Cover Reveal - THE ROYAL BODYGUARD!

It's time to announce the secret that I've been carrying for so many months...

The sequel to The Royal Runaway is coming!

I’m very excited to announce that THE ROYAL BODYGUARD will be released first in the UK in November 2019 from Headline!!

I’ll be sharing more details about this story and the continued adventures of the Royal House of Laurent. You’ll learn more about their family, their history and… their enemies.
 

My attempt at a movie-inspiration poster.

Um, yeah. Don't you want to READ IT???

THE ROYAL BODYGUARD is more of what you loved in THE ROYAL RUNAWAY - a perfect blend of suspense, romance and mystery. 

THE ROYAL BODYGUARD is a princess story AND… well, a bodyguard story. It has kissing AND explosions. It has ancient vendettas, luxurious European villas and a king buried in a car park. It has good and evil, tears and laughs. And kissing. Did I mention kissing?

Oh, you want to pre-order it?  One-click here: Amazon UK. (And THANK YOU for pre-ordering. It helps my publisher know that people love my stories and want more of them!) Remember, these are the links for the UK/ Australia/ World English versions. As soon as I get information about North American publication dates, I will share them with you ASAP!

Pre-Order Links:

• Amazon

• Waterstones

• Blackwells

• WH Smith

• Apple Books

• Kobo
  

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Make sure that you're signed up for The Inner Circle newsletter, where I will be sharing exclusive content and inspiration for THE ROYAL BODYGUARD in the months to come. 

As always, thank you for your support and excitement! I can't wait to see what the next few months bring!

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Best Books to Read Now - June 2019

Reminder/ Caveat/ Disclaimer: This is my (hopefully) monthly list of books I’ve read and enjoyed. These are not reviews, I do not include books I didn’t enjoy because life is too short to speak badly of books!

Welcome to the Best Books to Read Now Book Club! My (hopefully) monthly blog featuring my reading list, my TBR pile and the books I think you and your best friends should be reading. 

If you’re not sure whether you’ll agree with  my recommendations, check out my blog post on My Reader Wheels and my podcast, Women With Books . Those should help you decide if you’re going to be into my recommendations.

The best book club recommendations for you and your friends!

I’ve actually read way more this month, but some of them are advanced copies so I can’t wait to tell you about them when you can actually, um, buy them! lol

Waiting for Tom Hanks - Kerry Winfrey
Amazon || Apple Books
If you happened upon one of my Instagram stories a few weeks ago where I was going C R A Z Y about a book I was reading, this was it!! This was the perfect way to kick off summer reading - something that can be passed around your group of girlfriends around the pool, your teenager can borrow it on summer vacation when she gets bored, or you can keep it in your bag while you’re waiting for the kiddos at camp. It’s light, breezy, funny, romantic… I smiled the whole time.

You, hitting one click on this book.

Say No to the Duke - Eloisa James
Amazon || Apple Books

I’ve shared my love for this series on the blog before, and this one might be my favorite, given that the Wilde is the heroine. The hero has PTSD from the war in the Colonies so he’s scarred but still great hero material.

Rebel - Beverly Jenkins
Amazon || Apple Books

I was really excited about this book when I heard about it because (1) Beverly Jenkins (2) Reconstruction-era (3) New Orleans and I was not disappointed. I’ve always loved historical stories set in New Orleans and this one was no exception.
This is billed as the first in a new series (Women Who Dare) but the reviews say that there are characters in this from other Jenkins books. I’m relatively late to Miss Bev’s extensive backlist, so this didn’t impact my reading and if it didn’t impact mine, it probably wouldn’t change how you come to the story. Honestly, hearing that the characters were in other books made me want to clear a month and (finally!) dig into all those saved Beverly Jenkins books I have.

Death in Kew Gardens - Jennifer Ashley
Amazon || Apple Books

I included this series in my blog post on my favorite fun feminine mysteries and this newest installment just cements that opinion for me. I also suggested this series as one of your comfort reads for the Women With Books Summer Reading Challenge. If you like historical mysteries, Downton Abbey-type servant shenanigans, and mysterious and charming love interests, check out these books.

And yes, there were some books I did not love this month…. I’ll be talking more about those and why I think they didn’t connect with me in my newsletter this month.

Do you like books on sale?
Make sure you’re following me on Facebook because that’s where I post great books on sale!

And what about you?
I’d love to hear what you’ve read and loved lately or what you’re looking forward to reading next!  If you want these book recommendations (and a sneak peek at my TBR list and advanced reading copies) sent straight to your inbox, remember to sign up for my newsletter where I’ll be including all the best book club recommendations throughout 2019!

Women With Books - 2019 Summer Reading Challenge!

Women With Books - a curated collection of conversations about your favorite books, media, and other fabulous things.

Get excited! The popular Women With Books Summer Reading Challenge is Back!

For last year’s challenge and the books I read, click here and here.

Happy Summer!

It’s time for the 2019 WWB Summer Reading Challenge!

This was one of my most popular episodes of last year – this one and the round up episode – so I’m really excited to do it again.

What I do for this challenge is give you broad themes and you find the book that best fits that for you. After all, at Women With Books, we only want you to read what you love.

So I’m giving you some suggestions, some of them off MY TBR list and some of them I’ve already read, but please feel free to insert whatever you’ve got burning up on your bookshelf.

Pretty Dress Cover

Suggestions: Rebel by Beverly Jenkins or The Golden Hour by Beatriz Williams

Debut Author

Suggestions: Mia Vincy, Casey McQuiston or Hafsah Faisal

Beach Cover

Suggestions: the latest from Kristy Woodson Harvey or The Lieutenant’s Nurse by Sara Ackerman

Diverse/ Inclusive Read

Suggestions: (A lot from the other suggestions + a few that don’t fit under the other categories?) Alisha Rai’s The Right Swipe or Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev or The Key to Happily Ever After by Tif Marcelo

TBR List

Suggestions: I don’t know! It’s your TBR Pile!

Comfort Read

Suggestions: the Kat Holloway mystery series by Jennifer Ashley or Coming Home by Rosamund Pilcher

New Genre

Suggestions: Spec-fic/ mystery The Psychology of Time Travel or fantasy romance Radiance.

Former WWB Guest

Suggestions: Go to WomenWithBooks.com

Remember to use hashtag: #WWBReadingChallenge so we can all see what everyone’s reading this summer! And drop me a line over email or through social media if you have any great books to recommend this summer!

For more details on the Summer Reading Challenge go to my Blog here.   For a list of the authors/ books discussed, subscribe to the Women With Books newsletter (With extra Q&A from the guests!) Buy me a coffee! Support the Podcast at www.Ko-fi.com/womenwithbookspodcast   Buns & Roses Tea benefitting Adult Literacy Friend me on Goodreads!

Best Books to Read Now - May 2019

Reminder/ Caveat/ Disclaimer: This is my (hopefully) monthly list of books I’ve read and enjoyed. These are not reviews, I do not include books I didn’t enjoy because life is too short to speak badly of books!

Welcome to the Best Books to Read Now Book Club! My (hopefully) monthly blog featuring my reading list, my TBR pile and the books I think you and your best friends should be reading. 

If you’re not sure whether you’ll agree with  my recommendations, check out my blog post on My Reader Wheels and my podcast, Women With Books . Those should help you decide if you’re going to be into my recommendations.

The best book club recommendations for you and your friends!

It’s so interesting to look at these every month and look for patterns. This month on the list I have 2 new releases that are both contemporary romantic comedies and two older books that are historical romance.

The Unhoneymooners - Christina Lauren
Amazon || Apple Books

This is a true romantic comedy and it’s a perfect release for vacation reading lists everywhere. Light, breezy, sexy in Maui!

Passion on Park Avenue - Lauren Layne
Amazon || Apple Books

The first in a new series, this book hooked me from the very start with its voice and sense of humor. I CANNOT WAIT for the next two books in the series and neither will you. Another perfect beach read - think Sex and the City but for the Hallmark Channel (read: not quite as spicy.)

The King’s Man - Elizabeth Kingston
Amazon || Apple Books

I’ve been seeing recommendations for this author all over the freaking place and then last month, after I included Alyssa Cole’s medieval romance on my list, I went looking for more… and found this one had been praised all over social media. I really enjoyed it, partially because, again, it’s a new -ish historical time period for me and also because the heroine is a F*CKING BAD ASS. Think Brienne of Tarth from Game of Thrones.

Mr. Impossible - Loretta Chase
Amazon || Apple Books

Loretta Chase wrote one of my ALL-TIME FAVORITE ROMANCES, Lord of Scoundrels, so when I saw this one recommended for fans of The Mummy, I thought, um, YES PLEASE. And it now is my second favorite Loretta Chase book and it could be a re-read, along with my other favorite Egypt-set historical romance (and Swooniest Romance), As You Desire by Connie Brockway. (One thinks that perhaps I should write a book about two archeologists or something given my love for all things set in Egypt…)

And yes, there were some books I did not love this month…. I’ll be talking more about those and why I think they didn’t connect with me in my newsletter this month.

Do you like books on sale?
Make sure you’re following me on Facebook because that’s where I post great books on sale!

And what about you?
I’d love to hear what you’ve read and loved lately or what you’re looking forward to reading next!  If you want these book recommendations (and a sneak peek at my TBR list and advanced reading copies) sent straight to your inbox, remember to sign up for my newsletter where I’ll be including all the best book club recommendations throughout 2019!

My favorite (fun) (feminine) (fabulous) mystery series...

As I continue with my Deep Thoughts on Books (c), I’ve noticed that I have a definite preference for the types of mystery series I read… and by read, I mean, devour and swallow up all the books in one go.

If you’ve looked at my list of why I love the books I do, you’ll see instantly that all these books I’m about to recommend pretty much tick all of my boxes: female-focused, mystery, humor/ great voice, and with a fair share of romantic interest.

So here are my most beloved mystery series… (in no particular order.) I’ve helpfully included the link to book 1 in each series. You’re very welcome.

The Royal Spyness series by Rhys Bowen
Amazon || Apple Books

This is one of the few that I have NOT read all the books in the series, but I still feel confident recommending it. I’m savoring each of the adventures of Lady Georgianna, 34th in line to the throne.

Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich
Amazon || Apple Books

This is pretty much the book that inspired a thousand authors to try to be half as funny and half as engaging as the mishaps of a bounty hunter in Trenton, NJ.

Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris

Amazon || Apple Books

This is the series that got me back to reading after I had my youngest child. I read the first eight of these books in a week, I think. They were so addictive and original and, this may be an unpopular opinion, but I enjoyed the books far more than the show. Which was good, too! For reasons.

Below Stairs Mysteries by Jennifer Ashley
Amazon || Apple Books

Now this series is still ongoing, but I’ve recommended it to so many people (and on this blog!). I just love the heroine and all the Downton Abbey-esque details of her Below Stairs life.

Lady Julia Grey Mysteries by Deanna Raybourn
Amazon || Apple Books

Now Ms. Raybourn has two wonderful historical mystery series out, this one and her Veronica Speedwell series and I did hesitate about which one to recommend. After all, the Lady Julia Grey series has concluded and Veronica Speedwell is still continuing, to the best of my knowledge. In the end, I picked Lady Julia Grey because I’ve actually re-read them (is that weird? Even though I’ve already read the resolution?) and because if you start with Julia, you can keep going all the way through Veronica.

And of course, I have to recommend my own fun, fabulous, feminine mystery series. If you like Sookie Stackhouse and Stephanie Plum all rolled up in a Elle Woods package, check out Margot Blythe.

Amazon || Apple Books

What are your favorite mystery series? I know there are so many more that I need to dive into… like JD Robb. I KNOW I KNOW. But the sheer number of books in the series just intimidates me. I fear I won’t be able to read anything else and then a year will go by and I’ll come out of my cave not knowing what has happened in the world.

So. Any recommendations for me? ;-)