New #review for Unholy Alliance #Tirgearrpublishing #romanticsuspense

Thank you, reviewer Sky Rae, for your generosity of time to read and review Unholy Alliance, a new release from Tirgearr Publishing. It is still 99 cents over the weekend. 

5.0 out of 5 stars  A Fun, Entertaining Read

By Sky Rae  April, 2017

Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

Rowland’s thriller may be “unholy,” but it’s a lot of fun. Tori is a newly freed woman after serving time for a crime she didn’t commit, out to find her cousin Vivienne. Add the mob, the FBI, a murder trial, and a food truck – what more can you want in a crime thriller! But the real sizzle to the story is Tori’s relationship with her attorney, Grady Fletcher (love the name!). The two have great chemistry – and it’s a blast to read!

Rowland knows how to craft a crime thriller. The characters are convincing and well-drawn, and the storyline clips along at a good pace. She knows how to keep the pages turning and the suspense high. I have not heard of Rowland before, but I’m sure going to check out the rest in the Donahue Cousin’s series. Unholy Alliance is a great book for an entertaining read – Highly Recommended.

Buy link in every possible format is here for Unholy Alliance. 

#eggcerpt fun for your basket #contemporary #romance @authortinagayle

Please welcome talented writer of romantic and complex relationships, Tina Gayle.  I'm honored to spotlight her free book, My Future Step Brother. If you love the Executive Wives' Club books, get this one now while it's free!

Here is the blurb for My Future Step Brother

Lyndsey Turner only wants to have fun.  She doesn’t care if her dad marries Travis Clark’s mother. Travis is super-hot and sets her body on fire every time he steps near her.

Travis has other ideas. He understands Lyndsey’s wild streak and wants her attention on him. All seems to be working according to his plan until his mother discovers she may have breast cancer.

Now, Travis wants to solidify his relationship with Lyndsey and start planning for their future.

Will Lyndsey commit to be his alone or does he have to play the dating game a while longer?

If you love romance, don’t miss this short story from the popular Executive Wives Club series

Excerpt:

Frustrated by his answers and his standoffish attitude, she rose onto one knee and swung her leg over his to straddle his lap. She rested her hands on his shoulders. “And if he still doesn’t like the fact we’re dating?”

She rubbed his chest, enjoying the soft texture of his cotton T-shirt. “Though in truth, I’m not sure we can claim we’re doing anything other than sharing the same space.”

Grinning, he circled her waist and his fingers toyed with the hem of her top. “You’re just cranky because you’re still recovering from the concert last night. I told you when we booked it we wouldn’t get home until late.”

Lyndsey smiled, remembering the wonderful music. The only drawback being the long drive back from the casino in Iowa and the early wake-up call this morning to get ready for work. Tuesday night was not the best night to party. She’d survived, but today, her patience with his aloof attitude had hit ground zero.

“That’s not the problem.” She dropped her hand to the zipper of his jeans and cupped his length through the stiff fabric. “I’m tired of playing around. I want this bad boy deep and making me scream.”

Pick up Free at https://www.instafreebie.com/free/EwL6x

Other books in the series

Marketing Exec’s Widow

IT Exec’s Baby

CFO’s Affair

CEO’s Widow

Read 1st Chapter at www.tinagayle.com

Tina Gayle’s Bio

Her first romantic novel published in 2008, Tina Gayle has written over thirty romantic books under two different pseudonyms. Her novels span several different genres from contemporary to fantasy and sweet to erotic. She enjoys the challenge of drawing a reader into a story and having them travel down the same road as her hero and heroine. Married thirty years, she enjoys spending time with her husband on the golf course. Find out more about Tina on her website www.tinagayle.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/#!/AuthorTinaGayle
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Tina-Gayle/214633841921560?ref=hl

Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/Tina-Gayle/e/B002BM9GR8

Review #newrelease #Thriller #romanticsuspense

Thank you, Robecca Litman, for your review of Unholy Alliance at Lovestoryreaders Soiree.

Rebecca Litman, Storyteller’s Soiree Reviewer:

Fantastic!  Enthralling for readers who love romantic suspense.

Unholy Alliance begins on the day Tori Morningstar (the name she goes by now) is released from jail for a crime she didn’t commit.  One horrible night Tori and her cousin, Vivienne, were having dinner at an Irish American restaurant in Long Beach, California.  They witness a brutal murder.  Both were mobster’s daughters who’d lived privileged lives and wanted to leave “the life” behind them.  Tori paid for that decision by being framed for the murder, and Vivienne ran out the back of the restaurant.  Tori ‘s convinced Vivienne is being held by the sadistic thug who’d framed her.

When her attorney Grady Fletcher, who’d successfully appealed her case, defends a client accused of a similar murder, he consults Tori.  From this point on, hold tight —the author Kathleen Rowland puts you in the front seat and hits the gas.  You’ll experience a sometimes funny, past-paced, romantic story.  Rowland brings in her imagination and details as you wonder what will happen next.

The hero, Grady, is compelling as he pursues a twisted criminal with the help of FBI agent Gary Guhleman (from book 1 of the series, Deadly Alliance).  Grady has chemistry with Tori, who works her own case as a sleuth running a food truck. Heroine Tori is a wonderful character as well with plenty of courage and intelligence.  They have differences of opinion mostly about Vivienne.  Their love scenes are exciting without seeming misplaced or excessive, and their relationship is developed in a way that feels natural and true.

There is also plenty of humor to break up the tension, not only between Tori and Grady but with secondary characters, Finn and Amy Donahue, from Deadly Alliance.  Unholy Alliance has danger, suspense, lust, love, revenge, justice and even an adorable old bloodhound, Sherlock.

Buy Link: http://www.tirgearrpublishing.com/authors/Rowland_Kathleen/unholy-alliance.htm 

#amwriting #Tirgearrpublishing Creating a #villain for romantic suspense!

Welcome to my discussion about villains in romantic suspense.

If you plan to write a romantic suspense, create a villain your readers love to hate.  In RS the staring characters are the hero and heroine, but a well-characterized and realistic villain gives readers a chill and propels the story. A villain needs at least one good quality. In UnholyAlliance (book2 of the Donahue Cousins series) Seamus McGinn exhibits opportunistic intelligence when he takes over the Irish gang in Long Beach, California. A vacancy had opened up after the murder of the mob boss in book1, Deadly Alliance. Seamus is middle-aged, handsome, and fascinating to a secondary character.  He is also a psychotic killer with a temper. 

There are three bad guys in Deadly Alliance, but one villain masterminds the greatest evil. Readers enjoy guessing his identity.

Where is your villain’s hideout? The basement in an old mansion is a great one, but I wanted to write a fresh hideout, a tiny island for Unholy Alliance which is set in Long Beach, California. Seamus McGinn bought a vacant island off the coast.  The THUMS (standing for Texico, Humble, Mobile, and Shell) islands still exist and are oil platforms built close to the water level made to look like little islands.  On McGinn’s (fictitious) island there’s one actual house but other buildings are fake but used to conceal drilling equipment.  Find a way to reveal the location.  Tori's mode of transportation is sailing.

In Deadly Alliance the villain holes up in an abandoned cabin in a remote area above Lake Arrowhead, California.  The cabin is isolated and eerie, a perfect spot for this withdrawn angry villain.

Here are a couple of things not to do when writing your villain’s point of view.  Don’t have him or her talk too much and take over the novel. If you use a tried-and-true (such as the serial killer, the drug dealer, the stalker, or the psychotic ex-husband) make him a family man.  A good villain is led by dark motivations. Revenge is a possible motive for villains, but only if the villain is going to all that trouble because he was wronged in a big way. Greed, anger, jealousy, and the lust for power make great motivations, but make it personal.  In Unholy Alliance Seamus McGinn framed heroine Tori Morningstar for murder.  Now she’s out, and he’s concerned she’ll find him.  
Wishing you success as you write your Romantic Suspense!

#eggcerpt exchange #contemporary #romance, Bedeviled spotlight on @madisonmichael

Please welcome author Madison Michael. I have the spotlight on Bedeviled, book #3 of the Beguiling Bachelor Series.

BLURB

Charlotte is on the run...
Charlotte Roche escaped dangers lurking in Boston by accepting a job in Chicago. A new name, a new beginning - all built on lies. Thinking she is safe, Charlotte drops her guard and sets her sights on her ruggedly handsome and wildly sexy running partner, Alexander Gaines. Can she advance their relationship from the track to the bedroom and still maintain her charade, or will Alex's probing questions pierce her carefully rehearsed story? 
Alex, with unrevealed secrets of his own, struggles to hold the irresistible Charlotte at arm’s length. But when Charlotte sustains a suspicious injury, Alex seizes the opportunity to cuddle up to the sassy beauty. Does he dare risk his reputation, his fortune, his friends, and his heart?
With exposure imminent, they appeal to their friends for help. Join Alex and Charlotte, along with characters you’ve met and loved in “Bedazzled” and “Beholden”, as they tackle the maze of half-truths and cover-ups threatening the lovers.
How can they build a bond with deceit on both sides? With malevolent forces advancing, is their love Bedeviled? 

EXCERPT

“You look so beautiful,” he told her in a husky voice. “I have been wanting to do this all night.”

His head lowered to hers, pulling her close against him as he leaned back until all her weight was leaning on his and she had no choice but to twine her arms behind his head or the tree trunk. His lips captured her slowly, softly pressing against hers. One hand rested low, on the curve between her back and her behind. The other came up to tangle in her short hair, holding her head still as he deepened the kiss. His lips demanded response, plundering her mouth with his tongue. He tasted of expensive wine and Alex as his tongue explored the recesses of her mouth, hot and insistent. Her breasts were flattened against his rock-hard chest, her hips tight against his as he held her to him.

When he lifted his head, shadowed by moonlight behind him, Charlotte was unable to read his expression. Unsure and unsteady, she waited, catching her breath. Blood was coursing through her veins, hot and urgent. Her heart was pounding from just one kiss.

“God, I want you,” he rasped, the words torn from him, raw and insistent before he dipped his head to kiss her again. She returned the kiss, opening her lips to his insistent ones, entwining her tongue with his, increasing the pressure against his mouth as she ran her hands up into his hair. She held fast to him, feeling his hand move from her hair to the nape of her neck, down along her bare arms, tracing a pattern there with his fingers. The feel of his hands on her skin was warm, strong and sure. She had longed for his touch and now desired it everywhere.

Alex lifted his head reluctantly. “If we don’t get back in that car now,” he told her, his voice hoarse with longing, “I will not be responsible for my actions.”

He lifted her away from his body, steadied her and then hefted himself away from the tree and wrapped his arm around her shoulders to lead her back to the car.

She felt bereft without the solid warmth of him hard against her. Neither of them said a word until he opened her car door and closed it again, without allowing her inside. Instead, he pushed her gently against it.

“Sorry, I can’t make it home without one more.” Alex took Charlotte’s mouth in a searing kiss that took her breath away, sucking her lower lip into his mouth then sliding his tongue over it and into the moistness of her mouth. He kissed her senseless until she would have happily made love there in the sand, and the world be damned. She wanted this man as she had never wanted anything before.

Charlotte kissed him passionately, running her hands up and down his muscular back as she tightened her hold on him, wanting to get closer, to feel his bare skin, until finally they mutually agreed to some restraint and dragged apart from one another. He kept his fingers touching her lightly until she got in the car and he closed the door behind her.

“Jeez,” he stated with a rough chuckle as he folded himself into the bucket seat, “I hope there are no cops out, cause I am planning to break speed records getting you home.”

Available on Amazon

Other books in the Beguiling Bachelor Series – a steamy, Comtemporary Romance Series

Bewildered – a prequel, short story  How can Sloane choose between two hunky millionaires?

Bedazzled – Can Wyatt overcome tradition and family to seize Kelli for his own?

Bedeviled – Randall is just not part of Sloane’s plan when she claws her way back into society, but she is definitely part of his.

Bio for Madison Michael

Madison Michael traded 28 years in Fortune 500 tech and management positions for a chance to spend her days with sassy heroines, sexy, rich heroes and nothing but happy endings. Growing up the daughter of a librarian, she learned to love books, especially classics and romances, and spent winters cuddled under blankets losing herself in books.

Madison is the author of three novels in the Beguiling Bachelor series, as well as several short stories. She is a member of Romance Writers of America.

After living in the northeast, southeast and the west, Maddy returned to her Midwest roots. She lives in Evanston, IL with two feline editorial assistants and great views of Chicago’s famous skyline.

Madison welcomes your feedback at maddy@madisonmichael.net

Website: http://www.madisonmichael.net

Blog: http://www.madisonmichael.net/blog

FB: http://www.facebook.com/madisonmichaelromance

GR: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15221601.Madison_Michael

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/madisonmichael_

#review for Unholy Alliance #newrelease from #Tirgearrpublishing

Thank you, M.J. Neary for your awesome review on your CtcoMommy Blogspot yesterday! I'm thrilled you enjoyed and thought so highly of Unholy Alliance that you awarded five stars.  Click above or read it here:

Every once in a while I like to challenge myself by reading work outside of my comfort zone. Being sarcastic and pessimistic, I don't generally read books that have "romantic" in the genre, because you know there is going to be steamy sex between consensual adults, pillow talk and some semblance of a happy ending. Nevertheless, every once in a while a review copy lands in my lap. Anything that has to do with the Irish mob is fascinating. The Irish mob does not get as much coverage in fiction. Kathleen Rowland's Unholy Alliance is a second book in the Donahue Cousins series. The first book Deadly Alliance is the first one in the series, and I haven't read it yet, but there is enough of a back story in the second book to set the scene. Given that Unholy Alliance is a romantic suspense, a genre piece, there is only so much latitude the author can allow herself. It means that the rough edges have to be smoothed over. The crime cannot be too seedy, and the sex cannot be too smutty or kinky (although, there are some rather explicit descriptions of various body parts fitting into each other). The novel's protagonist, Tori/Victoria, has a criminal past, but it has to be for a crime she did not commit. So Tori is not a sympathetic redemption seeker. She is, essentially, a damsel in distress with a veil of martyrdom around her. And the man who pulls her out of jail, Attorney Grady Fletcher, whose only blemish is being a divorced guilt-ridden dad, is her knight in shining armor. So if you take comfort in this particular genre, then Unholy Alliance will prove a very satisfying read.

find Unholy Alliance here:

http://www.tirgearrpublishing.com/authors/Rowland_Kathleen/unholy-alliance.htm