Spotlight on Bella Barwin
December 31, 2025 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as Bella Barwin
Bella Barwin writes galaxies ruled by dark dominance, desire, and the sting of surrender. The Alien Masters of A’Llure series features stand-alone romances in an interconnected world, with alien masters and feisty dragon heroines.
Claiming His Dragon:
A Dark Sci-Fi Alien Romance
Alien Masters of A’Llure Book 1
Jenna Barwin
ISBN: 9781952755309
Hidden Press Publishing
2025
My palm itches with the desire to tame her.
Ordered by my A’Llurian clan to choose a mate from the Drag’gon ambassadors, I expect cold negotiations and strategic pairings.
Then I see her.
Elegant. Spirited. With eyes that challenge and lips made for defiance. She awakens something deep inside me—something primal. My laz’zo stirs with the need to claim, to guide, to protect.
But she’s royalty, and royalty doesn’t follow orders or submits. Especially not to a hardened starship commander like me.
She’ll fight. She’ll defy. But I have ways of teaching obedience—lessons I’ll impress upon her slowly, thoroughly.
Until she learns. Not all cages are cold. Not all chains are visible. And love? Love can be the most exquisite restraint of all.
Because in the end, she’ll be mine—bound to me in every way that matters.
Capturing His Dragon
A Dark Sci-Fi Alien Romance
Alien Masters of A’Llure Book 2
Bella Barwin
978-1952755323
Hidden Depths Publishing
2025
She isn’t what she seems…
Standing in my spaceship’s brig, she’s a vision of fire—hair the color of a blood-lit sunset, skin patterns shimmering with edges of molten gold. Breathtaking.
But she’s also a stowaway—a shapeshifting dragon who infiltrated my spaceship, slipped past my crew, and dared to think she could remain unseen.
Defiant. Untamed. A potential enemy spy I cannot ignore.
Yet she stirs every ruthless instinct I keep buried, igniting a hunger as dangerous as it is undeniable.
And soon, she’ll learn that in my world, actions have consequences—consequences that are deeply bound together with desire…
Bella’s Books
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Season’s Greetings
December 30, 2025 by Dianna Sinovic in category Quill and Moss by Dianna Sinovic, Writing tagged as holidays, short fiction, writing
Just one week until Christmas. This is my last craft fair for the season—thank god! I have been selling my hand-crafted greeting cards every weekend since early October, and let me tell you, I’m burned out. I’ve done okay, made my table fees back at most events, but it’s a grind. Today, I’m set up in a community center near Reading, along with what must be forty other vendors.
This is your last chance, people, to find the perfect gift! My perfect gift would be a medical miracle for my dad. He’s been unconscious for two weeks, since the car wreck on I-80. The doctors say he should recover—if he wakes up. But he’s pushing eighty. It may not happen.
That would make a good card theme, right? A get-well wish made for people whose loved one is in a coma. May they snap out of it. Or, how about: Wake up, sleepy Jean. But that’s my dark humor bubbling up. Damn it, now my eyes are blurry.
The crowd today has been steady, and there’s plenty of buying going on, judging by the packed bags people are toting around. Most of the merchandise has no appeal for me; I’m not into ninety-dollar stone reindeer, or fat crocheted cats, or ceramic tabletop Christmas trees, or polished plaques that say “What-cha cookin’.” To be fair, my stuff doesn’t appeal to everyone either. I’ve had window shoppers tell me point-blank, “I don’t send cards.”
Still, I have my regulars and I love ‘em. They buy from me every year, oohing and ahhing over my new designs. But the nonbuyers are right: Who sends greeting cards anymore? Especially when you can zap out an e-card or text an emoji or even write a general Insta post—that takes care of a lot of people in one sweep.
Greeting cards are special to me, though. I used to do a bit of calligraphy, fancy addresses on envelopes, cool name tags, that sort of thing. Then I discovered watercolors, and the people at work said I had talent, and here we are.
But you can’t please everybody. Some folks don’t like my designs. Not religious enough, they say. I say, my cards touch people’s souls; do you? Other folks want a poem inside—they’re the Hallmark crowd. I don’t do poetry, not that kind anyway. Make me write a poem, and I’ll give you Macbeth: Foul is fair and fair is foul.
And some people even expect me to mail the cards for them. If you pay for postage, I’ll think about it.
It’s about a half hour before this craft event is over and I can stuff my wares into my SUV and head home. Later, I’ll stop by the hospital and sit with Dad for a while. And keep my fingers crossed, hoping. Mom passed six years ago, and he’s all I’ve got left. My brother lives across the country and can’t be bothered.
I reach for a box beneath my table to start packing up. The place is emptying out; I doubt I’ll get many more customers at this hour. Then I see him, one of my regulars. He’s heading my way, his eyes roving my displays and finally finding my gaze.
“Hi, Roy,” I say. “It’s about time you showed up.” I rib him gently; he always buys a handful of cards.
“What’s new this year?” He stands about my height, stocky with a beard. His watch cap in Eagles green has slid up his forehead, revealing the worry lines that come with life. I know nothing about him beyond his first name. He’s friendly enough, but he’s never revealed anything personal in our interactions. Married? Loner? I have no idea.
I spin the rack to a new design, a swirl of deep indigo tinged with a hint of orange along one edge. The dark of the storm before the dawn. Before I can pick it up, he has his hand on it.
“Yes,” he says. “This’ll do.” He selects a half-dozen other designs, then stares at me briefly. “The storm clouds are thinning, I think.”
I record his purchase and place the cards and their envelopes in a slim paper bag. He hands over the cash. Without thinking, I blurt, “Peace be with you.” Where that came from, I have no idea. I’m not devout about anything but my cards.
He nods once. “Best wishes for your father,” he says, and strides away.
“What?” I murmur. I must have misunderstood. When I open my hand to count the money, mixed in with the bills is a Patriots key chain. My dad’s favorite team, even years after he left New England. “Wait,” I call out, but when I look up, Roy has merged into the trickle of customers. I no longer see him.
Odd. He must had carried the key chain in his pocket and pulled it out without realizing it. I run a thumb over the raised logo. A Patriots symbol deep in Eagles country, just like Dad. He’ll chuckle at the irony—. I stop my thoughts before I lose my composure. How did Roy know about Dad?
As I box up inventory and break down my racks, my phone lights up. It’s the hospital. Suddenly lightheaded, I sit on my folding stool, gripping the phone so hard my fingers ache.
“Yes?” I say, afraid to hear whatever news they have to share.
There is a pause as a connection switches and it’s the nursing station.
They say: My father is now awake and alert.
And he’s asking for me.
More of Dianna’s Stories
A Review of Merry Belles: A Bluestocking Collection with Friends
December 29, 2025 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Book Reviews tagged as A review, Alina K. Field, Bluestocking Belles, Christmas Stories, new release
Merry Belles:
A Bluestocking Belles Collection with Friends
Published by Bluestocking Belles
Print December 7, 2025
Ebook: December 20, 2025
ISBNS:
Print: 978-1965509067
Ebook: 978-1965509050
Authors: Caroline Warfield. Elizabeth Donne, Cerise DeLand, Alina K. Field, Sherry Ewing, Jude Knight, and Rue Allyn
This lovely collection contains seven short Christmas stories set in Regency England. The stories are all entertaining and perfect for a lunchtime or an after dinner read. I appreciated that several of the stories had older heroines and had common people like doctors, housekeeper and soldiers at their centers.
My two favorites were Lady Loughton’s Last Wager by Alina K. Field and Maggie’s Wheelbarrow by Jude Knight. Lady Loughton featured an older widow and a younger rake. I loved how she dealt with her male children (and friends). Maggie was a war bride with two children and little money looking for her soldier husband. Ms. Knight did a good job with amnesia part of the story, which I appreciate as a family member suffers from both retrograde and anterograde amnesia. Many authors don’t take such care and that can make reading amnesia stories difficult for me. I really enjoyed her story.
If you enjoy regency romances, you will absolutely enjoy Merry Belles.
Other Books by Alina K. Field
Adventures in AI
December 28, 2025 by Alina K. Field in category Quarter Days by Alina K. Field tagged as AI, Alina K. Field, historical romance, Marketing, Regency romance, writingHappy holidays, and Happy New Year! I’m back for another Quarter Days post.
A Controversial Subject
First things first: I know that the use of AI is a controversial topic among authors and other creators. I’m not one of the folks who use it to plot, write, edit, or create book covers or audiobooks.
For one thing, the slick, smarmy AI generated prose from scammers that arrives in my inbox is a deterrent–easily identified as machine-made. Here’s one message from November 17th regarding my recent release, Her Impeccable Scoundrel:
As we enter the most uplifting time of the year, I hope this season brings you joy, renewed inspiration, and continued success as you craft elegant, emotionally rich historical romances that captivate devoted readers. After reviewing Her Impeccable Scoundrel, [emphasis mine] I was struck by its refined tension, nuanced character development, and the deeply human struggle between duty, trust, and long-buried emotion. Blythe’s fight to reclaim her reputation and protect her inheritance combined with Graeme’s complex return, carrying both guilt and longing creates an irresistible Regency narrative filled with redemption, vulnerability, and slow-burning romance. It is exactly the kind of elegant, emotionally resonant story our seasonal campaign aims to highlight.
(Note that there is a seasonal campaign coming up, for which payment by author will likely be required.)
Release day for Her Impeccable Scoundrel was November 18th. Hmm, how did the AI bot read it before sending this message?
No doubt you authors reading here have received messages like this from book clubs, famous authors, marketers and unsolicited reviewers. If you haven’t heard of this new scam, Writer Beware has several posts on the topic.
Imagining a Story Character
I have found AI marginally useful in creating character images for marketing memes. The image above is a depiction of the middle-aged hero in my most recent release, Lady Loughton’s Last Wager, a novella in the Merry Belles Bluestocking Belles with Friends Collection.
I also tried my hand at AI adjustments for headshots.
Here I am, riding with the highwayman to promote the Love’s Perilous Road collection at a Facebook party. (Ridiculous, right?)
A Real Time Suck
It’s easy enough to spend hours trying to translate the image in my head to the screen. One AI site creates one-size-fits all images of men. Every guy has a cleft chin, square jaw, and hot burning gaze. Ask for a lady in a Regency gown and you’ll get either Georgian hoop skirts or Victorian ones.
I suppose things will get better as AI steals from, copies, learns from humans. Or maybe when this human learns more about manipulating AI programs the result will be better images.
This Quarter’s New Releases
It’s been a busy few months with new releases, two fun projects with the Bluestocking Belles, plus a full length novel in the Wicked Widows League multi-author series.
Love’s Perilous Road, a Bluestocking Belles Collection with Friends
Release Day, October 31, 2025
Travel, houseparties, smugglers, spies, a ghost–and a mysterious highwayman. Who is the infamous Captain Moonlight? And how many lives will he change–for good or for ill?
It’s the autumn of 1817 and Sir Peter Somerville and his lady are hosting a house party at their estate near Brighton, while a pesky highwayman plagues the surrounding byways.
Includes my novella, Sir Westcott Steals a Heart.
Purchase link: https://books2read.com/u/mqx0W6
Her Impeccable Scoundrel
Release Day, November 18, 2025
A widowed countess emerges from her year of mourning battling the dark legacy of her husband and dreading the arrival of the straitlaced scoundrel whose interference years earlier led to her unhappy marriage, a young man who was once her friend: her late husband’s heir.
Called back to England to take up his late cousin’s title, diplomat Graeme Blatchfield is eager to see his cousin’s widow and learn for himself whether the rumors about the woman he once held a childish infatuation for are true. Forced by matters of the estate to spend time together, he soon discovers the vulnerable and lonely woman underneath the society mask. Can he get her to forgive him—and more?
Buy Link: https://books2read.com/HerImpeccableScoundrel
Merry Belles, a Bluestocking Belles Collection with Friends
Release Day December 20, 2025
Just in time for the holidays, seven charming stories of romance from award-winning and best-selling authors:
- A murder brings a lady and her lost love together, just close enough to heal old wounds.
- A young lady must foil a friend’s betrayal to have her Yuletide wish for love come true.
- A widowed lord’s new housekeeper tames his rowdy boys and pierces his lonely heart.
- A lady determined to find her wayward young son finds herself stranded with the persistent earl trying to woo her out of widowhood.
- Will restoring a family manor together help two people acknowledge a secret attraction and claim a future together?
- A soldier’s wife is determined to find her missing husband, even if she must walk the length and breadth of England with her children in a wheelbarrow.
- Home from the wars, a soldier is shocked to learn that his fiancée plans to wed someone else. Can he reach her in time to prevent the nuptials?
Includes my novella, Lady Loughton’s Last Wager
Buy link: https://books2read.com/u/mvRGPj
What’s the secret to training your AI? Tell me in the comments.
Hope your holidays are going well! Wishing you many blessings for the New Year, and I’ll see you at my next Quarter Day post.
Reverie by Neetu
December 26, 2025 by Neetu Malik in category Poet's Day by Neetu Malik tagged as colors, day, joy, Neetu, sun, sunset
Reverie
Shall we dip our brush
in the deep blue dusk
so we may paint joy
we stole from
the passing day
before it grows dark?
No, I think I would rather
wait for the red sun
to draw bright rays
across our canvas
and let them dry
into permanence.
© Neetu Malik
