Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

Welcome to Sneak Peek Sunday. The rules are simple.

1. Post 6 paragraphs (no more, no less) from either a WIP or a published work.
2. Open to both un-published and published authors.
3. Post the link back to Sneak Peek Sunday so that others can hop along.
4. HAVE FUN!!

My sneak peek today comes from one of my earlier Ellora’s Cave releases—Summer in the City of Sails.

A little setup – Summer is staying at her Uncle Henry’s place alone. It’s the middle of the night and two men have broken into the house. Summer does the only thing she can – she jumps out of her window and goes to the neighbor’s place for help.

Something tackled her, sending her flying. Summer landed on her back in the middle of a mattress. The air hissed from her lungs as someone pinned her in place.

“Don’t move,” a harsh voice said next to her ear. A hand moved down her arm and across her chest, freezing when it came into contact with her breast. This time, the succinct Anglo-Saxon curse didn’t raise so much as an eyebrow. The body pressing her into the bed moved, but not enough for her to draw a good lungful of air. A bedside lamp switched on. She blinked at the surge of bright light.

“You.” Nikolai glared down at her. “What the devil are you doing in my bedroom?”

Summer swallowed. His hand was warm, and she felt her nipple hardening under his touch. Humiliation at her body’s betrayal made her tense even as she savored the spike of sensation.

“Um…would you mind taking your hand off my breast?” The way her nipple was cozying into his palm—talk about a newsflash. Being this close to the man was unnerving, especially since he was the enemy. She refused to think about how good it would feel if he rearranged their bodies a fraction. Nope. She wasn’t going there.

The furrow between his brows deepened. “Isn’t that what you’re here for?”

Summer in the City of Sails is available in both e-book and print formats. Follow up books featuring Nikolai’s friends are Soldier of Fortune and Biding His Thyme

Order at: Ellora’s Cave (eBook) | Ellora’s Cave | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble | Amazon Kindle | All Romance ebooks

To read more sneak peeks follow this Sneak Peek link. Sneak Peek Sunday is sponsored by Sara Walter Ellwood.

Welcome to Sneak Peek Sunday for April 28!

The rules are simple.
1. Post 6 paragraphs (no more, no less) from either a WIP or a published work.
2. Open to both un-published and published authors.
3. Post the link back to Sneak Peek Sunday so that others can hop along.
4. HAVE FUN!!

My sneak peek today comes from The Bottom Line, the first book in the Love and Friendship series. Just to give some context, Maggie, the heroine has just confessed to her friends that she is into spanking, and they’re busy asking questions.

“You’re not spanking Greg, are you?” Julia asked, finishing her friend’s sentence.

“No one’s spanking anyone yet,” Maggie snapped, wriggling a little on her seat as arousal sped through her body. The merest thought of a perfectly placed thwack brought a rush of excitement. Not with Greg, though. Imagining Greg and spanking in the same sentence made her head ache. A big time problem, since he was her boyfriend. How did a girl broach the subject with her guy? Honey, I want you to spank me. Nope, it wasn’t something that came up in normal everyday conversation.

Susan arrived back with the tray of drinks in time to overhear Maggie’s reply. “Why not?” Her friend shunted a margarita across the pitted wooden tabletop and tossed two bags of peanuts and a bag of crisps at them. “Tell us why, Maggie, and don’t leave out a thing.”

Her friends’ expressions told Maggie escape would be impossible until they received an explanation. In detail. She dragged in another breath, which did nothing to still her skittish nerves. Best to spit it out so they could move on in conversation.

“When I flew to Wellington to visit my father and stepmother two weeks ago, I forgot to take a book with me. I was running late and grabbed the first one I saw with an interesting cover.” She grinned, remembering the hunky guy on the book jacket. “I didn’t realize I’d purchased an erotic romance until I’d boarded the plane.”

“You read romances in a public place?” Julia demanded, shocked.

Blurb:

Spicing up her sex life sounds exciting…until the fantasy hits the fan.

When Maggie Drummond buys an erotic romance novel by mistake, she gets more than an unexpected eyeful. She gets an introduction to a world that arouses her to a fever pitch: Spanking.

Her boyfriend isn’t interested in pushing his vanilla-flavored sexual boundaries. Then there’s Connor Grey, who haunts her fantasies like a magical genie. As a source of masculine advice for her and her female friends, he’s off limits. The only safe place to explore her fetish is her anonymous blog.

The recent changes in Maggie don’t escape Connor’s notice. Now that her boyfriend has dropped her, he can finally—carefully—make his move. Given his family history, laying a hand on any woman, even in fun, is a line he’s reluctant to cross. But for Maggie? Anything the lady wants.

As Maggie gives in to the temptation to let Connor add some sin to her life, she finds herself juggling lies, half-truths, friendship and sensual delights. Her job is in jeopardy—and she’s falling in love. Exploring her fantasy is one thing, but she’s beginning to question if indulging her own pleasure is worth the cost to everyone around her. Especially Connor…

Order at: Samhain Publishing (eBook) | Samhain Publishing (print) |Amazon Kindle | Amazon Print | All Romance eBooks |

To read more sneak peeks follow this Sneak Peek link. Sneak Peek Sunday is sponsored by Sara Walter Ellwood.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a new release at @samhainpub (Samhain Publishing), and I’m thrilled to show you the cover for Past Regrets, book two in my Love and Friendship series. I really like it since the cover ties in with The Bottom Line

Here’s the blurb:

Love and Friendship, Book 2

Julia Maxwell was a seize-the-moment party girl until the night she spent with up-and-coming rocker Ryan Callander. From that moment, she was a one-man woman. Pity he hasn’t kept with the program.

Tired of the secrets that have kept her out of the press and Ryan’s fans happy, angry with mounting evidence of infidelity, Julia is older, wiser, and determined to divorce his cheatin’ ass.

Ryan’s long European tour had more than its share of hard knocks—one of which landed on his head when he was mugged. Divorce papers waiting for him at home is a shock that fills in some of the holes in his sketchy memory. But it could be too late to salvage his marriage.

If Ryan thinks flirtatious smiles, seductive touches, and hot-and-heavy kisses are going to smooth things over, Julia’s got a hammer with his name on it. To her surprise, he picks it up, determined to rebuild a bright future for both of them. But the past is lurking with some missing pieces that could bring their hearts crashing down.

Warning: Contains a pissed ex-stripper turned burlesque dancer, a bunch of nosy friends and a smooth-talking rocker with one thing on his mind. Stripper poles and skimpy costumes may be involved.

All going well, Past Regrets is due out 10 September 2013

I’m handing out glasses of sparkling wine today. Grab one from the waiter and make sure you try one of those yummy canapés before you take a seat and hear my news. Even though I’ve been away on holiday, I’ve been busy!

Stranger Things Happen is now available at Amazon. This tale of a woman who designs virtual reality games and finds love in a surprising way is also available at All Romance ebooks.

I’m thrilled to announce I’ve sold a new contemporary romance to Samhain Publishing. Past Regrets is book two in the newly named Love and Friendship series. The first book in the series is The Bottom Line. For those who are familiar with The Bottom Line, Past Regrets is Julia’s story. It’s been a while since I’ve contracted a book with Samhain, which makes this sale doubly exciting.

After dragging my feet for ages, I’m finally jumping into the self-publishing pond. This move was spurred when I received the rights back for an older book. I currently have two projects on the go, both contemporary. Wild Child (the novella reissue) is almost ready to go live. Here’s the blurb and cover.

Zoe Underwood is one sexy disruption.

From the moment her father married Matt’s mother, Zoe has tempted Matt Cantrell with her seductive curves and driven him crazy with her flirting and provocative manner. The thing is they have no future because Zoe is his stepsister. Determined to dodge trouble, Matt leaves Auckland to live and work in the Gold Coast of Australia. A sea between them should do the trick and let him move forward without the “Zoe” distraction in his life.

Matt Cantrell is one stubborn dude.

No one presses Zoe’s buttons like the tall, dark and gorgeous Matt. In fact, every other man pales in comparison. One last play. Zoe decides to invade Matt’s territory and make her move before another clever woman snaps him up. She’ll bust through emotional walls and push boundaries. By the time she’s finished, Matt won’t know what hit him. Yes. Good or bad, she’ll stir things up and take a chance on love.

The second book on my self-publishing horizon is One Night of Misbehavior, a modern retelling of Cinderella. The fab Maria Zaninni at Book Cover Diva has designed an awesome cover for me, and I can’t wait to share. Watch this space.

What have I missed while I was away? Do you have any news to share?

I’d like to welcome LM Pruitt to my blog today. She’s currently out on tour with Bewitching Book Tours and looking back at her struggles with writing and Jude, the lead character in her Jude Magdalyn series.

The first book I ever wrote was… horrible. Okay, not entirely—looking back I can see the beginnings of some of my trademarks, like snark and humor and dialogue. But it was still a very rough piece of work. Still, at the time I thought I was on my way.

And then I started working on my second book. And I hit every wall imaginable.

After months of trying to get past the walls, I gave up on the book and putting writing on the back burner. I was in school full time, I was working full time, and I’d convinced myself that writing wasn’t for me. Still, I kept reading craft books, kept writing flash fiction, and kept reading.

One day, such a normal day I honest to God don’t remember anything about it, I decided I wanted to write. I think I still thought of it as an adjunct to a “normal” career, something I could do in my part time. But the longing, the need to write was still there. But I didn’t want to “fail” like I did with my last attempt, so I followed the advice of numerous writing books.

And really got to know my main character.

I decided to write in first person. I’d tried writing in third and it wasn’t for me. There wasn’t enough sense of connection, at least not for me. So, third person. It never occurred to me to write from a male perspective—my automatic choice for a lead character was female. I knew I wanted her to be around my age—at the time I was 25—and I wanted her to be tall. It seemed like most of the female leads I read about at the time were blonde and blue eyed, so I went with the opposite—dark, dark hair and gray eyes.

I had an idea of the general story I wanted to tell, so I tried to create a background and personality for her that worked with what her eventual role would be. Tough, snarky, blunt, harsh—I’ve always figured if you’re going to be neck deep in paranormal brouhahas, you better have a big set of brass balls. Brains, too, although there’s a possibility you’re going to forget about those when you’re running for your life. Because even geniuses have bad moments—and my main character is no genius.

Finally, after I’d taken care of what seemed like every last detail—I even knew her favorite food (roast beef po’boy from a local New Orleans restaurant)—I let myself give her a name. Yes, I did all of that without having a solid grasp on her name. I think it’s that old belief that if you give something a name you’ve solidified its reality. Don’t get me wrong, I had a vague idea of her name, but I wanted to make sure she matched her name and the name matched her.

Jude—the patron saint of lost causes. Magdalyn—an alternate spelling for Magdalene, as in Mary Magdalene, the patron saint of women. A fitting name for a woman who’s the end of her line, the hope of a new generation.

Creating Jude Magdalyn was a lot of work, but a lot of fun. She’s the only character I’ve studied to such an extent and yet she still manages to surprise me. We’ve had good time so far and there are plenty more to come.

(Note: This post first appeared on the Romaholics website. When I was asked again about the inspiration behind the series, I went back and read this post to try and see if there’s anything I would change. If I was still in the same place in regards to my inspiration. There wasn’t—and I am. Jude Magdalyn is a consummate pain in the ass but she’s a character very dear to my heart for all the reasons listed below.)

Book 1 Shades of Gray for your Kindle, in Paperback

Shades of Gray

Book One

By L.M. Pruitt

Jude Magdalyn Henries lives what many would call an unconventional life.

Orphaned at birth, raised by nuns, a teenage runaway living on the streets… she now earns a living at odd jobs, including one as a fake tarot card reader. Very little about Jude’s life appears normal, by any scale.

When she accepts a gig to do a private reading, unconventional takes on an entirely new meaning. Life as she knows it ends when she’s thrust into a world she never knew existed-one filled with magic, vampires, and her beloved New Orleans on the verge of an underground war.

To make matters worse, she’s got two men in her life vying for attention, Williams and Theo. Both call to a different part of her, but one scares her just a little bit.

Can she step up to the challenges set before her and make the right choices for the greater good?

Hole in the Wall a Jude Magdalyn free Kindle short

Hole in the Wall (#0.5)

Before Jude could throw fire…Before she could heal…Before she chose between two men…

She was a bartender.

Find out what Jude was up to the night before her world went nuts.

Hole in the Wall is available as an exclusive ebook to celebrate the release of the second edition of Shades of Gray

About the Author:

L.M. Pruitt has been reading and writing for as long as she can remember. A native of Florida with a love of New Orleans, she has the uncanny ability to find humor in most things and would probably kill a plastic plant. She is the author of the Jude Magdalyn Series as well as New Moon Rising, featuring Cari Gravier, and Taken, featuring Frankie Post. She is currently at work on the next book in the Moon Rising series, Harvest Moon Rising, due out April 2012. Ms. Pruitt makes her home in Florida with two cats–one smart, the other not so much.

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/LM-Pruitt/364776895104

Blog: http://www.lmpruitt.blogspot.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/lmpruitt

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

~ Grab your current read

~ Open to a random page

~ Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

~ BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

~ Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

I had the pleasure of reading Stellarnet Rebel by JL Hilton recently, and I’m currently reading the follow-up story Stellarnet Prince, which came out at Carina Press this week.

Here’s my teaser:

“When Tikat invaded my world, when they took away my family, I swore to the Great Ocean that I would devote my life to the freedom of the people,” said the Glin.

“Then go home!” yelled a colonist who looked like he hadn’t eaten or bathed in a long time. “I’m trying to sleep.”

page 69, Stellarnet Rebel

Welcome to Asteria, a corporate-owned, deep-space colony populated with refugees, criminals and obsessive online gamers. Genny O’Riordan has shifted in from Earth determined to find a story that will break her blog into the Stellarnet Top 100, and even better–expose the degradation of the colony’s denizens.

Duin is an alien–a Glin–a hero of a past revolution against the Glin royal family, yet branded a terrorist. Duin speaks every day in the Asteria market, hoping to spur humans to aid his home world, which has been overtaken by the evil, buglike Tikati.

When Genny and Duin meet, what begins with a blog post becomes a dangerous web of passion and politics as they struggle to survive not only a war but the darker side of humanity…

94,000 words

Purchase Stellarnet Rebel

REVIEW:

Blogger, Genny O’Riordan moves to Asteria to join her current boyfriend, to report on life in the colony and to find a story that will propel her blog into the big league. During her tour of the colony, she comes across her first alien—a Glin. She’s fascinated and immediately sees the seeds of a great topic for her blog.

With Genny’s help and friendship, the plight of Duin’s race is brought center front, but there are some people who don’t support her cause. Her strength of conviction brings danger and unexpected love.

The thing I liked most about Stellarnet Rebel is the world building. JL Hilton has done a wonderful job of creating the Glin, an alien race who are tribal hunter-gatherers. Like humans they are capable of verbal and written language. They can reason and solve problems. They’re amphibian-like in appearance, have a bald head, no visible ears and large eyes, consisting mainly of iris. Their skin is speckled in shades ranging from taupe to grayish-green. They wear a form-fitting garment that resembles a wetsuit.

Not only do the Glin fit seamlessly into the story, but all the technology and the way the colony functions is blended into the plot without weighing down the reader and making them feel as if they’re reading a science textbook.

I’ll admit that I didn’t warm to Genny straight away. At the start she seems a bit self-absorbed, but I soon lost that impression. Once she meets Duin and starts to help him, I found her more likeable. Duin is determined to free his people and passionate about his cause, despite the backlash and racist remarks from people who don’t understand. He’s a great character.

I enjoyed Stellarnet Rebel very much and raced through the smooth plot in no time. Highly recommended.

This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

The Zombie Always Knocks Twice
E. Van Lowe

Hollyweird #1

Genre: YA Paranormal

Publisher: Imajin

Cover Artist: Ryan Doan

Kindle ebook: 978-1-926997-74-2

Trade paperback: 978-1-926997-81-0

Page Count: 177 pages

Book Description:

Hollywood California, Swimming pools, movie stars… and now the risen dead

Hollywood can be a difficult place to grow up, especially if you’re Kristine Golden, a fifteen-year-old necromancer with a sworn duty to lay the risen dead back to rest and no desire to be in the movie business.

When handsome deadie Alex Romero swaggers into her life, Kris must keep her promise, despite her growing feelings for him. If that’s not enough to give a girl a headache, a murderous zombie comes knocking at Kris’ door, rocking her world and threatening her family.

Can Kris solve the mystery of the rampaging zombie before someone else winds up dead? Or will the walking dead take over Hollywood and turn it into… Hollyweird?

REVIEW:

The Zombie Always Knocks Twice is a first person young adult story featuring female protagonist Kris Golden. This is book one in a new series called Hollyweird.

On the surface Kris is a normal fifteen year old girl. She lives in Hollywood and has an agent who books her auditions for shows. She goes to school, works part time at Disco Diva’s Diner, and has a father who loves her even though he smothers her a little. Oh, and she doesn’t have a boyfriend and is failing algebra II. Just a typical teenage girl…

But Kris is also a necromancer. She can spot the walking dead and raise the dead, but it’s her sworn duty to lay the risen dead back to rest. It’s a duty Kris takes very seriously, even though she worries about her peers thinking she’s weird. It’s a secret she doesn’t talk about, except with her family and the man who trained her.

Kris is busy working at the diner when she spots a dead girl. The girl takes off, and Kris gives chase. Unfortunately the dead girl is fast and she evades Kris. Thus starts Kris’s search for the dead girl and the person who raised her from the dead. Then there’s murder…

Kris is a very likeable character. She adores her solo parent father, but has problems after the return of her runaway sister. She’s a loyal friend and determined to carry out her necromancer duties to the best of her abilities.

Alex, her romantic interest, is interesting—a famous actor—and I’m curious as to where this relationship will go. I grew to like Alex. Despite his fame, he comes across as sincere.

The rest of the secondary characters have their own agendas, and they usually end up making Kris’s life more difficult. I enjoyed the Hollywood setting with Kris’s semi-normal world jostling up against the world of movie stars.

My only quibble is that the story took a couple of chapters to get going for me, but after that it was plain-sailing with excellent chapter hooks that kept me turning the pages.

I loved The Zombie Always Knocks Twice. Once the story hits its stride it’s fast paced and enjoyable with each plot twist complicating Kris’s life. The main puzzle of the dead girl is solved by the end of the story, but the subplot related to Kris’s romantic interest isn’t tied up yet. Even so, I was happy with the conclusion, and thought Kris was both courageous and likeable—the perfect heroine. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series. Recommended.

This book was provided by the author and Bewitching Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase The Zombie Always Knocks Twice

I’d like to welcome author Cheryl Douglas to my blog. Cheryl is the author of Nashville Nights—a series where country stars and fans find love. Today she’s going to tell us what she has in store for us with the rest of her series, so grab a handful of peanuts from the bar, a beer or a cocktail with a fancy umbrella from one of the cowboys and relax. Over to Cheryl. 

The Remaining Books

For those of you who thought you knew how the Nashville Nights series was going to end, I decided to switch it up by adding two more books to the series. I liked Jay and Mike, Josh’s sons in book two, Fearless, but I learned to love them in book six, Heartless. So, I couldn’t sign off on this series until I told their stories. Here are the blurbs for the remaining three books in this series. Book six, Heartless, will be released August 1, book seven, Hopeless, will be released in September, and finally, book eight, Careless, will be available in October.

What’s next for Cheryl Douglas? I had intended to start an unrelated series, however, my muse told me it wasn’t time to say good-bye to Nashville Nights just yet. One of my readers inspired this series when she told me she’d love to see what happens to her favorite characters years later.

Nashville Nights, Next Generation will be an eight book series about the children of the heroes and heroines we met in Nashville Nights. We’ll follow them on their journey to finding love and we’ll get to find out what mom and dad thinks of the choices they make!

The first book in this series will be available November 2012. I’ll keep you posted on the exact release dates on my website at www.cheryldouglasbooks.com and on my Facebook page at www.facebook/cheryldouglasbooks.

Book Six – Heartless

Derek McCall was devastated when his college girlfriend married his best friend, Josh Cooper. He respected the boundaries of friendship for years, but one night they gave in to temptation. Feeling guilty for betraying his best friend, Derek left town determined to put the past and Ashley behind him.

Ashley Cooper has loved two men in her life, her ex-husband, Josh, and her ex-boyfriend, Derek. The single mom of two grown boys is finally ready to start dating again when Derek comes back to town, eager to throw his hat in the ring. Her kids are against the relationship, but is she willing to risk their disapproval for a chance to re-write history?

Book Seven – Hopeless

When Jay Cooper has to hire a new black belt instructor for his karate studio, he doesn’t expect the most promising applicant to come with a huge chip on her shoulder. He knows there must be a story behind those tortured brown eyes, if only she would let him get close enough to find out why she seems so determined to keep her past a secret.

Victoria Pierce grew up in the foster care system. For her, martial arts was more than a hobby, it was her best hope of survival. She learned at an early age that the only person she could count on was herself. She doesn’t let anyone get close enough to hurt her, not friends, boyfriends, and definitely not her new boss. She shuts Jay down at every opportunity, so why does he keep coming back for more?

Book Eight – Careless

Detective, Mike Cooper, loves a challenge. So when his father, Josh, asks him to consult on a tough case, he can’t resist the temptation. He agrees to take a brief leave of absence from the police force to accompany country singer, Tori Warner, on tour. His objective? To find the crazed fan who’s been stalking her. If only Tori wasn’t so determined to play hard and fast with the rules.

Tori is tired of living in a bubble. She’s been allowing this stalker to control her life for months, and she’s sick of it. So when some hotshot detective decides to become her self-appointed bodyguard, she’s determined to show him that she’s the one calling the shots.

Tori is the most infuriating woman Mike has ever met. She refuses to take orders, even when her life is at stake. He’s tempted to let her fend for herself, but Mike can’t walk away knowing some maniac is out to get her, especially not after one explosive night makes him lose his objectivity. Suddenly, this case is personal, and Mike can’t rest until he knows Tori is safe.

Question for Readers: What was your favorite romantic read, and why?

Relentless

Book Five Nashville Nights

Cheryl Douglas

Print Length: 192 pages

ASIN: B008EW4MGY

Nikki Spencer is all grown up, but the world still sees her as the little girl she used to be. She’s ready to prove to her adoring public, and a certain rough riding rodeo champion, that sweet little Nikki isn’t as innocent as everyone seems to think.

J.T. McCall has a reputation as a rough rider, both on the bull-riding circuit, and in the bedroom. So what’s he to do when an innocent, like country crooner, Nikki Spencer, sets her sights on him? He plans to do what any good old country boy would do, save the lady from herself. But who will save J.T. when this little firecracker sets his world on fire?

Amazon

About the Author

It took me thirty-seven years to decide what I wanted to be when I grew up. I thought I’d found my calling. In fact, I worked as a nutritionist for twelve years before I finally admitted to myself that while I enjoyed my work, I couldn’t imagine doing it for the next thirty years.

My sub-conscious knew that I wanted to be a writer long before the conscious part of my mind decided to get with the program. While my sub-conscious was hard at work creating character profiles, plots and storylines, my conscious mind was telling me it was crazy to give up a successful business on the off-chance one of my manuscripts might rise to the top of someone’s never-ending slush pile. After years of listening to that negative voice, I was finally ready to stop making excuses, face the fear and follow my dream of becoming a full-time writer, no matter the outcome. I’m so thankful I did.

I love bringing my characters to life and I am so grateful to have readers who love those characters as much as I do.

When I take a break from writing it’s to spend time with my husband (a.k.a. my real life hero), my son, and my writing partner, Tia, a spirited Havanese who enjoys tapping her paw on my keyboard whenever I need a little comic relief.

www.cheryldouglasbooks.com

There’s no doubt that in the romance world series are popular. In fact, I’d go as far to say that series rule. It’s difficult to find a standalone book to read these days.

So why are series popular?

I read series because I like revisiting worlds and familiar characters. I like knowing what happens to the secondary characters in the books I’ve already read. It’s like connecting with friends. Some of my favorite authors only write series, and don’t give me a choice!

Series come in many forms. There are the series that follow an individual protagonist such as Nora Roberts’ Eve Dallas series and Ilona Andrews’ Kate Daniel series and Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series.

Then there are series that are set around a town or a family or a specific event. Robyn Carr’s Virgin River series is one of many that are set in a small town. There’s Lora Leigh’s Breeds series which is centered around people who are the result of genetic experiments. Author Susan Mallery has written many series, some of which are focused on families e.g. The Marcelli family and The Lone Star Sisters.

Occasionally there are series that can be read out of order without readers skipping a beat. An example of this would be Caroline Linden’s One Night in London and Blame it on Bath that take place at the same time in different cities. The connection is that the heroes are brothers.

I’ve been reading quite a few books for review this year, and many of them are part of series. I have to admit that the majority of the stories have left me feeling confused. As well as the hero and heroine there are additional characters and backstory popping up that completely baffles me.

For me, the test of a good series is one that I can pick up out of order and still have a good idea of what is going on. Yes, I like my series stories to stand alone as a damn good read. This is what I strive for each time I write my own series books. Hopefully I’m successful in this.

For series that feature a single protagonist I like to see growth in the main character. They shouldn’t remain static throughout a series.

For you writers out there here’s a link to Writing a Series: 7 Continuation Issues to Avoid. I found it interesting, because there are pitfalls to watch for when writing a series.

I have several questions for you today:

Do you enjoy series? (either writing or reading them)

What type of series do you prefer?

How long should a series go for? i.e. how many books works for a series.

Do you ever give up on series?

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

~ Grab your current read
~ Open to a random page
~ Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
~BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
~ Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from Working Stiff by Rachel Caine. This is the first book in a new series and features a funeral director heroine.

Not only were they selling some hard-core drug; they were bilking people. How could Fairview possibly be telling people he was bringing back the dead?

page 38, Working Stiff

Blurb:

It’s a tough job but somebody’s got to do it – dead or alive.

Bryn Davis knows working at Fairview Mortuary isn’t the most glamorous career choice, but at least it offers stable employment – until she discovers her bosses using a drug that resurrects the clientele . . . as part of an extortion racket. Now Bryn faces being terminated (literally) with extreme prejudice.

With the assistance of corporate double agent Patrick McCallister, Bryn has a chance to take down the bigger problem – pharmaceutical company Pharmadene, which treats death as the ultimate corporate loyalty program. She’d better do it fast before she becomes a zombie slave – a real working stiff.

She’d be better off dead . . .

Purchase Working Stiff

What are you reading this week? Leave a teaser or a link to your teaser in the comments section. I love adding to my to-read list