Category: Indie Author

A #HistRom Book Spotlight | feat. “Betting on a Duke’s Heart” by Royaline Sing

Posted Monday, 19 April, 2021 by jorielov Betting on a Duke's Heart, Royaline Sing, Self Published 1 Comment

How I came to host for HFVBTs: I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours whereupon I am thankful to have been able to host such a diverse breadth of stories, authors and wonderful guest features since I became a hostess! HFVBTs is one of the very first touring companies I started working with as a 1st Year Book Blogger – uniting my love and passion with Historical Fiction and the lovely sub-genres inside which I love devouring. Whether I am reading selections from Indie Authors & publishers to Major Trade and either from mainstream or INSPY markets – I am finding myself happily residing in the Historical past each year I am a blogger.

What I have been thankful for all these years since 2013 is the beautiful blessing of discovering new areas of Historical History to explore through realistically compelling Historical narratives which put me on the front-lines of where History and human interest stories interconnect. It has also allowed me to dive deeper into the historic past and root out new decades, centuries and millenniums to explore. For this and the stories themselves which are part of the memories I cherish most as a book blogger I am grateful to be a part of the #HFVBTBlogTours blogger team.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

I have a penchant for Historical Romances such as this lovely new release – which is why I was quite eager to host this author’s novel during the Book Blast, today! Especially after I found a chapter sampler online for the novel – which at the time, I thought this was strictly a digital release – in both ebook & audio; which in of itself was quite lovely! However, I am thrilled to announce this is going to be released into print this April! Which means, it will make it easier for me to request at my local library as a purchase request!! I’d love to bring it home for my personal library but sometimes I have to wait to order the books I want to read which is why I rely on my local library and their lovely purchase requests which helps all of us who desire to read a lot of new releases every year. I also rely on their interlibrary loan services for the same reasons – as well as reading backlist titles – either one-offs or series.

As soon as you start reading the chapter sampler on this Historical Romance – I think you will feel as compelled as I had in wanting to read it further! Be sure to let me know in the comments which Historical Romance authors are catching your eye this year – perhaps, I will be able to borrow their stories through my local library!

Betting on a Duke's Heart
by Royaline Sing
Source: Chapter Sampler

Aetius White, the Duke of Saxton, couldn’t save his father, but he’ll be damned if he won’t save the man’s dream. He’ll acquire a Triple Crown–winning horse at any cost, even marriage. Luckily, the lovely lady in mind loves challenges as much as he. Certainly he can win her heart without losing his own…

Hell will freeze over before Miss Dina Campbell agrees to marry a horse-mad man who wants her dowry of a prize stallion, no matter what her father wants. The duke may be handsome, but he’ll have to prove he is a suitable match for her before she’ll even consider the offer. And there’s no way this love-averse man will ever succeed with the wager that she has planned…

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical Romance

Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 979-8739377470

Published by Self Published

on 16th April, 2021

Format: Chapter Sampler | Online

Converse via: #HistoricalFiction, #HistFic or #HistRom
+ #BettingOnADukesHeart and #HFVBTBlogTours

Available Formats: Audiobook & Ebook

About Royaline Sing

As my first fiction work, I’ve a notebook length movie script, featuring my favorite stars. I was probably ten. It hasn’t seen the light of the day (And it won’t).

But story telling lingered. Though I have a software engineering job, the creative world teased from afar. So one day, I finally put the pen to the paper (or my fingers to the keyboard?) and started writing.

Now, I write through the noise of my lovely two kids, a very supportive (but sweetly clueless) husband and a bank job where numbers rule.

Born and brought up in India, I’m a huge fan of Bollywood romantic movies and the music. I also like all things Marvel! I love to travel and so many destinations are on my bucket list. (hint: some pictures here give the clues!)

I am currently writing Historical Romances, with heroines setting their own norms and coming to toes with heroes worth loving.

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

2021 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Posted Monday, 19 April, 2021 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book Spotlight, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Historical Romance, Indie Author, Romance Fiction

A #PubDay #Harlequin Heartwarming #25PagePreview | “A Marriage of Inconvenience” (Stop the Wedding, Book Three) by Amy Vastine

Posted Tuesday, 13 April, 2021 by jorielov A Marriage of Inconvenience, Amy Vastine, Harlequin Books, Harlequin Heartwarming, Stop the Wedding series 0 Comments

Acquired Book By: I’ve been hosting for Prism Book Tours since September of 2017 – having noticed the badge on Tressa’s blog (Wishful Endings) as we would partake in the same blog tours and/or book blogosphere memes. As I enquired about hosting for Prism, I found I liked the niche of authors and stories they were featuring regularly. Oft-times you’ll find Prism Book Tours alighting on my blog through the series of guest features and spotlights with notes I’ll be hosting on behalf of their authors when I’m not showcasing book reviews on behalf of Harlequin Heartwarming which has become my second favourite imprint of Harlequin next to my beloved #LoveINSPIRED Suspense. I am also keenly happy PRISM hosts a variety of Indie Authors and INSPY Fiction novelists.

I received a complimentary copy of “A Marriage of Inconvenience” direct from the author Amy Vasinte in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I have been enjoying reading stories by Amy Vastine:

There was something wholesome and sweet about how this story resolves itself; as Vastine lets you take the adventure with Donovan and Kelly. In many instances, they were more caught inside the hours they spent with Avery and Graham; where they were laying down the foundation of a relationship but moreso to that, they were setting down a foundation for a family. Those hours were the most special of the story, as it is where you saw the barriers of grief and anguish starting to tumble down and where true healing could emerge. The kids needed someone as a mediator between themselves and their Uncle Donovan whereas where Kelly excelled at understanding what it was like to have a cop in the family, she also softened Donovan’s heart to accept that sometimes life brings unexpected circumstances that are good for the soul.

What I liked about this series is how its threaded and anchoured through a recording studio! I’ve been binge watching Chesapeake Shores this Summer (Seasons 1-3) and I must say, all the episodes involving the intricacies with Trace trying to jump start his career and help make the Trace Riley Band a success was placing me in the mood for more music industry stories right now! The Grace Note Records series has a lot of heart behind it and if your seeking a series where the characters become inter-connected and form their own ‘found family’, this is definitely one to earmark.

The only thing missing from this novel and the first were the recipes! I also felt that Vastine could make a pitch for writing for Love Inspired Suspense as this Heartwarming novel was a good fit for the other imprint as she had good instincts for balancing the mysterious with the romantic.

-quoted from my review of Falling for Her Bodyguard
(Book Four: Grace Notes Records series)

In case you missed it, during my 8th Blogoversary this March,
I re-celebrated why I love reading Harlequin Heartwarming stories as I had during my 6th!

A Marriage of Inconvenience
Subtitle: Stop the Wedding
by Ms Amy Vastine
Source: Author via Prism Book Tours

She’s met the perfect man…

But he’s engaged!

Wedding planner Sophia Reed never imagined she’d meet her perfect man during a bank robbery. Evan Anderson is handsome and funny and makes Sophia believe in love at first sight. There’s only one small hitch—he’s engaged to someone else, and Sophia is planning his wedding! But Evan’s wedding is purely a business arrangement…and true love might just turn this almost-perfect wedding into a beautiful catastrophe!

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), Contemporary Romance

Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1335179852

Also by this author: Falling for Her Bodyguard

Published by Harlequin Heartwarming

on 13th April, 2021

Format: Larger Print (Mass Market Paperback)

Pages: 384

Published by: Harlequin Heartwarming (@HarlequinBooks) | imprint of Harlequin

the Stop the Wedding series:

A Bridesmaid to Remember (Book One)

His Brother’s Bride (Book Two)

A Marriage of Inconvenience (Book Three)

Converse via: #Contemporary #Romance

+ #Harlequin OR #HarlequinHeartwarming & #StopTheWeddingSeries

About Ms Amy Vastine

Amy Vastine has been plotting stories in her head for as long as she can remember. An eternal optimist, she studied social work, hoping to teach others how to find their silver lining. Now, she enjoys creating happily ever afters for all to read. Amy lives outside Chicago with her high school sweetheart husband, three teenagers who keep her on her toes, and their two sweet but mischievous pups.

Posted Tuesday, 13 April, 2021 by jorielov in #25PagePreview, Blog Tour Host, Contemporary Romance, Indie Author, Jorie Loves A Story Features, Prism Book Tours, Romance Fiction

A #Harlequin Heartwarming #25PagePreview | “Three Makes Family” (City by the Bay Stories, Book Six) by Cari Lynn Webb

Posted Friday, 9 April, 2021 by jorielov Cari Lynn Webb, City by the Bay Stories, Harlequin Books, Harlequin Heartwarming, Three Makes A Family 0 Comments

I received a complimentary copy of “Three Makes A Family” direct from the author Cari Lynn Webb in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I have been enjoying reading the City by the Bay series:

My favourite character was Nonna – her simple wisdom, the ways in which she showed how cooking can bring people together and the ordinary kindness she showed both Chase and Nichole warms your heart. She’s the kind of grandmother who wants what is best for her grandson but also someone who upholds family tradition – which led-in to one of my favourite scenes, which was having the three of them in the kitchen, attempting to cook a beloved recipe. Whilst there you had the overall feeling that Nonna might know more than she’s letting on – as both Chase and Nichole seemed to be at odds with themselves and they were saying more than they ought to have in that moment with Nonna. I personally think Nonna sorted it out for herself – the big secret and the reasons behind it. I just wouldn’t put it past her to see through the thin veil of their lies.

One of the interesting bits of soaking into this story is that both of Webb’s lead characters (ie. Chase and Nichole) are at turning points in their lives. Chase has a severe injury which could either set him back from his career goals or be a period of mindful rest during his recovery whilst Nichole is on the fringe of launching her app even if she’s dealing with combating her own insecurities first. They both seemed to be at war with themselves – as each of them were battling through something quite specific to their own internal struggles with anxiety and self-recrimination. It started to set the tone for the healing and self-growth to evolve through the storyline which I enjoyed seeing developed.

Webb places you into her storyline rather immediately – you instantly know what is most important to the lives of her characters simply by observing where we’re meeting them in the text. Nichole and Chase have rather immediate needs at the start of this novel which allows the story to unfold at a quicker pace than others. I enjoyed seeing how Webb was going to heal the distance between them but also, tuck closer to whom they’ve become whilst they’ve been apart. Both of her characters have lived so many years separated from each other, a portion of themselves has become a bit more muddled and lost; which I felt they each saw in each other when they first reunited. As it would be hard not to see the changes in your long lost best friend and that is how this story first presents itself – even before the grandparents are brought into the fray (as this is a story set against the love and nurturing guidance only grandparents can give) this is a story that is anchoured by a resolve of unquestioning trust between two best friends who understand each other better than they understand themselves.

-quoted from my review of Her Surprise Engagement
(Book Six: City by the Bay series)

In case you missed it, during my 8th Blogoversary this March,
I re-celebrated why I love reading Harlequin Heartwarming stories as I had during my 6th!

Three Makes A Family
Subtitle: City by the Bay Stories
by Cari Lynn Webb
Source: Author via Prism Book Tours

Can love for a child…

Make them a family?

Lawyer Molly McKinney needs to be the best—now more than ever. Relocating to San Francisco means a chance to provide a stable income and home for her nine-month-old daughter. And defending former rival Drew Harrington against charges of witness tampering will boost her reputation. As they work to clear Drew’s name, their feelings grow. But does Molly have room in her life for love?

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), Contemporary Romance

Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1335179845

Also by this author: The Rancher's Rescue, Single Dad to the Rescue, In Love by Christmas, Her Surprise Engagement, The Texas SEAL's Surprise, Trusting the Rancher with Christmas

Published by Harlequin Heartwarming

on 13th April, 2021

Format: Larger Print (Mass Market Paperback)

Pages: 384

Published by: Harlequin Heartwarming (@HarlequinBooks) | imprint of Harlequin

the City by the Bay Stories:

The Charm Offensive (Book One)

The Doctor’s Recovery (Book Two)

Ava’s Prize (Book Three)

Single Dad to the Rescue (Book Four) | (see also Review)

In Love by Christmas (Book Five) | (see also Review)

Her Surprise Engagement (Book Six) | (see also Review)

Three Makes a Family (Book Seven)

Converse via: #Contemporary #Romance

+ #Harlequin OR #HarlequinHeartwarming & #CityByTheBayStories

About Cari Lynn Webb

Cari Lynn Webb lives in South Carolina with her husband, daughters and assorted four-legged family members. She's been blessed to see the power of true love in her grandparent's 70 year marriage and her parent's marriage of over 50 years. She knows love isn't always sweet and perfect, it can be challenging, complicated and risky. But she believes happily-ever-afters are worth fighting for. She loves to connect with readers. Visit her at her website.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest

Posted Friday, 9 April, 2021 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Contemporary Romance, Indie Author, Prism Book Tours, Romance Fiction

A #HistFic Book Spotlight | “The Steel Beneath the Silk” (Book Three, Emma of Normandy series) by Patricia Bracewell

Posted Tuesday, 30 March, 2021 by jorielov Bellastoria Press, Emma of Normandy series, Patricia Bracewell, The Steel Beneath the Silk 0 Comments

Acquired Book By: I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours whereupon I am thankful to have been able to host such a diverse breadth of stories, authors and wonderful guest features since I became a hostess! HFVBTs is one of the very first touring companies I started working with as a 1st Year Book Blogger – uniting my love and passion with Historical Fiction and the lovely sub-genres inside which I love devouring. Whether I am reading selections from Indie Authors & publishers to Major Trade and either from mainstream or INSPY markets – I am finding myself happily residing in the Historical past each year I am a blogger.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of “The Steel Beneath the Silk” direct from the author Patricia Bracewell in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

I had the best of intentions – I was able to borrow the first two novels in the Emma of Normandy series via my local library a few months ahead of this blog tour. However, due to circumstances and a major life shift (wherein I am now working full-time) – I honestly lost the hours I needed to full dissolve myself into this series Ms Bracewell has crafted for us to read. From the moment I picked up “The Steel Beneath the Silk” – as it first arrived by postal mail, I knew this was a series which required patience and time – as she writes immersive Historical Fiction with the kind of accuracy you crave when you want to tuck back into a setting and timescape you haven’t previously read to the level of clarify only Bracewell can provide!

Realising I was running out of time to move through this trilogy with the attention it required, I decided to run a spotlight of the novel instead. Knowing I’d be entering into this trilogy on its magnus opus – the end of a cumulative journey I wish I could have taken this Winter. I am hoping to re-borrow the books and re-begin this final chapter after I’ve read them sometime before Summer as I truly wanted to embrace this world through the vision Bracewell had for it herself.

The Steel Beneath the Silk
by Patricia Bracewell
Source: Author via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

A breathtaking conclusion to Bracewell’s Emma of Normandy Trilogy, brimming with treachery, heartache, tenderness and passion as the English queen confronts ambitious and traitorous councilors, invading armies and the Danish king’s power-hungry concubine.

In the year 1012 England’s Norman-born Queen Emma has been ten years wed to an aging, ruthless, haunted King Æthelred. The marriage is a bitterly unhappy one, between a queen who seeks to create her own sphere of influence within the court and a suspicious king who eyes her efforts with hostility and resentment. But royal discord shifts to grudging alliance when Cnut of Denmark, with the secret collusion of his English concubine Elgiva, invades England at the head of a massive viking army. Amid the chaos of war, Emma must outwit a fierce enemy whose goal is conquest and outmaneuver the cunning Elgiva, who threatens all those whom Emma loves.

Genres: Historical Fiction

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1942209812

on 2nd March, 2021

Format: Paperback ARC

Pages: 450

Converse via: #HistoricalFiction, #HistFic or #HistNov
+ #TheSteelBeneathTheSilk and #HFVBTBlogTours

Available Formats: Trade paperback and Ebook

About Patricia Bracewell

Patricia Bracewell grew up in Los Angeles where her love of stories led to college degrees in Literature, a career as a high school English teacher, and a yearning to write. Her first novel, Shadow on the Crown, about the 11th-century queen of England, Emma of Normandy, was published in 2013. Its sequel, The Price of Blood, appeared in 2015. The final book of her Emma of Normandy Trilogy, The Steel Beneath the Silk will be published March 2, 2021.

Patricia lives with her husband in Oakland, California.

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

2021 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Posted Tuesday, 30 March, 2021 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book Spotlight, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Indie Author

An INSPY #HistRom for #INSPYSundays | “A Captain for Caroline Gray” (part of the Proper Romance, imprint series by the publisher Shadow Mountain) by Julie Wright

Posted Sunday, 21 March, 2021 by jorielov A Captain for Caroline Gray, Julie Wright, Proper Romance series, Shadow Mountain Publishing 1 Comment

Acquired Book By: I started hosting for Austenprose in late 2020 – it is a joy to continue to find authors of both Historical Fiction & Historical Romance who are writing the kinds of stories I enjoy as a reader. These are two of my favourite genres of interest and it is lovely to start hosting for a book blogger whose organising blog tours of whom I have long admired in the book blogosphere. I am eager to see which publishing companies and which authors will round out my first full year of hosting for Austenprose and their authors on their blog tours.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of “A Captain for Caroline Gray” direct from the publisher Shadow Mountain Publishing in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

This is my fourth blog tour hosting with Austenprose and this tour marks my continuing journey into beginning to read & listen to stories from Shadow Mountain Publishing. As I first started to notice their stories when I was joining my favourite readathon over Summer – which was the Christian Fiction Reading Safari hosted by Singing Librarian Books! Perhaps you’ve heard of it yourself and have joined in on the lovely self-directed readthon wherein as you read you have the chance to win free books by the conclusion of the event!?

I have been fascinated by romantic stories on the high seas for years – even before I was a book blogger and started to read such lovelies like Zana Bell’s Close to the Wind and The Secret Kimono by Christina Courtenay which I happily devoured! As Courtenay’s novel only partially took place over the high seas, I am aptly delighted I might be able to dive into her Kinross trilogy ahead of her Runes series which still is left officially unnamed though I did offer #RunesOfTime as an idea for it. (see also Tweet) And, of course, I have it in mind to read and/or listen to the full series of ‘Master & Commander’ now that I have fallen for the film which I blessedly saw with my Dad when it released into theaters.

Last month, you saw me read a story writ in a similar theme of interest by this publisher and the author Arlem Hawks!

I simply never fail in my admiration for these kinds of stories and that is what motivated me to enquiry if there were a date available for this lovely blog tour & an opening for a review as this is my first time reading a story by Ms Julie Wright!

A Captain for Caroline Gray
Subtitle: Proper Romance
by Julie Wright
Source: Publisher via Austenprose

Regency London

Caroline Gray's third season in London society ends as badly as her first two—no marriage proposal, no suitor, not even a glimmer of an interested prospect. She suspects it's because she is far too quick to speak her mind to men who are put off by her forthright opinions, her eager intellect backed by a formal education, and her unconventional ideas about the future. She is far more daring than demure to suit the taste of her class. Besides, Caroline thinks there will always be next season to find a husband.

However, her family's dwindling income leaves Caroline with only one choice to secure her future: a one-way ticket to sail with the Fishing Fleet to India, where the son of a family friend waits. If the match doesn't work, Caroline cannot return home.

Captain Thomas Scott loves the thrill of the open sea, and as commander of one of the ships of the Fishing Fleet, he ferries scores of young English girls to the shores of India to find husbands. The voyages pay well, but he struggles to understand why families would allow young women to be matched with total strangers so far away.

The trips have always been routine and uneventful—until this trip's first night's dinner with one Miss Caroline Gray. She engages in a lively political conversation, presenting opposing viewpoints to the conventionally opinionated gentlemen at her table. Captain Scott is secretly amused and delighted at her boldness, not to mention quite drawn to her beauty.

The rest of the passengers are shocked by her behavior and Caroline finds herself an outcast, suffering harsh judgments from the other passengers. However, she finds an unlikely ally in Captain Scott which quickly draws them closer.

Both know an arranged marriage awaits Caroline at the end of their voyage, yet the attraction between them is undeniable. Caroline will have to decide if she will honor her mother's wishes and marry a man in India whom she has never met, thus securing a future for her and her mother, or be brave enough to throw convention to the wind and commit to love a sea captain. He may be enchanted by her bold and unconventional ways, but will his love and admiration last?

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical Romance

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1629728469

Also in this series: The Gentleman and the Thief, Georgana's Secret

Published by Shadow Mountain Publishing

on 2nd March, 2021

Format: Paperback ARC

Pages: 336

Published by: Shadow Mountain Publishing (@ShadowMountn)

Converse via: #HistoricalRomance or #HistRom
+ #ACaptainForCarolineGray, #ProperRomance and #Austenprose

Available Formats: Trade paperback, Audiobook and Ebook

About Julie Wright

Julie Wright wrote her first book when she was fifteen and has written over twenty novels since then. She is a Whitney Awards winner for best romance with her books Cross My Heart and Lies Jane Austen Told Me, and she is a Crown Heart recipient for the novel The Fortune Café.

She has one husband, three kids, one dog, and a varying amount of fish, frogs, and salamanders (depending on attrition). She loves writing, reading, hiking, playing with her kids, and watching her husband make dinner.

She hates mayonnaise.

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

2021 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

Posted Sunday, 21 March, 2021 by jorielov in Austenprose, Blog Tour Host, Historical Fiction, Historical Romance, Indie Author, Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, Romance Fiction