THANKFULLY NAUGHTY BLOG HOP

I do so love the Holidays. How about you?

I won't talk about the more sentimental aspects--after all, this is a Thankfully Naughty blog hop. And that I am. I love that I can be naughty and I'm thankful that I can write naughty stories that people enjoy.

And I'm going to talk about two of my naughty stories and give away a few copies free to some of the commenters.

The first is Nordic Prince a M/M erotic romance that came out through Champagne Books; Carnal Passions imprint nearly a year ago. It follows Dr. Steven Mills and his adventures aboard the cruise ship by the same name as the title.

Blurb:

When Doctor Steven Mills is dragged onto The Nordic Prince for fun in the sun by his sister, Amanda, he is certain he will be miserable. Until he meets Erik.

Erik is fun, exciting and just what the doctor ordered. Some drinks and dancing with him are more enticing to Steven than any date he’s gone on with women. Before long, the two escape the busy dance floor for the quiet—and private—spa where Eric works on Steven’s body with very skilled hands. Steven is overcome with an onslaught of new emotions and sensations and has the best sexual experience of his life.

Now Steven must wrestle with new feelings and desires and make a decision that could change his life forever.

 Excerpt:

                         Steven looked on with curiosity.  “What are you…?”

With two long strides Erik was by his side, his lips closed over Steve’s, momentarily silencing any further words. 

Erik probed Steve’s lips with his warm tongue.  Lust kindled earlier exploded into an inferno of complete hunger, which threatened to consume his impulse to resist. 

Lightly touching Steve’s face, Erik gazed at him.  “I have wanted to do that all night.”

Steve’s will reasserted itself once more. He backed away a step.  Feeling very confused, he tried to articulate the war that raged within his heart.  “I can’t.  You’re …It isn’t…” 

Like a sensual panther, Erik stalked toward Steve’s retreating form, backing him against a wall.  Growling with an animalistic lust, “I want you.”  Erik’s mouth descended on Steve’s neck, licking and nipping, causing a pure desire, which had him moaning once again. 

Surrendering, Steve’s hands wrapped around Erik pulling him closer of their own accord

"Overall, I would recommend that somebody in the mood for a short little romance, between two powerful and desirable men, pick this up."~ Night Owl Reviews

"This author, as well as her characters, does a great job of packing this short story with passion, excitement and sadness."~Coffee Time Romance &More

The Second story South Sea Siren is a F/FM BDSM erotic romance that came out in August through Carnal Passions imprint that follows Steven's sister Dr. Amanda Mills as she learns the ins-and-outs of love and submission.
Blurb:  Amanda Mills knows how to have a good time and when she goes to Aphrodite Island she plans to embrace her naughty side but when her current squeeze turns out to be a creep she winds up alone on her romantic getaway. Then she sees Kyrna walk out of the ocean like Venus and is blown away. All of her charm and charisma fly out the door when flirting with the lithe redhead. As they delve into a steamy romance, Amanda realizes that she is in way over her head. Now she must decide whether to take a chance at love and trust or keep playing the game.
Excerpt: 
Kyrna rubbed Amanda’s shoulders.  “I think we need to work on your issues with a sexual therapy.”
“I don’t think I’m familiar with that therapy,” Warmth grew between her legs.
  “It’s very new and highly experimental.” A smirk played across her delicate lips.
Amanda squirmed with expectation. “Is it effective? I think I might need a hands-on approach.”
“It’s effective and very hands-on, but only if you agree to follow my direction exactly.” Kyrna stood and shifted next to Amanda.
Fixed to the spot, Amanda closed her eyes for a few moments, trying to contain her heavy need that burned hot. She opened her eyes.
Looking at Amanda, a predatory gleam to her eyes, she slowly ran her hand up Amanda’s arm, shoulder and finally settled on the nape of her neck. “This is the first step.  Will you follow what I say? Do you want this?”
She was all Amanda wanted; the need had blossomed into a torrent of throbbing lust.  She managed to slowly nod.
"Just tell me to stop if you need to" her voice was sultry, her lips so close to Amanda’s that warm air of her words caressed her neck. Stepping back, she produced a long strip of silk, from where Amanda had no idea. “…and you will address me as Mistress.”
Seeing the silk, a glint of fear passed through her.  Can I trust someone, even her, to such an extent?  “Ah…”
“Already, I guess you’re not ready for this level of therapy?”  Kyrna started to fold up the strip and took a step back.
"Please..." the word escaped her lips sounding more like a whimper than Amanda was comfortable.
"Please what?" suddenly commanding and in control. A smile played across her face.
Amanda’s clit throbbing sending shivers of primal desire surging won over her need for control.  “Please don’t stop.”
"Please what?" Kyrna frowned.
At first, Amanda was confused, but then with relief she understood.  “Please don’t stop, Mistress.”
Kyrna’s smile returned.  “Good, you learn fast.  Maybe you won’t make such a bad slave after all.”  Taking the strip of silk, she blindfolded Amanda.  “Stay here, slave, until I return.  Do not remove the blindfold or move until I tell you to.  Do you understand?”

" If you enjoy erotic stories with a sense of carnal want, then give this short novella a try." Long and Short Reviews

There they are. My steamy little stories.
I am giving away two E-copies of both stories to commenter. On the 8th(the day after the blog hop ends) I will use Random.Org to pick the winners. Make sure that you leave your email addy so I can send you your story.

Here are my questions: What are you thankful for? What naughty things do you love to read in erotic romances? To B(dsm) or not to B(dsm)?, that is the question. *snicker* Have fun and good luck!

Far Shore-Traci L. Slatton. Review

Hi all.

Today,I want to talk about a book series that I am loving. I actually tried to post this a few days ago but unbeknownst to me--it never published. I'm still not sure why and will probably never know. My running theory is that Although I love tech, tech does not love me.

Anyway, back to the review.

I'm talking about the "After" series by Traci L. Slatton. And more specifically the last book I read in the series: Far Shore
The stories occur in a post-Apocalyptic, dystopian world where terrifying mists pop out of the ground and dissolve everything in it's path, including people. And because of this mist, most of the survivors have gained special mental abilities, like telepathy or healing.

In the first book Fallen, the reader is introduced to the main protagonist Emma who has been separated from her husband and oldest daughter and now is caring for a band of children, including her youngest daughter in France. She ends up getting into a safe camp of survivors run by the handsome and ambitious man; Arthur. As the story progresses, she meets new friends, a new enemy and falls in love.

The second book Cold Light, pick up months after the first book. Emma is now reunited with her family and settled into a vaguely normal life. Unfortunately, that all changes when her oldest daughter is kidnapped by

bandits. Nobody in the town will help her, so she sets out alone across a harsh frozen landscape on foot to rescue her child. Along the way she hits many hurdles and her old enemy is back in the middle of her life. And so is Arthur, who has come for her. But when Hayford, her husband arrives to help, how can she let herself be with Arthur?

Now, for the latest, Far Shore.
I Loved this story.
In this story, Emma has been living in a new town with her family when she hears that a dear friend of hers is having trouble in childbirth and will not survive without Emma's healing touch. Also, Arthur has been captured by their enemy and most likely has been tortured. How can she not go to them? Hayford is livid and gives her an ultimatum; if she leaves, don't bother coming back. She goes anyway and is reunited with her friends from Arthur's camp. She saves her friend and the babies and sets off to rescue Arthur. She is barely able to rescue him and after she does, he is in terrible shape. She knows that she needs to get him far away from Alexi, the sociopath who has dogged them all along and did this to Arthur. But will she be able to heal him and avoid the mists and stay out of Alexi's clutches?
Ok first-The intensity and creepiness is high throughout the story.
Second- I have to admit that I like Alexi, the crazy, happy, sociopath. Yes, he's done some awful thing (especially to Arthur) but most of his reasons are pretty sound. Grief makes people do crazy things. Also, he has been courteous to Emma throughout the series and he's very helpful to her during this book at one point.
Third-Everything keeps evolving in this story. The mists are smarter and harder to control. Emma has new abilities and more control. There are other characters that are introduced and will probably add to the group. And everyone has to trust others at different points if they want to survive.
Fourth-Even though Arthur and Emma have love, their relationship isn't perfect. They have troubles and arguments. But they still work.
Fifth- Even though she was/is married to Hayford Their relationship has changed as much as they have since the end of civilization as they knew it. They have tried to make it work but sometimes you have to let it go. I think Hayford would be happier with a new relationship.

From what a little birdie told me, this is not the last book and I am excited to see what happens next. If you're looking for a suspenseful read with a strong female character, then I recommend you pick up this series.

Contests - Coffee Time Romance & More

Hey guys,
I'm a featured contest author at Coffee time Romance & More this month. Come join in and you could win one of 2 free ebooks and/or a coffee cup with one of my covers on it.

Be sure to check it out.
Can't wait to see you!!!!!


Contests - Coffee Time Romance & More

Best.
Heather Geoffries

The Ashtabula Train Disaster-Do you know about it?

Hello All.

I wrote this up earlier for a group chat but it ended up not sticking (prob. cuz the new yahoo groups is sucky) Anywho, even though it happened just after Christmas, the story is horrible enough to give you shivers. Plus there are stories of hauntings.So, I thought this might be appropriate for Halloween.

For my spookie story I am going to dip into some local history. This event took place in Ashtabula (ash-ta-byou-la), Ohio in 1876. See, the thing is that most people don’t know where Ashtabula is and many people don’t know that we had the worst disaster in history until the Titanic went down. Because of this event laws were passed that are still in effect today.

I’m talking about the “Ashtabula Train Disaster.” (also called the Ashtabula Horror or the Ashtabula Bridge Disaster)

It happened a few days after Christmas, during a terrible North East Ohio blizzard. If you’re not from this neck of the woods, I should tell you that the winters get pretty nasty up here next to Lake Erie. Because of the lake effect snow, we generally have more snow fall, wetter snow and air and dangerous conditions. If there’s a blizzard, you can’t see your hand in front of your face and can have snow up to your knees within an hour. Within seconds of stepping outside the cold cuts through you like knives and seems to chill your soul.

Train No. 5, The Pacific Express, was a luxury train carrying  159 passengers from Erie, P.A to Ashtabula, OH. At around 7:30pm the train crossed over the Ashtabula River and was nearly to the train station (only 1,000 ft. away), when the bridge collapsed. The engine was across the bridge and tried to speed up to pull the train to safety but everything plummeted 76 ft. into the water. On top of that many cars flipped over and landed on its roof. And most of the cars had fireplaces. Within seconds the cars turned into an inferno. The crash had been heard and the town raised the alarm. With difficulty the townspeople trudged through the snow and down the steep hill to the river’s edge. Some survivors had made their way to the shore. When the fire brigade showed up the railroad employees gave instructions for the fire brigade to save some survivors and make a path up the ravine. They never used any water to put out the flames even though there were still people trapped inside that were never rescued. 92

Mass grave for the unrecognizable

Charles Collins burial sight

people died that night, 48 charred beyond recognition. Sixty-four were injured. After much investigation, The railroad engineer Charles Collins

was found dead with a suspicious gunshot wound to the head. Speculations about suicide occurred but it was obvious that he had been murdered. 7 years later Amasa Stone, President of the Lake Shore Michigan Southern Railway, committed suicide. There are still pieces of the train down in the ravine today and from the local stories, some nights you can hear the crash and screams of the passengers. If you go down there, the hair on your arms raises and you can feel the heat from an invisible flame caressing you.
Here are a couple links if you would like to know more.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashtabula_River_Railroad_Disaster
http://vimeo.com/61177944 (This is a pretty awesome and creepy trailer)
http://www.deadohio.com/AshTrain.htm

So, tell me have you heard about the disaster? Do you have any other info that might not be general knowledge?

How about your stomping ground--does it have an interesting history?

Let me know. I'd love to hear from you.

Heather Geoffries

Author of best selling erotic romance "Nordic Prince" and the following story "South Sea Siren"

GUEST BLOGGER: Jane Toombs

Hello everyone!
Today, I have the wonderful Jane Toombs on my blog.
She is here to give us some plot tips and share a little about her Historical romance "Bride of the Baja"
Please give her a round of applause *claps* and enjoy!

Thank you for coming Jane. The floor is yours. *g*

If you’ve ever been told your plot it too thin or too complicated, here’s something that may help you understand why:
Plot Problems: Too Little And Too Much
In a romance, confronted by too thin a plot line, a reader comes to feel she’s turning pages but getting nowhere. Something like peddling away on a stationary exercycle, in the same room day after day, instead of riding a real bicycle and confronting real scenery and action.
Thin plots arise from weak conflict. In romances, constant bickering between the hero and heroine over minor matters often reveals the lack of true conflict. Bickering is not conflict. Give your characters some potent differences to cope with. If she were an animal rights advocate intent on saving dolphins while he’s a part of an organization training dolphins for underwater demolition, these two are not going to see eye to eye and conflict will arise from their colliding viewpoints.
Too many secondary characters can also dilute conflict because the focus comes off the hero and heroine. So don’t stuff too many people into the story.
A top-heavy plot is also a problem. In a romance, if too much information and/or action is crammed into too few pages this leads to bogging down a romance. Yes, these are good in westerns, suspense and mysteries, but need to be using sparingly in a romance. Why? Because it takes away from the main purpose of a romance, which is to have the main characters finally figure out they were meant for each other.
Cliches in romance plots are all too common and tend to weaken the plot. The other woman is a common one. If you must have one, do make her something other than a a fluff-headed, sexy bimbo.
Another cliché is overheard information or an event secretly seen and misinterpreted.
The number one cliche is the cute meet. Do your best to avoid this one.
I’ve never forgotten listening to a talk by the fabulous Phyllis Whitney. Her advice was to give every major character in a story a secret in their background they’d rather die than have revealed. She said that when a plot seems to be developing a middle sag, one of these secrets revealed or threatened to be revealed provides a great way to keep the action moving right along, while still focusing on the main characters.
In my historical romance Bride of the Baja, which will be up as an ebook in September, I tried not to make it plot heavy, despite the theme of : Which of the three men will she choose?
If you decide to read it, do let me know whether or not I succeeded.

www.JaneToombs.com

 Thank you for the great advice. And I can't wait to read your new book.

(I Love the cover!)
So, what is some advice you folks have gotten that turned out to be handy? Share with me.