Live to Love on the Edge Blog

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#ManCandyMonday Nathan Fillion

Okay, I have to confess that this is another piece of Man Candy that it took me a while to appreciate.

I remember Nathan from his role as the Big Bad on Buffy in Season 7 and in Firefly. I didn’t really catch on to Firefly, but have lots of friends that love it and Serenity.

I did, however, get recently hooked on Castle and am furiously catching up on episodes. Nathan is so cute and charming and yes, sexy. I give up. I acknowledge that Nathan is worthy of the title of Man Candy. LOL!

How about you? Do you love him? Are you a fan of Firefly/Serenity/Castle?

Nathan_Fillion_by_Gage_Skidmore

Photo Credit: Gage [email protected]

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Fall back Friday NOW AND ALWAYS Playlist

I had a very definite playlist in mind when I wrote NOW AND ALWAYS. The playlist was filled with songs that conjured up sultry tropical nights in Miami and the heartbreak of love that didn’t come easy.

So this Friday we’re falling back to the 1990s and Gloria Estefan’s Can’t Stay Away From You. I could so picture this being Connie’s song as she deals with all the love and angst of a relationship with Victor.

If you can’t see the video below, you can click here.

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Behind the Scenes of NOW AND ALWAYS

My latest release, NOW AND ALWAYS, is set in Miami. As a kid, we always went to Miami in August to visit family and friends. It used to be a fun road trip as we made our way from New York, down the East Coast and eventually to Miami. We used to stay in South Beach back then, not because it was trendy, but because it was inexpensive. At one point we stopped staying there as the area had gotten too bad.

It’s nice to see South Beach revived to its Art Deco splendor. I was lucky enough to revisit South Beach a few years back and here are some of the photos from Ocean Drive and the South Beach area. In NOW AND ALWAYS, Connie gets an apartment in this area while she goes undercover and fights her attraction to sexy physician Victor.

This is a view of the beach from Lummus Park. The brightly colored lifeguard stands are a staple of the Miami Beaches.

South Beach Lummus Park

There are quite a number of glamorous hotels in South Beach. This is the pool area at the Loew’s Hotel. Lovely place right near Lincoln Drive. For those who read KISSED BY A VAMPIRE, lots of action in that book happens along Lincoln Drive, a pedestrian mall lined by restaurants, clubs, and stores.

Loew's Hotel

The smaller and older hotels are famous for their Art Deco style and neon. The neon throws its color into the tropical night, making it come alive.

sb4

Hope you liked this behind the scenes glimpse into the inspiration for NOW AND ALWAYS.

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NOW AND ALWAYS Contemporary #Romance #Freeread

NOW AND ALWAYS, the re-release of my first contemporary romance, is out in both e-book and print. As I mentioned last week, it’s a very special book to me because it’s my first and dedicated to mom, who shaped so much of who I am today.

It’s also special because I wanted to get across a message about discrimination and how it happens in all cultures, in this case, Miami’s melting pot. There is the initial tension between Cuban Connie Gonzalez and Miami-born and bred Paul Stone. With them it’s a clash of cultures and socioeconomics. Paul is wealthy and has had all that he wants in life while Connie has had to struggle for everything.

You’ll find out in the sequel, FAITH IN YOU, that with all that Paul has, he is still a poor man because he lacks love in his life. The love of his family and the love of a very special lady – Carmen Gonzalez, Connie’s younger sister.

But in NOW AND ALWAYS, you’ll also see that even within the Cuban community there is tension between those who have been here since the Sixties and those who came later. Plus there is the class issue as well between sexy and well-off physician Victor and FBI Agent Connie.

Melding with all that is the romance. Hot and sexy and with the tropical feel of Miami’s glittering night life and trendy South Beach environs. I hope you’ll take a moment to check out the book and today I’ve got a free read from you that introduces all of the characters I hope you will come to love, including Paul Stone and Carmen from FAITH IN YOU.

FBI Agent Connie Gonzalez actually helped inspire the FBI Agent Diana Reyes from THE CALLING/REBORN Vampire series. After the release of Connie’s book, I had many letters and e-mails saying how refreshing it was to see a female FBI Agent and how they’d love to see more stories with an empowered heroine. Diana Reyes was soon born and I know how much you all like her and those stories.

Without further ado, here is an excerpt from NOW AND ALWAYS. If you can’t see the excerpt below, you can click here to read it.

Purchase the E-book at Amazon
Purchase the Print Book at Amazon

Now and Always Contemporary #Romance by Caridad Pineiro

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Peach Amaretto Cake #Recipe

It’s summer and that means lots of peaches and nectarines ready to eat in all kinds of ways. Take a bite, cut them up into fruit salad, regular salad, sangria, pies, tarts and cakes.

I’ve never made a peach cake, but I was inspired by this week’s America’s Test Kitchen which had some tips on how to avoid a soggy peach cake. Apparently peaches have less pectin than other fruits which makes them release liquid that isn’t bound up with the pectin.

The solution: Roasting the peaches for 20 to 25 minutes and tossing them with crushed panko crumbs before you mix them in with the cake batter.

I wish I could say that I’d make the cake from scratch, but unfortunately, time does not allow that in my life, so I am substituting a pound cake mix for the batter and since I love nectarines more than peaches, I’ll be using those in my cake.

Ingredients

2 1/2 pounds of peaches (or nectarines) cut into wedges.
4 teaspoons Lemon Juice
4 tablespoons amaretto (you can substitute peach schnapps or rum here also)
4 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup panko crumbs

For topping: 3 tablespoons sugar with 1 teaspoon of almond extract

For the Cake: Cake Mix of your choice, but choose a slightly denser cake mix, like pound cake or a mix for an upside down cake. 1 teaspoon of almost extract.

Directions

Place cut peaches into the lemon juice, rum and sugar. Let it macerate for at least 20 to 30 minutes.

Remove about 2 dozen of the peach wedges and set aside. Cut the remaining peach wedges into thirds and place on a greased foil-covered baking sheet Bake at 425 for about 20 to 25 minutes. Set aside to cool and reduce oven temperature to that recommended for your cake mix.

Grease a 9 inch springform pan. If you wanted to really boost the almond taste, you could finely grind almonds and use them to “flour” the inside of the springform pan.

Make your cake mix, adding 1 teaspoon of almond extract.

Once peach wedges are cooled, toss with crushed panko and gently fold into cake mix.

Pour cake mix into springform pan and place the reserved peach wedges on top as a nice design. Sprinkle the almond-sugar mixture over the top. Bake until center of the cake is set and a toothpick comes out clean. Probably around 40 to 50 minutes.

Remove from oven and cool. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

PeachAmarettoCake

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#ManCandyMonday Bradley Cooper

I have to say that I wasn’t really sure about whether or not I found Bradley Cooper sexy. I don’t know why I was hesitating, but I was definitely on the fence about it.

Then I saw SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK. I have to tell you, the beginning of the movie is unsettling. Hubby and I actually said we were going to watch it again because it was tough for both of us to sit through those parts.

But then as the story developed, it slowly happened. By the time Bradley shows up in a simple black suit and white shirt, looking so decidedly handsome, I was off the fence.

So today’s Man Candy Monday is Bradley Cooper and if you haven’t seen SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, by all means go and watch it.

As I mentioned last week, I’ll be doing a cover reveal for NOW AND ALWAYS and the sequel, FAITH IN YOU, on July 16th. If you wish to participate, please go to this link: http://bit.ly/14ssD9z

You will receive the covers, an excerpt, and some links which you can post on your website, blog, Facebook, Myspace, or anywhere else on the Net.

From all the participants in the cover reveal, I will pick one person to win a $50 gift card. Thank you.

Bradley_Cooper_2011

Photo Credit: Tom [email protected]

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