Throwback Thursday Book Club Pick....

This week’s Throwback Thursday Book Club pick is a romantic suspense and a military romance all rolled into one....

Title: Hard to Hold

Author: Stephanie Tyler

Originally Published: 2009 (by Dell)

Back Cover Blurb: The special ops hero feared nothing—until he met a woman too hot to hold.…

Lieutenant Jake Hansen has survived some of the riskiest missions known to man. But now the wounded Navy SEAL faces his toughest job yet: smuggling Dr. Isabelle Markham out of Africa without triggering an international incident. Not easy to do when the gorgeous hostage happens to be a senator’s daughter—and about as easy to resist as an oasis in the desert.

If it weren’t for Jake, Isabelle would still be halfway across the world, where rebel forces left her for dead. The special ops warrior may have saved her life, but she doesn’t need him to protect her now. Tell that to the ruggedly handsome hunk in full battle fatigues who’s just been assigned as Isabelle’s personal bodyguard. Close quarters aside, Isabelle won’t let Jake anywhere near her heart—until danger throws them together again. And nothing in the jungles of wildest Africa could prepare them for a passion this wild. This crazy. This hot…

Why I Recommend It: Before I read this book, Nora Roberts was my only RS auto-buy author. I read this book so quickly, I instantly went out and bought the subsequent books in the trilogy. It’s not just the chiseled, bad-ass alphas that make these books must-reads – it’s the whole package. The heroine’s backstory is pretty heavy, but Tyler handles the effects of her past abuse and kidnapping with great care and responsibility. This combined with her voice and readability made me really respect Tyler as an author. Oh, and Jake just happens to be on my short list of all-time favorite alpha heroes!

Amazon Average Rating: 3.7 Stars (5 Stars for me!)

So far this season, we haven’t seen any flurries or snow on the ground here in our part of the South. My sympathies to those who have. We’ve had a few warm-ish days. Warm-ish, pre-spring days are good because you get the decent weather without the bugs—great chance to get the little ones outdoors without having to spray them down first. Check out this adorable woodland creature, snapped a few weeks ago….

Don’t forget to visit Roses of Prose tomorrow for this year's quick guide to Irish Gaelic for your Paddy’s Day….

Throwback Thursday Book Club Pick....

Welcome to our second Throwback Thursday Book Club! Today’s selection is for those who love historical romance, particularly those of the Regency variety….

 

Title: Wicked Little Game

Author: Christine Wells

Genre: Historical Romance (Regency)

Originally Published: 2009 (from Berkley Sensation)

Back Cover Blurb: The Marquis of Vane hungers for Lady Sarah from afar as she braves a disastrous marriage. That is until Sarah's husband makes him an indecent offer: one night with Sarah for ten thousand pounds. Passions explode and lead to a deadly twist of fate that could spell a lifetime of regret-or love.

Why I Recommend It: While this title is unfortunately hard to find these days, I must admit that I came across it years ago by accident. It also led to my obsession with Regency romance. In fact, all I read for a period of almost two years was Regency romance. Also…this book desperately made me want to write a Regency romance novel, a feat I’m still trying to conjure to this day…. If you’re looking for a bit of an unconventional or a modern Regency, this book’s for you!

Amazon Average Rating: 4 Stars (It’s on my keeper shelf; definitely 5/5 in my book!)

 

This wintry weather is making me long for spring…and, I’ll admit it, even summer—because summer reminds me of lake days like these. Last month, my husband, son, sister, and I met my father at our family lake house. The water was down about fifty feet from the seawall. My husband had the wonderful idea of encapsulating some of the sandy/grainy lake bottom in glass jars so that we could seal them and keep them forever. We wound up taking two bottles home to the coast to have with us even on days like today when summer and lake vacations seem very far away. It also serves to remind me of days like the one on which this photo was taken at a place fondly referred to by our family as “Three Pines,” a teensy weensy island in the middle of the lake where we picnicked as kids. It no longer has three pine trees, as the name would entail. I think most of the island has been lost to erosion. There's hardly room to tie up your boat and camp anymore. But two summers ago, we returned to Three Pines by boat to take a host of nostalgic pictures. My sister and I even went so far as to recreate a sentimental pose from our early childhood. Whenever I need a little dose of sunshine to brighten my winter days, I go back to this album. Mm, yes. I can just feel the lake sand squishing between my toes….

 

Warm thoughts to you and yours, Cozies -- and, as always, happy reading!

 

 

Upcoming Features & Events....

Howdy, readers! I’m excited to talk about a few fun new features coming here to my cozy corner of the web, starting next month….

Throwback Thursday Book Club

So often I’ve discovered great reads that happen to be five or more years old. I never would have found reading gems like Christine Wells’ Regency romance novel, Wicked Little Game and The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons if I hadn’t started reading titles that aren’t exactly fresh off the presses. So to celebrate titles like these, I’ve decided to open up a new feature on here at The Cozy Page every other Thursday called the Throwback Thursday Book Club. Every other week, readers can find a new recommended read published prior to 2010. You can also comment and recommend your own “throwback” title, which I’ll be happy to include in the following Throwback Thursday Book Club pick….

 

Book Bundle Giveaways

Yes, that’s right! I had so much fun giving away book bundles last year in honor of my Harlequin Superromance debut, A Place With Briar, that I’m bringing back book bundles giveaways to Cozy. I have three of these giveaways planned so far this year, starting with a special Valentine’s Day bundle next month. Be sure to check back in next month for more about our first giveaway of the year and others to follow….

 

Adopt a (Used) Book Reader Service

This is more for readers who have subscribed to my official mailing list, but I wanted to go ahead and mention it anyway. While sorting through my book collection, I realized 1) how little room I have for books on my shelves and 2) how difficult it is to part with these books. There’s little I can do in the first case. However, giving away these books would be buckets easier if I knew that they could somehow find their way into loving homes. (Yes, for me, bringing books home is much like adopting a pet). To that end, I’ve been tossing around the idea of opening up a used book adoption service for readers. Every month in my official author newsletter, I will list titles by genre of used books that are still in good to fair condition. From there, readers will then be able to enter in the drawing for 1-3 listed titles of their choice. There’s something for everyone – romance, sci-fi/fantasy, even a little erotica and non-fiction. A winner will be chosen at the first of every month, except for the months that include a book bundle giveaway here at my blog. All that I ask of winners in return is that they add the titles to their own keeper shelves if they are so inclined or (if a title isn’t to their liking) to keep the used book service going by donating them to their local library, book group, or Salvation Army. So what do you think? Does this sound like a service you’d be interested in? I’d love some feedback on it as I toss around ideas for it throughout the next couple of weeks….

 

Speaking of February, I’ll be blogging both at Roses of Prose and Super Authors on Friday, February 6th. At Super Authors, I’ll be sharing my latest cooking catastrophe. And on Roses of Prose, I’ll be sharing a special “slice of life” from the hero and heroine of A Place With Briar.

Throwback Thursdays will begin here at Cozy on February 5th so be sure to check in next week for this exciting new feature as well as details on the Valentine’s book bundle giveaway which begins on Sunday, February 8th.

 

As a bonus, the third book of my hometown series for Harlequin Superromance not only has its own title and release date. His Rebel Heart isn’t due on shelves until July of this year; it has it’s own Goodreads page already. Add it to your To Read list today. C’mon, you know you want to!

 

Oh, and there might be a Mardi Gras-themed update within the next week!