Falling in Love featuring Laurie Lewis

EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY

Awakening Avery
(A Second Chance Romance Book 3)

by Laurie Lewis

During the month of September, we will be featuring 20 fabulous authors who write clean romance. Today we feature Laurie Lewis with Awakening Avery, FREE to 8 September.

Also available in the Second Chance Romance series: The Dragons of Alsace Farm and Sweet Water.

This book blast and giveaway is hosted by I Am A Reader and Clean Wholesome Romance.

Description

“You’re depressed,” the doctor declared.

“Ya think?” is author Avery Elkins Thompson’s sarcastic response. She can’t pull out from the malaise that set in following her husband’s untimely death, and her adult children fear they are losing her too.

She can’t write, and questions about their father’s death leave the family mired in pain. “We need a healing place,” her oldest son tells her, suggesting she find it on Anna Maria Island, Florida, a former family vacation spot.

When Avery returns to Baltimore to sell the family’s waterfront condo, she meets rodeo-ers-turned-real-estate-brokers Teddie and Rider Davis, and Avery’s quiet life will never be the same again. The Davises help arrange a short-term house swap with widower Gabriel Carson from Anna Maria, whose overprotective parenting has resulted in two self-centered, twenty-something daughters. Avery and Gabriel are in for the summer of their lives as they step into one another’s messy, complicated worlds.

Still, venturing out on her own again is challenging for Avery, whose experiences at the Ringling’s magnificent Ca d’Zan mansion, and with the quirky characters she meets there, eventually awaken her to truths she desperately needs to remember - that God has not forgotten her, and as crazy as life can be, it is possible to laugh and love again.

Excerpt

Avery sighed as she switched the desk lamp off and headed down the hall, passing the “wall of fame,” where all the kids’ photos were on display. She passed a favorite vacation photo and straightened it, though the frame already hung perfectly square. She knew the frame wasn’t off. She was. More accurately, it was her reaction to a sweet moment from years ago on one of the family’s nightly walks along the beach on Anna Maria Island in Florida that was off kilter. Jamie snapped the photo of Avery and Paul as they posed before the fabled beach house of a man who had become a legend along the island. Only after the photo was printed did Avery realize that Jamie had actually caught the widowed owner of the sprawling Victorian home standing like a solitary ghost on the widow’s walk. He and his solemn, lonely watch contrasted sharply with the happy images of Avery and Paul in the foreground.

Avery’s finger traced along the image of Gabriel Carson, the mysterious, romantic widower. He had so fascinated Avery’s writer’s instinct that she hounded the locals for more information on him until she discovered where his florist’s shop was located. Her cheeks still flushed when she recalled how she studied the handsome loner from outside his business’s storefront window, watching him chat and laugh with the waiting customers as he arranged their opulent bouquets. But when they exited, leaving him alone, Avery watched his eyes dim as his face settled into quiet soberness.

His aura had haunted her for weeks, and when she and the family returned home to Utah from their summer jaunt, she fashioned a character in one of her books after the intriguing Mr. Carson.

Avery bit her upper lip and shrank, as goosebumps spread across her arms in shame. How many times she had given thanks that she and Paul weren’t that man, mired in enduring mourning. It all seemed so ironic. So selfish. So shameful.

“I’m right there with you,” she said to the man in the photo.

[Want more? Click below to read a longer excerpt.]

Praise for the Book

“It will melt your heart, kick off forgotten emotions and have you rooting for a love that was past due. You’re going to some tissues for this one.”

“As always, Ms. Lewis writes characters who really make the story special ... They are portrayed in such a way that the story becomes ‘real’ … entirely believable, and very relatable.”

“A wonderful second chances story.”

“Wow. Catching my breath … I simply cannot put into words what a beautiful ride this was. It was complex and raw and real. This author does a phenomenal job, in my opinion, of weaving plot and character in such a way as they are seamless. I felt like I was living in the pages. Once my heart recovers I will be diving back in for another read. Simply wonderful.”

About the Author

Wherever life takes her, Laurie Lewis will always be a Marylander at heart - a weather-whining lover of God, Maryland crabs, American history, and the sea. She’s an award-winning hybrid author of ten published novels.

Her contemporary romantic fiction novels include Awakening Avery (2018), Love on a Limb (2017), Sweet Water (2017), The Dragons of Alsace Farm (2016), and Unspoken (2004), written as Laurie Lewis. Using the pen name L.C. Lewis, she wrote the five volumes of her award-winning FREE MEN and DREAMERS historical fiction series, set against the backdrop of the War of 1812: Dark Sky at Dawn (2007), Twilight’s Last Gleaming (2008), Dawn’s Early Light (2009), Oh, Say Can You See? (2010), and In God is Our Trust (2011).

She’s the recipient of the 2017 RONE for Inspirational Fiction, a New Apple Literary Award, A BRAGG Medallion, and she was twice named a USA Best Books and Whitney Award Finalist.

She’s currently working on a sequel to Love on a Limb, a WWII biopic, (2020) and under contract with a traditional publisher for a romantic suspense novel expected for a 2020 releasee.

Laurie loves to hear from readers.

Also by the author:

Giveaway

Enter the blast-wide giveaway for a chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card or PayPal cash.

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Unforgettable Love featuring Laurie Lewis

EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY

Sweet Water

by Laurie Lewis

During the month of June, we will be featuring 14 fabulous authors who write clean romance. Today we feature Laurie Lewis with Sweet Water, which is currently FREE.

This book blast and giveaway is hosted by I Am A Reader.

Description

College life could not heal the wounds an unstable home life inflicted upon programmer Olivia Morgan, until scholar Hudson Bauer welcomed her, introducing her to his friend, Jeff McAllister, with whom he was developing a college business.

Olivia joined the project, and while she and Hudson dreamed of using their success to improve the world, Jeff set his sights on fortunes and on Olivia. On the most important night of Hudson’s life, Olivia and Jeff eloped, and upon hearing the news, Hudson leaves town, along with the company’s first big contract and Olivia and Jeff’s dreams.

Olivia McAllister now holds billionaire entrepreneur Hudson Bauer responsible for all her losses, including her anemic marriage and the tragic accident that leaves her body battered, and her dreams of a family shattered. In desperate straits, she is forced to accept Hudson’s offer to recuperate at his parents’ empty house on Oregon’s Cannon Beach, but her return to the place where the three friends once summered casts new light on her hasty marriage, and on the enemy she once called friend.

When Hudson offers Olivia a job doing humanitarian work, hope reawakens in her, along with memories of what she and Hudson almost had. But guilt over Jeff’s death leaves Olivia stuck between grief and the possibility of new love, forcing her to decide if she can embrace a future with a man she’s learned to hate, before Hudson walks away for the final time.

Excerpt

He stood and tucked the blanket roll under one arm while extending the other to Olivia. She accepted his offer, fitting into his support as if it was meant for her all along. She leaned on Hudson more heavily the further they went until he was bearing the majority of her weight by the time they reached the ancient cave. Two surfers in wetsuits were exiting the cavern and gathering up their boards as Hudson and Olivia arrived. They, too, had their eyes on the darkening sky, but they shifted their attention to the couple and down to Olivia’s legs.

“Sprain?” the taller of the two asked.

“More likely just muscle strain,” replied Hudson when Olivia failed to reply.

“After we get our boards loaded, we can head back down and help carry her out.”

Olivia stiffened at the thought of being hauled out by strangers like a sack of potatoes. Hudson made brief eye contact with her, evidently catching her mortification, and replied to their offer. “Thanks, but we’ve got it.”

The shorter surfer glanced back at the dark cave and offered Hudson a knowing chuckle. “Gotcha.”

In reply, Hudson shot him a look that ended his smirk, following up with a pseudo salute, effectually sending the dudes on their way.

Alone now on the beach, Hudson led Olivia to the cave, which bore the signs of frequent use. The sandy floor was clean and cleared of debris, except for the pile of rounded rocks in the rear, smoothed and carried in by the tides. Kindling and small branches were stacked near the cave’s mouth, a few feet from where the remnants of someone’s fire still sat in a charred circle.

Hudson untied the bedroll and several items fell onto the sand. Another good snap, and the blanket spread across the cave’s entrance. Hudson lowered her gently to the soft fabric. Relief filled her, and she leaned back and nestled into the soft sand. Her sigh brought the hint of a smile to Hudson’s beard-framed lips. It was short-lived. His face slackened as his dark, penetrating eyes fixed on her. His breathing seemed to stop, as did hers. Heat rose deep within her torso, spreading like fire through her face and neck from the intensity of his stare. A sheen of sweat broke out on her skin, and yet she shivered. She touched her face, expecting to feel the fire radiating there, but the motion seemed to break the moment. Without a word, Hudson took her empty water bottle and left, leaving her shaky and confused.

As he departed, she shifted to watch him pick his way through the primitive beauty of the area, around scrub brush, through the teeming tidal pools, to a glorious waterfall spilling from the rock wall.

Robinson Crusoe-esque with his rumpled clothes, his beard, and wild mop of tangled hair, Olivia was unable to tear her eyes from him. Gone was the shyness and gangly motions of his youth. The business titan who could buy or sell his own barrier reef or string of creature-filled islands now moved with confidence and care, as protective of a single mollusk or anemone as he had been as a beach-combing science student a decade ago. She wondered what made him that way. Clearly, the young man who had been everything to her back then was an even more splendid person now.

The all-too-frequent burn of tears hit her again. Pepper had been on the money. Olivia had loved Hudson in college. If only he had been the one to propose instead of… Guilt tore at her over the thought.

[Want more? Click below to read a longer excerpt.]

Praise for the Book

“I am totally stunned at how much I loved this book. I pondered over the story for days–which I don’t often do with this genre, and immediately started over to make sure I didn’t miss anything and to enjoy the amazingly honorable Hudson. (Are there REALLY men like Hudson out there? One hopes, but …)” ~ GMALR

“It is so refreshing to find a swoon-worthy clean romance! The mystery and characters gripped me from the very first page and held me captive till I devoured the book in one day. There were many levels of happy reading it! This is not the first book that I’ve read from this author (also known as L.C. Lewis), and let me say, she is a master at delivering powerful messages and pulling on the heart strings! Everything I’ve read of hers is AMAZING!”

“Sweet Water touched me on so many levels, I really hope you’ll give it a read soon. I would not hesitate to recommend this story to any Romance reader. It’s deep, it’s touching and in many ways it’s real life.”

About the Author

Laurie (L. C.) Lewis is Marylander - a weather-whining lover of crabs, American history, and the sea. Her women’s fiction novels, written as Laurie Lewis, include Unspoken (2004), The Dragons of Alsace Farm (2016) and Sweet Water (2017), books one and two in her Second Chance Romance series, and Love on a Limb (2017), book one in her new Great Expectations Love Stories series.

Using the pen name L. C. Lewis, she wrote the five volumes of her award-winning FREE MEN and DREAMERS historical fiction series: Dark Sky at Dawn (2007), Twilight’s Last Gleaming (2008), Dawn’s Early Light (2009), Oh, Say Can You See? (2010), and In God is Our Trust (2011).

Please watch for her upcoming release, a remake of Awakening Avery, scheduled for a July 2018 release.

Also by the author:

Giveaway

Enter the blast-wide giveaway for a chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card or PayPal cash.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Links

Add to Goodreads

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Love in Bloom featuring Laurie Lewis

EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY

Love on a Limb

by Laurie Lewis

Throughout the month of April, we will be featuring 10 fabulous authors who write clean romance. Today we feature author Laurie Lewis with Love on a Limb, which is FREE today only (13 April).

This book blast and giveaway is brought to you by I Am A Reader.

Description

Matthew Grayken is young, successful, and dying, which is why he’s about to propose to a total stranger. He isn’t interested in love. He needs a caregiver, a companion, and someone to be his legal voice when he can no longer speak for himself.

Lonely, compassionate nurse Mikaela Compton is intrigued by Matt Grayken’s tender request, but when their friendly marriage turns into love, she rejects the inevitability of Matt’s death and prays for a miracle instead.

Mikaela succeeds in reigniting Matt’s will to fight, but his body is losing the battle and he is suffering. She recognizes that her urgent need to save Matt has caused her to betray the fundamental promise she made him–to help him die peaceably.

Matt needs a miracle, and Mikaela believes one is attainable, but she will need to leave him at the hour of his greatest need. She’s about to learn that while love sometimes draws you close, it sometimes requires you to go out on a limb.

Excerpt

“All right, smarty-pants.” She leaned close to deliver what Matt assumed was another comic barrage, but as she drew near their eyes met and understanding passed between them. Understanding that, despite their efforts to make light of their situation, they were alone in a valley and the way out would require a hard, bloody crawl. He saw determination mixed with fear and pure love. It warmed him, as if the hands of her heart had reached into his chest to warm and calm his own trembling heart. Her face hovered near his, becoming almost iridescent from the emotion there. Her expression spoke a language of its own, one Matt translated before she uttered a sound.

“Your plan failed,” she whispered. “I know you already love me.”

Matt felt the skin of his face prickle as heat rose from deep within him. A sheen of sweat broke across his skin from the stop-and-go battle raging inside. He knew his face took on the same sleepy-eyed glow of unanswered want she showed. He leaned forward, closing the inches between them and whispered back. “I’m afraid you’re wrong, Mikaela. I’ve always loved you. From the first day I watched you walk through the clinic.” He closed his eyes. “But what does it get us?” He looked down at his bruised body and shook the papers about AHCC and cow shares. “Look at the fight we have ahead.”

Mikaela closed the distance and brushed her lips over his. His sensible side told him to push back, but he had no will to send her away again. His battered hands framed her face and pulled her mouth to his. He felt wholly alive for the first time in weeks, not a patient first, but filled with the thoughts and feelings of a man. Of a husband. He tried to raise his arms to wrap her close, but a sharp pain ended the effort as Mikaela pulled back an inch, her smile completely happy and her eyes joyfully bright.

“I love you, Matt.” The words were spoken in a whisper, so light and airy that they tickled his lips. “Just finally be mine. Give me these arms to hold on to. This shoulder to lay my head on. This mouth that speaks honesty to me and gives me kisses. These are enough until you’re well. Just knowing you love me is enough.”

[Want more? Click below to read a longer excerpt.]

Praise for the Book

“Not just great writing but spectacular. This is a book that I will keep in my library and cherish.” ~ Amazon Customer

“This book is an inspirational read, but not preachy! I added Laurie L.C. Lewis to my list of authors that I will be reading in the future.” ~ Kimberly

“Oh my goodness me, this book...what can I say? It wrenched so many emotions from me I didn't know where one finished and the next one started! Beautifully written, this book deals with the tricky subject of impending death, which could have become mired in misery but is quite the opposite. It is uplifting, heartfelt and hopeful. […] I was riveted from the first page to the last words. Superb book.” ~ R. Norman

“I seriously don't have words to describe the deep emotional roller coaster ride this book launches you on, leaving you dizzy, breathless, and believing in hope. It is little short of perfect in terms of a clean romantic read. As always, Ms. Lewis is at the top of her craft. I imagine she'll stay there forever.” ~ K Swinton

“This is a book that can be very emotional and overwhelming at the least. […] This was a book that I read at one sitting and I think that it was hard to put down.” ~ Ester Farthing

About the Author

Laurie (L. C.) Lewis knows that wherever life takes her, she will always be a Marylander at heart - a weather-whining lover of crabs, American history, and the sea. She admits to being craft-challenged, particularly lethal with a glue gun, and a devotee of sappy movies.

Therapists have been chasing her down to diagnose her multiple personality syndrome, since she writes under three names – historical fiction as L. C. Lewis, romance and women’s fiction as Laurie Lewis, and general fiction as Laurie L. C. Lewis.

Laurie was honored to win the 2017 RONE Award for Inspirational Romance. She also has been an IndieBRAG Medallion Honoree, and a New Apple Literary Medallion winner. She has twice been named a Whitney Awards finalist, and a USA Best Books Award finalist.

Also by the author:

Giveaway

Enter the blast-wide giveaway for a chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card or PayPal cash.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Links

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