P-Town Queen has been selected as Champagne Books Novel of the Year.

 

I'm very excited, verklemped, overwhelmed and totally chuffed. My romantic comedy, The P-Town Queen has been chosen as Champagne Books Novel of the year!

The P-Town Queen is a crazy romp of a story, set in Provincetown Massachusetts. The heroine is a shark researcher who has lost the grant she had and wants desperately to get another one to continue doing the work she loves. The hero is running from the mob. He's moved to Provincetown, taken an assumed name and is pretending to be gay, because he figures the gangster after him would never look for him in P-Town's gay community. 

The two meet and fall for each other, but neither makes a move. She thinks he's gay and he has to continue to pretend to be gay. And so it goes... 

I think they gave the book the award because, in it, I blow up a dead whale. It's such fun to be a fiction writer!

Here's a snippet from that section of the book.

 At that point, a guy in a jacket labeled SWAT came over. Our new cop friend introduced us.
       “Oh, good,” said the SWAT man, a guy named Herman LeBlanc.“Just the experts we need.” Then he asked, with all due seriousness, how much TNT did we, in our expert opinions, think was necessary to blow up a whale carcass. “We’ve got ten tons under her,” he said, “but we’re thinking
we ought to put down another ten. We want to make sure we get her good, in small enough pieces so the tide can take her out. If we can manage it.”
     Max looked like he was going to have an apoplexy. He put his hands to his head and called the whole idea  imbecilic.
      I, on the other hand, realized that we could call them imbecilic all we wanted. Somebody wanted to blow up a whale and, come hell or high tide, they were going to blow up a whale. Besides which, I do have a little bit of bad girl in me. “Ten more ought to do her,” I told Officer LeBlanc.

  

For more on The P-Town Queen, including where you can get your very own copy, click HERE

#8Sunday: Happy Easter

For more WeWriWa, click on image

Happy Easter everyone! In honor of the holiday, I thought I'd take a break from Anton and Lenora and give a snippet having to do with Easter.

These eight come from "The P-Town Queen", a romantic comedy set in Provincetown, Massachusetts.  Marco, the hero, has just been dropped off in the heart of town by the Teaneck Gay Men's Choir. He's running from the mob and has decided that the best way to hide is by pretending to be gay.

After the bus dropped us off and Evan got the boys to sing “So Long,
Farewell,” as we went our separate ways, I had to stop myself from flagging
down another bus and begging the driver to take me back to Newark.

I walked the length of Commercial Street. Most of the shops were
still closed and the only noise came from the pier where the boats were going
in and out and off into distance. Church bells started to ring, and I thought
about my Nona and how all those years she’d drag me off to Mass every
week and how on Easter she’d always hide a couple of those plastic Easter
eggs with pennies in them. I was a sucker for those eggs. I don’t think she
would’ve liked it to see me walking down the street homeless, so I made her
a promise that I’d find a job. And that, after I got done with being gay, I’d
settle down with a nice girl.

I remembered Evan’s words about my not seeming gay, so every
time I saw two men together I watched real careful so I could imitate.

Happy Spring! 
For more great snippets, please visit Weekend Writing Warriors

For more about The P-Town Queen, including where you can get your very own copy, please click on the banner.

Swept Away Blog Hop

Congratulations to Veronica, winner of a copy of Afterglow. Thanks to all of you who participated in the Swept Away Blog Hop!

 

 

 Ahh, February. Month of hearts and valentines. Or, here in the northeastern part of United States, month of ice storms and blizzards. Maybe we all need some hearts and flowers to warm us this time of year. A good book can warm a winter's day faster than a blazing firelog.


Here's a little love to warm your heart from my new romantic comedy, Afterglow.
The heroine, India, has a bit of a crush on a much younger man. She's not so sure the feeling is mutual. Until this happens:

I was nearly too embarrassed to face Mitch. Upending a suture kit had been bad enough, but this… I mean, here we were having a friendly dinner. And here was Red, turning it into something sordid. I did face Mitch though. I owed him an apology.
“That bit about…You’re not a boy,” I said.
Mitch smiled. “Nice of you to acknowledge that.”
“And Red Lansing is an idiot. An idiot who jumps to conclusions.” I could feel my face go hot. Mitch grinned at me. “I guess it is kind of funny,” I said.
“I don’t think it’s funny at all.” Mitch took my hand and kissed the place where the cast had been. Which, had I wanted to delude myself, could have been misconstrued as a friendly kiss. The next kiss, though, was a direct hit. On the lips, with feeling, and there was no misconstruing that at all.
Mitch took my chin in his hand. “I’ve wanted to do that ever since you showed up in my ER,” he said.
“I don’t know what to say,” I stuttered out.
“Maybe you should think about it,” Mitch said. “I’ll go home and you can think about it.” He fished his car keys from his pocket and let himself out the door. Halfway down the stairs he stopped and turned. “Don’t think too long,” he said. Then he was gone.



More Swept Away Blog Hopping here

Win an e-copy of Afterglow! Enter with Rafflecopter.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Afterglow is here!

It's here! It's here!
Afterglow has arrived, with a new cast of characters to love and laugh with. 

India Othmar isn’t having a great year. Her husband of thirty-one years has left her for their son’s ex-girlfriend. Her grown children have moved home. Her best friend Eva seems determined to set her up with every oddball in their small Massachusetts town. And her most significant relationship these days is with Cherry Garcia.

But India is more resilient than she thinks. And though it will take a broken arm, a lawn littered with engine parts, some creative uses for shoes, and a scandalous love affair of her own, she learns, much to her surprise, that her life hasn’t ended with her marriage. 

I hope you'll have a read!!
Purchase Afterglow here:

Champagne Books

 

Afterglow book trailer.

Here's the book trailer for my romantic comedy, Afterglow!

Afterglow will be released in early January by Champagne Books.

Cover Reveal: Afterglow

I've got a brand new cover for my brand new romantic comedy, Afterglow!

India Othmar isn’t having a great year. Her husband of thirty-one years has left her for their son’s ex-girlfriend. Her grown children have moved home. Her best friend Eva seems determined to set her up with every oddball in their small Massachusetts town. And her most significant relationship these days is with Cherry Garcia.

But India is more resilient than she thinks. And though it will take a broken arm, a lawn littered with engine parts, some creative uses for shoes, and a scandalous love affair of her own, she learns, much to her surprise, that her life hasn’t ended with her marriage.



Afterglow is coming to Champagne Books in early January

#Sweet Saturday Samples. Afterglow is coming in January

It's nearly time to cue up the lights and break out the bubbly.  Christmas will be here before you can say 'Is that you, Frosty?'  And in January, just as your settling in for a long winter's nap my new romantic comedy, Afterglow will arrive. Perfect for a long winter's read.


Here's a little sneak peak at Afterglow, the story of a woman of a certain age who learns that love can bring happiness  the second time around. In this scene, hero Mitch makes his feelings for heroine India clear.

I was nearly too embarrassed to face Mitch. Upending a suture kit had been bad enough, but this… I mean, here we were having a friendly dinner. And here was Red, turning it into something sordid. I did face Mitch though. I owed him an apology.

“That bit about…You’re not a boy,” I said.

            Mitch smiled. “Nice of you to acknowledge that.”

            “And Red Lansing is an idiot. An idiot who jumps to conclusions.” I could feel my face go hot. Mitch was grinning at me. “I guess it is kind of funny,” I said.

            “I don’t think it’s funny at all,” Mitch took my hand and kissed the place where the cast had been. Which, had I wanted to delude myself, could have been misconstrued as a friendly kiss. The next kiss, though, was a direct hit. On the lips, with feeling, and there was no misconstruing that at all.

            Mitch took my chin in his hand. “I’ve wanted to do that ever since you showed up in my ER,” he said.

            “I don’t know what to say,” I stuttered out.

            “Maybe you should think about it,” Mitch said. “I’ll go home and you can think about it.” He fished his car keys from his pocket and let himself out the door. Halfway down the stairs he stopped and turned. “Don’t think too long,” he said. And then he was gone.

Please visit Sweet Saturday for more delicious samples.

Introducing....Superman!!

Okay, I know you don't need to be introduced to Superman. You know who Superman is. This is just my way of sharing the news.
I have a brand new romantic comedy coming out next year!

It's called Searching for Superman
Here's what it's about:

Stephanie Holbrook has finally found a job she really loves: working as an assistant to Conrad Finch in a small regional theater that’s about  three dollars and a power outage from being torn down.  Stephanie wishes her love life would be as perfect as her job. She’ll be thirty on her next birthday and she still hasn’t found Mr. Right.  According to Stephanie, Mr. Right has to be strong and brave, with great values and good looks. A guy a lot like Superman. 

            When Doug Castleberry shows up at her niece’s birthday party dressed as Superman, Stephanie is positive he’s not the real deal. Sure, he’s great with kids and he’s kind of cute.   But he’s just a high school teacher making extra money by dressing up for kid’s parties. Hardly the strong, brave, and drop-dead gorgeous guy she’s looking for.

            As the theater teeters ever closer to the edge of disaster, Doug proves to be a better man than Stephanie had ever imagined. Could he be the Superman she’s been looking for all along?

Searching for Superman is coming to Champagne Books in June of 2013. I know, I know, it's a while to wait. You'll just have to be patient. Put it on your TBR list and, if your list is long as mine, it'll be at the top of the list right around the  time it comes out!

This is not the Rialto theater from the book. It's the wonderful and fully restored Palace Theater in Manchester, NH.

PS If you'd like something to read in the meantime, my romantic comedy The P-Town Queen is downloadable at most online bookstores!

Top ten reasons to buy the P-Town Queen instead of a mocha frappuccino

It can be a tough choice:

Buy a Mocha Frappuccino 

or

Download a copy of the P-Town Queen

At just under four dollars, they both cost about the same.

Here's why you should opt for the book:

1. The P-Town Queen will give you hours of enjoyment. A few minutes with the frap and you're done.

2. The P-Town Queen is calorie free. In fact, you may burn a few calories while reading.

3. Take the frap to the beach and you risk getting sand in your mouth. Not  a problem with the P-Town Queen.

4. There's nothing to throw away when you finish The P-Town Queen.

5. You don't have to stand in line at the coffee shop to buy a copy of the P-Town Queen.

6. If you accidentally knock The P-Town Queen off the coffee table, it will not spill all over the rug.

7. Have you ever read the side of frap cup? Boring!

8. Laughing out loud while reading The P-Town Queen will not leave you wishing you'd brought along a change of clothes.

9. When you finish The P-Town Queen, you can loan it to a friend. Try doing that with a frap.

10. Laughing out loud at mocha frappuccino is just plain weird.

Of course, you could always get BOTH  The P-Town Queen and the Mocha Frappuccino and still get change back from your ten! 

Visit with Raine Delight

I'm visiting with Raine Delight today. She's got some nice cabana boys offering up drinks with umbrellas. Come stop by!

P-Town visits Brinda Berry's Blog

I'm blogging about the importance of setting at Brinda Berry's blog today!

Provincetown Massachusetts is the setting for The P-Town Queen

The P-Town Queen has arrived!

Here's the blurb

Nikki Silva feels like she’s blown up her life even as her brothers tease her about blowing up a boat called the Mona Lisa. Divorced, funding for her shark research cut off, she’s moved back to Provincetown to live with her father in her childhood home. Nikki hopes to regain herself. She’s written a grant proposal for the newly formed Massachusetts Bay Commission to fund a study that will get her back to the sort of research she loves. The commission is run by her ex-husband Ned, who would rather have a migraine than give money to his ex-wife.

            Marco Tornetti wants to turn a hole-in-the-wall Newark spaghetti joint into a trendy bistro. His silent partner, Fat Phil Lagosa, wants to use the place to meet questionable people for questionable business deals.  When Fat Phil accuses Marco of a double cross and has him taken for a ride by one of his hit men, Marco knows he’s in too deep.

            Marco escapes the hit man and takes the first bus out of the Tri-state area, a bus chartered by the Greater Teaneck Gay Men’s Choir and headed for Provincetown. Marco figures that Phil would never look for him in Provincetown‘s gay community. But when he meets Nikki and falls hard for her, he finds that pretending to be gay isn’t as easy as it would seem.


And here's where you can buy the book:

Champagne Book Group

#SweetSat Meet Nikki

For more Sweet Saturday Samples, Click on image.

I introduced P-Town's hero, Marco, last week. This week, meet the heroine, Nikki. Here's how she opens the book:

I did not blow up the Mona Lisa. Not only did I not blow up the Mona Lisa--an old leaker  of a boat whose blowing up could be construed as a favor to the aptly named Rusty Cook--I did not blow up any part of Rusty’s marina. My brothers will, of course, say otherwise. They had quite the laugh at my expense over coffee at Ella’s Place.

Rusty had been on the lookout for a boat for me. It had taken a lot of gumption and crow-eating to get to a place where I could consider buying a boat. I needed a cheap one, because God only knew how much money I’d be able to squeeze out of the Massachusetts Bay Commission via the research grant proposal I’d spent three long months laboring to produce.

The head of the commission was Ned Anderson. Ned, a brilliant shark researcher in his own right, had tumbled a long way: to full time administrator of a bullshit state commission. Though to hear Ned say it, it wasn’t a tumble but a reward for all the years he’d spent roughing it on a California channel island-- an island that only had electricity every other day-- in order to unlock the mystery of white shark feeding behavior. I had spent five years on that island with Ned. We were married at the time.

The P-Town Queen docks on June 4!

Today's Stop: Dawn's Reading Nook

The P-Town Queen docks at Dawn's Reading Nook today!
P-town is in the spotlight. Come say hello!

This is Race Point Beach in Provincetown. Beautiful isn't it?

#SweetSat: Thar she blows

For more sweet treats, click on the image!

It's been a while since I've done a Sweet Saturday Sample. Welcome, all you samplers!

The P-Town Queen is coming June 4!
To celebrate, I wanted to share a little excerpt from the book.

In my lifetime I have learned, among other things, not to overcook veal and never to forget a woman’s name the morning after. On that day I added another little ditty to my list: never blow up a dead whale with dynamite.

Max Groper had figured it for a horror show and so had washed his hands of the whole mess and stormed off to his van. Nikki, too, must have figured what would happen, but that woman likes trouble, I swear to God. “We’d better stand back,” she said, with the same amused mischief in her eyes that she’d had at Good Vibrations. The cops had, in fact, already pushed the entire crowd back, so Nik and I went to stand in the front line, so to speak, right where the lot meets the beach in front of the first row of cars. “I wish I’d brought the video camera,” Nik said. “I hope someone is recording this for posterity.”  I looked around and noticed at least three video cams trained on the whale, which was now being wired for a trip to kingdom come. “YouTube bonanza,” said Nikki, “I’m surprised that the folks from Channel Four aren’t here.”

“Maybe we should go wait in the truck,” I said. I had this bad feeling that flying whale parts wasn’t going to be like the fountain light show at the Bellagio in Vegas.

The P-Town Queen cover!

The P-Town Queen. Cover art by Amanda Kelsey

  This is the cover for my romantic comedy, coming to CBG in June!

Nikki Silva thinks she’s blown up her life. Divorced, funding for her shark research cut off, she’s moved back to Provincetown to live with her father. Nikki’s written a grant proposal funded by a commission run by her ex-husband Ned, who would rather not give money to his ex-wife.

            Marco Tornetti wants to turn a Newark spaghetti joint into a trendy bistro. His silent partner, Fat Phil Lagosa, wants to use the place to solicit questionable business deals.  When Fat Phil turns on Marco and has him marked for a hit, Marco knows he’s in too deep.

            Marco escapes the hit man and takes the first bus out of the city. Marco figures that Phil would never look for him in Provincetown‘s gay community. But when he meets Nikki, he finds that pretending to be gay isn’t as easy as it would seem.

At Champagne Blog

 Want to know more about writing funny? Or get a snippet of my upcoming release P-town Queen?
Come join at Champagne Books Blog today!

#SixSentenceSunday: Afterglow

I'm excited to announce that my romantic comedy, Afterglow, is coming to Champagne Books next January. It's the story of a divorced middle aged woman who is given is a second chance at happiness. 

Here's a six sentence excerpt:

“I double dog dare you,” he said.

            I’ve raised two kids. I’ve taught school for twenty years. Sometime in the middle of the last century, I had actually been a kid. If there was one thing I’d learned from all of this experience, it was that nobody can ignore a double dog dare. Not even if the darer is a medical school graduate and the daree is a middle aged teacher in pajamas and flip flops.

For more great six sentence excerpts please visit Six Sentence Sunday

Nikki's Six Sentences on Sexual Harassment

Today's six comes from The P-town Queen. Nikki has her own way of responding to being harassed. No matter that the man in question holds the purse strings for the grant money she needs for her research:

Then he invited me to his beach cottage in Malibu, his hand all the while snaking up my thigh. We could discuss the grant, he said, and enjoy a some relaxation and recreation. He winked at the word recreation and said he bet I looked fabulous in a bikini. It was at that point that I got up and took my leave. Dr. Gilmore followed me to my car and said I should think about it. I answered him by running over his toes.

The P-town Queen is coming to Champagne Books next June

Need more snippets? Get your fix at Six Sentence Sunday

Sweet Saturday: When Marco met Nikki

This week's Sweet Saturday Sample is a scene from The P-town Queen.  The first time Marco sees Nikki, he is sitting on a bench near the pier. He meets her not long after:

 

I went through the door and there, in the corner of the room, was a metal desk and sitting on the desk was the redhead from the pier. I couldn’t have been more surprised if it had been Fat Phil sitting there. My stomach did a loop-di-loop, like I was in the sixth grade and just found out the popular girl had the locker next to mine. I told myself to quit being a dumb ass. I had exactly two cents rubbing together in the pocket of my only pair of pants.

            She was talking to the guy from the pier. The younger one that looked like her. She caught me in her gorgeous brown eyes, blinked a few times, and asked if she could help me. “Yeah, yes,” I said. “I’m here about the research. The assistant. Job. Research assistant.”

           “Find me an office and they will come,” said the guy.

           To which the redhead gave him a look that might have killed him. “And how is it that job applicants magically appear?”

           “The flyer,” I said. “At Ella’s Place.”

           “Flyer at Ella’s Place?” The redhead had turned the killer stare at me.

           “They weren’t. She didn’t. They were under the counter. I saw. I was. I really need the job.”  I took a deep breath. “So if you tell Dr. Silva. I’m available. For an interview.” Jesus, Mary and Joe, it was lucky that drool didn’t come running out of my mouth.

           The guy put a hand to my shoulder and said, real quiet, “She is Dr. Silva,” which really made me feel like the friggin idiot I’d turned into.

           “Nick Silva? She’s Nick Silva?”

           “Nik as in Nicola,” said the guy.

              “It’s a mistake. My mistake. I’m mistaken. Sorry.”

           “She makes people nervous. But she’s not so tough. I’m her brother, I ought to know. Billy.” He held out his hand.

           “I do not make people nervous,” said Nik Silva.

           “Ask her about Rusty’s boat.”

           Nik sighed. “There is no job. Mr.…?”

           And here’s where thing got dicey. In giving myself a new identity I forgot to give me a new name. Any self-respecting witness protection program will give you a new name and I sure as hell didn’t want to use the old one. Nik Silva was kind of staring at me again and my pulse rate was up around two hundred, so I spit out the first thing came into my head.

           “Parker. Parker Bench.” I wished, right after I said it, that I could have taken it back. I wished I’d have come up with something, anything, else: Jerry Lewis or Phillip Morris or Captain Crunch. Just about anything would have been better than Parker Bench.

The P-town Queen is coming to Champagne Books in June of next year.


Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to to to Sweet Saturday Samples to read more great excerpts.