The New Orleans Way

Today, I'm honored to interview author, Liz Newman, and feature her new release,
The New Orleans Way.

Read on for the details!

1) What name do you write under?

Liz Newman

2) What Genre do you write?

I write historical, fantasy, contemporary, and paranormal fiction with strong romantic elements

3) Tell me about your latest book you’re promoting?

The New Orleans Way is a historical romance released by Secret Cravings Publishing in both trade paperback and eBook. The novel is now on sale for a limited time on Amazon in Kindle format for the low price of only .99.

The book is set in the 1890s when New Orleans was on the verge of becoming the wonderful cultural haven that it is today. The manors of the Garden District and the French Quarter were being built and many of them still stand, electricity was first introduced, and the city's cuisine was blossoming with the blend of flavors and influences that have withstood the test of time. This was a time at the end of the influence of the Victorian age, when the many aspects of New Orleans that are its very signature began to burgeon.

Here is a summary of the book:

Everything comes at a price. Love. Security. Even happiness.

On the day of her debutante ball, Rosemarie Kuhn is heralded at "The Next Great Lady of New Orleans." Despite her love for the lowborn private detective Michael Hennessy, she is betrothed by her mother to marry General George C. Boas. Spurned by the general and a false marriage certificate, she guns him down in front of his favorite tavern at St. Anthony Street. With her family's income in jeopardy, her home is turned into a casino for high class patrons funded by the first families who brought The Mafia to the United States. As her love for detective Michael Hennessy grows, she is torn from her desire for him and the promise she made to her dying mother.

4) What is your favorite part of writing?

My favorite part about writing is crafting a story that grows out of an idea. I love reading the finished product. The story always grows into something different than it's original genesis. The creative process is a unique journey to follow with every story, and there is always a new journey to be taken when the next book begins.

5) What is one tip you would give a writer just starting out?

Write, then rewrite, rewrite, rewrite; no matter how scary it is. A story is like a diamond; it needs to be refined. Your editor at the publishing house will tell you when it's truly done, but until that wonderful moment, it is up to the writer to make the book whatever he or she believes is absolutely perfect.

6) Blog or Website address?

www.lizrnewman.net

7) Buy Links

·    

Amazon USA

Amazon UK

Amazon Canada

Sweet Cravings Publishing

This sounds like an intriguing read. And I just love the cover, it's gorgeous. Thanks so much for spending time today at Fox Tales. We wish you much success with your new release!

Livin' Easy in the Summertime

We are pre-empting our regularly scheduled programming because it's group blog day for me.

I'm over at our group blog talking about my favorite summertime activities. Come on over and tell me yours!

Don’t forget, every comment at Through Heart-Shaped Glasses is entered to win a GC to Amazon! + a copy of Nina Croft’s July release, Losing Control.

Ten Quickies with Becca Sanders of Love Him or Leave Him

Greetings! Today we're thrilled to do the Fox Tales Ten Quickies with Becca Sanders, the heroine of Sara Daniel's new release, Love Him or Leave Him. Read on, because I've posted my review at the end!
 
Now, without further adieu, here's Becca.

1. Mountains or Beaches? Beach, preferably along the Mediterranean with a Greek tycoon whose physique outshines a certain too-sexy small-town police officer. What? It’s possible, and I’m not obsessing over that glimpse of Connor’s naked chest. Not. At. All.

2. Early Morning or Late Night? Early morning, definitely. 5 AM exercise class at my house!

3. High Heels or Sneakers?  Sneakers. Who can walk in high heels? More to the point, who would want to?

4. Summer or Winter? Summer. It’s so much easier to stay in shape when you can get outside. Plus, the beach is much nicer in the summer.

5. Wine or Chocolate? Both have good antioxidants, but considering how early I have to get up in the morning, I’ll go with chocolate.

6. Pen or Laptop? Laptop to write my exercise blog posts

7. Sports Car or Motorcycle? Sports car

8. Tea or Coffee? Hot cocoa, please!
 
9. Appetizer or Dessert? Dessert, preferably a caramel pecan cocoa made by Connor.

10. Kindle or Paperback? Kindle. It’s easier to turn the pages when I’m on the treadmill.

Let me tell you, after reading this story, these are so, Becca. Thanks for taking the time to be with us today. You are one terrific heroine. I'm so glad things worked out for you.

 

Here's the blurb:

Sometimes dreams are where you least expect them.

Connor O’Malley and Becca Sanders were once high school sweethearts, ripped apart by rumors in the small town of Kortville, Illinois. Connor left to join the military, and Becca stayed, waiting for her younger brother to graduate so she could live her dreams of traveling the world. But now that Connor's back as the town sheriff, Becca finds herself struggling to resist the too-handsome man who once broke her heart.

Connor loves Kortville—its quaintness keeps at bay the painful memories of Afghanistan he’s sure make him unworthy of any woman, particularly the beautiful brunette he’s always secretly dreamed of a future with. But when a scandal rocks the town, suddenly Connor and Becca must trust in each other if they want to weather this storm…and come out on the other side of it together.

 

Buy links:

Amazon | B&N | iBookstore | Kobo

 

About Sara:

I write what I love—irresistible romance, from sweet to erotic and everything in between. On the personal side, I'm a frazzled maid, chauffeur, and slave to my children. I was once a landlord of two uninvited squirrels. (The children's book The Bravest Squirrel Ever by my alter-ego Sara Shafer is the squirrel's fictionalized version of that experience!) I'm crazy about country music and the drama of NASCAR. And I have my very own happily-ever-after romance with my hero husband.

Follow my blog, like me on Facebook or email me for the latest updates on my books and writing projects or to debate the best race car drivers!

Sara online:

Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

 

Those of you who know me, know I'll be following Sara's blog now, because I can't resist a good debate about race car drivers!

 

And here's my review:

Kortville is a beautifully crafted small town with a full cast of diverse characters who’ll keep you entertained. This story features Becca and Connor who are former high school sweethearts drawn back together by circumstance. Ms. Daniel does a fantastic job of crafting believable mature characters that have dreams and goals of their own yet are responsible enough to do what they have to do, and open-minded enough to realize that things change, people change, and they can too.

There are several creative, yet realistic twists and turns in the plot, and some great laugh-out-loud moments, all woven together seamlessly to create a very entertaining read.

This story was hard for me to put down because I’m a city girl who’s moved to a small town, and the author made the story so believable that I could see some of these things possibly happening in my own town!

It’s by far one of the sweetest romances I’ve read this summer. So good in fact, that the first book in the series is now on my ereader.

There's also a $25 Amazon gift up for grabs, on this tour. Here's the link to the rafflecopter!

 

Entry for Amazon Gift Card

 

Thanks for taking the time to be here at Fox Tales. Wishing you much success with your book!

Disclaimer: I received an ARC from the publisher for the purpose of an honest review.



Summer Yard Work

It’s hot today. Although I can’t complain because we’ve had great
summer weather so far. Though the combination of the constant rain along with very hot sunny days in between has made everything grow like crazy.

And the frogs have gone wild. Here’s a little guy that scared the daylights out of me. I stuck my shovel in a pile of dirt, and out he hopped. Right at me. Yes, I screamed like a girl. Eewww!

We have a bit of land we're working to clean up so Lucy has a larger place to play and chase toys. And so we can play yard games when family comes to visit. I’ve been picking up sticks and hacking weeds when it’s not raining. I’m planning on being out there again tomorrow.

The garden is almost finished. I’ll be laying down some cloth and mulching this weekend so you’ll get some more pictures next week.

I think every girl should have a pair of steel-toed work boots and some well-worn leather gloves. And wear them with her pants tucked in. That’s to keep out the nasty chiggers. They came as an awful surprise earlier in the year. I don’t care what I look like; I’m not getting them again. Besides, don’t you think this just screams sexy?

This was during the grab-a-cold-one-I'm-tired phase of yard work. Have a lovely weekend folks!

Don't Argue for Your Darlings

One of the blogs I subscribe to has a great post today, so I thought I'd share it. If you are a writer and don't follow this blog, you might want to consider it.

Writer Unboxed

The post is longish, but the points are so true and worth reading. Because it's almost a knee jerk reaction to defend our work, especially those darlings that we've slaved over for hours on end. Keith Cronin does a fabulous job of explaining why as writers we might not want to do that.

Okay, I confess. I may have done it a time or two. My CP's have always kindly and respectfully put me in my place. They are priceless. Truly.

Life with Lucy #15

Hey, all! Lucy and I are back to show you what we’ve been up to lately. And yes, it’s Saturday, not Friday, but I’m nothing if not sporadic.

I was given a gift in May. A child between jobs came to stay, looking for chores to do for some extra bucks. Ha! You know if you own a home that there’s always a to-do list that you never quite get to. And bless him; he worked his way right through it. Finally, it came up that I’ve been thinking about this little plot that’s a pain to mow and turning it into some sort of flowery, herby, garden-y something. So he could literally dig the grass out if he wanted. Kinda shows how far down the list we’d gotten. I’m thinking it would be a few days’ work.

Well, what do you know? A few short hours later I now had a place to plant. And the progeny loaded up his truck and moved on to his new job in another state. I hurriedly thought about how I could re-arrange my schedule to accommodate buying plants, planting plants, etc.

Once I actually looked closely at the plot, I realized that a major component was missing. The top soil. Ahem. In a former life I gardened, and I know little planty things don’t grow without it. Ha! Now if you’re like us, you don’t have a tractor, a tiller, or any of those garden type items just sitting around the house. Amazingly (have I used enough y’s? Just checking.) we had some top soil delivered for another project. The only thing remaining was for it to get from one side of the yard to another. We were able to borrow a tractor from a neighbor. Bless him! And the man of the house filled the plot with top soil. In big piles.
 

I seriously considered a landscape plan for those piles of dirt. Then gave in and committed to the exercise it would take to level it. And my dearest, Lucy, has been beside me all the way.

She’s as worn out as I am. Sniffing everything we’re planting is a big job. She also feels it's important to chase out the frogs, and try to eat the worms and other creepy crawlies. As you can see, napping between the dill and oregano is just perfect.

It’s raining here again today, so I don’t have to water. We’re lucky that way.

Hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend!
 



Happy Fourth of July

To All of My American Friends - Happy Fourth of July!!

I know it's not fashionable, and it's certainly not PC these days to really like much of anything. Unless it's celebrities. It seems to be far more popular to point out the flaws or differences in everything. All I can say about that is if you look for the flaws, you'll find them.

Our country is far from perfect, she could use some work, but I love her still. I'm damned proud to be an American. And I'll be forever grateful to the men and women who came before me to make this country free. Our independence is a gift to us, that came with much sacrifice. We should celebrate!

Here we'll be celebrating with umbrellas because it's raining. I hope the sun is shining where you are. Enjoy the holiday!!