Release Day Spotlight: Rules of Engagement by Selena Montgomery

 

 

Rules of Engagement
Author: Selena Montgomery
Genre: Romantic Suspense/Thriller
Release Date: September 6, 2022
Publisher: Berkley

Description:

Love is a game of chance in this romantic suspense novel by New York Times bestselling author and American politician and activist Stacey Abrams, writing under her pen name, Selena Montgomery.

Dr. Raleigh Foster, an operative for a top-secret intelligence organization, knows that her undercover work has its risks. So she doesn't hesitate when asked to infiltrate Scimitar, the terrorist group that has stolen lethal environmental technology. But when she's assigned a partner--brooding, sexy Adam Grayson--to pose as her lover, Raleigh discovers that the most dangerous risk of all...is falling in love.

Adam blames himself for the botched mission that got his best friend killed by Scimitar, and he believes that Raleigh may have contributed to the man's death. But the closer he works with his alluring partner, the more his suspicions turn to trust--and intense desire. Now, as he and Raleigh untangle a twisted web of secrets and lies, the tension mounts between them...until their masquerade as a couple proves too tempting to resist. 

Selena Montgomery is the nom de plume of Stacey Abrams, an American politician, lawyer, voting rights activist, and author who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2007 to 2017. She founded Fair Fight Action, an organization to address voter suppression, in 2018.

Stalked by Secrets Blog Tour: Excerpt

 STALKED BY SECRETS

Author: Deborah Fletcher Mello

Book Description: 

 

If she wants to know his secrets…

This time it could be fatal.

Journalist Neema Kamau will risk anything to uncover the truth. She’ll even get close to politician Davis Black in order to investigate his possible organized crime connections. But when her professional interest turns personal, Neema knows that she risks losing the story—and the man—if she tells Davis the truth. And the stalker who’s circling them both might rob her of the chance to make things right…

From Harlequin Romantic Suspense: Danger. Passion. Drama.

To Serve and Seduce

Book 1: Seduced by the Badge

Book 2: Tempted by the Badge

Book 3: Reunited by the Badge

Book 4: Stalked by Secrets

Get cozy this winter with romances to move you. That Harlequin Feeling.

Price: $5.75

On sale date: March 9, 2021 (eBook on sale March 1, 2021)

ISBN: 9781335628886

Add STALKED BY SECRETS by Deborah Fletcher Mello to Goodreads.

“Neema! Neema!”

Neema Kamau found her father’s voice especially irritating as he called out from behind her. She stole a quick glance at her wristwatch. She was already late for her job at the Chicago Tribune and she didn’t need a lengthy lecture about something that really wasn’t important to her. She thought about ignoring him but knew that would only make the lecture that came later even more unbearable.

She turned slowly, meeting the look he was giving her head-on. He stood there, hands locked tight against his waist, his expression stern. “Yes, Baba?”

“Are you coming to the restaurant tonight?” Adamu Kamau queried. “We could use the help.”

The restaurant he referred to—the Awaze Grill—was the family business, and it was his pride and joy. Born and raised in Kenya, her father had immigrated to the United States when he’d been in his early twenties. A naturalized citizen with a doctorate in mathematics, he had been one of the most prolific analytical minds to ever work for the Pentagon. But a massive heart attack ten years ago had shifted his priorities and redirected the lives of his wife and children.

The move to Chicago had been the first big change, the whole family leaving DC to follow him to Illinois. It was only recently that Neema had realized her parents opening their family restaurant was truly a dream come true for the two of them.

The building on West Reynolds Street had been purchased outright, the couple dipping into their life savings to make it their own. After renovations, Awaze Grill was born, featuring the best recipes of their east African culture. For her family, it was a second home of sorts. For her parents, the restaurant quelled any feelings of emptiness they had for their African culture in America. Being able to share that culture with others made everyone feel like family to them. For Neema, working when she was needed rewarded the gratitude she often felt for all her parents had done for her.

Raised according to her parents’ Kenyan culture, Neema knew that family was central to everything. Children were expected to honor their parents and fulfill any obligations asked of them. Saying no to her father was not an option, nor would she have even considered it.

“Yes, Baba.” Neema nodded. “If you need me to work, I’ll be there.”

He nodded his balding head. “Also, I need you to stop by that alderman’s office. You know the one.”

“Alderman Black?”

“Yes, him. He needs to do something about the drug activity on the corner. It isn’t good for the neighborhood, and the police aren’t doing anything to help with the situation.”

“I sent him a letter last week, Baba. We should probably give him a little time to respond.”

Her father shook his head. “No. You need to follow up in person. To be sure he understands how big the problem is. These young boys are getting out of hand. One of them cursed me yesterday. Outside of my own front door! No respect! No respect at all!” The old man threw his hands up in frustration.

Neema shuttered a soft sigh. “Yes, Baba. I’ll try to run by his office on my lunch hour.”

Her father gave her a nod then stepped forward to give her a kiss on the cheek. “You’re a good daughter, Neema. You have a good day.”

Neema smiled. “You too, Baba!”

Once she was out the door, Neema sighed with audible relief. It hadn’t been nearly as painful as she had anticipated. In fact, she was feeling slightly guilty for imagining a doomsday lecture from her father. She’d been certain her late-night hours the previous evening would have had her father on a rampage. It wasn’t often that she agreed to dinner and drinks with her coworkers, specifically because of how her parents reacted when she did. It was one thing when her shift at the news

room required her to be out all night. It was something wholeheartedly different when she was out all night socializing. She was surprised her father hadn’t mentioned it at all.

Much like her father, Neema had moments when she herself overreacted, having to bite her tongue to keep from being snarky. The morning had begun to feel like one of those days, other things on her mind. Like her stagnant career and the fact that she saw no hope of things improving.

Admittedly, she had promised her father to use her lunch hour to reach out to their district alderman. But, truth be told, Neema had no interest in trying too hard. She knew who Davis Black was. Everyone knew the city alderman and his family. The Black name was synonymous with most everything that happened in the Chicago judicial system. His father was the police superintendent. His mother was a federal court judge, and all his siblings were gainfully employed cops, attorneys or civic leaders. They didn’t just make or enforce the law. Most of the Chicago community considered them to be the law.

For months, Neema had been angling for a story on the Black family. Something that would carry her byline and merit national attention. She dreamed of a Pulitzer Prize and the accolades of a breaking news story. It would validate her decision to forgo a career in medicine, like her parents had wanted, for the degree in investigative journalism that she had achieved. It would show that she’d made the right decision following the one and only time she’d defied them.

Get cozy this winter with romance to move you. Experience That Harlequin Feeling. Try two FREE ebooks at ThatHarlequinFeeling.com!

Deborah Fletcher Mello has been writing since forever and can’t imagine herself doing anything else. Her first romance novel, Take Me to Heart, earned her a 2004 Romance Slam Jam nomination for Best New Author, and in 2009, she won an RT Reviewer’s Choice Award for her ninth novel, Tame a Wild Stallion. Born and raised in Connecticut, Deborah now considers home to be wherever the moment moves her.

Author Links:

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/172159.Deborah_Fletcher_Mello 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DebbMelloWrites/ 

Buy Links:

Harlequin: https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/9781335628886_stalked-by-secrets.html 

IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781335628886 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Stalked-Secrets-Serve-Seduce-4/dp/1335628886 

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stalked-by-secrets-deborah-fletcher-mello/1137495110 

Walmart: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Stalked-by-Secrets-9781335628886/780758333 

Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/stalked-by-secrets/id1527864114 

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Deborah_Fletcher_Mello_Stalked_by_Secrets?id=1bz3DwAAQBAJ 

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/stalked-by-secrets 

 

Flight Risk Blog Tour: Excerpt + Giveaway

Tour April 1-30, 2020

 

Flight Risk
Author: Cara Putman
Genre: Political/Romantic SuspensePublication Date: April 7, 2020

Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Number of Pages: 336
 

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Synopsis:

Bestselling author Cara Putman returns with a romantic legal thriller that will challenge the assumptions of truth tellers everywhere.

Savannah Daniels has worked hard to build her law practice, to surround herself with good friends, and to be the loyal aunt her troubled niece can always count on. But since her ex-husband’s betrayal, she has trouble trusting anyone.


Jett Glover’s father committed suicide over a false newspaper report that ruined his reputation. Now a fierce champion of truth, Jett is writing the story of his journalism career—an international sex-trafficking exposé that will bring down a celebrity baseball player and the men closest to him, including Savannah’s ex-husband.


When Jett’s story breaks, tragedy ensues. Then a commercial airline crashes, and one of Savannah’s clients is implicated in the crash. Men connected to the scandal, including her ex, begin to die amid mysterious circumstances, and Savannah’s niece becomes an unwitting target.


Against their better instincts, Jett and Savannah join ranks to sort the facts from fiction. But can Savannah trust the reporter who threw her life into chaos? And can Jett face the possibility that he’s made the biggest mistake of his life?

The conversation flowed over the antipasti course and into the pasta della casa. Every bite of Savannah’s manicotti alla fiorentina was wonderful, the ricotta and spinach blending perfectly. Just when she knew she couldn’t take another bite and get anything done afterward, thanks to the food coma, a waiter came out with a slice of cheesecake. Her mouth watered as she took in the raspberries atop the homemade delight. She put a hand on her stomach and then smiled. “I hope you brought fresh forks for everyone.”
The handsome waiter flashed a bright smile. “Whatever the birthday donna wishes is my command.” He gave a slight bow and turned away. A moment later when he returned, a fist of forks at the ready, his demeanor had changed.
Emilie watched him a moment. “What’s wrong, Antonio?”
“There has been a horrible accident. It is on the TV in the office.”
“What kind of accident?” Savannah leaned toward him. “Does it involve someone you know?”
“No.” The man shook his head, and not one of his dark hairs moved. Yet his eyes were weighted with sadness and the shadow of something more. “It is a plane. It looks bad.”
“Oh no.” The memory of a plane careening by as she looked out a courtroom window in downtown Washington, DC, years earlier flashed through her mind. Savannah fought a shudder as she withdrew a credit card from her phone case and placed it on the bill, only for Hayden to slide it back to her and replace it with her own.
“Thank you.”
Please let this be a terrible accident and not the beginning of another 9/11.
Jaime’s head was bowed over her phone as she clicked the screen. “Looks like an isolated crash.”
All Savannah could think was that Jaime should add so far to her sentence. “That’s what we all thought on 9/11 too.”
Then a second plane careened into the Twin Towers. She saw the plane that hit the Pentagon, and a fourth plane crashed in Pennsylvania, killing one of her fellow law students. She cleared her throat and stood, motioning the gals to join her.
“Let’s get back to work and see what we can learn.”
As they left her favorite restaurant, her phone buzzed and she paused to pull it out of her pocket. She glanced at the text message on the screen and her blood froze.
911. From Addy. Their emergency code.
***
Excerpt from Flight Risk by Cara Putman. Copyright 2020 by Cara Putman. Reproduced with permission from Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.

Cara Putman is the author of more than twenty-five legal thrillers, historical romances, and romantic suspense novels. She has won or been a finalist for honors including the ACFW Book of the Year and the Christian Retailing’s BEST Award. Cara graduated high school at sixteen, college at twenty, completed her law degree at twenty-seven, and recently received her MBA. She is a practicing attorney, teaches undergraduate and graduate law courses at a Big Ten business school, and is a homeschooling mom of four. She lives with her husband and children in Indiana.

Visit her at: CaraPutman.com, Goodreads, BookBub, Instagram, Twitter - @Cara_Putman, & Facebook - Cara.Putman!

Tour Participants:

Visit these other great hosts on this tour for more great reviews, interviews, guest posts, and giveaways!

This is a Rafflecopter giveaway hosted by Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours for Cara Putman and Thomas Nelson. There will be 2 winners. Each winner will receive a set of three (3) print copies by Cara Putman. The giveaway begins on April 1, 2020 and runs through May 2, 2020. Open to U.S. addresses only. Void where prohibited.

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Copycat Killer Blog Tour: Excerpt

Copycat Killer (True Blue K-9 Unit: Brooklyn)
Author: Laura Scott

Book Description: 

Murder strikes close to home for a new K-9 unit in Brooklyn. When a double homicide is strikingly familiar to a twenty-year-old cold case, Detective Nate Slater is rattled by the parallels. With a child as the only witness, he and his K-9 partner must protect little Lucy and her aunt, Willow Emery. Nate’s rough past means he always keeps an emotional distance…but in this case getting closer is the only way they’ll all survive.

 

Nate suddenly heard a panicked shout. “Help! Police! Help!”

What in the world? He turned to look over his shoulder. A young man in a baseball cap and a Yankees jersey was waving his arms in a frantic attempt to get his attention.

“Help! Someone is being attacked!”

He hesitated, unwilling to leave Willow and Lucy there alone. Willow was still chatting with Angela, the two women cooing over Lucy, so he made a split-second decision to respond. “Willow? Stay here. I’ll be right back. Come, Murphy.”

“This way!” The Yankees fan turned and disappeared around the corner, clearly expecting Nate and Murphy to follow.

Nate broke into a jog, dodging pedestrians while keeping Murphy close to his side. He listened intently but didn’t hear any sounds indicating an attack. He hoped he wasn’t going to be too late. As they turned the corner, he raked his gaze over the area, searching for anything suspicious.

There was no obvious sign of an attack, but the Yankees fan was still several paces ahead. “Hurry! Over here! In the alley!”

Nate darted around a group of tourists. He came to the spot where the Yankees fan had been, in front of a long narrow alley, but the guy was gone. He’d vanished like some sort of magician’s trick.

There was no attack.

His gut clenched with fear. Willow! Lucy!

He whirled around and instantly ran back to the café. The sidewalk seemed to stretch forever. He’d followed the stupid Yankees fan farther than he’d realized.

And it had been nothing but a clever ploy to get him and Murphy out of the way.

No! How could he have been so gullible? He quickened his pace, unable to bear the thought of something happening to Willow and Lucy.

He wheeled around the corner, his heart lodged in his throat. Even more people crowded the sidewalks now.

Lucy was crying, loud screeching sobs. “Aunt Willow! Aunt Willow! Come back!”

A pedestrian got in his way and he nearly plowed the guy over in his haste to reach Willow and Lucy.

“No! Stop!” Willow’s voice was muffled. He caught a glimpse of someone dressed in black with a hat pulled low over his forehead dragging her toward a black sedan double-parked a few spots up from the café.

“Stop! Police!” He shouted as loud as he could to be heard above the din. Realizing he might be too late, he reached down and released Murphy’s leash. “Get him, Murphy. Get him!”

Murphy took off running. Like a racehorse, he closed the gap between him and Willow faster than Nate ever could.

The man with the hat must have realized the same thing, because he abruptly pushed Willow toward Murphy, then spun and took off running in the opposite direction.

It all happened like a scene unfolding in slow motion. Willow tripped over Murphy. His partner yelped as the two of them tangled together. Then Willow hit the pavement with a thud. Lucy was still crying, her stroller several feet away from Willow and Murphy.

“Willow! Are you okay?” He finally caught up to them, crouching down to check Willow and his partner. Murphy had managed to free himself from Willow. He was up on his feet, staring in the direction the intruder had gone.

“Get him,” Nate repeated. He didn’t like sending his partner off alone, but he couldn’t leave Willow and Lucy.

The yellow Lab took off, trotting fast, his nose periodically going to the ground.

Murphy could track just about anything, but he wasn’t trained to go into subway stations without Nate. A fact he hoped the assailant didn’t know, as there was a subway entrance at the opposite end of the block.

“What happened?” He helped Willow to her feet.

“He—came out of nowhere.” Her voice was shaky, her hands trembling. Her palms were scraped and bleeding, but she didn’t seem to care. “I didn’t notice until he grabbed me.”

“Shh, it’s okay.” He caught her in his arms for a quick hug, then turned toward Lucy. Some instinct had him lifting the girl from her stroller and handing her over to Willow. They clung to each other, much the way they had outside the scene of the Emery murders.

His gaze fell on the license plate of the black sedan abandoned by the would-be kidnapper. He quickly memorized the plate number, hoping it would be a clue as to who’d attacked Willow.

A sharp dog bark caught his attention. His heart was hammering, and he desperately wanted to go after Murphy. What if the assailant tried to hurt him? Nate took one step forward, then another, but stopped.

He couldn’t leave Willow. He had to trust in his partner’s training. The K-9 would soon return.

Murphy came running through the crowd of onlookers, returning to Nate’s side.

“Murph!” He went down to his knee and wrapped his arms around his partner. From what he could tell, Murphy wasn’t hurt.

Unfortunately, the assailant had gotten away.

Laura Scott is honored to write for the Love Inspired Suspense line, where a reader can find a heartwarming journey of faith amid the thrilling danger. She lives with her husband of twenty-five years and has two children, a daughter and a son, who are both in college. She works as a critical-care nurse during the day at a large level-one trauma center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and spends her spare time writing romance. Visit Laura at www.laurascottbooks.com.

Book Links:

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49009699-copycat-killer 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Copycat-Killer-True-Blue-Unit/dp/1335402721 

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/copycat-killer-laura-scott/1133444314?ean=9781335402721 

Google: https://books.google.ca/books/about/Copycat_Killer.html?id=rrquDwAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y

IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781335402721 

Harlequin.com: https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/9781335402721_copycat-killer.html 

The Secret Brokers Blog Tour: Excerpt + Giveaway

 

The Secret Brokers (Secret Brokers #1)
Author: Alexandrea Weis
Genre: Adult Romantic Suspense/Thriller
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Publisher: Vesuvian Books


Description:

Dallas August runs a dangerous business—an organization of elite spies for hire.

The secrets trade.
Nothing is off limits, and no price is too high.

When asked to uncover what recluse Gwen Marsh knows about a Mafia kingpin’s death, Dallas poses as a bodyguard to get close to his target, but the stubborn Asian beauty wants nothing to do with him. As the FBI and the Mafia close in, danger drives them together, but can he protect Gwen, or will Dallas be the one risking everything to discover what she is really hiding?

Dallas August is about to find out how dangerous life can be as one of the Secret Brokers.

Once you are in, there is no turning back.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

“I bet you liked talking to your patients,” Dallas said. “You seem like someone who cares.”


Gwen swept the medical supplies into an empty drawer and softly smiled. “Yeah, I liked talking to my patients. Heard a hell of a lot of great stories.”

“What about secrets? Did any of your patients ever tell you things you wished they hadn’t?”

Gwen shut the drawer. “Yeah, some told me secrets, mostly people at death’s doorstep. There were things I wished they had never told me, but my job was to listen.”

Dallas stepped closer to the vanity. “That sounds dangerous.”

Her voice softened. “Listening to the last confessions of the dying isn’t dangerous.”

“It is when you learn things that others may want to know.”

She tilted her head and deepened the lines on her brow. “What kinds of things?”

“Did anyone you took care of ever tell you things that could hurt others?” Dallas blocked her way out of the room. “Information, perhaps. About their business, or something they knew about another person. Something that others would kill for.”

“And if they had, why would I tell you? You’re here as my protector; not my priest.”

She rushed past him. He reached out to stop her, wanting to push her harder, but all the lies and manipulation suddenly lost their appeal, and he let her go. He had to get what Carl wanted, but it didn’t feel right. Dallas believed he could step into the field and pick up where he’d left off, but he didn’t have the stomach for hurting people anymore.

The slam of the bedroom door twisted the knife of regret deeper into his belly.

When had he changed? He couldn’t pinpoint a time or place, all he knew was that he wasn’t the cold-blooded specialist he’d attempted to resurrect. That Dallas August was dead.

He still had days ahead locked away with Gwen in the enormous house. The prospect terrified him, but then he remembered her skin, her gentle kiss, her eyes, and the daunting task ebbed. Perhaps what had changed wasn’t so much Dallas, but how he felt about Gwen.

Enough of this bullshit. Do the job and walk away.

His frustration needed venting before he did something stupid.

Alexandrea Weis is an advanced practice registered nurse who was born and raised in New Orleans. Having been brought up in the motion picture industry, she learned to tell stories from a different perspective and began writing at the age of eight. Infusing the rich tapestry of her hometown into her award-winning novels, she believes that creating vivid characters makes a story memorable. A permitted/certified wildlife rehabber with the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries, Weis rescues orphaned and injured wildlife. She lives with her husband and pets in New Orleans.

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