HOT AND BOTHERED from Dianne Castell

Dianne Castell, for those who haven't met her, is an unstoppable bundle of energy wrapped around the biggest, kindest heart you'll ever find. Dianne sent me a copy of her upcoming release, HOT AND BOTHERED, some time ago and we talked about her being a guest blogger here to promote her book. Dianne immediately went to work, planning a blog party, getting copies of her book out to readers so they could discuss it during her days here, and planning games and prizes. We've both been very excited about it and look forward to lots of visitors over the next couple of days!
First, about the book - Hot and Bothered is without a doubt, Dianne's best work to date. Set in sultry Savannah, Dianne's usual sense of humor shines and her lead characters, Charlotte and Griff, are priceless together.
NYT Bestselling author Lori Foster says this about HOT AND BOTHERED: “This is what romance is all about – first class writing with humor, sexy romance, and some very special twists. You don’t want to miss this one!”
Long-time romance reader and Georgia native Lisa Freeman offers this quote and review - "Great characters that makes the reader want more! I'm anxiously awaiting the next story in this "Hot" series."
Charlotte and her best friends, Priss, Bebe, and Brie, have known each other all their lives, brought together out of necessity to survive adolescence. Charlotte knows who Griff is, however they don’t socialize in the same circles. Griff hires her to find the missing heir to the other half of his hotel and immediate sexual chemistry flares between them. Events happen in a domino effect, and Charlotte’s friends are drawn into the mystery surrounding the missing heir, a missing heirloom necklace, and the old morgue.
As a native Georgian, I have been anticipating this book for quite some time. Dianne Castell doesn't disappoint at all! As you are reading the words you can just picture how they would sound with a southern accent. She uses sayings and phrases common to this area. The four friends were portrayed perfectly as best friends who have grown up together and share everything – closer than and more faithful than sisters. I loved the comedy written into every part of the book. I found myself cheering for the girls one minute and laughing out loud at their antics the next. Even the heroes had funny moments, and I can't wait to read the next book in this series.
Reader Jodi Shadden had this to say: Hot and Bothered will do just that - Get you hot and bothered! Dianne Castell does it again with this great start to a new series. Dianne's descriptions make you feel like you are there living the story with the characters. It sure made me want to re-visit Savannah! I laughed at parts, wanted to slap a character upside the head a time or two, and bit my nails in anticipation of what was to happen. This book affirmed why Dianne Castell is an auto-buy author.
Reader Kaleen Cooper says: "Hot and Bothered is a Spicy, Sexy Who-Done-It Thriller. Wealthy Griff Parish hires P.I. Charlotte deShawn to find a missing person that will inherit half his family's fortune. Charlotte is thrilled to prove herself and jumps right in. What she finds is murder, mayhem and a mystery that spans over 30 years. Charlotte knows Griff is hiding something from her and she will try anything to find out what. Even if it means sacrificing her body!"
Stacy Ahlgren had this to say about HOT AND BOTHERED: "Dianne Castell incorporates her unique, sassy style in her latest book, "Hot & Bothered", a funny take on southern living with a haunting twist. Her stories are wild and steamy, overflowing with humor and fun. She is an auto-buy for me". Keep an eye on Stacy's blog around the 22nd-23rd, as she has her own celebration planned for the release of Dianne's book!
Cindy, who many of you know as "LilCinny" agreed to help spread the word about our party on her blog, despite mourning the recent death of her mother. This is what she had to say "My mama loved to read, so what better way to honor her than helping out an author?" Isn't that typical of someone in the wonderful world of romance? Bless you, Cindy.
Judy Flohr says this about HOT AND BOTHERED: "A delightfully funny romance. The characters have such depth and feel like long lost friends. Its a beautiful blend of southern charm with a taste of mystery."
I recently made a request of several authors, asking if they would simply help spread the word about our blog party on Thursday and Friday. That request was met with wide-open arms and their offers of books and prizes to celebrate the release of Dianne's book totally blew me away. Check out this list! All you have to do for a chance at these books is post a comment here during Dianne's blog party on Thursday and/or Friday. There will be one entry per person and I will draw names for this contest on Friday evening. Prizes will be mailed (US/Canada addresses only, please) to winners directly from the author offering the prize. Dianne will also be offering several prizes and she will be announcing her contest requirements.
Okay, here we go, in no particular order!
Jill Shalvis will be giving one lucky reader copies of SMART AND SEXY and STRONG AND SEXY! Thanks, Jill!
HelenKay Dimon is offering a copy of her latest release RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW and she will also be chatting about our blog party on her blog!
Lori Foster will be giving a hardcover copy of JUDE'S LAW, copies of SERVANT (written as L.L. Foster) and SIMON SAYS and a t-shirt from her Cafepress store (winner's choice) - wow! Lori is also talking about Dianne's blog party all over the place!
Erin McCarthy is giving one lucky winner a copy of SUCKER BET, the latest in her Vegas Vampire series!
Sylvia Day will be mentioning our party on her blog and is offering a copy of her latest release, DON'T TEMPT ME.
LuAnn McLane will be giving one winner a TRUCK MY TRUCK goodie package including an autographed copy of TRICK MY TRUCK BUT DON'T MESS WITH MY HEART!
Toni Blake is offering a copy of SWEPT AWAY for one winner!
Fallen Angel Reviews is generously offering a prize package to one lucky winner!
Donna Kauffman will be chatting up our party on her blog several times and is offering two different prizes - BAD BOYS IN KILTS and THE GREAT SCOTT as one prize and THE BLACK SHEEP AND THE PRINCESS and THE BLACK SHEEP AND THE HIDDEN BEAUTY as a second prize - woohoo!
J.C.Wilder will be chatting all over the web about our party, including http://www.eroticromancewriters.com - she is also offering one lucky reader a prize of IN THE GLOAMING!
Roberta Brown is offering one very lucky reader a $50. gift card to Barnes & Noble - wow! Her alter ego Kate Angell is offering another reader the prize of her Boys of Summer trilogy which includes SQUEEZE PLAY, CURVEBALL, and the April release, STRIKE ZONE. Pretty amazing, huh?
Alison Kent will be offering a copy of HOT AND BOTHERED on her blog and is offering a copy of BEYOND A SHADOW to one lucky winner here!
Kay Stockham Kay will be chatting about our party on her blog and is offering two winners each a copy of her latest release, ANOTHER MAN'S BABY!
Janice Maynard is putting up a copy of THE PERFECT TEN to one lucky winner!
Karen Kelley will make one reader happy with a copy of COSMIC SEX and an alien bookmark!
Sasha White will thrill a lucky winner with a copy of SEXY DEVIL! Sasha will be chatting about our party on her blog as well.
Lucy Monroe is going to make mention on her blog and is offering two prizes, a copy of SATISFACTION GUARANTEED and a copy of DEAL WITH THIS - both prizes will include chocolate, pens and bookmarks - sweet!
Janelle Denison is giving a copy of BORN TO BE WILDE to one lucky winner!

WHEW! Can you believe those prizes? This just goes to show how wonderful the romance community is. All I asked for was for these beautiful women to make simple mention of our blog party and this is what I was given in return.
Thank you just doesn't say enough, ladies, your generosity and your eagerness to celebrate with a fellow author has deeply touched me.
Laurie
xo

COMING SOON - Dianne Castell!!

I think I'll declare this "Dianne Castell Week" - I'll be posting reader reviews, comments and quotes in the next couple of days and then Dianne herself is going to take over the blog on Thursday and Friday for a blog party that will include excerpts, games, Q&A, and LOTS of great prizes! Mark your calendars and tell your friends - we're going to have a blast!
Laurie

HOMEBOUND

Update: The blizzard warning has been lifted and now we're just dealing with flurries and high winds. We're still under a level 3 snow emergency, meaning only emergency vehicles are permitted on the roads. I've added some more pics - one looking out of the garage when we first opened the door and one of Tim using the "Big Bastard", our name for his snow blower. He was able to get quite a bit done today, but will be out for several hours again tomorrow. Our neighbors are always happy when they hear the BB fire up because they know he'll be clearing all of the sidewalks and their driveways.

Our blizzard warning continues, for good reason. I took this picture looking out my kitchen window. Now that I'm sitting down to put it up, the houses across the street from us have totally disappeared from view in the heavy and blowing snow. We've had 12 inches so far and it's still coming down very hard. We had to clear a spot for Fred to go out to potty - you can see that the snow is deeper than he is tall - that's the problem with a basset hound and snow!
I'm about to make some pancakes and put a pot of veggie soup on to cook. This is a good day for cooking and baking. There's not much I enjoy more than being in my nice warm kitchen, filling the house with good smells!
Please be careful in you're in the vicinity of this winter storm - stay home if you can.
Laurie

EVERYTHING I NEED, AND THEN SOME - at the click of my mouse

One of the things I love about Google's gmail is that the spam blocker is excellent. Every couple of days I go in to give my spam folder a peek, just to make sure that nothing important has been dumped there. The subject lines on some of the spam emails make me laugh out loud - here are some of the best ones - and my immediate thoughts upon reading them:

Be Your Own Boss - This just screams failure. I'm too soft and would let myself loaf and have fun when I should be working. I would be a lousy boss, even over myself.
Diaper Promotion Click Here - I don't think so. Two words - Too Old.
You Have Been Selected to Live a Life of Luxury - I wouldn't recognize a life of luxury if it bit me on the ass.
A Forensics Degree is the Key to Unlocking your Potential - I guess they don't know that I can't brush my teeth without gagging, there's no way I could be in forensics. My potential will just have to remain locked up.
OVERWEIGHT? Lose between 2 and 14 inches in ONE hour! - I figure this must involve varying degrees of amputation - starting with a pinky and working up to a forearm.
Looking for a Hot Date? - Um, see the diaper promotion response above.
Your friends will be amazed with all your chixs! If I had "chixs", my friends would be amazed, all right. So would my husband.
hump - What? That's it? Just hump? Who, what, where, when??
Get a flat belly by Friday! Do they not realize what day it is? They must be dealing in miracles.
Say farewell to ED! - Ok I give up, who is Ed and where is he going?
One click repair for your computer - It seems to me that if my computer needs repair, clicking isn't going to do much good.
What silly subjects show up in your spam folder?
Have a great weekend, everyone! We're under yet another winter storm watch for this weekend. I'm so very ready for spring. Our crocus have been peeking out of the snow for a couple of weeks now, poor little things, trying to find the sun.
Hugs,
Laurie

THINK THIN THURSDAY - HEALTHY LIVING

I receive emails daily about diet and exercise. At the present, they aren't doing me any good because I've slipped completely off the diet track. I'm so far off track that I can't even see the track. It's very discouraging and I'm totally disgusted with myself. One of the emails I received today was about metabolism. I'm not certain I even have metabolism. I think mine is in the negative numbers. Hey, maybe I'm a metabolic freak of nature that scientists would give their right arm to study! No, I think I'm just a glutton who loves to eat and can't control herself for more than a handful of days at a time!
Check out this website for great tips on everything healthy. I have been a frequent visitor there, although you wouldn't know it right now!
I do plan on getting back on track in the next couple of days. My life has been very stressful these past couple of weeks but things are finally looking up and I look forward to being back in full control very shortly.
Look for some fun reviews and chatter for Dianne Castell's upcoming Brava release, HOT AND BOTHERED, in the next few days. Next week there won't be a Think Thin Thursday post because Dianne will be guest blogging here on the 13th and 14th - a blog party with lots of fun discussion, games and prizes! I hope you'll stop back and check it out - and please tell your friends!

Here's my baby rolling out on her first solo drive this afternoon. Yep, she finally got her driver's license yesterday. Look out if you're in the vicinity of central Ohio! lol I'm teasing, of course, she's a very cautious driver. She could have driven almost two years ago but had no interest in getting her license. I think her older sister had her permit and her license on the earliest possible date, so this seemed very unusual to us. My boss (also her boss as she works in my office after school and on days out of school) used to tease her about having been accepted into college but unable to drive a car! Trust me, I'm more than ready for this child to be mobile.
I hope everyone has had a great weekend. We were incredible busy, running here and there all weekend. I feel like the weekend went by in the blink of an eye. I'm hopeful that next weekend will be much more relaxing!
Laurie

KATE DAVIES - Have you read her work?

I had only read one Kate Davies book, TAKING THE CAKE, until a couple of days ago. It was an enjoyable read, with a satisfying mix of emotions and sensuality. When Kate spent the day on the Samhain Cafe loop the other day, she offered a copy of her newest release, LESSONS IN TRUST, as a contest prize. Excerpts that were posted from this book and the first in the series, LESSONS IN LOVE, intrigued me and I knew that I was going to buy them. I was fortunate enough to be her contest winner; I immediately purchased a download of the other so I could read them back-to-back. I did just that and would highly recommend that you do the same!
These two books are very entertaining romance without any fluff. The characters are intelligent and extremely likable, their situations are believable and captivating. Ms. Davies is excellent at describing her characters' surroundings, successfully pulling you into each scene.
Check out Kate's website where you'll find excerpts from her most recent releases and an upcoming summer release,HOOKED, as well as the bookshelf of all of her work.
While I sometimes prefer a paperback in my hands, I truly don't mind reading on my Palm the way some readers do. There's something about the instant gratification of an ebook download that is extremely satisfying - also, ebooks don't take up any physical space and you can boast that you're being "green" - maybe you won't feel quite as guilty when you forget to recycle today's newspaper.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Laurie

THINK THIN THURSDAY - LEAN LASAGNA RECIPE

I thought I'd share a recipe for Lean Lasagna with you this week. With all of the cold temps and snow we've been having, there's nothing I like more than comfort food, including lasagna. This is an excellent recipe and your family will never know that the fat and calories have been whittled down. Enjoy!

LEAN LASAGNA
Serves 8
INGREDIENTS
Vegetable oil cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 lb ground turkey breast
3 cups tomato sauce
3 tsp Italian seasoning (or 1 tsp each dried basil, parsley and oregano)
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
6 cups chopped fresh spinach (or chard)
2 cups fat-free ricotta
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 package whole-wheat lasagna noodles (about 8 oz, or 9 noodles)
2 cups (8 oz) shredded part-skim mozzarella

PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 375°. Spray a medium-sized nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Sauté onion for 2 minutes, then add turkey and cook an additional 5 to 7 minutes. Add tomato sauce, all seasonings and mushrooms and simmer 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat. In a bowl, combine spinach, ricotta and nutmeg. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and rinse with cool water. Coat a 9" x 13" baking pan with cooking spray. Arrange 1/3 lasagna noodles (3 noodles) on the bottom of the pan. Spread a layer of ricotta mixture, then turkey mixture, then 1/3 mozzarella. Repeat layers, ending with mozzarella. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until cheese bubbles. Cool at least 5 minutes before cutting.

THE SKINNY
310 calories per serving
6 g fat (3.5 g saturated)
31 g carbs
4 g fiber
33 g protein

Have a great day!
Laurie

BEAST OF DESIRE - now available from Lisa Renee Jones!

This is an update of my previous entry about Lisa's latest book - please check it out - you'll have to search long and hard to find an author who writes with Lisa's creative imagination and wonderful characters!
Lisa Renee Jones has a new release, BEAST OF DESIRE, second in her Silhouette Nocturne Knights of White series. Just as exciting is the news that Lisa will be writing books 3, 4, 5 and 6! The heroes of this series are each intriguing in their own very different way, and Lisa has a knack for writing just the right heroine to keep things interesting!
A blurb:
Desire can be dangerous…
As a leader of the Knights of White in the war between Good and Evil, the demon warrior known only as Des walks a fine line between beast and man. Sent into battle now to reclaim the ancient Journal of Solomon containing a list of angelic bloodlines before the Darkland Beasts find it, Des feels an overwhelming connection to its guardian Jessica Montgomery. Vibrant, alive, seductive….only she has the power to draw out the beast, soothe the man…and endanger them both.
Des can’t resist her touch, craving it like an addiction. Jessica might be his salvation. Or he might destroy them both….
* * * * *
Praise for BEAST OF DESIRE
“Des, one of the Knights of White, men who are turned into beasts and then given back their souls so they can fight evil, is assigned to steal an ancient journal with directions leading to a box that names the descendants of angels. In order to protect it from the Darkland Beasts who would use it to kill those descendants, he must work with museum employee Jessica Montgomery, a woman whose mother spent her whole life searching for the journal. Des and Jessica are instantly attracted, but Des’ past makes him believe he’s not worthy of the wealthy senator’s daughter. Lisa Renee Jones’ BEAST OF DESIRE (4 1/2) is an exciting continuation of her Knights of White series. Des is the perfect hero - flawed and sexy, needing the right woman to complete him. The sexual tension between Des and Jessica is compelling, as is the excitement of their quest to find the journal and escape the beasts.”
— Romantic Times Magazine, Alexandra Kay

My review:
Museum curator Jessica Montgomery carries on her late mother's almost desperate interest in an ancient journal, not fully understanding her mother's dogged determination in searching for it. When Des from the Knights of White appoints himself Jessica's protector, she is even more confused, not understanding the darkness that threatens her. The Darkland Beasts want this journal to carry out their own evil intentions, and will stop at nothing to get it, just as the Des and the other knights are willing to die trying to keep Jessica and the journal safe. It turns out that the connection between Des and Jessica and the journal runs much deeper than either of them could have imagined.
Des, like all of the Knights of White, has just enough beast in him to make him fear losing control. There is an immediate attraction between Des and Jessica, but his reluctance to completely let go when he's with her is troubling. When all of the pieces fall into place and it begins to look like Jessica is his intended mate, Des has some monumental decisions to make. The biggest of which is whether he can get past the notion that he doesn't deserve someone like Jessica.
I have enjoyed the first two books in this series very much and I feel confident in recommending them. While they are satisfying reads by themselves, I can't help but feel that they will be enjoyed much more if read in order, starting with THE BEAST WITHIN.
I hope you'll pop on over to Amazon to order a copy of this great book before they're gone - you'll have no regrets!
Thank you, Lisa, for allowing me to read and review BEAST OF DESIRE!
Thanks to everyone for stopping by!
Laurie

THINK THIN THURSDAY

I'm keeping it very simple this week because I'm a tad pressed for time. The following is a little blip about the positives of walking, taken from another one of the daily emails I get from Ladies Home Journal.

It's hard to motivate for exercise when you're feeling down and out. But your bad mood is actually the best reason to increase your activity level. Studies show that something as simple as a 10-minute walk can ease depression and boost your mood. In fact, walking can help decrease feelings of tension, anger, stress, and confusion -- it even gives you energy. Try it and see for yourself!

So grab your sneakers, bundle up, and go for a walk!

Laurie