Author Spotlight: Jeanine McAdam

From Christina: Today I'd like to welcome author Jeanine McAdam. Her latest romance features a sexy cowboy, a bull named Punisher, a Montana ranch, and a dysfunctional family. Throw in an animal rights activist wearing nothing more than a sign, and...well, I'll let Jeanine tell you all about it!  Enjoy.

From Jeanine:

Bull Riding – A Dangerous Sport

Bull Riding has been called “the most dangerous eight seconds in sports.” Logan Cooper, the hero of my latest contemporary romance, THE BULL RIDER AND THE BARE BOYCOTTER, knows that well. He’s handsome, tough, and he gets hurt a lot.

While researching bull riding and working to define Logan’s character, I kept coming across articles with titles like “Is Bull Riding More Dangerous than____?” Fill in the blank. It could be hockey, football or boxing.

Bull riders break bones, suffer concussions and dislocate all sorts of body parts. However, if bull riders don’t ride, they don’t make money. The adage among cowboys is “It’s not if you get hurt but when…” Riders compete with arms in casts, knees dislocated and head injuries.

Fifty percent of all rodeo accidents happen during the bull riding competition. However bull riding generates the most excitement, has the most fans and makes the most money. What keeps the cowboys coming back to bull riding? The adrenaline rush, the lifestyle and obviously the money, plus there are lots of girls.

When my hero Logan meets Rachel Fox, an animal rights protester, he’s nursing a recently dislocated shoulder. He puts that pain aside for eight seconds to ride a bull named Punisher. Then Rachel runs naked into his ring ruining the ride but starting something else between these two strong-willed opposites.

Win a free copy of THE BULL RIDER AND THE BARE BOYCOTTER. Comment below. Please include your email address.

Excerpt from THE BULL RIDER AND THE BARE BOYCOTTER:

“Would you please stop gawking at me and give me a blanket to cover myself with?” Rachel Fox demanded, cupping her breasts in both hands and shifting on her heels. With a crossed leg she tried to hide her exposed bottom half and almost fell face first into the sod-covered floor.

Good God, why did she let Erin talk her into this?

Honestly, Rachel was more than willing to do anything to save Punisher and the other bulls from the abuse they suffered at the hands of cowboys like the man standing before her. But God help her, she was still shaking from the reaction of that angry mob. And Logan Cooper had no right spanking her. Now, he was denying her clothes.

Book Description:

Animal rights activist Rachel Fox is a woman with a mission. The plan is to step into bull rider Logan Cooper’s ring wearing nothing but a poster calling the rodeo a ‘blood sport’. While rescuing this passionate protester from a nineteen hundred pound charging bull Logan decides he likes what he sees. Only problem, he’s got to direct Rachel’s love away from the livestock and onto him. With the press hot on their heels, because who isn’t interested in a story about a bull rider and a naked protester, Logan brings the dark haired, curvy figured Brooklynite to his Montana ranch.


Except, now that he’s got Rachel in his bed he’s nervous his annoying, problematic brothers and surly preteen nephew will scare her off. But when Rachel meets Logan’s deeply flawed family she realizes the bulls aren’t the only ones who need saving, the Cooper brothers need her help too. The only problem is Rachel has a secret, after believing she was infertile, it turns out that this sexy bull rider may have changed her childless fate forever.

Find THE BULL RIDER AND THE BARE BOYCOTTER at:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Sweet Cravings Publishing

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Find Jeanine McAdam at:

Web Site: www.jeaninemcadam.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jeaninemcadambooks

Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeaninemcadam

Win a FREE copy of THE BULL RIDER AND THE BARE BOYCOTTER. Comment below. Please include your email address.

A Sweet Treat and a Stroll in the Orchard

   Hand in hand, they strolled deeper into the orchard. Apple, peach, cherry, and pear trees stood in haphazard arrangement, dotting the landscape like fruit-laden scarecrows, their odd-shaped branches silhouetted against the moonlit skies. Anne breathed in the sweet fragrance that filled the night air.

   She saw both hope and hesitation in George's dark eyes as his gaze searched hers. She tried to look away, fearing that he might too easily see her true feelings, but she could not. She was not asking George to break his vow. Only to love her. Only tonight. 

From: Happily Ever After

Welcome to my blog! I'm so glad you've stopped by as part of the "Just Desserts" blog hop. It's a perfect hop for those of us who love "sweet" romances.

But...to tell the truth, I'm not a desserts lover. Nope. I don't drool over chocolates, and the mere thought of sugary cookies, cakes, and candies makes me cringe. When it comes to desserts, for me, only one thing will do.

Fruits. Fresh delicious fruits. Tasty, mouth-watering, delectable, healthy, wonderful fruits! Fruits are good for us -- a claim most desserts can't make -- and the truth is, most people don't eat enough fresh fruit. Nutritional guidelines suggest we have five servings a day.

Here's one delicious way of getting those five servings with a scrumptious fruit compote dessert:

Ingredients:

1/2 medium lemon
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup honey
2 cups sliced peeled apples
2 cups sliced peeled peaches
1 cup sliced peeled pears
1/3 cup apricot spreadable fruit
2 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup seedless red grapes
7 tablespoons vanilla yogurt

Directions

Cut two 1-in.-long strips from lemon peel. Squeeze juice from lemon. In a large saucepan, combine the water, honey, lemon juice and lemon peel strips. Add the apples, peaches and pears. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cook, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes or until fruit is softened.

Remove from the heat; discard lemon peel. Using a slotted spoon, transfer fruit to a large bowl; discard poaching liquid. Stir in spreadable fruit, strawberries and grapes. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. Serve with a slotted spoon. Top each serving with yogurt. 

Yield: 7 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving (3/4 cup fruit mixture with 1 tablespoon yogurt) equals 166 calories, 1 g fat (trace saturated fat), 1 mg cholesterol, 14 mg sodium, 41 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 2 g protein. 

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What's your favorite fruit?

Leave a comment below, and you'll be entered for a chance to win an e-book copy of

"Happily Ever After".

Contest runs through midnight, Sunday night.

Two lucky readers will win!

Drawing will be held early Monday morning, and winners will be notified.

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Can't wait to read "Happily Ever After"? 

Here are the links to use for purchasing the book. "Likes" are also appreciated, so please check out the different booksellers and share a little love for historical romance.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER

$5.99

Available at:

Sweet Cravings Publishing

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

All Romance Ebooks

Bookstrand

For more "Just Desserts" from Sweet Cravings Publishing, click HERE!

A Knight in Not-so-shining Armor

I love Valentine's Day, and I especially love the theme of this Valentine's Blog Hop. "Swept Away" conjures up so many visions in my imagination. Falling in love is always a thrill and nothing compares to the feeling of being swept away by romance.

 Love is a powerful force, and it truly can sweep us off our feet. Romance novels can carry us away to different times and places, giving us opportunities to fall in love over and over again. That's why I write love stories.

When I wrote "Happily Ever After", my latest historical romance, I truly let myself be "swept away" by the story.  As George Mather, the story's leading man, came alive on the page, he became a true knight -- although his armor wasn't exactly bright and shining. I won't divulge what his physical armor was made from, but I will share a few of his thoughts about another sort of armor he wore: an emotional armor.

George is a lonely man. Two years earlier, his wife passed away. Before she died, he swore to Margaret that he would never marry again. Now, Anne Hopkins has come into his life. He's drawn to her, but bound by the vow he made.

He and Anne have spent a bit of time planning a very special birthday celebration for his daughter's tenth birthday. The party will have a fairy-tale theme, and Sir George will ride his valiant white steed.

Here's a quick excerpt:

He made a courtly bow. “Good day, fair lady.”

The sound of Anne's laughter lingered in his mind and heart as he hurried toward the stable.

Ah, to be a true knight, to rescue damsels in distress. He had his horse, and, in truth, he had his armor too. No one could see it, but he felt its weight upon him. His unseen armor had protected his heart since Margaret's death. It had kept him true and faithful.

Only now, Anne had found a chink in it, had gotten through it.

Sometimes when he thought about her—and even though he'd managed to avoid seeing her all week, he hadn't found a way to keep her from his thoughts—he wished he could throw off his armor.

But promises were sacred, love was forever, and marriage vows could not be broken.

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I'll be giving away four copies of "Happily Ever After" during this Valentine's celebration.

To enter for a chance to win, please leave a comment on this post. 

Be sure to include your e-mail address so I can contact you if you're a winner!

My giveaway contest will run until 11:59 PM on February 17 -- Central Standard Time.

The following morning all entries will be counted, and Random.org will select four winners.  

I will contact all winners immediately after the drawing.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER

Currently ranked #8 Best-Seller at Sweet Cravings Publishing

$5.99

Available at:

Sweet Cravings Publishing

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

All Romance Ebooks

Bookstrand

Thanks for visiting "Time for Love". Please click HERE to continue "Hopping" along!

Cruising Along Into 2013

Welcome aboard!

And greetings from beautiful Los Cabos, Mexico.  Nah, not really. I'd love to be there, basking in the warm Mexican sunlight instead of sitting here in the dreary midwest looking out at the snow and ice still on our porch. Oh, well.

Thank goodness for imagination. If I can't actually travel around the world, I can still visit places I've longed to see by reading about them. Through the pages of romance novels, I've done a lot of traveling, and I've fallen in love more than a few times along the way.

When it comes to writing my own stories, I tend to stay close to home most of the time. It's nice to add little details I know from personal experience, and it's also fun to learn about the history of the area as I research past places, people, and events.

Secret Cravings Publishing has been great to work with, and I hope you'll join with me in celebrating their second anniversary. I hope you'll join with me, as well, as I celebrate the release of my second novel with SCP.

It's "Happily Ever After" -- set close to home in Kansas City, Missouri. The story takes place in the late 1890s,  a time when life might have been a bit slower-paced and moral standards a bit different, but love and passion have always been part of the human experience.

It's a story of love, and a story of loneliness, a story of dragons, and a story of despair.

Anne Hopkins wants to help Rowena Mather, a troubled 9-year-old girl who is grieving over her mother's death. But helping Rowena means dealing with the girl's father, too.

George Mather is a desperately lonely man. Although he's drawn at once to his daughter's new caretaker,  his heart is trapped in the past, still bound to his late wife, Margaret, and to the vow he made to her.

An innocent child with frightening nightmares, a broken man struggling to cope, and a devoted grandmother who can't stay away from her opium...the Mather family need Anne in their lives.

But what of the secrets Rowena shares about her father? Could George be the dragon of Rowena's dark dreams? Has his grief turned him to anger and violence?

George has questions about Anne Hopkins, as well. He's seen her with another man, and he's heard the rumors about town. Is she the kind-hearted woman she appears? Or is she hiding a shameful secret?

You can read a short excerpt from Happily Ever After by clicking HERE!

To help with my new-release celebration, please leave a comment below, and let me know your favorite fairytale. They do come true at times, you know. I'll draw at random from all entries, and the winner will receive a free copy of "Happily Ever After" -- either Nook, or Kindle, as the winner prefers.

And don't forget my port-of-call for the SCP 2nd Anniversary contest. 

Christina Cole: Los Cabos, Mexico

Grand Prize for the SCP Giveaway is an IPad2

First Place: Kindle Fire

Second Place: $50.00 SCP Gift Card

Third Place: $25.00 SCP Gift Card

Thanks for visiting! You can now return to your home port! 

Click the link above to visit the SCP Blog.

Be sure, too, to submit your contest answers to:

reviewcoordinator@secretcravingspublishing.com

Happy Cruising!