I remember reading Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring many years ago and was influenced by it to avoid using any pesticides in my garden in order to preserve Mother Earth. But that book also kindled in me a desire to try and help the environment in whatever small ways I could. I try to recycle and shut off lights when not necessary. We reuse plastic bags so that they are not single-use and I try to remember taking reusable bags for the grocery store. I think my biggest help has been using my Sodastream which lets me avoid having lots of soda bottles to recycle and also keeps me from putting fake sweeteners in my body. I also try to upcycle as many things as I can, like making a hall tree from a door that was headed for garbage if I didn’t use it. I like to think my little bit helps. How about you? What things do you do to help the environment?
Easter Memories from The Family She Never Met
In The Family She Never Met there’s a scene where Jessica’s grandmother remembers taking her girls to see The Sound of Music in their Easter finest. Much like the girls in that scene, my mom and grandmother would dress us up for Easter and we would sometimes go into Manhattan for the Easter Parade. On one very special visit we did go to see The Sound of Music in Radio City Music Hall and that inspired the scene in the book. This is a photo of my grandmother, me, my sister, and my mother (left to right) on one of those Easter days.
Order
Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/3tPQ7Xx
Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/3bonSZN
Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-family-she-never-met/id1568775092
BN Nook: http://bit.ly/BarnesandNobleFamily
BN Paperback: http://bit.ly/BarnesandNovelPaperback
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-family-she-never-met
Additional Retailers: https://books2read.com/FamilySheNeverMet
Relieving Stress with Reading
Stress can have many bad effects on your health. According to the Mayo Clinic, stress can cause high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. What can you do to relieve stress? Check out what some of my fellow Romantic Suspense authors and I do to help deal with the pressures of life and writing at this blog at Harlequin.com. If you’re looking for something to read, try out Deadly Chase, a free read at Harlequin.com and DECOY TRAINING, the first book in the K-9s on Patrol series.
Man Candy Monday Charles Leclerc
My daughter has gotten into Formula 1 racing and dutiful mom that I am, I was asked to pick a driver that I liked since we’re actually going to a Grand Prix race together later in the year. To be honest, I knew little about Formula 1 racing until one of my former clients was sponsoring the Sauber racing team. Because of my lack of knowledge, I did the next best thing for selecting a driver: Who was the cutest. Well, after being shown a few quick snapshots, I chose Charles Leclerc and what a choice! Leclerc is burning up the track this year with quite a few wins for Ferrari, including first place in both the Bahrain and Australian Grand Prixs which leaves him in first place in the Formula 1 Power Rankings. Hopefully he’ll still be in first place when we go to our Grand Prix race!
My Fabulous Author Life
You may wonder what I do when I’m not busy writing. Well, I try to do lots of things, including spending time with my bestie – my daughter. So besides things like gardening, we often do some fun things like visiting the Sloomoo Institute to get slimed, the Peabody Essex Musem in Salem, and lots of other fun places. Why? Because in the immortal words of Cyndi Lauper
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
Hope you have a nice weekend and please don’t forget to check out The Family She Never Met and Decoy Training, my two latest releases. Also check out Deadly Chase, a free read now available at Harlequin.com.
A not so distant throwback to the fabulous Brenda Novak
I was on the road yesterday to Easton, PA to have dinner with some friends and see my buddy Brenda Novak! It’s been ages since we’ve been able to spend some time on account of the pandemic. It was wonderful to see so many fans there to pick up a copy of Brenda’s latest book Summer on the Island, to hear her speak, and to meet her up-close-and-personal. A big thanks to Brenda for also giving a shout out to my new release The Family She Never Met. You can pick up Brenda’s book at https://amzn.to/37OcM10 and The Family She Never Met at https://amzn.to/3uHaA4H.
Another Sexy Teaser from Decoy Training
I had posted an earlier sexy scene in DECOY TRAINING. In that scene, Shane isn’t quite ready to commit. A few days later, the tension between them is building. Piper is ready to commit because she sees the amazing man that Shane is and he’s downright handsome. This is how I pictured Shane! Piper is ready to commit because she sees the amazing man that Shane is and he’s downright handsome. This is how I pictured Shane!
WARNING: Only for mature audiences!
Excerpt
Side by side, they walked through the living room to the hallway leading to the bedrooms. Piper took the lead down the hall, pausing by the door to her room, where she faced him.
“Good night, Shane,” she said, but her tone was hesitant. Bordering on inviting, but it brought back memories of the other night and his hesitation at taking this relationship further. But he didn’t want to keep on denying that he wished there could be more with her.
He took an uncertain step closer and when she didn’t back away, he bent and kissed her. Not like their fleeting first kiss or the more heated one from the other night. This was a kiss of invitation and promise. Tender at first, but growing deeper as they stood there, kissing over and over until he finally closed the distance and laid a hand at her waist to urge her closer.
Her breasts were soft against his chest. Her hips mobile when she shifted them against his erection, but as much as he wanted to take this to the next level, he couldn’t until he was sure of himself and what he could offer her.
Because of that, he tempered his kiss and stepped away the tiniest bit, but it was enough.
The kiss ended as tentatively as it began, with a lingering brush of their lips and a sigh that was loud in the quiet of the night.
He moved back another step, enough to see her face. The slight flush on her cheeks. Her eyes, slightly dazed and dark. Her lips, still moist from their kiss.
“Sweet dreams, Piper,” he said and didn’t wait for her reply, thinking it best to go to his own room before he made a big mistake.
Her “good night” chased him down the hall as did the sound of her door closing.
Order
Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/2ZohoXx
Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/3CNO4bl
Apple: https://apple.co/3o9usuh
BN E-book: http://bit.ly/BNDecoy
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/decoy-training
Additional Retailers: https://books2read.com/DecoyTraining
Starting on March 19, you can read Deadly Chase for free at Harlequin.com. In Deadly Chase, a K-9 officer and a DEA agent join forces to combat a deadly enemy and confront their own complicated past. You’ll get to meet Alex and Miriam, the two law enforcement heroes in this story, but also a number of the other heroes in the K-9s on Patrol Series which begins with my book — Decoy Training — in April 2022.