Monday, February 23, 2015

Virtual Book Tour: The Gilded Cuff by Lauren Smith



Title: The Gilded Cuff
Author: Lauren Smith
Series: Surrender Series Book 1
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
         Genre: Contemporary    


Every passion has its price . . .
Journalist Sophie Ryder has been following Emery Lockwood’s story since she was a little girl. There has always been something in his haunted eyes that she couldn’t resist and now, when she’s certain he holds the key to solving a string of kidnappings, she’ll do anything to speak to him. Even if it means venturing deep into the seductive world of the Gilded Cuff, a luxurious BDSM club on Long Island’s Gold Coast and Emery’s personal playground.
From the moment Sophie enters his shadowy, sensual domain, Emery Lockwood knows this tantalizing new little sub was meant to belong to him. However, Sophie wants more from Emery than just pleasure . . . she wants his past. And that is something he isn’t willing to give—no matter who is asking. But every moment he spends with Sophie, Emery feels his control slipping and he knows it’s only a matter of time before he surrenders to her heart, body, and soul.


About Lauren Smith:

Lauren Smith, Author
Amazon best-selling author Lauren Smith is an attorney by day, author by night, who pens adventurous and edgy romance stories by the light of her smart phone flashlight app. She’s a native Oklahoman who lives with her three pets—a feisty chinchilla, sophisticated cat and dapper little schnauzer. She's won multiple awards in several romance subgenres including being an Amazon.com Breakthrough Novel Award Quarter-Finalist and a Semi-Finalist for the Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Award.

Connect with Lauren: Website  Facebook  Twitter 


Excerpt:

Emery held still, didn’t make a sound or move until she opened her eyes. When she did finally look up at him, he dropped his head a few inches, his nose touching hers, nuzzling her cheek.
“I’m not like other men, Sophie. Scars are a sign of strength, survival. Someday you’ll be brave enough to show me, and I’ll prove you have nothing to be ashamed of. Now, I am willing to accept the deal you proposed. Are you willing in return?”
She bit her lip. It had been her idea; she had to see it through. She wanted to see it through, even if it scared the living daylights out of her.
“Yes. I’ll do it. Your story, my submission.”
He kissed her with raw possession, his mouth showing her how wicked it would be between them. Wild, dark, and completely free. She wanted that more than anything, the freedom to let go, to give in to the erotic dreams she’d spent years ignoring but never had felt safe enough to give in to before. His kiss broke down every barrier, obliterated every part of herself she tried to hide. Sophie lifted her chin, offering him her mouth, pleading for him. Emery drew a quick breath, eyes widening before his lashes fell to half-mast, his gaze drawn to her lips.
When he took her lips, he dominated her with the depth of his claiming. She breathed him in, like drawing the first heavy breath upon waking from a thousand-year sleep. Sophie came alive in that single moment. The woman she’d been all these years since losing Rachel, the scared little girl fighting against the evils in the world, was gone. In her place was the woman she’d always wanted to be, a woman not afraid to live her life. She couldn’t shut this man out like she had her other friends or her family. No. He demanded she give in to him. Electric tingles pulsed outward from the places they touched, setting her senses on fire, fogging her mind. His kiss consumed her—enveloping her until she was lost, set adrift in a haze of desire, longing, and aching.
She felt his mouth tremble against hers; he seemed to strain to keep his possession under control, to bank the fires of his passion. His tongue slipped between her lips, thrusting in time with the rocking of his hips against hers in tiny circles. He gave up his control and took her over. His body weighed hers down, his hips rocking into hers. He could have done anything to her in that moment, and she’d have agreed to it. Sophie’s inner muscles clenched, empty and wet, yearning for him, but it was his kiss that was her downfall—almost brutal with craving, as though he was a thirsty man savoring his first sip of water from her mouth. All his focus, all his energy seemed to be on her, on her lips.
He tore his mouth from hers, panting roughly. He cursed savagely and withdrew his hands from her body. She blinked in surprise when she realized his hot hands had slid up her outer thighs beneath the mini-skirt. Her chest heaved, her breasts dangerously close to escaping the confines of her corset. Emery’s eyes slowly tracked down from her mouth to her breasts. With a rakish grin he pressed his mouth lightly on the tops of the creamy swells, his tongue darting out as he licked and nibbled a path back up to her lips. He paused, then feathered his lips at the corner of her mouth and brushed his nose against hers playfully.
Sophie whimpered at the loss when he finally drew his head back. It felt like good-bye, but that was foolish; she’d only just met him and agreed to surrender to him. They couldn’t be done.
Emery sighed, his breath uneven against her temple. His body stiffened above hers.
“Go home, Sophie. Forget me, this place. Let it be a peculiar dream, nothing more. I’m not the man for you.” His voice was harsh.
“No,” she whispered fiercely, but she wasn’t as sure of herself as she had been. She’d expected a spanking, some rough kissing. She hadn’t expected to feel so vulnerable and exposed by a man taking control of her body and owning her completely in a mere few minutes.
“You think you can really survive this lifestyle for even one minute? You’re vanilla, sweetheart. You wouldn’t ever let me tie you up and take you the thousand ways I’d like to. You’d cry when my hand came down on your ass in punishment. You’re not ready for this.”
She shook her head, furiously fighting off the swell of tears as her throat constricted. He and he alone had offered her what her secret dreams and longings had called for night after night. The phantom lovers that had tormented her to the brink of violent need in her dreams could never compare to the very real and very heavy weight of his body on hers at that moment. The devastation of that perfect kiss couldn’t be undone. The story could wait…but the need…the desperation to feel alive again…she couldn’t let go of that, not yet.
“No. Take me home with you.” She paused, calculating each word. “Please, Sir.” She was begging. There was no doubt about it for either of them, and as shocked as she was by her own impulse to beg, she prayed he’d let her go with him.
Emery’s lips twisted into a crooked smile. For a moment, she saw the boy in him, the one he’d been before his world had been utterly destroyed. The child wasn’t gone, wasn’t dead. Buried yes, but not dead. He threaded a hand through his hair and remained silent for moment. Shadows of doubt and indecision danced across his face before he finally replied.
“How can I resist?” Emery lifted himself and hauled her to her feet.
Sophie winced. Her back was bruised after lying on the stone floor beneath him. She hadn’t minded at the time—her body had been distracted by a thousand other things. But now her shoulder blades and hips screamed in protest. Emery took her into his arms, rubbing her back, massaging it with knowing hands.
“Come, I’ll summon my driver.”
“Okay.” She tried to remain calm. She was going home with Emery Lockwood. One of the richest men in America. Yet it wasn’t his wealth that made her fight off the rippling tremors at the base of her spine and in her womb. No, it was the fact that she was going home with a man who kissed her like she was the last woman on earth and time was ending. If he kissed like that, sex with him would be the Apocalypse. She’d never survive it.

Ten Fun Facts about the Author:

1)  I'd love to learn to speak Russian
2)  I've studied abroad in the following countries: France, England, Spain, and China
3)  I took 12 years of French.
4)  I wrote my first story in 3rd grade.
5)  I read the Hound of the Baskervilles in 4th grade and it actually gave me nightmares.
6)  I have attended midnight release parties for books 4-7 of the Harry Potter series.
7)  I have three pets, a black schnauzer, a cat and a chinchilla
8)  I have petted a baby panda
9)  My grandfather (my father's father) helped engineer the Keystone Damn in Oklahoma
10) My grandfather (my mother's father) lived in a log cabin in rural Nebraska and survived polio in the 1930s

Monday, February 16, 2015

Contest for Authors



The Romance Reviews is conducting its first contest for authors. While there would be prizes for authors, the real prize is increased name recognition and exposure, not only that, but the writers with limited resources and access to a wide range of readers would also benefit. For additional information, click here.

Coffee Time Romance is launching Coffee Time Romance's Indie Author Feature. They will be promoting one quality self-published romance author a month in a blog post which will be hosted by author, Veronica Bale, and promoted through all of Coffee Time Romance's social media channels.

Do you want additional exposure for your totally awesome self-published romance novel? Are you interested in selling your e-book through a book store dedicated specifically to romance readers?

If you want to be featured, here's what they are looking for:

You must be a self-published romance author with an e-book.

You must be willing to sell your e-book through Coffee Time Romance and More's book store (for information on Coffee Time Romance's royalty rates, pay schedules and user information, click here).

If selected for a feature, you must sponsor a giveaway for at least one free copy of your e-book in a Tweet-to-Win contest. The Tweet-to-Win contest administered through Coffee Time Romance's Google+ Community Book Lovers Unite.

To submit your novel for Coffee Time Romance and More's Indie Author Feature, simply fill out the contact form here (for Coffee Time Romance and More's submission guidelines, click here)

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Monday, February 09, 2015

Tony Winner Produces Her First Play


Ms. April Yvette Thompson will be showcasing her first play, Liberty City at Eta Creative Arts Foundation, from February 22 until March 29, 2015. To learn more about “Liberty City,” Click Here

April Yvette Thompson is a Tony-winning producer, writer and actor working across media. Her acting credits include: The Teacher (directed by Jeremy Engle) opposite Hunter Parrish (Weeds) and Clarke Peters (The Wire). Her off-Broadway credits include: Medea, King Lear, Liberty City, Light Raise the Roof and Macbeth. Her numerous regional Theatre credits include: A Raisin in the Sun (both Ruth & Beneatha), Wine in the Wilderness (Seattle Footlights Award), Eclipsed, and Motherhood Outloud.

April’s Film/TV credits include The Exonerated, Accidental Husband, Blue Caprice, Backwards, “Blue Bloods,” “Law & Order” & “Third Watch.”

April is now staring in the new NBC pilot “Babylon Fields.”

For additional information on this talented performer, visit her site at http://www.aprilyvettethompson.com

Monday, February 02, 2015

Special thanks to Mr. Emiliano PĂ©rez was Selecting My Short Story

For his thesis, Mr. Emiliano PĂ©rez selected my short story, “Serenity on Fire” which is one of five short stories from the book “Malicious Acts.” Mr. PĂ©rez is enrolled in his last year of English-Spanish Translation at Universidad Nacional del Comahue, Facultad de Lenguas, in Argentina and considered my story as a potential translation from English into Spanish for the project. I am happy to announce that his presentation on the short story was a big success. A lot of people attended and they loved it. Many of the attendees wanted to read my story. Only part of the story was translated into Spanish.

I am grateful that he selected my short story for his proposal, and I wish him every success in his endeavors.

If you would like to have your book or stories translated into Spanish, you can contact Mr. Emiliano PĂ©rez at emi.boogie-woogie@hotmail.com

Malicious Acts, a collection of five fictional short stories, focuses on several characters that will stop at nothing to get what they want. If it means disguising themselves as benevolent individuals and destroying lives along the way, they are up for the thrill. They will use money, romance, lust, sex, greed, deceit, and revenge as preludes to suck unsuspecting people out of their life’s savings.

Serenity on Fire centers on the character Serenity Jones, a freelance illustrator, who was leaving a Christmas party. Due to an unexpected blizzard, she decided to take a cab; most were off duty, and some unoccupied cabs passed her by. As she headed for the bus stop, a driver honked his horn, got her attention and stopped. When she got into his cab, her ride would become a nightmare on treachery road.

You can purchase "Malicious Acts,” in English only, at the following links



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