Romance Gem Liz Flaherty Is Bringing Color To Our World With LIFE'S TOO SHORT FOR WHITE WALLS

Good morning, all! What crazy weather have you got cooking today? We've had a little bit of everything lately--rain, snow, hail, high winds... Well, luckily we have books to distract us from such things. I speaking of books, (see that smooth segue?) today the wonderful Liz Flaherty is joining us with her new release, LIFE'S TOO SHORT FOR WHITE WALLS. We'll find out more about that, but first, let's get to know Liz better.

[Make sure to enter her giveaway below!]

When did your love for writing start?

I always said it started when I was nine and my aunt let me type on her portable Royal typewriter. I created a terrible story in which I misspelled consciousness. However, it has lately come to me that in the first grade, I felt a story in my Dick and Jane reader ended incorrectly and that my ending would have been much better. I still think it would have been, so, to answer the question, I was six.

What is something you struggle with when you write?

I struggle most with freshness. Since I like the sound of my own voice—gasp!—I think I don’t try to improve it or change it up. While I like it to be recognizable by readers, I truly fear Good grief, all her books are alike! Syndrome. (It’s a real thing—I just made it up.)

Where do you live? Where would you love to live?

I live in the cornfields of central Indiana, five or six miles from where I grew up. I love it here, politics aside (way aside.) That being said, on my first trip to Vermont after our youngest kids moved there, I knew I was home. I’m convinced it’s where I was meant to live, but someone took a wrong turn somewhere. If I had no one but myself to consider, I would move there tomorrow. However, I like having people besides myself to consider, so it’s not happening.

If you owned a CB radio what would your "handle" be?

I used to have one! Prior to cell phones, I had a CB because I drove 20-some miles to work and my husband worried less if I was “online.” My handle, since I was a postal worker, was Letter Lady.

What was the last song you listened to in your digital library?

“Sweet Baby James.” I love James Taylor. A lot.

What one thing (modern convenience) could you not live without?

No question about it—the computer. I’ve written 20-some books. Without the computer, I undoubtedly would have stopped midway through the first one. Oh, I would have a ton of handwritten manuscripts under the bed, but even in the last century, I don’t think there was an editor alive who’d have welcomed them. 😊

Thanks for sharing yourself with us, Liz! Now let's find out more about LIFE'S TOO SHORT FOR WHITE WALLS...

I worry a lot about my stories sounding alike, my heroines being paper-doll-cutouts of each other. I’m afraid I’ve written too many heroes with dimples in their left cheeks. Do I have too many people with crooked grins, one raised eyebrow, or a shrug that somehow defines their personalities?

I hope not, but a few of the things that are the same from book to book are starting over, new beginnings, home, friendships, tenderness. And I’m good with that.

They are there in Life’s Too Short for White Walls, when forty-something Joss Murphy and Ezra McIntire find themselves in the same place, but searching for different things. They know a few things about themselves by now—Joss is determined she will have color wherever she goes and Ez is committed to always being one step ahead of things that are dangerous or hurtful to anyone around him. 

Blurb ~

Still reeling from her divorce, Joss Murphy flees to Banjo Bend, Kentucky, where she'd been safe and happy as a child. The family farm is now a campground. Weary and discouraged, she talks owner Ezra McIntire into renting her a not-quite-ready cabin.

With PTSD keeping him company, Ez thrives on the seclusion of the campground. The redhead in Cabin Three adds suggestions to his improvement plans, urging color and vibrancy where there was none.

Neither is looking for love, yet the attraction they share is undeniable. Can the comfort of campfires, hayrides, and sweet kisses bring these two lost souls together?

Excerpt ~

Joss stopped under the canopy of trees that led back to the campground, opening her car window so she could breathe in the scent of early autumn. It was a hard thing for a person as busy as she’d always been to stare the future in the face with no idea what she was going to do with it. She would give herself time to decide, time to take more deep breaths and get over the feeling of dread that seemed to accompany her everywhere. Although she didn’t have enough money to last forever, it would carry her for a while.

She looked up at the trees, noting that the colors of the leaves were already changing and that the air smelled different—it wasn’t just the day’s lack of humidity. It was, she supposed, the scent of things dying, but she wasn’t going to think of it that way. To her, it was going to be all about starting over. Starting new in this beloved place that still felt like home.

HERE'S WHERE YOU CAN BUY LIFE'S TOO SHORT FOR WHITE WALLS:

B & N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lifes-too-short-for-white-walls-liz-flaherty/1140917290?ean=2940160796727

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09QXPBGG2/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i4

Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/gb/book/lifes-too-short-for-white-walls/id1606569657

Bio~

Liz Flaherty is rather bewildered by where she’s at in life. She doesn’t feel…er…elderly, but the truth is that she is. The Magnificent Seven grands have grown up on her, her own kids are all now older than she is, and her husband Duane has the same firm hold on her heart he’s always had. And it’s all good.

HERE'S WHERE YOU CAN FIND LIZ:

http://lizflaherty.net/

http://www.facebook.com/lizkflaherty

https://twitter.com/LizFlaherty1

Newsletter signup: http://eepurl.com/df7dhP

Giveaway ~

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today You Have A Shot At CLAIMING SHANDY, Return to Welcome Book 4, from #RomanceGem Bonnie Edwards

Good morning, one and all! Hope you guys are having a splendid day thus far! I've got my Romance Gem friend, Bonnie Edwards, on with her new book, releasing today, CLAIMING SHANDY! Let's find out more...

Blurb ~ 

She thought her divorce was final…

Welcome WA, where rumor, gossip, and old grudges endure long past their best before date.

Justin Camden wants his life back. His wife back. His son back. And he’s returned to Welcome to get them. Justin has a plan for the Christmas season and moving in with his ex and his boy is just the beginning.

Shandy Camden is stuck. Her big oaf of an ex-husband has finagled his way into her home for the entire month of December. He claims to want an old-fashioned family Christmas with their son. She’s forced to let Justin stay because refusing will break her son’s heart.

Slowly, Shandy sees that her ex may have another agenda. But she doesn’t believe in the magic of Christmas the way their son does. Helpless and forced to live with her ex, Shandy struggles to overcome her growing attraction to the only man who’s ever left her. The only man she’s ever loved. But Justin left once and if he leaves again, she’ll never recover, and neither will their son…

When the truth comes out, Shandy and Justin may well have discovered that more than anything, Christmas is about love.

 

Warning: This book has lots of groveling in it. If you don’t want to read about a divorced man making things right, then this romance isn’t for you. 

Excerpt ~

Chapter One

December 1 Welcome WA

Justin Camden was no quitter. Never had been and he wasn’t about to give up now. But first he had to do battle against the dragons breathing fire in his gut. He’d never been this scared. Not even at fourteen when his dad caught him out driving his mom’s car at midnight.

He parked outside the Welcome Bar & Grill and called his buddy, Jake Morrow who was inside with a group of friends. Friends who included Justin’s wife, Shandy.

Everything he wanted to accomplish tonight hinged on whatever BS line Jake had come up with. “It’s me. I’m here. What did you tell her?”

In the background, Justin heard happy people greeting each other over the distant sound of a Christmas song. The season had begun. He climbed out of his car while he heard Jake excuse himself to take the call.

“Bedbugs.”

The background noise had receded, but Justin couldn’t have heard right. “What?”

“Every hotel in the area’s infested. Didn’t you know?” Jake said with a smirk in his voice.

“She’ll never believe that.” He had his hand on the brass door pull. Yanked it toward him.

“I believe she does believe me.”

He shook his head. No way. Shandy was the smartest woman he’d ever met and for the past three years, she’d been made of stone. He had to make her crack, but nonsense about bedbugs wouldn’t do it. The flame-thrower in his belly belched. Maybe he should turn around and leave.

“Plus, I told Shandy how much Brianna and I are enjoying our honeymoon period,” Jake was saying. “She can’t force you to stay with us. She has to let you stay at her place. She’ll have no choice.”

“Our place.” The home they’d bought together, to raise their family in. “You ass. Bedbugs?” He was inside the vestibule now, looking through the stained-glass partition, searching the restaurant side of the building. “I see the table.”

Jake stood a few feet away from the group. “Don’t worry, you got this,” he said, looking right at him through the multi-colored pane.

“My best and only shot.” He ended the call, plastered a smile on his face and made his way through the tables to where Shandy sat beside an empty chair. If this crazy bedbug story worked, he’d have a chance to get her angry. He needed her angry.

If she were angry with him, it was a sign that she still cared. That he could still make her feel something for him.

An angry Shandy was honest, and open. Angry Shandy was not a stone angel, cold and remote, the way she’d been for too long. He needed honest and open or his plan to return to Welcome and be the husband and father he wanted to be would fail.

Justin Camden was no quitter. He doused the flames in his gut.

YOU CAN PURCHASE CLAIMING SHANDY HERE: 

https://books2read.com/ClaimingShandy  

 Bio~

Bonnie Edwards has been writing all her life, starting with a poem about Santa suffering with gout. She was seven, Santa was a thousandteen years old. Delighted with writing, she went on to write family sagas, humorous contemporary romance, romantic suspense, erotic paranormal ghost romances and more.



She may jump around within romance, but all her stories come with a tear, a laugh, and a happy ending. Published by Kensington Books, Harlequin Books, Carina Press, and Robinson (UK) Bonnie’s stories stretch from short stories to novellas and novels. Now, she's happy to be publishing her work herself.

With 40 titles to her credit, she has been translated into several languages and sold books worldwide. Aside from standalone romances, she has 6 romance series that include Christmas romances and beach reads. Contemporary family sagas find a home in Return to Welcome. Learn about more exciting releases and get a free romance by subscribing to her newsletter, Bonnie’s Newsy Bits.

Cheers and happy reading!

Bonnie Edwards

Follow her online:  Amazon     Website     BookBub     Twitter     Facebook

 

 Thank you for joining us today, Bonnie! It was a delight having you! Come back any time!

~ This Book Will Be BETTER Than Your Last! ~

Please welcome guest blogger author Melanie Jaynes!

WHILE I STOOD BY

By Melanie Jayne

Many years ago, I met my friend at a reader’s con. We were both there to meet one of the authors and became immediate friends. I thought she was full of life and so bubbly. I swore that I could hear a giggle in her voice whenever she spoke. We continued our connection after the con, sharing life’s ups and downs.

I noticed over time that she didn’t seem as bubbly and her sunny outlook had become greyer. I hoped that she would confide in me what was troubling her, if something was troubling her. This past spring I received a text saying that her husband was leaving her and their two children for another woman. He didn’t love her anymore.

I was worried, and she was devastated. I knew that many times couples separate and get back together so I was very careful about my comments. If the couple reconciled then I didn’t want to be the friend who said terrible things about him. I spent hours listening and hurting for my friend. I held countless conversations with my husband about whether or not I should book a flight to see her.

I listened as she went through the various phases of grief. Being a confidant as she began to examine how her life had been in the recent past, how she had given up so much of herself in order to appease her husband’s needs. She became the smoother, if she could keep things the way he liked it then their life ran better. If he became upset, then everybody paid.

I cannot begin to fathom how difficult that life must have been. I was a part of her life, I considered myself her friend and yet, I had no idea how badly things were going, how trapped she must have felt, if she had the spare moment to feel. It physically hurt to know that I had been clueless.

Throughout the summer, she shared more and more about what their marriage had been. How mental illness and addiction had stolen the man she had fallen in love with. The worst part was that she still loved that man, but she was starting to accept that he was no more.

Slowly there were little signs that my old friend was returning. One Friday night she sent me a text. She was enraged over a Facebook post, and I knew that she was hurting, but I was happy to hear her anger. No more hoping for his return, no thoughts on how she could change things so that their love could be rekindled. She then started to slowly make plans for her future. Changes small and large were itemized and she decided that their marriage was over.

I’m proud to say that as I stood by, I watched my friend be torn down, broken, and then build herself up. She is not only responsible for her life, but that of her two teens. She is the epitome of the Mama Lion, a protector and proud. Today the divorce papers were served upon him. I hope that she gets everything that she deserves, especially happiness and self-worth, because she is truly a phoenix.

Blurb~

I should have known better. Women like me, average and unseen, don't have our dreams come true. And the one chance I had for my dreams, I watched die in our doorway while I hid on the stairs.

Now I spend my days terrified for my life and my nights resigned to the fact that I'll be dead soon.

He can protect me. Forde has the reputation for handling cases that blur the line between right and wrong. Yes, he can help me, but he's asking for too much from me – my trust, my body and for the chance to make my dreams come true.

If I could… everything would be Better.

Goodreads:

(Link forthcoming)Links ~ 

Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2dwWgSD

Author Bio ~ 

I live on a grain farm southeast of Indianapolis, Indiana with my very patient husband of twenty-five years and our two English Mastiffs, Buster Brown and Ginger. I graduated from Indiana University when it was the #1 party school in the country and I took great pride in helping the school achieve that ranking.

I haven't figured out what I want to be when I grow up. I change careers every decade. I have worked in retail, a federal courtroom, travelled across the state closing loans, and behind the scenes in a casino.

I've always had an active imagination so when a good friend suggested that I try writing a book, I thought why not, it should be fun. It has, but I have had to work very hard to learn how to do it. I am so lucky for the outpouring of advice and education from so many in the industry, plus the hand-holding and cheerleading from My Gurls. I also have an incredible Ad-man-istrative Assistant, who tries to keep me under control. He rolls his eyes so much that I worry about a permanent condition.

When I ‘m not working or writing type stuff, I sleep, watch courtroom TV shows, and sports. I was a competitive pro-am ballroom dancer for ten years and I read as many books as I can.

I love to attend Author-Reader Conventions and look forward to meeting you.



Website: http://www.readmelaniejayne.com/

Newsletter: http://www.readmelaniejayne.com/contact-us.html

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13547924.Melanie_Jayne

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2dqlOU5

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mjsmut

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




Previous/Other books in the A Change Series




A Change For the GoodBlurb ~ 

Two people starting over, making much needed changes in their lives.




Zoe Crawford has moved to a new city after being humiliated by her ex-husband. She is going to put her wants and needs first.




Tony Alessi has returned to his hometown to rehab his body and his soul, leaving his ATF career behind.




When Tony meets Zoe, he likes what he sees. Zoe is flattered but doesn’t want to pursue a cougar challenge. As she grows to trust Tony, she tells him some odd happenings about cars following her, call hang-ups, and a break-in.




When Zoe’s life is threatened, the couple hides in Tony’s cabin. They soon grow closer as they learn who they are and who they hope to be.




Will Zoe’s past ruin her chance to change her life for the good?

Goodreads:


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25671007-a-change-for-the-goodLinks ~ 



Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/2dsNMLs