Giveaway with Priya Ardis

My Boyfriend Merlin, Book 1, is available through most major book retailers. My Merlin Awakening, Book 2, is now available in limited release at Barnes and Noble. It will be out in full release in mid-June 2012.  Ever My Merlin, Book 3, will be available in late 2012. 

My Merlin Awakening 

Book 2, My Merlin Series 

By Priya Ardis

Blurb: 

If you haven't broken the rules, have you really lived? 

Excalibur has been pulled from the stone, but what does it mean? Arriane (aka Ryan) DuLac doesn’t really care. She's got bigger problems—as student president, she's got to put on the Prom. 

While the Wizard Council debates their next move, she leaves the craziness behind and heads home. But she can’t hide forever. Sooner than she’d like Merlin (aka Matt) has her chasing mermaids on the trail of the Fisher King. The wounded King, defeated by Merlin’s brother, Vane, in the past holds the key to save the future. 

On the journey, Ryan begins to realize the friends she thought she knew, she may not know at all. At a time of shifting alliances, she must decide whose side she’s on—the brother who struggles to do right or the brother who dares to break the rules? 

And Ryan must decide who she is—a regular girl or a champion? One wrong decision and her family falls apart. One wrong decision and the world falls apart. No pressure. 

The second book of the My Merlin Series is available now in limited release on Barnes and Noble (barnesandnoble.com) only. 

Full release will follow shortly. 

Book Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIrzLo1VowM

Author bio: 

Priya Ardis loves books of all kinds—but especially the gooey ones that make your nose leak and let your latte go cold. She started her first book at sixteen, writing in notebooks on long train rides in India. 

When not living in her character's world, she might be found at the local coffee shop—her nose buried in a book. A hopeless romantic, she is a longtime member of the Romance Writer’s of America. 

Links: Website: http://www.priyaardis.com

The Merlin, YA Books, and More Blog: http://merlinblogs.priyaardis.com 

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/priyaardis 

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/priyaardis 

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/priyaardis

One winner will get a $25 Amazon or BN gift card and a copy of My Merlin Awakening. 

Two additional winners will also get a copy of My Merlin Awakening. 

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Guest Blog and Giveaway with Kristine Cayne

I’m very happy to be visiting the Creatively Green Write At Home Mom blog as part of the Deadly Addiction Book Tour presented by Bewitching Book Tours. Rémi Whitedeer, the hero of Deadly Addiction, is a half-white native man from Blackriver First Nation, a reserve in the Montréal area. While conducting research on Iroquois myths and legends for my book, I came across the Creation Story and the Three Sisters. Below is an explanation of the Three Sisters and how I incorporated them into Rémi’s story.

The Iroquois Three Sisters

The Iroquois or Haudenosaunee (“People of the Longhouse”) have a strong tie to the land and their beliefs regarding the Three Sisters—corn, beans, squash—originate in the Creation Story.  In the Creation Story, the Three Sisters grew on Turtle Island and provided sustenance to the people. Here is a good recounting of the Iroquois version of the Creation Story: http://www.debramorningstar.com/docs/lessonplan_iroquois_creation.pdf

Why Corn, Beans, and Squash?

It seems that these three plants have a symbiotic relationship of sorts. The Iroquois Museum website (http://www.iroquoismuseum.org/three_sisters.htm) states: “The bacteria that occur naturally in beans absorb nitrogen from the air and convert it to nitrates, which fertilize the soil for the corn and squash.  Beans are supported by winding around the corn stalks and the squash leaves provide ground cover between the corn and beans preventing weeds from growing and increasing the amount of rain that soaks into the ground.”

The Three Sisters Diner

In Deadly Addiction, there is a restaurant on the Blackriver Reserve called The Three Sisters Diner. Rémi Whitedeer and Alyssa Morgan, the hero and heroine, meet there on several occasions. Rémi’s favorite meal is white corn soup because it’s the first meal his aunt made for him when he came to live at Blackriver.

Alyssa falls in love with Iroquois strawberry drink the first time she tastes its refreshing sweetness. Below are recipes for Iroquois corn soup and strawberry drink for you to try if you’re feeling adventurous. :D

Traditional Indian Corn Soup 

(Source: http://tuscaroras.com/pages/history/cornsoup_recipe.html)

• Wash and put 1 1/2 quarts of "lyed" Indian White Corn in an 8 quart pot. Fill with water 3/4 full and cover. Bring to a boil and keep at a rolling boil for 1 1/2 hours, corn should open full. You may want to cook corn a while longer . If the corn is not fully open, stir occasionally. Do not let it stick to the bottom of the pan.

• While the corn is cooking, cut up 1 1/2 lbs of pork shoulder butt steaks into 3/4" square pieces. Do the same with 3/4 lbs of salt pork. Place meat in a separate pan and boil for 1 hour. Water should cover pork 4" or so. Add if necessary...you will need this for stock.

• After the corn opens to your satisfaction or two hours maximum, remove from stove and pour through strainer. Do not rinse corn. Rinse out pot and put corn back into pot. Add the cooked pork along with the stock.

• Open three 1 lb cans of dark red kidney beans and add.

• Rinse cans, add water to cover mixture 3 inches or so. Boil mixture for another 1 1/2 to 2 hours, adding water if necessary. Stir occasionally; do not let it stick to the bottom of the pot.

 Serve in individual bowls, season with salt and pepper after serving. Best if eaten with homemade, warm yeast bread and freshly churned butter.

Iroquois Strawberry Drink 

(Source http://www.buzzle.com/articles/native-american-food.html)

Ingredients

• Ripe strawberries - 2 cups
• Water - 2 cups
• Brown or maple sugar - 4 tablespoons

Directions

• Wash the strawberries in running water.
• Remove the stems and leaves from them.
• Cut the berries into small pieces and grind them with the help of mixer grinder or blender.
• Now add the maple sugar and water to the crushed strawberries.
• Now shake the mixture really well so that all the ingredients gel well together.
• Keep it in the refrigerator for an hour. Once it is chilled, garnish it with mint leaves and small strawberry pieces.

I hope this gives you a "taste" of the world of the Iroquois. :) You can explore more about reservation life and the Iroquois people--as well as enjoy a sizzling romance and suspense story--within the pages of Deadly Addiction.

Deadly Addiction 
Deadly Vices Book Two 
By Kristine Cayne 


 A proud people. A nation divided. 


Rémi Whitedeer, police officer turned substance-abuse counselor, dreams of restoring order to his tribe. Violence and crime are rampant throughout the unpoliced Iroquois reserve, and a civil war is brewing between the Guardians, a militant traditionalist group, and other tribal factions. As the mixed-race cousin of the Guardians’ leader, Rémi is caught in a no-man’s land—several groups lay claim to him, but all want him to deny his white blood. 


 A maverick cop on an anti-drug crusade. 


When she infiltrated the Vipers to take down the leader of the outlaw biker gang responsible for her brother’s death, police sergeant Alyssa Morgan got her man. But her superiors think she went too far. Her disregard for protocol and her ends-justify-the-means ethics have branded her an unreliable maverick. To salvage her career, she accepts an assignment to set up a squad of native provincial officers on a reserve. 

 A radical sovereigntist bent on freeing a nation. 

Decades of government oppression threaten the existence of the Iroquois Nation. But one man, Chaz Whitedeer, is determined to save his people no matter what the price, even if it means delving into the shadowy world of organized crime. When Rémi and Alyssa uncover the Guardians’ drug-fueled scheme to fund their fight for true autonomy—a scheme involving the Vipers—Rémi must choose between loyalty to family and tribe or his growing love for Alyssa. Can Rémi and Alyssa leave everything behind—even their very identities—for a future together? 

Deadly Addiction is available at the following retailers: 

Amazon ebook: http://amzn.com/B007WNTXR4 

Amazon print: http://amzn.com/0984903429 

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007WNTXR4 

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/deadly-addiction-kristine-cayne/1110068745 

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/154765 

All Romance eBooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-deadlyaddiction-784712-152.html 

Kobo: http://bit.ly/M4wfbR

About the Author: 

Kristine Cayne is fascinated by the mysteries of human psychology—twisted secrets, deep-seated beliefs, out-of-control desires. Add in high-stakes scenarios and real-world villains, and you have a story worth writing, and reading. 

The heroes and heroines of her Deadly Vices series, beginning with Deadly Obsession, are pitted against each other by their radically opposing life experiences. By overcoming their differences and finding common ground, they triumph over their enemies and find true happiness in each other’s arms

Today she lives in the Pacific Northwest, thriving on the mix of cultures, languages, religions and ideologies. When she’s not writing, she’s people-watching, imagining entire life stories, and inventing all sorts of danger for the unsuspecting heroes and heroines who cross her path. 

website www.kristinecayne.com 

Facebook Author Page http://www.facebook.com/KristineCayneAuthor 

Twitter: @KristineCayne 

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5428452.Kristine_Cayne

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Dancing Naked in Dixie Giveaway

DNID - EXCERPT # 1

I’m a travel writer at Getaways magazine. Paid for the glorious task of gathering up fascinating snippets of culture and piecing them into quirky little stories. Jet-setting to the Riviera, exploring the Great Barrier Reef, basking on Bermuda beaches. It’s as glamorous and exhilarating as I imagined.

Okay, it is a tad lonely, from time to time.

And quite exhausting.

Which is precisely why I have to get organized.

Today.

I sink into my chair and try to concentrate. What to tackle first? Think, think.  

“Julia Sullivan!”                 

Third reminder. Uh-oh.

Marietta rolls her eyes and jerks a thumb toward the inevitable. “Guess you better walk the plank,” she teases. “New guy’s waiting. Haven’t met him yet, but I’ve heard he’s the ‘take no prisoners’ sort. Hope you come back alive.”

I grope for something witty and casual to say, but all of a sudden, my head feels light and hollow.

            I’ve been dying to find out about the new editor.

Every last gory detail.

Until now.

“I’m still in another time zone,” I offer up to Marietta with a weak smile. My insides toss from side to side as I slide out of my chair.

Marietta tosses me a wry look. “Nice try. Get going already, sport.”

I tilt my head toward the hallway and pretend to pout. When I look back, Marietta’s already disappeared. Smart girl.

“Fine, fine.” I tug a piece of rebellious auburn hair into place, smooth my wool suit, and begin to march toward the inevitable.

Our new editor.

My neck prickles.

I’m not going to worry. Not much anyway.

            My pulse thuds.

            Not going to worry about change. Or re-organization. Or pink slips.

            Focus, Julia.

Dancing Naked in Dixie 

By Lauren Clark 

Genre: Southern Fiction/Chick Lit/Light Romance 

Travel writer Julia Sullivan lives life in fast-forward. She jet sets to Europe and the Caribbean with barely a moment to blink or sleep. 

But too many mishaps and missed deadlines have Julia on the verge of being fired. With a stern warning, and unemployment looming, she's offered one last chance to rescue her career. 

Julia embarks on an unlikely journey to the ‘Heart of Dixie’—Eufaula, Alabama—home to magnificent mansions, sweet tea, and the annual Pilgrimage. 

 Julia arrives, soon charmed by the lovely city and her handsome host, but her stay is marred by a shocking discovery. 

Can Julia's story save her career, Eufaula, and the annual Pilgrimage?

About the Author 

Lauren Clark writes contemporary novels set in the Deep South; stories sprinkled with sunshine, suspense, and secrets. 

 A former TV news anchor, Lauren adores flavored coffee, local book stores, and anywhere she can stick her toes in the sand. 

Her big loves are her family, paying it forward, and true-blue friends. 

Check out her website at

www.laurenclarkbooks.com

www.laurenclarkbooks.comhttp://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5280308.Lauren_Clark

https://twitter.com/ - !/LaurenClark_Bks 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lauren-Clark/235315706518284

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