Summer Reads by Julie Jarnagin

Do you tend to read more or less in the warm summer months? I've found myself reading less because we've been out and about with fewer days to spend curled up with a good book.

Or maybe it's simply the season of life I'm in, right now. Even when we go to the beach, my time needs to be spent with my eyes on busy 4-year-old and 9-year-old boys. I'm going to make it a point to finish out the summer strong with some time for myself and some great books.

If you're looking for some new reads, I hope you'll consider these.

Julie Jarnagin is a USA Today bestselling author of sweet and inspirational romance. She grew up in a small Oklahoma town where her family farmed and ranched. These days she lives in Louisiana with her amazing husband and two young sons who tolerate all her nerdy quirks. Julie earned a B.A. in Journalism / Professional Writing from the University of Oklahoma. 
www.JulieJarnagin.com

Christmas in July.... with Roxanne Rustand

Hi everyone!

What an exciting week it has been.  Our 2018 Sweet Christmas Kisses 5 anthology has now been "packaged' in its final form as an e-book, and the pre-order links are now done.

That means you can go to Amazon or your favorite format, search the title, and order it early for just 99 cents! We even had our  Facebook launch party a few days ago.  The ball is rolling!  Were you at our party? It's always hectic, and fun, and the readers who join the festivities have a chance at winning the prizes that all of the anthology authors offer.

I've already pre-ordered my own copy, so when it is released in September, I can start reading the novellas by all of the other authors. Every one of them is a USA Today Bestselling Author, A Publisher's Weekly bestseller, or a national bestseller, so I know I will enjoy each story...and hope you will too!

I'll post the links below my signature at the bottom of this post, just in case you'd like to get the anthology at this super price and then be sure to receive it in your reading device automatically when the anthology is released.

My novella in the anthology, Christmas in Paris, was great fun to write, because it brought back all of the wonderful memories of spending two weeks in Paris with my daughter just this past May.





What a great time we had there--so many experiences, such wonderful food, and the patisseries---oh my goodness! I blogged here on June 5th about our day at Monet's Gardens and some of the gorgeous museums, so I won't reiterate what I said then, but here are a few more photos!  Yummy!





The French clearly take food very seriously, and it shows.  Just look at the bottom photo, of the display cases for bread.   Bread!  I felt as if I was standing in Tiffany's! If you click on the photo you can see it larger, and see what I mean!   :)

I hope you are having a wonderful summer, with lots of good books to enjoy.  Take care, and God Bless!

Roxanne Rustand

USA Today Bestselling Author
Montana Mistletoe, Love Inspired 12/2018

Falling for the Rancher, Love Inspired  6/2017 

follow me at:  

https://bookbub.com/authors/roxanne-rustand 

amazon.com/author/roxannerustand
www.facebook.com/Roxanne.Rustand 

www.facebook.com/Roxanne.Rustand.author 
http://tinyurl.com/RoxanneRustandNewsletter

www.roxannerustand.com 

Pre-order Sweet Christmas Kisses 5  here:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FN4KVW/

iBooks! https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1413284483

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/sweet-christmas-kisses-5

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sweet-christmas-kisses-5-beate-boeker/1129108167

~Cover Reveal~ No Time for Love by Raine English

The No Brides Club, a new sweet contemporary series, is releasing in January and February 2019. Here’s a sneak peek of my cover. It’s book 1 from the series.

~*~

USA Today bestselling author Raine English writes sweet small-town contemporary romance, along with paranormal and romantic suspense. She’s a Daphne du Maurier Award winner and a Golden Heart finalist. To receive information on all her new releases, you can sign up for her newsletter, visit her website, like her on Facebook, and follow her on Twitter.

Celebrate Christmas in July with Sweet Christmas Kisses 5! by Liwen Y. Ho

Today's the big day many of us Sweet Romance Reads authors and readers have been waiting for! It's the day of our pre-order party for Sweet Christmas Kisses 5!

I'm so thrilled to be part of this boxed set of nine sweet romance novellas, from USA Today, Publisher’s Weekly, and award-winning authors.

Here's a peek at all the lovely stories in this set:

Sweet Christmas Kisses 5 brings you heartwarming contemporary romances that celebrate the joy of the season around the world, including snowy Maine and the sun-kissed skies of Florida, the mountains of Colorado, small-town Illinois and South Carolina, New York to San Francisco, and even the glittering lights of Paris and the old-world charm of Florence. The Sweet Christmas Kisses 5 bundle features all-new, standalone novellas that will make you smile and fill your heart with the Christmas spirit.

Pre-order this collection here:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FN4KVWP/

iBooks! https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1413284483

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/sweet-christmas-kisses-5

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sweet-christmas-kisses-5-beate-boeker/1129108167

My story from the set is The Love Clause, a romantic comedy starring two enemies-turned-lovers who get into the holiday spirit with a little help from a couple of mischievous matchmakers (her mom and their boss). 

Come find out more about my book, and the other stories from Sweet Christmas Kisses 5, during our pre-order party today! We'll have games, giveaways, and more! To join the event, simply click here: https://www.facebook.com/events/248312419262656/

I look forward to seeing you at the party!

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Be sure to join us over at the Sweet Romance Reads Cafe on Facebook for a great community of like-minded readers who enjoy reading sweet/clean romance!

Join today! https://www.facebook.com/groups/SRRCafe1/

Taking a Vacation Is Exhausting By Margaret Daley

Taking a Vacation Is Exhausting
By Margaret Daley

The first week in July I went on a family vacation with my husband, son and two granddaughters. I had a great time getting away, but I came home exhausted. We went on a cruise to Cozumel, Belize and Honduras. The weather was perfect. It rained one night while I was sleeping. The seas were so smooth and beautiful to look at.

Each place we stopped at we took an excursion. In Cozumel, we went swimming with the dolphins and that was a thrill. When you swim with the dolphin (Theresa), she moves fast in the water, but she can stop quickly so you don't run into your family. Beautiful animal.

In Belize we went to see a Mayan ruin site. I wanted my granddaughters to get a glimpse of who lived in the past. Our guide was so knowledgable. His grandfather was a Mayan, and he shared his family's culture. My family even got to climb to the top of one of the structures. I didn't because I have a bad knee that will be replaced in six weeks. Needless to say, I walked a ton of steps on the ground that day in the jungle with 100% humidity. In fact, the whole trip I walked a lot to the point I went to bed exhausted each night and slept well.

In Honduras, I swam and enjoyed the beach at a private island. Beautiful country and the water was great. Thankfully I didn't have to walk as much there as I had in the other two stops. Everywhere we went the people were so nice. But when I returned home, it took a week for me to get back to the real world.

My new release coming out July 20th is Obsessed, Book 2 in Everyday Heroes Series.

Obsessed, Book 2 in Everyday Heroes—$2.99

Stalker. Arson. Murder.
When a stalker ruthlessly targets people she loves, a woman flees her old life, creating a new identity as Serena Remington. Her plan to escape the madman and lead him away from family and friends worked for three years. Now he's back. With nowhere else to run, her only choice is war. Quinn Taylor, her neighbor and a firefighter with expertise in arson, comes to her aid, but will it be in time to save her?

Pre-order links: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Kobo and Google Play

Binging on Christmas in July by Alicia Street

As a longtime romance reader, one of my favorite traditions is Christmas in July. While the temperatures outside skyrocket into hot and humid territory, readers throughout the romance community chill down with wintry holiday love stories. Even the Hallmark channel has a Christmas in July celebration going on right now.

Because I love Christmas stories, I write one every year. I’ve already started my next one that is based on Miracle on 34^th Street. That book won’t be released until the fall, but my last holiday romance was called The Christmas Sparkle Test.

So if, like me, you enjoy escaping the heat and sinking into books filled with holly and snow and carols and Christmas trees all wrapped up in a heartwarming romance, come check out my HolidayLuv series. Each short and sweet romance is only 99 cents, so you can binge read a happy Christmas in July!  

Alicia Street is a USA Today bestselling author and a Daphne du Maurier

award-winner. A compulsive reader of every genre, she writes

both sweet and spicy romance. She spent many years as a dancer,

choreographer and teacher.

Alicia loves to connect with readers~

Website   Facebook   Twitter   Goodreads

Saying Goodbye to Characters by Merrillee Whren

On July 25, the fifth book in my Front Porch Promises series, A BABY TO CALL OURS, will release. It is available for pre-order now at a discounted price. The price goes up on release day, so reserve your copy now. Here are the buy links. Amazon. Barnes & Noble.

For months I have lived with Jimmy and Kelsey. I've been in their heads and inside their skin in order to write their story. Sometimes they make me laugh and other times they make me cry. I hope my readers will have the same reaction. When a book is finished, it's time to move on to a new set of characters, but I often find it hard to let go of these imaginary people I've had in my mind for so long.

All of my Front Porch Promises books have front porches on the covers. No people. I know readers love to see what the characters look like, but many times I can't find photos that represent the people in my head. These two photos come close to capturing Jimmy and Kelsey.

Jimmy and Kelsey's story came alive to me just as I was finishing the previous book in the series, A SONG TO CALL OURS. In that book, Jimmy and Kelsey are secondary characters. I knew they were going to be the hero and heroine of the next book, but I had no idea how they would fall in love. The marriage of convenience storyline trickled into my mind and wouldn't let go, even though I wasn't sure that's what I wanted to write. But the idea camped out in my thoughts and wouldn't go away. We were traveling in Australia and New Zealand at the time, and while I looked at spectacular scenery, their story slowly came to life.

So in saying goodbye to Jimmy and Kelsey, I'm saying hello to my next hero and heroine, Jeremy and Whitney, again secondary characters, who get their own story. Right now I'm trying to figure out how to redeem Whitney, who isn't a very likable character in A BABY TO CALL OURS. I'm sure she'll find her redemption just as Jimmy and Kelsey did.

Do you like characters who are deeply flawed? Why or why not?

Merrillee Whren is the winner of the 2003 Golden Heart Award presented by Romance Writers of American. She is married to her own personal hero, her husband of  thirty-five plus years, and has two grown daughters. Connect with her on her Facebook page and sign up for her newsletter.