Time to Grow Up

Interesting things have been happening... Well, not JUST happening. Maybe they are just more noticeable. Children are learning to face the world head on. They are taught to respect their elders and treat everyone with respect. I love this and I hate this.

As I scroll my timeline on Facebook or glance at Twitter I see grown adults acting like how my children should. They bash each other in the "Not so secret" way. Their status is public but addressed to only one person, but the attention whore with in them needs everyone to ask in hopes it reaches the person they need it to.

Then there's the block them unblock them block them wait, unblock them game. It's famous in many circles. It's also a game played by adults. It's sad, and a waste of my time. There aren't hidden meanings to my posts. Decoder rings are not needed to understand my tweets or statuses. I say what I mean, and I mean what I say. If it's you I need to address I will do so. I grew up a long time ago.

You know that saying, "If you say you're not crazy more then 3 times a day, you're crazy." Yeah well, if you sit around saying you are an intelligent person and don't play games, over and over and over, and yet you do... Guess what? Yeah! 

I used to write in fanfiction and I fell into a loop of  "Mean Girls" for a time. It got away from me and I admit that. I didn't like what grew from the poison and so it bit me on the butt and I got a dose of my own medicine. I didn't like it. It woke me up and I stepped away and saw the error of my ways.
There are days where I see a glimmer of what I was in my timeline by others. I realize too often then not, it's never really going to leave me alone.

Point is, I don't have anymore to say about what I was. I don't care who said what to who. And I think everyone needs to reassess their own lives. You are angry with how your life is? Change it, don't drag others down because you can't deal. If you surround yourself with negative people, don't expect a positive life.

We ALL reach a point where we need to grow up. Look in the mirror, are you still 5? No? Then grow up. Stop playing games and grab your dreams by the horns. Find your peace and stop spreading all the toxic energy. It's overdone and overplayed. 90210 was a show, not a lifestyle people.

Author Saturday Spotlight: K.c. Wells *Interview and Giveaway*

I am very excited and happy to have the opportunity to Spotlight the very talented and amazing K.c. Wells. I'm always a fan of the authors I spotlight and I get giddy when they agree to let me go on and on about them. LOL.

I've described K.c's writing in many words. Warm, kind, hot, secure, safe, exciting and entertaining. There are times I'll be reading a scene of hers and feel all the love poured into it. K.c has the ability to write a scene that starts with fear, morphs to love and ends in amazing passion. I have often found myself melting into her words.

She has agreed to do an interview and I am so thrilled and I know you will get a kick reading it. ALSO she is being so generous and offering one reader a chance to win a K.c Wells ebook of your choice... YES! A READER'S CHOICE GIVEAWAY!

On K.c's Goodreads page are lists of all her series from Island Tales, to Collars and Cuffs (MY FAVORITE) They vary in plot and are wonderfully crafted to entertain you. Learning to Love and Personal series are amazing as well. And you will easily find yourself bouncing from one series to the next without question... Check out her GR page > K.c Wells on Goodreads

Let's get to the interview shall we? GREAT!


***INTERVIEW***

I want to thank K.c for taking time out of her busy life to let us get to know her a bit more. So thank you K.c and welcome...

1. I'm going to start with a Collars and Cuffs Series question... (Junky remember?) So, Book 1 (An Unlocked Heart) and Book 2 (Trusting Thomas) were writing entirely by you. But book 3 (Someone to Keep Me) was co-written by Parker Williams. Was it difficult to connect with another writer after already writing 2 books in this series? And also, how do you co-write with someone, dynamic wise?

Ah, but Trusting Thomas was planned out with Will Parkinson. So when it came time to write Someone To Keep Me, it felt familiar. We found a way that worked for us. We planned out the novel, and that way we could see instantly where we were up to. Will would write while I was asleep, and vice versa. it worked out really well.

Then we'd check through what the other had written.

 

2. Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?

Sorry - I have WAAAYYYYYYY too many favorite authors to answer that one!

 

3. You write a lot of Series's Learning to Love, Personal, Collars and Cuffs. They are all VERY different, which is good, how do you map out a series? Doesn't it get confusing remembering book 1 by the time you get to 3 or 4?

Notes! I keep extensive notes on my plots and characters. However, sometimes I do miss things. A lovely lady who reviews my books emailed me just after the release of Personal Secrets to tell me I'd missed something about Ed - and she was right! But I am forever checking back to make sure I haven't missed stuff. Usually when the idea for a series comes to me, I can already see in my head how many books there will be. For instance, I wrote Love Lessons Learned, which comes out April 14th from Dreamspinner Press, as a spin-off from the Learning to Love series. By the time I was half way through the book, I knew I had another series. Stu, Alec and Martin were talking to me - very loudly! You'll know what I mean when you meet them.

 

4. Name one entity that you feel supported you outside of family members? Please feel free to elaborate.

Family members....hmmmmm. Apart from my dad and step-mum, who have been tremendous, there hasn't been much support from my family. I'm not going to go into that. But from my friends? That's another matter. Sorry - one isn't enough so you'll have to bear with me.

These are friends I didn't meet until I joined Facebook. Will Parkinson, you already know about - hell, anyone who sees our posts on FB knows about that one! Will's like my brother, and we're close. Then there's Max Vos. That man is my best friend. I talk every morning with those two. And then there's Becky Condit. That is one sweet, kind woman. Recently, I've met some wonderful people who've become part of my life, JR Weiershauser and Kol Anderson. Kol started out as a sprint buddy and then became a friend. I met JR through Kol, and am very grateful for that. JR brightens my day.

I haven't even gotten on to Lara Brukz and Tina Marie, my lovely betas. Those two are wonderful.

And I have to mention the lovely Sue Brown who helped me so much when I first started out, and then became a good friend. 

 

5. I've read both of your Island Tales books, AND LOVED THEM, are you writing anymore of that series and if so can you tell us ANYTHING about it?

 

Well, there will be more!

The next one is all about a young man who goes to work for an older guy as his companion. Adam went blind and isn't coping well, so his sister hires Paul Vaughan to take care of him. The two men reach an uneasy truce - until Paul discovers Adam's collection of BDSM magazines and equipment in the loft, which fires up his interest. Adam is angry that a part of his life is now over. Who wants a blind Dom? He may be surprised....

There are more tales to follow this one.

 

6. Of ALL the characters you've written, do you connect with one more then another? Do you even have a favorite?

I have a soft spot for Ed (the Personal series), Leo (Collars & Cuffs) is a great character, but I will always love Michael & Sean, my first boys. (Learning to Love)

 

7. What inspired you to write your first book?

I'd been reading a lot of MM books from Dreamspinner. So when the idea for Michael & Sean came to me, and wouldn't go away, I thought, "Well, why not have a go?"

Once I got started, I didn't want to stop.

 

8. You write in the M/M Genre. May I ask why you chose that genre?

I think IT chose ME! LOL. It was so very different. I loved the dynamics of a relationship between two men. Come to think of it, that's a very difficult question to answer. I loved reading M/M, and I knew as soon as I started writing that this was the genre for me. It just felt like coming home.

 

9. Which social network worked best for you? And if your fans wanted to keep up with what you're up to in your writing career how could they do that?

 

Facebook has been great. I interact with fans all the time there. I have a page for my self published stuff https://www.facebook.com/IslandTalesPress and another for my Dreamspinner Press novels https://www.facebook.com/pages/KCWells/223608907761521

but anyone can reach me at https://www.facebook.com/pages/KCWells/223608907761521 I'm always posting there about my writing

 

10. You have accomplished so much as an author already. What, at this time, is your goal?

To get all these stories in my head out into the world! I have so many projects, that I have to write them down as they come to me. I LOVE writing. It makes me feel happy, fulfilled... I love that I can come to the end of a day and look back and see what I've accomplished. I love it when a book comes out. I'm now working on my fifteenth novel and it still feels great!

 

So there you have it. A wonderful interview and I have to be honest I learned quite a lot about the author myself.

 

K.c. also has a website that you can follow to keep up with her happenings so be sure to check that out as well... K.c's website 

 

K.c has a sweet treat for all of you! Because she has many Series' there's no telling where you are all at with them. Are you dying to read book 3 of Collars and Cuffs? Did you want to start Lessons Learned? Well, here's your chance to push forth and get what you want. 

 

One lucky person will win THEIR CHOICE of ANY K.c Wells ebook! WHOOP! Yes, it's so exciting!

 

The contest will run until April 4th! So, be sure to enter for your chance. Again I want to thank K.c for being the Spotlight this Saturday! Make sure all of you check out her books and get reading :)

 

***GIVEAWAY*** 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Power of Fear

I am not a doctor. This isn't a post by someone with a PHD. This is a post by someone who simply understands fear.

We all have something that we are afraid of. Some are phobias like clowns, spiders, heights or water. Some people fear, small places or even leaving their own home. A lot of people shake their heads and roll their eyes... I doubt they live a life of no fear. We all fear something.

Sometimes the darkness, the things that scare us can't be seen. Sometimes it's ourselves we fear. Our pasts have the power to suffocate us, to make the air stale and the breaths we take painful. There isn't a pill to protect ourselves from the ever changing days.

One day everything feels perfect, the sun isn't offensive and a bird's song is inspiring. Other days, with out warning everything hurts, sound irritates, life is your enemy.

This isn't something everyone understand, though I'm sure many will say they do. You can't unless you live in it. You never recover, you learn to survive. You sit in a dim room with your eyes level to the pulse in your wrist and you watch it pumping. Your body will keep you alive, your brain will be your worst enemy or your protector. It can shield you from the thoughts you can't handle. It will help you to survive.

It's so much easier to slip into the nightmares, to let the silky voice of the monsters lull you into a shaky calm. They hum away the fear of something new, they will plant lies in your head that you let become your reality to the point you don't know who you are. You will search and reach for the rope of hope. The hand of a savior. Will you find it? Will they find you? It's not a question that can be answered.

I accept my fear because I've learn to survive through it. I can teach people how to slip through, and that even in the worst days, it isn't the last day.

You don't always find compassion. No one will save you from what has already happened. If you're lucky, you will find people to lean on. They are your rope, they are the hand. Sometimes we push them away. We create lives better then our own in the hopes they will love us more, because no way can they love who we really are. But, it doesn't last. The mask comes off, the sun comes out. You can't hide who you are forever.

When the skies lighten and you open your eyes, you might be surprised to find you aren't alone. That the real you is just as easy to love.

Author Saturday Spotlight: John Inman **Interview and Giveaway**

I am so thrilled to be spotlighting a writer who has had me on the edge of my seat more times then I can count with his books. At the same time he's had me sitting on the couch with a plastered smile. John Inman's unique style is one I doubt I will ever tire of. Whether I'm reading a thrilling, gripping and suspenseful book like, Hobbled or smiling and laughing while reading Serenading Stanley, I am thoroughly entertained and whisked to a world I have no reason to want to leave.

With John's new book, Spirit (Out now) I grabbed this opportunity to ask him to let me spotlight him. I was ecstatic when he said yes, thrilled when he agreed to an interviewed and giddy when he offered to do a giveaway for his new book. I know John Inman fans all over will LOVE this interview and I'm quite sure this giveaway is one many will be itching to get.

Before we get to the interview, I just want to talk a moment about his books which of course you can view here on Goodreads > John Inman on Goodreads

Hobbled was the first book of John's that I read and it was hot, suspenseful and mysterious. I didn't breathe much reading it and when it was over I was won over!

Blurb: 
Thanks to fate and his own lack of good sense, eighteen-year-old Danny Shay is headed into what looks to be the worst summer of his life. It starts with a minor meltdown at work that leaves Danny under house arrest with a cast on one leg and an ankle monitor on the other, courtesy of the San Diego Police Department. On top of that, he’s battling a chronic case of virginity, with no relief in sight.

Oh, and there’s one more little glitch. A serial killer is stalking the city, murdering young men. And when strange sounds are heard in the house behind Danny’s, the neighborhood kids think they’ve found the killer. But not until Danny learns he's next on the madman's list do things really begin to get desperate.

Damn! And Danny had plans to come out this summer—maybe even get laid! He doesn't have time for ankle monitors and serial killers!

Then ginger-haired Luke Jamison moves in next door. Not only does Luke solve a few of Danny's more urgent problems, he also manages to create a couple more that Danny never saw coming. Gee. If he can survive it, this summer might not be so bad after all


To understand the versatility of this author you put a book like Hobbled beside a book like Paulie and you will see that there is very little John can't write. Paulie is a sweet, beautiful love story that had my heart a flutter!

Blurb:

To the casual observer, Paulie Banks lives the perfect life. After all, he's young, handsome, and rich. But Paulie has a secret. He's madly in love with Ben, his old college roommate -- and Ben is straight! Now Paulie has arranged a two-week reunion with his three closest friends to rehash their college years and get to know each other again. Jamie and Trevor are coming, along with their new lovers. And to Paulie's amazement, even Ben has accepted his invitation.

Beautiful Ben. The one non-gay apple in the old college barrel. Paulie will soon find out if Ben has forgiven him for overstepping the bounds of friendship on the last drunken night they spent together.

With his La Jolla mansion spotless, a stunning new houseboy hired for the duration, and his heart pounding in both fear and anticipation, Paulie welcomes his old friends back into his life. Thanks to a whole lot of liquor and a clothing optional dress code, boy, do the festivities begin!

I chose 2 books that couldn't be more different! I love that John ventures to the dark side with books like Hobbled and A Hard Winter Rain. Yet he embraces the softer side with Paulie and Serenading Stanley. 

I HIGHLY suggest you go to the Goodreads page and check ALL his books out and get reading. You are sure to become a fan!

Now it's Interview time...


*** INTERVIEW*** 

 I really want to thank you John for doing this for me and all your fans, and all the people who are sure to become fans after this. Lets's get right to the interview!! 

1. You've written many wonderful books. No two are alike, at all. There is a certain darkness to them usually. I see a little Stephen King in you. What or who inspires you to write like that?

  Hi Meredith.  I'm thrilled to be here on your blog with you.  Thanks for the invite.  Okay, let's get to it.  Thanks for saying that about Stephen King.  He's one of my heroes.  I really do love his dark take on the world, and since I've read an awful lot of his stuff, maybe he does influence the way I write.  But I think that would apply to a lot of other writers too.  I've loved reading since I was a kid so a lot of stories are probably still lodged somewhere deep inside my head where I draw on them now and then without even knowing it.  And since the books I enjoy most are the ones with an edge -- ghost stories, thrillers, police procedurals, horror, and also comedies (the sillier the better) -- then I guess it's only natural they would put either a sinister or a humorous twist on the way I write my own stories.  Maybe even both at the same time.

2. Give us an insight into your main character of your new book, Spirit?

  Jason Day is a designer of video games.  He's not the butchest guy in the world but he has an inner resilience and an inner innocence that carries him through life fairly well.  Basically, he's just a good, caring person with a vast capacity for love, which he finds in the character of Sam during the course of the storyline in SPIRIT.  Jason also has a sympathetic heart, which is why he's determined to solve the mystery of his poor suffering ghost.  I liked Jason from the very moment I began writing him.  And liking the MC made the writing a whole lot easier and much more fun.  I hope my readers like him too.  It's kind of a chore slogging your way through a book when you can't relate to the main character.  Actually, I really loved all three of the main characters in SPIRIT.  Especially Timmy, the four-year-old.  He was a blast to write.

3. Do you have a special time to write or how is your day structured?

 I'm lucky enough to be retired, thank God.  No evil day job to worry about.  I get up early, about five a.m., and I usually spend the next three hours writing and guzzling coffee and trying to keep the cats off the keyboard.  I think the early morning is the best time for creative thinking.  While my hair might be standing straight up off the top of my head and I'm stumbling around like a zombie and looking like crap, somehow my mind is amazingly clear. I write at other times too if an idea comes along, but I think my best writing is done in the morning.  The rest of the day I spend with my partner.  We hike together, watch movies, enjoy each other's company and at the moment we're remodeling the house which takes up a lot of our time.  Plus we live in San Diego, California, the most beautiful city there is.  LOL.  Life is good.

4. Paulie is a very happy book. I found myself smiling throughout and staying hopeful. I was on the edge of my seat, it was a different suspense then say, Hobbled. Do you enjoy when you shift gears from mysterious and dark, to hopeful and happy?

 I do enjoy the change.  If I write too many comedies in a row I start feeling burnt out, so I switch to a mystery or a horror story or just a plain old romance.  I like my comedies best, but I just can't keep churning them out one after the other without a break.  I guess I just run out of gags.  And as long as I'm writing something, I'm happy.  It doesn't really matter what it is.

5. Some people reading this are writers themselves and at times have been smacked in the face with writers block. Any tips on how to get through the dreaded writer’s block?

 I've had slumps but I've never been totally blocked (knock on wood).  The secret for me in getting through a slump is just to keep writing, keep moving the story along even if you know the writing sucks.  I figure I can always edit it out later.  But in the meantime I'm working my way through the problem.  Not the story problem maybe, but the problem inside my head.  There's a movie I love called FINDING FORESTER about a reclusive author mentoring an aspiring young writer.  One of the things he tells his student is if you don't know what to write it doesn't matter.  Just start typing and putting words down on paper.  Any words.  Jibberish.  Whatever.  Just the physical act of typing will eventually get your mind working and the ideas will start to come.  I believe that completely.  The last thing you want to do is just sit back and not try at all.  I think that would really put a block in your creative processes.  Maybe even a permanent one.

6. You once recommended a book and I thoroughly enjoyed it so I have to ask, What book/s are you reading at present?

Right now I'm reading RAT BASTARD by Stephen Osborne and SCREWUPS by Jamie Fessenden, two of my favorite Dreamspinner authors.  (Don't get me wrong, I love a lot of other DSP writers too.)  The last non-Dreamspinner book I read, in fact I just finished it, is David Sedaris's WHEN YOU ARE ENGULFED IN FLAMES.  I love that guy.  David Sedaris can make me laugh so hard I'm squirting tears.  Not many writers can do that.

7. The covers for your books are wonderful. I believe a cover is the biggest thing that draws a reader to a story. When you have a cover done, do you have certain demands? Example, some writers don't want faces on their covers.

I have to chuckle at that question.  You know what?  It took me so long to find a publisher that I make it a point never to demand anything.  I'm just grateful as hell to be published at all.  As for the covers, what I do is make suggestions.  And everyone at Dreamspinner Press is so nice, they have so far gone along with my suggestions, which is actually kind of surprising since I have questionable taste at best.  I remember when SHY first came out a few people said it was the worst cover they had ever seen.  Well, guess whose idea it was right down to the chicken and the pig.  Yep.  Mine.  And I still love that cover, I don't care what anybody says.  The artists at DSP are miracle workers when it comes to making your ideas look good.  And they're all so damned nice too.  And patient.  Haha, I remember once Paul Richmond (who did SHY) was working on a different cover for me and when I asked him if I could make one little change, he said,  "You don't want another chicken, do you?"  I still crack up when I think of that.  As for faces on covers, they're great if you can find the right one, but finding the right one is hard.  Overall, I'd rather do without them.  A naked body is always good,  I just like to cut the head off first.  That sounds like something Stephen King would do, huh?  Most of the time, when I'm still in the process of writing a book I begin to see what I think the cover should look like, and that's what I try to impart to the cover artist when the time comes.  Like I said before, the Dreamspinner cover artists are extremely adept at taking your idea and making it even better.  They really are artists in every sense of the word.  And the first glimpse you get of your finished cover is probably the most exciting part of the publishing process.  If you're like me, you just sit there and stare at it for hours.

8. What are your thoughts on good/bad reviews?

Oy.  Reviews.  A good review can lift you right up to the stratosphere, and a bad one can pretty much do the opposite.  But still, I do believe that once you put a book out there, it doesn't really belong to you any more.  It belongs to the readers.  I also believe that if you want to stay sane in this business you just have to let it go and let the readers and the reviewers do whatever they're going to do with your baby. It hurts to get panned, but as much as I might disagree with what the reviewer is saying I still think it's their right to say it.  Happily, most reviews are positive, or at least not mean spirited, and the writers of them are gracious and kind, and more times than not, extremely smart.  I've seen some excellent critiquing done in reviews, and I always try to take their words to heart and attempt to learn something from them.

9. What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

I get a lot of emails from aspiring writers about that very subject.  I always tell them the same thing.  If you want to be a writer -- then write.  And never stop writing.  Don't just finish one novel and spend the rest of your life trying to sell it without going right to work on something else.  And find some like-minded people who will read your unpublished work and give you feedback.  That's the important thing, I think.  To share your words.  Let people see what you've written and maybe tell you how your writing makes them feel.  If there are weaknesses, what are they?  Are my characters alive?  Can you relate to them?  And another thing an aspiring writer needs to do is read.  Read everything you can get your hands on.  But if you were really born to be a writer I think you would be doing that anyway.  You can't be a writer if you don't love to read.  You just can't.

10. How can readers discover more about you and you work?

Well, I'm not much on social networking but I do have a few outlets where people can read about me or get to know me.  Here are some links that might come in handy.

John Inman on Facebook: John on FB 

Author Page: John's Web Page 

John Inman on Dreamspinner: John on DSP 

John on Amazon : John Amazon Author's Page

I had a GREAT time with this interview and I know you had to love it as much as I did!!!

Now let's talk GIVEAWAY! 

John has agreed to give ONE lucky person a free copy of his new book SPIRIT. 

Blurb:
Jason Day, brilliant designer of video games, is not only a confirmed bachelor, but he’s as gay as a maypole. One wouldn’t think being saddled with his precocious four-year-old nephew for four weeks would be enough to throw him off-kilter.

Wrong. Timmy, Jason’s nephew, is a true handful.

But just when Timmy and Uncle Jason begin to bond, and Jason feels he’s getting a grip on this babysitting business once and for all, he’s thrown for a loop by a couple of visitors—one from Tucson, the other from beyond the grave.

I’m sorry. Say what?

Toss a murder, a hot young stud, an unexpected love affair, and a spooky-ass ghost with a weird sense of humor into Jason’s summer plans, and you’ve got the makings for one hell of a ride

Before I close and post the giveaway I want to thank John for his time and his talent! I hope you all go and buy these books and fall in love, get inspired and enjoy the ride :)


*** GIVEAWAY***

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Let's Get Irish

Oh yeah! Everyone's Irish today! In the happiness of this day I am going to help those who aren't familiar with Irish-ness to wet their palate. I have IRISH RECIPES! So for the curious... For the ones who wish they knew what to ingest on this fabulous day... Enjoy...


IRISH COFFEE...

Prep Time: 4 minutes

Total Time: 4 minutes

Yield: 1 Cocktail

Ingredients:

• 4 ounces strong, rich hot coffee
• 1 ounce Irish whiskey
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 ounce lightly whipped double cream

Preparation:

1. Pour the sugar then coffee into a warm Irish coffee glass, mug, or other heat-proof stemmed glass. 
2. Stir until dissolved
3. Add the Irish whiskey and stir again.
4.  Float the cream on top by pouring it over the back of a spoon. Do not stir again, instead drink the coffee through the cream.

IRISH MARTINI...

Prep Time: 3 minutes

Total Time: 3 minutes

Yield: 1 Cocktail

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces vodka
• 1/2 ounce dry vermouth
• 1/2 ounce Irish whiskey
•  Lemon Twist for garnish

Preparation:

1. Pour the Irish whiskey into a chilled cocktail glass.
2. Swirl around the glass in order to coat the inside and dump the excess whiskey.
3. Pour the vodka and dry vermouth into a cocktail shaker half-filled with cracked ice.

Now I am aware of the whole Corn beef and Cabbage tradition, but let's say you don't like that (I don't)...

THE DUBLIN CODDLE... Irish sausage, bacon, and potato hot pot!

Total Time:

Prep Time:

Cook Time:
4 hrs 15 mins

15 mins

4 hrs

Serves: 4-6

2 kg potatoes
2 large onions, peeled and sliced thickly
450 g good quality pork sausages
450 g bacon, piece thick cut
500 ml water
1 ham stock cube or 1 beef or 1 chicken stock cube, if ham stock isn't available
3 -4 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
salt (to season)
coarse-ground pepper (to season)

Directions:

1
Peel the potatoes. Cut large ones into three or four pieces: leave smaller ones whole. Finely chop the parsley. Boil the water and in it dissolve the bouillon cube.
2
Grill or broil the sausages and bacon long enough to colour them. Be careful not to dry them out! Drain briefly on paper towels. When drained, chop the bacon into one-inch pieces. If you like, chop the sausages into large pieces as well. (Some people prefer to leave them whole.).
3
Preheat the oven to 300F / 150°C In a large flameproof heavy pot with a tight lid, start layering the ingredients: onions, bacon, sausages or sausage pieces, potatoes. Season each layer liberally with fresh-ground pepper and the chopped fresh parsley. Continue until the ingredients are used up. Pour the bouillon mixture over the top. On the stove, bring the liquid to a boil. Immediately turn the heat down and cover the pot. (You may like to additionally put a layer of foil underneath the pot lid to help seal it.).
4
Put the covered pot in the oven and cook for at least three hours. (Four or five hours won't hurt it.) At the two-hour point, check the pot and add more water if necessary. There should be about an inch of liquid at the bottom of the pot at all times.
5
To Serve. Guinness, bottled or draft, goes extremely well with this dish (indeed, adding a little to the pot toward the end of the process wouldn't hurt anything). Another good accompaniment is fresh soda bread, used to mop up the gravy!

What's a meal without dessert!?!?!?!

BLARNEY STONE BARS!

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 15 min. Bake: 20 min. + cooling...

MAKES: 42 servings

 

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup English toffee bits
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 4 drops green food coloring
• 3/4 cup vanilla frosting               
•  

• Directions

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. Combine flour, oats, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Fold in the toffee bits and pecans.
• Spread into a greased 9-in. square baking pan. Bake at 350° for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Add food coloring to frosting; spread over the bars. Cut into diamond shapes. Yield: about 3-1/2 dozen.

So there you have it... Coffee, alcohol, main meal AND dessert! Enjoy and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

•  

 

Author Saturday Spotlight : Carrie Elks **Giveaway**

It's not often I get to spotlight an author I've had the honor to see grow into the amazing talent so many see today. Granted I wasn't there when Carrie picked up a pen, but I watched her these last couple years spread her wings and stun everyone.

Her talent is breathtaking and you and I for one, and glad she has chosen to share her work with the world.

A little about Carrie Elks:

Carrie Elks lives near London, England and writes contemporary romance with a dash of intrigue. At the age of twenty-one she left college with a political science degree, a healthy overdraft and a soon-to-be husband. She loves to travel and meet new people, and has lived in the USA and Switzerland as well as the UK.

An avid social networker, she tries to limit her Facebook and Twitter time to stolen moments between writing chapters. When she isn’t reading or writing, she can usually be found baking, drinking wine or working out how to combine the two. 


Every so often a fresh face hits the presses and our smiles brighten because we really REALLY needed something new! Carrie truly has become the breath of fresh air so many of us have needed.

Her genre is, romance, contemporary, thriller. And you can read all about her on her website : Carrie Elks Website be sure to subscribe and keep up with what's going on in this author's adventures!!

So far she has published 2 books! Both amazing, and both so very worthy of your time...

 

When fear mixes with desire, who can you trust?

Rachel Stone is stuck, contemplating that very question. Spending her time as a bartender in an isolated West Virginia town, she hides behind dark hair and an assumed name. She exists from day to day, trying not to let her past overwhelm her.

When a tall stranger walks into the bar at closing time, her attempts at hiding turn to dust. Muscled and intense, he is attractive enough for Rachel to ignore her instincts and listen to her baser desires. As a storm brews in the skies of West Virginia, confusion builds in Rachel’s mind. What begins as flirtation explodes into a darker, more primal passion, leading her to question everything she thought she knew.

While snow blankets the outside world, they are forced to remain inside, confronting their demons and the sizzling attraction between them. Submitting to their urges is easy; learning who to trust is anything but.

This 30,000 word novella contains references to past abuse and rough, consensual sex

 

You can purchase this wonderful book here : Buy on Amazon

 

 

 

 "Richard, we had a baby."

31st December 1999. Seventeen-year-old Brit, Hanna Vincent, meets New Yorker, Richard Larsen; a Columbia student and step-son of scion Leon Maxwell. Divided by wealth, distance and a common language, an unconventional friendship grows between the two.

From London to New York, from 1999 to 2012, Fix You follows the story of quirky, music-loving Hanna and handsome, driven Richard as they fall in love and are torn apart. Their tempestuous relationship leads to an explosive revelation that threatens to destroy them both.

Emotional and touching, this is a story of second chances. Is their shattered love beyond repair?

Fix You is a stand-alone novel. 

 

You can purchase this book here : Buy on Amazon   

UNLESS YOU WIN IT IN OUR GIVEAWAY TODAY!!!!

 

Of course you can read these blurbs and become a Goodreads fan of Carrie's here > Carrie Elks on Goodreads 

 

 ***GIVEAWAY*** Good luck everyone!!!!! Contest ends Friday March, 21st! 

 

  

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My Top 3 M/M Menage Books... According to me of course

I was always in search of my top 3 Menage books. Because 3 is SO appropriate for that! I only ever had one for the longest time. More by Sloan Parker. Then back to back this last month the other 2 revealed themselves with a crash and a bang! Broken Pieces by Riley Hart and The Foster Family by Jamie Samms.

Some people can't wrap their heads around Menage. I've heard... "It's too confusing." Or. "I don't believe you can love more than one person." And "Books like that are for selfish lovers." But the one I agree with is, "I've yet to read one that is good." I have scoured the shelves I tell you! SCOURED! A great menage is hard to find!

Why do I like Menage? The pure psychology of it intrigues me, that's what fuels my mind. What fuels my heart is this. Imagine a world where 2 people love you so much. 2 people!!! They would take you to the greatest of heights and cuddle on the ground with you in your darkest moments. I imagine if one of the trio ceased to be, it would be as if an arm was missing. But, imagine someone knowing EXACTLY how you're feeling because they lost the same exact person the same way. TRIFECTA PERFECTA! That's what I say! For me, it's beautiful.

NOW! These 3 books did everything for me. Don't be perverts people! Each of these books are different. It isn't like reading the same story three times. "You've read one you've read them all," said the most bland person ever! Seriously, that's bull crap! These books are the best of the best in my honest opinion. Of course I am always on the look out for great menage, but it took a hell of a long time to get these three on my Top 3!

So let's talk about them...

For fifteen years Luke Moore has lived by three rules: stay off his father's radar, never spend more than a single night with any man, and never fall in love again. But one night of explosive sex and two men whom he can't get out of his head have Luke breaking them all. Richard and Matthew push him past all his boundaries--both sexually and personally--and now he's no longer hiding from his senator father; he's taking him on. And he isn't just falling for one man; he's falling for two. If you're going to break the rules, might as well break them big.
But Luke's father has his reasons for hating how his son lives, and he'll do whatever he can and use all his power to keep Luke away from Richard and Matthew.
Can this threesome find a way to make their unconventional relationship last with the world around them trying to pull them apart? And will Luke be able to keep breaking his rules for Richard and Matthew, or will he head back to his familiar way of life just when his new lovers want to bind him tighter?
Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: Male/male sexual practices, menage (m/m/m).

Yes, there is sex... A lot of sex, BUT! <<< See the but? The chemistry, love, hunger, raw and powerful connection these three have, is consuming. The growth from casual to monogamous is like a field day for the mind. There is suspense, and passion. You are flying in all the right places and you can't help but dissect every nuance. Each character (Luke, Richard and Matthew) bring SO MUCH to the table and Sloan Parker truly nails the physical and psychological with the characters and story. GREAT GREAT GREAT ( gotta do it in threes)

 
 Growing up in foster care has left Kerry Grey with little self-esteem or hope for his future. A college dropout, Kerry scrapes by on a part-time job at a garden nursery. His friendship with his boss and working with the plants are the only high points in Kerry’s life. He’s been dating the man who bullied him at school, but when his boyfriend abandons him at a party, Kerry wanders down the beach to drown his sorrows in a bottle of scotch.

Malcolm Holmes and Charlie Stone have been together for fifteen years. Despite Charlie's willingness to accept Malcolm's unspoken domination in bed,something is missing from their relationship. Early one morning, they rescue a passed out Kerry from being washed away by the tide and Charlie immediately senses a kindred spirit in the lost younger man. When Kerry’s roommate kicks him out, Malcolm and Charlie invite him into their home. As Charlie and Kerry bond over Charlie’s garden, Malcolm sees Kerry may be just who they have been looking for to complete their lives. All they have to do is show Kerry, and each other, that Kerry's submissive tendencies will fit their dynamic.

But someone is sabotaging Kerry at every turn. As he struggles to discover the culprit, he fears for the safety of his new friends. If Malcolm and Charlie cannot help, their lifelong search for their perfect third may not end with the happily ever after they imagined.

ser·en·dip·i·ty: : luck that takes the form of finding valuable or pleasant things that are not looked for

When Kerry meets Malcolm and Charlie for the first time you don't realize it right away but when it hits you, you can't help whisper, serendipity!

I didn't really know what to expect with this book because I had been reading one menage after another with so so feelings. This book just sideswiped me with emotion and intrigue. I couldn't place where I wanted anything to go. It was very realistic and yet almost obscure. Kerry you can't help but love. He is thrown into a life where 2 people have been together for so long and they have a complex past. Malcolm is just UNF! I saw him as a dark character in search of the light and Charlie his partner wishing he could give it to him. There are fractures all over the place with these three and you just find yourself a slave to Jamie Samms brilliance. You'll see what I mean. If you read it you know what I mean, if you haven't, you must!

 

 
Can three broken pieces make a whole?

Josiah Evans is the orphan who lost both his parents. He’s sweet, shy, and all heart. He wants nothing more than to be loved.

Mateo Sanchez is the son of a gang leader. He’s seen it all, and never hesitates to do what needs to be done, no matter what it is.

Tristan Croft is the wealthy attorney who clawed his way up from the bottom to rule his own world. He’ll never depend on anyone but himself again.

Three men who couldn’t be more different…and yet, as their lives intersect they find an uncommon balance that calms the storms inside each of them, and ignites fires hotter than they ever thought imaginable.


Told uniquely in three parts and spanning over ten years, BROKEN PIECES is a journey of healing for three fragmented souls, finding love in the unlikeliest of places—with each other.

I have to start out by saying A SEQUEL IS COMING! This book gave me withdrawals and I had a hangover and a friend of mine read it right after me and my phone blew up with texts! We were at a loss AND IT WAS AWESOME! Riley Hart just went above and beyond with this. Can three broken pieces make a whole? You aren't going to ever know that answer unless you read this book and stick with it. You will cry and your body will buzz with the need for more. You will close this book with eyes wide and jaws dropped. You will cry because it's over and smile because more is coming. These characters *sigh* Josiah, SO Strong! Mateo, SO brave, Tristen, SO shattered! Past and present collide fabulously in this book and OH BOY GET THE WINE! 

So! If you are a menage fan (or even if you aren't) these three books really just do it right! I welcome AMY suggestions if you have a menage out there. I am sure I likely read it already, but please speak up now! 

 Get buying people!