SWEPT AWAY FOR CHRISTMAS
by MJ
Fredrick, Tanya Michaels and Trish Milburn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Christmas
isn’t always snow-covered with a frosty chill in the air. Sometimes it’s sandy
beaches with balmy breezes.
And sometimes we find love in the most unexpected places, a place like Starfish Shores.
Here Comes McBride
Shelby James has only truly loved one man — but Finn McBride broke her heart when emotional baggage from his past came between them. Now, Shelby is serving as maid of honor at a beach wedding where Finn is the best man. Will reuniting with Finn be a Christmas miracle, or the worst mistake she's ever made?
Two Hearts a Leaping
After a break-up with her high school sweetheart, Harley Blume retreats to her brother's home in Starfish Shores to lick her wounds and figure out what she's doing next. But her brother is in the Coast Guard reserves and heading out of town, leaving her in the care of Liam Channing, his best friend since they played college football together. She's never been able to keep her tongue in her mouth when good-looking, easy-going Liam is around. How is she going to find her way if she can't keep her balance?
Cruisin’ for a Kiss
When Avery Phillips loses her magazine job right before Christmas, she heads back home to Starfish Shores to spend the holidays with the grandparents who raised her. The plan is to hit the job search hard so that she has a new position when the New Year arrives. What isn’t part of the plan is heading up a remodeling effort at her family’s beach motel or falling for the man helping to save the business into which her grandparents put a lifetime of work. As Christmas draws closer, will Avery stick to the original plan to leave town again or take a chance with Luke Taylor and a new life she never expected?
And sometimes we find love in the most unexpected places, a place like Starfish Shores.
Here Comes McBride
Shelby James has only truly loved one man — but Finn McBride broke her heart when emotional baggage from his past came between them. Now, Shelby is serving as maid of honor at a beach wedding where Finn is the best man. Will reuniting with Finn be a Christmas miracle, or the worst mistake she's ever made?
Two Hearts a Leaping
After a break-up with her high school sweetheart, Harley Blume retreats to her brother's home in Starfish Shores to lick her wounds and figure out what she's doing next. But her brother is in the Coast Guard reserves and heading out of town, leaving her in the care of Liam Channing, his best friend since they played college football together. She's never been able to keep her tongue in her mouth when good-looking, easy-going Liam is around. How is she going to find her way if she can't keep her balance?
Cruisin’ for a Kiss
When Avery Phillips loses her magazine job right before Christmas, she heads back home to Starfish Shores to spend the holidays with the grandparents who raised her. The plan is to hit the job search hard so that she has a new position when the New Year arrives. What isn’t part of the plan is heading up a remodeling effort at her family’s beach motel or falling for the man helping to save the business into which her grandparents put a lifetime of work. As Christmas draws closer, will Avery stick to the original plan to leave town again or take a chance with Luke Taylor and a new life she never expected?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpt
Three from:
Cruisin’
for a Kiss
By Trish
Milburn
If the last contractor didn’t present her with a more
reasonable figure, she’d start all over tomorrow. Surely there was someone out
there who’d be grateful enough for work this time of year to cut her a nice
deal.
When the door opened, she glanced up expecting to see
another middle-aged guy who’d gone a little soft around the middle. At a
glance, she was going to guess there wasn’t anything soft about the man staring
back at her. Tall, lean, dark blond hair and light eyes. It wasn’t until he
shot her a hint of a grin that she remembered it wasn’t nice to stare at hot
strangers.
Way to go, Phillips.
She resisted the urge to check her mouth for drool.
“You called about an estimate,” he said as he sauntered up
to the front counter.
Hoping her legs supported her, Avery stood. “Yeah. We want
to give the place a new but vintage look.” She broke eye contact and took her time
rounding the counter so she could try to corral her suddenly raging hormones.
She led him to the area they used for continental breakfasts
and told him about her idea for a soda fountain, black-and-white checked floor
tiles and a pressed tin ceiling.
“I know all that might not be possible, but I’m just looking
to get ballpark figures now.”
“I think we can work something out.”
Something about his voice seemed familiar, but she couldn’t
put her finger on it. She allowed her gaze to stay focused on him a little too
long as he wrote in a small notepad. He smiled, more fully this time, when he
lifted his eyes to catch her watching.
“You don’t remember me, do you?”
She was supposed to know him? Surely she would have
remembered someone that good looking. Not only remembered but had wild, steamy
dreams about him.
“I’m sorry.”
She expected him to give her his name, but he didn’t. No, he
left her dangling on the hook, desperately searching her brain for the names of
every man with whom she’d ever crossed paths. He looked about her age. A
classmate? He acted like he had some sway with whether his company took the
project or not, so maybe he was the owner? The names of all the companies she’d
called the day before floated through her head until one clicked. Taylor
Construction.
Surely not. It couldn’t be.
“Luke?”
“Bingo.”
This definitely wasn’t the Luke Taylor she remembered. The
one she knew had been more on the nerdy end of the scale than the make-me-pant
end. He hadn’t been ugly, but he’d rarely looked up from his books. And he’d
lived behind glasses and worn clothes that were either forgettable or further
proclaimed his geekitude. She’d expected him to grow up to be a medical
researcher or rocket scientist, not a construction worker.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Review:
This collection was a breath of fresh air just in time for the holidays. If you love books that take you into the lives of characters you can love and you wish you could know in real life, then this is the book for you. Starfish Shores is a place I would love to go to and maybe catch a ride on a boat or maybe, just maybe take a walk on the beach and stare up at the stars. This book felt like going home for the holidays-to a place that wrapped you in a blanket after the world kicked you in the butt and left you hurting. I loved it and am looking for the next collection by these talented writers.
4.5/5
AUTHOR Bios and Links:
MJ Fredrick knows about chasing dreams. Twelve years after she completed her
first novel, she signed her first publishing contract. Now she divides her days
between teaching elementary music, and diving into her own writing—traveling everywhere
in her mind, from Belize to Honduras to Africa to the past.
She's a four-time Golden Heart Award finalist, and she won the
2009 Eppie Award with Hot Shot and the 2010 Eppie with Breaking Daylight. She
was a 2012 Epic Award finalist with Don’t Look Back.
Connect with MJ online.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MJFredrick
Four-time RITA finalist
Tanya Michaels is the bestselling,
award-winning author of more than thirty books. Her stories incorporate the
same elements she values in real life—community, family and a sense of humor.
Her current releases include the popular Colorado Cades trilogy for Harlequin
American Romance.
She lives in Atlanta, GA with a very patient husband as well as
two kids and a dog who are plotting against her. When not writing, reading, or
spending time with her family, Tanya watches entirely too much TV. She’s also
made Twitter her virtual home. Join her there to hear about her life as a
writer and the outrageous things her kids say.
Website: http://www.tanyamichaels.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorTanyaMichaels
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tanyamichaels
Trish Milburn is the author of contemporary romance for Harlequin American
Romance, paranormal romance for Harlequin Nocturne, young adult fiction for
Bell Bridge Books and indie publishes her romantic suspense, women’s fiction
and other titles. She’s a two-time Golden Heart award winner, a fan of walks in
the woods and road trips, and is a big geek girl, including being a dedicated
Whovian and Browncoat.
Twitter: @TrishMilburn
The authors will award a $50 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.
The tour dates can be found here: http://goddessfishpromotions.
Posts
8 comments:
This has been such a fun tour thank you.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
Thank you for hosting
Agreed, Mary! I've loved being able to tell a little bit more about Starfish Shores!
Thank you for the awesome excerpt and review! kbinmichATyahooDOTcom
I have loved the excerpts. Thank you for a great tour.
Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com
This has been a terrific tour!!!!
My best,
Chelsea.
justforswag(AT)yahoo(DOT)com
4.5 out of 5...Very nice review. I have enjoyed learning more (during the tour) about the Starfish Shores characters.
catherinelee100 at gmail dot com
Best of luck with the release!
vitajex(at)aol(dot)com
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