Harvest Moon by @meganslayer #thanksgiving #holiday #pnr #gay #gayromance

 I thought since it's August and some of us are tired of the summer being rather sucky, I'd move right on into the Fall. Why not? I'm not making anyone deal with pumpkin spice, but I am bringing up Harvest Moon, one of my favorite Thanksgiving themed stories. Check it out and take a break from the rest of the world. 

Harvest Moon by Megan Slayer

Moon Series, book 2

Also part of the Bleh! Turkey Series

MLR Press

Contemporary, Paranormal, Holiday

Short Story

M/M, Anal Sex

What's a guy to do when the time to be with family is the time he dreads the most?

All Matt Green wants for Thanksgiving is to propose to his boyfriend in the most epic way he knows-in front of their families. There's only one catch. His boyfriend, Reed Jordan, doesn't do family gatherings. To be honest, Reed isn't wild about Thanksgiving, but he won't say why.

Matt's willing to do anything in order to get Reed to talk, but will it make the holiday perfect or or ruin all of Matt's plans? The Harvest Moon just might be the right omen to make everything all right.

 

Available now at:

MLR Press: http://www.mlrbooks.com/Bookstore.php?bookid=MSHARVMN

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/u/3JKgGX

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PYVBTBY?tag=

BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/harvest-moon-megan-slayer/1120817673?ean=2940150188242&st=AFF&2sid=Draft2Digital_7968444_NA&sourceId=AFFDraft2Digital

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/harvest-moon-41

iTunes: https://books.apple.com/us/book/harvest-moon/id1215444463?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

 

 

EXCERPT:

©Megan Slayer, 2014, All Rights Reserved

 

Reed stood at the counter. He’d told his boyfriend he’d be home at three. The way things were looking, he’d be more than an hour late. Damn it.

Beside him, his co-worker, Jagger, rang up a female customer with a little girl. The woman had bought a couple of Thanksgiving books. The brightly colored turkey and leaves on the top book caught Reed’s attention.

Thanksgiving. He didn’t mind giving thanks for the good things in his life. He also didn’t mind the food. What he hated were the gatherings. He wished the need to bring family to one house was not the rule. Maybe he was losing his mind, but he hated the togetherness. He’d been able to dodge the holiday for the last ten years, but since he’d met Matt, he knew he wasn’t going to get around the festivities for much longer. Matt liked family functions and preferred big parties. Reed wasn’t even sure a big family party was possible.

He finished typing out a reply email to the customer in search of an out-of-print book. Thankfully, the store had the book. He sent the customer the expected price and shipping options. He glanced at his watch once more. Less than two days until Thanksgiving. The store would be open on Wednesday, but he wasn’t working. If the customer needed the book, he could wait until Friday.

The last time he and Matt had talked about the holiday, Matt’s sister, Emily and her boyfriend were supposed to be spending the day with them. He could handle that. He liked Matt’s sister and loved her son, Nattie. Still, he wanted a small dinner, not a gigantic situation. He sighed. At least with Em and Matt, he wasn’t going to have to deal with accusations.

“I’m off until Friday morning,” Reed said to Jagger. “If there is a crisis, call me, but try not to have a crisis.”

“That’s the plan.” Jagger grinned. “You can trust us. We won’t let you down. Now go, so Matt doesn’t think you got lost.”

“Deal.”

Give a Priceless Holiday Gift to Yourself & Others

The holiday season is upon us and generally that means there’s at least one person, if not more, that you're challenged to find the perfect gift to give.  Then there are some that you may not want to give a gift to at all. 

The holidays also often mean a time of increased stress, too many obligations, too little time, and too much overindulging, which can lead to a month of frustration. 

Perhaps this holiday it’s time to look a little closer at the magic of the season. To think beyond material gifts and give something  priceless that can benefit ourselves as well as the beneficiary. 

 

Priceless Gifts to Give

What gift do you give to the person who has everything, or someone that you don't even know to make their holiday a little more joyful?

More Patience- Before you get frustrated with the line you must wait in, or the crowds, remember that we’re each dealing with our own stressors every day, not just during the holidays. 

Holidays just happen to be able to bring out the worst in some people, but give the benefit of the doubt and consider that there may be underlying reasons. This could be someone's first holiday season without a loved one, or perhaps someone is ill, or family is unable to be home due to finances or deployment. Don’t add to their frustration, or your own, by losing your patience.  

A Compliment or a Smile-  Just like negativity can spark a bad mood, smiles and being pleasant can be contagious. Give someone the gift of a compliment—it may be the only kind thing they hear today. 

Forgiveness- This gift has the power to allow you to find more joy in the holiday season and all year long. 

What to Return 

Resentment, Anger & Grudges – Often the things we want the least, that hurt us the most, are the hardest to let go. Don't continue to regift these painful emotions. These feelings only hurt ourselves and can destroy relationships. 

Don’t wait until it’s too late to return these so you can gain the gift of discovering peace. 

 

Give a Helping Hand

Write Reviews- You’re heard many times before how much authors value reviews, but it’s not just authors who benefit. We all do. Writing a review for any product benefits you, too. 

If you’re like me, you do much of your shopping online, or you at least do a little online research before you decide what to buy. Reviews for any product help make decisions on what’s a good gift, or one that wouldn’t meet your expectations. If we all take the time to review most of the products we buy, it can save us all time in choosing quality, appropriate gifts for our loved ones—and ourselves. 

Other Ways to Win a Gift for Yourself

It seems that when I start holiday shopping, that’s when I find things I want for myself, but I feel guilty because I should be buying for others. Here are a few contests that you can enter to try to win a guilt-free prize for yourself.

 

Hurry- this contest wraps up on December 5^th

 Your chance to win a Kindle Fire 7 Tablet- $25 worth of ebooks from Amazon (winner’s choice, up to 5 total books) - $20 Amazon gift card- $15 worth of ebooks from Amazon (winner’s choice, up to 3 total books)- $10 Amazon gift card  Enter Right Here

Make Your Month More Merry 

Enter Right Here for your Chance to win a kindle fire or echo dot

What's the Best Gift You Ever Got?

Author Bio: Maureen Bonatch grew up in small town Pennsylvania and her love of the four seasons—hockey, biking, sweat pants and hibernation—keeps her there. While immersed in writing or reading paranormal romance and fantasy, she survives on caffeine, wine, music, and laughter. A feisty Shih Tzu keeps her in line. Find Maureen on her website, Facebook& Twitter

Be the first to know about Maureen’s book sales and new releases by following her on BookBub, Amazonand/or signing up for her newsletter

No tricks, just treats!

The holiday season is upon us, and I have a gift for you! My very first holiday themed novella, Blue Christmas, is now available on Amazon. It’s also available for pre-order on B&N, iTunes, and Kobo (release day on those platforms is November 1^st.) 

Blue Christmas

A Prophecy Series Family Holiday Novella

Four-year-old Maggie Bock loves living aboard her parents’ space cruiser, but it’s almost Christmas. What if Santa doesn’t know where she is now? Someone will have to find him and tell him, of course. But when she stows away on her mother’s transport to Terr, she sets off a chain of events that brings the holidays to the Atlantis.

Join Maggie and her family for a hilarious and heart-warming adventure as Matirans and Terrians come together to celebrate what makes the holiday season so very special.

(Blue Christmas is a companion story to my novel Prophecy, Book One of the Prophecy Series. This story takes place three months after the end of Prophecy.)

Amazon * B&N * iTunes * Kobo

Those of you who read my first book Prophecy, and have been asking for more Alex and Gryf, your wish has been granted. For those of you who haven’t read book one of my series, have I got a treat for you... 

A SALE! Through December 31, 2018, you can get both Prophecy and Blue Christmas for less than Prophecy at regular price.

Prophecy

Book One of the Prophecy Series

A nightmare of galactic proportions...
One normal day turns into horror when Earth is attacked. Now ER nurse Alexandra Bock is imprisoned aboard an alien slave ship with no way out. She deems all aliens untrustworthy, including the handsome blue-skinned Matiran captain who shares her cell.

A betrayal from within… One night of treachery leaves Senior Captain Gryf Helyg a prisoner of his enemies. Because of him, Earth’s inhabitants face extinction and his home world is threatened. But his plans for escape are complicated by his inexplicable draw to the Earth woman imprisoned with him. ​A chance to save both their peoples… One ancient prophecy holds the key to free Alexandra and Gryf’s war-ravaged worlds. Can two wounded souls who have lost everything learn to trust and forgive in order to fulfill the prophecy, and find a love that will last for eternity?

Amazon * B&N * iTunes * Kobo 

Hope you all enjoy this new, sweet, family oriented story. Happy holidays!

~Lea Kirk

USA Today Bestselling Author, Lea Kirk, loves to transport her readers to other worlds with her sci-fi romances. When she's not busy writing about the blue and green aliens of her Prophecy series, she's hanging out with her hubby, five kids (the nerd herd), and spoiled Dobie mix puppy.

Her series includes Prophecy, Salvation, and Collision (all full-length novels); her series related short reads, All of Me and Blue Christmas. She also has one PNR, Made for Her, part of S.E Smith's The Worlds of Magic, New Mexico Series.

Connect with Lea:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | BookBub | Amazon | GoodReads|  Newsletter

Loving Christmas ~ #LynnCrain #amwriting #TimeTravel

Hi everyone!

Hope your holidays are all you ever want. I have spent my life in quite a few different places for Christmas but the best I have ever seen is in Europe. And that’s why I wrote a story set around the holidays in Austria.

When I first went there, I didn’t know what to expect but the country grew on me. I find that I’m missing it even more this year than I thought. We had special little places to go, guhlwien to drink and friends to visit.

Not that we don’t have those things here…we do…but there it was magical. And to share some of that magic with you, I want to share a part from my story, Her Magical Vienna Christmas. It is in the Holiday Magic anthology and it’s available at all major ebook venues. Don’t forget to get your copy today! Here’s the setup:

Cryptographer Elizabeth “Lizzie” Camden is more in tune with numbers, cyphers and puzzles than she is with the real world. When her job takes her back in time to 1874 Vienna, she’s more than surprised to find Michael Sondervan there as well. She hadn’t seen him since college when he broke her heart.

Michael has always regretted the way things turned out between him and Lizzie. When he needs someone to figure out the cryptic warning, he knows he needs the best. And Lizzie is the best. Giving her a magical Vienna Christmas in the bargain, he hopes will bring them together and prove his love to the only woman for him.

I loved writing about Lizzie and Michael as the rediscover their love for each other, for history and the life they plan to have. Vienna is a wonderful place to write about and I love revisiting it again and again. Here’s an excerpt from this wonderful story:

Even with the snow falling, the Graben was a hub-bub of activity. Although the shops didn’t look that different on the outside from what existed in her reality, she knew they would be totally devastated in World War II. It wasn’t until much later, in the 1950s, that they would finally be allowed to stand on their own when the last Russian left the city. So much history and she was privileged enough to see it.

Lizzie gripped Michael’s arm when she saw police beating starving people and even children. Some of them appeared so pathetic as she looked at their rag-tag appearances. Their clothes were hardly warm enough for a cold winter. She tugged fiercely toward one of them but Michael held her in place.

“Look at me,” he whispered in her ear. When she turned, he kissed her again. “Remember this is how people were, not how people are in our time. We have come a long way.”

She nodded and kept her eyes on the ground in front of her. Finally, they turned off the main thoroughfare and down the side street of Jungferngasse, then again down a little path. Hidden away from the street was a small bookstore.

“This appears to be the place. Shall we go in, darling?”

She smiled as he pulled the door open for her. Inside there were many bookshelves and even books stacked on the floor. Lizzie managed to push herself in, though the fit was tight right at the door. Picking up a tome or two, she was surprised to see originals of some titles. Even then certain books in mathematics or physics were treasures. Gently replacing one of the books, she waved her hand in front of her face as the dust rose. It looked as if some of these hadn’t been dusted in weeks.

Proceeding to where she suspected the proprietor might be, she continued to gaze around to see if anything else caught her eye. Maybe his having a page from an Enigma machine code book was just a fluke regardless of what Derrick had told them. Turning around, her astonishment grew as she didn’t see anyone minding the store. Turning to Michael, she heard a thump behind her, much like a fist connecting to flesh. The feverish whispers in German made her lift her finger to her lips and point in the direction of a door.

This anthology is available now and along with my great story, you’ll be getting four other wonderful Christmas heart warmers.

I’d love to wish you all a happy holiday season. Please join me next month!

Lynn