Cover Reveal 6 for #LoveUnderFire Romantic Suspense Box Set! #99c #amreading #Romance #Suspense

A few months ago, I revealed the cover for Love Under Fire, a limited edition box set releasing in November, which will contain my latest romance + ghost mystery, The Haunting of Hillwood Farm.  I'm thrilled to be a part of this project, which involves 21 USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Amazon Bestselling Authors each contributing a brand new story filled with passion, thrills, and danger to benefit Pets For Vets, a charity that pairs rescue pets with veterans in need of companion animals.  To find more info on Love Under Fire and how you can get your limited edition copy of 21 books for just 99 cents (!!!!), click here or find the links below after the cover reveal.  Because right here on my blog, as we build up toward release day, visitors get to see each *individual* cover and read the accompanying blurb...so keep checking back, because we have 15 more to reveal, including mine (next week, everyone!  Had to wait till October since mine's a ghost story and I'm all about Halloween!).  So, up today is Stephanie Queen, with a book incorporating a few more things near and dear to my heart...a second chance romance, and a bad boy with a heart of gold!  I cannot wait for this one.  Let's see the cover for Ace Under Fire...

Jeremiah Acerman was a badass back in the day, but he long ago traded his guns for a computer keyboard.  That didn't stop him from saying yes to a call for help--not when it was from that one woman in his life he let slip away and lived to regret it.

Isabella is worth risking his neck.  She might even be worth risking his heart.  Now the question was whether he was up to the challenge of going up against some new badasses south of the border.

There was only one way to find out...

Intrigued?  That's just ONE story you'll get in Love Under Fire, and you'll be helping Pets for Vets with your purchase!  Win/win.  Pre-order now to get this exclusive deal, and get ready for 21 fabulous books to hit your e-reader this fall!

LOVE UNDER FIRE on Kindle

LOVE UNDER FIRE on Nook

LOVE UNDER FIRE on iBooks/iTunes

Ian Somerhalder vs. Drew Fuller

Getting my nails done is one of my guilty pleasures, but I tell myself I need to do it, since I do a lot of book signings and I want my hands to look nice.  The place I go usually has a movie playing (although I always bring a book and attempt to balance it on my lap).  But the other day I got sucked into a film called The Ultimate Gift, the main reason being I couldn't stop looking at the very hot lead male actor.  I was certain I'd never seen him before, yet he reminded me of another actor.  When I got home, I brought up pictures of Drew Fuller on my computer, and it hit me:  he resembled Ian Somerhalder, one of my favorite actors whose Damon character made my Top Five Bad Boys with Good Hearts post.  That post has been my blog's second most popular post, with over 7,300 hits.




The picture I used in Bad Boys with Good Hearts

My most popular post of all time, clocking in at 55,550 more hits for a grand total of 62,850 compared Charlie Hunnam vs. Travis Fimmel.  So, in that vein, I bring you Ian Somerhalder vs. Drew Fuller.  How will this comparison stack up?

These two hotties are close in age and definitely share some desirable masculine traits.  In addition, they both began modeling as preteens, rising to represent major brands before transitioning to acting.  Their breakout roles occurred on television shows involving time travel, and both men have now crossed over to the big screen as well.  Here are some stats, and more eye candy to enjoy!

Ian Joseph Somerhalder:

• Born December 8, 1978 (34) in Louisiana
• French, English, Irish and Choctaw descent
• Began as a model, signed a major contract by age 11
• Breakout role - Boone Carlyle on Lost
• Current role - Damon Salvatore on Vampire Diaries

Andrew Alan "Drew" Fuller:

• Born May 19, 1980 (33) in California
• Scottish, Russian, and English descent
• Began as a model, appearing on a magazine cover at age 12
• Breakout role - Chris Halliwell on Charmed
• Current role - Trevor LeBlanc on Army Wives

So who's your pick?  It's an easy choice for me (assuming I had to chose, lol) - Lost was one of my very favorite shows.  Damon Salvatore is one of my very favorite characters.  Ian Somerhalder loves animals and promotes pet rescue/adoption.  And the final kicker--while looking for pictures for this blog, I realized I had used a shot of Ian on a motorcycle as inspiration for the character of Max in my Gull Harbor Pinterest board, and not even realized it was him!  I'd googled "hot guy on motorcycle" and immediately zeroed in on that one, which was a side view with no identifying names.  So in this case, Ian has my vote, and if you haven't read Gull Harbor yet, you'll LOVE Max!

I love a man who fights for animals










Bad Boys with Good Hearts - Kathryn Knight

Who doesn't love a sexy bad boy with a hidden heart of gold?  It's a common theme in romance novels, TV dramas, and screenplays.  There's just something intoxicating about a hot, dangerous hero whose actions reveal an inner gentle kindness.  Bad boys are often misunderstood, forced into a role chosen for them by circumstances out of their control.  But there is still a very real risk involved in getting close to them--and that's part of the thrill.

Here are my Top Five Favorite Fictional Bad Boys.  While their characters embody the perfect tough guys with redeemable qualities, it doesn't hurt that the actors portraying them are smoking hot!

5.  Anson Mount as Cullen Bohannon, a former Confederate soldier working on the country's first transcontinental railroad in the show Hell on Wheels.  Intent on avenging the rape and murder of his wife, his true motive is to discover the identities of the former Union soldiers responsible so he can kill them.

4.  Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon, the proficient zombie-killer on The Walking Dead.  Daryl had a traumatic childhood filled with abuse and neglect, and consequently grew into an emotionally-detached loner.  But the post-apocalyptic scenario brings Daryl into the fold of survivors, who value him as a leader and protector, and his character's true compassion begins to emerge.

3.  Josh Holloway as James "Sawyer" Ford, the "anti-hero" of Lost.  Sawyer witnesses the murder-suicide of his parents after they experience financial ruin at the hands of a conman.  Sawyer becomes a conman himself in order to fund his quest for revenge.  On the island, he alienates himself from the other crash survivors with his manipulative, selfish, and sarcastic behavior.  But eventually he falls in love with Kate and begins to show his sensitive side.



2.  Damon Salvatore, the dark older brother on The Vampire Diaries, is brilliantly portrayed by Ian Somerhalder.  A love triangle in the 1800s between Damon, his brother Stefan, and a beautiful vampire begins to tear the two brothers apart...when Stefan turns into a vampire and essentially forces Damon to turn as well, Damon vows to torment Stefan.  However, he always has Stefan's back when outside danger threatens.  When the brothers find themselves in love with the same woman again, Damon fights to be honorable and steer her toward the 'good' brother.  More on Ian here.

1.  Charlie Hunnam is Jax Teller, the President of the outlaw motorcycle club Sons of Anarchy.  Jax's childhood was intertwined with the club: his father founded the club, and his mother married another prominent member when an "accident" left her a widow.  But with the club comes a culture of violence, crime, and blood feuds.  Jax has finally started a family with his first and only love - his high school sweetheart - and he desperately wants to protect his wife and sons from the dangers of his lifestyle.  But he can't remove himself from the club entirely.  If he abandons his father's dream of a group of brothers who live outside the rules of society, not only will the club deteriorate further, but Jax will lose his opportunity to bring his father's murderer to justice. (P.S. - more on Charlie Hunnam and his lookalike, Travis Fimmel of Vikings, here).





Had to include this pic too!

My hero in SILVER LAKE has a bad boy streak as well--despite being kind and caring, he is also protective and strong.  Jason is a 4th degree black belt in Karate...but will that help him keep his first love safe from a desperate ghost?  While I don't have a picture of an actor for Jason, I do have this hot martial arts guy who will serve nicely: 

So that's my list!  Who are your favorite bad boys with good hearts?

PS More pics on my Pinterest Board!