Marquita Valentine Guest Post and Giveaway...

 

Today, Marquita Valentine will be taking over Belle's Book Bag for her Guest Post and Giveaway. I am so excited!!! This is my first time hosting an author on my site and I couldn't be more pleased that it is Marquita!! When she initially contacted me to read and review Twice Tempted, I wasn't sure what to expect because I was not familiar with her writing. WOW...I was hooked with Twice Tempted and Marquita immediately gained me as a fan and she has secured my adoration with each book after. Not only is she a fantastic writer, but she is also very sweet. It is with my pleasure that I hand over my blog to Marquita.

Thank you Mariann for having me here today and for making me your September author of the
month! I am so honored.

Who doesn’t love a good series? I know I do. I’d even go so far as saying that I love sequels and prequels, too. Basically, anything that keeps me up-to-date or gives me more backstory about my favorite characters makes me happy as a clam.

There is something very satisfying about reading the fifth book in a series and learning that the
hero and heroine from book one are fabulously happy with a bazillion kids (or whatever made their happily ever after happy for them).

One of my favorite series of all time is Julia Quinn’s The Bridgertons. In every book, we get
a brand-spanking new couple along with little details about former couples. Ms. Quinn has even
written Epilogues of Epilogues. Seriously. And I seriously lahved them. So it’s no wonder that I not only had to write a series but that my full length novels must include an epilogue.

So readers, what’s your favorite series?

One lucky commentor will win a prize pack featuring my books! Seduction of a Billionaire Playboy Actor, Twice Tempted and my latest release, Third Time’s a Charm.

GIVEAWAY: Leave a comment to enter, and I’ll give away all three of my books in the

Holland Springs Series (e-book only) to one randomly chosen winner! 
The contest runs thru Sunday, September 16, 2012 at 11:59pm est. Good Luck to everyone who enters!! :) 

Not even Holland Springs' Most Notorious Resident can stop this Love Spell.
Customers come to Rose Holland’s apothecary shop for three things: to hear her uncanny
matchmaking advice, to buy the “magical” hair and skin products she sells, and to accuse her of  trying to steal their men. For years Rose has been entirely innocent and almost content with that status quo. But that was before sexy, smooth-talking Sasha Romanov came to town and made her want to use her love potions on him… until he broke her heart. Now corrupt town officials want to seize her land and sell it to an industrial giant, and her only hope for help looks like the one man she can’t trust—or stop herself from falling under his spell. 

Alexander “Sasha” Romanov seems like every woman’s dream: charming, handsome and fabulously rich. But while the people of Holland Springs think he’s in town to generously invest in their economy (and possibly one of their daughters), Sasha struggles to save his sick mother from his vicious uncle’s plans by doing everything the greedy businessman wants. And Vlad Romanov wants Rose Holland’s land—at any cost. 

Despite Sasha’s vow to get the job done and keep his hands (and everything else!) off Rose, the blue-eyed witch enchants him. But his mother’s life remains in the balance. Sasha must find a way to protect his mother, sabotage his uncle’s plans, and win the woman who’s captured his heart without destroying everything she loves.

"A refreshing, whimsical contemporary romance with complex characters and bursts of emotion that tugs on your heartstrings. Kept me up till one AM reading!"~ Carly Phillips, NY Times Bestselling Author

Marquita Valentine writes small town romances that are anything but small. Lisa Kleypas, Carly Phillips and Rachel Gibson are among her favorite contemporary authors. Marquita met her husband aka Hot Builder at Sonic when they were in high school. She suggests this location to all of her single friends in search of a good man -- and if that doesn't work, they can console themselves with cheesy tater tots. She lives in North Carolina in a very, very small town with Hot Builder and their two children. 

You can find Marquita all over the internet:
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15730301-twice-tempted
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMarquitaValentine
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/marquitaval
Website: http://marquitavalentine.blogspot.com/
Blog: http://ladyscribes.blogspot.com/

Thank you so much Marquita!!! This post says everything about why I LOVE LOVE LOVE your books. Also, thanks for the sharing about the Bridgertons~I will be adding them to my TBR pile!! :) 

Reviewed Twice Tempted by Marquita Valentine...

AMAZON

 Holland Springs Series Book#1

Born into wealth and power, Christian Romanov is Hollywood’s favorite bad boy with a golden touch…until the day his agent receives pictures of the movie star celebrating his birthday in a not-so-legal way. Now he’s been ordered to find a small-town girl to be seen with in order to improve his partying image. He agrees, but for an entirely different reason-to protect the reputation of an organization that helps get teens off the street and back into the school. Not only is he the anonymous donor that's been solely supporting the organization since its inception, he's slated to be their newest spokesman.
Zoe Ambrose is a hopeless romantic masquerading as a realist. But she’s also a successful novelist, trying to fit herself into a staid life when what she craves is the adventure she found one night in the arms of a playboy who never knew her name. When her successful crime series is optioned by a major studio, she travels to Las Vegas to find that the prince of her fantasies and single night of pleasure is the main contender for the male lead. But for four years Zoe has been publicly eviscerating the man who left her stranded that night—he’s the villain in her series! Now the movie star doesn't recognize her, and Zoe is determined to protect her heart this time.
When Christian braves the small town of Holland Springs and Zoe’s overprotective family to win the girl of his dreams, he finds that his Hollywood skills might not cut it—and learns a shocking truth he never imagined. Can he can tempt her again and finally give her the epic love story she has refused to write for herself?

As this was my first time reading Marquita Valentine, I wasn't sure what to expect. WOW...I was blown away by Twice Tempted!!! Such an AWESOME book!! It was filled with everything that I love~laughter, romance, hot sex, interesting characters, a sexy badboy with a British accent, a sweet clumsy heroine and most important of all, an entertaining story with an awesome epilogue!!
I was immediately pulled into the story with the opening line of "The first thing you need to do in Vegas is get laid."~Does that get your attention or what?? LOL I was engrossed with the characters and story and didn't want to stop reading and panicked as I got closer to the end because I didn't want it to end. I didn't want to leave this world that Twice Tempted wrapped me in. 
I love the way Marquita writes with not only a sense of humor but with such romantic lines spoken through Christian that just made me swoon~"I'm here to mend yours(Zoe's heart)with pieces of mine." and "She filled his empty body. His heart. His soul." *sigh* 
I absolutely love it when a book, that I don't really have any expectations about, blows me away and becomes one of my favorites. I am definitely a HUGE fan of Marquita Valentine after Twice Tempted. I am so glad that she contacted me with the generous offer to read this book. It was definitely my pleasure. 
I would absolutely recommend Twice Tempted. It earned it's place in my keeper pile and is a definite reread for me. I can't wait for Third Time's A Charm~Sasha and Rose's book~it sounds so good!!! I am so hoping that Christian and Zoe will also continue their story throughout the series. Oh and I hope that Sebastian will get his own story as well!! 5 out of 5 rating!!

Marquita wrote such a sweet dedication~dedications tell me a lot about an author and I felt that her's set the perfect tone for this book.

***Copy generously provided by Marquita Valentine~Thank you so much!!

Marquita Valentine Blog

Holland Springs Series Book#2

September 2012