30 April 2014

Virtual Book Tour: Guest Post: Night Games by Collette West


By: Collette West




Blurb
The moment Grey Kelleher locks eyes with All-Star shortstop Chase Whitfield, she's a goner. For years, she's watched him play on TV, and now she's gazing at his hard, lean body across a bar in her hometown.

Grey's crush on Chase goes all the way back to his rookie season. So when she approaches him for an autograph, she's startled by what a jerk he can be.

Chase is no mood to humor his fans, even one as alluring as Grey. He's in the last year of his contract and stuck having to prove himself on a minor league team. He's only there to rehab an injury, nothing more.

But when Grey tells him off, Chase realizes her fiery spirit may be just the distraction he needs to take his mind off not being in the majors. His heart is safe. No one's going to break his streak as baseball's most eligible bachelor. Not even someone as irresistible as Grey.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N Smashwords






Why jerks deserve a place in romantic fiction

 The hero of my sports romance is a jerk. He really is. I make no apologies for his egregious behavior. He can be a flat out douche at times. He changes girlfriends like he changes socks. He's terrified of true love so he has a lot of meaningless sex instead. He uses women as an escape rather than striving for a relationship that's real.

 Who is this guy?

 Chase Whitfield, star shortstop of the New York Kings and the leading man of my novel, NIGHT GAMES.

 Is he worth reading about? I think so. Be prepared. He's no Prince Charming, more like a work in progress. He's someone who wants to change but doesn't know how. For years, he's been pushing people away because he doesn't want to subject them to the level of scrutiny he's under. He's the most famous baseball player in America. Every word he says is analyzed. Every move he makes is put under the microscope. It's a lot of pressure living up to the hype surrounding his name. And he just doesn't want to pretend anymore.

 Why? Because he's finally met the girl of his dreams. And he nearly screws it up. Grey Kelleher is the small-town girl who sees right through his big ego. Chase can't hide who he really is from her, and he doesn't want to. But he doesn't know how to open himself up to her, either. Being emotionally intimate is a challenge for him. Yeah, he makes a lot of mistakes along the way, but Grey sticks with him. She believes in the good guy beneath the cocky exterior. Even when he falters, Grey never gives up on him. She helps him become the man he's always wanted to be.

 And when it comes to a romance novel, the transforming power of love is such a beautiful thing.






Author Info
Collette West grew up as somewhat of a jock-nerd hybrid. Entering the world three weeks premature, her dad nearly missed her birth because he had seats behind the dugout for a sold-out, highly-anticipated match-up between two of baseball's biggest rivals. Not to be outdone, her book-loving mom taught her how to read by the time she was three. A love of the game coupled with an appreciation for the written word were instilled in Collette's impressionable brain from a young age. No wonder her characters believe in the philosophy: sports + romance = a little slice of heaven.
Splitting her time between the Pocono Mountains and Manhattan, Collette indulges her inner fangirl by going to as many games as she can from hockey to baseball and downloading every sports romance novel in existence onto her iPad. When she's not clicking away on her laptop, she enjoys walking her dog in Central Park, satisfying her caffeine craving at the Starbucks on Broadway and keeping an eye out for Mr. Right. But above all, she loves dishing with her readers. Email her at collette_west@yahoo.com. 

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Follow the rest of the tour here!!
 

29 April 2014

Blurb Blitz Tour: Catch Me by Katherine Grant



Catch Me
by Katherine Grant



BLURB:
  
Adam. Enigmatic. Arrogant. Unwilling to take no for an answer. Everything about him threatens my carefully constructed life. Everything about him makes me want him more.

Isabelle Jennings has it good. She’s a self-proclaimed guys’ girl (football, beers, and kicking back with her “bros”) who has worked hard for everything she’s got. And she’s succeeded. Only twenty-six, she already has a startup company – one that helps her atone for past sins. She has (well, had) a healthy sex life, a great apartment and an even better group of friends. No romantic entanglements. No mess. Just how she likes it.

Enter Adam Weston, a young, ambitious businessman in Chicago. Between his money, looks, and charm, he’s never had a problem with women. Until Isabelle.

Overwhelmed by her attraction to him, Isabelle does everything she can to avoid the charismatic bad boy. But Adam won’t give up that easily. He dares her to be with him, promising sex sans strings. Isabelle’s burdened with a nightmarish guilt she can’t outrun. And Adam won’t settle for less than everything. He’s breaking down her walls, one touch, one look, at a time.

** Due to language and strong sexual content, this book is recommended for readers who are 18 and older. **

Although Catch Me is the first book in a series, it is a standalone novel.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Amazon UK | B&NKobo | Smashwords


Excerpt Two

Prologue

There was blood everywhere.

On the sink, on the fluffy brown towels. Dripping down white porcelain and onto the bathmat. The smell of it – iron and salt and fear – threatened to choke me.

It covered his arms, his hands, turning his jeans brown in some spots. He slumped over the sink.

I screamed, screamed and screamed until my throat went hoarse, but no one came. The tiled walls with their dizzying black and white design pushed in on me, making the room smaller and smaller. I was trapped.

Couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t escape.

I tried to staunch the bleeding, but it only got worse. Forcing my gaze away from blood soaked terrycloth, I looked into his pale blue, accusing eyes.

“Your fault,” he said as he sank to the floor. “Your fault, Isabelle. It’s all your fault.”



Katherine Grant is a 28-year-old avid reader, writer and soon to be author in Southern California (who likes to talk about herself in the third person in bios because it makes her feel important). Raised in a town in Michigan so small you've never heard of it, Katie used books as a way to travel. As a child, she talked so much that her family suggested she started writing her thoughts down. And thus, a lifelong dream and career was born. She has been everything from a short-order cook to a teacher to a music journalist.  She's finally embarking on being a novelist full time, and she couldn't be more excited.
                     
When not hard at work, Katie enjoys hanging out with her dog, lying on the beach, promising herself she'll one day learn how to surf (although it will never happen), making her boyfriend crazy by refusing to do the dishes, and getting lost in books. Also, cookies. She really, really likes cookies.

 Social Media: Blog  | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway

Katherine will be awarding a $25 Amazon giftcard to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. 

Follow the rest of the tour here!