#6BestHop The Horror of a Crying Woman

Welcome to Six Best Blog Hop where authors of every variety can exhibit six paragraphs of some of their best. This week I'm sharing from my newest book, Candi's Debt. The scene is a part of Hank and Candi's initial meeting.

HANK

I drag in an aggravated breath, running a hand through my hair. I really don’t need this shit. And didn't this chick know better than to go off with fucking strangers? “Is there a friend I can call for you?” I ask, trying to be the voice of reason.

   

 She shakes her head and wraps her arms around my waist as she starts sobbing. Big, body wracking sobs shake her.

   

 She’s nice and tall, and all her curves hit me just right. Great, now I’m trying not to notice how luscious her body feels pressed up against mine. And it feels fucking amazing. I definitely don’t want to think on how good she smells. A touch of cigarette smoke and rum cling to her, but underneath that is a light, flowery perfume scent that has my pulse pounding. My dick twitches twice, and I try not to breathe too deeply.

   Shit, shit, shit. I really don’t need this. Rubbing her back I give her a “there, there,” wondering what the hell I’m supposed to do now. I’m not one to play the knight in shining freaking armor. This is a prime example of why I date hardass chicks that avoid emotional displays. Who needs a regular diet of this shit? That fact alone makes it even more shocking when I hear myself say, “I think there's a twenty-four-hour diner around here. Why don't we go get coffee and I'll take you to your car?”

   

 “Oh my god, thank you. That would be nice,” she says, patting my chest. “You're so nice. And sweet.” She moves in to kiss me and I jerk back a little. I’m hella attracted to her, but I’m not the kind of guy who takes advantage of the needy desperate women. Undeterred, this girl drops to her knees, working my belt buckle.

   

 For a moment I can’t move. I can barely breath, standing transfixed by the beautiful blonde on her knees undoing my fucking belt. Under different circumstances I'd find out how far she could take me. See how her luscious lips would look wrapped around my cock, but now—I give myself a mental slap. My mother was like her. A gorgeous whore. Who knows how many times this girl has 'thanked' men on her knees. I refuse to be like the men who had used my mother.

Candi

The men in my family are gamblers, cheats, and thieves. They aren’t loyal to anyone but themselves. It’s the Dawson way. My oldest brother was killed for sticking to that tradition.

I refuse to let that happen to my little brother. He’s all I have in this world and I’ll do anything to save him.

His debts are now mine, and I always pay my debts.
Now if a certain ape leader would get out of my way, things would go much more smoothly.

Hank

I swore never to return to Texas. But here I am, wading neck deep into shit creek. I’m not even getting paid for this crap.

And Candi? She has more secrets than sense and represents everything I try to avoid. I’m not sure how I got tangled up with her in the first place. I have no business getting involved with a woman like her. She needs to be saved from herself.

I don’t have a white knight complex, and this girl needs a savior. I can’t be that guy.

*Author's Note: Candi's Debt  is a full length, stand alone HEA. It contains adult themes, taboo dirty talk, harsh language, and explicit sexual content.

BUY LINKS

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AMAZON UK

ARe

NOOK

SMASHWORDS

KOBO

Thank you for visiting! I hope you enjoyed, and please feel free to follow the hop by clicking the links below!

“Careful, little girl.” Tuesday Tease

 Candi's taken on her brother's debts. She's in hot water with dangerous men, who want a whole lot more than money from her. Having no one else to turn to she asks her boss's son for a loan, and ends up getting much more than she bargained for.

CANDI

After Wyatt leaves, I can feel Hank’s eyes burning into the side of my head. If the look on his face the entire time his gorgeous friend was here is any indication, I do not want to hear what he has to say. And I have a feeling he is just dying to tell me something I do not want to hear. So I just ignore him and go back to work like he isn’t here.

    “Do you really think right now is the best time to be dating?”

    Well, that didn’t take long. I glance at the clock on the bottom of the screen. Mr. Buffoon waited two whole minutes. 

    “I’m twenty-one, single, and ready to mingle. Some would say this is the best time. And I’m not dating your friend, although he seems nice…plus he has dimples.” I’ve always been a sucker for a guy with dimples. Indeed he is cute, charming, and way more personable than sunny old Hank.

    

 “Seriously?”

   

 “Seriously.”

  

  “Wyatt is not nice. He’s a walking erection you looked more than happy to hop on.” I gasp in outrage, but the ass ignores me and keeps going. “And what is that shiiistuff about you downplaying how smart you are?”

“Maybe I like being a bit of a mystery, and FYI I do not want to hop on his anything. What the hell is your deal? If you have such a problem with me why are you even coming over tonight?”

“I don’t have a problem with you. I have a problem with you having a slew of problems and thinking it’s no problem to go out and date horny idiots while you’re still getting your shiiiistuff together.”

“Oooh, careful there. You wouldn’t want to break one of your own rules.”

I’m not at all surprised when he growls at me for that. However, I’m shocked when my nipples pebble. His feral rumble seems to shoot tingles straight down to my special bits in a disconcerting manner. I lock my knees together hard. That is a feeling I refuse to acknowledge. Refuse. The fire demon named Hank is not, not, turning me on.

“Speaking of rules, princess, I think I’m adding on to the list. No dating.”

“That makes no sense, that rule is stupid. I’m not doing that.”

“That makes perfect sense. And you’ll adhere to my rules if you know what’s good for you.”

You and what army are going to make me? I silently say to myself scowling at the buffoon. “Whatever. Why don’t you mosey on and let me get back to work?”

When Hank’s towering form leans over the desk I fight the urge to shrink back in my seat. Why won’t he just stalk off like the lumbering beast he is? He looks like he’s about to breathe fire. His cheeks are flushed as red as his beard and his eyes are shooting sparks. The muscles in his forearms are flexing like he’s holding himself back from grabbing me as he braces himself on the desk. Hell if I don’t notice he is all kinds of sexy angry.

“Careful, little girl.” The deep rumble of his voice is taunting. “You don’t want to be put over daddy’s knee again, do you?”

All I can do is huff my indignation, my mouth opening and closing like a fish, as my mind blanks and my panties flood remembering the last time I was over his lap. I can feel my face is all kinds of red. No, I do not want to be put over daddy’s anything, but why does just the thought of…no! No, no, no!

Giving me an appraising look he says, “Huh, maybe you do. You never cease to surprise me, princess.” 

BUY LINKS

AMAZON

AMAZON UK

ARe

NOOK

SMASHWORDS

KOBO


CANDI'S DEBT 

Candi-

The men in my family are gamblers, cheats, and thieves. They aren’t loyal to anyone but themselves. It’s the Dawson way. My oldest brother was killed for sticking to that tradition.

I refuse to let that happen to my little brother. He’s all I have in this world and I’ll do anything to save him.

His debts are now mine, and I always pay my debts.

Now if a certain ape leader would get out of my way, things would go much more smoothly.

Hank-

I swore never to return to Texas. But here I am, wading neck deep into shit creek. I’m not even getting paid for this crap.

And Candi? She has more secrets than sense and represents everything I try to avoid. I’m not sure how I got tangled up with her in the first place. I have no business getting involved with a woman like her. She needs to be saved from herself.

I don’t have a white knight complex, and this girl needs a savior. I can’t be that guy. 

*Author's Note: Candi's Debt is an erotic romance novel that includes explicit sex, spanking, BDSM elements, anal play, and anal sex. If such material offends you, this book may not be for you.

BUY LINKS

AMAZON

AMAZON UK

ARe

NOOK

SMASHWORDS

New Adult or Still Adult

I've recently been reading a genre I typically  avoid like the plague.

New Adult.

The covers almost always have a close up shot of young twenty somethings, looking like a sexy American Eagle Outfitters ad.

Crop is just a bit and this

one is ready to be a book cover

They could do full shot

or just a close up for this one

Seriously, they have to be using

 the same models as AE  for New Adult novels

The stories are drowning in selfish bad choices and angst. The female lead characters annoy me. The male lead characters seem like they're in their idiot phase of their early twenties, no matter how old they really are.

The characters are often going through shit I either can't relate to or have mentally blocked now that I'm firmly in my thirties, and my son will soon be a tween. Most New Adult is like Young Adult novels, but with two-seconds-to orgasm sex.

This is just the stereotype.

There are some out of many that I like. Then there are some that I would like to call bullshit on. It's come to my attention the moniker 'New Adult' is being vastly overused. Vastly. Overused.

I get it.

Associating your book with New Adult gets the young readers in the door. Those young readers are nuts with OCD and adore making the shinny e-character posters, blowing up GR with screaming fandom. But not all New Adult novels are New Adult novels. I've discovered, some New Adult novels are just plain old contemporary romance and I'm left calling bullshit.

This is actually a big pet peeve of mine.

You may be wondering how I can tell the difference. The definition of New Adult fiction is pretty ambiguous. Even Wiki seems to think it's shady. They even say, because of the success of the New Adult moniker, publishers have been jumping on the bandwagon and throwing titles into that category for sales.

So I'm going to tell you the difference between contemporary romance and New Adult romance, according to me;

New Adult = If you can take the sex out of a book and it would still be a coming of age type story, it's a New Adult. The plot of these books would survive if the lead character has more than one romantic interest and doesn't end up in a HEA with anyone specific at the end of the book.

Contemporary Romance = Now, if you take the sex out and it's still about the romance of a H/h   H/h that are just plain old adults in their twenties   chances are it's a contemporary romance. It's not a coming of age story. It's not about leaving home and developing their independence or sexuality. It's not about pop culture and their personal journey to adulthood. They are adults falling in love. That's it.

Are we going to start calling 99.9% of the historical romances I've read New Adult books? All those heroines are young and just discovering sex for the first time. According to Wiki those heroines fit the bill better than quite a few of these contemporaries I've been reading.

I'm going to throw Tessa Bailey under the bus, because really, she's a perfect example and everyone who has read her books and knows what I'm talking about. And, almost everyone that would be reading this blog has read her books. *If you haven't you should. Besides being missed labeled, they're really good.

She has the Line of Duty series, and a spin off from this series called Unfixable.

If you read Unfixable you have no doubt you are reading a New Adult novel. If the main character didn't have sex or didn't end up with the hero, and dated around in the book, it would still be a coming of age story. A young woman's journey to self discovery and self acceptance. She's nineteen and leaving home for the first time. She's just out of high school.

This book screams New Adult.

Now, if you are reading Protecting What's His, you would have to be told it's a New Adult. And if you are anything like me, you'd call bullshit. I rolled my eyes and gave a pfft, when I read that the Line of Duty series was New Adult.

The characters are out of their rookie adult years. For all intents and purposes they are just plain adults. The men have careers. Set careers. The women are women with career and charities. They may not be sure of what's going on in their life. They may not be winning any trophies for having their shit together. But they are still adult women.

The characters are firmly entrenched in adulthood.


When did this vague belief you're not an adult until you're thirty come about?! My cousin (bless her heart) recently posted on her FB page that she was excited about turning thirty and starting her adult years....

What?!?

I love my cousin. I never wanted to smack someone upside the head more than at that moment.

Adulthood doesn't come when you've got things figured out. Adulthood doesn't mean you've got your shit together. Adulthood isn't when you finally pay off your student loans. Or when you buy a car without a co-signer. Or when you move out of your parents home.

It's certainly NOT when you turn thirty.

Call me old fashion, but I believe adulthood comes about the same time as turning eighteen, when you can legally get married, get tattooed, make poor decisions and be charged as an adult in a court of law. Those first few years after eighteen you are a 'new adult'.

Everything after that you're just an adult.

Let's not perpetuate this shit. Let's call a spade a spade, and a contemporary romance a contemporary romance.

Happy Adult Romance Reading!

So, I would love to know, does this drive you crazy too or are you impervious to genre labeling? Or are you filled with giddy glee each time you see something labeled New Adult?

Free To Buy The Entire Series

There is an epidemic of free and 99 cent e-books. They are out there to tantalize and tease you. Some aren't really good. Some I've found are the worse sellers of an author and for some reason they get priced for free hoping someone will like them, and leave a review.

Then there are the good ones. The outstanding books that are free or 99 cents. These are almost always the first book in a series. A series that has three or more of the books in said series, already out.

Ready to be purchased by your greedy self.

I haven't been to sleep before 1:00 am in days because I've been reading through my bargain books, and buying the entire series that follow.

The first series I will share with you I really shouldn't like. Or at least I didn't think I would.

One the surface, this series has the spoiled rich kids with all the misplaced arrogance and pomp of an episode of Revenge, angst fest, I try to avoid. I don't like angst fest novels and rarely ever care for New Adult novels. I was reading the synopsis thinking just that. Something made me read the excerpt and it made me hot. I figured 'hey, it's free', and downloaded it anyways.

Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down.


Love Inc Novels By Ella James

                      Amz<---Free

Selling Scarlett by Ella James 

426 pages

Hunter West is a super wealthy playboy, who is getting blackmailed. And of course he thinks he can handle things better than the cops or FBI.

Elizabeth is the used-to-be rich girl, down on her luck. She's a stand up gal. She's getting her PhD, she's still a virgin at 23, she's a great friend, and she's got a lady boner for Hunter West that causes her to make some questionable choices. 

One thing leads another and she's selling her virginity in an auction at a whore house in Nevada. We've all been there, right? 

One of the things I really loved about this series, was the feeling that this was a contemporary adaptation of a historical romance novel. If you tweaked things marking the period like the clothes, changed out motorbikes for horses, cell phones for messengers, etc. This could be a historical romance. 

 Another thing I liked is this books -for lack of better word- grit. Hunter West really is a man-whore. That doesn't change just because he's met Elizabeth. He's had enough drugs, alcohol, and prostitutes he's getting bored with them. Yet he's kind of a glutton for punishment. He has issues. 

Meanwhile Elizabeth has her own issues and for much of the book their stories run parallel, joining in places like static zings. I was impressed by the lack of uber angst. I didn't eye roll once until about 300 pages in and even then it wasn't a deal breaker. I had a few moments of being annoyed with the characters. Things got a bit more on the angsty side. 

With that being said, I would still re-read this book and be happily entertained. 

I loved all the characters. Especially the side characters. I wouldn't want a guy like Hunter, he's more intriguing then likable.  I'm definitely not an Elizabeth, but they're both still really enjoyable to read about. 

On a side note; There's some rough shit in this book but the sex between the actually hero and heroine is pretty tame. Are they still a hero and heroine in a NA novel? Protagonists, maybe? Whatever. The lead characters. 

Warning: Mature content. Sex, violence, mature language, and drug use. 

                      Amz

Taming Cross by Ella James

263 pages

This is the story of Elizabeth's best friend Cross. I hate this cover. It isn't how I picture Cross at all. In my mind he's way more Stuart Reardon. I love the new cover but was too lazy to switch them out. You'll see it when you check out the book on Amz.

 Anyways, I'm not going to get into the book, I'll just say I adored this story. Absolutely loved it. Lots of action. Lots of violence. Lots of feelings. All the angst in this book is completely justified. I wanted to wrap myself around Cross and never let go.

The book is advertised as being able to be a stand alone. I guess it could be, but I enjoyed going into this book already totally in love with Cross. His story doesn't disappoint.

                   Amz

Unmaking Marchant by Ella James

219 pages

Again I'm not going to go into this book too much. I will say Marchant is gloriously fucked up. The sex is the most plentiful and dirty enough to be believably Marchant. I adored the match up for this story. It would have been my favorite had it not been cut short. 

The book ends abruptly because the continuation of all three of the stories will be in a novella called Something Blue. Or as I call it, Some Bullshit. Yes the couple get's a happy ending, but the ink isn't even dry on their 'I love you' epiphany before the end credits start rolling. I would have preferred the epilogue of this story immediately. Why isn't this book just a novella length longer? 

Why must we wait and buy another book? 

There is also no release date for this Something Blue but it already has a 2.75 rating on good old GoodReads. So obviously I'm not the only one completely annoyed by this. (I'll rant about being able to rate and review books that aren't even out yet another time. F&^%ing GR)

I just read a blog post stating Ella James has a projected release date of April or May. It's June now, so... 

I think we may be in for a wait. Be emotionally prepared for that, but don't let that stop you from trying Selling Scarlett. Hell, it's really good and it's free. If you're anything like me, you'll love these books. 

For more of Ella James please visit @ http://www.ellajamesbooks.com/

P.S. This post contains all the old covers. So, when you see the books with different covers, do not worry. They are the same books, but with better covers.