#coverreveal FAERIE FATE

Exciting news!

I have a cover for my urban fantasy, FAERIE FATE, to be released through Evernight Publishing. It's just plain gorgeous, too.

Blurb:   

Holly Spencer is a 22-year-old IT major who’s ready to graduate and find her place in the world. What she really wants is a good job and a condo with a view.

But when she’s rescued twice in one day by a mysterious man who claims to be a fae warrior, she’s plunged into a world she grew up believing existed only in fairy tales, and forced to run for her life from warring factions who all want her dead.

Shadow’s on a routine mission when he runs headlong into Holly--the soul mate he’d given up on ever finding. Even though she refuses to believe they’re meant for each other,  he fights to protect her from the very thing that brought them together, even when it means making a dangerous deal with Fate to save her life.

Holly struggles with being told who she’s supposed to love. Shouldn’t it be her choice? But as little by little Shadow kindles her passions and wins her trust, Holly realizes that a life with Shadow may very well be just where she belongs.

Excerpt:

Holly still had to face the things that caused her fear, and as much as Shadow made her feel safe, she couldn’t quite let go of the responsibility of taking care of herself. She couldn’t in good conscience give him any hope when she had no idea what she faced in the next few days. That kind of trust required more than she was ready to give just yet. Still, resisting the temptation to give in to their attraction was becoming more and more difficult.

“I know you’ll do everything you can to protect my life, and if I survive this mission, we can talk about my heart,” she said, resting her head on his chest.

“You’ll survive,” he said. “I’ve already saved you twice. I’ll do it as many times as I need to.”

“As I recall, the last time it was a team effort,” Holly teased. “If I hadn’t shifted form, you wouldn’t have been able to carry me away.”

She heard his laugh rumble in his chest. “Very true. That just proves what a good team we are.” He pushed her back just a little to look her in the eyes, “And as I recall,” he said, a wicked grin spreading slowly across his lips, “the last time I saved you, you wore nothing but a smile. Is that going to be a habit?”

“You wish. What does that have to do with anything anyway?”

Still holding her close, he traced the line of her dress, down one shoulder, across the valley between her breasts, and back up again, making her shiver. 

“Nothing. I was just thinking how impressive it was.”

And, it's an Evernight editor's pick!

I'll let you know when buy links are up, and when we have a firm release date. Until then, you can find me in these places. Come visit me there!

Twitter

Facebook

Goodreads

While you're waiting for FAERIE FATE, you can go grab a copy of GAMBLING ON THE OUTLAW to tide you over.    

~Margaret

Release Day

Today's release day for Gambling on the Outlaw.

Happy Book Birthday to my book baby!

For those of you who have had a book release, you know how it feels: joy and terror all wrapped up in one.

Will anyone buy it?

Will it tank?

All that hard work, I hope people like it.

What if they don't?


It's all the standard artist angst, but it's real, especially in a world where there are thousands of new books and it's really easy to get lost in all the noise.

Today, however, I'm going to try to put that worry aside and be happy to see my book baby out in the world, and proud of the characters, story, and accomplishment!

Thank you all for joining me today. If you're an author, I hope you get to experience the excitement of release day for yourself. If you're a reader, I hope you appreciate how much your enthusiasm keeps authors going!

Now, go check out Gambling on the Outlaw, where sometimes, everything can ride on one high stakes game of chance...

~Margaret

Daily Dose - Anne Conley Cover Reveal

Anne Conley is my guest blogger today.

But before I turn it over to her, don't forget tomorrow is release day for Gambling on the Outlaw!

Don't forget to join the Facebook release party here:  JOIN HERE!

Hope to see you there!

And now...ANNE CONLEY!

Series:Pierce Securities Book 2

Author:Anne Conley

Release Date: June 29th

Blurb:   Evan Rocco has been a hero to Paige Lawson for as long as she could remember. So when she runs into him in a bar after a major professional coup, she’s feeling celebratory and reckless. But it can’t go anywhere, because after all, he’s Evan Rocco. When she finds her gaming company in trouble, there’s only one man she can turn to. Evan can’t get the woman who disappeared after their one-night-stand six months ago out of his head. He’d honestly thought there was more between them besides just sex—a connection he’d never felt before. When PSL, his favorite game software company is the victim of sabotage, he jumps at the chance to help them solve the mystery behind The Crimson Lady, the fan-made character who’s taking credit for murder. Maybe it will get his mind off the woman of his dreams. When he realizes who the CEO of PSL actually is, he has to get over his own issues or else he’ll put the one woman in danger he never wanted to hurt. This is book two in the Pierce Securities series, a stand-alone story. The first book, while not necessary to read, is Craze.

 Excerpt:

As usual, her voice came out husky and choked when she tried to speak to him. “I’ll see you first thing Monday morning. Promise. But I can’t talk about this now.” She motioned to Emily, and Evan nodded but didn’t move. Jeez, he was so close.   They made small talk, and Paige actually found herself flirting with him a little, relaxing, while the line moved at a snail’s pace to the haunted house. She found out Travis was a neighbor whose parents traveled a lot. Evan also told her things she already knew: he had a brother in the Marines, his parents had retired to Montana to raise horses, lots of superficial stuff. She told him about her father taking her to haunted houses when she was a kid while her scaredy cat sister had stayed home with Mom. She mentioned her parents were dead, but didn’t give the details. She couldn’t take her eyes off him. Dressed casually, he reminded her of the first time they’d met. He wore a black t-shirt and worn jeans along with the oldest pair of Converse she’d ever seen. His hair was mussed, as if he’d spent a long day at work, running his hands through it like a crazed man. With her constant avoidance of him, he probably had. A pang of remorse hit her hard. She hadn’t made this easy for him. It was time for her to step up and take responsibility. She’d hired him to do a job, and she needed to get over her school-girl crush and help him. But it was really hard with him staring at her like that.   She could always blame the teenagers for her inappropriate thoughts. They were walking, talking, flirting hormones on legs. By the time they’d made it to the door, Travis had Emily’s phone number and they’d already made a date and were holding hands. She was positive that if she and Evan hadn’t been there they’d be making out. The teenagers that is, not them. Even though she’d relaxed quite a bit, her heart was still letting her know he was standing awfully close to her. They went in like a train, with Travis volunteering to lead. Emily hung on to his belt loops followed by Paige. Bringing up the rear, one of Evan’s hands dropped protectively to her back. She ignored the warmth trickling through her t-shirt at the contact. Her heart pounded and her hands were clammy, but it wasn’t because of the fog, or the spooky lighting, or the clanging noises, or the zombies jumping out. It was all Evan Rocco, holding onto her.   As far as haunted houses went, this one was disappointing, or maybe she just couldn’t get into it with Evan’s breath on her neck, his hand at her waist, or his other hand snaking around her torso. The further inside they went, the closer they got. Travis was at the front of the line, jumping with every zombie clown that popped out, giving her ample warning of spooky things ahead. By the halfway point, Evan’s arms were around her torso, with her own hands clutching him while they walked in sync together, his hot breath on her neck warming her insides At one particularly dark corner, Evan yanked her backward into an alcove, pushing her into the darkness. He leaned his forehead on hers while his forearms leaned on the wall on either side of her head, caging her in, keeping her from bolting. “You have any idea how many times I’ve thought of this since April?” His body crowded her into the tiny, dark space while his minty breath sent her senses reeling. “Haunted houses?” she offered weakly before his mouth met hers.   It was suddenly as if the puzzle piece she lost six months ago had been put back into place, and she melted into him as his tongue triumphed over the recesses of her mouth. He growled, a predatory rumble emanating from his chest that reminded her of that night last April, and she whimpered against him as he hauled her into his embrace, wrapping his arms around her tightly. His tongue danced with hers, twining around inside her mouth while his hands roamed her body, cupping her ass. She twirled her fingers in his hair, bringing his mouth closer, fusing it with hers, unwilling to break this kiss which was rapidly undoing her—mind, body, and soul. As her fingertips clutched desperately at his biceps, she marveled at how someone who was every bit as geeky as she was could be so fucking beautiful, because Evan Rocco was a seriously beautiful man. And this kiss was feral, something wild, causing her to throw caution to the wind and go with it for as long as it lasted. Evan broke the kiss, leaning his forehead on hers again, his dark brown eyes consuming her. “Paige,” he breathed out ragged gulps of air. “What the fuck is happening?”

Be sure you don't miss out on this release, and be sure to stay up-to-date with Anne. Join her mailing list, follow/friend her on facebook, twitter, and her blog, where you can read first chapters and find purchase links... Newsletter sign up: http://www.anneconley.com/p/contact.html Amazon's Anne Conley page: http://amzn.to/1FkJagc Friend Anne Conley on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anne.conley.752 Like her on Facebook: www.facebook.com/anneconleyauthor Twitter: @anneconley10 Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/anneconley/ Her blog and website: www.anneconley.com
  

Craze: Book One:

Book One in the Pierce Securities series, Craze, is available now at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iTunes, and most other online retailers.   When Krista catches her boss doing the unthinkable, the only thing she can do is run. Straight into the arms of the eye-candy she’s been trying not to flirt with on her lunch break. But whose side is he on? Ryan’s security firm is having a hard time getting off the ground, and this may be just the job to help the company out. But pseudo-bounty hunter isn’t really what Pierce Securities is trying to get a name for. When he finds out their target is the classy lady from the park, all of Ryan’s senses go on high alert. What do these men want with her? Krista is forced into Ryan’s sanctuary in the woods, where she realizes just how wild he is, but she doesn’t want to tame him. He may feel his methods of protection endangered her, but without Krista in his life, Ryan is crazed. This is book #1 in the Pierce Securities, a Romantic Suspense series by Anne Conley, author of the Stories of Serendipity and The Four Winds.


~Margaret

Daily Dose: A Little Tease

Only three more days until the release of Gambling on the Outlaw!

 
Today, I have a little tease for you. This is from Beth, thinking about Isaac:



         Although I wanted very much to shift from the rocker to the edge of the bed and assist him with his breakfast, perhaps feeding him bits of bread with creamy butter that he'd have to lick from my fingertips, I opted for maintaining at least a modicum of decency and kept my rear end rooted to the chair. I suspected where Mr. Isaac Collins was concerned, me and my good sense were in a heap of trouble, because my body had clearly declared war on us.

Don't forget to join me for my Facebook launch party on Tuesday, June 23, 2015 from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. central standard time (CST)!  Here's the LINK to join. Hope to see you there!


~Margaret

Daily Dose: Meet the Author

Gambling on the Outlaw releases in four days. Needless to say, I'm excited!

Yesterday, I introduced you to the characters in the book. 

Today, I'm going to introduce you to myself.


Name:  Margaret Madigan

Zodiac Sign:  Pisces

Chinese Zodiac:  Horse

Spirit Animal:  Bunny (it's kind of a long story...)

Okay, fine, I'll tell it. When my oldest son was a toddler, Hubby started calling him Monkey-boy because he was wild and always climbing on everything. Our daughter became Mousey-girl because she was born bald and her ears stuck out and she looked like Feivel's sister on An American Tail. Our youngest son became Froggie-boy because when he was a baby he had a big frog-like mouth, and when he was a toddler, he squatted down like a frog. I'm a bunny because Hubs always called me Snugglebunny (I know it's sappy, get over it). Hubs is a panda because he likes them. lol.

Favorite Color:  green  (more in the sage range than, say, the forest green range)

Favorite flower(s)  Lilac, Freesia, Carnation

Introvert or Extrovert:  So incredibly introvert.

Favorite Food:  I have a love/hate relationship with carbs. I love to eat them, but my waistline hates them. However, my favorite foods are donuts, cheesecake, pancakes, breakfast cereal. Bacon's pretty high on the list, too.Oh, and I like raspberries.

Favorite Book:  The Gunslinger, by Stephen King. I love the whole series (except book 4...sorry Steve), but the first is my favorite.

  
Favorite Movie:  I can't pick just one, so here's my top five:

             Galaxy Quest
             Mr. and Mrs. Smith
             Jurassic Park
             Back to the Future
             Aliens
            
(I'm a movie junkie. Picking only five was seriously painful. Any other day, the five might be different.)


Favorite TV series: Again, I'm a TV junkie, too, so I'm going to try to narrow to five:

            Stargate SG-1
            Supernatural
            The Walking Dead
            Breaking Bad
            Torchwood

(anyone else find it ironic that I write romance, yet my favorite books, movies, and TV series are all scifi and action???)

Favorite Music:  I'm actually not a big music fan. I listen to it while I write, but just as background to block out noise. I try to match the genre of music to the genre I'm writing, but overall I don't have favorite bands or songs or genres. I told someone recently I don't listen to music while I drive, and they looked at me like I'd spoke a foreign language.

Phobias:

*shudder*

           - You're going to scratch your head here, but I'm terrified of balloons (inflated ones).  I don't know
           why, but seriously, I have to leave the room if there's a balloon in it.
          - Spiders. This requires no explanation, because--spiders.
          - Open heights. Being in a plane is no biggie, being up high in the open--terrifying
          - Big crowds. I freak out being at the mall in the holiday shopping season.

Secret Fears:

         - As an author, that nobody will buy my work, or that nobody will like it. But I think that's a fear
           all authors share.
        - Personally, I fear I'll get to the end of my life and not have accomplished all the things I want to. The
          older I get, the more I realize how damn short life is, and how fast is speeds by.

What makes me sad:

        - My kids growing up and leaving the house. I'm happy they're embarking on the adventure of their
           lives, but God, I miss them.
        - Hatred. There's so much of it in the world right now. I don't understand why.
        - That humans can't seem to be good stewards for the planet. Mother Nature's running out of patience,
           and I doubt we'll like it when she finally says enough is enough.

What makes me happy:

Rufus

       - My friends, Hubby, kids.
       - My cat Rufus.
       - When I'm writing and the words and scenes flow. It's the most amazing high.
       - Springtime when everything is lush and green and full of life and hope.
       - Carbs.
       - Money. Shallow, I know, but there were a lot of years we couldn't pay the bills, so having enough
         money to pay the bills is such a blessing.

If I could live anywhere in the world, where?

     - I think I'd like to try living somewhere in Scandinavia. Not only is it beautiful, but they're politically,
       socially, and culturally progressive and responsible. I think that would be refreshing.

If I could have any superpower, what would it be?

      - My top three would be: healing, mind reading, teleportation

If I could have any skill or talent I don't already have, what would it be?

      - I'd like to be able to paint.

If I could meet any historical figure, who would I choose?

     - Top three would be Leonardo Da Vinci, Elizabeth I of England, Buddha

Leo

 

So, that's me in a nutshell. If I left anything out, feel free to ask.  I'd love to get to know all of you, so share some things about yourself in the comments!

~Margaret