Wednesday 21 December 2011

Enjoy Contemporary Fiction? Looking for some Christmas Reading?




The covers featured here are from the authors on the Contemporary Fiction Network Blog.



Happy Christmas! Happy Reading!


From the authors of the Contemporary Fiction Network.

If you enjoy reading contemporary fiction and you are looking for some Christmas reading, take a look in the comments section of this blog post.









Contemporary authors - please feel free to post in the comments section of this blog post. Please add the following - title, author and brief blurb of any historical fiction, plus a single buy link, such as your web page. If any of your titles are under offers, please say so.


                                                       

19 comments:

Lindsay Townsend said...

Happy Christmas to everyone!

My Christmas reads are all delicious romantic suspense titles, set in the Sunny places of Italy and Greece.

THE ENGLISH DAUGHTER - Set on Corfu.

VOICES IN THE DARK - Set in Italy

HOLIDAY IN BOLOGNA - Set in Italy

A SECRET TREASURE - Set on Rhodes

NIGHT OF THE STORM - Set somewhere close to the beautiful Greek island of Rhodes.

You can see the covers of NIGHT OF THE STORM and THE ENGLISH DAUGHTER on the blog.

To learn more about these and my other contemp romances, please visit my blog:
http://www.lindsaytownsend.net

Cyrus Keith said...

Happy Chrismass as well! Want a white-knuckled ride that will keep you reading to the wee hours? Read:
"Becoming NADIA"
by Cyrus Keith
From MuseItUp Publishing.
Price: $5.95 USD
“What’s one more little white lie?”

There's only one thing that pretty, popular TV reporter Nadia Velasquez is missing: her memory from before the explosion that killed everyone else in the room, including the President of Nigeria. But from the moment she meets FBI agent Jon Daniels, all hell breaks loose. Friends turn into deadly enemies overnight, and no one can be truly trusted.

When Jon and Nadia investigate further, they discover the living terror that is the truth behind Nadia's existence, a truth that could mean the death of millions.

www.tinyurl.com/4kkf5ox

Jenny Twist said...

Hi Lindsay
My christmas reads are "Warm Christmas Wishes": http://www.melange-books.com/authors/anthologies/WarmChristmasWishes.html
and "Winter Wonders": http://www.whimsicalpublications.com/Winter_Wonder_2011.html

Love
Jenny
xxx

Charlie Cochrane said...

I have a couple of contemporaries, All That Jazz (set against a backdrop of an all male production of Chicago) and Wolves of the West (with the most respectable werewolves you could care to meet), both available from MLR.

Deborah Macgillivray said...

Christmas Reading:

(In my "Cat O' Nine Tales Anthology and e-book singles)

All I Want For Christmas is a Hula Hoop...and A Mother - set in Kentucky

Blue Christmas Cat

One Snowy Knight (not contemp, but a Christmas novel)

For Contemporary:

The Invasion of Falgannon Isle - set on a wee isle in Scotland

Riding the Thunder - set in Kentucky

A Wolf in Wolf's Clothing - set in England

Monya Clayton said...

If you're citizens of countries in the Northern Hemisphere, you might like a sexy, not erotic, romance set in Australia where at Christmas time it's summer.

Property developer Paul wants to uproot a local landmark, the Palm Garden, to build a luxury hotel on the site. Cathy Brown, president of the local environment committee, wants the Garden left as it is. Instant clash!

Paul is bitter after a divorce and has sworn never to be attracted by a woman's beauty again. Cathy is wary of men who want only her magnificent body.

Impossible? More a lively journey to find the right "Blueprint For Love".

www.amazon.com e-book and paperback.

Blessings for a happy Christmas.

Margay Leah Justice said...

Like stories about shifters and psychics? Sloane Wolf has it all!

Sloane Wolf
Margay Leah Justice
Paranormal Romance
Published by Muse It Up Publishing


For more than a hundred and fifty years, the gray wolf has failed to roam the hills of Massachusetts, leading to the belief that they are extinct. But with a spattering of sightings across the Berkshires, the legend of the gray wolf comes to fruition. The product of that legend, Micah Sloane will go to great lengths to protect his kind from the threat of outsiders, who seek to exploit the legend for their own interests. One thing he didn’t count on, however, was finding his soul mate in the company of such men.

From the first time she predicted a stranger’s imminent death when she was little more than a child, Shiloh Beck knew she was different. Wishing to cultivate her gift, her parents made the fateful decision to enroll her in a private school for paranormally gifted children. Unbeknownst to them, the school was just a front for a research facility simply called the Institute, whose secret board members weaned gifted children from their families to exploit their gifts. Shiloh has spent the better part of her life trying to escape the Institute and reunite with the family she was told had abandoned her.

From their first meeting, Micah and Shiloh share a connection that goes beyond the normal to bond them in a way that love alone cannot. But before they can build a life together, they must deal with the fall-out when the legend of the wolves collides with the men behind the Institute.

Linda Acaster said...

Another to add to the goodie bag...

Multi 5* reviewed "Torc of Moonlight". This is the first in a supernatural trilogy set in university cities surrounding spooky moorland where the Celts held sway during the Roman occupation. But landscape endures, and history isn't always buried. Often it isn't even dead.

Drop by http://lindaacaster.blogspot.com or http://www.lindaacaster.co.uk for more books to curl up with on a wintry night.

Jen Black said...

If you yearn for the heat of France in these cold winter days, then get hold of SHADOWS and enjoy reading about Melissa and Rory's new romance and the complications of having ghostly lovers around the place!
SHADOWS by Jen Black, available on Amazon Kindle for a very low price!
Jen

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful Christmas gift to give all of us-readers and writers at the same time! Thank you.
CONTEMPORARY:
Heartsight-Blinded marine is healed by relationship with a little girl who has Down syndrome.
Operation:Christmas Hearts-Separated by war at Christmastime.
Heartsent-Love challenged by an unexpected miracle.
Lifeline Echoes-Holding on to someone's voice, loss, moving on, and finding new love.
Elusive Echoes-Childhood best friends lose track of each other and it's not the same when they meet again.
Check out Kay Springsteen on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and at Astraea Press.com

Rose Anderson said...

Dreamscape is a ghost story, a love story, a time-travel (of sorts), a murder, a mystery, and a literary puzzle. Find the hidden clues to learn the story behind the scenes!

Hermes Online is an unlikely love story begun by two strangers over an email. After a heartbreak followed by the cruel actions of another, all the color drains from the heroine's life. This story is a journey back to one's vibrant and viable self.

Both are sold in paperback and ebook in all the usual places. next you I'll have more titles to choose from! Happy holidays! :)
~Rose

Judy Astley said...

..And if, after Christmas, you're feeling the need for a bit of a make-over, then before you do take warning from the experience of Bella in romantic comedy THE LOOK OF LOVE (Judy Astley) - published on January 3rd 2012 (though in Tesco's now).

Bella rents her house out to a TV company filming a makeover show called Fashion Victims and becomes one of the 'victims' herself.

The book is dedicated to every woman who has felt gloom and despair when trying on a dress in front of a shop's all-angles, show-it-as-it-is mirror.

Sherry Gloag said...

Thank you Lindsay for this opportunity to share.
CONTEMPORARY

FROM NOW UNTIL FOREVER - Can love overcome the secrets liam and Melanie are keeping from each other when they are running for their lives?
Astraea Press, Amazan.com & co.uk, B&N

THE BRAT - One woman destroyed two lives twenty five years ago, what are their chances of a HEA when they meetat her funeral?
The Wild Rose Press, Amazon.com & .co.uk B&N + others.

DUTY CALLS - Having turned his back on his british inheritance, Rafe doesn't expect to find himself on the other end of the same dilema eleven years later?
Amazon.com&co.uk, B&N and others.

http://wwwsherrygloag.com
and
http://sherrygloagtheheartofromance.blogspot.com/
THE WRONG TARGET - When Cupid hits the wrong target will his 'victim' make or break Tina Blackbery's life?

Savanna Kougar said...

Hey, Lindsay, great idea. My first Indie book is a contemporary.

"Consumed by curiosity, Kaily gives herself to a mystery man for Christmas.

Will Dylan be able to resist her waiting naked, but gift-wrapped beneath his tree?"


~ A Short Shapeshifter Erotic Romance ~

Santa Baby, Several Stars Away

by Savanna Kougar


Excerpt from ~


Chapter One:

Santa Baby, Waitin' Just for You


Rarely reckless, Kaily flung off the negligee she'd first thought to wear. It landed in a red ephemeral heap beside the tastefully trimmed Christmas tree.

So what if she'd just broken into his house...well, she hadn't exactly broken in...more like she spied on him until she found out where he hid the extra key...lodged in a crack of the frame above the door of the Victorian mansion he'd resurrected from certain crumbling death, and now obviously treasured

There was only one thing Kaily could see amiss in the traditional holiday atmosphere he'd created with the help of the town's local historical club a garish red ribbon. The long sash had a simple bow attached to one end, and practically shone despite the low lighting.

Kaily stared at the unexpected invitation.

Certainly, the river of red ribbon didn't belong on the floor as a decoration, and she couldn't see anywhere else it belonged...except wrapped around her.

Since she was giving herself to him as a gift for Christmas...well, why not?

~~~~~~

Blurb:

Kaily has been consumed by curiosity ever since Dylan suddenly appears in her small town. Surreptitiously, she watches the mystery man restore a rundown Victorian mansion, all while his charm and sincerity gain him the good will of most everyone. This is especially true when he volunteers to become the annual Santa Claus for the children at the town's park.

The problem for Kaily: No one really knows anything about Dylan's past or where he came from. With her attraction to him growing day by day, she becomes a driven woman. On a desperate whim, she gives herself to him as a Christmas present. Will Dylan be able to resist her waiting naked, but gift-wrapped beneath his tree?

~~~~~~

Now Available ~
SMASHWORDS
AMAZON
BOOKSTRAND
AllRomanceEbooks

For the links visit ~ http://kougarkisses.blogspot.com/p/santa-baby-several-stars-away.html

Lee Rowan said...

My contemporary, Walking Wounded, is an m/m romance set just before Christmas, and the main characters are too busy trying to stay alive and deal with post-war stress to think about a tree or decorations.

HOWEVER, there are some scenes that create a lot of warmth...



http://www.cheyennepublishing.com/books/wounded.html

Anne Ashby said...

Merry Christmas everyone.
I have three contemporaries - all with a touch of New Zealand about them.
"WORLDS APART" Set in Maryland, USA
New Zealand widow Raven thinks her mother's American fiancé is the loveliest man. Visiting his home in Maryland, she finds his son the exact opposite. Greg's animosity and distrust forces Raven into safeguarding her mother's happiness.
"DEVON'S DREAM" Set in Auckland NZ
Time reveals all secrets
Single mum Devon fled Auckland as a pregnant teenager and made a life for herself and her daughter, Trix, in Australia. But a car accident while visiting Auckland puts Devon in intensive care and she awakens to learn she has sent Trix to her unsuspecting father.
Widowed Rick is bewildered and angry at losing twelve years of his daughter's life.
Trix loves being part of an extended family, grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins and best of all, a little half-brother. Could the scheming of two children bring their parents together?

"TIME TO BURY THE PAST" Set in Auckland NZ
PTSD forces American Naval Officer Zane Erickson to re-evaluate his life. A posting to untroubled New Zealand after years in Afghanistan will allow him to bond with his motherless teenage son. Unfortunately Cody doesn't share his father's enthusiasm for this new living arrangement.
Kelsey Hewitt is a single mother wrestling with her son's drinking problem, struggling to keep the truth about his abusive father from him and determined to exclude men from her life.
As Kelsey and Zane are drawn together by the boys' friendship they each have compelling reasons to avoid any possible intimacy. But while dealing with their sons' dilemmas, their attraction for each other deepens.
Can Kelsey risk allowing another control freak into her life?

All stories available from The Wild Rose Press, Amazon, etc

Kelley Heckart said...

Lindsay, Thank you for allowing us to post about our contemporary stories.

I only have one contemporary story and it happens to be a Christmas themed one--A Winter Solstic Kiss is part of the Winter Kisses anthology at Noble Romance. Visit my website for an excerpt and buy links to A Winter Solstice Kiss.

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author
Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly
http://www.kelleyheckart.com


kelleyheckart.com

Vonnie said...

LETHAL REFUGE Romantic Suspense/Police Procedural
by Vonnie Hughes


Sydney Bristow clashes with Atticus Finch Downunder.

Who can you trust if you can’t trust your own mother? Through the clammy fog, Celie Francis hears the chilling message. “I know who you are, Celie. I know where you live.”
And in the terrifying aftermath she reconnects with her dysfunctional family in ways she had never imagined.


Inching along the wall, she reached the window. She held on to the door jamb, a little island of security in a sea of fear. Then she stretched across and peered out.
A featureless face stared right back.
She screamed and jumped back, bashing her elbow on the laundry tub.
Peaches lumbered to his feet, shaky and confused.
The face was still there.
No eyes. No mouth. No nose.
Peaches staggered over to the door and snuffled.
Mesmerised, Célie kept staring at that featureless face as she backed into a corner.
Then the face moved and a hand spread across the glass. The forefinger and thumb rubbed together.
Flashes of memory flickered across her mind.
She gasped, remembering that fearful morning when she’d discovered poor Occy’s disembowelled body. Stunned, struggling not to vomit, she’d been hovering over what was left of Occy when she sensed she was being watched. For a few precious seconds she had stared back at the creepy figure silhouetted in the early morning gloom watching her—-just watching her.
Then he’d rubbed his thumb and forefinger together covetously, as if he were contemplating the best way to eat her alive.
And she’d bolted.
And done her best to bury those memories.
Whoever that monster had been, he was outside the window right now.

LETHAL REFUGE (a paperback) can be purchased from the following Amazon site:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Vonnie+Hughes&x=18&y=20


Happy Christmas reading!

Alan Calder said...

If you want some political intrigue to balance the Christmas pudding, then The Stuart Agenda by Alan Calder will keep the juices flowing and prevent indigestion! How could a French teenager arriving at Gordonstoun school possibly become King of Scotland? Its quite a challenge.
Details on my blog at http://alancalderwriting.blogspot.com
Happy Christmas to all