Spotlight: It's Always Been You by A.M. Williams

Review & Excerpt Tour.png
It's Always Been You Cover.jpg

Falling in love for Zeke and Delaney could mean risking their friendship. But what’s the worst that can happen when these two best friends share a tiny honeymoon suite? Readers will fall in love with this friends to lovers romance from A.M. Williams. The Holiday Springs Resort series is here and IT’S ALWAYS BEEN YOU is now live!

Two best friends and one tiny honeymoon suite...what's the worst that could happen?

When my ex decided to leave me just three weeks before our wedding, I did the only thing a girl could do. I grabbed my best friend and headed for the mountains to celebrate my newfound freedom and get over my broken heart while taking full advantage of all of the pre-paid amenities that should have happened on my honeymoon. There's just one problem: Holiday Springs Resort is booked solid and I may have forgotten to change our reservations. Now Zeke and I are forced to share a bed, but am I ready to share my heart again so soon?

Delaney always seemed to be the right girl at the wrong time. With her ex-fiance out of the picture, it's up to me to mend her broken heart. There's just one problem: I've been in love with her since the day we met. With all the romance in the air, it's hard to fight back the tension between us. What was supposed to be a fun-filled rebound trip between friends suddenly heats up to so much more. 

Falling in love could mean risking our friendship. Are we both willing to take that leap? One thing is for sure - this trip changes everything.

If you like snowy locales, sizzling romance, and a scene with a hot tub, then you'll love It's Always Been You, the first book in a new series. 

Escape to the romantic paradise of Holiday Springs and warm up with your next happily ever after.

Excerpt 

Copyright @ A.M. Williams 2020

We both moaned when my center came in contact with his erection. Even through two layers of clothing, it was a heady feeling.

I undulated my hips on top of him as we continued to make out, slowing working us both into a frenzy.

Zeke ripped his mouth away from mine. “We need to go inside.”

I nodded even though I wasn’t sure what he was saying. I was too focused on pulling his lips back to mine.

“Delaney,” he said between kisses. “Let’s go in.”

He gently pushed me away and stood. I pouted as I stood too. He quickly got out and wrapped his towel around his hips before helping me out and hangin me my towel.

I quickly dried off and walked inside, the head of the cabin beckoning to me.

Once inside, I didn’t waste any time dropping my towel and stripping out of my bathing suit, leaving me naked.

I turned to face Zeke and watched as he drew the curtains. I got a great view of his face when he turned around and realized I was already naked.

“Hot damn,” he muttered and tossed his own towel to the side. His finger immediately starting working the laces of his bathing suit while his gaze raked over my body. I used the opportunity to look at him as well.

My heart ssped up at the thought of everything coming together right now. I’d wanted this for so long and now that it was happening, it was surreal, and I wanted to remember every part of it.

Every kiss. Every caress. Every whispered word. I wanted them all.

Zeke’s bathing suit dropped, and my gaze immediately zeroed in on his dick, which was pointing toward the ceiling.

I whimpered as I looked at it. Moisture was beading on the tip, and it looked like the perfect dick. Especially since it was attached to the perfect man.

A few minutes later, we were parked outside the cabin, and Zeke had our bags in hand while I swiped the keycard for the room. It took several tries to get the lock to open, something that annoyed me to no end. 

After discovering everything with the reservation, the door not working was just one more thing to add to the list of why I was upset with my life. 

Once the door was open, I stepped to the side and allowed Zeke to go in first before flicking the light switch by the door and letting the door fall shut behind me. 

I turned toward the main part of the cabin and drew up short when I noticed Zeke standing frozen with the bags still in his hands. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked, walking closer. 

“Uhh…” Zeke said, shifting his weight from side to side. “Is there supposed to be only one bed?” 

I cringed. I didn’t tell him what happened with the reservation while we were in the car. He deserved to know that I hadn’t changed it like I told him I would. 

“Well…I didn’t realize until I went to check in that I forgot to call them to let them know that the reservation needed to be changed. I couldn’t change it today because it was too late.” 

Silence greeted my words, and I worried my bottom lip and dropped my gaze to the floor. “I’m really sorry,” she said when Zeke continued to say nothing. “I thought I’d called, and I didn’t. I can’t believe that I forgot to do that simple thing. Don’t even get me started on the excursions we have booked because—” 

I jumped when Zeke pressed a finger to my chin and tilted my head up. He was grinning. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to sleep in the same bed as the Delaney Carrigan.” 

My face heated. “Oh, uh…” 

“Come on!” Zeke said, pulling me into a hug. “It’ll be fine. Nothing to worry your pretty little head about.” 

He released me and turned back to pick the bags up and stepped further into the room. 

With him out of the way, I could see what gave him pause. It wasn’t just the single king-size bed in the room. It was the rose petals that were littered all over the bedcovers and on the floor. 

They were everywhere. As I stepped closer to the bed, I cringed as I realized they were even in the shape of a heart with a small card in the center. Though I knew I shouldn’t, I picked it up. It read “Congratulations on your marriage!” 

I stared at it for several long moments, my mind flashing back to when Josh told me he couldn’t marry me. 

“Whatcha got in your hand?” Zeke asked. 

Before I could crumple the card, Zeke plucked it from my fingers. I watched as his expression darkened. “Fuck him.” 

He ripped the card in half, then ripped it again before tossing the pieces in the air. I watched them flutter toward the floor. 

“You’re better off without that douche-canoe. Seriously. What guy breaks up with the supposed love of his life only days before their wedding? Asswads, that’s who. Don’t waste another minute worried about him.” 

I nodded. What could I say to that? It wasn’t anything I didn’t already know and that Zeke and my family hadn’t already said. Josh was an asshole of the first order for what he did to me. 

It didn’t make it hurt any less, though. 

“Right, let’s get unpacked and look over what we’ve got going on this week. Maybe we can add some things to do instead of what we’ve got on there. What do you say?” 

I nodded and felt myself relax. “Sounds good.” 

Zeke turned and grabbed his bag, unzipping it while I stood there, frozen. 

While he’d made me feel better about the rose petals and the asshole ex-fiancé, we hadn’t addressed the elephant in the room: the single bed. 

Yeah, Zeke joked that he’d always wanted to sleep in the same bed as me, but I knew he said that to make me feel better. 

How were we going to make this work?

Only on Amazon + Read for FREE on Kindle Unlimited 

Amazon

About A.M. Williams

A.M. Williams is just a simple girl from the south that found herself living abroad. When she’s not annoying her cat or reading, she’s spending time with her husband and traveling as much as possible. She has a serious case of wanderlust and wants to go as many places as possible while she can. She loves Cheerwine, sweet tea, and North Carolina (eastern style) BBQ as well as those crystal clear waters on the North Carolina coast.

Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Twitter | Instagram | Reader Group 

Spotlight: Holiday Home Run by Priscilla Oliveras

Blitz-and-Tour-Banner-facebook-cover (23).jpg
5cff77ed28e04dcba61897c2c0267fa7.png

Romance, Holiday Romance

Date Published: October 27, 2020

Publisher: Kensington, Zebra Books

Event planner Julia Fernández is in Chicago for an internship that she hopes to turn into a full-time job. She’s ready to live on her own, out from under her familia’s expectations that she take over their catering business in Puerto Rico and away from their year-round baseball fever thanks to her three ball-playing brothers. Ex-MLB pitcher Ben Thomas knows what it’s like to have different dreams than your family intends for you, but since his injury-caused early retirement, he’s been struggling to find the sense of family baseball once brought him. When he volunteers as the emcee for Julia’s big holiday fundraiser for a local youth center, he finally begins to find a sense of purpose working with the kids and alongside Julia.

She’s focused on organizing the best holiday event the youth center has ever seen, not on romance. But Ben…he’s got a game plan for them that includes both.

Holiday Home Run was previously released as part of the holiday anthology A SEASON TO CELEBRATE.

Buy on Amazon

About the Author

ca5945355a114a23a8491a7e64d3c493.png

Priscilla Oliveras is a USA Today Best-Selling author & 2018 RWA® RITA® double finalist who writes contemporary romance with a Latinx flavor. Her books have earned Starred Reviews from Publishers Weekly & Booklist, hit the top 5 on Barnes & Noble’s Top 100 Book Bestseller list, & notched Amazon #1 Bestseller status. Her latest release, Island Affair, made it onto O, The Oprah Magazine’s “28 of the Best Beach Reads of Summer 2020” list. Priscilla earned her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University and currently serves as adjunct faculty in the program while also teaching the online class “Romance Writing” for ed2go. She’s a self-professed romance genre junkie, who’s also a sports fan, beach lover, Zumba aficionado, and hammock nap connoisseur. Follow her at prisoliveras.com and on social media via @prisoliveras and https://www.facebook.com/prisoliveras.

Connect:

Website: https://prisoliveras.com/holiday-home-run/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PrisOliveras

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/prisoliveras/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prisoliveras/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/priscilla-oliveras

Spotlight: We Don’t Talk Anymore by Julie Johnson

WeDontTalkAnymoreBlitzBanner-1.png
we don't talk anymore - front (1).jpg

Publication date: October 27th 2020
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

For as long as I can remember, Archer Reyes has been by my side. My closest confidant. My truest ally. My best friend. 

That is, until the summer we turned seventeen, when I started picturing him as something else entirely. 

The love of my life. 
I knew confessing my feelings wasn’t going to be easy; I had no idea he’d reject me so cruelly… or that he was only breaking my heart to save my life.  


It’s been 365 days since I told my best friend I loved him.
365 days since he didn’t say it back.
365 days since he lied straight to my face. 

WE DON’T TALK ANYMORE is a standalone new adult romance about first love, second chances, and the lengths we go to hold onto each other when everything falls apart… 

Excerpt

It’s been 365 days since I told Archer Reyes I loved him.365 days since he didn’t say it back.Then again, it’s not like he’s said anything at all to me since that fateful day, or even looked me in the eyes during our handful of unfortunate, unavoidable encounters in a town that suddenly feels far too small for the both of us. There was a time when we didn’t go more than a few hours without speaking. Now, a full year of silence yawns in the space between us. An entire turn around the sun, packed with experiences we haven’t whispered to one another in the rafters of the old boathouse, jammed full of memories made in each other’s absence. He’s built a whole new life I know nothing about, surrounded by people who aren’t me. And, hey, maybe that’s partly my fault. It’s not like I’ve reached out, either. Frankly, I don’t think there’s much of anything left to say. Not after last summer. I put my heart in his hands that hot July night — a fragile mess of hope and fear, skipping beats in the silence as I waited for his answer. And, with a single squeeze and a condescending smirk…he crushed it. It’s been 365 days since I told my best friend I loved him. 365 days since he said he didn’t love me back. 365 days since he lied straight to my face.

Buy on Amazon

About the Author

Julie (1).jpg

JULIE JOHNSON (born July 3, 1991) is a twenty-something Boston native and USA Today bestselling author of more than a dozen contemporary romance novels. When she's not writing, Julie can most often be found adding stamps to her passport, drinking too much coffee, striving to conquer her Netflix queue, and Instagramming pictures of her dog. (Follow her: @author_julie)

She published her debut novel LIKE GRAVITY in August 2013, just before her senior year of college, and she's never looked back. Since, she has published more than a dozen other novels, including the bestselling BOSTON LOVE STORY series and THE GIRL DUET. Her books have appeared on Kindle and iTunes Bestseller lists around the world, as well as in AdWeek, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today.

Be on the lookout for her new series, THE FORBIDDEN ROYALS TRILOGY, now available at all e-retailers!

You can find Julie on Facebook or contact her on her website www.juliejohnsonbooks.com. Sometimes, when she can figure out how Twitter works, she tweets from @AuthorJulie. For major book news and updates, subscribe to Julie's newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bnWtHH

Connect:

https://www.juliejohnsonbooks.com/

https://www.facebook.com/juliejohnsonbooks

https://www.instagram.com/author_julie/

https://twitter.com/AuthorJulie

https://us11.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=2feab4a038a5f5d65415d6dda&id=7dc89b1afc

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7236797.Julie_Johnson

Spotlight: The Waltz Of Devil's Creek by Justine Carver

The Waltz of Devil's Creek banner anim (1).gif
The Waltz of Devil's Creek (1).jpg

Judith Campbell is dying, and she cannot take the painful truth about where her son came from to the grave with her. While on her deathbed in Atlanta, Georgia in 1994, Judith tells him the tragic story of his conception, and which of two men his birth father could be: the young man who professed his love to her, or the pastor who assaulted her.

Set in the Deep South in 1947, The Waltz of Devil's Creek digs into the dark crevices of racism and women's rights during a heated political climate in an era of segregation. Combined with Judith's lack of social stature, and at a time when reporting sexual assault was unheard of, every injustice is stacked against her from the very beginning.

But there is a light in Judith's young life: her best friend, Joseph Bird, who has loved her since childhood. Joseph stands up for Judith when no one else will and proves that even in the darkest of times, a light is always burning.

Excerpt

“But Mrs. Bird,” I said, looking over at her, “God don’t want people like Pastor Allman.”

She just looked at me for a moment, and then a smile slowly lit up her eyes again.

“YOU COME ON OUT HERE BIRD!”

The voice snapped Mrs. Bird and me from our moment, our heads simultaneously jerking toward the living room.

When we heard Joseph’s feet stomping against the floor as he ran down the hallway, Mrs. Bird and I dropped the dishtowel and the plate and hurried out of the kitchen.

“YOU GET YER DUMB ASS OUT HERE!” a second voice shouted, “OR WE’RE COMIN’ IN TO GET YOU!”

“That’s the Woodson brothers,” I told Joseph’s momma.

“Don’t you go out there,” she warned him as he thrust his big feet into his shoes. “I mean it, Joseph, don’t you go out that door!”

He flung the front door open anyway, and before he could step outside, the Woodson brothers jumped on him in the doorway.

“Joseph!” I screamed.

“Get out of my house!” his momma shrieked.

The whole house shook as the three fought; a small table underneath the window beside the door fell over, shattering the flower vase atop it; fists swung and legs kicked, and cuss words flew.

“You little piece of shit, you burned up my truck!” said the blonde-haired brother.

“I’m gonna kick your nuts right up yer throat!” said the brown-haired one. “What tha hell were you thinkin’ boy?!” Thwap! When his fist pulled back, his knuckles glistened with Joseph’s blood.

“Let go of him! Let go! Let gooo!” I dug all ten of my fingernails into the blonde’s arm, trying to stop him from pulling Joseph out of the house.

His momma was on the other side, screaming as she worked, unsuccessfully, to beat them off with a broom. The blonde shoved me away, and I fell onto my butt on the porch as they dragged Joseph down the steps and into the front yard.

“Don’t you touch my son!” Mrs. Bird roared, and the broom came down hard on the brown-haired one’s back.

He whirled around, seemingly unfazed by the blow, and yanked the broom from her hands and tossed it.

They nearly beat Joseph unconscious.

Mrs. Bird ran next door and called Sheriff Woodson, but he never showed; he’d stayed out of all the incidents between Joseph and his sons. But Joseph wouldn’t have had it any other way.

Buy on Amazon

About the Author

Justine Carver was born and raised in the Southern United States on a heavy dose of creek-wading, lightning-bug-catching, and Saturday morning cartoons. She is a full-time writer, all-the-time reader, and every now and then, she pulls her head out of the clouds long enough to remember how much better it is up there.

Connect:

Website: https://justinecarver.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author_justine_carver/

Spotlight: The Light at Wyndcliff by Sarah E. Ladd

the-light-at-wyndcliff.jpg

Set in 1820s Cornwall, this Regency romance evokes the captivating worlds and delicious dramas of Jane Austen, Daphne DuMaurier, and Winston Graham.

Raised on the sprawling and rugged Wyndcliff Estate near the dangerous coast of South Cornwall, Evelyn Bray lives with her grandfather, a once-wealthy man reduced to the post of steward. Evelyn is still grieving her father’s death and her mother’s abandonment when a passing ship is dashed against the rocks. The only survivors, a little girl and her injured mother, are rescued and brought to Wyndcliff Hall.

Liam Twethewey is just twenty-two when he inherits Wyndcliff Estate from his great uncle. His optimistic plans to open a china clay pit to employ the estate’s tenants meets unexpected resistance, and the rumors of smuggling and illegal activity challenge his new-found authority. Though wise beyond his years, young Liam quickly finds himself out of his depth in this land where long-held secrets and high-stakes agendas make no room for newcomers.

Brought together by troubling questions surrounding the shipwreck, Evelyn and Liam uncover even darker mysteries shrouding the estate. But as they untangle truths from deceptions, their loyalties separate them—and their budding love might not be strong enough to overcome the distance.

Excerpt

Chapter 1

Cornwall, early autumn 1820

Wyndcliff Estate

Twenty-two years was a long time to wait for life to begin. Even now, as Liam Twethewey guided his bay horse down the narrow, deeply rutted path, he could barely prevent the grin from spreading on his face.

Only a mile or so more and he would be in his new home. Everything he’d been dreaming of—his plans for developing the moorland and making his own way in the world—was finally within his reach.

He filled his lungs with the damp earth-scented air. The rain had, for the moment, subsided. Night was falling and twilight’s ominous light cast shadows on the barren land surrounding him, and he squinted to assess the ribbon of road winding before him through the moor’s purple grasses and jagged crags.

He might be far from the home he’d known for most of his life, but he already felt a connection to this bit of earth.

For he was now on Wyndcliff estate land.

And it all belonged to him.

Perhaps it would have been wiser to wait for his solicitor, Edwin Kinden, to join him as they’d originally planned. Liam had never set foot on Wyndcliff property, and the directions he’d received at the inn in town were vague at best. As the man tasked with overseeing the transfer of property, Kinden was the most appropriate person to handle all introductions to the place. But after nearly two hours of waiting for the older man to arrive, impatience won out. He’d anticipated this moment for far too long to spend another second sitting idly in a dark, smoky public house.

Liam had left word with the innkeeper for Mr. Kinden to meet him out at Wyndcliff Hall when he arrived. After all, how hard could it be to find a large manor house along the main road at the moor’s edge?

Liam urged his horse to a quicker pace. This might be his property, but it wouldn’t do to be caught in a storm on unfamiliar moorland, especially this close to nightfall.

A gentle rain began to drizzle from the heavens, and Liam was about to press his horse to an even faster pace when a sharp, panicked whinny met his ears. He slowed.

The sound echoed again, followed by a muffled voice.

Concern trumped his enthusiasm, and he halted his horse. But all was now silent. “Anyone there?”

“Yes!” a feminine voice snapped, high and sharp. “Here! Please help! My pony’s caught.”

Alarm pushed Liam from his saddle, and his boots landed with a splash in the mud. After securing his reins to a rugged piece of rock, he tracked the direction of the voice.

“Mind the bog!” The increasingly volatile wind distorted the woman’s cries, tossing them amidst its gusts. “It’s deep along the crag.”

Heeding the warning, Liam stepped from stone to stone, testing each footfall before taking another step on the marshy ground. The wind tore at his greatcoat, threatening his balance. He cut through tall grasses and crested a rocky ridge, and then a flash of dark blue in the sea of brown and stone caught his attention.

A slight woman with windblown golden hair was yanking on the head collar of a gray pony knee-deep in mud.

Alarm at the potentially dangerous situation shook him from his surprise. One wrong step and the woman would be trapped in the bog, just like her pony. “Stay there. Don’t move.”

He retrieved the leather strap from his horse’s head collar and returned back down to the little valley formed between the crags. He inched down the decline, testing the firmness of the ground before committing his full weight.

The mud-caked pony thrashed and awkwardly bucked to free itself. It reeled back, tossing its muzzle and squealing, but instead of helping the pony break loose, each movement tightened the murky substance around its legs.

“Whoa, whoa,” Liam soothed, lowering and calming his voice. With careful, measured steps he approached the animal, ignoring the rain, now more like sharp bits of ice as it pounded his caped greatcoat and wide-brimmed hat.

He had to get closer.

In order to free his own movements he removed his coat, tossed it on higher land, and stepped farther into the bog. His foot instantly sank to his ankle. Like a noose, mud cinched around it. It would be unwise to go farther, so he reached as far as he could and made several attempts to secure the pony’s head collar.

The pony tossed its head in distress, but Liam’s fingers eventually caught on the head collar, and he pulled. He thrust all of his weight backward and pulled harder, careful not to lose control over his own stance.

The pony swung its head and, in a final display of momentum, freed a foreleg. The animal then broke free, and with all the wild gracelessness of a newborn foal it stumbled up onto dryer, firmer land.

Unsettled by the pony’s momentum, Liam toppled back and fell against the damp earth.

Buy on Amazon | Audible

About the Author

sarah-e-ladd.jpg

Sarah E. Ladd received the 2011 Genesis Award in historical romance for The Heiress of Winterwood. She is a graduate of Ball State University and has more than ten years of marketing experience. Sarah lives in Indiana with her amazing family and spunky Golden Retriever.

Connect with Sarah: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Spotlight: A Case for the Toy Maker by Candace Havens

ACaseFortheToyMakerBlitzBanner.png
ToyMaker.jpg

(Ainsley McGregor #3)
Published by: Tule Publishing
Publication date: October 26th 2020
Genres: Adult, Cozy Mystery

Ho. Ho. No…
It’s Christmas in Sweet River, Texas, and the whole town is feeling festive apart from Ainsley McGregor. Ainsley has never enjoyed the holidays and would rather ignore them, but with her shop Bless Your Art busier than ever and filled with happy shoppers, even she’s feeling some Christmas spirit. That is, until her Great Dane, George Clooney, sniffs out a dead body in the Santa House at the Christmas Festival.

When one of her favorite crafters becomes the prime suspect, Ainsley is determined to prove his innocence. The case is full of so many twists and turns that even Ainsley begins to fear the truth. Is she protecting a killer?

With help from her friends and some extremely nosey townsfolk, Ainsley and her dog hurry to find the truth––as long as they can outwit and outrun the killer first. Otherwise, this Christmas might just be her last.

Excerpt

“There’s the Santa house,” Shannon said, just as George  growled menacingly. “What’s wrong, George?” That growl was never a good sign, and the hairs on the  back of my neck stood up.  

I had a strong urge to turn around and walk back to the  store. But my curiosity knew no bounds. I had to find out  what was going on. 

We stopped in front of Santa’s house, which was a bigger  version of our booth except it really did look like a house  right out of the North Pole. “Wow, they did a great job. It’s  fancy,” I said. 

George growled again. A knot formed in my stomach,  twisting hard. 

Shannon glanced at him and then me. “Ainsley? You  don’t think…is something wrong?” 

“I hope not,” I said. George had done this before and it  had never been good news. 

He barked and then did the high-pitched whine that told  me something I really didn’t want to know. 

“No,” I whispered. 

“Ains?” 

I took a deep breath and pulled my phone out of my  pocket. “Hold on to George—tight.” After handing her the  leash, I turned on the flashlight app on my phone. 

“You’re freaking me out,” she said, as she gripped the  leash tightly. 

“I’m freaking myself out.” Opening the double doors to  Santa’s house, I peeked inside. 

My breath caught, and bile rose in my throat. 

“Call my brother.” My voice was nothing more than a 

hoarse whisper. I forgot I had my phone in my hand. “What is it?” 

The image of the man with the candy-cane-striped pole  sticking out of his chest would be burned in my brain  forever. 

“Santa is dead.”

Buy on Amazon

About the Author

Candace (1).jpg

Bestselling author Candace Havens has written more than 35 novels. She has won the Holt Medallion and her books have received nominations for the RITA's and Write Touch Reader Awards. She is the author of the biography Joss Whedon: The Genius Behind Buffy and a contributor to several anthologies. She is also one of the nation's leading entertainment journalists and has interviewed countless celebrities including Tom Hanks, Nicolas Cage, Tom Cruise, George Clooney and many more. Candace also runs a free online writing workshop for more than 2000 writers and teaches comprehensive writing classes. She does film reviews for Hawkeye in the morning on 96.3 KSCS, and is a former President of the Television Critics Association.

Connect:

http://candacehavens.com/

https://www.facebook.com/candace.havens.7

https://www.instagram.com/candace_havens/

https://twitter.com/CandaceHavens

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/116617.Candace_Havens