Monday, December 19, 2016

Jen Colly's Double Cover Reveal

In the Dark 
(The Cities Below, book 1)

Demons have returned, a vengeful enemy waiting to strike. Soren and Faith must find a way to survive the evil and darkness.
Faith's spur of the moment vacation, meant to free her and boost her spirits, has left her lost on the streets of Paris. And apparently, Paris is populated with something more than just humans. Vampires, suave, seductive and oh so sexy, and one such warrior vampire has set his sights on her.
When Soren hears Faith's terrified screams, he rushes in and saves her life without considering the consequences. Two problems: one, she's a human and clearly aware of his vampire qualities, and two, the men who attacked her were not men at all, but demons. Their target, his beloved underground city of Balinese. He can never let Faith go home again, but can she learn to love his people. . .love him?

Beneath the Night 
(The Cities Below, book 3)

Sometimes survival means surrendering everything . . .
Lord Navarre Casteel wakes from a long sleep to find the vampire city he rules forever changed and his future in the hands of a mysterious beauty who offers her life for his. Fiery-haired Cat survives his feeding, fueling Navarre’s body and mind—as well as his suspicion that she is one of the Forbidden—a lethal mix of vampire and human blood. Yet that doesn’t stop the throb of Navarre’s desire, the feeling that she is destined to be his mate, to hell with consequences. . . .
A solitary fighter sworn to protect the children in her charge, Cat never expects to feel so much for Navarre in the face of his savage feeding. Which is why his offer of protection is nearly her undoing. For how can she let down her guard when she has always walked alone? But Cat has never faced an enemy like the one she faces now, never felt such a powerful need to surrender to the force of love . . 

Author Links



Sunday, December 4, 2016

The Icehotel is open!

The day I happened to notice that Kensington Publishing had put Twice In A Blue Moon on sale for 99 cents, I also came across an article that the Icehotel had opened for the season.

Coincidence? I think not.*grins*

If you've never heard of the Icehotel, then check out the site here.

Better yet, read Twice In A Blue Moon! One of the last scenes is set in this amazing, temporary lodging made of ice and snow. Much of the furniture is carved from ice and snow, and incredible ice carvings are backlit throughout the Icehotel as decoration. Even the serving glasses are molded from ice. Best of all, visitors get a nightly light show courtesy of the Aurora Borealis.

I doubt I could ever convince my hubby to go there, so I contented myself with researching and writing about it.

I'm not sure how long the sale will run, so hurry and pick up your copy today from Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

You'll want a heartwarming romance to ward away the frigid chill!



Wednesday, November 2, 2016

J. R. Lindermuth spills the beans

I'm very happy to welcome my friend and fellow central Pennsylvanian John Lindermuth to the blog today.

Here's his bio: J.R. Lindermuth is the author of 15 novels, including six in the Sticks Hetrick mystery series set in a fictional rural community near Harrisburg PA. A retired newspaper editor/writer, he is now librarian of his county's historical society where he assists patrons with research and genealogy. He has published stories and articles in a variety of magazines, both print and on line. He is a member of International Thriller Writers and is a past vice president of the Short Mystery Fiction Society.

Hi John! So glad to have you at Spilling the Beans, where we can learn a little bit about you, and your book. Grab a cappuccino and let’s chat. Unless you have another favorite drink (alcoholic or otherwise)?
JRL: I like my coffee black--no adulterants like cream and sugar.

Fur or feathers, pet-wise?
JRL: Definitely fur, preferably dog. I've had some memorable ones through the years. None at present, though I do have three grand-dogs.

Aw, sweet. Tell us something about yourself that’s not in your bio.
JRL: I'm a procrastinator until deadlines prod me into action.

Ha, I can relate. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
JRL: Read, sketch, do genealogy, walk, eat, spend time with family.

Interesting! If you had to choose another profession besides writer, what would it be and why?
JRL: I guess it's the Indiana Jones in my nature. If I wasn't a writer or artist, I'd probably choose to be an archaeologist focusing on the Indian nations of the U.S., Mexico and Central America.

That does sound fun. Are you a night owl or early bird?
JRL: While working on newspapers I was almost always on the crack-of-dawn team. I dreamt of reversing that when I retired. Unfortunately, old sleep habits are hard to break and I'm usually up earlier than I'd prefer--even when I stay up longer at night.

If you could live out any fantasy, what would you do?
JRL: Eliminate some of the mistakes I made earlier in life. But we all know that's a fantasy. You do what you do and make the best of it.

Sad but true. If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, fictional or real, who would it be and why?
JRL: Oh, so many greats of the past I'd like to have spent time with--Cervantes, DaVinci, Shaw. But, if I could sit down with some more contemporary figures I'd enjoy a meal and conversation with James Lee Burke, Ruth Rendell and Jim Harrison. I'd probably be tongue-tied in such august company.

What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done?
JRL: Stood on the DMZ in Korea and exchanged glares with an armed North Korean soldier.

Oh, you just gave me shivers. Wow.
Beethoven, Beatles, Foo Fighters or Keith Urban.. what type(s) of music makes you rock out?
JRL: I love music of all types and have listened to all of the above. I would have to say, though, my favorites are classical, the blues and folk music.

I love your eclectic tastes. Does music influence your writing? Do you have a music playlist for your book?
JRL: Since it's generally playing in the background as I write, I would have to say, yes. I don't have a playlist for the current book, but A Burning Desire, the previous entry in the Sticks Hetrick series did. My son helped me assemble music a firebug rocked to as he plied his trade.

Very cool. Where can readers find out more about you?

Please tell us a bit about your latest book.
JRL: Here's the blurb:

Jan Kepler and Swatara Creek Police Officer Flora Vastine were neighbors and schoolmates, but never close.
When Jan, a school teacher, avid birder and niece of a fellow officer, goes missing and is found dead in a nearby tract of woods Flora finds herself thrust into the middle of an examination of the other woman's life, as she searches for clues.
As usual, the police have more than one crime to deal with. There’s illegal timbering and a series of vehicle thefts taking up their time. And there are other issues to deal with. Flora is concerned there’s some shakiness in her relationship with Cpl. Harry Minnich who seems to be making a lot of secretive phone calls.
Still Flora maintains focus on the murder. Despite evidence implicating other suspects, the odd behavior of another former classmate rouses Flora’s suspicion. Flora’s probing opens personal wounds as she observes the cost of obsessive love and tracks down the killer.

Amazon: 

That cover is an absolute grabber. What inspired you to write this story?
JRL: A documentary on birding sparked the idea originally; imagination added more.

Thanks for spilling the beans today! Best of luck with your latest release.
JRL: Thanks for the opportunity, Cate.




Friday, October 28, 2016

Loving this revamp!

For awhile now, I've been thinking about changing my blog design. I've spent hours and hours sifting through stock photos, but nothing hit me - until now.

The photo of the woman in my new blog header struck me. She looks confident, intelligent, and strong. The very type of woman I love to write about. My stories are all about empowering women, so I've made that my new tag line. It really embodies the characters I write about - whether the story's historical, contemporary, fantasy or what-have-you.

I'm really loving the new look of the design, too. I've visited a few times today just to look at it and sigh. *grins*

What do you think? Is the energy grabbing you, too?

Oh, and if you'd like to check it out, I revamped the blog for my other pen name, too. It looks amazing! I hope you'll check it out.

Last Signing in October

It sounds like it might be a song, doesn't it? October's been a busy month, and so much fun!

Tomorrow's the last event for this month. The Spooky Scary Sizzling Signing will take place from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. at Cupboard Maker Books in Enola.  I'm excited I'll be there with Mae Clair, Catherine Jordan and Ally Bishop. I hope you'll be there, too!



Sunday, October 9, 2016

October treats!

Ongoing computer issues have made it difficult to update my blog recently, sorry.  The post might appear wonky since I'm updating from my laptop, so I apologize in advance, but had to share all the fun events coming up this month.

On Saturday, Oct. 15, I'll be one of dozens of authors at the York Book Expo at the York Fairgrounds. Last year's event was a great success, and this year's promises to be even better. Bring the kids for the children's activities, or leave them at home for the wine tasting. ;)  Get ready to stock up on some great reads for the long winter's nights!


On Oct. 18, I'll be moderator and panelist for the SciFi and Fantasy Panel at Bosler Library's Celebrate the Book Week. New York Times bestselling author Maria V. Snyder, Dennis Royer and D.C. McLaughlin will be panelists, and we'll have a signing afterward. It should be a really interesting event! It runs from 7:15 to 9:00 p.m. at the Carlisle library.

Then on Friday and Saturday, I'll be back at Bosler Library at an author table with my books. I'm looking forward to seeing lots of friendly faces there.

Halloween wouldn't be complete without a Spooky Scary Sizzling signing, so I'll be joining several other authors at Cupboard Maker Books in Enola, Pa. on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.  Join us... if you dare! Mwahahaha.



Friday, September 2, 2016

A bittersweet day


As of yesterday, the rights for my paranormal Vitruvian Man trilogy - Cursed, Charmed and Claimed - reverted to me. I subbed the first to Decadent and was so thrilled when Cursed was one of the few stories to launch their new Tease line.

I'm so grateful to Decadent Publishing for all they've done for me. I can't say enough good things about this publisher, and highly recommend them to any romance writer.

The downside was that the specs for the Tease line said only short stories. So much was cut from the original, and little additional was allowed for the next two.

I always thought these were some of my best paranormal stories. They blended a fascinating history of Venice, an imagined dark side to Leonardo da Vinci, and a very unusual paranormal hero. The heroine transformed from a meek scientist who dabbled in fire dancing, into a powerful fire mage.

But some readers were disappointed by the shortness of the stories, and some said they felt rushed.

So I'm going to take some time to revise these three into one amazing novel.

Meanwhile, the lesson learned is once again, go with your gut. I'd actually pulled the sub for Cursed initially because my gut said the story needed to go into more detail, but it was such an honor and thrill to help launch this new line, that vanity overshadowed my story-senses.
We'll see where the journey takes me!

Sunday, August 28, 2016

Get your goddess on!

The Goddess Connection says: Every woman should be treated like a goddess. Now you can read Goddess, Awakened, the first in the series for just 99 cents! Hurry, the sale ends 10/2.





Goddess, Awakened
The Goddess Connection, Book 1
Fantasy/paranormal romance novel
About 89,700 words

With a little help from a goddess, battling evil is a piece of cake for Jocelyn Gibson.
A descendant of the goddess Iris, Jocelyn Gibson may have forgotten about the realm of magic, but it hasn’t forgotten her. When Eric Hendricks is targeted by a demon, Joss must step in to battle the evil and save the town’s awkward, but endearing, vet…who also happens to be the man she loves.
Joss’s new inn, a culinary career specializing in cooking with lavender and a new love all make for a fine recipe of disaster. She needs to embrace her inner goddess and harness the powers she never knew she had before it’s too late.