2nd Birthday Bash Kick-Off with Tara Lain!

Hi y’all! So, some of you may remember that this time last year, I had a birthday bash celebrating my 21st birthday. I had such a fun time doing it last year, I decided to do it again! So welcome to my 2nd birthday bash! All month long, I will be having some of my favorite authors visit, offering their thoughts as well as giveaways for you! And to top it off, I’m offering not one, but two $22 Amazon GCs as a grand prize! To enter the grand prize and for links to all the posts, click on the birthday bash tab at the top of the page.  So come and join the celebration!

Now to kick things off the second year in a row, here’s Ms. Tara Lain!

Watching the Angels Fly!

I’m so delighted to be here celebrating Emily’s birthday bash!! I’m Tara Lain and I write The Beautiful Boys of Romance. Emily asked us to share a favorite birthday memory. Mine comes from one of those big round number years! My husband and my business partner ganged up to plan a surprise party for me at a favorite casual restaurant. My honey got me there easily since it was a favorite place of mine to eat so I never thought anything about it. Just walked into the back room and BAM! About 50 people yelling Happppy Birthday.

I was totally surprised, but that was just the beginning. My husband had told me I needed to pack a bag for a short trip. I had no idea where. After the party, he took me to the airport and we flew to San Francisco where he’d made reservations at the W Hotel. Talk about romantic! We had wonderful food, and walked all over the town, and, of course, hotel sex is the best. But the most memorable moment happened by accident. We boarded the harbor ferry for a trip to Sausalito across the bay to have lunch. It happened to be Fleet Week in SF, and at the moment we were crossing the water, the famous Blue Angels precision flying team gave a show in honor of Fleet Week -- directly above our heads! We felt like we could reach up and touch them.

I’ve had a lot of memorable birthdays in my life -- from getting beautiful Austrian dolls as presents in Vienna when I was four to attending the Metropolitan Opera and seeing Madam Butterfly when I was much older

-- but standing on that boat deck with the love of my life watching the angels soar is a prime memory.

Also in Emily’s honor, I’d like to share a nibble from my upcoming release, Wolf in Gucci Loafers. This book releases on April 16th and is available now for pre-order! It will also be coming out in a two-book print anthology with The Pack or the Panther on that same day!

PRIZE! -- To celebrate the birthday, I’d like to give one person who comments an ecopy of The Pack or the Panther, the first book in Tales of the Harker Pack. (You don’t have to read The Pack or the Panther to enjoy Wolf in Gucci Loafers, but it’s an introduction to my werewolf world.) TO WIN, PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT ON THIS POST! YOU HAVE UNTIL THE END OF THE BIRTHDAY BASH TO WIN!

Here’s Wolf in Gucci Loafers!

Socialite Lindsey Vanessen wants someone to love who will love him back—an impossibility for a gay, half-human, half-werewolf. Too aggressive for humans, too gay for wolves, and needing to protect the pack from human discovery, Lindsey tries to content himself with life as a successful businessman. But when someone starts kidnapping members of wealthy families, Lindsey meets tough cop Seth Zakowsy—the hunky embodiment of everything Lindsey wants but can't have.

Seth has never been attracted to flamboyant men. What would the guys in the department think of Lindsey? But intrigue turns to lust when he discovers Lindsey’s biting, snarling passion more than matches his dominant side. It might mean a chance at love for a cop in black leather and a wolf in Gucci loafers.

Excerpt:

Available for Pre-Order at Dreamspinner Press

“Lindsey, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, sir. I’m doing well.”

“Come talk to me.” His grandfather turned and walked into the living room.

Did he want to talk? He’d have to be careful, but yes. Pop-Pop was a smart man. He walked down the stairs and into the large, comfortable room. His grandfather sat on a love seat at one end of the room, so he took the identical seat across from him. He leaned back and crossed his legs. Look relaxed.

Pop-Pop sat forward. “Romantic troubles?”

Wow. The old man had a way of diving to the truth. “Not exactly.”

“I heard you had a date with the Westerberg son. Your mother’s doing, I believe.” The old man could have been talking about a date with a girl, he was so comfortable with it.

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you like him?”

“Well enough.”

“Ah, so he’s not the issue.”

Lindsey grinned. His grandfather was enjoying the guessing game.

“So if it’s not exactly romantic troubles, what exactly is it?”

“I guess you could call it unrequited romantic interest.”

He rubbed his hands together. “Now this is interesting. I’ve seen you with many men over the years since you returned from school, but none of them lasted more than a few dates, and none of them ever sparked what I would call romantic interest. How odd that you should affix your affection on one who doesn’t care about you. Have you considered it might be a form of self-protection? Only wanting the ones you can’t have has a way of keeping you single.”

Lindsey grinned. “I guess that’s possible sometimes, but not in this case. He’s just highly inappropriate. A tough cop I met while helping Dave with the kidnapping issue. Dave asked if I would take him to the polo match to give him a chance to investigate among people we know without being too obvious. So I did it.” Lindsey shrugged.

“And got caught in your own trap.”

He smiled, but it hurt around the edges. “Yes, I guess. I found him attractive from the start but assumed he was straight, so it was just a harmless flirtation. After the match, I found out he’s gay, so that made the vast expanse between us more real.”

Pop-Pop frowned. “It’s not like you to discriminate based on class.”

“Nothing like that, sir. He’s the one discriminating, I’m sure. I’m simply not at all his type. A bit too lavender silk for his black leather,

shall we say.”

His grandfather steepled his fingers and stared over them. “You’re not just one thing, Lindsey. I’ve know many men in my life and you’re one of the very best. Smart, decisive, action-oriented, kind, and basically good. Unlike your father, I might add. You need a man who sees that. But you’ve got good judgment, so if you think this cop is romance-worthy, then my bet is there’s something there worth pursuing. Ride him down, son!” He laughed that big robust sound that had comforted Lindsey since the day he was born.

Author Bio:

Tara Lain writes the Beautiful Boys of Romance in LGBT erotic romance novels that star her unique, charismatic heroes. Her first novel was published in January of 2011 and she’s now somewhere around book 21. Her best-selling novels have garnered awards for Best Series, Best Contemporary Romance, Best Ménage, Best LGBT Romance, Best Gay Characters, and Tara has been named Best Writer of the Year in the LRC Awards. In her other job, Tara owns an advertising and public relations firm. She often does orkshops on both author promotion and writing craft.  She lives with her soul-mate husband and her soul-mate dog in Laguna Beach, California, a pretty seaside town where she sets a lot of her books.  Passionate about diversity, justice, and new experiences, Tara says on her tombstone it will say “Yes”!

You can find Tara HERE:

Website     |     Blog     |     Goodreads

Twitter     |     FB Page

Cataclysmic Shift Blog Tour

Super cat, Aloysius, may be the most powerful witch’s familiar in the world, but when he takes a blast at the hand of an evil witch he loses it all — power, memory, and his feline form — to become the ethereal human beauty, Alain Bellarose. When Alain wakes up naked on the floor surrounded by dogs and cats, his eyes first set upon Luke Elliott, the handsome and mysterious veterinarian.  Suddenly, the prospect of being human doesn’t seem so bad. Luke has a lot to hide and he likes animals way more than people, but he can’t resist the flamboyant boy who washes his face with the side of his hand and tries to lick his own privates!  The loss of Aloysius depletes the power of the Witch Master, Killian Barth, and that of his “secret weapon” Sammy and leaves their coven sitting ducks for two very nasty females. When Alain discovers that he’s really a powerful cat, he’s faced with the ultimate choice. To protect his community, or stay with the man he loves.

Hi all. I’m delighted to be visiting Emily today to celebrate the release of my new MM paranormal romance, Cataclysmic Shift! I’m Tara Lain and I write the Beautiful Boys of Romance. In my new book, my main character is a beautiful human who is a shifted cat! (If you’ve read Spell Cat or Brush with Catastrophe, you know which cat he is, though you don’t have to read those to enjoy this book.) In fact, the black cat that is my heroes alternate nature is actually the most powerful witch’s familiar on earth.

Black cats have been connected with witches from the time of the middle ages and before. Black cats have so many myths and legends associated with them it could fill books. It’s lucky to dream of one but unlucky to have one cross your path. If a black cat lies on the bed of a sick person, they will die but a strange black cat found on the porch brings prosperity.  It was largely in the Middle Ages that the black cat became associated with evil. Because cats are nocturnal and roam at night, they were believed to be supernatural servants of witches, or even witches themselves.

In the world of Cataclysmic Shift, Aloysius, the familiar, has enormous power mostly associated with enhancing and magnifying the abilities of the witches to whom he is the familiar. Because the book is a contemporary paranormal, I get to maintain the natural world as we know it -- my witches live in New York City where they have jobs and regular lives. BUT, they also have powers like manifesting lightning at will, controlling aspects of the physical world, and much more. But what if that familiar who magnifies all that power were to suddenly go vanish? And what if his new life gave him a love like he has never known?

Here’s the list of Blogs and events on the Blog tour:

July 23 — Tara Blogs at Buffy’s Ramblings

July 23 — Tara Blogs at Charley Descoteaux

July 24 — Tara Blogs at Dirty Birdies

July 24 —  Tara Blogs at Romance Lives Forever

July 24 — Tara Blogs at Cup O’ Porn

July 25 — Tara Blogs at Milly Taiden’s

July 25 — Tara Parties at TRS! Separate giveaway as well as part of the tour.

July 26 — Tara Blogs at Malia Mallory

July 26 – Cup O’ Porn Giveaway from Tara

July 27 — Big Backlist Weekend on Tara’s Blog

July 27 — Tara Blogs at Book Reviews and More by Kathy

July 27 — Tara Blogs at Four Seduced Muses

July 28 — Tara Blogs at Amber Kell

July 29 — Blog at Emily Wells

July 31 — Tara Blogs at Tempeste O’Riley

August 1 –End of Blog Tour! Winners Announced.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Bio:

Tara Lain never met a beautiful boy she didn't love - at least on paper. A writer of erotic romance, mostly ménage and male/male, Tara loves all her characters, but especially her handsome heroes. A lifelong writer of serious non-fiction, Tara only fell in love with EROM in 2009 and, through perseverance and lots of workshops, had the first novel she ever wrote published in 2011. In 2011, Tara was named Best Author of the Year in the popular LRC Best of 2011 Awards and her Genetic Attraction series was runner-up for Best Series of 2011. After an exotic life of travel all over the world and work in television, education and advertising, Tara settled in Southern California with her soul-mate husband and opened her own small marketing business. She paints, collages, and started practicing yoga "way before it was fashionable". Passionate about diversity, justice, inclusion and new ideas she says on her tombstone it will read, "Yes".

Hearts and Flour Review

Hearts and Flour
by Tara Lain
4 stars

Now, I love Tara's books, she writes about unique characters who you can't help falling in love with. That being said, even I was skeptical of the relationship in this book. A raw food vegan and a cupcake baker? Come on, that's like putting a cat and a mouse together and hoping it ends well. I though she may have bit off more than she could chew. But lo and behold, Tara not only did it, she did it spectacularly.

I absolutely loved this book, I read it all in one sitting, I couldn't put it down. Where do I start? Let's start with the characters. The characters were wonderful. I especially love Quentin, our cross-dressing cupcake baker. I loved seeing him as Queen, and I love the Southern belle attitude he has. Being a Southerner myself, it definitely helped me connect with Quentin. While I liked Micah, there were times when he came off as way too fanatical, but after learning about his back story, it made more sense to me. I ended up sympathizing with him, and while I would never be able to be a vegan, I definitely want to try some recipes out now. Micah and Quentin were so good together, and I love how they were both willing to compromise to make their differences click.

But one of my favorite characters has to be Mary Beth. Mary Beth is one rocking grandma! Imagine the hip grandma, who constantly surprises you and also happens to be a kickass Southern belle and chef. That's Mary Beth in a nutshell. She is great and a wonderful secondary character. Yancy was a great character as well, even though he was only in about one chapter, I would love to see him get his HEA.

The setting was great as well. I love Laguna Beach and I haven't even been there before! Several of Tara's books are set here, and hearing about the landmarks and areas there is great. I have such an urge to go and visit now. Plus, I like the more laid back attitude in Laguna, plus it's the perfect setting for this book.

All in all, I loved this book. The characters were funny and likable, the plot was good, and I sincerely hope Yancy gets his own story, because I can't wait to read it. I highly recommend this book to everyone.