Making a Personal Sacrifice - The Greek's Forbidden Princess - Annie West

North American cover

I'm thrilled that my second PRINCESS SEDUCTIONS book, THE GREEK'S FORBIDDEN PRINCESS is out now. This story follows Princess Amelie of St Galla who has left her homeland with her recently orphaned little nephew, Seb. She's on a mission to find someone who can help the traumatised boy, even if it means confronting Lambis Evangelos, the man who so cruelly rejected her. But arriving at Lambis's Greek hideaway, he refuses to let her in, much less agree to listen to why she's here. He's totally focused on getting her to leave, for Lambis has secrets of his own and having Amelie disrupt his solitude, reawakening dreams he's stifled so long, would be unbearable. Here's a snippet:

A vice clamped on her shoulder. A hot vice with fingers that dug into her flesh through her thin sweater. His heat after the stinging cold surely explained the rush of energy raying out from the spot.

Amelie turned, meeting that gunmetal stare head on.

‘Don’t touch me.’

‘Or?’ This time both jet black eyebrows rose.

‘Or I’ll bring a case of assault so fast your head will spin. And, in case you think I’m bluffing, let me warn you I’ve reached my limit.’

‘Even if it means inviting media attention?’

Because he knew — how could he not? — that she’d only made it this far by avoiding the media.

Carefully Amelie closed the car door and turned fully to face him. He was so close he ate up her personal space. He was so big she’d feel crowded and intimidated if she weren’t past caring.

‘That’s one thing about reaching the end of your options. I don’t give a damn.’ She smiled and this time actually felt pleasure, for she saw the shadow of doubt in his stern face. He’d thought she’d be easier to bully.

‘I could call a reporter now. By nightfall we’d have a posse of them here, eager for developments.’ Amelie rested her hands on her hips, enjoying the fleeting sense of power that flooded her freezing body.

Yet still he didn’t take the bait.

She waited as the seconds ticked into a full minute and more. Still he didn’t move or give in.

UK cover

Even if she followed through and made a formal complaint, or brought in the press, she’d be the one to lose. She and Seb.

They had lost.

She’d gambled against the odds with Seb’s future and failed. Now time was running out.

The enormity of it was a body slam, jarring her from head to toe. She had to stiffen her knees to stop from crumpling as she unravelled inside. All her hopes shattered and little Seb… No, she couldn’t think about it now, with this man watching her like a bird of prey spying on a mouse. She needed privacy when she finally crashed.

Whiplash fast she shoved his hand off her shoulder and moved towards the driver’s door.

‘Where are you going?’

Amelie didn’t answer. This was probably the first time in her life she’d ignored a direct question. It should have felt liberating, but all she registered was choking misery.

She ripped open the driver’s door. They couldn’t stay here. If she was to get them safely back down the mountain they had to go now.

The sound of swearing stopped her. Low and soft, his rich voice turned even the tumble of foreign swear words into stream of velvet heat.

‘Just tell me what you want, princess.’

Amelie didn’t let herself flinch at his bitter use of her title. He said it like they were strangers. Nor did she turn.

She didn’t want to see the steely face of Lambis Evangelos, the man who’d shattered her dreams and now held her hopes for little Seb in his brutally hard palm.

‘You.’ Her throat closed so it came out as a whisper. She swallowed and tried again. ‘I want you.’

Amelie is desperate to help her nephew, which is why she's willing to confront the reclusive, enigmatic man she'd once loved. Have you ever had to do something difficult for someone you cared about?

I'd love to hear what it was. Who knows, maybe I'll find inspiration for another story!

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Introverts and Extroverts and 'The Flaw in Raffaele's Revenge' - Annie West

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I visited as I've been busy on a number of projects (yes, more books in the pipeline) and with a trip to Europe to attend some romance reader events - enormous fun! It's lovely being here at Tote Bags again, sharing some news and musing a little.

 

You see, I have a release coming up late in June. Here's the cover. I smile whenever I see it.

 

 

And here's a little taste of what it's about:

 

A fragile beauty that tamed the beast within…

Relentless Italian Raffaele Petri needs reclusive researcher Lily Nolan to see his revenge plans come to fruition. But the damaged beauty is feisty, argumentative and all-too intriguing to be ignored!

Scarred as a child, Lily shut herself away from cruel prying eyes, so working for a man as breathtakingly handsome as Raffaele makes her own physical imperfections harder to bear. Until Raffaele’s kisses awaken the untouched woman inside.

As Raffaele’s retribution draws closer, Lily must use her new-found strength to help him release the torment eating at his soul. But will Raffaele risk his vengeance for her love.

This is my reverse Beauty and the Beast story, where the hero is the beauty (at least on the outside) - he's been voted the Sexiest Man on the Planet, and Lily is the beast (scarred and locked away from the world).

One of the things I most enjoyed writing during this story was how Raffa helped Lily overcome her reserve and her past pain, and lured her out into the world again. It wasn't easy, not least because Lily is basically an introvert anyway. She gets her strength from that quiet time away from others. Through the story she's surprised to discover there's joy as well as challenge to be had from being part of a group, not just a loner. By the end of the book, as well as finding love, both Lily and Raffa had found more balance in their lives, and more purpose, which was very satisfying.



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My question to you is: are you an introvert or an extrovert. Or, if you don't want to commit, tell me what you most enjoy doing by yourself and what you most enjoy doing with others.

To celebrate the upcoming release of THE FLAW IN RAFFAELE'S REVENGE I'll give away a signed backlist title of mine to someone who comments. (I'll announce the winner here).

In the meantime, here are a couple of links if you'd like to order a copy:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Book Depository
Harlequin
UK Amazon


Hired by the Brooding Billionaire - Kandy Shepherd

I love gothic-inspired romances. There’s something about a gloomy mansion and a mystery surrounding the handsome, damaged man who lives there that appeals to me. I’ve always wanted to write a story with those elements.

Hired by the Brooding Billionaire, my August release for Harlequin Romance is that story. It’s a beauty-and-the-beast tale with a brilliant wounded hero, Declan Grant, who has cut himself off from the world after a tragedy in his past. He lives in a splendid old mansion that is slowly being covered by a wild, out-of-control garden.

Strong, spirited horticulturalist Shelley Fairhill has to work hard to not only tame the garden but also to cut down the barriers Declan has put up around his emotions. At the same time she has to overcome past heartbreak of her own before she can love again.

I loved writing Shelley and Declan’s emotional journey towards each other and finding the  love they both so deserve.

But I also enjoyed writing about the overgrown garden that brings them together.

Camellias

The story starts in winter and I’m sharing some snaps of my Down Under winter garden with you. All these flowers appear in the story.

Sweet-scented jonquils

My part of Australia doesn’t get the severe winters that other parts of the world can get. Everything slows down but for most of the year we have something blooming. (The disadvantage is that the weeds still grow, too!) 

Fragrant daphne

Do you like a beauty-and-and-the-beast story? What’s your garden like in winter? Please share your thoughts with a comment!

I’m giving away one signed paperback copy (or an e-book if you’d prefer) of Hired by the Brooding Billionaire. Make a comment to be in the draw. Please include your email address if you want to be included in the draw.

Hired by the Brooding Billionaire is my August 2015 release for Harlequin Romance and is available now for pre-order in print and e-book.

Kandy Shepherd is an award-winning author of contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She lives on a small farm in the Blue Mountains near Sydney, Australia, with her family and a menagerie of four-legged friends.

Visit Kandy at her website

www.kandyshepherd.com

Connect with Kandy on Facebook and Twitter

Of Princesses and Princes

I'm spending some time in Walt Disney World this week and I've been ooh-ing and ah-ing for days now. Over the fireworks. Over the rides. Over the characters. And it led to a discussion with my son that reminded me in many ways of discussions and comments others make about romance novels. My son's premise is that the world of Disney princesses give young girls an unrealistic view of love.


I've been thinking about that since he said it and realized that this is exactly what a lot of people think about romance novels. Over the last couple of months, there's been a huge brouhaha about an article published in the UK about the deleterious affects that reading romances can have on women. A scholarly article, it claimed that women could be addicted and have unrealistic expectations about true relationships.

But could those comments about the princesses be true? Do they mislead girls? Us? Well, I don't think so.


Let me point out what I think is the best of our favorite Disney princesses: Belle in "Beauty and the Beast" -- Hmmmm. A young woman sacrifices herself to save her father and ends up seeing the true man instead of the beast her captor has become -- thereby falling in love with him and saving them both.



In the other stories, young women fight injustice, prejudice, social and class differences, racial differences, dysfunctional families, their own weaknesses and sometimes even magical powers. They overcome obstacles, help others and even sing their way to the happy ending they earn.


And that's what happens in the romance novels I write and you read. We know the happy-ever-after is coming, but we follow, we become, we believe in the heroine's journey as she struggles to find her prince (charming, brooding, dangerous, sexy, handsome, rugged or whatever!). We hope for her along her way, we cheer her steps forward and share her hurt and disappointment when things go bad. And best of all, we are thrilled when that happy ending is in her grasp.

So POOH!!! (no pun intended!) on those naysayers who warn us off of Disney princesses or romance novels -- there's nothing wrong with little girls (or grown women) dreaming about princes who rise to the challenge and princesses who overcome the odds to attain their dreams.

While I'm in Disney World enjoying the make-believe and the dare-to-dream and reveling in storytelling at its best, I'm wondering who your favorite princess is? Clearly mine is Belle because I simply love 'beauty and the beast' stories (and I write them, too!). But who is your favorite one -- and why? I'm going to choose one winner from those who post and they will receive a special Disney princess souvenir (and include a signed book of my own, too!). I'll choose the winner on Friday, August 19 - so post away!

Terri is still celebrating the release of the third, and final, book in her STORM trilogy - MISTRESS OF THE STORM. Kensington has also released the novella that began the stories, A STORM OF LOVE, in digital formats. For more info about Terri, her current releases and her upcoming books and events, stop by her website.