Tuesday Ebook Spotlight: Campbell's 'California Gold'

On sale today, just in time for Mother’s Day, is the boxed set of the “California Gold” trilogy by Glynnis Campbell. Separately the books cost $14.98, but the boxed set sells for $7.99.

Campbell is an award-winning, best-selling novelist who lives in Los Angeles and if you’re wondering how this relates to Louisiana, she’s a dear friend of ours and a fabulous writer. Here’s the description of the books:

These are chronicles of the Old West--of the native people who lived on the land for generations and the pioneers who came from all over the world in search of riches…the struggle to survive in a land without laws…the strange bedfellows that resulted from the clash of cultures…and the common language of the heart that spoke of a love more precious than gold.

Book 1: NATIVE GOLD - A rebellious artist becomes a Gold Rush mail-order bride, but when fate makes her a widow, she's tempted by a fierce native in whose arms she discovers a forbidden love.

 

Book 2: NATIVE WOLF - A half-native's plans for vengeance backfire when he falls in love with the woman he kidnaps, who finds being stolen by a handsome savage a breathtaking adventure. A posse may be hot on the trail, but she's not so sure she wants to be rescued.

Book 3: NATIVE HAWK - A half-native gambler on the run tangles with a spirited Italian beauty who takes his money and steals his heart, but the scheming young miss can't resist the handsome gunslinger, even when she learns he's a wanted man.

Campbell is also participating in a giveaway featuring 80 historical romance authors. Follow her on BookBub and Amazon for a chance to win a large collection of novels as well as bookstore gift cards, plus a Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet to the grand prize winner. 

Enter the giveaway by clicking here.

Louisiana Book News is written by journalist Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes Louisiana romances under the pen name of Cherie Claire. The first two books in her award-winning series are FREE as ebooks! For more information and to sign up for her newsletter visit www.cherieclaire.net.

Tuesday Ebook Spotlight: 'The Pelican Bride'

Genevieve Gaillain and her sister are headed for the Louisiana colony as mail-order brides, promised to marry rugged Canadian men who have settled the new land. Both women are escaping religious persecution in Europe and hope to establish a home and family without fear of beheading. But when Genevieve falls in love with Tristan Lanier, an expatriate cartographer whose courageous stand for fair treatment of native peoples has made him decidedly unpopular in the young colony, Genevieve realizes that even in this land of liberty one is not guaranteed peace. And a secret she harbors could mean the undoing of the colony itself.

“The Pelican Bride,” book one of the Gulf Coast Chronicles, is written by Christian author Beth White, a native of Mississippi, which was part of the original Louisiana colony. White currently makes her home in Mobile, also part of the original land grant.

“The Pelican Bride” is currently FREE to download as an ebook.

Booklist gave the book a starred review, writing, “White’s carefully researched story, set in what would become Mobile, Alabama, is filled with duplicity, danger, political intrigue, and adventure. This unique book will appeal to a wide range of readers.” 

Here’s what others had to say:

“Fresh as a gulf breeze, ‘The Pelican Bride’ is the perfect pairing of history and romance. Finely tuned characters and a setting second to none make this a remarkable, memorable story. Beth White's foray into colonial Louisiana is historical romance of the highest quality.”

—Laura Frantz, author of “Love's Reckoning” and “Love's Awakening"

“Not your usual setting, not your usual historical romance — “The Pelican Bride” breaks new ground in the historical genre. Choosing to write a story set in the French colony that became Mobile, Alabama, draws the reader into a new and exciting period. A winning beginning to a new historical series.”

—Lyn Cote, author of The Wilderness Brides series

Louisiana Book News is written by journalist Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes Louisiana romances under the pen name of Cherie Claire. The first two books in her award-winning series are FREE as ebooks! For more information and to sign up for her newsletter visit www.cherieclaire.net.

Tuesday ebook spotlight: A Cajun Dream

The fifth book in my Cajun Series of historical romances was actually my debut novel. And “A Cajun Dream” (FREE download until Nov. 1) was actually a dream.  

I woke up one morning during that “Twilight Time,” around 2 a.m., and this story flitted across my mind like a movie. I kept thinking, “This is awesome and I should write it down,” but I didn’t want to interrupt the story. Seriously, it was like watching a film! In the back of my mind I knew I would never remember what I was seeing when I woke up the next morning, but amazingly enough, I did. It was as if the universe was gifting me a story to share.

The original title was “Jolie Blonde,” because this story was to be the fictional tale behind what we call the Cajun National Anthem, a song titled “Ma Blonde est Partie," later shortened to Jolie Blonde” or beautiful blonde. It’s a popular song in South Louisiana and a sad tale of a beautiful blonde woman that the singer begs not to return home to her family. Want to hear it? Click here to enjoy Michael Doucet, Aly Bain and Ricky Skaggs perform "Jolie Blonde." 

In my story, all ends well (it is a romance, after all) but the name was changed because, as my editor informed me, most Americans don’t understand French so a French title is completely out of the question. She was right. And the title became “A Cajun Dream,” which is appropriate, don’t you think?

My debut novel went on to win awards and final for many others. 

“A Cajun Dream” is free from now until Nov. 1, a Halloween present to my readers. It has become the fifth book in the series because following this novel and its sequel, “The Letter” novella, I wrote four books preceding the story. When I launched all six books as ebooks, I put the stories in chronological order. (And let me also mention that the first book in the series, "Emilie," is always free.)

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Here’s the book description:

Spurned by the Americans living in the South Louisiana town of Franklin because of her Catholic upbringing, and forbidden to associate with the French Creoles and Cajuns by her father, Amanda Rose Richardson believes she is destined to become an old maid. When she finds herself in a compromised situation by the town rogue, it is her good friend René Comeaux, the darkly handsome and passionate Cajun who rescues her. Unbeknown to Amanda, René has been in love with her for months. But can René convince her father his intensions are honorable and win the heart of the "Jolie Blonde" he adores? 

Here’s what others said: 

"A Cajun Dream will bring a smile to readers' faces. Ms. Claire has captured the sweetness of falling in love the first time with the gentleness of Dorothy Garlock and the tenderness of Pamela Morsi." — Maria C. Ferrer for Romantic Times magazine 

"What a marvelous debut! Cherie Claire is sure to earn a bevy of fans with this charming and heartwarming tale." — Rexanne Becnel, author of Blink of An Eye 

Want to read a preview? Click here.

  

Want to purchase the book (FREE until Nov. 1)? Click on your favorite bookstore below.

Kobo

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Apple

Louisiana Book News is written by journalist Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes Louisiana romances under the pen name of Cherie Claire. The first two books in her award-winning series are free as ebooks! For more information and to sign up for her newsletter visit www.cherieclaire.net.

Tuesday ebook spotlights

If you love ebooks, you'll be happy to learn about several that are discounted or free. We spotlight these every Tuesday so be sure to check back often.

“Lady Danger,” the first book in The Warrior Maids of Rivenloch by Glynnis Campbell, is FREE. Deirdre, Helena and Miriel, three kick-arse Scots wenches known as The Warrior Maids of Rivenloch, aren’t about to become any man’s chattel, until they meet heroes who are strong enough to tame their wild ways and worthy enough to win their wayward hearts.

In “Lady Danger:” Born to the blade and raised to fear no one, Deirdre of Rivenloch never shies away from a fight and never turns her back on a threat to her land or her family. But she’s never met a man like Sir Pagan Cameliard, the bold and powerful knight who comes at the king’s command to make a marriage alliance with Rivenloch. To save her younger sister, Deirdre tricks Pagan into marrying her instead, and now she faces a new kind of enemy who crosses swords with her by day and lays siege to her heart by night.

And speaking of Glynnis Campbell...she's part of a new anthology titled "Once Upon a Bride" featuring six New York Times and USA Today best-selling authors. In addition to Campbell, the novellas are written by Lauren Royal, Jill Barnett, Cynthia Wright, Cheryl Bolen and Annette Blair.  Fall in love with six grooms-to-be as you escape to medieval Scotland, 17th century England, 19th century America, Georgian London and the high seas. The book is available for 99 cents for a limited time only.

And my historical romance “Emilie” (written under my pen name of Cherie Claire) is the first book in The Cajun Series and may be downloaded FREE. Emilie Gallant and her Cajun family have traveled to Louisiana in search of their father, separated thirteen years ago during le grand dérangement, the brutal exile by the British from their Nova Scotia homeland. The last thing Emilie has on her mind as she enters the rugged bayou country is marriage to her longtime companion, Lorenz Dugas. Beautiful but stubbornly defiant, Emilie worshipped Lorenz as a child but having to fight to preserve her family has built a wall around her heart. But Lorenz is equally determined and his passion will prove that their love cannot be denied. As they make their way across the untamed Louisiana wilderness, hoping to reunite the Gallant family, Emilie learns that love has a way of healing all wounds — even in the most unusual places.

Read what others have said:

“Pick up a copy of Emilie for your reading pleasure, and take a journey into the historical Acadian (Cajun) country of Louisiana for an educational, romantic read.”
—Carol Carter, Romance Reviews Today

“The beauty of Ms. Claire’s tale is in the message that love makes one a stronger and better person. She leaves just enough hints to keep readers eagerly anticipating the next two sisters’ tales. As a history buff, I enjoyed learning about the Acadian (Cajun) culture, as well as the story’s characters.”
—Evelyn Feiner, Romantic Times magazine

Please remember, 99-cent and free Kindle books are gifts from authors. You can show your gratitude by leaving reviews on the websites where you downloaded the books. And, of course, buy their other books.

Louisiana Book News is written by journalist Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes Louisiana romances under the pen name of Cherie Claire. The first two books in her award-winning series are free as ebooks! Visit http://www.cherieclaire.net/.

Tuesday book spotlights: Discounted and free ebooks

If you love ebooks, you'll be happy to learn about several that are discounted or free. Here are a few favorites of mine:

Eventually, all storms break for a little sunshine. Dr. Cynthia Ellender is devastated when her husband of thirty-three years dies suddenly. A revelation at his funeral leaves her bitter, angry, and determined to leave Oklahoma for good. Maybe a move back to her hometown in south Louisiana is just the right prescription for the good doctor. John Michael Ferguson has weathered some serious storms in his fifty-three years. At sixteen he lost a sister, and at thirty-nine, a wife. Now, he’s forced to watch his mom lose her battle with Alzheimer's. A chance meeting with “Cyn” has the semi-retired businessman wanting to bury his past and look to the future. Armed with questionable advice from his wise-cracking, seventy-seven year old father, he vacates the “widower’s bench” to re-enter the dating world with his old classmate. 

Running Out of Rain by Lori Leger of Kinder, Louisiana, is a mature love story that proves just because there’s a little silver in the hair doesn’t mean the pump isn’t primed for passion. 

From debut author, Traci Andrighetti, comes a tale of murder, mayhem, and meddling Sicilian grandmas...Limoncello Yellow!

Francesca "Franki" Amato is a tough-talking rookie cop in Austin, Texas—until an unfortunate 911 call involving her boyfriend, Vince, and a German female wrestler convinces her once and for all that she just isn't cut out for a life on the police force. So Franki makes the snap decision to move to New Orleans to work at her friend Veronica's detective agency, Private Chicks, Inc. But Franki's hopes for a more stable life are soon dashed when Private Chicks is hired by the prime suspect in a murder case to find out what really happened to a beautiful young boutique manager who was found strangled to death with a cheap yellow scarf. When she's not investigating, Franki is hoping to seduce handsome bank executive Bradley Hartmann, but most of her time is spent dodging date offers from a string of "good Italian boys"—make that not-so-good aging Italian men—that her meddlesome Sicilian grandma has recruited as marriage candidates. As Mardi Gras approaches and the mystery of the murdered shop girl gets more complicated, Franki must decipher the odd ramblings of a Voodoo priestess to solve both the murder and the mystery of her own love life. 

Regular price $4.99, FREE this week! Lost in Temptation, a Top 10 Kindle Bestseller from a New York Times Bestselling Author!

England, 1815: The eldest of three sisters, Lady Alexandra Chase has always done what was expected of her. But when the man she's loved since her girlhood returns from a long spell abroad, she quite suddenly finds herself hoping the fine lord her brother has picked for her won't propose. She decides that if he does, she'll quite improperly turn him down--that is, until the man of her hopes and dreams informs her he has no intention of marrying her.

The last time Tristan Nesbitt saw Alexandra, he was a common man with no hope of ever wedding the daughter of a marquess. Seven years later, he's now Lord Hawkridge, which should make him eminently suitable for the woman who long ago captured his heart. But a dreadful scandal has tarnished his name in England--a scandal so horrid that marrying Alexandra would ruin not only her flawless reputation but her whole family. For Alexandra's own good, he must fight his relentless desires and stay far away...

Please remember, 99-cent and free Kindle books are gifts from authors. You can show your gratitude by leaving reviews on the websites where you downloaded the books. And of course buy their other books.