~Getting to know the~

~Petit Fours and Hot Tamales Crew~

April’s Spotlight is on Linsey Lanier

Who are the ladies of the Petit Fours and Hot Tamales Blog? Why should you spend your precious time reading our daily posts?  Why do we want you to follow us and read our books, our personal blogs, our FB status updates and our Tweets? Let us tell you why…

Once Upon a time ~~

There was a little girl named Linsey who thought it would be fun to play with her imaginary friends all day. So she grew up to be a fiction writer.

How many “careers” have you had throughout your lifetime?

Glad you put that word in quotes. Lots of them. I’ve worked in a nursing home, as a word processor in a Big Eight accounting firm, a receptionist in an insurance company, a paralegal, a tech writer, and a software tester. Many of the people I’ve met in these jobs have given me loads of material for books. (But then, so have my in-laws.)

What is a typical writing day like for you – from the time you get up to the time you go to bed?

During breakfast, I usually edit pages I printed out the night before and try to write at least a page of new material, if I’m working on a new book. Then it’s off to work. I listen to an audio book during the commute to and from, but sometimes I record new material on a tape recorder, which I always carry with me. When I get home, I look at email, then have dinner and watch some screen with Hubby. Then I try to get a few pages in and type up the edits from the morning before I hit the hay. Before I do, I print out the next day’s pages. On the weekends, if I’m lucky to get a large block of time, I bear down and do as much as I can. I recently wrote seven and a half pages on a new book one Saturday, which is a lot for me. I revise and research as I write. Though it’s not 100% thorough, it makes for less cleanup on the second and third passes.

What writer advice would you give someone just starting to dip their toe into the writing world?

Brace yourself for a fun, but bumpy ride.

Why you should read my books?

Talk about a loaded question. Hmm. Without sounding like I’m tooting my own horn too much, I want to say that I put everything I’ve got into my books, trying to make them a page-turning, emotional, and entertaining experience for my readers. From the feedback I’ve received from some wonderful Australian readers lately, I seem to be hitting the mark. Hi, everyone from Australia!

What’s a little-known fact about you no one would suspect?

I love catfish.

BIO

Linsey Lanier is the author of over a dozen novels and several short stories. She writes romantic mystery-suspense, romantic fantasy, and romance—with a dash of sass. She is also a member of Romance Writers of America, Georgia Romance Writers, and the Kiss of Death chapter. Her books have placed in several RWA-sponsored contests, including the Maggies.

Links to Linsey Books

The Miranda’s Rights Mystery Series

Someone Else’s Daughter – Amazon 

Someone Else’s Daughter – B&N     

Someone Else’s Daughter – Smashwords     

Delicious Torment – Amazon  

Delicious Torment – B&N     

Delicious Torment – Smashwords     

Forever Mine – Amazon         

Forever Mine – B&N  TBD

Forever Mine – Smashwords 

You can find Linsey at the following locations:

Petit Fours and Hot Tamales: www.petitfoursandhottamales.com

Her Website: www.linseylanier.com

Linsey’s Amazon Author Page

Linsey at Smashwords

~Bonus Review~

Forever Mine

By Linsey Lanier

I cut my teeth on mystery series. 

On my eighth birthday my friend Jane gave me a Nancy Drew, and that was the way of my world from then on. Christie, Wolfe, Allingham, Marsh, James, Sayers—I bought them, borrowed them, considered stealing them when the overdue charge at the library grew too large to contemplate.

Grafton, Smith, and Davidson have now been joined by Linsey Lanier on my bookshelf. Forever Mine, the third volume in the Miranda’s Rights series of mystery novels, has everything a reader needs. Excellent settings and snappy dialogue, realistic challenges and rollicking danger, a luscious hero and, best of all, a warm-hearted heroine who can coldcock a villain and not pop out of her push-up bra.

I can’t wait to read more in the series.

Reviewed by Gilly Wright, www.facebook.comGillyWrightsRedPen  

Five Petit Fours

Four Hot Tamales

(Thank you Gilly!!!!)

Bridge of Scarlet Leaves

by Kristina McMorris

http://www.kristinamcmorris.com/

Reviewed by Sandra McGregor

I recently received a copy of Bridge of Scarlet Leaves by Kristina McMorris and was asked to read it and review it.  After reading the blurb on the back page, I wasn’t sure it was one I’d enjoy.  It’s not what I would have normally purchased to read for entertainment and relaxation.

The chapters are short—only two or three pages each, and by the time I’d reached the third chapter, I was hooked.  I was captivated by the tender story of young love, despite numerous challenges that rise to keep them apart.  Maddie is Caucasian and Lane is Japanese…at a time when mixed-race marriages were deeply frowned upon.

Bridge of Scarlet Leaves begins in late 1941, just before Japan bombs Pearl Harbor—a time when any person of Japanese descent, or even anyone who sympathized with them, was ridiculed and not trusted.  Despite it seeming as if the entire world is against them, Maddie and Lane find a way to be together. Each must make sacrifices, but even when they’re separated by forced internment and then when Lane joins the war effort as a translator, their love remains strong and their hope for a better future continues to burns bright.

Kristina McMorris did a beautiful job of weaving the Japanese culture into the story, bringing each individual to life on the pages and drawing you into the story until you hate to see it end.

I highly recommend Bridge of Scarlet Leaves.

5 Petit Fours and 2 Hot Tamales

Amazon   /   Barnes & Noble   /   Books A Million   /   Powell’s Books   /   Indie Bound

Be sure to stop back by on Thursday, March 8th to chat with Kristina McMorris as our featured Guest Chef.

 

The Doctor’s Mission

Debbie Kaufman

http://www.debbiekaufman.com/

Harlequin LoveInspired Historical

ISBN-10: 0373828942

ISBN-13: 978-0373828944

A woman doctor! Missionary William Mayweather can’t hide his disappointment. The Nynabo mission in Liberia, Africa, desperately needs help, but he’s vowed not to put another female in jeopardy. Too bad flame-haired Dr. Mary O’Hara refuses to turn back—and he cannot allow her to go into the jungle alone.

Medicine or marriage? For Mary, the choice was clear. Far away from the patriarchal medical community, she resolves to be of real service. She’ll willingly go head-to-head with the handsome, opinionated missionary, even in the face of deadly danger. Yet the greatest tests lie in trusting God’s plan—for the mission, and her future happiness in this untamed, beautiful land…

~~~

I’m going to give a disclaimer right up front – I’m bias where this book is concern. That being said I wouldn’t lie or even write a review just because I know the author. Now you have my proviso I’ll give you my thoughts on The Doctor’s Mission. As a Loveinspired, The Doctor’s Mission more than hits the mark. It is a sweet romance that still has titillating tension. The characters are well-developed and likeable, and the reader roots for the characters to get together. As a historical, the research shines and is woven into the story so that the reader is drawn in, instead of being hit over the head by the information. Its most striking element is that it is some of the finest writing I’ve read. It is spot on for the time period. If you like tender romances with a spiritual element I would highly recommend this book. If you just want to read a well-written book this is the one.

FORTUNE’S SON

 By Emery Lee

http://www.authoremerylee.com/

ISBN-10: 1402256442

ISBN-13: 978-1402256448

From the back cover:

Love is the ultimate gamble…

Seasoned gambler Philip Drake knows every trick and uses most of them. After years of infamy, he’s ready to accept the mantle of respectability with his earldom– until a devastating racing loss and the threat of debtors’ prison force Philip right back into his gaming ways…

Susannah, Lady Messingham, is a woman with a past who refuses to belong to any man again. But Philip’s skill catches her eye and she persuades him to teach her how to win at the tables. Their new partnership turns into an exhilarating high-stakes game that entangles them in terrifying risk and unimaginable rewards…

Immerse yourself in the risky side of Georgian England with a pair of lovers who aren’t afraid to risk it all on a toss of the dice…

Emery Lee brings Georgian England to life in her recent release Fortune’s Son. With its cast of colorful characters and a love story rife with twists and turns, this meticulously researched book is a captivating from start to finish. Not your typical beach read, it accompanied me everywhere I went on a recent cruise vacation: poolside, afternoon tea, even to the beach in Cozumel. I simply couldn’t put it down.  It’s that good.

After you finish this one, you will want to go back and read Emery’s debut novel, The Highest Stakes, for more background on some of the characters.  I can hardly wait to find out where this gifted author will take us next!

by Patrick Taylor

http://www.patricktaylor.ca/index.html

Publisher: Forge Books

ISBN: 978-0-7653-6685-6, ISBN10: 0-7653-6685-1,
Genre: General Fiction

From Jacket:

Barry Laverty, MB., is looking forward to his first Christmas in the cozy village of Ballybucklebo, at least until he learns that his sweetheart, Patricia, might not be coming home for the holidays. He has little time to dwell on romantic disappointment. Though Christmas may be drawing nigh, there is little peace to be found on earth for a young doctor working in the glens of rural Ireland, along with his senior partner, Doctor Fingal Flahertie O’Reilly.

To add to the doctors’ worries competition arrives in the form of a patient-poaching new physician whose quackery threatens the health and well-being of the people of Ballybucklebo. Can one territory support three hungry doctors? Barry has his doubts.  But the wintry days and nights are not without tidings of comfort and joy. Despite their hectic medical practice the two doctors still find time to play Santa Claus to a struggling single mother with a sick child and not enough money in the bank. Snow is rare in Ulster, and so are miracles, but that doesn’t mean they never happen.

~~~

This is the third book of this series I have read, and I love this one, too!  You feel as if you should be in front of the fire place with a cuppa enjoying following the lives of Doctors Barry Laverty and Fingal Flahertie O’Reilly.  I laughed out loud at the pageant and could not put this book down.  The author, Dr. Patrick Taylor, was born in Ireland and lives in Canada and Ireland.  If you enjoy letting his writer’s voice transport you to a small Irish Village of years past, then his books are for you.

~~~

The books we review on this site, unless otherwise noted, are our own personal copies. The Petit Fours and Hot Tamales blog members do not accept payment in exchange for a review or mention.

By Jackie Braun

http://jackiebraun.com/

Harlequin Romance

ISBN-13:978-0-373-17551-2

Hired: one Christmas angel!

With the dreaded holidays nearing, the last thing widowed businessman Dawson Burke needed was a personal shopper who wanted to get personal. What part of “I want to be left alone” didn’t Eve Hawley understand? She just seemed intent on getting him into the Christmas spirit…

Eve could see Dawson had stopped wishing on the future, and he didn’t know how lucky he was to be surrounded by loving family. But once she’d helped him find the joy he’d been missing, Eve couldn’t help wishing Dawson would give her the best Christmas present of all—by proposing to her.

Dawson is a poor tortured soul and Eve is the upbeat woman with her own problems that pulls him back into living again. I liked Dawson, Eve and Dawson’s family. Just a good down home book. One of the best books I’ve read in a long time.  Keeper.

~~~

The books we review on this site, unless otherwise noted, are our own personal copies. The Petit Fours and Hot Tamales blog members do not accept payment in exchange for a review or mention.

by Tess Garritsen

http://www.tessgerritsen.com/books/rizzoli-isles-series/

Publisher:  Ballentine Books

ISBN:  978-0-345-45892-6

Genre: Romantic Thriller

Back Jacket:

Not even the icy temperatures of a New England winter can match the bone-chilling scene of carnage at the chapel of Our Lady of Divine Light.  Within the convent lie the two nuns—one dead, one critically injured—victims of an unspeakably savage attacker.  The crime appears to be without motive, but medical examiner Maura Isles’ autopsy of the dead woman yields a shocking surprise…Together, Isles and homicide detective Jane Rizzoli uncover an ancient horror.  As long-buried secrets come to light, Isles finds herself caught up in an investigation that strikes too close to home—and toward a dawning revelation about the killer’s identity too shattering to consider.

Garritsen keeps the action fast-paced and riveting.  Her wonderful writer’s voice puts the reader in the middle of the action.  This book was a suspenseful thriller that you will find hard to put down.

Phantoms & Fantasies

By Annie Rayburn

http://annierayburn.com/

Publisher: Annie Rayburn; 2nd edition (May 26, 2011)

Sold by: Amazon Digital Services

Zeenie LaShey is recovering from a horrendous act that has left her afraid of intimacy. For years Turk Fontaine has known he is Zeenie’s life mate but has not acted on the feelings that are such a huge part of their Crainesians race.  With his best friend dating Zeenie’s roommate, Turk is able to stick close while giving her a chance to heal from an attack. Now that Zeenie has decided to step back into the relationship realm, Turk is more than ready to make his feelings known. He’s even willing to endure the ridicule of other Crainesians for being the pursuer in the relationship when it is normally the female who takes that role.

When Zeenie finally comes to terms with their inevitable attraction, she now has to find a way to fix things so that her life mate does not have to face the mockery from their world. But what would be a big enough gesture to fix this melee?

I won’t spoil the ending but I can tell you there is no doubt to be had about Zeenie claiming her man.

Phantoms & Fantasies is a breathtaking story. Ms. Rayburn has totally created a world that is both believable and sexy. Her alien race of Crainesians blends easily with their human neighbors and share a large number of similarities. The traits that do make them different are what make these books so tantalizing. I could see myself living next door to a Crainesian and am envious of the link the life mates have with each other. Zeenie and Turk have incredible chemistry and I love how patient Turk is as he waits for Zeenie. His surprise with house shows the reader just how vested he is and his willingness to take on the ridicule from their world shows how much she really means to him. This guy is everything a girl (either human or Crainesian) is looking for.

I read this Phantoms & Fantasies in one sitting, it was that good. I think Annie Rayburn has a definite keeper with this new world and I can’t wait to read more.

Boomerang Bride

by Fiona Lowe

Publisher: Carina Press

ISBN:  978-14268-9200-4

Media:  e-book

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Matilda Geoffrey flew from Australia to a small Wisconsin town to surprise her online “fiancé”, only to discover she’s been scammed.

Returning to his small hometown for a family visit, Marc Olsen sees a bride with a wedding cake but no groom standing in front of stores closed for the Thanksgiving holiday. He’s made an art form out of not getting involved, but is drawn to the forlorn sight and offers to help.

The chance encounter sets in motion unexpected changes in their lives, changes neither is prepared for. Can they put aside their reservations, based on a history of hurt, and risk their hearts before it is too late?

- – - – -

You know a book is really good when you find yourself wishing you were neighbors with the characters, when you wish you could shop in their stores and eat at their favorite diner. As a writer, you really know a book is good when you forget to study the craft and read for pure enjoyment. Such was the case for me when reading Fiona Lowe’s Boomerang Bride.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story from the first moment that Marc spies the forlorn-looking Aussie bride alone on the street of his home town to the last word in the Epilogue, which garnered a satisfied sigh. The series of events that weave Marc and Matilda’s lives together seemed as organic to the story as snow is to their Wisconsin winter, making it feel as if it’s a true story being recounted for my enjoyment.

While Boomerang Bride is very much a romance, it’s also a portrait of familial love’s twists and turns which results in the desperate and euphoric moments that make life interesting. Fiona Lowe is a gifted writer whose portrayal of those moments make this a book you’ll remember long after you’ve read the final word.

When One Night Isn’t Enough

By Wendy S. Marcus

http://wendysmarcus.com/
Harlequin Mills and Boon Medical

ASIN: B0055PQAIG

Buy it Here

Confessions of an E.R. nurse…

Nurse Ali Forshay has swapped dating disasters for nights out with the girls. But after spending more time than is strictly necessary discussing the man she loves to hate–the notoriously delicious Dr. Jared Padget–Ali’s horrifying realization is that she’s one hundred percent crazy in lust with him! Her conclusion: spend a feverish night together. After all, it would just be a onetime thing and it would cure her obsession…wouldn’t it?

Ali is a kind and caring nurse that always goes above and beyond what is necessary to help someone. Jared is a great doctor that shows compassion towards his patients. Neither Jared or Ali can seem to shake their past. Ali is looking for someone steady and sure, and Jared is always moving on. Each learn to appreciate the other, but is that enough to make a lasting love?

If you love books that begin with the characters at odds with each other but they can’t control the attraction the simmers just below the surface then When One Night Isn’t Enough is the read for you.

This is Wendy S. Marcus’s debut novel for Mills and Boon Medicals. I’m one reader that is already looking forward to the next one.