#37, Linda B! Congrats Linda! Write to me at bethkery@aol.com and I’ll forward your information to Kelly. Rigger is an ebook, so I’ll just need the email you’d like Kelly to send it to.

Big thanks to Kelly for keeping us entertained yesterday! Good luck with future books and sales, Kelly.

For those of you who didn’t win, you’ve got plenty more chances coming up. First of all, did you sign up for the Release Your Inhibitions Contest and a one hundred dollar Amazon gift certificate (above?)

Secondly, Vivacious Vivi Anna is up next!

Welcome all, to the start of the Release Contest! Today, we have Kelly Jamieson visiting. She’s a fellow EC and Samhain author, in addition to also being represented by Laura Bradford, who also represents me. Please join me in giving Kelly a warm hello.

Beth: Welcome, Kelly!

Thank you for having me Beth!

Beth: What book are you going to tell us about today?

Rigger is my most recent release with Ellora’s Cave. Alek is a photographer who likes to tie up women. As a rigger, he’s into the aesthetics of bondage—the pattern of rope against skin, the marks left in tender flesh—but he also likes the high of being in control and, oh yeah, it turns him on. When he needs a model to complete the photographs for his book on rope bondage, he asks his friend Shaela. She disapproves of his kinky sexual habits, but he’s a friend and she agrees to help. She’s not prepared for the experience of being tied up and how it makes her feel.

I’ve really enjoyed writing stories with elements of BDSM, there is so much potential for self-discovery and deep emotion. I love the spiritual aspects of Shibari and this story seems to intrigue people with the “bondage as art”-aspect!

Beth: You mostly write in the contemporary genre (which I also enjoy). Why are you drawn to the contemp genre? Are there any other genres you gravitate towards?

I think my preferences lay with contemporary stories because it is just so real to me. It’s easy to identify with characters who live in a similar world to mine. If I’m reading a story that involves complex world building, sometimes I just get lost, especially if it’s highly technical! But I do enjoy reading in other genres, especially historical. I find if a favorite contemporary author also writes historical or fantasy or paranormal, I will likely enjoy those stories too. Funnily enough, the story I submitted to Laura Bradford (our agent) (small squee!) started off as a paranormal, my first attempt at trying something new. When she read the full manuscript, she told me the paranormal elements seemed extraneous to the story and gave the “revise and resubmit” invitation. So I rewrote the story as a straight contemporary. It was so easy to do I realized she was clearly right! Maybe I’m not meant to write anything other than contemporary (although I do have this idea floating around in my head…)

Beth: You are noted for writing excellent sexual tension. In your opinion, what creates believable, palpable…sliceable (grin) sexual tension?

Ooh thank you for that Beth! I do love creating sexual tension and heat. I think it’s important to involve all the senses and I also think it’s all about the emotion the characters are feeling. We all hear how important conflict is, both internal and external, and it’s so true. It has to mean something to the characters for it to impact the reader. It’s something I’ve worked hard on since I started writing.

Beth: You are not allowed to bow out of this part—I can’t believe how modest authors usually are, refusing to do this part!—please give us a paragraph or two from your writing of which you are particularly proud. Why do you like this portion?

Oh boy. That is so hard. I need a lot of time between when I write something and when I can actually be objective enough to be proud of it. At the time I’m writing it I usually think it’s complete crap! Here are a couple of paragraphs from Rigger that I kinda sorta like:

“His gaze was riveted to her face, the perfect pale oval of it, her mouth shiny in the candlelight, her big eyes dark, full of worship and longing, love and devotion. He sank into her softness, lost himself in it, one achingly sweet sensation after another, building and building. Pleasure expanded through his chest, swelling inside him.

He fell over her with a long groan, their bodies melting together, the intensity ferocious, the candles at the edges of his vision making it feel as if the bed were in flames around them. She bit his shoulder, softly, then her tongue glided over his skin, sending sparks shooting through his veins. Her hands slid over him and she moved against him, beneath him, with him, around him, everything to him in that moment, and he lost his mind.”

Beth: Nice!

Congratulations on signing with the awesome agent Laura Bradford. (That makes us Bradford Sisters, which is a much less scary thing than a Stepford Wife). What did signing with an agent mean to you? How did you react when you got ‘the call’ from Laura? What did you write for Laura that made her call?

Thanks for the congrats! I love how Laura’s authors have bonded together in the Bradford Bunch group and I appreciate their welcome.

Laura called me back in August about the book I’d submitted to her, Never Alone. The story is about two agents, one ATF, one DEA, both working on cases involving the Death Angels, an outlaw motorcycle gang. Ryan needs a female agent on his undercover case, and Sera needs to get inside the Death Angels to link them to a big drug cartel. I don’t even want to talk about the all the rejections that led up to “the call” (even by Laura, LOL) and I’d like to say I was professional and blasé, but the truth is, I was shaking like crazy and all tongue-tied when she called. Laura was absolutely one of my top picks for an agent, and I almost couldn’t believe it was real! The other day in the bookstore with my husband I kept picking up books off the shelf, all star-struck, and saying “My agent represents this author, and this author, and this author…” — I feel so proud to be one of that group, and hope one day one of those books on the shelf will be mine.

What will you bring to your readers in 2010 and beyond?

So far I have two releases scheduled for 2010, both with Samhain Publishing, and they are both ones I’m really excited about. I don’t think I can match 2009 with the 8 releases I had last year, but the truth is I’m exhausted from that pace! I have a few projects I’m working on. They’re all bigger, more challenging projects for me and they’re going a lot slower than I’m used to, but I hope to have at least a couple of other stories out in 2010. And of course I’m hoping for good news from Laura about Never Alone.

Thanks so much for the opportunity to be a guest at your blog Beth! I mentioned to you that I recently read your book Sweet Restraint and I’ll be picking up many more of yours, since I loved it!

Here’s an excerpt from Rigger:

He returned to her and carefully untied her wrists, lifting each arm to press a gentle kiss to the marks there. A deep yearning blossomed low inside her. For what? She pressed her fingers to her eyes, filled with confusion.

He sat down on the futon near her hip and touched his fingertips to her face. “Don’t you see what’s going on, Shaela? Haven’t you figured it out? After these nights here?”

What was he talking about? She stared back at him, his fingers on her face seductively sweet.

“I could see it,” he said, rubbing his thumb across her bottom lip. “I could see it in your face as I arranged the rope around you. I felt your fear—when you realized how vulnerable you were. I could see that you wanted what I was doing to you.”

No. She wanted to argue with him, to deny what he said, but the words wouldn’t come out. His gaze pinned her to the mattress of the futon. His fingers moved to the rope that still circled her body, and began to remove it. He lifted and shifted her body, and the rope’s velvet roughness scraped her sensitive flesh as he pulled it off.

He looked down at the marks on her body and traced his fingers over them, rubbing gently. “You look so beautiful with my marks on you,” he murmured, and when his fingers dipped between her legs where the rope had been, she twitched. Her body hummed.

“Don’t you recognize what’s inside yourself, Shaela?”

Her mind was starting to drift away again at the touch of his hands on her, rubbing and massaging tender places.

“Shaela?”

She tried to focus on his face, tried to remind herself they shouldn’t be doing this, but pleasure was licking over every nerve ending, heating her up yet again.

His face. His burnt-sugar-colored hair hanging over his forehead, his topaz eyes rimmed with dark lashes, his perfect mouth with its full bottom lip and sharply carved upper lip. She lifted a hand to touch, rasped her fingers over a scruff of whiskers on his jaw, traced a high cheekbone, then one silky eyebrow. He watched her intently.

“You don’t want to answer me, do you?”

“Answer what?”

His mouth curved into a smile.

“Do you want me to show you?”

A frown tugged at her eyebrows. “Show me what?”

“What’s inside you.”

She moved her head back and forth. She had no idea what he was talking about, she’d lost her ability to focus her thoughts much earlier in the evening.

He leaned over her and kissed her, and once again even though she knew she shouldn’t, she kissed him back. Because he tasted so good. Because his mouth felt so good on her, warm and firm. Because she loved the slide of his tongue into her mouth.

“You like being tied up, don’t you, Shaela?” He licked her mouth. “Admit it.”

Her eyes flew open wide. What the hell was he saying?

She jerked her head to the side to avoid his mouth. She put her hands on his chest and shoved. Hard.

He jerked back. His brows snapped together.

“What are you saying?” she demanded. “Get off me.”

“No.”

Her eyebrows shot up. Her mouth opened. His weight pinned her to the mattress but she began to struggle anyway, although how she thought she was going to get a man who probably weighed eighty pounds more than her off, she had no idea. And a thrill of excitement shivered over her.

Oh dear god, he could not be right about this. It was insane. It was what she hated, what she’d fought against every day of her life.

“You’re crazy!” she said through gritted teeth, still pushing at him. “That is not who I am! You know that!”

“I used to know it,” he said, voice low and husky near her ear. “But since we started doing these photos, I’ve seen inside you, Shaela. I’ve seen things you don’t want me to see. Things you don’t want anyone to see.” He kissed the side of her neck then licked it. She shivered. “Things you don’t want yourself to see.”

“No.” She closed her eyes. “No.”

She could admit to getting carried away by being photographed in erotic poses by an attractive man. She could even consider the possibility that she was attracted to Alek as more than just a friend, although that was a terrifying thought. But the idea that she wanted him to do wicked things to her…

A shiver ran over her. No. No, no, no.

“Alek, truly. I’m serious. I’m not like that. Please. Let me up.”

He went very still, then sat up straight. She looked into his face. She expected to see anger. Annoyance. Frustration.

Instead she saw understanding. Affection. Patience.

Learn more about Kelly here.
Leave Kelly a comment today and qualify to win a copy of Rigger tomorrow morning!

Happy Sunday! Soooo excited for the Release contest to begin tomorrow. Kelly Jamieson is going to be here, and she’ll be giving away a copy of her book, Rigger.

I don’t know how many of you have read Tricked Truths, but if you have a Kindle, it’s available now for 1.99. Now that’s some bang for your buck for a novel length book. *clears throat*

Here’s a bit about it:

Tricked Truths
Length: Novel
Genre: Erotic romance/Contemporary
Publication Date: December 31, 2007

Grace Jamison had left the little town of Everly twelve years ago with her son and vowed never to return. But in order to move on with her future, she finds she has to return to her hometown and fix the wrongs of the past — starting with the only man who had the power to hurt her.

The last person Trick Burnett wanted to see on West End property was his adulterous one time mother-in-law — the woman responsible for his father’s murder. Too bad his body seemed to have a mind of its own where Grace was concerned.

Trick hated secrets and Grace was a walking cache of them. He wasn’t above committing sexual blackmail in order to trick the truth from her time and again. Her sweet responsiveness always left him hungry for more until the mere revelation of her dark secrets was no longer enough. He couldn’t rest until he had everything from her — mind, body and soul.

5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies
TRICKED TRUTHS is a prime example of Beth Kery’s exceptional writing abilities. The story drew me in and I couldn’t put it down until I had read the final word. Believe me, this unlikely couple’s journey of discovery is one you don’t want to miss. Grab a copy of this fantastic book at your earliest opportunity.

Read an excerpt
Purchase Tricked Truths for 1.99 on Kindle

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED

1. The contest runs through 1/30/10. The grand prize is a $100 Amazon Gift Card.

2. To enter, copy the code (click on ‘share’) of the graphic above and post it to your blog, Facebook, Myspace, Website, whereever you want to share it. Add a link to my blog from your blog, Facebook, Myspace, wherever you put the graphic, and say “Click here to enter the RELEASE contest.” You may use a smaller version of the graphic, if you prefer, for one of your sidebars. Just change the height and width in the code to “180” by “150”.

3. Come back here and reply to this post with a link to your blog entry or wherever you’ve posted the graphic. This is important, as your comment is your entry.

4. If you don’t have a blog, or if you are having difficulty posting, you can still enter the contest. Here’s what you can do: Blog about the RELEASE contest on your Facebook, Myspace page or post about it in a yahoo group. Just leave a comment about where you posted it and provide a link. No Facebook, Myspace or group? Then get creative. Share the contest with two friends, and leave a comment here about who you told. Tell your book club about the book and the contest. This will have to be on the honor system. The whole point of the contest is to spread the word about RELEASE, so if you can convince me in some way that you did that, you’re in! Don’t forget, no matter how you spread the word, be sure to leave a comment with links here. If you have not entered correctly, you will not be in the final drawing, so please follow the instructions.

5. Everyone who enters the contest correctly will be in the running for the $100 dollar gift certificate. Authors are eligible to win as well! The drawing will occur on January 30, 2010.

The daily prizes will be awesome as well! I’ve got some wonderful authors who will be coming by my blog, talking about their latest or upcoming releases and prizes will be given away to one commenter daily EVERY MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY, so be sure to visit daily.

**You will always find the author feature and contest just below the RELEASE contest.

January 11, Kelly Jamieson
January 12, Vivi Anna
January 13, Elisabeth Naughton
January 14, Vonna Harper
January 15, Beth Williamson
January 18, Vivi Andrews
January 19, Juniper Bell
January 20, Shelli Stevens
January 21, Larissa Ione
January 22, Megan Hart
January 23, Fiona Jayde
January 25, Julie James
January 26, Lisa Troy
January 27, Jaci Burton
January 28, Juliana Stone
January 29, Kari Thomas

Thanks for joining me for the celebration of my erotic suspense, Release, from Berkley Heat, Feb 2, 2010.

Howdy all!

Here’s the line-up of guest authors for my Release Contest, which begins next Monday, January 11th. I’m following up with an excerpt from Release. (Don’t read it if you have a thing against alpha males).

January 11, Kelly Jamieson
January 12, Vivi Anna
January 13, Elisabeth Naughton
January 14, Vonna Harper
January 15, Beth Williamson
January 18, Beth Kery
January 19, Juniper Bell
January 20, Shelli Stevens
January 21, Larissa Ione
January 22, Megan Hart
January 25, Julie James
January 27, Jaci Burton
January 28, Juliana Stone
January 29, Kari Thomas

Daily prizes will be given away, followed by a drawing for a $100 Amazon gift certificate on Febrary 2! Check back on Sunday for contest rules.

Release by Beth Kery

His need for her was so absolute, he agreed to share her with another man in order to possess her.

Genny loved her husband Max, but something was missing—a sexual charge that was instead ignited by his business partner, Sean. He was ruggedly handsome, with a heart-stopping smile and a slow, sexy New Orleans drawl that made Genny weak. The more time they spent together, the stronger the attraction between them became and when her husband offered to share her with Sean for one intoxicating night, both Genny and Sean were too tempted to refuse.

That night in the company penthouse, Max and Sean showed Genny the heights of ecstasy. But it was Sean who scored her very spirit, and one-on-one, they were red hot. But as Genny learns, there’s a price to pay for such impulsive pleasure. What began as a night of forbidden desire spirals into a whirlpool of murder, sensual submission, secrets, and a scorching passion that threatens to consume everyone it touches.

Excerpt

Genevieve’s bath water began to cool around her. She should get out before she became as cold as she had been when they’d come in from the snowstorm. An image of her ransacked studio leapt into her mind’s eye. She thought of Sean out there in the penthouse . . . waiting. A delicious thrill of anticipation went through her body, but so did a tremor of anxiety.

She reached for the hot water tap and leaned back again in the tub.

It would all be so much easier if she’d never slept with him—if she didn’t know about his demanding manner of making love . . .

If she hadn’t responded so wholeheartedly to Sean’s dominant nature in bed.

It was strange, but somehow her submission to Sean—submission to her own desire—on that New Year’s Eve night had become all mixed up in her mind with Max’s manipulations, and later the horror of being told he was dead. It was exciting beyond belief to think of making love to Sean, but it also caused dread to expand in her belly.

It’d been her desperate need for Sean that’d been at the root of all the grief that followed, all the ugliness.

It’d been the basis for her sexual submission on that night. Her love for Sean had also been the match that had ignited an explosion of deceit and violence.

She sat up abruptly, sloshing the water around in the tub when the bathroom door opened. Sean walked in. He shut the door and leaned against it. For several tense seconds, they stared at each other across the expanse of the warm, humid bathroom. Genevieve swallowed convulsively when she saw the fierce blaze in his blue eyes.

She remembered that look all too well.

He pushed himself off the door and came toward her. “I brought you a glass of wine. I thought you might need it. To relax a little.”

Her eyes widened when she took in his low, intimate tone. He paused next to the tub and glanced down at her body. His gaze seemed to scorch her wet, naked skin. Her nipples prickled and tightened. Her eyes were on the same level of his long, strong, jean-covered thighs. He handed her the wineglass. She reached out for it automatically. Her gaze traveled up his body to meet his stare.

His facial muscles had pulled tight with desire—and determination.

“You said I’m not aloud to talk about that night, Genny, so I won’t. But I want you to know something: I won’t bow down to guilt. Not mine. Not even yours. Do you understand?”

Her eyes burned as he held her stare. She nodded.

“Good,” he said softly. He touched the fingers wrapped around the glass. “Drink some, girl.”

She watched him as she drank and her pulse throbbed at her throat. He looked magnificent to her at that moment. For the life of her, she couldn’t imagine how she’d managed to stay away from him for three years.
He took the glass from her a moment later and set it at the edge of the large tub.

He waited.

She leaned forward and twisted the tap, shutting off the water. She stood before him, water dripping off her body. His heated gaze raked over her, lingering on her breasts before he looked up at her face.

“Our first time wasn’t what either of us would have wished for, but it’s over and done, and we can’t change it. I know you’re nervous. I am, too, a little, so I’m going to make this as easy as possible. You’re going to get out of that tub, I’m going to dry you off, and then we’re going out to the couch, where it’s nice and warm. I’m going to take off my clothes,” he murmured, his voice growing gruffer with each word he spoke, “and I’m going to put myself inside you, girl—where I belong. Nothin’ fancy, I promise. Just me and you. Do you think you can handle that?”

Her heartbeat throbbed in her ears as she stared into his blazing blue eyes. Anxiety? Guilt? No.

Nothing existed but Sean at that moment.

*****
Release, Feb 2 from Berkley Sensation
Pre-Order

Oh, Jeez, is winter here or what? It looks like a desolate ice desert outside the windows. Cheerful this morning, aren’t I? 😛

Just another reminder that my Release contest begins next Monday. I’ll be putting up a schedule of authors later today, so be sure and stop by to tell them all ‘hello’ and qualify to win some awesome books and prizes.

Beth’s Friday Book Winner is number 31, Tracey D. Congrats Tracey!

Write to me at bethkery@aol.com with your address, and I’ll get your book off from Amazon!

Well, here we are firmly in 2010. No going back now. We’re back at work, the kids are back at school, and 2009 is just a memory. A good one, I hope.

Just a reminder that my contest for Release begins next Monday!! I can’t believe it! I have some terrific authors lined up, daily contests and a sweet Amazon gift certificate as the final giveaway. I hope you’ll join me for some fun during the weeks before Release debuts on February 2.

Sometimes I get a little blue this time of year, feeling flat after the holidays and knowing a cold, bitter winter looms ahead. Ugh. But it’s also nice to think about what the year will bring and get back into the swing of things in the book world. In that spirit, I thought it’d be fun to give away a book that doesn’t even come out until tomorrow, Stephanie Tyler’s, “Too Hot To Hold”.

This book looks like a terrific read: Navy Seals and intrigue and hot romance. Lea gave it a terrific review at the Closetwriter blog, so go on over and check it out.

I’ll send a copy of Stephanie’s new book to one random commenter on this post. For the topic, why don’t you tell me what books you are looking forward to in 2010?