Military Appreciation - Winners

We have winners from May is National Military Appreciation Week:

Five winners, for each branch of service, receive a book choice from my convention stash

- Linda M., Karen C., Mary K., Catslady, and LSUReader 

Grand prize winner receives a box of books and swag from the authors who supported the SOS America Military Tribute

- Debby G 

Melissa Cutler's GAME CHANGER
- Jane and Danielle D. wins a copy from Melissa

Jessica James' MEANT TO BE: Video Trailer 

- Cathy P. wins a book choice from my convention stash

Ella Quinn's A KISS FOR LADY MARY

- Barbara E. wins a book choice from my convention stash.

Winners, please claim your prize by sending your mailing address to sos.aloha@yahoo.com.  

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Donna Michaels

Today is our finale of Military Appreciation Month with the spotlight on Donna Michaels!  She hosted the National Guard themed table at the SOS America Military Tribute.  From her bio,

I’m happily married to a military man for 28 years. We have four children and several rescued cats. Michael’s been in the Army National Guard since before he graduated. The Guard has been a part of our lives right from the start. It was only natural for the military to spill into my writing. God bless the military and their families. Thank you all for your sacrifices. ♥

Learn more about Donna and her books at donnamichaelsauthor.com.

Donna's bookshelf includes the Citizen Soldier series -

WYNE AND DINE
Citizen Soldier Series/Book 1: Ben
Heat index: Hot

Lea Gablonski has two dreams: To work at a museum in NYC, and to gain other-than-sisterly attention from her best friend’s brother. So far, she’s 0 for 0. Though her MA in History is just a wall decoration at her family’s diner where she’s working while her dad recovers from surgery, she enjoys her visual encounters with the sexiest man alive—even though he would sooner pat her on the head than take her to bed.

Military born and bred, Battalion Supply Sergeant Benjamin Wyne thrives on order and control in his fulltime career in the PA National Guard, and in his personal life. But when he’s forced to ask his childhood sweetheart’s younger sister to pose as his girlfriend to thwart unwanted advances from his boss’ wife, his world turns chaotic. Lea is sweet and hot and tastes so damn good he’s addicted. When the attraction takes on a new level at his sister’s wedding, his carefully guarded heart begins to thaw.

But he’s seen many relationships go south. If he takes a chance and gives up control, will Lea be like her sister and leave him for a career in the big city? Yet, if he doesn’t, will the best damn thing to ever enter his life become history?

WYNE AND CHOCOLATE
Citizen Soldier Series/Book 2: Mason
Heat Index: Hot

Jill is a chocoholic with a big heart, a flair for baking and confection, and a knack for getting into predicaments, including the one where she was almost financially ruined by her ex. Now she’s in a new town, with a new business, and is determined to stay away from trouble. Especially, the gorgeous guardsman with the haunted gaze, brooding expression and miserable attitude. Her days of helping people were over. She was tired of being taken advantage of and was looking forward to getting back on her feet. Too bad her new business venture puts her in daily contact with the sexy man.

The Minuteman inspire the logo for

the National Guard

Mahalo, Donna, for serving as a military spouse!  For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link). Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1.  What your favorite wine and/or chocolate?

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winners on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Jamie Rae

Meeting Jamie Rae in Dallas was one of my top moments at the RT Booklovers Convention.  She cohosted "We Love Pilots" table at the SOS America Military Tribute.  From her bio,

JAMIE RAE is a New Adult and Young Adult author. She writes with one goal in mind–create stories with a positive message that will stay with the reader long after they’ve finished reading.

Jamie is an avid reader and loves discovering stories with a great hook, though she will not eat, sleep, or speak until she reaches the end. The Harry Potter years weren’t pretty!! Convinced that her Hogwarts letter was lost in the mail, she keeps a watchful eye for owls hoping her children will have better luck!

In her other life, Jamie Rae is an orthodontist, and she keeps her heart overflowing with love as a mother of three. She has perfected the art of nomadic living as a military spouse and Air Force veteran and has finally embraced that home is where the Air Force sends you. Jamie has a passion for critters of all shapes and sizes and you can often find her sneaking them into her own home or volunteering for rescues.

Learn more about Jamie and her books at jamieraewrites.com.

I purchased a copy of Jamie's debut book, CALL SIGN KARMA, from the Giant Book Fair:

TINKLEE Pinkerton is chosen as the first female fighter pilot to fly the Air Force's prodigy, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the same jet that killed her brother, leaving her emotionally numb. Now, she’ll do anything to prove his death wasn't due to pilot error and fly her heart away from anyone who tries to get through her walls.

Then she meets Locke Sinclair, a handsome stranger with entrancing eyes and charming accent. For the first time since her brother’s accident, Tink allows someone to get close and hopes she may finally begin to heal.
​
​Until she discovers Locke is no stranger. He’s her superior officer, and their secret relationship becomes a definite no-fly zone. With her career on the line, and her plan to clear her brother’s reputation suddenly in jeopardy, Tink must deny herself the one person who makes her feel alive or risk losing everything.

USAF F-35 on its delivery flight to Eglin AFB in July 2011
Public Domain (link)

Mahalo, Jamie, for your service as a Air Force veteran, Air Force spouse, and positive writer!  May is National Military Appreciation Month. For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link). Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1. Have you attended an airshow?  Oh, yes I have!  

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winners on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Greeting the AWACS aircrew at Hanscom AFB
(I'm on the right)

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Julie Ann Walker

Julie Ann Walker co-hosted The Way of the Warrior table at the SOS America Military Tribute.  She also contributed to THE WAY OF THE WARRIOR anthology in support of the Wounded Warrior Project. From her bio,

Julie Ann Walker is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of award-winning romantic suspense. She has won the Book Buyers Best Award, been nominated for the National Readers Choice Award, the Australian Romance Reader Awards, and the Romance Writers of America's prestigious RITA award. Her latest release was named a Top Ten Romance of 2014 by Booklist. Her books have been described as "alpha, edgy, and downright hot." Most days you can find her on her bicycle along the lake shore in Chicago or blasting away at her keyboard, trying to wrangle her capricious imagination into submission.

Learn more about Julie and her books at julieannwalker.com.

Julie welcomes a new series on July 7 with HELL OR HIGH WATER:

In a world on the brink...

Six men. One sunken Spanish galleon. Millions in gold and silver coins lying on the ocean floor. And a past that refuses to let the guys of Deep Six Salvage forget the Navy SEAL motto: the only easy day was yesterday...

There's more than one kind of treasure...

The nation's security has always been CIA agent Olivia Mortier's top priority. But a mission-gone-wrong has begun to make her wonder if there's more to life than risking hers.

And more than one secret at the bottom of the sea...

Only two things could make Leo Anderson abandon his hunt for the legendary lost ship, La Santa Christina, and return to the world of weapons and warfare he swore to leave behind: a capsule of enriched uranium, lost on the ocean floor, and a plea for assistance from the one woman he can't seem to forget...

Verbeeck's painting of a Spanish galleon (left) 

firing on a Dutch warship (right)

Public Domain (link)

Mahalo, Julie, for writing military heroes and supporting military families!  May is National Military Appreciation Month. For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link).  Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1.  Let's chat about Chicago - have you visited the Windy City? I have only visited the outskirts for RT/12 ... but I would like to explore Chicago's Navy Pier.  

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winners on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Navy Pier - Public Domain (link) 

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Julie Rowe

Julie Rowe added international flare to the SOS America Military Tribute - she hosted the Canadian Table and read IN FLANDERS FIELD (we'll chat about the military tribute next week).  From Julie's bio,

Full-time author, freelance writer and workshop facilitator,Julie Rowe’s debut novel, Icebound, was released by Carina Press on Nov 14, 2011. North of Heartbreak followed on April 16, 2012 and Saving The Rifleman on October 8, 2012. Both North of Heartbreak and Saving The Rifleman finaled in the 2013 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, with Saving The Rifleman winning the novella category. Enticing the Spymaster and Aiding the Enemy followed in 2013. Molly Gets Her Man was published by Entangled Ignite in January 2014. Hollywood Scandal released May 27, 2014 from the Entangled Indulgence imprint. Julie’s articles and short stories have appeared in numerous magazines, such as Romantic Times Magazine, Today's Parent magazine and Canadian Living. Julie facilitates business writing and communication workshops at Keyano College in her home city, and has presented writing workshops at conferences in the United States and Canada. She’s also a strong supporter of life long learning and moderates a free announcement loop for the promotion of online classes, workshops and webinars. 

Visit her at JulieRoweAuthor.com.

Julie is preparing for the release of DEADLY STRAIN, Book One of the Biological Response Team, available June 15:

Major Grace Samuels, a trauma surgeon deployed to Afghanistan, spends her life helping her fellow soldiers overcome disease and combat injuries. But her own wounds are harder to heal. Wracked with guilt over the death of a fellow soldier, she finds comfort in her only friend and appointed bodyguard, weapons sergeant Jacob “Sharp” Foster.

Sharp feels more for Grace than a soldier should, more than he wants to admit. When the team discovers a new, quick-to-kill strain of anthrax, he tries to focus on the mission to find its source. He knows he can help Grace defeat her demons, but first they must defeat the deadly outbreak.

Sharp is Grace’s most loyal ally, but in close quarters, he starts to feel like more. She can’t watch someone else she cares about die—but she might not have a choice. The closer they get to finding the source of the strain, the closer it gets to finding them.

A real medical team in Afghanistan ...

Mahalo, Julie for your support of the SOS America Military Tribute.  May is National Military Appreciation Month. For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link). Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1. Leave a comment about Canada - what do you know about it?  What do you love about it?  When we lived in the Netherlands, my oldest son attended the International School. He was taught by Canadian teachers for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades.  Andrew learned about Canada's hero, Terry Fox.

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winners on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Terry Fox, Canadian cancer research activist
Image released to Public Domain (link)

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Lea Griffith

Lea Griffith co-hosted the Way of the Warrior table at the SOS America Military Tribute.  From her bio,

Lea Griffith began sneaking to read her mother’s romance novels at a very young age. She cut her teeth on the greats: McNaught, Woodiwiss and Garwood. As she got older, her need to devour all genres of romance–including contemporary, paranormal and sci/fi–grew. Any romance novels she couldn’t buy were borrowed or traded in her quest to read about that elemental emotion that keeps us strong: love. She still has most of those books; dog-eared, their pages yellowed with age, they still bring her joy.

Lea lives with her husband and three teenage daughters in rural Georgia and she writes her own stories now. With two dogs, a cat and a beta fish named Coddy George, there is never a dull moment. When she’s not working her day job you can usually find Lea at her keyboard, using every spare second to write. Shifters, artificial intelligence, and gene splicing, oh my! Nothing is off-limits when it comes to her writing.

You can visit Lea via:
Facebook Profile
Facebook page
Twitter
Pinterest
Tumblr
Goodreads

Hawaiian Warrior at Turtle Bay on the North Shore

Lea contributed to the Way of the Warrior anthology:

Eight passionate love stories about amazing military heroes by bestselling authors:  Suzanne Brockmann, Julie Ann Walker, Catherine Mann, Tina Wainscott, Anne Elizabeth, M.L. Buchman, Kate SeRine, Lea Griffith

To honor and empower those who've served, all author and publisher proceeds go to the Wounded Warrior Project.

The Wounded Warrior Project was founded in 2002 and provides a wide range of programs and services to veterans and service members who have survived physical or mental injury during their brave service to our nation. Get involved or register for programs and benefits for yourself and your family online at woundedwarriorproject.org.

"It is a proud privilege to be a soldier." —George S. Patton Jr.
"We sleep safely at night because rough men stand ready to visit violence on those who would harm us." —Winston Churchill

Oahu warrior reaches for the stars ...

Mahalo, Lea, for supporting military personnel and their families!  May is National Military Appreciation Month. For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link). Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1. Leave a comment about the oldest romance book you have on your keeper shelf - mine is Johanna Lindsay's UNTIL FOREVER from 1995.

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winners on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Ella Quinn

Ella Quinn cohosted the international table at the SOS America Military Tribute.  From her bio,

Ella Quinn lived all over the United States, the Pacific, Canada, England and Europe before finally discovering the Caribbean. She lives in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands with her wonderful husband, three bossy cats and a loveable great dane.

Ella loves when friends connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

Ella is standing in the front row, second from right.

Ella is celebrating the release A KISS FOR LADY MARY, Book 6 in the Marriage Game:  

Handsome, charming, and heir to a powerful Viscount, Christopher “Kit” Featherton is everything a woman could want—except interested in marriage. So when he hears that someone on his estate near the Scottish border is claiming to be his wife, Kit sets off to investigate.

Since her parents’ death, Lady Mary Tolliver has been hounded by her cousin, a fortune-hunting fool after her inheritance. Refusing to settle for anything less than love, Mary escapes to the isolated estate of rakish bachelor, Kit Featherton. Knowing he prefers Court to the country, she believes she will be safe. But when Kit unexpectedly returns, her pretend marriage begins to feel seductively real… 

Edinburgh Castle circa 1753
Public Domain (link)

Ella offers a guest post ....

As an historical author I love taking my readers to different places. In A Kiss for Lady Mary, even though my heroine desperately wanted to go to London for a Season, Circumstances forced her to settle for the capital to the north, in other words, Edinburgh. The reasons for that will become clear if you read the book. Unfortunately, other than one scene in an earlier book, I had never placed a book in Scotland before. And although I knew they had a Season, I knew nothing about it. Suffice it to say that the research ended up being intensive and rather illuminating.

Since I had a number of gentlemen, I found it necessary to research gentlemen’s clubs. Unlike the English clubs such as White’s and Brook’s the Scottish clubs didn’t affiliate themselves with particular political parties. There was a betting book, but the Scots considered it ill-mannered to bet on anything a lady may do (I can’t say I disagree) and downright stupid to bet on raindrops racing down a pane of glass. Scotch not brandy was the drink of choice. Who didn’t see that coming? Still, they were the place gentlemen went to commune, dine, catch up on the latest news, and get away from the ladies.

Ladies, on the other hand, had endless morning calls. They not only began earlier in the day, but, as there was no Promenade à la Hyde Park, they lasted much of the day.

In the evenings, the Scots engaged in the same round of balls, dinners, theater, and other forms of entertainments, but not on the grand scale as their London counterparts. A surprise to me was that public assemblies were quite popular. Assemblies in England were restricted for the most part to Bath, and county towns.

One piece of information I found interesting was that the grounds of Holyrood Palace were used by debtors to escape debtors prison. If the debtor was on the grounds of the old church, they were immune to arrest.

All in all, it sounded like a good time to me without the grand drama of the ton. London or Edinburgh? What do you think?

Holyrood Palace circa 1649

Public Domain (link)

Ella is giving away an ecopy of A KISS FOR LADY MARY to one randomly selected commenter.  To enter the giveaway,

1.  Answer Ella's question - London or Edinburgh?

2.  Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3.  I'll post the winner on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City 

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Jackson Young

I asked Jackson Young to speak at the SOS America Military Tribute.   He is an Army vet-turned-entrepreneur. From his bio,

Jackson Young is a singer/songwriter in a professional career spanning fifteen years. Jackson has formerly held two independent records deals (Platinum Planet, TMG), a publishing deal, and is currently calling Nashville, TN, home. “I’m blessed,” Jackson remarks.

As a professional actor, Jackson has been featured as an extra, principal, and music video choreographer. He has experience in major motion picture, commercials, independent film, and television – some of which have been CMT and 20th Century Fox distribution, among others. In commercial, video, and currently independent film, he has been responsible for co-writing, casting, co-editing, producing, and executive production.

Fortunate to have studied under a three-time world champion, Jackson has professionally trained in the style of Ballroom, Latin, and Swing, and has performed privately for groups numbering more than 100 people. Owning a private dance company, Jackson taught group and private lessons and choreography. While a professional instructor, his students won placement in Pro-Am dance competitions. Jackson has also been a featured principal dancer and choreographer for a national cruise line video.

Most recently he is currently the cover model for a three book series, Diaries of a Casanova; Legend Awakening, Twisted Angel, and Rising Redemption which are co-written by New York Times and US Today Bestselling Author, Randi Alexander.

Jackson says, “Wear lots of shoes you will never regret where they take you.”

If that isn't enough to keep him busy, Jackson promotes Rowdy, the battle buddy bear, for Operation Troop Aid, operationtroopaid.org:

We salute and support all our Armed Forces! The mission of Operation Troop Aid (OTA) is to provide care packages for U.S. Service members with the revenue generated through professional concert promotions and public financial generosity. OTA is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) corporation striving to make a positive difference and inspire our Armed Forces by letting them know Americans stand with them.

During the tribute, Jackson read the lyrics to IRON MAN STRONG, written by Jackson Young, Scott Smith, and Johnny Neel

When the fire came down from the mountain in that hell Afghanistan
A moment in time would change for a life of a man
Out of nowhere a solider fell down in a flash of light
But on the ground there was no doubt he was in for the fight of his life

Made of blood and bones but has a soul forged with a might of steel
Yah got the guts and the confidence to overcome any hill
With a heart beaten out, sayin’ yes I can, and a motto of bring it on
That makes him iron man strong

He woke up days later in a hospital bed
Lookin’ down he saw metal parts where his arm once had been
The doctors say it’s a miracle but he might not walk at all
But with fire in his eyes it’s plain to see a solider won’t be a cripple

Made of blood and bones but has a soul forged with a might of steel
Yah got the guts and the confidence to overcome any hill
With a heart beaten out, sayin’ yes I can, and a motto of bring it on
That makes him iron man strong

Sometimes in a search of glory it can all go so wrong
We all get defeated but the battle is won by those that carry on
With a heart beaten out sayin’ yes I can so come on and bring it on
That makes him iron man strong

There was not a dry eye in the room.  Mahalo, Jackson, for reminding us that Freedom is Not Free.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

PS Rest assured, I will invite Jackson for a guest interview here at SOS Aloha.  Learn more about Jackson and his projects on social media: 

facebook.com/JYCRowdyNation

jacksonyoungcountry.com
twitter.com/JYCRowdyNation
youtube.com/channel/UCY-KOO4GngaFMOH2OsiA7yQ
instagram.com/jackson_young_once_you_go_jack
ourstage.com/jacksonyoung

And for Memorial Day Weekend, I challenge readers to answer the call of the Rowdy Nation Flag Challenge at this link.

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Kara Braden

Breaking News! I am now posting pictures from the RT Booklovers' Convention on my travel blog, Aloha On My Mind, at this link.

  

Kara Braden hosted the "Hunting Scorpions" table at the SOS America Military Tribute - I named the table based on her bio,

After twenty-three years on Long Island, I ended up in the Arizona desert and haven’t yet figured out how to escape. I blame my wonderful husband, a twenty-one-year veteran of the US Air Force. We share our lives with the dogs and cats who are our children and many, many computers. For fun, we watch movies, play video games (especially MMOs!), and occasionally start fires in the kitchen.

In the years before I started writing full-time, I worked in the semiconductor industry and wrote labs and learning materials for auto/diesel mechanics. I’ve since become proficient at hunting scorpions in my backyard using a blacklight and a spatula, an activity best performed in hiking boots rather than sandals. I have yet to be stung, so I’m apparently doing something right.

Learn more about Kara and her books at karabraden.com.

Kara's debut book features a military heroine in THE LONGEST NIGHT:

This could work, whispered the little voice in the back of her mind, the voice that had been silent for seven years…

SHE SOUGHT SOLACE IN SOLITUDE
Years ago, former Marine Captain Cecily Knight fled her dark past and the nightmares forever haunting her nights. Alone in the remote Canadian wilderness, she survives day to day…until Ian Fairchild comes storming into her life and shatters her protective seclusion.

UNTIL ONE TOUCH BARED HER SOUL
Aloof but intriguing, defensive but undeniable, Ian is everything Cecily shouldn’t want but can’t ignore. He watches her with shrewd blue eyes, as if determined to decipher her secrets…and for the first time in years, she finds herself coming alive beneath the hands of a man with too many scars to count.

As the hushed and harsh winter closes in around them, two lost souls find themselves on the precipice of a love that could save their lives…or destroy them forever.

Women Marine Reservists enlist for the first time in 1918.

Mahalo, Kara, for serving as a military spouse!  May is National Military Appreciation Month. For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link). Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1. Leave a comment about Arizona, the Copper State?  I only stepped into Arizona when visiting the Hoover Dam.  I would like to spend more time in Arizona, including visiting the Grand Canyon.

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winners on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Rebecca Yarros

Breaking News! I am now posting pictures from the RT Booklovers' Convention on my travel blog, Aloha On My Mind, at this link. 

The best part of going to RT is meeting authors (new to me) who are connected to the military.  I was fortunate to meet Rebecca Yarros at the SOS America Military Tribute.  From her bio,

Two Books. One Blog. Six Kids. And just enough quirk to stay sane!

Rebecca Yarros is a hopeless romantic and lover of all things chocolate, coffee, and Paleo. In addition to being a mom, military wife, and blogger, she can never choose between Young Adult and New Adult fiction, so she writes both. She's a graduate of Troy University, where she studied European history and English, but still holds out hope for an acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Her blog, The Only Girl Among Boys, has been voted the Top Military Mom Blog the last two years, and celebrates the complex issues surrounding the military life she adores.

When she's not writing, she's tying on hockey skates for her kids, or sneaking in some guitar time. She is madly in love with her army-aviator husband of eleven years, and they're currently stationed in Upstate NY with their gaggle of rambunctious kiddos and snoring English Bulldog, but she would always rather be home in Colorado.

Learn more about Rebecca and her books at rebeccaelizabethyarros.com.

Rebecca draws upon military life for her Flight & Glory series, including FULL MEASURES:

A new adult novel from Entangled's Embrace imprint...

Three knocks can change everything…

"She knew. That’s why Mom hadn’t opened the door. She knew he was dead."

Twenty years as an army brat and Ember Howard knew, too. The soldiers at the door meant her dad was never coming home. What she didn’t know was how she would find the strength to singlehandedly care for her crumbling family when her mom falls apart.

Then Josh Walker enters her life. Hockey star, her new next-door neighbor, and not to mention the most delicious hands that insist on saving her over and over again. He has a way of erasing the pain with a single look, a single touch. As much as she wants to turn off her feelings and endure the heartache on her own, she can’t deny their intense attraction.

Until Josh’s secret shatters their world. And Ember must decide if he’s worth the risk that comes with loving a man who could strip her bare.

Mahalo, Rebecca, for serving as a military spouse and mom! My neighbor once asked me to be listed as a person to contact should something happen to her husband during his deployment.  I would have accompanied the officer reporting a death .... luckily, I never had to fulfill this duty.

May is National Military Appreciation Month. For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link). Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1. Leave a comment about Upstate New York - what do you know about it?  I have visited Niagara Falls; it is beautiful even if it is a tourist trap.

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winner on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

May is National Military Appreciation Month - Aloha to Susan Stoker

Breaking News! I am now posting pictures from the RT Booklovers' Convention on my travel blog, Aloha On My Mind, at this link. 

Susan Stoker co-hosted a SEAL themed table at the SOS America Military Tribute.  From her bio,

Susan Stoker has a heart as big as the state of Texas where she lives but this all American girl has also spent the last fourteen years living in Missouri, California, Colorado, and Indiana (Kim's comment - clear indicated she is a military spouse). She is quite the romantic and even met the love of her life on "Hotmail classified" before online dating and sites like match.com even existed!

Susan loves writing but her true passion is adopting dogs from rescue groups and shelters. Susan and her husband have had a total of nine "rescued" dogs since 2000 including a variety of basset hounds and bloodhounds. She has recently branched out and adopted a basset/terrier mix who acts more like a terrier than a basset (i.e. digging, eating a couch and being hyper). If you love romance and want to help her support adopting great dogs, be sure to check out her work!

Learn more about Susan and her books at stokeraces.com.

Mahalo, Susan, for your dog rescue efforts!  Susan is getting ready for the release of PROTECTING JESSYKA on July 7: 

Kason “Benny” Sawyer was the last single man on his Navy SEAL team. He loved his teammates like brothers and respected each and every one of their women. They’d all been through hell and they deserved their current happiness. But seeing the love between his friends and their women made it tough to be the odd man out all the time.

Jessyka Allen had a good life, until it wasn’t anymore. Finding herself in an impossible situation, with no noticeable way out, her job was an escape. Working at the small Bar and Grill put her in contact with some wonderful people, who Jess figured couldn’t ever understand what she was going through.

Being a SEAL, Benny thought he knew the true meaning of teamwork and friendship. But Jess would show him that everything he thought he knew about sacrifice, trust, and love, paled in comparison to what she brought into his world.

Protecting Jessyka is the 6th book in the SEAL of Protection Series. It can be read as a stand-alone, but it’s recommended you read the books in order to get maximum enjoyment out of the series.

May is National Military Appreciation Month. For the month of May, I am giving away one grand prize of books and swag from the authors featured this month (link). Plus five more commenters - one for each branch of service - wins a book choice from my convention stash. To enter the giveaway,

1. Leave a comment about dogs - do you have a favorite breed? My family favors cats ... but we like any dogs that love to play! 

2. Comments are open through Sunday, May 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winner on Monday, June 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City