Blog Tour Tuesday: A Begrudging Bride by Amelia C. Adams

I'm technically a day late for Blog Tour Tuesday, but if I don't point that out, no one will notice, right? And it will just be our little secret?

I'm very excited to announce the release of A Begrudging Bride, Kansas Crossroads Book Eleven. It never occurred to me that this series would take off like it has and that I'd have so much fun writing it even after this many installments. 

The blurb: 

Suddenly left an orphan and forced to leave behind her beloved Kentucky ranch, Camille Waterford answers an ad for a mail-order bride and begins her journey to Wichita, where she will begin her new life. When she reaches Topeka, however, she's plagued with doubt, and decides to remain where she is, taking a job at the Brody Hotel. She plans to pay her groom back for whatever he spent to bring her out west, but she just can't go through with the wedding. He's not happy when he hears the news, but she needs to find her own path and discover for herself what love really is. 

And now an excerpt: 

Camille Waterford clutched her reticule as the train pulled into the Topeka station. “We’ll be stopped for half an hour,” the conductor announced. “Feel free to get off, stretch your legs, and maybe eat a little something at the hotel, but listen for the whistle so we don’t leave you behind.”

Getting off the train sounded wonderful. In fact, there was nothing Camille would rather do. Gathering her skirts in one hand, she climbed down and stood on the platform. The sky was a bit overcast, but it wasn’t snowing like it had been in Kansas City. She paced along the edge of the platform, her stomach twisting and turning, and finally, she sank onto a bench near the station. She couldn’t do it. She just couldn’t. She’d become more and more certain with each passing mile.

She rose from the bench and approached the ticket window. “Excuse me, sir. How do I get my luggage off the train?”

You may purchase A Begrudging Bride by CLICKING HERE.

***

 
Amelia C. Adams is the author of nineteen Western romances and will be releasing her twentieth very, very soon. She loves taking long naps, watching good movies, and eating tacos. If she could figure out a way to do all three at once, she would. She has a very full publication schedule coming up this next year and invites you to follow her website to stay on top of everything. Of course, the trick to that is making sure to update her website . . .

Blog Tour Tuesday - A GAMBLER'S HEART by Kay P. Dawson

This week’s Blog Tour Tuesday features

A Gambler's Heart

By Kay P. Dawson

About the Book:

Is Love Worth the Gamble?

Fiona is tired of the London society, where status and looks are the most important traits a man is looking for in a woman. Wanting a chance at a new life, away from the pitying stares and loneliness of her life in England, she answers an ad as a mail order bride in America. 

Brooks is a gambling man, who wants revenge against his father's killer. His plans are complicated when Fiona lands in his lap after a winning hand.

He doesn’t have time to be looking after a woman, especially one who should have known better than to come to a strange country on her own. But, somehow, she has become his problem.

Will the final wager cost him his heart? 


**A Gambler's Heart is the 1st book in the Love's a Gamble Series.

EXCERPT:

“Sorry, Hayward. Looks like I’ve won myself the lovely lady for one more week.” 

Milton was sputtering and swearing. “Don’t know how you keep beating me, but ye can be sure, after this week, I’m taking what’s rightfully mine.” He stood up quickly, knocking over a chair behind him and scowled at her as he walked past. 

“Enjoy yer time with Brooks, because once he’s done with ye, ye’re all mine.” 

Her body started to tremble as she watched him swagger away. She only had one more week to find a way out of this mess. If the money didn’t get here soon, she didn’t know what she’d do.

Before she had time to think about it any longer, Brooks had his hand on her elbow and was practically dragging her from the wooden sidewalk in front of the saloon.

Lydia followed behind as quickly as she could.

Finding herself out in the bright sunlight once again, she had to squint until her eyes adjusted. She pulled hard on her arm. 

“Mr. Vaughn, I’m quite capable of walking across the street to the wagon. I don’t need you dragging me like a sack of potatoes.” 

He stopped and tilted his head to the side. “I’m quite sure you can. However, since you’re the one who insisted on coming into town in the first place, then insisted on going to the mercantile, after I’d specifically told you to hurry and not make any extra stops, I think I’m quite deserving to drag you back to the wagon however I see fit.”

She clenched her fists at her side as she glared at him. “I had to come to town to send a wire to my father. And just because I chose to stop at the mercantile doesn’t give that man the right to accost me. Or give you the right to make a bet on me. What if you’d lost, Mr. Vaughn? Did you ever think of that?”

She knew she should be thanking him for everything he’d done for her, but for some reason, she was irked, and she had to let him know.

He laughed. “Of course I thought about that. It was a chance I was willing to take.” He was grinning at her with that rakish smile she vowed would never work on her.

Lifting her chin in the air, she walked past him onto the street without giving him another glance. 

Before she could get any farther, hands were on her waist, and her feet lifted from the ground.

“And another thing. I wouldn’t drag a sack of potatoes. I’d be sure to fling it over my shoulder for easier carrying.” His voice laughed up at her as she pounded on his back, yelling to let her go.

She thought she’d been angry before, but that was nothing until she was carried down the street over his shoulder to the waiting wagon.

She almost believed Milton Hayward might have been the better option.

CLICK THE FOLLOWING LINKS TO GET YOUR COPY OF "A GAMBLER'S HEART":

Amazon:  myBook.to/gamblersheart

All other retailers (Kobo, Nook & iTunes):  https://books2read.com/links/ubl/bMG9Bv/

About the Author:

Kay P. Dawson is the mom of two girls, living in southern Canada.  She has always loved pioneer stories, growing up reading, watching and playing "Little House on the Prairie."

Writing western romance in the old west is a dream come true for her.  After a breast cancer diagnosis in 2011, she decided it was time to write the books she'd always wanted to write some day.  She writes about times when times were tough, but lives were simpler.

Real heroes, and the women who find true love.  She writes sweet romance - all of the love, without the juicy details.

Find Kay P. Dawson…

Website * Facebook * Amazon * Twitter

Kay also has a fun FB group just for fans - you have to request to join, so send your request to https://www.facebook.com/groups/kaypdawsonfans/

Join us for some fun discussions, great contests and special offers just for fans of Kay P. Dawson.

**Get a free book by signing up for the mailing list at http://www.kaypdawson.com/p/newsletter.html

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How Setting Affects Character Building

When I chose Wyoming for the setting of Dreams of Gold, a western historical novella, I did so because WY is known as the equality state. Even before the territory gained admission to the United States, legislation was passed in 1869 that granted women the right to vote, serve on juries, and hold elected office. The territorial document was the first time a government had granted “female suffrage” and became law upon Governor A.J. Campbell’s signature on December 10, 1869.

Within three months, Esther Hobart Morris had been appointed justice of the peace in South Pass City (a site of gold strikes) to fill out a term for a man who’d been ousted. Her “courtroom” consisted of a wooden slab bench in her log cabin. Although she had no legal training, she had been the owner of a successful millinery business in her prior home state of New York. In her first case, she arrested J.W. Stillman, the man who had served in the position but refused to relinquish his court docket. She served for nine months and gave decision on 27 cases, 9 of which were criminal in nature. Her appointment as a judge garnered national attention, and she’s credited with encouraging (perhaps even co-authoring) the woman’s suffrage bill put before the legislation.

Esther courtesy of Wikipedia

Also noteworthy was that on September 6, 1870 in Laramie, Mrs. Louisa Swain was the first woman to cast a vote in a general election. She was 69 years old and described as “a gentle white-haired housewife.”

These facts were important because such events would have appeared in newspapers across the nation, establishing Wyoming as an area with a progressive attitude toward women’s rights. My heroine, Ciara Morrissey, grew to adulthood in the east, Massachusetts in particular. Living in an area of higher population gave her access to a wider number of opportunities—ways to support herself, as well as gatherings, colleges, and public meetings that educated and informed. Raised by a liberal-minded mother, Ciara had attended both anti-slavery and suffrage meetings since she was a child. Therefore, she arrived in Wyoming Territory in 1871 with expectations on how to conduct her business that were a bit more open-minded than the hometown sheriff, Quinn Riley, was used to. And the sparks flew…

BLURB: Sheriff Quinn Riley is tracking an Irish swindler and sticking close to the opinionated woman from the runaway stagecoach. Within hours, easterner Ciara Morrissey puts the town in an uproar by inquiring about his prime suspect.  He’s duty-bound to keep her safe, even when being close to the green-eyed beauty sets off a stampede in his heart.

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The Forgotten

Post by Angela Raines-author (c)

How many times have we driven by a cemetery and wondered about the people whose lives are now part of the past? Do you ever wonder who they were? What were their dreams, hopes? What were their lives like?

I've spoken many times about my fascination with the history contained in these final resting places. I've worried about the vandals who wipe out traces of people who no longer have anyone to care about who they were. Many a time I've wandered amongst the stones reading what family and friends thought was important by having it carved on the monument. Join me as I tell you a few stories of those 'forgotten' people.

A number of years ago, I captured on film one of the remaining wooden headstones in the Silver Cliff, Colorado cemetery. The name had started to fade, but the headstone started my search of the history in the Wet Mountain Valley of Colorado.In the 1870s Silver Cliff was a booming town, with expectations the DR&G would put a station there. Unfortunately for them, in 1881 the looked for station was placed a mile west and the town of Westcliffe came into being. Many people moved their houses and businesses to the new town and Silver Cliff went from a thriving community to 'ghost town' almost overnight.

Silver Cliff Cemetery -home of the Ghost Lights

The town of Rosita, near these two communities, was the setting for Helen (Hunt) Jackson's children's book "Nellie's Silver Mine". This story was one of the first, if not the first children's book to have setting as a character.

Chapel in Evergreen Cemetery, Colorado Springs where Helen (Hunt) Jackson is buried

Closer to home are the headstones in El Paso County. I walk the cemetery roads, reading headstones, the stories, then whenever possible, attempt to locate resources to for the rest of the story. In the case of the Lamont's I found more than I expected. Duncan Lamont was born in Scotland in 1865. He came to the United States, locating in Colorado City (now Old Colorado City) where he ministered at the Baptist church. He and his wife Katherine, who was from the Midwest, did their best to save the souls in that rowdy town. Katherine was involved in the WCTU and had offices on the south side of Colorado Avenue. That side of the street consisted of saloons and tunnels running to the crib houses on the street behind. When a fire broke out in February 1907 the good Reverend ran through the streets shouting "Praise the Lord". Unfortunately the fireman did not appreciate his fervor or being in their way. They turned their hoses on him, literally freezing him. His parishioners took him back to the church and thawed him out. He later was appointed postmaster in Victor Colorado and became a state senator in Colorado.

Headstone of Duncan Lamont-Fairview Cemetery, Colorado Springs, CO

These are just a few of the pieces of history I acquired from walking the final resting places of people that most would consider forgotten. Perhaps I can bring some of their stories to life in my novels, blog posts and even non-fiction writing. If it weren't for them, we would not be who we are.

Angela Raines is the pen name for Doris McCraw. Doris also writes haiku posted five days a week at – http://fivesevenfivepage.blogspot.com and has now passed one thousand haiku and photos posted on this blog. Check out her other work or like her Amazon author page:  http://amzn.to/1I0YoeL

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Blog Tour Tuesday: DIANNA

Today's Blog Tour Tuesday features 

Dianna 

by Josephine Blake

About Dianna (Brittler Sisters Book 1):

A pull here. A tug there. Something is calling out to Dianna from a distance.

While her younger sister begins planning her marriage to the son of a wealthy business man, Dianna discovers a yearning within her soul the likes of which she has never known. Having brushed aside the many suitors presented to her over the course of her adolescence, Dianna refuses to fall quietly into spinsterhood.

Her cravings for adventure and change overpower her strong sense of logic and she journeys forth to marry a man she knows only from a handful of letters.

This change is good.This is the life for her. Isn't it?

Excerpt:

Manhattan, 1885

“Tell me right now, Dianna. This instant!” Sarah made a grab at the papers that her sister was holding behind her back and missed.

“It has absolutely nothing to do with you, Sarah Jane, now mind your own business.” Dianna smoothed her honeyed locks back from her face with one hand. It had come loose from its pins during the tussle.

“What are you up to?” grumbled Sarah, propping an irritated fist on her hip as she surveyed Dianna with a suspicious glare.

Dianna huffed and straightened the pinstriped gown she wore over her tightly laced corset. She turned from her sister, still holding the sheaf of parchment away from her body, expecting another attempt to wrest it from her fingers.

“I repeat,” she said, tucking the letter away into her nightstand and locking the drawer with a small key. “It is none of your business,” Dianna slid the tiny bronze key into the neck of her dress and strode past Sarah, who was looking mightily offended. She glanced back at her younger sister as she made her way out of her bedroom. “Come down for dinner, you. Mother will be in the foulest of moods if we’re both late.”

Sarah was still staring grumpily towards Dianna’s bedside table, as though she might be able to force it open with the sheer power of her will. Behind her, the bedroom window was closed firmly against the autumn chill. Orange and brown leaves, fallen from the aged oak tree in the front garden, swirled past the glass. An ancient rope and plank swing could be heard squawking over the rustling of the wind.

Dianna rolled her eyes and returned to her sister’s side. She took hold of Sarah’s arm and steered her from the room, through the hallway, and down the sweeping staircase of their Manhattan family home.

“You’ve never kept a secret from me before,” muttered Sarah, the most pitiful note of woe in her voice.

Dianna rolled her eyes again, although this was perfectly true. “You’ll know if anything comes of it,” she said, and she gave her sister’s hand a pat. This comment only seemed to cause further irritation. Sarah’s frown deepened and she opened her mouth. Dianna cut her off before she could start again: “You’ll know soon enough,” she repeated, giving her a quelling look. Sarah glared at her, but closed her mouth.

You may purchase Dianna on Amazon by CLICKING HERE.

About the Author:

Josephine Blake is a historical fiction writer from Portland, OR. Her debut novel 'Dianna' hit the shelves in August of 2016. Before publishing her own work, she worked as a freelance fiction and ghost writer for numerous clients. Josephine Blake is happily married, and freely admits that her husband is the inspiration for every bit of romance she ever writes.

 Connect with Josephine Blake:

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