What do you mean, I'm not sek-say?

My daughter just finished up mid-term exams this week, and has today and tomorrow off. As we were driving to go out to breakfast this morning, I turned up the radio and started belting one out in my loudest, most off-key voice just to mess with her.

"If you want my bodddddy....aaaaaand yoooooou thiiiiink I'm seeeeksay.....come on darling, let me knooooow."

To which the reply from my right was, "Oooooh myyyyyyyy GAWD, mother, shut up, shut up, shut up! I swear if you do not stop, I will have to open the door and jump out in the middle of the road and commit suicide. Anything is better than listening to that!"

After a few moments of playing keep away with the radio knob, I finally relented. Even my off-key-iness was starting to offend my own ears. Once I was able to stop the gut busting laughing, I turned to her in my best serious face and asked, "What do you mean? I'm not sek-say?"

"No, no one wants you, you are a mother and that of course means you are NOT sexy. Mom, there should be laws of even thinking about mothers and sexiness. Ugh."

Leave it to my fifteen year old to strike a nice deep blow to my ego.

I turned thirty-seven in December. Knowing that forty is quickly approaching is of course making me feel all gloom and doom-y. It is the end of the world, right? The closer to forty I become, does that reduce my seksayness? Have I approached and coasted over that hill already? Oh noes!

Yeah right. I am so awesome, she is just too young to understand the complete seksayness and awesomeness contained within me.

But she also got me thinking. How many romance novels have I ever read that have a mother as the romantic heroine? Yes, there are a few, but in the scope of the literally thousand of romance novels I have read, the large percentage have been young, sexy, childless women. And in the few I read that DID have children, typically those children were older, in college or fully grown - aka OUT OF THE WAY.

Yes, of course I realize that most women want to live vicariously through the books they read, they want to step into the shoes of the heroine - be young again, beautiful, a perfect size four with a body hot enough to stop traffic. And apparently - they want to be childless too.

Granted, it is not easy for an author to include a child within a story that is woven for the simple fact is - kids tend to put a damper on a sex life. Planning time for something as spontaneous as sex kinda takes the fun out of it.

The thought of writing a story with a mom as the heroine is kind of daunting. I typically love to go with futuristic or sci-fi erotica. How can mom be abducted by the sexy alien if she is worried about the kids she left behind?? Not happening - I can imagine that book becoming a wallbanger.

Anywho...my author friends out there...have you ever read an erotic romance with children involved that were living with the heroine - or hero - that were not grown, or nearly there? Did the author do it well, or did it affect the tone? Would you tackle the topic yourself? And lastly, and most importantly - do you think I'm sexy? (I reallllly need the ego boost today - LMAO!)

~Alex

Review for The Lottery

Review for The Lottery

Read it below or here at ParaNormalRomance.

"I Would Love to Win this Lottery!"

The Lottery is one of those books that may take a moment to get into but I am so glad that I stuck with it! The first few scenes may be hard to get through for some but the rest of the book builds beautifully. The story is set in the future when the male population has greatly decreased and has been primarily made to serve as sex slaves to the highest bidder. Ethan has sold himself into this lifestyle so that he can take care of his sister, whom is extremely ill. Karlyn is an artist that is struggling to get her name noticed so that she can finally live comfortably and escape her family's scrutiny. Little does she know what she get as an outrageously expensive birthday gift changes her life forever!

This is a story that is well worth the time to get drawn into it. The characters are richly developed and are allowed to be human and therefore are not perfect; but that is what makes them interesting! The love scenes are smoking hot and almost makes me wish there was a lottery for a smoking hot guy today! This is a great addition for anyone that loves passion with just a little bit of a twist!

Buy your copy here!

Guest Blogger - Lila Munro

Lila Munro is a writer of contemporary romance currently residing on the coast of North Carolina. She is a military wife and takes much of her inspiration for her heroes from the marines she’s lived around for the past fourteen years. Coining the term realmantica, she strives to produce quality romance in a realistic setting. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading everything she can get her hands on, trips to the museum and aquarium, taking field research trips, and soaking up the sun on the nearby beaches. Her previous works include The Executive Officer’s Wife, Bound By Trust, and Destiny’s Fire. Anthology work includes a piece in All I Want for Christmas is Redemption. She loves to hear from her readers and can be contacted via her website http://lilamunro.weebly.com , her joint effort website http://www.wickedmuses.webs.com or through Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Lila_Munro .

Said Wendy from Happily Ever After Reviews about Bound By Trust:

Let me say, I loved the book and I fell in love with the characters. Their story is so realistic I felt as if they were my friends. Through all the hardships, Rafe is a man who Madi learned to depend on and love again. He made her feel like a woman cherished while teaching her what she craves is right in his arms. Theirs is a true love story with their share of disagreements and trials. The story had me from the first paragraph and is a must read if you want a real man falling in love with a real woman. 5 Teacups.

Of the genres you have written, which one is your favorite? Why?

To tell you the truth, I’ve really only written in one—romance. However, I have dabbled in a couple of subgenres. I’m normally a contemporary erotic girl, but recently I participated in a Christmas anthology with five other writers that was paranormal in nature. All I Want for Christmas is Redemption hit e-shelves in November and is available at www.allromanceebooks.com . While I had a lot of fun doing that, paranormal just isn’t my thing. That’s not to say I won’t do it again—stepping outside my box not only proves my versatility, it gives me a much needed break from my routine. I much prefer to write in the contemporary category because I write my characters with very realistic problems that normal everyday people can identify with. In fact, some of their issues are really very serious. I death with issues that a lot other people might consider taboo, like illness, addictions, deep seated fears and abuse. My last novel that came out, Bound By Trust, was centered around a war widow. Some might have considered it unthinkable to cross that bridge, but for me it was important to not only cross it, but talk about it tactfully, realistically, and let Madi express all the emotion born of it.

I see a strong military theme in a lot of your writing. What’s the reason behind that, besides sexy men in uniform?

One of the most frequent pieces of advice I see being doled out by big hitting authors is write what you know. Well, after being raised just outside an Army base and fourteen years of marriage to the Marine Corps, I definitely know the military. The military life is foreign, and often times a mystery, to so many people that haven’t lived this life. I feel like I can dispel some of that through my stories and show people that although we live a different lifestyle and are often set apart from the normal civilian community, we are just normal everyday people trying to get by and have the same troubles, joys, and fears that everyone else does. It helps tremendously that I have an in house research center through my husband. Although I’ve focused on the men in the military as the star of the show up until now, be on the lookout—I have a great idea cooking for a series with female marines as the stars of the show.

Cat or dog person?

Definitely dog. I like an animal that will sit on the couch and cuddle with me when the hubs is away. Cats are a bit too stand-offish for that. I have a Bernese that weighs about a hundred pounds. He’s my really old protector. My female Sheltie is overweight, loves to go to Chick-fil-a with me for waffle fries, and has what my neighbor calls divatude. I love them both to pieces.

Your favorite character you have ever read? Favorite you have ever written?

I must confess, I am an avid, voracious reader of all genres and the characters are so widely diverse I’m not sure I can choose just one. I love it when writers are so good at crafting characters you feel like they are three dimensional and not cardboard cut-outs. If they have such a strongly developed personality that you fall in love with them or feel as though you are friends at the end of the book, that writer has done his or her job. Of course, my favorites have changed from childhood until now. My very first favorite character was actually an animal—The Little Red Hen. I loved her; she was so together and with it and made people think. Then in the tween years I loved Nancy Drew. She was so smart and Carolyn Keene really brought her to life descriptively. During college the classics took over my life as I was an English minor. Virginia Wolf, Steinbeck, Hemingway—they all write characters we can relate to on a very intimate level. Now that I’m all grown up my favorite characters are, too. I am so in love with Beck Reynolds from BethAnn Buehler’s Broken Together it’s not even funny. He’s strong and knows how to bring out the best in a woman. As far as favorite characters I’ve written, that’s like asking a parent to pick a favorite child. It’s impossible. They are all unique and you love them all equally. My very first novel, The Executive Officer’s Wife is filled with great personalities and each of them will always hold a special place in my heart. However, a couple of characters that really stand out for me are Madi Melbourne from Bound By Trust and a character I am currently working with, Hunter Golden from my upcoming series, The Sergeants of Echo Company. Madi is a capable woman who’s been left adrift in the world and is so emotionally charged. I loved writing her. Hunter Golden is by far the strongest hero I’ve ever written and the moment he stood between Abby, his heroine, and her aggressive abusive ex, that was it for me. He won me over completely.

What is the most stupid news event to grace the headlines this year (in your opinion of course!)?

Geeze, where to begin? There’s so much stupid news out there it makes me wonder why there are news feeds to begin with if they aren’t going to focus on real issues. I would have to say collectively, any news that has anything to do with an overrated celebrity is stupid and a waste of time. Kids are starving all over the world, there are homeless people living on the streets, there are diseases without cures, and I’m sure somewhere a few boy scouts are doing a few good deeds that would warm all our hearts, and what do we get? Stories about how many kids Angelina can adopt, Bristol Palin and her DWTS’s mess, and updates on Jennifer Aniston’s nipples. Really? Who cares? I’ll be perfectly honest with you, the news is so bad I rarely watch it for any lengthy amount of time because when I do, these are the stories I get even from the mainstream media. Isn’t there a show on just for celebrity news? In fact, I think they have their own channel devoted to it. Keep it there.

What is your most current work?

My most current work to come out is entitled A Slower Lower Love. It went live yesterday courtesy of a very fine company, Rebel Ink Press. I know you mentioned earlier that I have a tendency to lean toward military heroes, but in this novel I switched gears and my hero, Bryce, is a police officer. Here’s a small bit about it:

When running isn’t the answer,

Cait O’Kelley loved Bryce Delaney with all her heart. But loving him scared the hell out of her. She didn’t want to settle for being married to a cop and having his children. She wanted more. Unfortunately, more came with a price. After leaving her small home town for more glamorous life and working her way up the corporate ladder, a whirlwind affair with the boss’s son tears her world apart. On the brink of losing everything she’s worked for, she had to make a decision.

and going back seems impossible,

After eight years of living without her, Bryce finds himself tasked with the job of watching over Cait during her week long stay at her parent’s beach house in Bethany. She’s come there to sort her life out and while she’s contemplating her future, they discover the fireworks are still there. But can they ever go back to where they once were? As his secrets begin to surface, he sees only one way to save her. He disappears without a trace leaving Cait behind to pick up the pieces and deal with a whole host of new problems. One of which she can’t explain away or hide.

can you find middle ground?

With Bryce out of the picture, his brother, Kurt, finds what he’s wanted a lifetime handed to him on a silver platter. After watching Cait and Bryce toy with each other for fifteen years, he steps up to the plate. He’s always wanted her and now is his chance. But is he strong enough to ground Cait and keep her from making yet another mistake? Which brother will win her heart and show her that a slower lower love is enough?

Are you currently working on anything?

Oh, I’m always working on something. I have so many irons in the fire right now. The thing that holds most of my attention at the moment is a series entitled The Sergeants of Echo Company. They will be subtitled Alec, Brady and Hunter respectively. These stories center around three marines in between deployments that decide a side bet on three hot women sounds like a great idea. Until they figure out they’ve each got more baggage than a Coach outlet. I’ve done a lot of research in some shady places to bring this one to life and I think my readers will be pleased. Another project I have in the works is an anthology series called Force Recon. I’m working with a few other really great authors on this. BethAnn Buehler, Christopher Craven, and JL Oiler, and JA Lawson will be joining us in the second installment. As the name gives away, they are stories about a Marine Corps Force Recon team. They have a little something for everyone from sensual to spicy to blazing, and they cover a host of real life issues including sexuality, combat stress, death and serious illness. I think these anthologies will set the bar for anthology writers everywhere. We’ve worked very hard at weaving our characters lives so closely knit that you get four stories from four points of view all while incorporating all the other characters in each individual offering. It’s very unique and has been a joy to work on. The first book, Beacon Bayou, is due out February 21 through Rebel Ink Press. To find out more go to www.rebelinkpress.com .

Thanks so much for having me today, Alex. It was a pleasure being here. If it’s okay, I’d like to leave your readers with a sneak peek at A Slower Lower Love which they can pick up at www.allromanceebooks.com .

Thanks for being my guest today - you have truly been wonderful. I look forward to reading more! And here is an excerpt from Slower Lower Love. ~Alex

Slower Lower Love

by Lila Munro

The sound of seagulls screeching like nails on a chalkboard pulled Cait out of the peaceful place somewhere between sleep and wake she’d been dozing in and out of most of the morning. The raucous cacophony was far too close for comfort. Pushing up on her forearms in the warm soft sand, she peeled her eyes open. A summer browned boy that looked to be around ten or eleven stood a few yards away with a clear plastic bag full of bread crusts. The band of ivory and gray birds dipping and swooping behind him cast shadows over her and her fluffy yellow beach towel. Did the boy have no sense at all? Probably the offspring of interlopers, he obviously didn’t realize the scavenging birds would never leave if you fed them just once.

“Hey, kid,” she shouted. “Go somewhere else with your bag of bread.”

She didn’t want to share her space with a child and his flock of motley birds. Why wasn’t he back in school anyway? It was well past Labor Day.

He glanced over at her, pulled a piece of crust from the bag, and waved it in the air blatantly ignoring her wishes to be left alone.

Hating to be taunted, she started to get up. “I said get down the beach you scrawny urchin, this isn’t public access, so go.”

After watching him dart away with the gulls not far behind, she lowered herself back on her towel and closed her eyes again. She’d come here to rest and try to piece her life back together, not deal with truants.

It was her mother’s suggestion that she take a week at the beach house after the last holiday weekend of summer. She’d finally agreed after giving the idea some serious pause. There were too many memories here she didn’t particularly care to rehash. It had seemed at the time, however, a better alternative than being secluded in her town home for one more day alone. But if her first morning was any indication as to what her stay was going to be like, she might well change her mind and go back to Baltimore before sundown.

For now, at least, here she was. The very place that eight years ago she’d absconded like it was infested with the plague. Fled for a life outside the confines of small town life to anywhere bigger USA.

It just happened that anywhere bigger at the time was Pittsburg. She’d found a job and earned a degree at the university. Then she’d gone on to land a gig at one of the nation’s biggest marketing firms in Baltimore. After working her way up from the mail room, she’d been in charge of some very affluent client accounts. Always looking for more though, that hadn’t been enough fast enough. No. She wanted everything, and everything came with a price.

After practically throwing herself on him, she’d landed the bosses son. As far as Jamison Curtis and all their friends were concerned, they were a match made in heaven. They both had good heads for business and eyes on the brass ring attitudes, and after a brief courtship they had been engaged to be married.

They weren’t a match made in heaven in her book though. He wasn’t much for wild abandon in the sack. In fact, he was more the missionary type, though she could concede it was usually satisfying enough. He liked the opera, while she preferred alternative rock. He wanted steak every night and she would have chosen boiled crabs anytime. On top of all that, she’d known she didn’t love him. What did she expect hooking up with someone that wasn’t raised on the eastern shore, south of the Mason Dixon, where life was simpler? But wasn’t that what she had run from all that time ago?

For her he was just a mere rung on the ladder of success, the toll to a better life. At least that was what she believed until three months ago when it all came crashing down around her like a skyscraper after an earthquake.

Feelings complicated things, and she didn’t want complicated. He, however, had apparently let himself fall hopelessly in love with her and it wasn’t until their engagement party at a five star hotel on the inner harbor that she fully realized that. She overheard him talking to his brother and inadvertently discovered how he couldn’t wait until they honeymooned in Paris, and actually hoped they came home expecting their first born. That she hadn’t counted on. After Jamison left Haden standing on the balcony overlooking the harbor, she had confronted him. They had already had the children or no children discussion and she had made it perfectly clear that they weren’t in the equation for her right now, and maybe indefinitely.

That led to an argument right there in the ballroom that escalated until all she heard was the sound of their two voices reaching a piercing pitch. The band had stopped playing and all their friends ceased what they were doing to stare at them there in the middle of the floor spearing each other through with glaring eyes. The silence had been even more clamorous than the sound of their arguing. That was the point at which the relationship had snapped in two like a dry twig. Pop! It was over.

She’d composed herself and tried to salvage some of her dignity. After apologizing to their guests, she made a hasty exit to take a cab home. Like a coward, she left Jamison there to put out the blaze she knew would consume Curtis Industries by Monday morning.

After ignoring his calls all day Sunday, the phone finally quit ringing. He hadn’t bothered leaving any messages. Nothing he could say, and nothing she could do, would make things right anyway. She’d torn another man down and crushed him. Only this time she was a grown woman and it was no longer a game of hurt feelings. Her livelihood would be affected by her stupid selfish actions.

Monday morning she’d slipped into the Curtis building downtown under the cover of pre-dawn. It only took minutes to clear her desk and type out her resignation. She knew she could never set foot in the office again, and even if she could face the humiliation of it, chances were she’d be fired and asked to leave. After depositing the letter on Jamison’s desk, and laying the two carat Marquis cut engagement ring on top of it, she left like the coward she was and went home to try to figure out what to do next.

Three months later, she still hadn’t figured it out. She had no job, no Christmas wedding to plan, and, if the tides of fate didn’t turn in her favor soon and leave some source of income at her doorstep, she would soon have no gorgeous town home. Her emergency funds were vaporizing and she had received so many rejection notices from prospective employers that she now suspected the elder Curtis of blackballing her all over Baltimore and a few other choice cities.

She squirmed around on her towel trying to root out a lump under her right shoulder and let out a loud sigh when she felt another shadow fall across her. That damn kid! She shot up fully ready to march him off and leave him with his absent parents, wherever that was. But when she looked up, instead of a four foot tall tow headed boy, a six foot tall dark haired man stood over her in blue board shorts with a matching towel slung over a very muscular shoulder. The sun wasn’t at its midday point yet and fell behind him shadowing his features, but she could plainly see that he was stacked to the nines. He sported chiseled biceps, his abs looked like a washboard, and every visible inch of his smooth skin was bronzed.

“Is this seat taken?” That voice. She couldn’t see him, but she would recognize that voice anywhere even though the years had deepened it to a low sexy pitch.

“What are you doing here?” she snapped.

“The same thing you are, Cait. Trying to relax. So do you mind if I join you?” He started to spread his towel.

“Yes, I mind. No, you may not. Possession is ninth tenths of the law. I’ve been on this piece of sand since dawn. Therefore, in this case, the law is on my side.” She plopped back down and crossed her arms over her ample breasts. “Now, go away, Bryce, my life is complicated enough as it is.”

“The law, huh? In case your mother hasn’t informed you, I’m a cop now. Your whole law thing doesn’t hold water with me. Have you forgotten our house sits just a few yards from yours? We co-own this stretch.” He continued to spread his towel and sink into the sand next to her.

“Fine, suit yourself. I’m sure it’s no coincidence that we’re here at the same time. Our mothers made sure of that didn’t they? I’ll try not to bother you.” She turned on her stomach and pointed her head in the opposite direction so she wouldn’t have to look at the fine example of a man Bryce Delaney had become. Her heart had done a familiar flip-flop at hearing him say her name and that really made her mad. That was the problem with Bryce. He made her feel things she had no business feeling.

The Perfect Play

I have only read one Jaci Burton book, and no offense, it wasn't my cup of tea - so I never read further.

But this cover alone makes me want to give this book a try.

Even if I just buy it, lodge it upright on my bureau and glance at it longingly, that will be enough for me.

OMG! I am in lust :)

And I have to wait until Feb 1st to buy it?? Seriously?? Ugh!!

Where did that condom come from??

I once read an erotic romance where the hero and heroine had been abandoned out in the middle of nowhere, in only their underwear. Apparently, they found this incredibly hot and sexy and as they fell into each other's arms and just before he was about to press into her warm flesh - he had to pause to put on a condom.

Seriously??

I mean come on, have they started putting up condom dispensers in the middle of the deep, dark forest? You were dropped off in your underwear! Where in the HELL was he holding on to that one? (Wait - maybe I don't wanna know.) And someone should slap the writer and her editor!

One of the hardest things to write into a story is the use of a condom - at least for me it is (and as witnessed above - terribly difficult for others as well). I have never written them in, as I think it breaks the flow of where I am going - plus a lot of my heroes tend to be paranormal immortal types anyway, so why would they need to cover the pickle?

My current WIP is a contemporary erotic romance - regular Joes and Janes - so I suppose I should tackle the condom use in this one, perhaps. But as a reader, I sometimes feel preached to when I read it in a romance. I am a grown woman, I know I need to be safe if I indulge, and this is FICTION. So I don't know if I want to go there or not.

If I can live vicariously through a woman getting it on with two men, why can't I also envision it with skin to skin contact in a world where disease and unwanted pregnancies do not happen? It isn't real - and as an intelligent reader, I get that. I would hope the millions of readers out there are just as smart and know where to draw the line between fantasy and reality.

Of course we know there are fruits out there that blur that line each and every single day of their existence. And that is okay. But do we need to pander to them when we write a story?

Anywho...this whole train of thought came to me because I found a HILARIOUS picture online and I had to search and surf for more info - finding more pictures that just made me laugh even harder.

Soooo...without further ado - here is the original picture: The condom dress.


This would make it so much easier for our heroines in our story! Dress them in condom dresses (and underwear and bras..you know, just in case they get abandoned in the forest and feel the need to screw) and each time the hero wants to get it on, he just pulls one off. The mystery of where did that condom come from would be solved! I am a freakin' genius.

Guest Blogger - Shannan Albright

A Christmas Wish for Laura

By Shannan Albright

Within the 'Twas a Dark & Delicious Christmas Anthology from Evernight Publishing

One wish during a storm on Christmas Eve changes the life of a young widow living in the Alaskan wilderness. Laura Holt, a successful artist lives in self imposed isolation, but the erotic dreams of one man fill her with a need she cannot deny. Elven Lord, Elric Frosti takes refuge against the storm in an old renovated barn where he comes upon Laura. Passions ignite and with it a love that could last forever.

Getting your first contract is akin to winning the lottery. So what was your first reaction? (I was incoherent, dancing around my living room with my daughter who thought I had gone nutty!)

Lol! I had to read my email three times before it sank in that they
were accepting my story and not rejecting it. I was at work and
screamed so loud my co-workers thought I was being murdered! That
feeling of validation after so many years was overwhelming.

A Christmas Wish for Laura is your first published short story (In ‘Twas a Dark and Delicious Christmas – a Christmas Anthology with Evernight Publishing). What else are you working on?

I have just submitted the first of a stand alone series of books and
hope to get an answer soon. I am working out an outline for the next
two books in that series, I also have an outline for a erotic M/M/F
contemporary romance, a sequel to A Christmas Wish for Laura which
Jack Frost is the focal point. Dads need love too after all!

The best critique you have received so far from an editor?

BL Brown from Evernight was awesome! Even though she was under the
gun on the deadline for the anthology she really took the time with me
she also gave me great pointers for future works that editors look
for.

So, you live in Sin City…I bet that in itself can be an incredible pool of creativity. Any wild stories make it into your writing?

Oh wow do I ever! I have a friend who is now retired from the
Ahem...industry but her experiences are mirrored in a erotica story
I'm working on. I will never have to worry about lack of sexual ideas
with her around.

Did you make a New Year’s Resolution?

I am horrible with Resolutions I seem to always break them a week
after I make them and then feel bad about it. So, the only New Year's
Resolution I'll be making is the do the very best I can to submit as
many of my stories as I can.

Who is your favorite character – male or female – from any type/piece of literature (even your own)?

I think my absolute favorite character is Vicious in JR Ward's Black
Dagger Brotherhood. He is filled with contradictions. His early life
was brutal yet he has a integrity and honor. I can really relate to
him on a lot of levels. He is a complex character and that is what I
love about him.