FREE – A Kristen Ashley New Release

The finale to the Chaos series, Freethe story of Rush and Rebel is here!

Through good times, bad times and times of war, Cole “Rush” Allen grew up in the Chaos Motorcycle Club. Along this journey, he watched his father, Tack, and his MC brothers fight, sweat, bleed and die to steer the Club to legitimacy.

And they’ve got one more battle on their hands.

A battle they have to win.

But when Rush meets the woman who put herself right in the thick of it, he knows he has to stop at nothing to get her out.

Rebel Stapleton has lost someone she loves to murder and she’s the kind of woman who’s going to do something about it. She puts her career on the line, and her life, to bring the man who did it to justice.

That is, she does this until Rush Allen intervenes.

Chaos is at war and they’re about to face the ultimate showdown. They’ll have to negotiate skeletons from the past, enemies becoming allies, and loved ones in the line of fire on their ride to be…

Free.

ORDER YOUR COPY NOW!

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Kristen Ashley is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over fifty novels, including Mystery Man,The Gamble, and Own the Wind. She grew up in Indiana, but has lived in Colorado and the West Country of England.

Author Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

2018 Wrap Up

Hey y’all! Whew what a year…

I hit my reading goal (150), branched out to a few new authors, attended my first Apollycon (can’t wait for 2019!), hit my first 1K on Instagram, and officially become and audio lover! But throughout out it all, I read some pretty amazing books. I wanted to share a new style of wrap up with you guys this year. Sort of like an awards ceremony. Not a top ten and no one better than the other; but stories that stood out to me outside of just the romance aspect. Whether they made me cry, laugh, swoon, or beg for more check out my 2018 Wrap Up Awards!

First some stats!

I read 35,942 pages across 152 books

get more details from my goodreads and check out all of my 2018 reviews/reads! And while you’re there, add me!

On to our winners…


All You Need Is Love

Light-hearted, drama-free romance

A sexy, slow-burning best-friends-to-lovers romance with a guaranteed HEA and no cheating. Dive in, and get ready to melt for Cam! The slow burn never fizzles out; it’s the perfect speed for two friends who discover they could be more. And then they have to discover how they feel about that revelation. For Cam, it’s been a deep desire he’s buried beneath that friendship. For Natalie, there’s more to love than just sex and she’s not sure of the risk of losing friendship of two men she’s known for years. All around heartwarming and entertaining. Filled with sexy, intimate moments and heartfelt relationships all around; you can find out more here!

Secret trysts and stolen kisses abound in this brand new, swoontastic novel from #1 NYT bestselling author Lauren Blakely. Starting off with a steamy fantasy scene between our hero and heroine allowed for a novel size tease the rest of the plot! This novel had a touch of old school romance. With lust and desires dripping off every page, you need to grab this read and begin to raise your expectations when it comes to love! Fond out more here!

 

A sexy, standalone forbidden romance about a sports star and the woman who’s off limits. There’s something about a forbidden romance that can give readers just the right amount if danger. Neither our heroine or hero want to risk their careers but can’t resist the pull against one another.  And while some secret and forbidden romance can leave readers feeling secondhand embarrassment, I couldn’t help but find myself yelling at Jillian and Jones to just BE TOGETHER! Find out more about it here!


Heartbreakers

Break out the tissues and wine

He didn’t want to be bad. He just didn’t have a choice… We had crazy drama around Trouble & Wild and hilarious wit and sass with Legs & Loser; but with Shay & Stitch…..be prepared to have your heart MANGLED in the BEST POSSIBLE WAY. Not only does Daniels’ manage to tell the story of a broken and defeated man, she does it while painting him in the brightest light possible. I stayed up all night, sacrificing sleep, to finally read this story and I was not one bit disappointed. I cried so many times but with so many happy tears. Prepare to have your heart wrung out here.

An all-new second chance standalone romance by New York Times bestselling author Corinne Michaels and USA Today bestselling author Melanie Harlow, this story killed me and brought me back to life! After the young romance left her broken-hearted in the worst way she’s sworn off Ian for life. But tragedy strikes when Sabrina and her husband pass away and leave the children to Ian to raise. Prepare to have your heart ripped out of you chest as each of Sabrina’s children have to handle their grief alongside Ian and London. I love that Harlow and Michaels kept their reactions real. There’s no pretty crying or band aids over the wounds in this story, no.  Now mix in the romance between Ian and London and this is one powerful read.  Find out more here.

A forbidden stand-alone romance in A.L. Jackson’s Confessions of the Heart Series. How can I put in to words the way this book made me feel? Gripping and intense. Sexy and forbidden. Heartbreaking and yet filled with love and warmth that is key to any Jackson story. All of Me takes the darkest parts of two people’s lives and thrusts them in to the light in order to survive. I cringed, I gasped, I needed wine, and I had a happy cry. This book is downright AMAZING. No spoilers here, you’ll have to grab this amazing story for yourself to find out just what darkness dares to creep up on our hero and heroine. Prepare your tissues and buckle down for one hell of a romance! Find out more about Ian’s story here.

a brand-new novel about arson investigator, Anne Ashburn, who is consumed by her troubled past, her family’s scorched legacy, and her current case: chasing a deadly killer. A new branch back into the contemporary world, Consumed is not only intrigued and a standout novel, readers won’t be able to predict what will happen and become addicted to finding out the truth. This book is FILLED with twists and turns and new angles you won’t predict. Hooked from page one I had to know what Anne and Danny’s inner thoughts were. Ward does an incredibly job taking brutal, damaged characters and pulling those flaws right into the light, shoving them in to the face of readers and shouting “ACCEPT THEM”.  Be consumed by this romance here.

Is it love, or is she just his good luck charm? New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Helena Hunting absolutely delights with this witty and fun standalone romantic comedy. Helena brings back the heavy in the best way with The Good Luck Charm. A young romance ended too soon. A woman with a second broken heart and a man with a second chance. The light-hearted humor and wit that any HH fan knows is definitely present in TGLC. Ethan and Lilah, whether they’re fighting or reminiscing, have the ability to outwit and go head to head with one another. But Hunting takes us back to her original romance feels of heavy story lines.  Get lucky here.


Bad (BOY) Romance

Bad boys do it better

From New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Jay Crownover comes a standalone romance with a hero sure to keep readers up long into the night. Jay frickin Crownover. She continues to blow me away with her ability to create dark and gritty characters that have obvious faults but still endeavor you to feel hope for what may be. Cable and Affton’s story is filled with heartbreak, doubt, and somehow a sliver of hope, a light at the end of the tunnel. Crownover has delivered a character with a mysterious past that was painstakingly revealed over time (almost a year for us newsletter subscribers!). And as each peace of Cable’s puzzle finds it place, the picture of a boy becoming a man and finding his way to recovery was shown and hearts everywhere fell for the dark handsome boy. Find out more about Cable here.

An enemies-to-lovers romance where opposites not only attract, they ignite. Trying to think of a way to explain this romance isn’t easy. First of all, JB Salsbury is in her own genre when it comes to romance. They’re dark in a different way, with non-traditional heroes who are tough to love at first. And that can definitely be said with Jesse. Jesse is an ASSHOLE at the beginning of Playing by Heart. I hated him at first, but in the best way. Reading his level of dirty, you just KNOW there’s going to be an epic redemption of his soul.  This love story is all a tale of what a person can handle when it comes to self-love before loving anyone else and Salsbury does it ABSOLUTE justice. Find out more here.

The Queen of Paranormal Romance, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Gena Showalter, stuns with SHADOW AND ICE, the first title in her scorching new paranormal romance series Gods of War Series. This story is about love. And sex and violence and power and control but beyond all that LOVE conquering all. A message conveyed in every caress from Vale. In every sacrifice from Knox.Filled with explicit and entertaining fights scenes to rival and blockbuster, this story will have on the edge of your city dying to know how Vale and Knox can overcome every obstacle that threatens to tear them and the world apart. Dive in and find out more here.

Talk about a powerful hero! Evans impresses with her latest alpha and brother to one of our past heroes. Cullen Carmichael is a magnetic and demanding poker player. When Wynn steps into his card game months later, single, Cullen knows its time to up the stakes and risk it all for the feisty redhead. I can’t explain just how much chemistry is between these two characters. The push and pull of Wynn’s ability to give it all to Cullen against his ability to show his hand sends a message about the lengths people will go to find their happy ever after. Filled with tense moments, secrecy, and one hot alpha this is one emotionally packed romance. Find out more here.

Prepare for a story that hits hard, digs deep, and holds tight. Unconscious Hearts is a powerful romance with an alpha hero and a magnetic heroine that you’ll immediately fall for. Covered in leather, dripping with sin, smelling like temptation. Thorn is made for lustful nights and stirs something in Ari she hasn’t felt for a long time. I love that Sloan slowly reveals the truth behind both Thorn and Ari’s past as well as why they initially fight their attractions to one another. There’s no huge history dump as you’re reading; you get discover why these characters are the way they are as if you were slowly learning about them as a friend in their world. I couldn’t put down this dark romance not just for the passion in each page but for how hard it pulls you in and has you begging for what comes next. Find out more here.


One More Chapter

Cliff hangers that left us begging for more

From New York Times bestselling author Meghan March comes a brand new saga of forbidden love and second chances. Heady, rich with passion, and rife with excess, the Sin Trilogy is brimming with drama. With flashes of the past mixed in with the current events of the Riscoffs and the Gables, readers will be in a whirlwind of emotions. Stolen kisses, secrets abound, and a doozy of a twist I GUAR-AN-TEE you won’t see coming, this romance will have you hooked from the start! Prepare yourself for more drama than any reality TV show and some steam scenes more risque than you’ve experienced!! Find more about the series three novels: Book 1, Book 2, Book 3.

She was brainwashed into believing she could save mankind. Now, she’s the one who needs saving. An original plot line, complex characters, and twists and turns to drag you in to the story, the Mercy Series is its own brand of romance and mystery. So unlike any other new adult romance, Ghostgirl pulled me in from the start and never let go. This slow burn was completely satisfying as their feelings developed alongside the story. Pieces of Mercy’s past slowly come out as the puzzle of what truly happened to her begins to form. Filled with moral quandaries and blurring the line between right and wrong, Saint delivers another powerful message about personal faith and fighting for the truth. Dive in to learn more about Milo and Mercy.

How do you put in to words a story that takes years of love, laughter, and pain and wraps them in a package under heartbreak and hope? The amazing duo that is Kennedy Fox saved the most detailed and heavy Bishop for last. Readers who have stuck alongside the series have openly waited for the tricky twin Jackson’s story behind his playboy ways. Now spoiler free here…but be warned that you will want quiet, wine, and something to bring yourself comfort when reading this romance. The supposed climax is right at the beginning and I LOVED getting to read the back and forth up to the pivotal day. KF definitely set the bar high with this tale, I swear they save the end of their series for the high stakes drama and it is WORTH IT! So sit down, stock up, and buckle up for one insane ride here.

The highly anticipated sexy, suspenseful stand-alone second-chance romance from NYT Bestselling Author, A.L. Jackson. Magnetic. Heart stopping. Filled with passion and suspense but brimming with hope. Jackson’s finale to the Fight For Me series is an amazing collaboration of regrets and second-chances. I could not believe how engrossed I became in this story! Ollie and Nikki have an obvious connection that no one can deny. Watching them gravitate towards and away from one another was such heartbreak.  No spoilers for the truth about Sydney but I will say to read between the lines and come to your own conclusions as the truth will SHOCK you. I was not prepared at all for the twist ending but I could not have read any faster, turning page after page to see just what would happen. Find out more here.

What has a sexy, bad-ass veteran hero…
A feisty and independent heroine who won’t hesitate to stand up for herself. A forbidden, best friend’s younger sister conflict. And a forced-proximity roommates-to-lovers situation that creates all kinds of sexual tension? The second standalone title in New York Times bestselling author Laura Kaye’s Warrior Fight Club series! There’s a connection with Shay and Billy that sparks the minute the two characters come together. Kaye impresses with her ability to once again combine sexy heroes with rough pasts and even tougher walls to break through. Sexy, with a surprise twist you won’t see coming. add this new romance to your TBR!


Love Bites

Novellas and quick reads

From New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author K Bromberg, comes CONTROL, a new novella in her Everyday Heroes Series, brought to you by 1,001 Dark Nights! I love the 1001 Dark Nights series because it’s more than just a sneak peek into an author’s series, it’s a splash into that author’s voice and style. K Bromberg is stellar at writing drama mixed with sex and romance. Control is a stunning look into her Everyday Heroes series and shows how two lost people can find happiness with each other.

Now don’t judge me….but I’m a Kylie Scott fan that hasn’t finished the Stage Dive series at this moment. GASP SHOCK AWE. Now that that’s out of your system…let me introduce you to a quick and sexyyyyy novella from Scott and 1001 Dark Nights. Whoo lordy say hello to your newest naughty dream. Sam is H-O-T. He’s a rough and gruff silver fox with a smooth tongue for Martha. Filled with sweet and sexy, this novella is a great taste of the Kylie Scott world!

 

The perfect combination of sweet and sexy, Laura Kaye amazes again with her novella peek into the Raven Riders series. This story was a fun treat vote into existence by Kaye fans. I was hoping for my smooth talking charmer Phoenix to get his story but Caine took me by surprise. It’s the quiet ones that see and hold the most. Filled with more honesty and truth in a smaller format, Kaye delivers the heart-wrenching pain of a characters path while revealing the bright hope of their love filled future. Find out more here.


Aural Fixations

Who knew audio books were so addicting

Read Me Romance is a FREE podcast hosted by New York Times Bestselling Authors Alexa Riley and Tessa Bailey. Trust me when I say you WANT to be listening. These three slowly reveal an audio book EVERY SINGLE WEEK, with snippets each day. Add in their hilarious banter and it’s like hanging out with your own mobile book club. Get introduced to new authors, feed into your guilty, dirty reads, or like me discover you new found love of audio books and the worlds they open up. Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss a single installment!

A standalone romance novel published by Montlake Romance: It all started with a mysterious blue note sewn into a wedding dress. The name embossed on the blue stationery: Reed Eastwood, thanks to a twist of fate, he’s my new boss. But that’s not going to stop me from discovering the story behind his last love letter. A love letter that did not result in a happily ever after. My very first full length audio book and I fell in love! Entranced by their voices, escaping into their worlds. This romance was filled with drama and twists I never saw coming. I loved every minute as Charlotte attempted to learn Reed’s truth. All while Reed harbored a shocking secret that threatened everything! Find out more here.

Be prepared to fall in love with Sara Ney and her captivating new adult romances! Being a well known jock-blocker gets Scarlett noticed for all the wrong reasons; just like that, she’s banned from Jock Row. Week-after-week, she visits Jock Row with her friends and is quarantined to the porch with one Sterling “Rowdy” Wade. As the weeks progress, the two find out how much they have in common and fall madly in love. Hilarious. witty, and filled with flirtatious fun, this audio was so uplifting and Scareltt and Rowdy’s romance is so real and honest. Drama free and filled with happiness!


Dark and Deep

Dark romance filled with deep emotion

It’s passionate and powerful; suspenseful and seductive. Kristen Ashley’s finale of the Honey series is an endless list of beautiful adjectives that add up to an explosive read. Stellan’s eyed the beautifully intriguing Sixx for longer than she could imagine. After waiting years for her to make a move he decides that only another Dom is willing to crack the shell of this mysterious femma fatale. What Stellan hadn’t planned on was not only culling the dominatrix but releasing the submissive inside.  In KA’s distinctive voice, I found a new hero within Sixx. In addition to our final Honey couple, KA dives into more worlds of the exotic and risque. Find out more about them here.

How can I describe how amazingly sexy and sweet this book is? I’m new to Laura Kaye’s Blasphemy series but you can bet your sweet butts I went out and bought the the rest of the entire series after I finished this book in the late hours of the night. I couldn’t put it down, couldn’t look away from the sheer power this book holds. Not for the faint of heart, On His Knees is filled with raw sexuality alongside a man coming to grips with the reality of his sexual preferences. Kaye’s depiction is honest and real and truly makes you understand what it means to go through the struggle of discovery. Find out more about this M/M romance here.

Holy Jesus….this was my first “age difference” romance and I am SOLD! Kylie Scott has been killing the standalone game and this did not disappoint. Adele is stuck staying with her father’s friend and business partner, Pete. Bad news? She’s been terribly in love with Pete for years and now that she’s older, she’s not quite sure what their relationship will be like (especially considering how badly it ended 7 years before). When a night of high emotions turns an argument into one steamy night, their worlds change forever. Not only does Pete have to come to terms with his feelings towards Adele, he has to come face to face with a future he never planned for with her. Another real and relatable romance from Scott; find out more here.

A YA novel from USA Today bestselling author Sarina Bowen. I’m so glad she’s decided to branch out once again and she’s delivered a compelling YA story about love, loss, and the power of music. Rachel’s daydreamed about her rockstar father for years, despite her mother’s protests. Now, her mother’s passed away and left Rachel in his hands just as she’s to turn 18 and experience the world on her own. But the imaginations of a little girl rarely match up to reality. Her dads not all rock god; he’s just a man with imperfections. The Accidentals truly emulates the rag-tag combination of teenage heartbreak and over abundance of emotions. It had me crying, it had my heart breaking, but the power of Rachel’s love of music and her family pulls readers through in the end for a warm ending worthy of any story. Dive in here.


LOVE & LAUGHTER

Cry from laughing instead of heartbreak

I was honestly taken by surprise with how emotional this book made me feel. There’s no terrible past from Jean about her child’s father. There’s no cataclysmic event to force Eric to decide what he wants. This a story about two people (technically three with the baby lol) who fall for each other all out of order. But who are we to judge. You never know what a relationship looks like to the two people in it. And Chaser is the soothing balm after the rough and rich stories of Vaughn and Joe. Scott couldn’t have done a better job on Eric’s story! Find out more here.

an all-new standalone in the USA Today bestselling Rugby Series from Penny Reid and L.H. Cosway. I didn’t want this series to end; I’ve loved it since the moment I started to read it. But Cosway and Reid go out with an amazing story filled with a spunky heroine and a secretive hero. Will, one of our beloved rugby players, is caught amidst a sports scandal as his sexy secret comes to light: he’s a voyeur. But he’s determined to clean up his so called dirty act for the team’s image. In comes the klutzy and foot-in-mouth speaking Josey as his new roommate and pseudo-babysitter. These characters are just plain heartwarming and I found myself laughing hysterically throughout the whole book. A wonderful ending to an amazing series! Find out more here.

OMG Sarina and Tanya deliver another hilarious five-star rom-com! Man Card features sassy, sexy Ash and hilariously metrosexual Braht as our hero and heroine. The two have spent months as “frenemies”; there’s chemistry (and one sexy time in a pantry!) between them but for some reason the attraction leads to an all out turf war as the two realtors love to one up one another. And of course one-upsmanship leads to some hysterical moments for them! Filled with riotous wit and endearingly flubbed sexy-times, Man Card easily slips into a five-star read status. Find out more here.

 

 

WILD LIKE THE WIND – A Kristen Ashley New Release

From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Ashley, comes the next heart stopping Chaos novel, Wild Like the Wind is now available!

 

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The brother known as Hound has a reputation. He’s all about cracking heads, having a good time, and when the Chaos Motorcycle Club needs someone to do the tough job, they call on him.

But Hound has a secret. He fell in love with a woman years ago. She’s untouchable. Unattainable. And even when her status changes, for Hound, it remains the same.

Keely Black had it all early and lost it all not long after. Thrown into an abyss of loss and grief, she’s faced a life of raising two sons alone and battling the rage at all that had been ripped from them.

And why.

Words spoken in anger open Hound’s and Keely’s eyes. For Hound, he sees he’s wasted his life loving the wrong woman. Keely sees she’s wasting her life not opening herself to the love of a good man.

ORDER YOUR COPY NOW

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WANT A SNEAK PEEK? CHECK OUT CHAPTER ONE NOW!

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Kristen-Ashley-Pic-237x300

Kristen Ashley is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over fifty novels, including Mystery Man,The Gamble, and Own the Wind. She grew up in Indiana, but has lived in Colorado and the West Country of England.

Author Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

ROCK CHICK RENDEZVOUS 2018 – An Event Recap

I successfully attended my very first Rock Chick Rendezvous! Though I didn’t attend all of the events, the two days I spent with the Rock Chicks was unparalleled to any other romance book fandom. Here’s my small recap and a look into the Q&A with Kristen Ashley and Jay Crownover!

After a full day of work and an hour drive to downtown Cleveland in the summer heat, Rock Chicks arrived at the Metropolitan at 9 to pick up their KA swag bags. Custom to any event, RCR18 featured a crazy cute swag bag for the Rock Chicks to pick up before Friday night’s party. With a 1001 Dark Nights teaser pack, candy, guitar pick, custom t shirt, hat and 4 copies of Crownover & Ashley’s titles this bag of goodies was TOP NOTCH! I gave Instagram followers a sneak peak at the bag Friday night with a live video but my favorite piece was definitely the custom baseball tee.

Want to win some Kristen Ashley swag? Check out this exclusive giveaway for your chance to win a signed copy of The Greatest Risk and Rock Chick Reawakening. Start the Rock Chicks off with a bang or close out the sinfully good Honey series with your own signed copies!

ENTER HERE


img_1267 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame:

I may be a Cleveland native but it’s been about ten years since I’ve walked through our infamous Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Glammed out and ready to party, dozens of Rock Chicks descended upon the halls of rock. After a killer photo-op with Kirsten in her 70 pound sequin dress and Jay rocking her bad-ass style, Rock Chicks were encouraged to walk all 6 floors of the Rock Hall and enjoy drinks and appetizers fit for rock queens. With the dance party going all night filled with drinks, laughter, and all things rock babes, the Hall’s never seen so much romance royalty.

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Signing & Q&A:

My favorite thing about Q&As with any author is the chance to peak inside their minds and see how they develop the wonderful stories readers like you and I adore. Check out some the fabulous questions readers asked and let me know which one was your favorite!

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*between two ferns with zach galifianakis*

As always, Kristen loves to tell the story of stealing her mother’s romance novels from the age of 12. She would hide them under her bed (on the lower bunk) and unfortunately the cat would pee on it. But she would still get under the covers and read her cat-pee romance novel.

Jay claims she wouldn’t be a romance novelist if it weren’t for Kristen and her Rock Chicks. Her wonderful mom was a librarian so Jay always grew up reading (her fav was Nancy Drew). But has she got older: “Hey…what’s this Sandra Brown book all about?”.

Q: Is there a character or land or idea that you think of but it gets stuck and you can’t quite write the whole book that you write? What do you do?

KA: I’ve only ever given up on one book and I still haven’t finished it but it was Tack’s original book. His first woman’s name was Clara. It was a dark time in my life and it’s a much darker story and he’s a much darker hero. And I didn’t feel that from him at all; he’s got his rough edges. She was run-down and she was publicly humiliated by her husband. It even had Tabby and Rush in the book; it’s almost written. BI just abandoned it and went back when I wasn’t in a bad place and I was like “This book is really frickin good!” But it wasn’t Tack; I’ll probably do some rewrites. Normally though when an idea hits me, I’m just obsessed with it and it never lets me go.

JC: If I can’t figure out if they’re important enough to get their own story or interesting enough, I usually work em in somewhere (as one of her many side characters). I’m sneaky, I’ll just work em in there!

Q: When do you think your books will be coming to movies with Passionflix?

KA: I have no idea, sorry. I sold Three Wishes and The Will to Passionflix. (Find out more about KA & Passionflix here)

Q: How do you come up with the names (for characters) for your novels?

JC: So I have a running list and honestly I started it when I bartended. And I live in Colorado so there’s lots of hipsters with cool names. Anytime I would get a cool idea and their name was really different I would be like “I gotta remember that!” Rule’s honestly is just my backward thinking of “I’m gunna write these twins and one of them is going to be a rule breaker.. Oh Rule!” In real life, all my family is J’s so I knew all the boys had to be R’s. Brains work weird.

KA: Sometimes my characters come to me named (Tack, Jake Spear, Tate). But I have two just enormous names list for any name that I come across that I write. Heroines, nicknames, animal names, another separate for all bar names. IF the character doesn’t come to me name, I’ll unfocus and scroll through the list. It HAS to be their name though; I have to get to know them.

JC: Also if you’re a reader with a really cool name, I might steal it. (Day, Emerys)

Q: Is Jane going to get a story?

KA: No, it’s highly unlikely. Jane is obviously me. I love the fact that her happy ending didn’t include a man. She got what she wanted out of life and she had family around her. She did wrong by those men (the women didn’t care) and they loved her and accepted her and it’s her family now. That’s what she’s always wanted to do. But I never say never or you might find her in the background and she might have somebody, but right now I’m not feeling it.

Q: Do you write the same way, same desk, same laptop, candle, wine? Is there a structure to your day in terms of how you guys write?

JC: I do. I write the same hours and I sit at a desk. I watch The Amazing Race while I write. Normally between noon and 8pm, my power hours, cause I have big dogs. I don’t write very well when I travel.

KA: I’m the same way except I’m morning. No distractions, no music or TV. Kylie Scott was staying with her one time and she would always take an hour out of every day to sit down with her laptop. “I have to be with them!” Scott said. She wrote in a hotel once and that was awesome because she could order a hamburger at any time.

Q: Are you ever going to write Darius a book?

KA: I want to, I really do. I really can’t explain what makes Darius so special to me; that trio of boys is super special to me. It’s kind of like what I just went through with writing Rush, There’s a lot of stress to make it perfect. And I want to make it perfect for you, but it has to be perfect for him, for me to give it to him. He might bookend the Mace and Stella. I might just delay it but I hope I get to spend a good amount [of time].

Q: The model from Built, is he Zeb? Because he’s really hot!

JC: His name is Matt and he lives in New York. He’s actually a concierge at one of the Ritz Carlton’s in New York. Doesn’t he look like Leonardo DiCaprio a little bit? I was with Harper Collins at that time and I had to convince my publisher that I needed a big burly bearded due. At the time, big bearded burly dudes were not on romance covers. Not like a nice trim beard, I needed a dude with a Colorado beard!

KA: I personally thank you for getting the bearded guys on the cover.

JC: I totally take credit for that!

Q: Are we going to get Lachlan and Emily’s story?

KA: Yes. The Loose Ends that’s coming out in November. Hopefully that will do well and then I’ll do another one next year and that will be one of the novellas that I do.

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Q: When I read the books I can see them and I can hear them. Do you have visual muses or are they all in your head?

JC: I have a really vivid imagination. So I just see it all and it plays like a movie in my head. So the characters look very specific to me. It’s really rare that anyone in real life or even on my covers look exactly like who I pictured. I try and get close as often as I can. The girl in my new book though, in the first book of the series I said she looked like Taylor Swift so I’ve had to stick with that through six books!

KA: I think we were separated at birth by like a decade.

JC: I will take it!

KA: Cause that’s exactly how I am. I can’t listen to my audiobooks because it freaks me out to hear somebody else doing the voices. I’ve only heard one of my audio books; when I started the sample, I started crying because she sounded just like Feb in For You. I actually sat at my desk weeping. The first time ever I wrote Toby and Addy and Johnny (The Hook Up) was such a strong character in my brain. He kept shoving Toby out, including his personality, I could not capture him at all. So then I found Jerry Mello, You’re welcome when you google him. Ooh my god! He’s my Toby. There’s a picture of him in profile with the beard, yeah, that’s the only time I’ve ever done it.

Q: Kristen would you be able to tell the story of Hector and Sadie’s book?

**SPOLIER ALERT**

KA: Hector and Sadie, Rock Chick Regret. I was actually writing Rock Chick Reckoning, Mace and Stella. I had three friend reading the book as I wrote and there’s this one moment where Mace and Stella that is a cliff hanger if the story ended there. So I finished that chapter and sent it off to my friends and went to take a bath. And Sadie came to me; if you’ve read the book she’s violated in the first few chapters and it’s really terrible. I don’t think I dried off; I jumped out of the bath tub and put on sweats and I went directly to the computer and began to write because I needed her to have happy ending. I had to get out of that zone. Her history, her dad, everything came to me, slamming in to me. So it was crucial to make her happy. So then I emailed it to my friends and said “I’m stopping this book and this other book started” and they were like, “WAIT A SECOND! THEY’VE JUST BEEN SHOT AT! THEY FELL DOWN THROUGH THE STAGE!” Well you’re gunna have to wait!

Q: One of things I love most about your books is how you write about real places and we get to go and visit them. I was wondering if there was a real gladiator place that we can go to?

KA: That book [The Greatest Risk] is only a couple months old and that is like the most asked question to me EVER! One of the very fun things about writing the Honey series was the research I got to put in to that. I probably could’ve got a lot more writing done last year if I didn’t some much time on Google. You just think of new search options and it just gets crazy! I saw a picture of these two men in like a boxing ring, and then my mind went. I save that picture. I don’t think I can put that on Pinterest.

Q: It’s [The Honey Series] romance but its closer to erotica do we have any more of that coming our direction?

KA: *turns to Jay* Have you done erotica?

JC: *laughing* No. I’m a delicate creature.

KA: There is a novella in Loose Ends for Diesel, Maddox, and Molly that’s very erotic. Very, very, very erotic. I should go read it and see what percentage there is of like dialogue versus….smut. But I think Ami will probably follow up with a novella. The spirit just has to move me and I would not close the door to that at all.

Q: At the begging of this, Jay you said that you were inspired to become an author because of Kristen. What was that process and when did you make the jump?

JC: I’ve always written but in ever finished anything ever. I was married and it went south. I just happened to pick up the Rock Chick series and I was reading it. I’m a Colorado native and I’m proud to be a Colorado native and I’m super proud that they were set in Denver; not by somebody that didn’t know Denver. But someone that KNEW Denver, like the places. And the guys were very different from most romance guys; they were not Nora Roberts’s heroes. They were these distinctly Colorado men. After I read what had been out I read the Colorado Mountain Men series and I was like “I love this girl. Can we be best friends?” But I starting reading about her and her story. So when Rule was done I was like “I wrote a punk rock hero, in romance; like that’s not a thing.” You didn’t have purple mohawked heroes in romance. But I was like that was my dream guy when I was 20. If Kristen Ashley can write it and put it out her and readers like it…maybe the same thing will happen for me. And if not then I’m just gunna call my mom and be like ‘Hey mom I published a book! How cool am I?” But I wouldn’t’ve known that you can write books for you and for readers and not for publishers if I didn’t read bout Kristen. I wouldn’t know that you could write about dudes that you thought were interesting and not necessarily a wide appeal for romance if it wasn’t for Kristen. She was definitely the one author of all the authors that I read, that I was like “I can be like that girl”. Rule wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her.

KA: Tell em what happened when you published Rule.

JC: I didn’t know what I was doing, let’s just clarify that. I finished it and it got very shoddily edited and I published it two days after I signed my divorce papers. So he don’t get none of that money. I hit publish literally on December 31, 2012. I went to bed. I woke up the next morning and sometime between New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day that book was number 5 on Amazon and it sold 10,000 copies in one night. Y’all needed a little purple mohawked boy in romance apparently!

KA: If you’re a writer, or whatever you wanna do. Whatever motivation you get of whatever lift you get, take it and do something about it. Jay did and she made it her own and she sold 10,000 in one night. That’s’ crazy. I was told for years and years nobody wanted my novels. And now I’m sitting here in front of you and that’s just not true. There’s an audience. There’s a lot of beautiful voices out there that we’re finally getting to hear.

JC: One of the important things to takeaway form that was the uniqueness of what she was doing. I think that’s why Rule spoke to so many people. Cause it was different. And I think that’s why the Rock Chicks spoke to so many people. I wasn’t trying to write the Rock Chicks, cause I could never do that, ever. But because she did something that was so singular and so true to her, I was like “I can do that because I ran around with punk rock dudes and tattoo artist when I was a teenager.” I have that story to tell.

 Write your own story; it’ll be way better.

– Jay Crownover

Q: How many of your characters are based around real people?

JC: My newest book that just came out in March [Recovered] is based on my very first real life boyfriend that I dated when I was a teenager. It’s his story. But he’s married to a ballerina right now so I can’t give you his phone number.

KA: Most of my secondary characters are based on people in my life. I found that especially in early writing I was able to imbue some emotion into the stories. Trixie, in Rock Chick Rescue, has my friend Dixie’s hands. Trixie is nothing like Dixie. Tex, Todd, Stevie, Uncle March, and Aunt Bette are based on real life people. Tack and Wood, both of them I met a guy in Sturgis and he was…oddly enough the story of Justice and Deke is the story of me first seeing this man in Sturgis. I did end up making out with him in a bar. It was a fun night. It was very inspirational obviously; 3 characters came from that. But I didn’t really get to know him, let’s just say! That was just that one lovely night. He was a gentle guy and a gentleman and he was HOT.

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Kristen Ashley is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over fifty novels, including Mystery Man,The Gamble, and Own the Wind. She grew up in Indiana, but has lived in Colorado and the West Country of England.

Author Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

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Jay Crownover is the international and multiple New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men Series, The Saints of Denver Series, the Point Series, the Breaking Point Series, and the Getaway Series. Her books can be found translated in many different languages all around the world. She is a tattooed, crazy haired Colorado native who lives at the base of the Rockies with her awesome dogs. This is where she can frequently be found enjoying a cold beer and Taco Tuesdays. Jay is a self-declared music snob and outspoken book lover who is always looking for her next adventure, between the pages and on the road.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

THE GREATEST RISK – A Kristen Ashley Review & Chapter Reveal

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It’s passionate and powerful; suspenseful and seductive. Kristen Ashley’s finale of the Honey series is an endless list of beautiful adjectives that add up to an explosive 5 star read. Sixx, a renowned Domme in the Honey Club, has had her eyes on Stellan for years. Ever the ice queen, Sixx has never approached or dared to risk anything more than a furtive glance. Her main concern? He’s a Dom; and two dominant personalities combined with her dangerous past could never work. So she watches and waits as Stellan seems to move about life without her.

Stellan’s eyed the beautifully intriguing Sixx for longer than she could imagine. After waiting years for her to make a move he decides that only another Dom is willing to crack the shell of this mysterious femma fatale. What Stellan hadn’t planned on was not only culling the dominatrix but releasing the submissive inside. Our surprising little Sixx is a Switch; a rarity in the BDSM world. Now Stellan has to love the woman in control and woman who craves it. But is Sixx willing to take the greatest Risk?

In KA’s distinctive voice, I found a new hero within Sixx. Much like past heroes in her romances, Sixx has the attitude of a hero who doesn’t shy from what must be done yet doesn’t find themselves worthy of happiness or true love. Sixx is a persona created by our heroine to handle the harsh reality of the world and to shield herself from that which cold break her heart. But KA’s genius doesn’t allow for Sixx to be unnecessary or a skin that must be shed to find the true woman underneath. No, both the woman and the warrior are parts of Sixx that Stellan (and Sixx and readers alike) has to learn to love. There’s a beauty to her fragmented idea of self. Sixx doesn’t need to be fixed, she needs to be discovered, by others and herself.

In addition to our final Honey couple, KA dives into more worlds of the exotic and risque. With a wondrous gift from Stellan we get privilege to a warrior’s pit. And it Sixx’s dangerous world we dive deeper into the other clubs of BDSM and meet one of the hottest trios to ever grace romance pages (Seriously it was some of the hottest scenes I’ve ever read…EVER). The raw emotion throughout the entire novel is the number one reason why this is an instant addition to my top reads. Grab a glass of wine and some tissues because its about to get messy at the Honey Club.

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A woman unable to connect, struggling to hide another part of her.

A man burning to learn her truth, and make her whole.

Through explosive passion and deep exploration, they are about to take the greatest risk of all.

But will they be able to take that leap, and come out on the other side together?

In this next passionate novel in the Honey series, New York Times bestselling author Kristen Ashley delivers a stunningly romantic and intensely sexy novel that will stay with you long after you turn the final page.

 

PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY NOW

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one

Let’s Go

SIXX

Present day …

Sixx wandered the halls of the Bee’s Honey for absolutely no purpose except to make the boys in the booth watching the cameras that monitored the action in the club think she was taking in the scene.

Instead, she was biding time to go into the Dom Lounge to get what she’d stashed in her locker.

She was over it.

Over the scene.

Over the wait.

Done.

The Honey had now become a place she could hang and have a drink, connect with some friends if she was in the mood, get some of her kink by watching, and torture herself being around Stellan.

It was also where she stashed something if she had it to stash. This was because the Honey had surveillance and security that rivaled that of the White House. If a person wasn’t supposed to be there, they didn’t get in there. The end.

She’d been back in Phoenix now for a while.

Months.

And although she’d put on a variety of shows, bided her time, put herself out there, made herself available, Stellan hadn’t thrown down the gauntlet.

She sure as hell wasn’t making the first move.

Thus that first move wasn’t going to be made.

So be it.

She hadn’t expected much and she sure got that.

And she had to admit, part of her was relieved (a large part).

Because if he took a shot, what then?

Could she protect him from all that was her?

Doubtful.

More like impossible.

She never had with anyone who mattered, not that she’d had many in her life who mattered.

And Stellan absolutely did not deserve to have to deal with all that could befall anyone who got close to Sixx.

Tonight was different, though.

Tonight, she wanted done with the extracurricular activity she was engaged in.

Also tonight she roamed the halls knowing Stellan was there, he’d taken a room, and he’d gone off his normal modus operandi.

He’d selected a female sub.

He’d also selected a male.

If in a mood, though that mood was always rare, he’d pick more than one sub.

But they were always females.

Sixx had a feeling she knew why he’d done this. She had Google alerts set up, and she’d seen it.

That it being that it was announced to the media that day that the two-and-a-half-month marriage of Andreas Lange and his pretty-much-child bride Priscilla was done. Although the press was asked to leave the couple alone in this trying time, it was nevertheless reported that Andreas might often think with his dick and had apparent self-esteem issues that drove him to having a pretty young thing dripping off his arm, but when it counted, he used his other head. The one with an actual brain in it.

In other words, he had a reported ironclad prenuptial agreement, and the soon-to-be-again Ms. Newton would walk away with the engagement ring he gave her, any gifts she’d acquired during their relationship and nothing else.

Nothing else.

Not even a settlement.

She was young, and Sixx knew that young didn’t make you stupid, it just made you young, naïve, and perhaps with the beauty that girl had, overconfident. Thus she probably thought her golden looks mingled with a twenty-two-year-old pussy would buy her a lot more time to get a lot more gifts.

Sadly, she’d been wrong.

Sixx could not know how this news affected Stellan. Although they had exchanged a variety of words since she’d been home, they’d both been at a few get-togethers where he didn’t avoid her, but he didn’t pursue her, they’d caught each other’s eyes on a number of occasions; and she’d noted him watching her work with her submissives, as he’d noted her doing the same with his, they had not even resurrected the loose but friendly relationship they’d had before she’d left.

She put it down to him still smarting from Leigh’s falling in love with another man.

That said, even if Leigh had, it appeared that not much had changed between Stellan and Amélie. Although chilly between them when Sixx got back, that had thawed, and they were as sociable and close as they ever had been. And it was clear Stellan liked Olly, Amélie’s enormous, gorgeous stallion.

Then again, everyone liked Olly. It was impossible not to like the guy. He was just that guy who had it all and not simply the fact he was so easy to look at.

He adored Leigh, for one. Utterly. And he did not hide it in the slightest.

But he was outgoing, funny, solid. If you were moving house and you needed an extra pair of hands, he was there. If you had a nephew (or niece) who wanted to be a firefighter (which Olly was), he’d take the kid through his station and introduce him to all the guys. If you were at a cookout with him and running low on your drink, you found your glass slid out of your hand and another one put in it without even having to ask.

Even Stellan, wanting Amélie for as long as he did, couldn’t dislike the guy.

So they’d become friends.

And Sixx had watched.

That was one of the two things she’d done since being back.

In a halfhearted attempt to get his attention (and keep Aryas off her back), she played.

And she watched.

Which was what she was on a mission to do now before she hit the Dom Lounge to prepare to complete her other mission.

As she wandered, Sixx didn’t spend time watching Mira and Trey in their room.

It was tough watching Mira work now that she had a sub and they were together together. In other words, in love. Mira was good at what she did, and Trey liked what his Mistress gave him, but that look of adoration on her face while she was doing it …

Sixx just couldn’t deal with it.

This was also why she avoided Leigh and Olly when they were at play (and more recently, also when they weren’t because the connection they had between them just didn’t stop).

Right then they weren’t in a playroom. They were still in the bar, holding court, The Stallion Alpha Sub King and his Dominatrix Queen, as usual reigning supreme over the club and enjoying it before they moved to a room to enjoy each other.

They were actually worse to watch than Trey and Mira, they were so beautiful together. They were like watching dancers, so perfectly in sync, expressive, at one with each other and their own bodies. The sequence practiced, even if it was always different, it was so graceful it was sublime.

Putting this out of her mind, Sixx moved on her black platform pumps to the back hall full of playrooms, noting, and not surprised, that Aryas’s red room was shuttered away from view. The blackout blinds to that room were scarlet, not black like all the others, thus its name.

It was his own personal playroom if he was in town. And he was. And he had one of his babies in there, working her.

Sixx didn’t need to watch that, although she would have. She’d not only seen Aryas at play, he’d worked her because he’d trained her. He showed her how to be who she was. He introduced her to other Dommes to teach her the things he could not. And he’d played with her in his sessions in which she was required to sub so she could understand the headspace her own subs had to get in to serve her.

She had been surprised she’d liked it.

She’d been freaked she’d liked it so much.

Too much.

Aryas had handled that too for her—amazingly. Which meant he’d helped her handle it.

And then she’d locked it away.

However as she bypassed his room, she felt her lips thin that he was back there with one of his babies and not with the woman he should be with.

At first when Sixx arrived back in Phoenix, he’d let things lie.

Now that months had passed, he was getting up in her face about making a move on Stellan.

Fortunately, she was able to fight back since he wouldn’t make a move on Mistress Talia.

Which was where Sixx went and where she stopped to watch, also not surprised that Talia was working a sub mostly because those two circled each other just this way. If Talia took a sub and he caught it, Aryas wasn’t too far from taking his own. If Aryas took one and Talia caught it, she hustled a sub into a playroom.

Retaliation.

As Sixx watched Talia work a sub named Bryan, definitely a favored and oft-used toy of hers, she got worried.

In a heartbeat, Bryan would take things further with his tall, slender, lithe, beautiful, mocha-skinned, tawny-fro’ed Mistress, and not just because he seriously got off on the way she worked him.

She wasn’t just beautiful and had a serious style going on in and out of a playroom. She was funny, quick-witted, smart-mouthed, loyal and very sweet. And Sixx had witnessed her aftercare of Bryan when she got down to serious business with him, and even knowing Talia’s heart was with Aryas, her head and attention was with Bryan in a way he could mistake the fact that he didn’t have a place in that particular vital organ.

Sixx considered having a word with the Mistress.

She did that, and then she decided instead to have a word with Leigh so Leigh would have a word. Amélie was probably already thinking of doing it. She wasn’t Queen Bee just because she rocked a playroom, and she took her unofficial role seriously.

But if Sixx had a word, she might light a fire, and perhaps if they double-teamed Aryas and Talia, they could get something going.

Before hitting the Dom Lounge, she found her feet taking her one last place.

At first, she positioned herself carefully in order to be able to process what she might see and at the same time be out of his line of sight because he always broke scene to catch her eyes if he saw her at the windows. And the possibility of seeing him working a male sub was something she wanted without him breaking scene.

This eye contact, at first, she’d found terrifying, because it was encouraging. It was rare a Dom working would do that unless he was working directly with another Dom.

When months passed and nothing came of it, Sixx stopped finding it terrifying or encouraging and just found it weird.

There was no invitation in his gaze. No challenge issued. No warmth or comradeship or humor or anything.

He’d just catch her gaze and hold it for as long as it took for her to break it. Even if he was physically inside one of his subs, he’d thrust while simply looking at Sixx, remote and disengaged, from her and his sub, until Sixx herself broke the contact and his attention went back to his sub.

But if he was working a male, especially inside one, this she’d want to see. Man-on-man was a thing of hers, and since she’d returned to Phoenix, she’d indulged in that, always taking multiple submissives, they were always male, and she’d call the shots to get that fix.

Seeing Stellan engaged in something like this would probably make her orgasm right there in the hall. Hell, just thinking about it got her wet.

Then again, although this would be an extraordinary sight to see, Sixx didn’t figure it would take much to do that. In all her play since she’d come back, she had not once let a single sub touch her, she’d rarely touched them, and she hadn’t had that first orgasm, not in play, not with some random partner she picked up out in the vanilla world (because she hadn’t picked anyone up), not even at her own hand.

But as she hesitated at the edge of one of the rooms Stellan favored, the silhouette and blackout blinds up like he normally played it, she didn’t even see Stellan.

The female was working the male, and that work was inspired, but there was no Stellan.

Sixx took one step along the hall.

Another.

And there he was, still in his trousers and dress shirt, but the suit jacket was thrown over the back of the leather club chair he was sitting in. He had his long legs crossed, and he was slanted to the side, elbow on the arm of the chair, head propped up in his hand where it held his square jaw at his knuckles with his forefinger extended along his chiseled cheek.

She drew in a breath at the bored expression on his arrestingly beautiful face, that expression running deep into his dark blue eyes.

He did not look annoyed, upset, or distracted, as news of his father acquiring then disposing of another wife in a matter of months might make him.

He didn’t look anything, certainly not like he was in a room where sweet and dirty sex acts were being performed at his command by the slaves he’d chosen for the evening.

He looked like he was in a meeting that he couldn’t wait to get out of.

Then suddenly, his gaze came to her.

He didn’t move, didn’t lift his head, just swept his eyes straight to her, not like he’d noticed her standing there, like he’d sensed she was there.

His expression didn’t change. Neither did his position.

He stared her right in the eyes, pinning her to the spot, giving her nothing except his regard.

She wanted to scream, Why? Why do you look at me like that? Why can’t you give me something? Anything?

She didn’t do that.

Of course not.

She accepted the only challenge he gave her and stared straight at him in return for as long as she could stand it.

And Sixx could stand a lot, so this lasted a long time, perhaps full minutes, before, as ever (and as ever wanting to kick her own ass), she broke the contact and walked slowly, and as casually as she could fake it, away.

Once out of sight of Stellan, she didn’t mess around going to the Dom Lounge.

There were cameras in there too, but she’d given herself a reason to return there after she had a drink in the hunting ground. This being so she could collect what she’d put there a week ago and be done with the job she was on so she could then collect the paycheck.

She did just this, going directly to her locker and grabbing the small, boxy, black python Alexander McQueen clutch with its four finger loops topped with various skulls or roses. A clutch she’d placed there after she’d arrived rather than giving it to reception, which was what most of the Dommes did.

Inside was a slim, business-card-sized wallet with her credit card, ID and a few banknotes, her phone, another phone that was hers-but-also-not, her lip liner and lipstick, her fabulous vintage compact with mother-of-pearl inlaid in black depicting cranes flying across a yellow moon, her Cayenne keyfob and nothing else.

With her back to the camera, she grabbed a random vibrator she had in her locker, twisted off the bottom where you’d put batteries, upended the flash drive she’d hidden there, and slid it in the lining of the clutch that she’d jimmied so she could open it, hide things behind it, and then press it back in place where it held.

She then went to the mirror.

At first, she didn’t look at herself, but instead used it to take in the plush surroundings of the Dominants’ Lounge.

Deep-seated, purple-velvet banquettes spanned the walls. They were covered in red-and silver-velvet toss pillows. The patterned silver wallpaper behind them was bottom-lit with soft light.

There were attractive steel tables with scented candles glowing on top of them.

The lockers were made of the same steel as the tables and looked like a bank of cabinets with a variety of digital locks, not lockers.

The gleaming black basins had no faucets, just wide, lush waterfalls that activated by motion. There were no paper towels, instead thick, soft, purple, red or silver hand towels and washcloths.

There were showers around the side, as well as a Jacuzzi tub, a steam room and a sauna.

Available for use was anything you could need. Disposable razors (for men and women) and shaving cream, aftershave, a variety of colognes and perfumes, hairspray, lotions, oils, deodorants, tampons, condoms, face moisturizer, bath soap and scrub, shampoo and conditioner.

Submissives were specifically disallowed there. The lounge was for downtime and Dom time outside any scene. If a sub needed to be cared for or it was part of the scene, you requested a room that had those amenities, and the Dom took care of that.

And Sixx longed to stretch out on those banquettes and close her eyes to the D. L. & Co. candles that smelled like vanilla, balsam and pepper, soothing and spicy, so very Aryas. So very the Honey.

God, she loved it there. It was like her home. It was the only place, outside being on a job, where she could be …

What?

Not herself. She played a role there. No one knew who she was. Not really. (Except Aryas, or at least he knew more than everyone else.) Not even people she called friends.

So why did she love it there so much?

And why was her heart hurting that she wasn’t getting out of it what she needed anymore?

She looked at herself in the mirror.

“Because it’s safe,” she whispered to her reflection.

That was it.

And now it no longer felt as safe.

Because Stellan was there, and wanting him and not having him—but more, knowing she should never expose him to what it would mean to have her … hurt.

That didn’t make sense either. She’d wanted a lot in life.

And never got it.

But Stellan was different.

Stellan was …

Sixx shook off her thoughts and took herself in through the mirror.

She couldn’t see the black pumps or her long legs she’d sleeked not only by giving them a close shave all the way up to her pubis but also with a subtle oil that made them shine.

What she could see was the black leather micro-mini that sat tight on her hips, cupped her ass and had a wide black belt with a bold silver buckle.

Up top she wore a white leather modified camisole that had a deep plunging neckline that went to her midriff and spread wide at the sides, showing the inside curves of her smallish breasts. The straps were very thin. There was a tight band across her ribs. It was cropped but not by much, showing only a hint of flesh at her belly between camisole and skirt, depending on how she moved.

Her hair was short, clipped in a graduated bob at the nape of her neck, the champagne highlights in her dark cinnamon hair looking (she thought) great in the sweeping, long bangs that fell well past her eye, the sides of her hair hanging below her jaw, all the ends in messy flips.

She had to style it, which was a minus. But it was short so it didn’t take long, and it had a sex-bomb vibe, so that was a definite plus.

She looked into her wide, brown eyes and wondered, What next?

A weighty question because it wasn’t about what was next for her at the Honey.

But what was next for her with everything.

At Aryas’s appeal (which meant repeated demands), she’d given up “the job.”

Ostensibly.

As far as he knew, Sixx had gone legit, working as the internal investigator for a large local law firm.

However, directly due to Aryas’s interference in some of his other friend’s lives, a need had arisen in Phoenix when Branch Dillinger stopped doing what he did out there and became the operations manager for all of the Bee’s Honeys.

Nature abhorred a vacuum.

Cue Sixx stepping in because first, her pay at the law firm was good, if you weren’t used to making a lot more doing a lot more dangerous shit for a lot more dangerous people. And second, if you were used to doing a lot more dangerous shit for a lot more dangerous people, as well as used to the adrenaline rush that got you, it wasn’t an easy habit to break.

So she had a proper job, not a normal one, but one that included a 401K and a bi-weekly paycheck that gave her insurance benefits.

And on occasion, she moonlit on the side.

Aryas didn’t know.

No one knew (except her friend and sometimes partner, Sylvie Creed, and her husband, Tucker, who she and Sylvie sometimes had to call in to help. But Sylvie wasn’t in the life Sixx pretended to lead through her play and relationships at the Honey).

Even if Sixx got off on it, and the cash she accumulated doing it, not to mention the freedom that offered, she knew she couldn’t do it forever. She had the scars to prove that particular story you told yourself to stay on the job was a lie.

But what would she have if she stopped?

The kink was getting boring. There were only so many orders you could give that led—perhaps in a lengthy way, but nonetheless the end was always the same—to someone else’s orgasm.

It had lost its appeal.

Because she wasn’t connecting.

She used to connect.

She used to stay mostly silent, watch, listen, open herself to being acutely aware of every expression or even twitch of the skin to sense what her sub wanted … then she’d find some elaborate or creative but always hard-earned way to give it to him.

Now she didn’t even have that.

Anyone could give their own self an orgasm. It was her job as a Dominatrix, regardless if the emotion wasn’t there, the attention and the respect and the motivation and the deliberation had to be there to connect. Somehow. Some way.

That was gone.

So what was the point?

To yank herself out of thoughts that were going nowhere, even though her long-lasting lipstick was doing its job, she still opened her clutch, pulled out the liner and lipstick, refreshed the ruby red, ended it with a nice coat of clear gloss, and dropped the stuff back in her bag.

She then grabbed her phone—not her actual phone, the other one—before she clicked the clutch closed and made her way out of the lounge, deciding to have a drink while she dealt with the details of finishing up her final mission of the evening.

She wandered the halls, doing it avoiding having to walk past Stellan’s room, and hit the hunting ground.

The back corner booth was open, so she went there, flipped open the burner phone in her hand, set it to silent and then used her thumb in the onerous task of hitting the numbers on the pad repeatedly to get to the letters she needed to send the short text.

Really, smartphones were a gift from God.

The drop happens tonight.

She tucked the phone by her thigh when a server came, and she decided cool-but-luxe Sixx, Mistress with the Mostest, was fucking dead.

It was over.

No rep to uphold.

No bullshit to convey.

She was over that too.

She wasn’t going to sip from a glass of wine, withholding any personality, any hint of what made her, what defined her, that she might convey through the simple matter of ordering her preferred drink.

“Gordon’s cup. Hendrick’s,” she ordered.

“Gotcha,” the server said then moved away.

She looked to the hunting ground and saw subs avoiding her eyes but still preening in view, hoping she was there to make a selection.

God, she was dried up. Not even a tingle.

The only time she’d felt anything in—Lord, it had been days—was when Stellan’s eyes met hers earlier through the windows to his playroom.

And those days had been the days since she was last at the Honey and Stellan had turned his attention to her.

She looked down to her thigh, flipping open the phone to see no return text, and muttered under her breath, “I’m a fucking mess.”

“Sorry, didn’t catch that.”

Her head snapped up just in time to watch Stellan, back in his suit jacket and definitely out of his playroom, slide in the booth across from her.

God, he was gorgeous.

But …

What the fuck?

“You were saying?” he prompted.

She flipped the phone shut and tucked it against her thigh so she’d feel it vibrate when the text came in.

“I have something on my mind,” she shared, not knowing what to make of this, him in the booth opposite her, making an approach, sitting there looking magnificent but still inaccessible, speaking directly to her with only her there to speak to.

“And that would be?” he asked.

“It’s work,” she told him.

“Ah,” he murmured, glancing to the side and looking up when the server set her drink in front of her. An action he oddly watched with what appeared to be rather avid fascination as the old-fashioned glass came to rest on the burgundy cocktail napkin. “Scotch, please,” he ordered before the guy could ask.

“On it,” the server said and moved away.

Stellan didn’t watch him go and it took a good deal, Sixx didn’t look away when Stellan’s attention came back to her.

“Not in the mood tonight?” he queried.

She shook her head, lifted her drink, and took a sip.

When she put it down, she verbalized that same response. “No.”

“Hmm,” he murmured, and there it was.

God.

There it was.

That “hmm” was almost like a purr, and that purr snaked right up her pussy, an area that instantly got wet.

“You’re finished early,” she noted.

He gave a one shoulder shrug that managed to be masculine and elegant at the same time, something only Stellan could pull off.

“I thought I’d try something new.”

“And?” she asked.

“It wasn’t as successful as I’d hoped.”

“Too bad,” she murmured, taking another sip of her drink.

“Is it?” he returned, and her gaze lifted to his, because he’d asked a question but mostly because that question was strange.

“For you, and them, of course it is,” she replied.

“They got a good deal out of it, I assume, unless she faked it, which is doubtful. He, however, couldn’t fake it as the evidence he left was physical.”

Perhaps she shouldn’t have left so soon. It would undoubtedly have been interesting to watch Stellan orchestrate something like that.

“Unusual for you to choose a male,” she remarked.

He turned his head to the hunting ground and remarked, “An experiment I’m unlikely to repeat.”

She gave it some time, and this was mostly because she was arrested in the act of taking in the beauty of his profile. The cut line of his strong jaw. The angle of his cheekbone. The shadowed hollow under it. The fine lines that fanned from the corner of his eye. The straight slope of his nose. And, Lord God … that remarkable swell of his lower lip.

When she realized another second and she’d start squirming in the booth, she spoke.

“It might be more enjoyable if you went hands on,” she suggested.

He looked back to her and more wet surged between her legs at the expression on his face and what was emanating from his eyes.

“If I fancy ass, it comes with breasts and a vagina or not at all.”

Sixx would take him up her ass, deep, hard, fast, soft, slow, gentle, any way he liked it.

She’d beg him for that.

On that thought, her salivary glands went into overdrive, and she lifted her drink, tipping it to him in salute, before she brought it to her mouth but didn’t take a drink.

“Too bad,” she murmured.

Then she sipped.

His lips, including that luscious bottom one, curled up slightly at the ends.

“Mistress Sixx,” he said softly. “If she had it her way, they’d be lined up by the score and fucked raw, climaxing at her command at the tip of her whip.”

She stared at him, her stomach feeling like it was cramping, but her voice sounded even when she asked, “You say that like there’s something wrong with it.”

“Of course there isn’t,” he drawled, totally and openly lying.

I’d make you like it, she said in her head. I’d make you beg for it. I’d break my back, sell my soul, do anything I’d need to do to make you come harder than you’ve ever come before, tying you to me, connecting you to me, making you never want to leave.

He held her gaze, his face arrogant and knowing.

Or I’d give it to you, her mind whispered. Anything you wanted, anything you’d want to do to me to give you what you needed in a way that need could never be eased and you’d always come back for more.

He kept holding her gaze, but in the dim light of the bar of the Bee’s Honey, she could swear she saw something in his expression grow soft, like he could read her thoughts.

Before she could get a lock on it, or better, turn from him so he couldn’t read anything further, for once he looked away first, but only because the server was there, placing his lowball of Scotch over ice in front of him.

Sixx picked up her drink, looked to the hunting ground, and took a healthy sip.

“Are you staying?”

Stellan’s question brought her attention again to him.

She put her drink down and asked, “Pardon?”

“In Phoenix,” he explained. “I know you travel for work and it takes you away for long periods of time. But this time, you’ve been back for a while, so it seems like you’re staying.”

She had been intending to stay.

Now she didn’t know.

“For a while,” she replied.

He nodded, sipping his drink, and then stated, “I’ve been meaning to invite you, simply haven’t had the chance. But I’m having a party next weekend. We’ve hit June, and the weather hasn’t yet started baking. I’m taking advantage. We’ll start with a pool party, then everyone can change and we’ll move in for dinner. I’d be delighted if you’d come.”

She hid her reaction to that by throwing back more gin.

“Leigh and Olly will be there,” Stellan went on, back to his gaze set unwavering on her. “Mira and Trey. Felicia’s bringing a couple of her toys. Penn and Shane will be there. Victor has a new slave he’s enjoying so he’s bringing her. In other words, it’s a play party, just to make that clear. Though, depending on how it goes, we’ll make things more sociable and less structured for dinner. That will be up to the Dom.”

When he hesitated, she nodded, indicating she’d heard and taken this in, and he kept speaking.

“Belle’s bringing Tiffany. Talia is bringing Bryan. Aryas will be out of town, as will Evangeline’s partner, but Evangeline will be there in her usual capacity. Observation only.”

It was an unwritten rule when referring to the Honey’s Domme Evangeline’s “partner”—who was really her boyfriend who was essentially living with her—at least in the confines of the walls of the club, people did not use his name.

But he was Branch Dillinger. Her partner. Her boyfriend. Her sub. But he was also the Honey’s new top guy, since Aryas had taken a step back from operations in order to focus on opening his new club in Tahoe, and he needed someone he could trust to pick up the reins.

And if Branch played it that way, wishing things to be private, he got it that way, and would even if the man couldn’t probably snap your neck with his bare hands then walk away and not give that kill a second thought.

It was just the life and everyone obeyed that rule.

Though the threat of having your neck snapped worked too.

Sixx was just relieved Evangeline was back, not to mention ecstatic she had a man in her life like Branch. Especially after what was done to her to make her take a prolonged break, all of this happening when Sixx was away.

It was good it happened when she was away. If she was close, retaliation would have been much different than what Aryas had ordered, and even much different than the vastly more thorough way in which Branch had handled it.

But it was handled. So at Aryas’s firm request, she’d let it be.

She was relieved and ecstatic for Leenie … and also jealous.

Jealous because she wondered what it would feel like to have a miracle happen after the world as you knew it turned to complete shit and then one day … you might not be healed, but you were again whole.

“And if you like, I’ll have a couple of male slaves available for your use. Fresh meat. I know a few who’d volunteer that I’m sure you’d like,” Stellan continued.

And that stomach cramp got worse.

He’d provide her “a few volunteers.”

Thoughtful.

And damned disappointing.

She wondered who he’d have there.

And how many.

“I’ll think about it,” she told him.

“Please do,” he said before taking another sip of his Scotch.

She followed suit with her gin, practically willing her phone to vibrate against her leg to give her a reason to get away from him.

Stellan spoke again.

“So you’re not in the mood, will you allow me to offer you something that might strike a different mood? One I’d wager you’d enjoy a great deal.”

At this proposal that came out of nowhere, Sixx almost choked on her gin.

But of course she didn’t, and again her voice was clear and cool when she asked, “What’s that?”

He shook his head. “I’m afraid it has to be a surprise. But I will say it will be a surprise you’ll like. I also have to say, you shouldn’t wait to make your decision or things will culminate and we’ll miss our chance.”

Things will culminate?

Oh no.

She was intrigued.

Damn it!

“Can you give me a hint?” she pressed.

He made a tsking noise that she felt tap against her clit, and as was his usual, he didn’t lose contact with her gaze.

But he wasn’t looking aloof anymore.

This was both an invitation and a challenge.

She just didn’t know to what.

And with Stellan—this sudden Stellan who was vastly different than the Stellan she’d been getting (or not, as the case was) for the last too-many-months—she wasn’t sure how to handle it.

“Don’t disappoint me, Sixx,” he said quietly. “The Honey’s Ice Princess, cool and composed in every situation, shying away from an adventure?”

“I simply need to know how long it would take,” she lied. “I have something I need to do tonight,” she didn’t lie.

“As soon as you need to go, I’ll bring you back.”

He’d bring her back?

He was going to take her somewhere?

“What’s it going to be, Sixx?” he pushed. “In truth, I should have asked you the minute I joined you in this booth. We risk missing the grand finale the longer we wait.”

“Stellan—” she started, wondering how to get out of it at the same time how not to appear like she was jumping on it by accepting too quickly.

She needed time to assess this change, plan, strategize, prepare, fashion a brand-new Sixx. One who could deal with the likes of Stellan Lange and come out the other side of whatever became of whatever was happening unscathed.

And more importantly, make certain he did.

Or time to find a place to hide. Or escape, her mind taunted. Coward.

“I’ve bought you a present,” he shocked her by announcing. “I did this some time ago. I’ve been wishing to give it to you but haven’t had the opportunity. Now’s the opportunity.” The movement was almost not there, but yet it was when he leaned slightly her way and warned in a low voice, “Don’t waste it.”

Again, eye contact, unrelenting.

Challenge.

Invitation.

Finally.

And a gift?

She lifted her drink, took another healthy swallow, put it on the table and then dropped her hand to her thigh to curl her fingers around the phone there while grabbing her clutch off the table with her other hand.

She looked back to him and said, “Let’s go.”

When she did, all vestiges of her stomach cramps disappeared.

Because when she said that, Stellan Lange smiled a wicked, roguish, beautiful smile.

Right at her.

Copyright © 2018 by Kristen Ashley in The Greatest Risk and reprinted with permission from St. Martin’s Griffin.

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Kristen Ashley is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over fifty novels, including Mystery Man, The Gamble, and Own the Wind. She grew up in Indiana, but has lived in Colorado and the West Country of England.

SOCIAL LINKS:

Author Website

Twitter – @KristenAshley68

Facebook – @KristenAshleyBooks

Instagram – @KristenAshleyBooks

 

Copy provided

APOLLYCON 2018 – An Event Recap

Y’all! I am insanely impressed with Apollycon and this was my first year going! I was so nervous to be meeting some of my favorite people on this planet in a new city and with such a large crowd but the staff made it so easy!

Our goal was clear and ready when me and my bestie (BookNerd1107) headed out on Thursday. Y’all I did NOT think I was going to be as excited as I was to be in my nation’s capital but boy… I saw the Pentagon and my mind couldn’t fathom seeing something like that. Now I’m a homebody (ah duh….I READ…A LOT) and having a travel bug is something I’ve wished for but never gotten (#anxietymuch) but having someone explain history and stories of battles that went on when you’re seeing a new city and historical buildings is incredibly humbling.

But on to what you really came here for…the swag, the authors, and the Q&A with Kristen Ashley!

Sponsored by the amazing Tijan, the yellow and grey bags we got not only sported our badge level (Apollyon crew where you at?!) but the donations from publishers was astonishing! With books, and special edition ARC, journals, buttons, bookmarks, and a cute purple beanie I was awed at how MUCH each bag held. Also hello stylish travel bag going forward. Wear that bookgeek merch with pride!

Also included was the queen of Apollycon herself, Jennifer L Armentrout’s latest title The Prophecy with a signed poster for the main character and our model of honor, Mr. Drew Leighty (#swoon).

Also does it make me geeky to love my badge/lanyard and button to an extreme extent? Cause I do! The cute button from LapelYeah is seriously one of my favorite swag items I got the whole time.

Not only did we got the main swag bag, there was a sweet and simple one for the MOVIE PREMIERE (Which I can’t believe existed!) and from the 1001 Dark Nights Sparkler.

Now to those that have never been to a 1001 Dark Nights Sparkler, I must warn you, it is MADNESS! With a handful of their authors waiting at tables, you are handed a card. The goal? Ask each author your question and record the answers. Fully correct cards result in the chance to win a gift card! Not even with the chance to win a gift card, this event was chaotically fun. The mad-dash, shouting of questions, and laughter at outlandish responses put our seemingly idols down to our level of ridiculousness. My questions: Wonder Woman or Catwoman? tough choice, I know, but there were…worse? ones out there. Some poor girl had to ask “hard or soft?”…bless her. My personal fave (and I’m kicking myself for not remembering who answered!) was that someone answered that they wanted Gal Gadot AS Catwoman…..MREOWER! Love it!

Once again our model of honor, Drew, took the opportunity to reveal his horror fan-made movie of Never Hike Alone, a dedication to the Friday the 13th series, to a giggly and hilariously loud crowd of ROMANCE fans on Friday night. Now I, thankfully, am a horror fan and the movie was actually really good. With a small cast, simple plot, and well shot footage, the homage to Jason Voorhees was filled with the right level of jump scares and classic horror-humor (i.e. you’re an idiot…LEAVE THE BACKPACK KYLE!). With an interesting Q&A after the movie about his process and some fun facts about the movie I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this off-topic bonus content.


SATURDAY SIGNING

img_0169 KRISTEN ASHLEY – The queen of romance in my heart! Ya’ll I originally met her during the 1001 Dark Nights Sparkler (and proceeded to hold back tears witnessing her beauty). Kristen is the living embodiment of loving life, glamorous living, and all around rock chick attitude! With a kick-ass wrap dress and killer cute black pumps, KA graced the floor with her smile and general happiness to be around her fans.  I managed to get my Unfinished Hero, Deacon, and our lovely Ollie from the Honey Series signed. So glad my bestie steered me right to her when we walked in cause I was near the front of the line! Can’t wait for the Rock Chick Rendezvous in Cleveland later this year!

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Score! I got Ollie and Deacon signed <3 Plus a special ARC I won at the Brunch!

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A.L. JACKSON – If you could find the sweetest and most adorable author in the group, Amy would be my first choice! I’m not sure how someone so bright and bubbly can write such deep and heartfelt stories!! I managed to get a few backlist items from her catalog and I can’t wait to add more of her to my reading list. I may be a new fan to Jackson but trust me there is love there!

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Sad I didn’t get the title I did want but I’m excited to start some of Jackson’s backlist books!

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LAURA KAYE – My gosh..If I could pick one author who I really wanted to pick their brains, it would be Laura. She’s so engaging and makes it a point to let you know she’s listening to you and hears what you say. I love any author who takes the chance to write about characters with disabilities or difficulties that most authors may shy away from. While I didn’t get a chance to thank her for that in person, I KNOW she know show much her fans lover her.

P.S. She did the cutest thing when I walked up offering all of her swag and asking if there where any new titles I needed or missing blacklist books I could buy. I don’t know why that stood out to me but it was like a little shop keeper was talking to me and it was so cute!

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CORINNE MICHAELS – So my dumb butt was so out of sorts that I forgot to ask Corinne for a photo (UGH!) but bonus is I finally got a copy of One Last Time, a 5 star read y’all! Corinne was the smartest author of the bunch as she had a cute table to stand at versus get up and down and she had some of the coolest swag and bookmarks that OF COURSE…AGAIN my dumb butt didn’t grab many of. But at least Corinne is sweet and charming and made it totally worth it!

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I now have a complete Hennignton collection signed! I also got an early copy of Cooper’s story…be on the lookout for THAT review!

JAY CROWNOVER – YOU GUYS….I may or may not have been so excited to meet Jay Crownover…whom I love so much that I didn’t gran any swag from her either! Thankfully I DID get selfies with her because what else does one do when you meet Jay…you selfie your life away to the Queen of Bad Boys. Y’all if you think Jay is wacky and crazy and fun on social media, real life Jay is HYSTERICAL. I wish I could be friends with her in real life because I feel like at any moment she could make your day crazy wild fun! I’ll never understand someone who is so fun and lively in person can write such dark and deadly romance. But she says it best…bad boys ARE better. Plus I got Cable early so :p!

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HELENA HUNTING – FINALLY!!!!!!!! Helena is seriously such a badass writer, person, woman #alloftheabove!! The Pucked series upped the game (haha pun!) for me with romances once I found Alex and his teammates. Their outlandish, brazen, RIDICULOUS and sexy! If you haven’t grabbed everything this woman’s written then you need to!

Side Note: Helena…you GAVE me a book….girl….I will cherish Area 51 (pfffftttt that sounds so bad!!!!! #sorrynotsorry)

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Choosing which of these to get signed was so hard….but DAMN they thicc!

HH BONUS:  I MET RANDY BALLS! Franggy….too cute. So sweet. And he wrote a kiss to me on the cover #SWOON (Sorry to my man…but he understands me and book-boyfriends are unshakeable)

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PENNY REID – The Overlord herself! Penny’s style of writing has always stood out to me. There’s not a HUGE focus on the sexy-times (but they are still there my friends). As someone who really enjoys those times I thought that may put me off but NOPE! Her characters are intriguing and her stories are filled with so much imagination. Also, she’s hilarious and quirky and just my type of person. Plus she wins signature of the day with her note to me in MOI.

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The BEST note all day!

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LIA RILEY – The last author I saw..I of course forgot to get a photo with as well! Lia writes some sweet sports romances that I found through one of my review sites and let me tell you that she won me over with her Hellions! I may be new to her as well but I can’t wait to read more!!!



Kristen Ashley Q&A Brunch

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The AMAZING swag bag from the Brunch featured this beautiful BookBeau and Court of Candles custom candle!

After a wonderful brunch from the hotel (seriously it was DE-LISH!) Jen and Kristen shared their history of romance novel love and dedicated reading  from a young age onward. Here as some highlights from Jen’s questions and questions from readers attending:

Kristen’s toughest book to write was Golden Dynasty (part of her Fantasyland series) and she’s so proud of it. Not only the female strength of her character versus the hero’s world  but creating a whole language in another world was another challenge for Kristen.

Kristen’s writing process is that she’s an “obsessive pants-er”. She’ll go by the seat of her pants to tell her story and she doesn’t take notes to prep. “The book plays like a movie in my head and its very very hard to shut it down and start tomorrow.” Fun fact: Her cats help her step away from the story and remember to eat.

She LOVES romance. She doesn’t like to watch a television show or read a book that doesn’t have a romantic element. Though she writes contemporary, sometimes danger just happens in her books.

Another Audible exclusive book is coming! The theme will be fantasy!

Chokers. Her heroines wear them for a reason and its a real life experience. Guys, like the Hot Bunch, just like ’em.

She’s been marathoning Altered Carbon (It is SO FRICKIN GOOD TOO!) and Grace and Frankie.

If you haven’t checked out her spread in Eloquii, the brand for curvy women, you should head over to their website and check out their spotlight.

Reader Questions:

I was lucky enough to win an ARC of THE GREATEST RISK <3

What was the inspiration to write Heaven & Hell? Pat Tillman. His story truly affected her.

Have you ever been in a reading rut and what do you do to get out of it? *knocks on wood* She’s never been in one!

How do you do your world building and language creation if you fly by the seat of your pants when you write? She takes notes as she’s writing to remember things and keep track. There’s a separate notebooks “bible” for her fantasy worlds from her contemporary works.

Did you plan to tie in all of your books or did it just happen once and you get doing it? It’s because they are real to her. They carry on living in her head.

You’re a very social author as far as events; have you ever had any interesting or weird reader occurrences? No. She wants everyone to be their own person and she says “Be You” and “Let it all hang out”.

Your characters have a lot more dialogue versus description or plot explanation. Do they talk more to you than show you things? Get ready for there to be more of that. It’s just natural.

Comment from Jen : Kristen has a distinctive voice. SO TRUE!

What did you do in your research for the Honey Series? She had a boyfriend back in the day who was “adventurous”.  She saw a whipping at a club like The Honey that transfixed her because it was so beautiful, unbelievably gentle, and intimate. She was fascinated that they had an audience but they completed disappeared for the master and his submissive.

She’s just written an MMF and that was fun to research!

Would you ever consider doing a crossover with anther author? I never say never anymore. Yeah I would; for sure.

How did you pick the small town in Nebraska (for her book Complicated) because that’s where I’m from!? This is gonna seem very weird…I looked up Targets in Nebraska. And found a place close enough where Greta could get to a Target!

Are any of your characters base don real life people? Yes. A lot. Tex from the Rock Chicks Series, she live din Ava’s row house, Jet’s mom is loosely based on her own mother, Bette and Uncle Marsh are her aunt and uncle, Tod and Stevie were he neighbors when she lived in Indy’s house in Denver.


2019 Announcement

Stay updated for next year! Will I see you?

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ROUGH RIDE – A Kristen Ashley Excerpt Reveal

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Kristen Ashley comes a new story in her Chaos series…

About ROUGH RIDE:

Rosalie Holloway put it all on the line for the Chaos Motorcycle Club.

Informing to Chaos on their rival club—her man’s club, Bounty—Rosalie knows the stakes. And she pays them when her man, who she was hoping to scare straight, finds out she’s betrayed him and he delivers her to his brothers to mete out their form of justice.

But really, Rosie has long been denying that, as she drifted away from her Bounty, she’s been falling in love with Everett “Snapper” Kavanagh, a Chaos brother. Snap is the biker-boy-next door with the snowy blue eyes, quiet confidence and sweet disposition who was supposed to keep her safe…and fell down on that job.

For Snapper, it’s always been Rosalie, from the first time he saw her at the Chaos Compound. He’s just been waiting for a clear shot. But he didn’t want to get it after his Rosie was left bleeding, beat down and broken by Bounty on a cement warehouse floor.

With Rosalie a casualty of an ongoing war, Snapper has to guide her to trust him, take a shot with him, build a them…

And fold his woman firmly in the family that is Chaos.

**Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world. And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you’ll enjoy each one as much as we do.**

 

ORDER YOUR COPY NOW!

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My dad had been a biker. He was a nomad when it came to that kind of thing (or, really, any kind of thing). He accepted being tied down by his woman and his daughter only, not anything else. Not a job. Not a mortgage. Not a membership to a club. He hung with a lot of them, including Chaos (in fact, Hammer, sadly now deceased, but one of the founding members of Chaos, had been my father’s best friend).

But he’d never hung with Bounty.

“Don’t like the feel of them,” I’d heard him mutter years ago. “If you’re an outlaw, own the outlaw. If you’re not, own that. You can’t wanna be a Gypsy Joker. You either are or you aren’t. They wanna be. But they aren’t. That shit just ain’t right and it could get dangerous.”

He’d been right.

It got dangerous.

I should have known.

I should have followed my dad.

Mom and me had done it all our lives, job to job, house to house, city to city.

Why I stopped…

Damn.

I knew why I’d stopped.

I’d wanted Shy; Shy, who reminded me of Dad.

And when I couldn’t have him, I’d gone looking.

I’d wanted what my mom had.

I’d wanted that sweetness. That love.

That devotion.

I’d wanted the stability that just seeped down deep into your bones from all that no matter the job changing, the scenery changing, the amount of times you boxed up a house.

Stability had nothing to do with income and locale.

Stability was all in the heart.

 


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About Kristen Ashley:

Kristen Ashley was born in Gary, Indiana, USA and nearly killed her mother and herself making it into the world, seeing as she had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck (already attempting to accessorize and she hadn’t taken her first breath!). Her mother said they took Kristen away, put her Mom back in her room, her mother looked out the window, and Gary was on fire (Dr. King had been assassinated four days before). Kristen’s Mom remembered thinking it was the end of the world. Quite the dramatic beginning.

Nothing’s changed.

Kristen grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana and has lived in Denver, Colorado and the West Country of England. Thus, she’s blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her family was (is) loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write. They all lived together on a very small farm in a small farm town in the heartland. She grew up with Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Whitesnake (and the wardrobes that matched).

Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music, clothes and love was a good way to grow up.

And as she keeps growing, it keeps getting better.

 

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