Six Sentence Sunday – A Touch of Heaven – Contemporary Romance book

Welcome to this weeks Six Sentence Sunday! This week’s 6 comes from my Contemporary Romance, A Touch of Heaven. It’s the story that landed me the title, published author, way back in 2005.

The heat between them grew, making her dizzy with excitement. She panted for breath, his lips and tongue licking and sucking at her flesh.

She felt him smile against her skin before kissing a fiery trail across her jaw. Paige turned her head to him, her eyes glazed over with lust and smiled before lowering her head. She almost melted when he extended his tongue and ran it over her bottom lip. She trembled at the small action and opened her mouth, begging for just a taste.

To read an excerpt from this book, visit the book page for A Touch of Heaven on my website.

Check out the other Six Sentence Sunday participants or follow the #sixsunday hashtag on Twitter.

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Friday 56 :: Arizona Angel by Phoebe Conn

This weeks 56 came from the book Arizona Angel by Phoebe Conn, a book published way back in 1988! It’s in my To Be Read pile. I’ll get around to it one of these days.

“Your dress is lovely and so are you.” When MaLou looked more skeptical than pleased, he could only wonder at the fact that she had absolutely no idea what a treasure she was.

About the Friday 56

  • Grab the book nearest you. Right now
  • Turn to page 56.
  • Find the fifth sentence.
  • Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
  • Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
  • Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Play along with me! If you don’t have a blog, just post yours in the comments.

(I saw the Friday 56 over at Shiloh Walker’s blog. Be sure to visit and read her 56.)

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Thursday 13 :: Favorite Books/Series

Although I’m a writer, I was a reader first. I can devour a book a day if I have nothing else to do and I indulge in reading every chance I get so in honor of my love of reading, today’s 13 are the books I return to time and time again.
13 Favorite Books/Series of All Time 
(these are in no particular order)


1. Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon. Historical/Time-Travel/Scottish Highlander/Sage LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this series. I’ve read it twice and that is a feat. These books range in the 1,000 page length, the largest so far about 1,400 pages! The heroine, Claire, slips through the standing stones and meets the hero, Jamie Fraser, a Scottish highlander who is larger than life. The trials they overcome are epic. The stories start when they’re young, in their 20’s and the last book (to be released-the series isn’t finished) they were in their 40’s. I can’t get enough of these and because they’re SO huge, it takes the author nearly 4 years to write the next one. Talk about sitting on pins and needles! I’ll wait though. They’re worth it.

2. The Fading Lands Series by C.L. Wilson – Fantasy/Romance This book has it all. A shape-shifting Fae King, an average girl who is more than even ‘she’ knows, evil lords doing evil things and a whole host of amazing characters. Oh, and Romance! *sigh* I love Rain, the hero, in this book. I re-read it just for him. hehe
3. Warprize by Elizabeth Vaughan – Fantasy/Romance I adore this trilogy and wanted to cry when it ended. It’s what sold me on Fantasy Romance. The hero, Keir is the Warlord of an invading race and he takes Lara, the sister of the King, as his prize to stop the war. Their language difference makes the story more unique and reading some of the language and knowing what the author means is fun. It’s an epic journey with many mis-communications but the love story is fantastic. I just wish it wouldn’t have been written in 1st person perspective as I would have loved to get into Keir’s head!
4. The Fever Series by Karen Marie Moning – Paranormal Romance – If you haven’t read this series yet, do! The Fae in this series aren’t the sparkly, fun beings you’re used to. The Unseelie are converging into our world and the heroine can see them. It’s up to her, and the very OMG sexy Jericho Barrons to get the book that will seal the realms. It’s one long adventure so make sure you have the next book at hand before reading the first. I spent many a-night reading and only put the books away when the sun came up.
5. The Bronze Horseman Trilogy – Historical Romance What’s not to love about these books. They’re set during the German invasion of Russia and tells the story of Tatiana, a 16 yr old girl and the boy, Alexander, she falls in love with…a boy who happens to be dating her sister. Their love affair is tragic and inspiring and we see the struggle they have in hiding that love from others until they can be together. And THAT is when the book is beautiful. I cried while reading this book, laughed and got so angry at the characters I wanted to toss the book out the window but I’ll never part with them. They’re on my top 5 list of all time favorites.
6. The Wolf and the Dove – Historical Romance – In classic ‘Bodice Ripper’ fashion, this story tells of an invading viking hero who kidnaps the heroine, forces her to love him and realizes he loves her in return. Not many people like the 80’s ‘forced seduction’ type stories but I love these. hehe The hero’s are such jackasses but it gives them such a personality they’re hard not to want to read about. This one isn’t for everyone but these aren’t rec’s as much as they are MY favorite reads!
7. The Witch and the Warrior – Scottish/Historical Romance  I love a good Scottish highlander romance and this is one of my favorites. The hero kidnaps the heroine as she’s being burned at the stake for being a witch to cure his ill son. She isn’t a witch but pretends to be so he doesn’t kill her, or return her to the people who tried to kill her. The characters in the book are hilarious. There’s a group of old men who can barely walk but cause a lot of mischief, the heroine is constantly forced to produce some witchy spell that she makes up and somehow, the spells work in some way. The hero loves with his whole heart and watching him protect this woman no one seems to like or even want around just flat out does it for me. I love Karyn Monk’s books
8. The Choice by Nicolas Sparks – Contemporary Romance Unlike most Nic Sparks books, no one dies in this one! It’s full of the usual tragic events and over-dramatized fluff but I still re-read it once  a year. The love story between these two main characters is why I keep going back to it. It’s the ultimate tale of Love Concurring All.
9. Saving Grace by Julie Garwood – Historical (Scottish Highlander) Romance I love Julie Garwood books. Most are set in the Scottish Highlands, as is this one, and I’m a sucker for those Highlanders! Especially this one. The heroine is forced to marry the hero after her husband is killed in battle. She’s terrified of men after her abusive marriage and the hero in this story is rough and harsh in his ways but tries his best to be gentle with her and refuses to let her do anything but nap. LOL He treats her her like a queen, to his thinking, but to hers, he’s just locking her away. It’s a fantastic story and I love this hero. I read this once a year also.
10. Golden Surrender by Heather Graham – Historical Romance Another Viking story! The irish heroine is forced to marry the hero and in true Bodice Ripper style, there’s a lot of forced seduction going on! This book, I read in one day. I just Could. Not. Put. It. Down. There were points I was so angry, my hands shook. LOL And moments my heart was so broken for the heroine, I had to wipe tears from my eyes. It’s a hard story to get through if you like things all rosy and perfect. There’s tons of angst in this one but like the others, it’s one of my favorites!
11. Stardust of Yesterday – Lynn Kurland – Historical Romance This book is hilarious. The hero is a ghost and he’s made it his mission (in death) to avenge himself from all the descendants responsible for his death. Enter the heroine, a woman who inherits the castle he haunts. A good portion of the book is spent with the hero ‘haunting’ the heroine and driving her near crazy. The hilarious things he does have me laughing every time I read it. Of course, you can’t have a real romance without a real person so a funky little curse gives our ghostly hero a human form but…. I won’t spoil you. Read this book! You’re going to love it. (This book is # 11 in a series and the hero appears (alive) in The More I See You, book #8 of the series)
12. Immortals After Dark series by Kresley Cole – Paranormal Romance This series is fantastic and it’s hard to pick a favorite but this one, I’ve read the most. It might be the wolf shifter, or the way the hero and heroine fight, sometimes nastily, and get under each others skin. The characters in this series stick with you forever and I’m waiting for Nix’s book. She’s a fav character. They don’t call her Nuking Futs for nothing! LOL
13. Linda Lael Miller – Historical/Contemporary Western Romance If Linda’s name is on it, I’ll read it! I’ve yet to read one of her books I didn’t love. I have them ALL in print and have re-read them numerous times. Start with this series, The McKettrick Cowboys. They’re the ones who start it all.
And there you have it! MY 13 favorite books/series. Tell me YOUR favorite book/s in the comments below.
All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Writer Wednesday #1


If you haven’t been to my Facebook page (and why not? It’s awesome over there!) you probably don’t know that The Outlaw, book 2 in my Willow Creek series is now complete. I still have a few rewrites and edits to do but the hard part is finished. The book ran longer than my 40K target, ending up at 50,000 words instead. I was beginning to worry I had a novel on my hands and honestly, it could have been. I could have thrown twists and curves galore in there but it had to stop sometime. That Colt Avery (the hero in The Outlaw) just didn’t want to give up the spotlight. And I honestly didn’t want him to. He was Yummy from word one! I can’t wait for you to read his story.

I started writing book 3, The Gambler, last week. I haven’t been able to get very far due to circumstances beyond my control and it’s messing up my time schedule. I try to write 3K a day and I’ve missed several writing days now. I still have over a week to finish the story but writing in mad dashes eats my brain. I may not make the ‘official’ deadline but it should be close.

I actually plotted this story out, something I ‘never’ do. I’m a panster, not a plotter, but for some reason the notes I usually make to get my ‘key’ plot points on paper escaladed into a full blow outline. It was a bit shocking but it’s actually been useful to some degree. Of course, the muse (Benny) still dances to his own tune and is changing things but that’s okay. I’d be worried if the story wrote exactly the way the outline went. Change is good and so far, the surprises have been pleasant. I’m only 7K into the story and another of those ‘unforeseen little life diversions’ has stepped in and taken me away from my computer so the word count won’t be going up for at least another day or two.

Hopefully I’ll be finished by months end so I can get started on Book 4. It’s the one I’ve been waiting to write. There’s just something a little bit ‘wild’ about Holden Avery that I can’t wait to explore. He seems very quiet on the outside but I think that man has secrets he’s only willing to share with that special someone. Time will tell, of course.

For now, I’ll leave you with a very small snippet from The Outlaw! (Behind the cut for due to erotic language/imagery. Read with caution! – un-edited so anything weird will be edited out int he final version!)

Sarah nearly drowned in his kisses, the nerves under her flesh jumping as he ran his hand over her ribs to cup the underside of her left breast. His thumb danced along the tender flesh, rasped across her hardened nipple.


He broke the kiss and nibbled a path to her ear, his breath hot against her skin. Sarah stared at the shard of sunlight filtering through the trees and smiled before closing her eyes again, savoring every touch, every hot exhalation of his breath.


Wet kisses were peppered down her neck and across her throat. His tongue joining the leisurely stroll to her chest. Sarah watched him kiss his way to the soft skin of her breast. He looked up, his gaze locked with hers as he extended his tongue, rolling his tongue around her nipple before sucking it into his mouth.


The sensation was overwhelming. Her mouth opened as she took in more air, her back arched, trying to bring him closer as shards of pleasure sparked through her body. His hand held her breast to him, his fingers firm, squeezing gently on the soft flesh.


He released her, small kisses dotting her chest before he moved to the other breast, lavishing the same attention to it as his hand skated down her ribs, to her hip. His fingers tickled a path to the soft flesh of her inner thigh and she parted her legs, that throbbing pulse between her legs growing fiercer by the second. The moment he touched her, the tip of his fingers grazing the soft hair covering her, she cried out. “Colt.”


Lifting his head, he looked down at her and smiled. “Has anyone every touched you like this before?” He parted her, his fingers burrowing inside her flesh to find the small bundle of nerves that seemed to control all those throbbing pulses. Sarah gasped as tingles raced through her limbs. He lowered his head again, kissing the valley between her breasts, moving lower to pepper small, playful bits and kisses on her belly, her hip. When she felt him kiss her very close to where his hand was, her eyes widened and she lifted her head to look down at him.


He lifted her leg, threw it over his shoulder and Sarah was shocked when he buried his face between her legs. She cried out, grabbed his head and tried to push him away. “Colt! What are you…” His tongue lapped at her moist center and her eyes rolled, her head slamming back to the ground. “Oh, my sweet heavens.”


The Outlaw is due for release on March 12, 2012. To stay in the loop with my latest, LIKE my Facebook Fan Page!  http://www.facebook.com/authorLilyGraison

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Tuesday Teaser – Wicked:Tempt Me Not – Contemporary Romance book

It’s Tuesday Teaser time again and this week I have a bit of Wicked: Tempt Me Not, book 1 in my Wicked series!

Devin Shaw, front man for the band, Wicked, is forced into seclusion by his manager after his destructive behavior almost destroys the band. Sent to a remote cabin alone isn’t Devin’s idea of fun, but to save his career, he’ll do what it takes.

Holly Baker, escaping the hassles of her big city life, arrives in the mountains of Tennessee and awaits the arrival of her friend, Roxy, to start their two-week vacation. Their plans change drastically when Roxy is called away at the last minute, leaving Holly to fend for herself.

Devin and Holly’s worlds collide when a mix up strands them in the same cabin. Alone with nothing but each other for companionship, how will Holly react when she realizes she’s trapped with none other than the hottest lead singer the country has seen in years? Will Devin be able to work with a constant distraction the pretty brunette offers? Or will the two discover that sometimes temptation is a wicked dessert best served hot.

Excerpt



Devin wrote down the next string of notes and tossed his pen down, staring at what he’d written. He played it again, satisfied with the way it sounded.
He looked at the page again, shaking his head in disgust before laying his guitar down. Half an hour and he’d written a whole two lines. Every time he got a good rhythm going, thoughts of Holly would sidetrack him and he forgot everything he’d just played.
This is exactly why Curt wanted him alone. Any distraction, especially a woman, and his time would be wasted. Curt may be an ass at times, but he knew what he was talking about.
Thoughts of Holly still rattled through his head. He didn’t know what to do about their current situation. She hadn’t mentioned it this morning but he assumed his little stunt at breakfast might have been why. She’d barely spoken three words to him.
He still didn’t know why he felt the need to irritate her. Maybe because he was used to fucking girls blind and leaving them right where they lay? The last woman he actually talked to was his ex and she turned out to be just another groupie trying to find a free ride. Holly was far from groupie material.
Movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and he looked to the stairs.
His mouth watered an instant later.
Holly was at the top of the stairs in nothing more than tiny scraps of red material. The bathing suit she wore had to be the most sinful thing he’d seen in years.
He loved it.
Two small triangles placed over her breast were just big enough to cover her nipples, which were pebbled to perfection and clearly seen through the thin material. Round, firm, golden breast met his gaze; he licked his lips involuntarily as she took the first step down.
Her stomach was taut; a slim waist gave way to full hips and tantalizing thighs. He wanted nothing more in that moment than to have them wrapped around his head while she rode his face.
She reached the bottom of the stairs, never once turning her head to look at him, and he nearly moaned out loud when she passed the sofa and he saw her backside. The g-string bottom made her ass look delectable. The sun had definitely kissed this goddess in places he wanted to explore himself. Her wiggling little ass begged him to touch it…and he would before the week was out.
She was out the front door before his brain could process the fact she was leaving.
He blinked, turning his head to stare back at the unlit fireplace and a slow smile curved his lips. His cock twitched and he looked down, an obvious erection straining against the material was almost uncomfortable now that he noticed it.
He grinned and stood, his new song forgotten as he walked around the couch. How could he work when tempted like that?
Someone wanted to play and he liked the sound of this game.
* * * *
Holly sank into the pool, letting out the breath she’d been holding. She practically ran all the way to the hot spring, hoping to burn away her embarrassment.
It took every bit of courage she had to parade around in front of Devin like that, but she’d seen him out of the corner of her eye. The man was all but drooling. She grinned at the thought. Innocent little Holly Baker had caused a man to gawk at her like she was a sex goddess. And not just any man. Devin Shaw…a rock star.
She sighed as the warmth from the hot spring and the noonday sun relaxed her muscles. She straightened her legs, reclining back into the molded rock she rested on.
The morning had been less than pleasurable but now she felt vindicated. Sure it was just a little flaunt down the stairs in a barely there bikini but the look on his face was revenge enough.
She still wasn’t sure what to do about him. Could she spend the next two weeks under the same roof with him and not go completely insane? Less than twenty-four hours and he had already brought on thoughts of violence.
They needed to find a solution to their problem, but seeing how he hadn’t mentioned it, she figured he was as determined to stay as she was.
A loud crack of popping branches startled her. She looked toward the path, holding back a smile when she saw Devin standing by the side of the spring.
Just as suspected. She knew he would follow her.
He grinned at her before starting to remove his boots. She didn’t know how long he had been standing there but from the smile on his face, it was longer than she would have liked. “What do you want?”
“Just a little peace and quiet,” Devin smiled, reaching for the bottom of his shirt.
Holly watched the thin material of his shirt uncover hard, toned muscles, inch by inch, and she swallowed heavily when she realized she was staring.
The smirk was back on his face and she mentally shook herself to regain focus. “I’m using the pool at the moment.” She winced as her words came out in a breathy whisper and the smile on Devin’s face only increased.
“Don’t mind sharing,” Devin said, tossing his shirt aside.
“Well, I do. I came out here to get away from you.”
“Oh, I’m crushed,” Devin laughed. “You can always just leave.”
She watched him reach for the buttons of his jeans. “I don’t think so and you better have a bathing suit on under those.”
“And if I don’t?”
He smirked at her and she knew in that moment he was wearing nothing but skin under those jeans.

Wicked: Tempt Me Not

genre: contemporary romance
length: 23,067 words
Released: Aug. 2008
Rating: Sultry
Price: $2.99

BUY THE EBOOK FROM:
» Buy at Alinar Publishing
» Buy at Amazon Kindle
» Buy at Amazon Kindle UK
» Buy at Amazon Kindle DE
» Buy at Amazon Kindle FR
» Buy at Amazon Kindle IT
» Buy at Amazon Kindle ES
» Buy at Barnes and Noble
» Buy at Sony Reader Store
» Buy at Diesel eBook Store
» Buy at Smashwords
» Buy at Kobo

Also available at the Apple iBook Store

BUY THE PRINT BOOK FROM:
» Buy at Amazon.Com
» Buy at Barnes and Noble.Com

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Six Sentence Sunday – Destined Hearts – Contemporary Romance book

This week’s Six Sentences comes from my Contemporary Romance, Destined Hearts, a story that tells of a love that transcends time and reunites a couple who were denied their hearts desire a hundred years before.

“Do you believe in love at first sight?”

Caitlyn grinned. “I guess it depends on what you’re looking at.”

William’s gaze never faltered. The serious expression on his face caused her breath to catch in her throat before he gave her another kiss. “Well, I’m looking at you.”

To read an excerpt from this book, visit the Destined Heart’s book page on my website.

Check out the other Six Sentence Sunday participants or follow the #sixsunday hashtag on Twitter.

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Friday 56 :: The Darkest Lie by Gena Showalter

I saw this over on Shiloh Walker’s blog and it looked like fun so I’m going to play along. This week my “56” is from Gena Showalter’s The Darkest Lie






When he had strode into his fortress’s dungeon and she’d seen his beautiful face, the only thing she’d truly felt at the time was awe. He was alive.

About the Friday 56

  • Grab the book nearest you. Right now
  • Turn to page 56.
  • Find the fifth sentence.
  • Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
  • Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
  • Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.
Play along with me! If you don’t have a blog, just post yours in the comments.
All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison

Cirque Demonica. Enter If You Dare

I’ve been keeping a secret from my readers. One that will knock your socks off!

Author Candy Nicks and I have been planning a brand new paranormal series and I can’t wait to tell you about it.

Coming this summer, we’ll debut Cirque Demonica, a series of novellas featuring preternatural creatures who’ve been cursed, doomed to roam the world inside the confines of a circus that plays on people’s fear. Enter if you dare… I love saying that last part. hehe

And I also love this idea so much its been a battle to keep it to myself! I’ve had to bite my tongue to keep from blurting prematurely about it and I just can’t hold it in any longer. I’ll bust if I do. LOL

The way the series is designed, Candy will have her own characters/novellas and I’ll have mine. We each have four books we want to write and I’m so excited about the characters I’ve chosen, some of which are going to be a challenge.

I’ll not say too much about “who” the characters are, but I will be writing about a werewolf, which will be the easiest as I’ve written them before. The other three characters are uncharted territory and I can’t wait to introduce them to you.

As for Candy, one of her stories will feature a vampire. I’ll let her tell you about her other characters when she’s ready. I don’t want to steal her thunder!

I hope you’re all as excited about this new series as we are. When we have a release date for the first story, I’ll let you know.

In the meantime, get your ticket to the Cirque Demonica. They won’t last!

All material &copy2005-2012 to Lily Graison