I’ve been on a big male/male books kick lately, and I thought I would share some of my favorites with you guys! These are in no particular order…

1. Ryan’s Harbor – Viki Lyn (always a good choice to read her stuff)

2. College Boys – Daisy Harris (the first DH book I’ve read, and I loved it)

3. Love the Sinner – Avril Ashton (also my first book by this author, but it won’t be my last)

4. Brook Street series – Ava March (I’m kind of cheating here since this is three stories but since each is only about 30k all together they make one longer book – this series is historical)

5. Xavier’s Way – Diana DiRicci (another new author to me and a great book)

6. Scrap Metal – Harper Fox (yet another new author, this one is gritty but really good)

7. Finding Home – Cameron Dane (not a new author, but an excellent book)

8. Private Eye – SE Culpepper (another new author, another gritty one, and also excellent)

9. Tabloid Love – TA Chase (not new author, but a very good story)

10. Broken Boundaries – Evangeline Anderson (new author, great book)

11. Moving in Rhythm – Dev Bentham (new author, riveting storyline)

12. A Private Gentleman – Heidi Cullinan (not a new author, another historical)

13. The Rebuilding Year – Kaje Harper (new author, great book)

And a bonus entire series:

The “Balls” series by Tara Lain. Can’t wait for Beach Balls, which releases in early June.

I’m still looking for more good male/male books, so shoot any rec’s my way in the comments!

For more information about me or my books, see http://www.booksbycassandracarr.com.

Today I’m happy to welcome fellow author Steena Holmes to the blog. Steena’s got a post about kissing – something we can all relate to. Enjoy!

A kiss is just a kiss until …

How would you finish that sentence?

There are so many types of kissing out there. From slow and sensual to hard and frantic. There’s the undeniable romantic kiss in the rain, the passionate after fighting kiss and then the endearing ‘I love you’ type of kiss.

But a kiss is still just a kiss until… What is it that makes you sit forward while watching a movie and wishing you could switch places? Or lose yourself in a scene in the latest book you’re reading?

For me, it’s when two (or maybe three or more) characters are interacting and they have their walls up. As a reader/watcher you know those walls are up, that reactions are hot and fresh. And then it happens. Someone says something or does something where the walls come down. And everyone knows it.

It’s in that moment when the true character is being shown – with all the vulnerabilities and scars – and you can’t help but fall more in love with them than you already are. You’ll see a slight fluttering of the lashes as they secret a glance to view the reaction of what they’d just admitted, then a flush that will enhance the delicate skin.

There might be a tender touch, of fingers as they frame a cheek, or entwine themselves in hair. When their bodies are drawn close together you can’t help but notice the chest swell as they struggle to breathe, the way the lips will part as if there is a word to be spoken, the gentle touch before the crushing of lips as they meld together … (sigh)

A kiss is just a kiss until I forget to breathe as I lose myself in the sensation.

What about you? What’s your favourite kissing scene and when did it become ‘more’ than a kiss for you?

Thanks Cassandra for having me as a guest on your blog!

Steena

Buy link for Finding Emma - http://www.amazon.com/Finding-Emma-ebook/dp/B007KQHBEU/?tag=cr0229-20

Buy link for Cabin Fever - http://www.amazon.com/Cabin-Fever-ebook/dp/B00789T0RA/?tag=cr0229-20

Here’s a scavenger hunt with a twist – you have to be a detective to figure out these clever clues! Head on over to Lucy Felthouse’s Forum Thread at Coffee Time Romance and scroll down to see all the prizes and find out how to enter. Solve the puzzle for each of the ten clues and follow the instructions to send your entry to Lucy.

The hunt runs for one week, today through May 20 (9am GMT, to be precise). Good luck!

Hello all and Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful moms out there. Not many of my characters have a close relationship with their moms, but Brady from Collision loves his! Here’s proof:

He was lying on the bed resting when a knock sounded at the door. He opened it and was enveloped in a tight hug by his mom. “Bradybear, I missed you!” His mother fussed over him for a minute before he finally talked her into sitting down at the banquette.

“So when are we going to meet this young lady of yours?” His mother dove right in.

To see all the other fabulous authors taking part in Six Sentence Sunday, go here. To learn more about me and my books, check out http://www.booksbycassandracarr.com.

The NHL playoffs are in full swing and I thought this would be a good opportunity to showcase the hot men of hockey to fans and non-fans alike. There will be representatives from the top eight teams: New York Rangers, Washington Capitals, Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey Devils, Phoenix Coyotes, Nashville Predators, Los Angeles Kings, and St. Louis Blues.

I tried to get pics in street clothes, but some of these guys just refuse to pose for me. *sulking*

New York Rangers: Brandon Prust

Washington Capitals: Niklas Backstrom

Philadelphia Flyers: Claude Giroux

New Jersey Devils: Zach Parise

Phoenix Coyotes: Antoine Vermette

Nashville Predators: Mike Fisher (aka Mr. Carrie Underwood)

Los Angeles Kings: Dustin Brown

St. Louis Blues: Chris Porter

I discovered Mad Men late, but caught up to the show through DVDs. This is a great show with deeply flawed characters, and those characters have some truly great lines. Following, 13 of them…

Don Draper:

“They say as soon you have to cut down on your drinking, you have a drinking problem.”

“You want some respect? Go out there and get it for yourself.”

“Listen, Pete, I need you to go get a cardboard box. Put your things in it. Okay?”

“I’d have my secretary do it, but she’s dead.”

Roger Sterling:

“Look, I want to tell you something because you’re very dear to me and I hope you understand it comes from the bottom of my damaged, damaged heart. You are the finest piece of ass I ever had and I don’t care who knows it. I am so glad I got to roam those hillsides.”

“Remember Don … when God closes a door, he opens a dress.”

Joan Harris:

“But that’s life. One minute you’re on top of the world, the next minute some secretary’s running you over with a lawnmower.”

“I’m not a solution to your problem. I’m another problem.”

Trudy Campbell:

“I don’t care what your politics are, this is America. You don’t just shoot the President.”

Lane Pryce:

“Am I to entertain your ballad of dissatisfaction, or has something actually happened? Because I am at work, dear.”

Peggy Olson:

“Why it is that whenever a man takes you to lunch around here, you’re the dessert?”

Harry Crane:

“Draper? Who knows anything about that guy? No one’s ever lifted that rock. He could be Batman for all we know.”

Betty Draper:

“I know people say life goes on, and it does, and no one tells you that’s not a good thing. Why is that?”

Author extraordinaire Eden Bradley has rounded up a group of BDSM romance and erotica authors to talk about 50 Shades of Grey, sex, submission, dominance and bondage. Lots of great interviews and two amazing prize packages!

Hop on over for some great reading and a chance to win some deliciously sexy books!

Today I’m pleased to welcome Sophie Pembroke to the blog. Sophie is talking about something near and dear to every romance author –  attraction. Take it away, Sophie!

Attraction – Sophie Pembroke

Thanks, Cassandra, for having me here today!

Now, I’ve just been taking a look around Cassandra’s site, and I couldn’t help but spot some very attractive men hanging out here. One of the best parts about writing romance, of course, is the fact that Googling ‘hot men’ and staring at their pictures for ‘inspiration’ is practically part of the job description.

But more than that, you get to bring them to life, as fully fledged heroes with all their associated issues, but still ready to sweep your heroine off her feet.

Of course, your heroines don’t know that – not to start with, anyway.

And that’s one of my favourite parts about writing a new book. That moment where the heroine sees the hero for the first time and thinks, ‘just maybe…’ Sometimes they’ve never met before, sometimes they have history. Sometimes it’s someone they never expected to see again, sometimes it’s a guy they’ve seen every day for years only this time, they see something new.

Right there, in that moment, everything is possible. There’s a whole love story set out in front of them, and a whole adventure to have.

So, in celebration of that moment, here’s a little sneak peak of the first meeting between Carrie and Nate, the couple at the heart of my first novel, Room for Love.

BLURB

Can she make room for love? 

When wedding planner Carrie Archer inherits the crumbling Avalon Inn where she spent her childhood summers, she knows she’ll do whatever it takes to make it home. With no money for renovations, that means teaming up with her boss to turn the Avalon into a dream wedding venue.

But Carrie has been left more than the Inn–she’s also inherited its occupants, including three senior citizens, a single father chef with childcare issues, a panicky receptionist, and one very gorgeous gardener.

So when her cousin Ruth declares her intention to get married at the Avalon on Christmas Eve, Carrie finds herself juggling decorating with dance nights, budgeting with bridge games…and sabotage with seduction.

WARNING: Some sexual content. And sexual frustration…

EXCERPT

The heavy, dark-wood front door, with its stained glass panel showering colored light onto the stone floor of the reception area, felt like another old friend to Carrie. She remembered being too small to even open it on her own; sitting on the step outside waiting for Nancy to come back from the garden to help her, or for a kindly passing guest to let her in. Today, Carrie’s hand hovered above the wood, suddenly reluctant to enter. What if it wasn’t as she remembered? Who was waiting inside?

Carrie sucked in a breath and shoved. The door fell open under her hand, easier than she’d remembered, and she stumbled before finding her feet.

Her favorite tapestry still hung above the reception desk and the sparkling silver threads of the unicorn’s horn caught her eye immediately. Her gaze moved lower. A line of senior citizens spanned the width of the hall, all standing straight backed and staring ahead, like the staff of a 1930s stately home, welcoming their master back from a long trip.

Exactly who had Nancy been hiring lately?

They looked faintly familiar from the funeral, but Carrie knew she’d been too upset that day to really take anything in. Plus, she’d spent most of the day arguing with Dad. Nothing much else had registered. Now she wished she’d paid more attention.

After a long moment of staring at each other, a younger man at the end of the line stepped forward out of the shadows. Even at a six-foot distance, she had to tilt her chin up to take in his cropped brown hair, accentuating a strong jaw. She let her gaze drop enough to linger on the wide, muscled shoulders that looked like he spent his days slinging oxen around, or something equally rural.

“Shall I do the introductions?” he asked, eyebrows raised. Carrie blinked. He wasn’t just gorgeous, he felt…familiar, somehow.

And despite his welcome, he didn’t look too pleased to see her.

Sophie Pembroke

Room For Love

$4.99

Buy link:

http://www.lyricalpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3_25&products_id=514

ABOUT SOPHIE

Sophie Pembroke has been writing romance for years, ever since she stayed up all night reading Mills and Boon novels as part of her English degree at Lancaster University. She loves to set her contemporary romance stories in the places she has lived – from the wilds of the Welsh mountains, to the gentile humour of the English country village, or the heat and tension of a London summer. She also has a tendency to make her characters kiss in castles.

Currently, she makes her home in Hertfordshire, with her husband and daughter. She writes love stories in her little spare room office, while drinking too much tea and eating homemade cakes. Or, when things are looking very bad for her heroes and heroines, white wine and dark chocolate.

Sophie keeps a blog at www.SophiePembroke.com, which should be about romance and writing, but is usually about cake and castles instead.

LINKS

Web & Blog: www.SophiePembroke.com

Twitter: @Sophie_Pembroke – https://twitter.com/#!/Sophie_Pembroke

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Sophie-Pembroke/134474999990027

Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/profile.php?id=100003136928151

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5111053-sophie-pembroke

Lyrical Press: http://www.lyricalpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=authors&authors_id=206

BUY LINKS

Well, my six sentences from Loaded Question last week seemed to be popular, so let’s stay with that!

Long moments later, I gave in to the tingling at the base of my spine. “Gonna come soon,” I warned her, my voice husky and crackling. I grabbed both sides of her head in my hands, keeping her on my dick.

She tightened her mouth around me further, and I erupted, spilling into her mouth as jet upon jet of cum streamed out of my cock. I’d never come so hard in my entire life. I actually saw spots.

To see all the other fabulous authors taking part in Six Sentence Sunday, go here. To learn more about me and my books, check out http://www.booksbycassandracarr.com.

Hi everybody! Just wanted to let you know that I, along with 12 other authors, are taking part in a Cinco de Mayo chat over at The Romance Studio. The URL is http://trsparties.com.

The lovely Kayelle Allen made us some awesome videos. Check them out and then come over. We’ve got some hot excerpts and cool prizes, plus some yummy recipes. You might even win one of two $50 gift certificates!

http://youtu.be/uCwvQEdk5Dc

http://youtu.be/t8PYeTIJGew