Spotlight: I Spy the Boy Next Door by Samantha Armstrong

I Spy the Boy Next Door
Samantha Armstrong
Publication date: May 25th 2019
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

Four p.m. spy sessions are the highlight of Mallory Taylor’s day. Observing the boy next door—one with a body and an attitude to match—has her perched beside her window so often it can’t be healthy.

When she finally convinces her mom to let her go to public school, Mallory comes face to face with her neighbor, Troy Parker. And he makes it clear he wants nothing to do with her. His rejection awakens a newfound tenacity and maybe even a touch of recklessness. But when Troy starts to show up when she needs him the most, Mallory can’t help but wonder if there’s more to him than he’s let on.

Taking chances, breaking rules, and following her heart is all new to Mallory. And no one warned her just how fickle hearts can be. When she discovers that Troy isn’t at all the guy she imagined him to be, secrets rise to the surface that will change her life forever.

**This is a standalone mature YA/new adult contemporary romance.

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EXCERPT:

We’re about ten minutes into the lesson when everything around me stops and spins. I don’t know which because all I can see is him.

“Mr. Parker, nice of you to join us,” Mr. Brown says.

I stalked him a few years ago on Facebook to see if we were in the same grade, but I wasn’t expecting to be in the same class.

My day just got a hell of a lot better.

I press my palm to my chest, feeling the familiar beat. I press harder, hoping the pressure will soften the racket inside of me.

He slides a note onto Mr. Brown’s desk, barely acknowledging him before returning his attention to his phone. His fingers fly across the screen as he walks down the aisle.

Please look at me. Please look at me. Please look at me, I silently chant, but when he turns and heads directly for me, my prayers abruptly change. Don’t look at me. Don’t look at me. Don’t look at me.

My heart’s thumping so hard against my ribcage, I’m losing air.

This is the moment.

I don’t know what to do. I’ve been envisioning it for so long, and now that it’s about to happen, everything I’ve ever planned I would do or say has gone out the window. I start clicking my pen, then tapping my foot. I should be focusing on the lesson at the front of the room, but I can’t take my eyes off him. He’s wearing a hood, but I can see his hair slipping out from under it. Dark jeans hang low on his hips, and a bag sits snug on his back.

He’s only a few steps away. I swallow.

He’s in front of me. He looks up.

My breath catches in my throat.

His eyes widen, then narrow. All these years later, he still doesn’t smile at me.

And I realize, I sat in an already claimed seat.

Author Bio:

Samantha Armstrong's novels incorporate all of the feels--from swoon-worthy heroes to sweet-but-mostly-sassy heroines, quirk and laughter to emotional grit and panty melting-heat. She has written in multiple genres, but never strays far from romance.

Born and raised in New Zealand, Samantha Armstrong prefers to be tucked away writing whenever she can -- or, rather, whenever her adorable yet demanding baby boy allows.

A normal day for her includes diapers--lots of them--walks with both babies (i.e. human baby and dog baby), writing between naps, and staying up late to write even more. Then somehow fitting all the other stuff in between.

To sign up for information on upcoming releases, giveaways and more: https://www.samantharmstrong.com/subscribe

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Spotlight: Brief Chronicle of Another Stupid Heartbreak by Adi Alsaid

Has heartbreak broken her for good?

Dumped by her boyfriend the summer after senior year, teen love and relationship columnist Lu Charles has hit a wall with her writing. The words just won’t come to her like they used to and if she doesn’t find a topic for her column, she’ll lose her gig at hip online magazine Misnomer, and the college scholarship that goes along with it.

Her best friend, Pete, thinks she should write through her own pain, but when Lu overhears another couple planning a precollege breakup just like hers, she becomes convinced that they’re the answer to cracking her writer’s block. And when she meets them—super-practical Iris and cute, sweet Cal—and discovers they’re postponing their breakup until the end of the summer, she has to know more.

Have Cal and Iris prolonged their own misery by staying together, knowing the end is in sight? Or does the secret to figuring out all this love business—and getting over it—lie with them? One thing is certain—if Lu can’t make a breakthrough before summer is over, she can kiss her future goodbye.

From the acclaimed author of Let’s Get Lost and North of Happy comes a touching exploration of love, relationships and the pain of breaking up.

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About the Author

di Alsaid was born and raised in Mexico City. He attended college at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He’s now back in Mexico City, where he writes, coaches basketball, and makes every dish he eats as spicy as possible. In addition to Mexico, he’s lived in Tel Aviv, Las Vegas and Monterey, California. His books include Let’s Get Lost, Never Always Sometimes, and North of Happy.

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Spotlight: The Road to Bliss by Denise Wheatley

The Road to Bliss

by Denise N. Wheatley

Genre: Contemporary Romance 

Newly engaged Timber West is a beauty and wellness entrepreneur who seemingly has it all. But her life is turned upside down when she breaks off her engagement with Brian after he questions her career choices and wavers on wanting more children. Timber turns to her friend Eva for sympathy, which is tricky considering Brian is also Eva’s father.

Timber eventually finds love again with sexy actor Alex and moves her company Soothing Bliss into a beautiful commercial space. With an exciting new man and a business that’s flourishing, Timber feels as though she’s on the perfect path. But she’s thrown into a whirlwind of turmoil when Soothing Bliss’s new location is threatened to be purchased by a callous art curator, and Alex’s popularity sparks his wandering eye.

Then Brian reappears and they start up an unlikely friendship, giving Timber just the boost she needs. As Christmastime approaches, Timber’s wish is that her favorite holiday will bring about a miracle in her fight to keep Soothing Bliss in its rightful home. With a little compromise and dose of holiday magic, Timber wonders whether she and Brian can work through their past and mend a relationship that perhaps never should have unraveled.

Reader Alert!

Timber West always plays by the rules. So even she’s surprised when she decides to leave her prestigious job as a chemist and launch a beauty and wellness company. Her fiancé Brian, who was her chemistry professor during college and also happens to be her best friend’s father, isn’t happy with this decision. His disapproval leads to their breakup, but a devastated Timber eventually finds love again with a charismatic movie star. Life is good until both her new relationship and business begin to falter, leaving Timber reevaluating Brian and pondering whether she should give him a second chance.

To My Readers:

A story just isn’t a story without a large dose of romance and a happily ever after. THE ROAD TO BLISS is just that. This novel is a beautiful tale of love and second chances, with plenty of fun, drama and turmoil in between! My main character’s love affair feels so real to me, to the point where I found myself rooting for her in hopes that everything would work in her favor. Writing this book was a wonderful journey, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

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Denise N. Wheatley is a lover of romance, happy endings and the art of storytelling. She used to cry as a three-year old child when her mother read to her because she so badly wanted to read the books herself! Once she learned, Denise constantly had her nose in a novel (especially the ones she’d sneak from her mom’s bookshelf). She’s been writing for as long as she can remember and draws inspiration from Chicago, the city where she was born and raised, as well as Los Angeles, which is one of her favorite places in the world. Denise has published several books and novellas with Simon & Schuster, Red Sage Publishing, eXtasy Books and independently, has written screenplays and teleplays, and has ghostwritten for some of your faves. When she isn’t sitting behind her computer, you can find Denise in a movie theater, on a tennis court, watching true crime television or chatting on social media.

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Spotlight: The Going Back Portal by Connie Lacy

Time Travel Romance

Date Published: February 2019

Publisher: Wild Falls Publishing

The past is a dangerous place in this fast-paced time travel novel...

Kathryn Spears is a skeptical producer for a TV investigative news team. So when her grandmother claims a Cherokee Indian woman is living on a neighboring farm, she dismisses it as early Alzheimer's. Because, obviously, there is no farm nearby. Not in the present anyway. But when she follows Nana's lead, Kathryn is transported back in time to the year 1840 where she finds a young Cherokee woman left behind when her family marched west on the Trail of Tears.

Forest Water is ensnared in a perilous struggle to keep her ancestral lands against a violent white man who claims the farm, and then claims her as well. Desperate to help her new friend, Kathryn becomes entangled in a battle between good and evil with much higher stakes than she imagines.

Each of these young women falls in love with a man from her own time, but there are threats, both seen and unseen, that could cost them their lives.

Excerpt

From Chapter 2

“Are you Forest Water?” I whispered.

She nodded, a hint of surprise in her expression.

“Was that your husband?” I said.

Her answer was a tired sigh.

“Were you visited by a white-haired woman a few minutes ago?”

“I warned Old Grandmother to stay away. You must also.”

“But…”

She laid the baby on the blanket, got to her feet and pushed a narrow door open at the back of the hut where I’d first entered. She slipped outside, returning with a fig in her hand.

“You must eat this and travel through the doorway,” she said, placing it in my hand.

“I have so many questions.”

She locked eyes with me as though trying to look into my soul. Having apparently come to a decision, she squatted beside the blanket, folding it back to reveal a layer of pine straw. Scraping the pine straw aside exposed the lid of a large metal box. She lifted the heavy lid and pulled out a leather pouch. From the pouch, she withdrew a book, opened it and ripped a handful of blank pages from the back. She stuffed the loose pages back inside the pouch, returned it to the box, closed the lid and covered it with the pine straw and blanket. Then she handed me the book.

“You must go,” she whispered, eyes blazing.

“But…”

She gestured for me to put the fig in my mouth as she tugged the shawl from my shoulders.

I reluctantly placed the fruit between my teeth and passed through the small doorway.

Dizziness overwhelmed me as the buzzing in my ears returned, momentarily blocking out all other sound. I found myself standing in the clearing, the fig half-chewed in my mouth. I whirled around to discover the hut no longer existed. My muscles felt as though I’d run a marathon. Not willing to trust my wobbly legs, I remained motionless, dazed by what had just happened.

There were two possibilities – the figs contained some kind of psychedelic substance, causing me to have the same hallucination Nana had, possibly by virtue of power of suggestion. Or I had traveled back in time. Which was so freaky that my skin tingled. In my business, skepticism was ingrained. I wasn’t easily taken in by a ruse. What I thought had happened could not possibly be the truth.

I looked all around the clearing for the young woman who called herself Forest Water. Then, to be sure the shack didn’t still exist, I walked back and forth over the spot where it had been. There was nothing there.

Then I remembered the book. It was solid in my hands, the brown leather smooth to the touch. The book was real. The place was real. And as much as the rational part of my brain rebelled against the idea, I knew I had somehow visited the past.

Suddenly impatient to know the story of the mysterious dark-haired beauty, I made my way to a large rock on the riverbank. I untied the strap holding the book closed and opened it with care. So many words, perhaps written with a fountain pen or a quill, the letters sometimes puddled with excess ink, sometimes as thin as a strand of hair. The ink was black, the paper a cream color and rough to the touch. But the words were not in English. I had no idea what language or alphabet I was looking at. Some of the letters were familiar, but many looked like Arabic or Greek.

Carefully flipping the pages, I discovered the entire book was written in this foreign language. Completely inaccessible to me. I had to talk with Nana.

About the Author

Connie worked for many years as a radio reporter and news anchor, with a couple of brief forays into TV news along the way.  Her experience as a journalist shows up in some of her novels.  She also dabbled in acting in college and community theater. She uses those experiences in some of her books as well.

Her novels are fast-paced stories featuring young women facing serious challenges set against the backdrop of some thorny issues. She writes time travel, magical realism, historical fiction and climate fiction - all with a dollop of romance.

Growing up, she was a middle child and lived in Japan and Okinawa where her Army dad was stationed.  She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke with a degree in Journalism and Creative Writing.

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Cover Reveal: Jackson by Giulia Lagomarsino

Jackson: Book 2 of a 3 book arc
Giulia Lagomarsino
(Reed Security, #14)
Publication date: May 27th 2019
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

This is the 14th book in the Reed Security Series and the 2nd book of a 3 book arc. The arc books need to be read in order and it is suggested that the rest of the series is read in order as well.

Jackson Lewis saved Raegan Cartwright from a terrible situation and has been keeping her and her parents safe. Raegan knows she can trust the sexy man she’s staying with, but her confidence has taken a beating. Still, she refuses to be the wilting flower that everyone expects of her. If only she could get Jackson to see that. He sees only what he wants to, sure that her refusal to talk about what happened as a sign she couldn’t move on. But when all hell breaks loose at Reed Security, Raegan is pulled into one dangerous situation after another. When it is discovered that Raegan isn’t just an innocent bystander but directly linked to Reed Security’s current situation, she finds herself even more intertwined and is fully prepared to face her issues head-on. But this is more than just an abusive ex. This is something that involves innocent people and deadly consequences. But Reed Security is relying on her and she won’t let them down.

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Author Bio:

I'm a stay at home mom that loves to read. Some of my favorite titles are Pride and Prejudice, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and Horatio Hornblower. I started writing when I was trying to come up with suggestions on ways I could help bring in some extra money. I came up with the idea that I could donate plasma because you could earn an extra $500/month. My husband responded with, "No. Find something else. Write a blog. Write a book." I didn't think I had anything to share on blog that a thousand other mothers hadn't already thought of. I decided to take his challenge seriously and sat down to write my first book, Jack. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed writing. From there, the stories continued to flow and I haven't been able to stop. I hope my readers enjoy my books as much as I enjoy writing them. Between reading, writing, and taking care of three small kids, my days are quite full.

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Spotlight: Boyfriend Maintenance by Lauren Helms

Emmy King became a disgraced high-socitey princess when she walked away from her family’s money. Jake Harper is the sexy yet uninterested apartment building’s maintenance man. When the two agree to help each other out, they quickly realize the more time they spend together the more the lines get blurred. The fifth book in the #mustread series, 425 Madison Avenue, is now live. Read Boyfriend Maintenance by Lauren Helms today!

Only on Amazon + Read for FREE on Kindle Unlimited

Amazon ➝ https://rebrand.ly/BF_425Madison

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About Boyfriend Maintenance

Emmy

My bad reputation is coming back to haunt me. Now, I need a date for my brother’s wedding just to keep the vultures at bay. I’ve noticed Jake around the building and he’s the perfect man for the job.

The thing is, I don’t actually have what I promised in return for his help, but I don’t want this to end.

Jake

I’ve seen Emmy and she’s out of my league, but that doesn’t stop me from taking her up on her offer and upping the ante. I have rules, however, the more time we spend together the more the lines get blurred.

Her lie made her more like me than I ever thought possible. Too bad liars don’t do it for me.

A little boyfriend maintenance goes a long way…

After all, 425 Madison Avenue is the perfect place to fall in love.

*Each story is completely standalone.

Excerpt

Copyright @ 2019 Lauren Helms

“Oh, well … hello there, hot stuff.” Mrs. Jenkins stands in the open doorway of her apartment.

Her arm slides up the doorframe slightly awkwardly as she leans into the frame. She’s attempting to look sexy in a Japanese silk kimono robe. It’s a red floral print that hangs nearly to her ankles. She has surprisingly good posture for a seventy-year-old woman.

Her husky voice is seductive as she gestures for me to come in. I have to mentally prepare myself every time I have a work order for unit 2007. Which is normally once a week.

Mrs. Jenkins is a retired Broadway actress. She hit her stride when she starred in the hit musical Chicago in the mid-seventies. Dorthy Jenkins is a dramatic, wealthy retiree who just happens to hit on me every time I’m here. She may be a tad lonely, so I deal with it.

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Jenkins. My work order says that you’ve got faulty smoke detectors.” Honestly, that seems a bit suspicious since we worked through the entire building updating the detectors less than six months ago.

“Dorthy, darling. Please, stop calling me Mrs. Jenkins. You make me feel like a cougar.”

I raise my eyebrow at that. More like a puma since she’s got to be at least forty years older than me. I set down my toolbox and scan the living room for the unit’s central detector.

“All right, Dorthy. You’re having issues with the smoke detectors? Let’s just take a look. I’ll get these fixed up in no time.” Really, I just want to get out of here. The longer I’m in this apartment, the more cheek pinches I get. And I’m not just talking about pinches to my face. She gets a little bolder with each visit. Not looking forward to the day she takes it too far. Her flirting seems harmless though. She just really appreciates those “hot young thangs.” Her words, not mine.

“Well, no rush. I’ll just pour us a little nightcap.” I don't mention it's only four in the afternoon. “Will two fingers do, Jake? I’ve always preferred two.” She waggles her eyebrows.

I divert my eyes. The sexual reference catches me off guard and I feel my face heat.

Clearing my throat, I shake my head. “I’m sorry, Dorthy, but no drinking on the job.” I pull out my step ladder so I can reach the smoke detector.

“You’re such a good boy, darling. I admire that. I’ll just have a nip and enjoy the show.”

Just like she normally does. Unfortunately, she isn’t the only 425 Madison resident to watch me while I do my job. I’ve worked in this building for nearly three years now. Growing up, I never had dreams of becoming a maintenance man, but I’ve always been good with my hands.

About Lauren

Lauren Helms has forever been an avid reader from the beginning. After starting a book review website, that catapulted her fully into the book world, she knew that something was missing. Lauren decided to take the plunge and write her first novel. While working for a video game strategy guide publisher, she decided to mix what she knew best--video games and romance. She decided to take the plunge and joined NaNoWrimo and a month later, she had her first draft.

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