Category: Spotlight

Hook, Line, and Sinker contains 23 original tales of grifters, con artists and their marks. The stories, written by members of the Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime, demonstrate how despite devious plots and plans, things don’t always go as planned.

Contributing authors are Sandra Benson, C.N. Buchholz, Lida Bushloper, Judith Carlough, Kait Carson,Susan Daly, M.R. Dimond, Mary Dutta, Kate Fellowes, Wrona Gail, Vinnie Hansen, Ann Michelle Harris, Kim Keeline, Jane Limprecht, Sally Milliken, M.A. Monnin, A.W. Powers, Merrilee Robson, KM Rockwood, Lisa Anne Rothstein, Steve Shrott, Frances Stratford, and Shannon Taft.

Guppy President Susan Van Kirk wrote the book’s introduction. Carol L. Wright and Debra H. Goldstein served as co-coordinators for the project.

Amazon blurb:

Mystery deep inside, in that place you hide from the world, have you ever considered how you would carry off a great con? Or maybe secretly plotted revenge for falling prey to a grifter, liar, or cheat? As these twenty-three authors of devious plot twists show, whether it’s running a con or extracting revenge, it doesn’t always go the way you expected. In this seventh anthology of short stories from the 1,100 – member Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime, the stakes are high: money, power, love, and life itself. The stories range from Tudor England to tomorrow’s headline after another fish takes the bait. Hook, Line, and Sinker.

Twenty-three original tales of grifters, con artists, and their marks. The seventh anthology of the Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime, Inc.

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Truth or Beard: A Winston Brothers Novel

January 2, 2023 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as A Winston Brothers Novel, For Zero Pennies, Penny Reid, Truth or Beard

★★★FREE BOOK ALERT★★★

Truth or Beard, a grumpy sunshine standalone romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Penny Reid (@reidromance), is ZERO PENNIES for just a short while. Now is the perfect time to start the small-town Winston Brothers series and visit Green Valley!

★★⁣⁣Grab your copy TODAY!★★⁣⁣

★★⁣⁣Blurb★★⁣⁣

Beards, brothers, and bikers! Oh my!

Identical twins Beau and Duane Winston might share the same devastatingly handsome face, but where Beau is outgoing and sociable, Duane is broody and reserved. This is why perpetually level-headed Jessica James has been in naïve and unhealthy infatuation with Beau Winston for most of her life. Whereas Duane and Jessica have always been adversaries. She can’t stand him, and she’s pretty sure he can’t stand the sight of her…

But after a case of mistaken identity, Jessica finds herself in a massive confusion kerfuffle. Jessica James has spent her whole life paralyzed by the fantasy of Beau and her assumptions of Duane’s disdain; therefore she’s unprepared for the reality that is Duane’s insatiable interest, as well as his hot hands and hot mouth and hotter looks.

When Jessica finds herself drawn to the man who was always her adversary, how much of her level-head heart is she willing to risk?

Truth or Beard is book #1 in the Winston Brothers series. Each book is a standalone, full length (110k words), contemporary romantic comedy novel, and follows the romantic exploits and adventures of one of the six Winston Brothers.

#bookstagram #bibliophile #igreads #contemporaryromance #bookworm #bookgram #bookrec #booklover #reader #bookish #romancebooks #smalltownromance #bookseries #romancebook

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Folk Around and Find Out Now Live on Audio

December 20, 2022 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as audiobook, booksofinstagram, Penny Reid, romanticcomedy, romcom, spiceyromance

★★Now Live on Audio★★

Folk Around and Find Out, a standalone contemporary romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Penny Reid, is now LIVE on Audible! Narrated by Joy Nash and Chris Brinkley, we’ve got your next great listen right here!

★ ★Grab your copy TODAY★ ★

He needs to get her out of his system. Just once….

★★Blurb★★

Hank Weller doesn’t help people. He leaves that do-gooder nonsense to his best friend, Beau Winston. Hank does what he wants, when he wants, with whomever he wants—and Hank does not want to hire Charlotte Mitchell to be an exotic dancer at his club, The Pink Pony. Sure, he can’t help noticing the dips and curves of her, how shrewd, smart, and funny she is, the fire in her hazel eyes. He’s always noticed. She’d probably draw a crowd and entice the regulars. But after Charlotte’s messy, public divorce made Hank’s club out to be the culprit—and made her the single mother of four kids—he doesn’t need or want any additional bad press courtesy of Charlotte Mitchell. Or the distraction. Unfortunately for him, the town’s prettiest charity case doesn’t seem to understand the meaning of the words nope, no, and never.

Charlotte Mitchell doesn’t much like Hank Weller. Once upon a time, she used to. Years ago, she liked him a whole heck of a lot despite other folks in town labeling him as “eccentric” and “nonconformist”, which were polite Southern alternatives to “filthy rich” and “self-centered douchebag”. Her opinion of him changed dramatically after he volunteered to be her date to junior prom and then promptly stood her up. They haven’t so much as acknowledged each other in more than a decade. But a sudden family emergency means Charlotte needs access to Hank’s club ASAP. Unfortunately for her, the narcissistic fancy-pants doesn’t seem to understand the meaning of the words help, generosity, and compassion.

But he’s about to find himself schooled. Charlotte is going to teach Hank a lesson once and for all about basic human decency, whether he likes it or not.

Spoiler alert . . . he likes it.

★ ★Grab your copy TODAY★ ★

#illustratedbookcover #romcom #booksofinstagram #romanticcomedy #romance #romancebook #bookworm #bibliophile #bookstagram #IGreads #bookseries #spicyromance #audiobook #audiobooksofinstagram

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Drama King an All-new Snowed-in Romantic Comedy by Penny Reid

December 16, 2022 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as Drama King, holiday romance, new release, Penny Reid, romance novels, romantic comedy

★★Now Live★★

Drama King, an all-new snowed-in holiday romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Penny Reid, is LIVE on all platforms!

★ ★Grab your copy TODAY★ ★

★★Blurb★★

Stuck with her off-limits, taciturn, hunky movie star client during a sudden snowstorm on Christmas Eve, an extremely capable and highly professional bodyguard must keep him alive and warm without letting the tension building between them get too hot.

Bathsheba (Beth) Ryan can’t thank her best friend enough for helping her land the job of her dreams. After being relegated to second-string security for politicians in DC, being hired as an undercover personal security specialist by a giant Hollywood studio is exactly the kind of action she’s always wanted.

Until she meets her first assignment.

Cyrus Malcom can’t thank his agent enough for arranging a blind date with seemingly the woman of his dreams. After spending the past several years playing all the parts and climbing all the ladders, the lonely mega movie star finds himself actually enjoying a night on the town for the first time in ages when he meets the gorgeous, funny, and genuine Ryaine O’Rourke.

Until she shows up at his studio meeting the next day with a completely different name.

A world-wide press tour and too many late-night parties later, Beth simply needs to get through a short, one-day visit during the Christmas holiday, and then she’ll be free of Cyrus Malcom’s confusing hot looks and cold shoulders for good.

But just as they leave the airport, it starts to snow . . .

‘Drama King’ is the second book in the Three Kings Series, is a full-length, contemporary romantic comedy, and can be read as a complete standalone.

#romanticcomedy #bookstagram #romancebooks #romancereader #holidayromance #holiday #bookseries #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #romcom

★ ★Grab your copy TODAY★ ★

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Free Book Alert

December 4, 2022 by marianne h donley in category Spotlight tagged as Free Book, Good Folk Series, Green Valley, Limited time, Penny Reid

Totally Folked, a heartfelt and hilarious standalone romance from New York Times bestselling author Penny Reid, is ZERO PENNIES for just a short while. Now is the perfect time to start the small town Good Folk series and visit Green Valley!

★★⁣⁣Grab your copy TODAY!★★⁣⁣

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/35yF77N

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3bRkRCr

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/3oHrMRT

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/2N30PKI

Apple Books: https://apple.co/2XAtZmf

Nook: https://bit.ly/3ib736z

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2N2YDTu

Google Play: https://bit.ly/3skGO2h

Smashwords: https://bit.ly/3nIJd3c

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3upwLcB

★★⁣⁣Blurb★★⁣⁣

One unforgettable night leads to an unlikely shared connection, and unlikely connections never go unnoticed by the good folks in Green Valley, Tennessee. . .

Jackson James follows the rules. He has to. He’s a sheriff’s deputy in a super small town with a super big personality. However, strict adherence to the law during the day has been enjoyably balanced by rakish rules at night. Jackson, typically happy to protect and serve (and serve, and serve), starts questioning the value of wayward evenings when getting laid starts to feel more like being waylaid. Could it be that Green Valley’s most eligible—and notorious—bachelor longs for something (and someone) real?

Mega movie star Raquel Ezra follows only one rule: always leave them wanting more. Studio execs, reporters, audiences, fans, lovers—no one can get enough of the smart, savvy, and sexy bombshell. But when “generous offers” begin to feel more like excessive demands, years of always leaving has the elusive starlet longing for something (and perhaps someone) lasting.

When Raquel abruptly returns to the quirky Tennessee hamlet, her path crosses with the delectable deputy with whom she spent one unforgettable night. Unfortunately, scandal and intrigue soon follow. Raquel and Jackson must decide which is more important: following their rules? Or, at long last, finding something real.

TOTALLY FOLKED is a standalone, contemporary romantic comedy novel and book #1 in the Good Folk: Modern Folktales series.