VPK: Get Yours Now!

Candy and canines. Flowers and felines. Celebrate this Valentine's Day with your sweethearts of the human and fuzzy varieties! 


Nothing is more heart-warming than kisses from the pet who adores you and the man who loves you, so snuggle up with VALENTINE PETS & KISSES -- an anthology of fourteen sweet romances from USA Today bestselling and award-winning authors -- and strike the perfect mood for moonlit walks and candlelight dinners with your pet and sweetheart.

Valentine Hound Dog - Rachelle Ayala

A fashion designer and her basset hound puppy convince a burned ex-firefighter that beauty is never skin deep and neither is love.


The Crazy Girl’s Handbook - DelSheree Gladden

Watching her nephews was supposed to be a fun and relaxing weekend for Greenly, not a never ending disaster all witnessed by the best blind date she ever stood up. 


The Vet's Valentine Gift - J.L. Campbell

A veterinarian is caught between his job, an ex, a menagerie and love. Can a little Cupid fix things by Valentine’s Day?


Her Perfect Catch - K.L. Brady

Years of faithful dog-sitting pays sweet dividends when a struggling sports writer scores tickets to the Super Bowl and encounters her favorite football player.


Inflamed - Jade Kerrion

A firefighter running from his past convinces a hard-luck single mother to believe in happy endings.


Remember When - Hope Welsh

Laura and Brent really tried to make their marriage work, but in the end, it just wasn't meant to be--or was it?


Your Biggest Fan? - Sydney Aaliyah Michelle

Snowed in with the man of her dreams, a football fan and her dog find love.


The Feline Fix - Caroline Bell Foster

A scientist questions her cat’s loyalty when it comes to love and a hunky policeman.


Trembling Hearts - Suzette Riddick

A daring young woman crashes into the life of a disfigured recluse and his pooch. Can love be far behind?


Valentino, Be Mine - Tina D.C. Hayes

Sparks fly when two people who can't stand each other wind up dog-sitting a rambunctious little Yorkie that needs a new home. 


Lost and Found - Jeanne Bannon

Stuck with her ex’s puppy, a young teacher meets a new man after a series of unfortunate events.


Surviving San Francisco - Susan Oloier

A small town girl survives San Francisco after she hits a cat and falls for a handsome veterinarian.


19 Ivy Lane - Aubrey Wynne

A mysterious woman and her cat befriend a postman and set tongues wagging on Ivy Lane. But when he delivers a long-awaited letter, will his heart be “returned to sender?”


Three Plus Three - Cindy Flores Martinez

A grieving widow and her beloved doggie meet a handsome widower the day before Valentine’s Day.


Don't delay. Download your copy today at the pre-order cost of $0.99!


Purchase Links

Amazon US: http://bit.ly/VPKK

Amazon UK: http://bit.ly/VPKUK

Barnes & Noble Nook: http://bit.ly/VPKNok

Kobo: http://bit.ly/VPKKobo

Google Play: http://bit.ly/VPKGp

Apple iBooks: http://bit.ly/VPKiBk

The Crazy Girl's Handbook by DelSheree Gladden #VPK

I absolutely love the cover of The Crazy Girl's Handbook by DelSheree Gladden. So here's a preview of her novella in the Valentine Pets and Kisses box set:

The Crazy Girl's Handbook by DelSheree Gladden

Spending the weekend babysitting her two nephews and a puppy was supposed to be fun. Sweating to death at a baseball game while getting gum in her hair, soda down her shirt, and an ice cream pedicure wasn't part of the deal. Neither was finding out the best guy she'd ever missed a blind date with had witnessed it all. Longest. Weekend. Ever. 

Excerpt

EXCERPT: The Crazy Girl’s Handbook – DelSheree Gladden

We looked both ways before crossing the street. Both boys held my hand and Thor stayed right at my heel with the leash wrapped around my wrist. The second we set foot on the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street, the boys took off and Thor made a valiant attempt at following them. Problem was, his leash was still looped around my wrist so I could hold the boys’ hands more easily. So when he lunged forward to follow, I didn’t have any control of the leash to stop him from taking me down.

Pain blossomed in more than one spot as my elbows and palms hit the cement and my head whacked into the decorative stone edging that lined the grass. Thor yelped as my dead weight kept him from getting any farther, then doubled back to see what was wrong and stomped all over me at least three times before settling on my head. By the time my senses cleared, I was so tangled in leash and puppy I couldn’t even figure out where to start. My head and arms throbbing didn’t help at all.
“Thor, get off,” a firm voice said.

I thought I wanted to die when I got gum in my hair, or soda ice down my shirt, or an ice cream pedicure. Those were nothing compared to having to be rescued from an over-enthusiastic puppy by Roman Carpenter while covered in dirt, grass, and blood. It was a miracle I didn’t give up right then and just start crying. I loved my nephews, but I was never going to be able to show my face in this neighborhood again.

The heavy weight of the squirming—and rather large—puppy was finally removed from my face. I heard Roman ask one of the boys to hold the leash, but I kept my eyes closed out of pure shame. Not until a pair of hands pressed against my face did I even dare to breathe. Even then, it was a gasp at the urgency behind the touch.

“Greenly, are you okay?” Roman demanded.

The hint of worry in his voice forced me to peel my eyelids apart. I peeked up at him through half-opened eyes and was startled not to find him laughing at me again. There was real, honest fear in his expression and it left me speechless.

“Are you okay?” he repeated.

Breathe, Greenly. “Yeah, uh huh. Yep.”

He just stared at me for a moment. Probably because I sounded ridiculous. “Are you sure?” he asked.

I tried to sit up in order to prove I was just fine. The sting of putting my hands on the ground made me hiss and I felt a little woozy when I tried to move.

“Whoa, whoa,” Roman said, which made me feel a little like a horse. “Don’t move. Let me help you.”

Great, just great. I tried again to sit up on my own. “Really, I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not,” Roman said as his arms slid beneath my arms and legs.

I experienced an irrational moment of panic, not because the idea of Roman carrying me off somewhere was frightening, but because being this close to him would expose everything about me I hadn’t already managed to bare. He lifted me easily and my breath caught as he adjusted his arms and I felt momentarily unsupported. Then his grip rolled me against his chest, to a place of absolute security. I don’t think I took a single breath as he walked up to the house.

About the Author

DelSheree Gladden was one of those shy, quiet kids who spent more time reading than talking. Literally. She didn't speak a single word for the first three months of preschool, but she had already taught herself to read. Her fascination with reading led to many hours spent in the library and bookstores, and eventually to writing. She wrote her first novel when she was sixteen years old, but spent ten years rewriting and perfecting it before having it published.

Native to New Mexico, DelSheree and her husband spent several years in Colorado for college and work before moving back home to be near family again. Their two children love having their seventeen cousins close by. When not writing, you can find DelSheree reading, painting, sewing and trying not to get bitten by small children in her work as a dental hygienist.

The Crazy Girl's Handbook is EXCLUSIVE to Valentine Pets & Kisses, so pre-order Valentine Pets & Kisses for 99c today and be the first of your friends to read The Crazy Girl's Handbook by Delsheree Gladden

Amazon US ~ B&N ~ iTunes ~ Kobo ~ Amazon UK ~ Google

ONLY 99c for 14 All-New Sweet Romances!

You're Invited to the Valentine Pets & Kisses Countdown Launch Party! [Jan 1 - Feb 2]
Chat with the authors and win great prizes! Come join the Fun.

The Vet's Valentine Gift by J.L. Campbell #VPK

What can I say? I love the writing style of J.L. Campbell. Here is her sweet romance novella, featured in the upcoming box set, Valentine Pets and Kisses. 

The Vet's Valentine Gift by J.L. Campbell

Matthias Laing has snagged the woman of his dreams, but his job as a vet keeps getting him into trouble. The situation is past complicated because of the growing assortment of animals in Toni's house and to top it all, the conflict between Matthias and her daughter's dad. Can Matthias and Toni's budding romance survive their challenges and if it doesn't, will Jade, her precocious five-year-old find a way to play Cupid and fix things by Valentine's Day?

Excerpt

I poured a glass of coconut water and went back to the living room, conscious of how awkward I felt after yesterday's argument with Matthias. It had probably been a mistake to call him, but Jade hadn't given me a choice and would have found a way to contact him herself if I hadn't. Squaring my shoulders, I entered the living room.
Jade still had the kitten in her lap and was talking to Ridley.
" … treat him nice, okay boy?"
Ridley's head was tipped to one side as if he understood what she was saying.
When she patted him on the forehead, I was sure he smiled, which forced me to bite my lip.
Every time he did that thing that looked like a smile, I gave thanks for my daughter. She was the only person I knew who got that reaction from both people and animals.
Matthias was sitting on the sofa, and I put the glass into his hand and sat adjacent to him. "So, the cat will be all right?"
"Yeah, from what Jade told me, Ridley was just playing with him." He drank from the glass and then put it on the table. "He could easily have done him more harm."
"How old is it anyway?"
"Around three or four weeks old."
"I'm glad I won't have to explain to anybody that our dog killed their cat."
"Just like you nearly killed Ridley," Jade said.
When I rolled my eyes, Matthias laughed and I didn't bother to correct Jade. Instead, I said, "It's a good thing we stopped and checked him out. Otherwise, you wouldn't have a pet."
"And now we might have another one," she said.
I shot a desperate look at Matthias, who only smiled and picked up the glass for another sip.

About the Author

J.L. Campbell is an award-winning, Jamaican author who writes romantic suspense, women's fiction, new and young adult novels. She has written thirteen books, four novellas and two short story collections.

Her novels include the Island Adventure Romance series, which currently has five exciting, stand-alone stories and features feisty women and determined men. Campbell's mission is to write stories that entertain and educate readers. She also writes under the pen name Jayda McTyson. 

She is a certified editor, who also writes non-fiction.

Feel free to join her mailing list for news and updates http://eepurl.com/n29ZH or her Facebook readers' group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/iarreaderssuite/
Visit her on the web at http://www.joylcampbell.com

The Vet's Valentine Gift is EXCLUSIVE to Valentine Pets & Kisses, so pre-order Valentine Pets & Kisses for 99c today and be the first of your friends to read The Vet's Valentine Gift by J.L. Campbell

Amazon US ~ B&N ~ iTunes ~ Kobo ~ Amazon UK ~ Google

ONLY 99c for 14 All-New Sweet Romances!

You're Invited to the Valentine Pets & Kisses Countdown Launch Party! [Jan 1 - Feb 2]
Chat with the authors and win great prizes! Come join the Fun.

WWW Wednesdays

WWW Wednesdays is hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading. 

To play along, answer the following three questions:

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

What are you currently reading?

Friend and fellow writer, Julie Flanders, just released her book The Ghosts of Aquinnah. I just started and am so excited for a chunk of time to delve into it. 

I read the sample and was impressed enough to buy the book in its entirety. 

Great book, but I haven't had a whole lot of time to finish it. Never mind the fact that I've opened up two other books since starting this one. Go figure. 

I'm doing a final run-through on my upcoming novel, HAUNTED, before its release next Tuesday. 

What did you recently finish reading?

I really liked The Firm and A Time to Kill (even other John Grisham books). But not this one. It almost seemed like he was distracted when writing this, throwing all the basics of writing out the window like: show, don't tell or putting conflict in every scene. And the ending was predictable and anticlimactic. Though if there's no real climax in a novel to begin with, can there be an anticlimax? Disappointed. I only finished it because I spent $8 on the thing. 

What do you think you’ll read next?

Not sure, but it won't be another John Grisham novel.

 What are you reading right now?

Noteworthy Kindle Samples

I know many of you don’t load samples to your Kindle. Maybe I’m the last reader standing in this department—the sole person who still does it. Does it clog my Kindle? Yes. Do I get to all the samples? No. Yet, it’s still the best way for me to determine if a book is worth my time and money. I can usually tell within the first few pages if I want to continue…or not.

That said, quite a few samples were deleted from my Kindle last night. They didn’t make the cut. Here are a few that did:

Thirty years after women became 50 percent of the college graduates in the United States, men still hold the vast majority of leadership positions in government and industry. This means that women’s voices are still not heard equally in the decisions that most affect our lives. In Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg examines why women’s progress in achieving leadership roles has stalled, explains the root causes, and offers compelling, commonsense solutions that can empower women to achieve their full potential. 

Written with both humor and wisdom, Sandberg’s book is an inspiring call to action and a blueprint for individual growth. Lean In is destined to change the conversation from what women can’t do to what they can.

Sometimes discovering the truth can leave you more hopeless than believing the lies.

        

That's what Sky Davis realizes after she meets Dean Holder. A guy with a reputation that rivals her own and an uncanny ability to invoke feelings in her she's never had before.  He terrifies her and captivates her all in the span of their first encounter.

        

Sky struggles to keep him at a distance, but Holder insists on learning everything about her. Unable to deny their intense connection, Sky finally caves to his unwavering pursuit.  However, she soon discovers that Holder's erratic and unpredictable behavior comes with a very good explanation.  One that will ultimately test her faith in the hopeless boy she's fallen in love with.   

A beautiful, vibrant memoir about growing up motherless in 1970s and ’80s San Francisco with an openly gay father.

After his wife dies in a car accident, bisexual writer and activist Steve Abbott moves with his two-year-old daughter to San Francisco. There they discover a city in the midst of revolution, bustling with gay men in search of liberation—few of whom are raising a child.

Steve throws himself into San Francisco’s vibrant cultural scene. He takes Alysia to raucous parties, pushes her in front of the microphone at poetry readings, and introduces her to a world of artists, thinkers, and writers. But the pair live like nomads, moving from apartment to apartment, with a revolving cast of roommates and little structure. As a child Alysia views her father as a loving playmate who can transform the ordinary into magic, but as she gets older Alysia wants more than anything to fit in. The world, she learns, is hostile to difference.

What are you interested in reading next? 

WWW Wednesdays

WWW Wednesdays is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. 

To play along, answer the following questions:

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

What are you currently reading?

 Yes, I'm still reading this one.

Based on a writer friend's recommendation.

I’m dragging my feet on these. Not because they’re bad, but because I have to think when I read them. And by the end of the day, when I have some time to read, I’m pretty wiped out.

What did you recently finish reading?

I liked it, but gave it four stars on Goodreads because of Clare's excessive use of the semi-colon. Come on. I love a good semi-colon in my writing, but the woman had a party with them. Very distracting. 

What do you think you’ll read next?

I have a John Grisham and a Lee Child on my bookcase, screaming to be read. But we’ll see.

WWW Wednesdays

WWW Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading. 

To play along, answer the following three questions:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

I haven’t read much lately. I’ve been on a writing and editing venture of sorts. And when I’m in that place, I find it hard to write. I don’t want another author’s voice to interfere with my own.

What are you currently reading?

I’ve been reading this for many weeks now. And if I had a Magic Eight Ball and asked if I’ll finish soon, the answer would be “Not likely.”

I also started this one…well over a week ago. I’m only on Chapter 2, so I have no opinion yet.

What did you recently finish reading?

If I ever find more free time to read, I plan to venture into Book 2 of the Debt Collector series.

What do you think you’ll read next?

Not sure. My TBR list (like everyone else’s) is huge, so I’ll have a lot to choose from.

What are you currently reading?