses.

P.S. – My fascination with the Maya was in large part responsible for inspiring the Sin Hunters and the special powers that you first see in THE LOST.

#ThrowbackThursday A visit to a Mexican Pyramid

Years ago I was lucky enough to be at a legal conference where they took us to visit the archaeological site of Teotihuacan which is just north of Mexico City. This site was the location for one of the largest pre-Columbian cities in the Americas. It is thought to have been destroyed in either 5 or 6 A.D., possibly from internal strife or climate change due to meteor strikes and/or a volcanic eruption.

Now, for the regulars, you know how I hate heights, but I refused to let that fear keep me from getting to the top of the Pyramid of the Sun. Here are some photos from my trek. You can see how far up it really is! The first photo is of the Avenue of the Dead which is actually a series of multi-family dwellings.

avenueofthedead

This is me on my way up the pyramid. Going down was a lot harder due to the steepness of the grade.

cpspyramid

I recently got to visit Mexico City again and go to the Anthropological Museum where I saw lots of artifacts and this recreation of what Teotihuacan may have looked like at one time. It was awesome to see all this history up close and personal because I had included a lot of it in AZTEC GOLD and THE FIFTH KINGDOM, my two novels with Aztec themes.

I hope you enjoyed this Throwback Thursday look at my visits to Mexico.

Prizes for Readers Contest

Please don’t forget that I’m participating in a fabulous contest with some of my author friends at Prizes for Readers.com (https://www.prizesforreaders.com/)

Enter for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate from Amazon or Barnes & Noble (your choice) and take a moment to vote for best blurb and cover. It’s a super easy one-click entry, no Rafflecopter or anything complicated. Winner will be announced on Aug 17th or Aug 18th.

No matter what, you are a winner! Even if your name is not selected for the gift certificate, you will be receiving free book download links from us for your reading pleasure.

You must be 18 or older. US, Canada, UK, Germany, Australia only. Void where prohibited.
Prizes For Readers UPDATED Book Graphic (8)

Blog Hop #Giveaways & Release Party

NAUGHTY AFTER DARK BLOG HOP

I’ll be giving away an ARC of THE CLAIMED and a LOST T-shirt to one lucky winner! Just tweet or share this comment on Twitter or Facebook.

The Jersey Shore like you can’t imagine-THE CLAIMED #paranormal #romance May 2012 PLZ RT http://awe.sm/5fSef

Many thanks to Close Encounters with the Night Kind Blog and Natasha Blackthorne for organizing this blog hop.



NOCTURNAL WHISPERS RELEASE PARTY

Don’t forget about the NOCTURNAL WHISPERS Release Party – Feb 1 to Feb 29! Many thanks to those of you who have already downloaded NOCTURNAL WHISPERS and those who have agreed to review it!

To celebrate the release, we’re going to be having a month long release contest. To be eligible to win a $25 Gift card, copies of AZTEC GOLD and THE FIFTH KINGDOM plus a LOST T-shirt and an awesome tote bag, just click here!

NOCTURNAL WHISPERS Excerpt

In case you can’t see the excerpt below, you can cut and past this link:
http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/77896155?access_key=key-weo9sowk2o2b574axao

Nocturnal Whispers Erotic Paranormal Romance Excerpt

Welcome Los Reyes today & some good news!

Last night was Twelfth Night, the eve of the last day of the Christmas season. It also signals the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas plus the arrival of Los Reyes, the Three Wise Men, bringing gifts to the baby Jesus.

I woke up this morning to see the gifts waiting there. Some small gifts to celebrate Los Reyes Mago, also known as the Feast of the Epiphany.

In many Latin countries, Los Reyes are done up in big fashion, with parades or fireworks such as these in Madrid on Twelfth Night (called the Cabalgata de los Reyes). If you can’t see the video below, you can cut and past this link to watch: http://youtu.be/x9WS3c85IVM

Happy Reyes everyone!!

AZTEC GOLD paranormal romance novellaSo now onto the good news: AZTEC GOLD has been nominated as a Reviewer’s Choice of 2011 by the Paranormal Romance Guild.

To vote for AZTEC GOLD as the top Reviewer’s Choice, please visit the Paranormal Romance Guild and pick one book from each category. Then e-mail your list to [email protected].

Naughty or Nice? Alone or with a Partner?

Now I know that woke you up this morning, but ladies, go get another cup of coffee while we chat a little about tonight’s live video event with Aimee and David Thurlo, the husband and wife writing team responsible for the wonderful Ella Clah suspense series. Did I mention that Aimee is also a writer for Harlequin Intrigue and that her latest release, WINTER HAWK’S LEGEND, is currently a bestselling Intrigue on Amazon?

So you’re probably wondering what that has to do with being naughty or nice/alone or with a partner. Well, tonight at 9 pm EST, we’ll be chatting about romance through the decades and how it’s changed. I think back to some of the old stories where non-consensual sex was quite common and even back to my old contemporaries which were spicy back then, but now barely raise an eyebrow. I’d love to hear your thoughts tonight on all that!

We’ll also be talking about how it is to write with a partner, especially if that writing partner is also your hubby! I so can’t imagine. My hubby has only read two of my books and says he skipped through all those scenes. It’ll be great to hear how David and Aimee do that balancing act in their writing partnership.

So please drop by tonight at 9 pm EST for this live video event. Bring your questions and your comments.

Did I mention there would be giveaways? Yep, I’ll be giving away a copy of A VAMPIRE FOR CHRISTMAS, a LOST T-shirt as well as an Audible gift card for you to download AZTEC GOLD and one other audio book!

If you can’t see the widget below you can also use this link: http://t.wbx.me/f8qgs

Contest and Guest Blog with Selina McLemore

I’ve got my wonderful editor, Selina McLemore, with my friends at Danger Women Writing! Visit with us for a chance to win a $10 Gift Card, autographed copy of SINS OF THE FLESH, STRONGER THAN SIN Tote bag and an autographed copy of AZTEC GOLD.

I’m off today to run some personal errands and also to do a workshop at the wonderful Bucks County Romance Writers. I hope you all have a wonderful day and I’ll be back tomorrow.

Exciting Happenings!

As I mentioned some time ago, this is an exciting year for me! A number of new novellas, an awesome romantic suspense from Carina press, the launch of the exciting new SIN HUNTER series, vampires at Christmas and so much more! Yes, more! So what can we do to celebrate such an awesome year?

For starters you can join me for a series of incredible video chats over the course of the next few weeks. I’ll be meeting you face-to-face thanks to the wonders of technology and also sharing some of my favorite authors and friends. Come join the fun at our very first chat this Thursday as we preview THE LOST, the very first book in my new SIN HUNTER series.

I’ll be giving away a $10 gift card, a LOST T-shirt and a couple of cool reusable grocery bags so that you can help to protect the environment. You can either click here to join the chat this Thursday, May 5 at 8:30 EST or click on the widget below. Feel free to share the widget with your friends and let them share in the fun and prizes. You can also tweet or share this link: http://t.wbx.me/eemp7