Book Lovin' Mamas: Anne Calhoun

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Showing posts with label Anne Calhoun. Show all posts

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Guest Post & Giveaway w/ Anne Calhoun

Today we have Anne Calhoun here talking about Holiday Traditions and a little about her new novella Breath on Embers! And there is a chance to win a copy so make sure you check out the rafflecopter below! :)

Holiday Traditions. Discuss.

One of my favorite Christmas activities is making holiday cookies. My grandmother and my great-aunts loved to give and receive assortments of cookies as neighborly gifts. They traded recipes and little portions, discussed adaptations, planned which kind they would make next year. But when we moved away from Nova Scotia, every year my grandmother sent south a tin of the only kind of cookie that mattered: shortbread.

Not coincidentally, shortbread plays a role in my current release, BREATH ON EMBERS. The heroine, Thea Moretti is struggling with the holidays, not wanting to make cookies but in a situation where she has to, so she makes her Grammie’s shortbread…which is just like my Nana’s. Her shortbread was so good, light and flaky and sweet, decorated with homemade frosting and those little silver balls that crunched against your teeth when you bit into the cookie. You don’t roll out the dough. You pat it out, very gently, to keep it light and avoid the dreaded crunch. As she lived nearly 2000 miles away from us and we rarely saw her at Christmas, the box of shortbread that arrived was almost more treasured than the presents. She carefully wrapped the cookies in layers of waxed paper and often sent them in last year’s Quality Street candy tin, a reminder of the extended family we left behind when we left Canada.

My husband’s family made different cookies, melting moments and the like, so when we got married we had to make more cookies. (I know…the horror of making more cookies!) Our neighbors bring over bars and squares and pretzels dipped in white chocolate, which always brings back good memories of my grandmother and her sisters, talking recipes and reciting poetry.

We developed other traditions after our son was born. We almost never eat in the car, so our son charmingly thinks this is a Big Treat (low expectations = win). We get fast food and drive around to look at the lights, concentrating on the neighborhoods that go all out. Of course, we play Christmas music while we’re driving. My grandfather grew Christmas trees in Nova Scotia, so every year we had a baby tree of our own to decorate and keep in our bedrooms. This is another tradition we’ve continued for our son. There’s something magical about multi-colored lights on a child’s sleeping face (I might enjoy this one more than he does).

What are you favorite holiday traditions? Do you have a particular cookie recipe or tradition you follow every year? How about a must-listen Christmas album? Tell all, and one commentor will win a copy of BREATH ON EMBERS!

Where to find Anne:

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Description

Christmas is the perfect time for Firefighter Ronan O’Rourke to take things to the next level with his sexually adventurous girlfriend. He knows she has feelings for him—and he’s sure of his feelings for her—but when Thea refuses his invitation to sample Christmas in New York City because what they share is nothing more than sheet-burning sex, Ronan sets out to change her mind.

Deep down Thea Moretti knows she cares for Ronan, but she can’t move past her grief over her late husband. Loud music and sex with Ronan are the only things she’s got that her feel alive, so she takes as much of both as she can get. She knows Ronan wants more, but during the darkest time of the year finding her way won’t be easy.

Ronan gambles everything and challenges Thea: one night of passion with him and another man. Can he prove to her that what they share isn’t just great sex but an emotional connection strong enough to last forever?

Purchase Links:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble

You can read my 4 Moon review HERE

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Labels:4 Star Reviews,Anne Calhoun,Christmas,Giveaway,Guest Post,Review by Anna,The Novel Sidekick | 6 comments

ARC Review: "Breath on Embers" by Anne Calhoun

Breath on Embers

Author: Anne Calhoun

Publisher: Carina Press

Release Date: 12/3/12

Genre: Erotica

Source: Provided by The Novel Sidekick

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Author’s Website: www.annecalhoun.com

Description

Christmas is the perfect time for Firefighter Ronan O’Rourke to take things to the next level with his sexually adventurous girlfriend. He knows she has feelings for him—and he’s sure of his feelings for her—but when Thea refuses his invitation to sample Christmas in New York City because what they share is nothing more than sheet-burning sex, Ronan sets out to change her mind.

Deep down Thea Moretti knows she cares for Ronan, but she can’t move past her grief over her late husband. Loud music and sex with Ronan are the only things she’s got that her feel alive, so she takes as much of both as she can get. She knows Ronan wants more, but during the darkest time of the year finding her way won’t be easy.

Ronan gambles everything and challenges Thea: one night of passion with him and another man. Can he prove to her that what they share isn’t just great sex but an emotional connection strong enough to last forever?

Review
Oh man, I need a cold shower after reading this sexy little novella! Anne really knows how to write the steamy stuff!!! I was really taken with both Ronan and Thea but Ronan was my favorite of the two. He's the typical big sexy alpha male and he's firefighter. What is better than that? And he was perfect for Thea, who was no longer really living because she lost her husband a couple of years before. They are such the match made in heaven. Thea needed to be rescued and him having his hero complex needed someone to rescue. And let me tell you, he did a really REALLY good job of rescuing her. ;)

I had one little issue with the book but it didn't affect how much I enjoyed it. The scene with Thea, Ronan and Tim was a bit awkward to me. Maybe it's just me but I don't really see how sharing your woman will show her that she really only needs you. But like I said, maybe it's just me. I enjoy a good menage story every now and then but this part of the story fell kind of flat for me.

All in all, this was a great holiday read! Fun, sexy and a little sad at times. Made for a great one sitting kind of book. I really enjoyed it and I plan to look into this authors other books now! If you enjoy erotica and you like those big sexy fire fighters that have a hero complex, well then this book is for you!!!