JL Merrow

…is the latest stop on the Slam! blog tour, and today I’m visiting the lovely Jenre at Well Read (and trying not to spill my wine all over her this time! *g*)  Why not pop on over, and find out what you need to watch out for (apart from a deluge of Pinot Grigio) if you’re unfortunate enough to be acquainted with an author!

Make sure you leave a comment to be in with a chance in the giveaway! Good luck!

…over at Tam Reads, Writes & Rambles today! Come and meet the canine star of Slam! as he talks about Jude, poetry and his own love life in An Interview with Bubbles.

Don’t forget to comment for a chance to win the giveaway:

Giveaway:

I’m offering a free signed paperback copy of Hard Tail (I’m happy to ship internationally) to a randomly chosen commenter on the Slam! blog tour, plus I’ll write the winner a limerick on a subject of their choosing!

I’ll be making the draw around teatime on Wednesday 17^th April, GMT. Good luck!

The Slam! blog tour kicks off today at Joyfully Jay, where I’m waxing lyrical about limericks! So if you’d like to learn more about a sadly undervalued art form (ahem!) why not join me over here: Got to Love a Limerick – and maybe share a favourite limerick of your own.

Giveaway:

I’m offering a free signed paperback copy of Hard Tail (I’m happy to ship internationally) to a randomly chosen commenter on the Slam! blog tour, plus I’ll write the winner a limerick on a subject of their choosing!

I’ll be making the draw around teatime on Wednesday 17^th April, GMT. Good luck!

Hurrah! Slam! is finally here! (Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like I’ve been waiting AGES for release date).

Limericks, lies, and puppy-dog eyes…

Jude Biggerstaff is all the way out and loving it—mostly. The Anglo-Japanese university graduate is a carnivore working in a vegan café, an amateur poet with only one man in his life. His dog, Bubbles.
Then there’s “Karate Crumpet”, a man who regularly runs past the café with a martial arts class. Jude can only yearn from afar, until the object of his affection rescues him from muggers. And he learns that not only does this calm, competent hunk of muscle have a name—David—but that he’s gay.
Jude should have known the universe wouldn’t simply let love fall into place. First, David has only one foot out of the closet. Then there’s Jude’s mother, who lies about her age to the point Jude could be mistaken for jailbait.
With a maze of stories to keep straight, a potential stepfather in the picture, ex-boyfriends who keep spoiling his dates with David, and a friend with a dangerous secret, Jude is beginning to wonder if his and David’s lives will ever start to rhyme.

Product Warnings

Contains a tangled web of little white lies, a smorgasbord of cheesy limericks, a violin called Vanessa, some boots that mean business, and the most adorable little dog ever. Poetry, it’s not… 

Samhain | Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

Coming (very) soon: the Slam blog tour – I’ll keep you posted!

Slam!’s release date of 9th April is almost upon us, so look out for the Slam! blog tour starting next week:

Tues April 9th:      Joyfully Jay: Got to Love a Limerick

Weds April 10th:   Tam Reads, Writes & Rambles: Bubbles: Canine Star of Slam!

Thurs April 11th:   Well Read: Caution: Author at Work

Mon April 15th:     Coffee and Porn: It’s Hot to Flame

Tues April 16th:     Armchair Reader: Poetry: Not Just Writing in Rhyme

Giveaway:

I’m offering a free signed paperback copy of Hard Tail (I’m happy to ship internationally) to a randomly chosen commenter on the tour, plus I’ll write the winner a limerick on a subject of their choosing!

I’ll be making the draw around teatime on Wednesday 17^th April, GMT. Good luck!

Yes – for all you reluctant e-readers, Hard Tail is now available in traditional, touchy-feely, scratch-and-sniffy, dead tree format! *pets it*

It’s available at a reduced price for a limited time at the Samhain site here – but psst! It’s even cheaper at Amazon.com (or here for fellow Brits).

Blurble blurble:

Finding love can be a bumpy ride.
His job: downsized out of existence. His marriage: dead in the water. It doesn’t take a lot of arm twisting for Tim Knight to agree to get out of London and take over his injured brother’s mountain bike shop for a while. A few weeks in Southampton is a welcome break from the wreck his life has become, even though he feels like a fish out of water in this brave new world of outdoor sports and unfamiliar technical jargon.
The young man who falls—literally—through the door of the shop brings everything into sharp, unexpected focus. Tim barely accepts he’s even in the closet until his attraction to Matt Berridge pulls him close enough to touch the doorknob.
There’s only one problem with the loveable klutz: his bullying boyfriend. Tim is convinced Steve is the cause of the bruises that Matt blows off as part of his risky sport. But rising to the defense of the man he’s beginning to love, means coming to terms with who he is—in public—in a battle not even his black belt prepared him to fight. Until now.
Warning: Contains an out-and-proud klutz, a closeted, karate-loving accountant—and a cat who thinks it’s all about him. Watch for a cameo appearance from the Pricks and Pragmatism lovers. May inspire yearnings for fresh air, exercise, and a fit, tanned bike mechanic of your very own.

The lovely Chris at Stumbling over Chaos is giving away a copy of Slam! 

To enter the draw, just leave a comment on her blog post.

Contest closes 7 pm CST, Monday, April 8. Good luck!

Here’s the blurb:

Limericks, lies and puppy-dog eyes
Jude Biggerstaff is all the way out and loving it—mostly. The Anglo-Japanese university graduate is a carnivore working in a vegan café, an amateur poet with only one man in his life. His dog, Bubbles.
Then there’s “Karate Crumpet,” a man who regularly runs past the café with a martial arts class. Jude can only yearn from afar, until the object of his affection rescues him from muggers. And he learns that not only does this calm, competent hunk of muscle have a name—David—but that he’s gay.
Jude should have known the universe wouldn’t simply let love fall into place. First, David has only one foot out of the closet. Then there’s Jude’s mother, who lies about her age to the point Jude could be mistaken for jailbait.
With a maze of stories to keep straight, a potential stepfather in the picture, ex-boyfriends who keep spoiling his dates with David, and a friend with a dangerous secret, Jude is beginning to wonder if his and David’s lives will ever start to rhyme.
Warnings: contains a tangled web of little white lies, a smorgasbord of cheesy limericks, a violin called Vanessa, some boots that mean business, and the most adorable little dog ever. Poetry, it’s not…

Due out from Samhain Publishing 9th April 2013, and now available to pre-order.
Samhain | Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

… and it’s a good one!

Jude is abso-freaking-lutely adorable….I loved this book! It had me wanting to move to their town and be part of their inner circle. The characters were fun and entertaining, but with enough depth for me to feel their pain when things took a turn for the worse. I really loved the humor. I was smiling and laughing the entire time I was reading. I definitely recommend it – 4.25 stars, Andrea at Reviews by Jessewave

Slam! will be out in ebook on 9th April – and I noticed today it’s already at the new release reduced price, so get it while it’s cheap!

In honour of today being Mother’s Day (in the UK at least, but I believe one or two other places as well), the Macaronis are having a mini motherhood fest, with excerpts from published historical fiction and new writing. Why not pop along and read about Charlie Cochrane’s redoubtable Mrs Stewart, and my musings on the role of a mother in historical fiction?

Being the lovely people that they are, Samhain sent me a present to welcome me back from the West Country. Isn’t it lovely?

As seems to be the new thing for Samhain covers, it’s matt, not glossy.  And rather delightfully, it has an ad for Barging In by the lovely Josephine Myles in the back.

Hard Tail will be out in print on April 2nd, which is just a week before Slam! hits the virtual shelves. And then it’s Get Writing on the 20th. It’s going to be an exciting month!