Guns & Smoke by Lauren Sevier and A. Smith

 

Dystopia meets western romance in this collaboration between authors Lauren Sevier and A. Smith. Check out an excerpt from Guns & Smoke and then follow the tour for even more! Best of luck entering the giveaway!

In a world where safety is a luxury and honor is found only among outlaws, two people attempt to outrun danger lurking around each corner and the tragedies that define them.

Bonnie is an outlaw on the run. Beautiful but dangerous; her dark past stalks her like the crater beasts that roam the desert. As the notoriously cruel outlaw Jones sends his henchmen to track her down and retrieve the gun she stole from him, Bonnie hopes she can stay one step ahead. Because if he catches her, a fate worse than death awaits.

Jesse always dreamed of leaving the farm to explore the ruins of the big cities. He just never imagined he’d be forced to flee after strange men burned down his rural mountain town and murdered everyone he loved. Responsible for his kid brother and searching for an uncle he’s never met before, he isn’t sure he can navigate the perils of life among con artists and thieves long enough to find him.

Their two paths collide as they find themselves thrown together on the adventure of a lifetime.

Together, they may just discover that life is about more than just surviving.

Read an excerpt:

“Those for me?” she asked. I hadn’t realized she was awake. I nodded, once again helping her sit up. I eased off the ruined dress and put the dry clothes on her as carefully as possible. I started to climb from the wagon to let her rest, but she reached out, grabbing my wrist.

“Please don’t go,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.

With a nod, I moved behind her, sitting with my back against the stolen crates. She leaned between my legs, resting her head against my chest. I brushed some of her matted hair away, pressing my lips to her temple. I held her, not tight enough to hurt her, but enough to let her know I was there.

“We can’t stay here,” she said after a while. Her voice startled me into alertness. “Coyotes are gonna come when they catch the scent of that horse.” Suddenly, I had an idea about what to do with the horse.

“I know,” I said. “But you need to rest.”

“We need to keep going,” she said. Neither of us moved as I sat there, holding her, lips pressed against her hair.

“Just let me hold you,” I whispered. “Just a little while longer.”

Buy on Amazon

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Lauren Sevier & A. Smith are long time friends and co-authors from southern Louisiana. Guns & Smoke, their first joint publication, began as a “short” story after having too much wine on girl’s night. Nine years later it is now the first novel in a Dystopian/Western Romance series. The duo has plans to publish several series together in the future. A. Smith spends her time with her two rescue dogs and rescue cat surrounding herself with books and Labyrinth paraphernalia. Lauren Sevier collects antique tea cups and tries to stay sane, though as the mother of a toddler she fails brilliantly most days. She also has a growing collection of crowns and tiaras and likes to act silly on TikTok. Look for more thrilling novels from The Fools Adventure series in the future!

Lauren Sevier:

Website: www.laurensevier.com

Youtube: www.youtube.com/c/laurensevier

Twitter: www.twitter.com/laurensevier

Instagram: www.instagram.com/laurensevier

Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorlaurensevier

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19812178.Lauren_Sevier


Smith:

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21041264.A_Smith

Website: http://abbielynnsmith.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/abbiewritesx

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abbiewritesx/

TikTok: https://t.co/30D6MREJxk?amp=1

Newsletter: https://abbielynnsmith.com/newsletter/

Lauren Sevier and A. Smith will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Review of The Cowboy's Holiday Bride by Cathy McDavid

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

I've been a fan of Cathy McDavid's books for quite some time now. And how can you not love a holiday romance? I am sharing my thoughts with you today about the first book in a new series, The Cowboy's Holiday Bride. Please be sure to check out the rest of the tour as well! And best of luck entering the giveaway.

The Cowboy's Holiday Bride

(Wishing Well Springs #1)

By Cathy McDavid

Contemporary Romance

Paperback & ebook, 384 Pages

November 1, 2020 by Harlequin Heartwarming

Changing his heart…

Would be a Christmas miracle!

Cash Montgomery creates Western-themed weddings and knows all about happily-ever-after. In theory. He’s been hurt too many times to think that he could ever be a marrying man. His business partner Phoebe Kellerman doesn’t agree with him—on anything! At Christmas, Cash is visited by three of his past girlfriends…and he begins to see the error of his ways. Will it be before he loses Phoebe, the woman he’s falling for?

New York Times Bestselling Author

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**My thoughts**

I fell in love with Cathy McDavid's books during her Sweetheart Ranch series. So I was excited to see that she was starting on a new series with a new romantic destination! And of course, it has to kick off with the holidays.

This one is loosely based on A Christmas Carol, as the character of Cash is hesitant to act on his feelings toward his friend and business partner Phoebe. He has been burned many times in the past in love, and while not totally against it, it's definitely not at the top of his list to pursue right now. So he is visited by three ghosts, in the form of each of his ex-fiancees getting married right at his venue. I think it is a clever storyline!

Phoebe also has some heart scars from her own failed engagement some years ago. Plus she has a bit of family drama going on. But she has had a thing for Cash since they were in high school. And there's no denying the attraction between the two of them. But they both have a lot to work through.

They're fun together as they are complete opposites. But opposites attract, right? And their opposite natures actually make them work well together, a real yin and yang. 

This book gave me that warm and fuzzy feeling right out of the gate and helped to keep me warm even as the early snow was blustering outside my window. I'm now completely in the holiday romance mood and want more! And I am very much looking forward to future installments in this sweet romantic series.

Thank you to Prism Book Tours and the author for providing me with a requested review copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

About the Author

In the third grade, NY Times, USA Today and Amazon bestselling author Cathy McDavid made it her goal to read every Black Stallion book ever written. Who knew such an illustrious ambition would eventually lead to a lifelong love of all things western, owning a stagecoach pulled by six mules, and a career writing contemporary romances for Harlequin? With over 50 titles in print and 1.3 million-plus books sold, Cathy is also a member of the prestigious Romance Writers of America’s Honor Roll. This “almost” Arizona native and mother of grown twins is married to her own real-life sweetheart. After leaving the corporate world six years ago, she now spends her days penning stories about good looking cowboys riding the range, busting broncs, and sweeping gals off their feet — oops, no. Make that winning the hearts of feisty, independent women who give the cowboys a run for their money. It's a tough job, but she’s willing to make the sacrifice. 

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Tour Schedule

Tour Giveaway


One winner will receive a $20 Amazon eGift Card (US only)

Ends November 11, 2020

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Grace (Angle Creek Christmas Brides Book 13) by Jo Grafford

 

A long-lost soldier, a sister of the woman he was once engaged to, and the merry mischief of a Christmas matchmaker…

Grace Byrd has been in love with Lieutenant Charley Arrington for as long as she can remember, but he barely notices her existence when her oldest sister, Elizabeth, is around. Grace’s heart is shattered when he goes missing in action and is presumed dead. She silently vows to live out her days as a spinster, because she cannot imagine ever giving her heart to another man.

Now he’s back in their lives — returned from a southern hospital where he suffered of amnesia for months. Ready to claim her oldest sister’s hand in marriage at long last, he quickly learns Elizabeth has become a mail-order bride in his absence to help out with her family’s failing finances. What’s more, she’s fallen in love with her new husband.

Is this Grace’s second chance to win the heart of the man she loves? Can Charley move beyond his old dreams and replace them with new ones? One-click this sweet, small town romance to find out…and be whisked away by the hope and healing of the holidays!

ANGEL CREEK CHRISTMAS BRIDES SERIES
★ Titles by Jo! ★
Elizabeth
Grace

Available on Amazon

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Read an excerpt:

Grace peered into the mirror over the table in her cousin’s entry foyer, nervously straightening her travel hat. Of all people in the world, why did it have to be Charley Arrington coming to escort her back to Angel Creek?

She knew the logical answer to that question, of course. He’d come to Charleston to fetch his parents for the holidays. However, it felt monumentally unfair that the man she loved would be the one delivering her into the arms of the man she would marry— one she’d never met. One who wasn’t Charley.

Find more of Jo Grafford's books here.

Jo is an Amazon bestselling author of sweet and inspirational romance stories with humor, heart, and happily-ever-afters.

Readers can connect with her in Cuppa Jo Readers on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/CuppaJoReaders and Bookbub at https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jo-grafford. To join her New Release Email List, visit JoGrafford.com.

I was compensated via Fiverr for sharing this post. I only share those books I feel will be of interest to my readers.

Mail Order Isabella (Widows, Brides, and Secret Babies Book 29) by Jo Grafford

 

A deathbed promise, an accidental family, and a mail-order marriage…

Isabella Hill signs a mail-order bride contract only hours before promising to raise a dying friend’s babe as her own. With her wedding date looming, there’s no time to contact her would-be groom by letter, so she decides to deliver the news of her change in circumstances in person — praying he won’t object to the idea of a ready-made family. Otherwise, she and her precious bundle might soon find themselves living in the streets.

Tex Sullivan’s rebel younger brother forges Tex’s name on a mail-order bride contract, only days before Tex is supposed to marry the catch of the season. While he scrambles to set the scandal straight, he finds himself face-to-face with a lovely, impoverished debutante from Atlanta — with an infant in her arms, no less! Tex never asked for a woman like Isabella to come into his life, but is it possible she’s exactly the kind of wife he needs?

Read an excerpt:

“If you slip away, no one will notice,” the woman in front of her hissed. 

Isabella frowned. “You think I should give up and go home?” She bit her lower lip, realizing she wasn’t in her Sunday best like the other women. 

“Well, it’s not as if you stand a chance against the rest of us,” the woman noted with a sideways glance at her wrinkled skirts. 

“Says who?” Isabella’s ire rose. “For all we know, the interviewer is specifically looking for a wrinkled, windblown lass.” She lifted her chin. “In which case, the rest of you ladies will be sorely out of luck.” 

To her surprise, there was no reply. The entire line of women had grown as silent as death.
“You,” a man said in a laughing voice. “You’re next.” 

Isabella slowly raised her head to meet the gaze of the man conducting the interviews.

 Available on Amazon

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Find more of Jo Grafford's books here.

Jo is an Amazon bestselling author of sweet and inspirational romance stories with humor, heart, and happily-ever-afters.

Readers can connect with her in Cuppa Jo Readers on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/CuppaJoReaders and Bookbub at https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jo-grafford. To join her New Release Email List, visit JoGrafford.com.

A Cowboy Billionaire Sister's Ranch Wedding (Hornsby Hill Ranch Book 1) by Christina Lockhart

 

Hayden Hornsby had dedicated his life to helping raise his brothers and sister, and run the ranch alongside his grandfather. If you ever tangled with the Hornsby's, you would know that they weren't ones to fool with. They're rich— powerful — pretty dang smart too— but the thing about it is— people believed they operated on some kind of curse.

Jemma, Hayden's sister, was ready to get married to Dustin Greenwich. Dustin's mama never really cared too much for the Hornsby's. She felt like they thought they were too good for anybody. In a way, they were like the Montagues and the Capulets— their feud wasn't as intense— but Lisa Greenwich made it seem like their families were forbidden to be together. It was insane the number of things Jemma and Dustin had to endure so that they could be together.

So why in the hell of all the girls Hayden had to fall for— he had to pick, Jessica Greenwich. The one-woman, Jemma, did not deem good enough for him—and he was the one man her mother didn't want near her daughter.

Available on Amazon

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Growing up, she had a passion for the country. She loves all things to do with cowboys, mountains, and horses. She is channeling her love for reading, into the next logical step, her passion for writing— all things romantic, including a good looking cowboy. She believes in love at first sight and happily ever afters. Her goal is to write books where you can emotionally invest in the characters and transport yourself to their world. If you enjoy romance stories with a strong male character and a smart, independent woman, her books are a must-read.

Christina lives with her cowboy husband, who saved her from city life and their two children on their patch of land with horses and a few cattle.

You will usually find her reading if she is not busy writing about a new family of characters in other romantic stories.

I was compensated via Fiverr for sharing this post. I only share those books that I feel will be of interest to my readers.

Meddlesome Madge (Mail Order Brides Rescue Series 11) by Jo Grafford

  

A small-town spinster more concerned about the happiness of others than her own and a highly eligible bachelor determined to change her mind...

Madge Barra has a finger in every pie — managing her rascal half-brothers and their mail-order brides, feeding the diamond mining crew at Hope’s Landing, and helping fundraise for the Ladies Auxiliary. Now she’s being asked to serve as the church secretary until their handsome new pastor can hire full-time help. With her too-busy schedule spinning her straight for spinsterhood, Madge fears she’s long since missed her chance at love.

Abe Sullivan is at his wits’ end managing church renovations while juggling the never-ending charity outreaches, Sunday potlucks, and other demands of the meddling Ladies Auxiliary. When they dish up the delectable Madge as his temporary secretary, however, he discovers there’s one woman in the world whose meddling he actually enjoys. Unfortunately, Madge makes it clear she’s far too busy to make time for him on her personal calendar.

He enlists the help of a local matchmaker in his quest to convince her to court him and accidentally stirs up a whole new level of bridal nerves, mishaps, and mayhem!

Available on Amazon

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Find more of Jo Grafford's books here.

Jo is an Amazon bestselling author of sweet and inspirational romance stories with humor, heart, and happily-ever-afters.

Readers can connect with her in Cuppa Jo Readers on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/CuppaJoReaders and Bookbub at https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jo-grafford. To join her New Release Email List, visit JoGrafford.com.

I was compensated via Fiverr for sharing this post. I only share those books that I feel will be of interest to my readers.

Flight to Freedom by Ray Anselmo

Redemption Bluff, Kansas in 1869 was a place of safety for society’s unwanted – the outlaw, the shellshocked, the abandoned, the sinful, the dregs. People came there because there was nowhere else they could go, to start a new life, sometimes even with a new name, and leave their sordid or painful pasts behind.

That was why Rose Mahaffey was headed there. “Rose Red,” a longtime prostitute, wanted to get out of the “life” while she still had a life, and she’d heard about how others had turned their lives around in the odd little town. But getting there, changing herself – and getting others to believe she had changed – was going to be harder than she thought. As would avoiding the man who was committed to keeping her bound to his evil will.

Calder Owens escaped slavery in Mississippi during the Civil War and ran west, finally landing in Redemption Bluff to run the local stagecoach stop. He’d settled in and become part of the struggling community. But an early-morning knock on his door – and a stranger lying on his living room rug – was about to unsettle him, make him question many things in his life … and bring back the dark secret he’d worked for years to bury.

Surprises, conflicts, brushes with death, and even romance – all of these await Rose and Calder on their FLIGHT TO FREEDOM!

Buy it on Amazon

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Ray Anselmo lives with his wife, son, cat and neuroses in Stockton, California. Flight to Freedom is his fourteenth book and second Western.

I was compensated via Fiverr for sharing this post. I only share those books that I feel will be of interest to my readers.

Rachel (Once Upon a Church House) by Jo Grafford

Rachel Giordano and her older sister have always been fiercely competitive. This time, however, both are in love with the same man. When a compromising situation forces him to offer his hand in marriage to her sister, Rachel is shattered and purchases a one-way ticket to Mountain Springs to interview as their church choir director.

Ridge Carson hasn’t had it easy since the day he was born. Following a false accusation that earned him some jail time, he’s trying to carve out a new life for himself as the general manager of a sawmill. Unfortunately, there’s a saboteur in their midst, wreaking the kind of havoc he fears will eventually cost him his job.

Ridge is instantly drawn to the lovely newcomer in town. It’s clear she’s nursing old wounds — something he knows a thing or two about. He finds himself doing everything he can to help her find a fresh start, knowing a woman like her isn’t likely to find much to admire in a man like him.

ONCE UPON A CHURCH HOUSE is a sweet and inspirational historical western romance series with a dash of magic and time travel.

Pastor Zach Shepherd feels called to plant a church in rural Mountain Springs, Idaho, a place his friends warn him is unredeemable. However, he’s a firm believer in miracles and scoffs at their dire predictions of his pending failure. He quickly sizes up the renegade collection of mostly male town folk and determines what they need (in addition to salvation) is a woman’s touch to straighten them out. Throwing on his matchmaker hat, he prays God will send a few saved and sanctified women his way to get the first marriages rolling. He specifically prays for the kind of women legends are made of — from the Bible days — never dreaming how swiftly nor how thoroughly his prayers would be answered!

Available on Amazon

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About Jo Grafford

Jo writes sweet historical and contemporary romance stories — with humor, sass, and happily ever-afters. She loves to visit with readers in her Cuppa Jo Readers group on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/CuppaJoReaders/. To receive a personal email about each book she publishes, join her New Release Email List at JoGrafford.com or follow her on BookBub at https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jo-grafford or her Amazon author page at https://www.amazon.com/Jo-Grafford/e/B00G56XKS2.