If you’re Princess Lorraina, you paint.

A year ago Lorraina watched Tobias die, and she still doesn’t know how she’s supposed to heal—or forgive. How can she when she’s still running away? In an attempt to reinvent herself, she steps outside her comfortable life as princess and seeks the tutelage of a master painter—a man who is not at all impressed by her pedigree, and demands not just talent, but emotional honesty.

Struggling to learn what’s being taught, she finds herself drawn to someone who not only knows her secrets, but who she once considered far below her notice. Now she is compelled to seek him out despite knowing their relationship would be forbidden if discovered. Staying away from him doesn’t seem possible when discovering him may be the key to healing her heart and rediscovering herself.

Author Annette K. Larsen

I was born in Utah, but grew up in Flagstaff, Arizona and St. Louis, Missouri, the fifth of seven children. I attended Southern Virginia University and Brigham Young University, where I studied English and Theater. I now live in Idaho with my husband and four children.

I have Charlotte Brontë to thank for the courage to write novels. After being bombarded with assigned reading about women who justified abandoning either their families or their principles in the name of love, I had the great fortune of reading Jane Eyre. And that was it: finally, a heroine who understood that being moral and making the right choice was hard, and sometimes it hurt, but it was still worth it. After rereading it several years later, I realized that if I wanted more books to exist with the kinds of heroines I admired, then I might as well write a few myself. My books are about women who face hard choices, who face pain and rejection and often have to face the reality of sacrificing what they want for what is right. The consequences are often difficult or unpleasant, but in the end, doing what’s right will always be worth it.

I believe there is no substitute for good writing or good chocolate. Fortunately, one often leads to the other.

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$25 Amazon Gift Code or Paypal Cash

Ends 2/22/16

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Falcon Song by Kristin Cross

Kate can handle that Jason Falcon is gorgeous.

And she can handle that he is fantastically talented, and competent, and funny, and sweet, and . . . . well, all of the things he is.

What she isn’t sure she can handle is that he and his country band have suddenly become wildly famous.

Even though she has always known that he near worships her, with millions of girls now throwing themselves at him, Kate is afraid that Jason will find he no longer loves Kate best. Then, when she discovers something completely earth shattering, it only makes her more unsure.

Realizing that she can never settle for less than absolute devotion, as she is struggling to find what her place will be in Jason’s new top of the charts world, Kate wonders how you can ever truly know that things will work out.

Does True Love Always Lead To Happily Ever After?

Praise for Falcon Song

“So much emotion came through the words of this story. I felt it all—regret, forgiveness, redemption, and a powerful love that wrapped it all together. I had a hard time putting it down. This story really touched me!” DL

“I loved this story! Jason is one of my favorite heroes ever. I felt like I was right there with them through it all.” JM

Excerpt

Kate found Jason asleep on the porch swing again. Her drive had left her drained, without answers and somewhat resigned. As she looked down at him sleeping, still, the only thing she really knew was that she loved him. Loved him dearly. In spite of everything.
When it came right down to it, that was what made her happy. She wished there was a way to separate this crushing heartache from the sweet peace she felt when she was with him. Who knows, maybe she could get really good at ignoring the parts of his life she didn’t understand. She sat down on the edge of the swing and touched his beautiful hair.
His eyes opened slowly and this time there wasn’t a smile, but there was a sweet, sincere tenderness as he quietly watched her for a few seconds. She stroked his cheek and then ran a finger over his sensuous bottom lip. Even if he wasn’t perfectly trustworthy, he was definitely beautiful. She kissed the tip of her finger and put it back there on his lip and said softly, “Wake up, sleepy head. You’re gonna get a million ‘squito bites out here.”
He sat up and reached out to touch her cheek. “I’ll live. How was Texas?”
She sat down beside him. “Still big.”
He smiled sadly, “I told Cody you’d driven to Texas to talk to God. He said he didn’t even realize God lived there. He’s decided that’s why Texans are egotistical.”
She laughed. “That’s exactly what I needed just now. Laughing feels good. I thought I didn’t get to see you until tomorrow? What brings you tonight?”
He groaned and made a sound of disgust. “Ah, I Googled myself. It was awful.”
She pushed the porch swing with her foot. “I know.”
“I’m not really as bad as it looks. I swear.”
“I know.”

Author Kristin Cross

Kristin Cross was a mostly obedient child—unless her mom wanted her to put her book down.
She grew up in the Rockies and traveled with her family enough to want to travel more and have adventures in all those exotic looking places on the map that she hasn’t been to—yet. Now, as an adult, she also loves relaxing at home in the mountains and coming up with stories about those places.
Motherhood has been her best time yet, and she wishes she’d had more than just four marvelous children. She loves a good storm, a beautiful sunset, the wind in her face, puppies, and fresh mangos with her shrimp.
And her husband, DJ. She truly adores DJ.

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Ends 2/12/16

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the participating authors. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Coming soon from USA Today Bestselling Author Rachael Anderson

The Fall of Lord Drayson

Who is he really? A high and mighty Lord, or a lowly servant?

When Colin Cavendish, the new earl of Drayson, informs Lucy Beresford that she and her mother have two months to vacate the house they’ve called home for the past two years, Lucy is fit to be tied.They have no money, no relations they can turn to for help, and nowhere to go. How dare the earl break the promise his father had made to the Beresfords without so much as a twinge of conscience?

Mere hours later, Lucy discovers the earl unconscious and injured in the middle of the road. Grudgingly, she takes him into her home to tend to his wounds, but when he awakens with no recollection of who he is, Lucy seizes the opportunity to teach a much-needed lesson in humility. Pushing her own twinge of conscience aside, she informs the earl of Drayson that he is nothing more than a mere servant. Her servant, in fact.

And thus begins the charming tale of a pompous lord and an impetuous young woman, caught together in a web so tangled that it begs the question: Will they ever get out?

Coming late-summer 2016

Author Rachael Anderson

A USA Today bestselling author, Rachael Anderson is the mother of four and is pretty good at breaking up fights, or at least sending guilty parties to their rooms. She can’t sing, doesn’t dance, and despises tragedies. But she recently figured out how yeast works and can now make homemade bread, which she is really good at eating.

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Ends 2/17/16

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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The Proving by Ken Brosky

It’s been 100 years since the Specters invaded Earth. Like ghosts they haunt the planet, devouring any human being foolish enough to venture outside of the last remaining protected cities. For some humans, venturing out isn’t a choice–it’s an opportunity to prove yourself to your clan. But when a coterie of New Adults undertaking a mission deep in Specter territory discover a terrible secret, they quickly find that everything they’ve learned may be wrong … and Earth is in grave danger.

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Ends 2/15/16

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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The answer is no. Books are not regulated and graded like movies, music, and video games, and it’s up to the authors and publishers to choose the genre. A young adult novel usually means the main characters are in their teen years. However, some books with older characters can pass as a young adult read if they’re clean–such as the Alissia Roswell Series.

Although most people believe a young adult book keeps to certain standards–no sex, low violence, and mild cursing–that’s not the case. I’ve stopped reading many books  only halfway through, because I was disgusted with the hard cursing, sexual content, and lack of morals in the main characters. I know of one book that I put down without finishing the first chapter. The main character’s mouth made me cringe with R-rated cursing, and she was a horrible person.

I’ve read many books where the main characters are assassins and considered people of bad reputation, but the writer kept it clean. Even in my Alissia Roswell Series, where I touch on alcoholism, child abuse, rape, and murder, it’s still a clean read.

I read half of a young adult werewolf book where the main characters spent a LOT of time completely naked while making out, but they couldn’t go through with sex until after their wedding ceremony. (Shaking my head in frustration.) Just because there was no actual sex, the author considers naked make out sessions a teen read. If her book was a movie, what rating would that get?

While volunteering at my daughter’s middle school book fair, two girls were standing behind me talking about books. One of them pointed to a book and said, “Fifty Shades of Grey right there. That book shouldn’t even be in here.”

While reading the reviews of a book I considered downloading for my daughters, a lot of the reviewers complained that the main teenage character had a low self-esteem from abuse. She then befriended a group of boys and winded up becoming “their girl.” Instead of choosing one boy, they shared her (which seems more abusive).

As for language, many self-published authors believe in “keeping it real.” They defend the heavy cursing in their young adult novels by saying, “All teens curse.” However, they fail to realize that most of the young adult books that make it to movies don’t have any curse words in them. They also fail to realize that many teens don’t want to be saturated with those words. They hear enough of them at school and often feel pressured to use them.

How can you be aware of what you’re purchasing for your teen–or yourself? Check the reviews on Amazon. I always go to the lowest ratings first to see if they’re complaining about the mature content. If I don’t find anything there, I’ll go on and read a few of the five-star ratings to see if they praise it for being a read for young and old. Some reviewers, like myself, specify what type of content they found in the book.

If you’re reading this and getting upset with me for trying to control what my children read, you should be aware that I’m also trying to control what I read. I don’t want to read intense sex scenes, and I honestly don’t want my children reading them, either. It really doesn’t have a place in our home, and I hope you’ll respect that. Please don’t spam me with your opinions and argument.

In fact, one of my daughters wrote in a book review on her Goodreads account that she felt uncomfortable reading a make out scene in a middle school book. I didn’t know anything about it until after I read her review. I’m not forcing her to stay away from those books. She’s choosing it for herself. We all have different opinions 🙂

Broken Things to Mend by Karey White

***This book is part of a multi-author project that features one recurring character–the match maker–but it is a STAND-ALONE novel.***

Celia is in desperate need of a change–a change of scenery, a change of pace, and a complete redo of all relationships. Not knowing what else to do, she opens a map, closes her eyes, and lets fate decide her future. Then she packs her meager belongings and buys a one-way ticket to a little town on the fringes of Oregon’s Deschutes National Forest called Sisters. She’s wanted a family for years. Will she find one in Sisters?

What Celia doesn’t plan to find is a strange Chinese woman whose meddling ways keep throwing her in the path of a handsome, but reserved, forest ranger. But no matter how kind or dependable Silas seems to be, there are some things in Celia’s past that neither of them can escape, and this time, the damage might be too much to mend.

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Author Karey White

Karey White grew up in Utah, Idaho, Oregon, and Missouri. She attended Ricks College and Brigham Young University. Her first novel, Gifted, was a Whitney Award Finalist.

She loves to travel, read, bake treats, and spend time with family and friends. She and her husband are the parents of four great children. She teaches summer creative writing courses to young people and is currently working on her next book.

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Book Blast Giveaway – $50 Amazon Gift Card or $50 in Paypal Cash

Ends 1/24/16

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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