The Secret Heiress by Susie Warren (excerpt, review and GIVEAWAY) GFT

The Secret Heiress

by Susie Warren

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GENRE:  Contemporary Romance

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BLURB:

Raised by a single mother in London, Anna Harris was surprised to find out her father was the business mogul, Oliver Bolles. Deciding to follow in his footsteps, she used her brilliant ability with numbers to secure a sought after position in a London brokerage house. Disillusioned by the lack of integrity, Anna decides to seek a more fulfilling career and unknowingly throws herself into the path of an old obsession, Alistair Martin. Finding it difficult to endure the emotional scars of being abandoned by her father and then taken advantage of by a devious boyfriend, Anna avoids serious relationships until she is challenged to do something she has never done.

Alistair Martin is a hot, obscenely wealthy vineyard owner with a razor sharp business mind who pursues Anna out of curiosity and decides to invest into her failing events management company. He was raised in poverty until he was a teenager and his father’s family brought him into the fold. Anna is not what he expects and he has to change his game plan if he hopes to convince the secret heiress to let down her guard enough to leap into a wild affair.

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EXCERPT

Alistair Martin walked into the pub and his eyes were drawn to a beautiful blond girl drinking a Guinness. Dressed in tight fitting jeans and black boots, her charming laugh and graceful body set off a rapid fire urge to approach her. It was ridiculous; he had never set eyes on her before. How could he possibly be drawn to her?

He turned his attention back to the pub. He was doing a surprise walk through of his flagship microbrewery. It was his most lucrative pub. Observing the wait staff, he could tell they were trying to warn each other. His expectations were high but open-minded and he had a reputation for an over the top work ethic and a razor sharp wit.

His attention turned back to the group of investment bankers out for an after work drink. The woman was in her mid-twenties and seemed to keep up with the conversation and took an occasional sip of ale.

Why was he enthralled by this particular beauty in sexy jeans? Alistair stayed motionless as she turned and placed her empty bottle on the table and waved to the group. She walked straight toward him and he had the odd feeling that they had met before.

She had a beautiful body that was both feminine and sleek. Her face had a trace of makeup but she wore no jewelry. Their eyes met and she hesitated for a split second.

She nodded in acknowledgement. “Mr. Martin, it’s lovely to see you again.”

Why couldn’t he place her? He couldn’t imagine bedding her and not remembering the encounter. His body reacted swiftly to her nearness.

“I can’t think of how we know each other.” He looked into the crowd, trying to cool his reaction. Could she be an employee in one of his establishments?

“It’s not a big deal. We met ages ago at a gathering.” She was inching away from him and he could see the manager of the brewery in the distance trying to tactfully get his attention.

He reached out and touched her arm. “Care to refresh my memory?”

Buy Link: 

The book will be $0.99 during the tour.

Amazon

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Susie Warren spends most of her time writing intense and complex stories about falling in love.  Her beloved characters are real living and breathing people thrown into unusual circumstances.  Besides being drawn into a make believe world each day, Susie keeps tabs on her inventor husband and her three challenging yet mostly perfect teenagers. She has five novels published and is working on her 6th.

Sign up for her newsletter for a chance to read her next book early and receive information on discounted prices and free books!

Visit her website for more information 

Connect with the author on Facebook or Twitter @susiecwarren

Amazon author page

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GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway



The tour dates can be found here






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My review:

3.75 out of 5 stars

The Secret Heiress by Susie Warren is part of the “Bolles Dynasty” series and follows Anna Bolles, a driven investment broker, who makes a radical career change.  Her decision to join an events planning company is fraught with risks, including the business’ lack of solvency, which brings her into contact with the one man she’s had an obsession with, ever since he rejected her.  Alistair Martin is a very successful businessman in England, but it will take all of his skills to get Anna to take his business advice as well as accept his personal requirements.  Unfortunately, Anna has plenty of emotional scars as well as a very stubborn streak, and may not be able to accept anything from Alistair, no matter what he promises, and he has plenty of scars of his own that keep him from promising the one thing Anna may be willing to accept.

This story is an adult contemporary romance that gives an intriguing glimpse of life in London on several levels.  I was a little startled to think of prosperous vineyards in England, as that is a product that I don’t typically associate with that country, and there is a nice contrast between the cutthroat business environment that Anna flees, and the challenges of starting a new career in a vocation that is relatively new to her.  I didn’t think she had done a good job of researching the company she was joining, which seemed a bit contradictory, given her business and mathematic acumen, but I suppose her struggles are required for the storyline. 

I liked these characters and ached at the betrayals that have formed Anna’s character, but the two of them frustrated me as well.  Their chemistry is sizzling, but their seesawing relationship was annoying and it took far too long for the air to clear, as far as I was concerned.  It also would have been nice to get a little more depth to the secondary characters, especially since this is part of a series, and undoubtedly some of them will figure in subsequent stories.  I’m also a little puzzled by the title, because everyone seems to know Anna’s last name and connect it with her famous father.  Despite all of this, I feel that this is a lovely light read, with plenty of passion and emotion leading up to a satisfying conclusion.

A copy of this title was provided to me for review

The Convenient Wedding by Susie Warren (VNBtM, guest post, excerpt and GIVEAWAY) GFT

I am always delighted when authors are willing to share glimpses of their journey, and today I have the pleasure of a guest post from author Susie Warren as she answers:

What was the most difficult thing to overcome on your path to becoming a published author and how did you conquer it?

SW:  I think the most difficult obstacle for me to overcome was figuring out how to get all the working parts to move in a carefully orchestrated way to allow for a novel to be completed.  Here was my path:

Attending Conferences and Workshops

Writing can be a lonely profession and many writers are introverts. So I joined writing groups and went to conferences. I found many, many like-minded people who were happy to give advice and talk about writing. Learning about the craft and speaking with other writers helped to push me forward.

Carefully Using My Free Time

I’ve sacrificed most of my free time and quite a bit of sleep in the last five years to pursue a writing career. I have a full-time job as an administrator in a small school and three growing children who are now teenagers. I get up early to write each day and then spend longer stretches of time on weekends and holidays to push a story forward.

Staying Focused

When I started writing, there were often gaps in the time I could dedicate to writing.  In these intervals, new story ideas would surface and I would start a new project if I had a few hours. I would have three or four stories going at the same time. Ultimately, this approach didn’t work for me and nothing got completed. Out of sheer necessity, I became more disciplined. I started writing an hour each day and wouldn’t allow myself to switch projects. If a new idea surfaced, I would write it down in an idea folder and go back to my current project.

Deciding Not to Allow Tangents to Rule

I also realized that I would often completely change a central element of the story and then spend weeks revising the entire novel. This would happen four or five times. I decided not to allow myself to change something important just because the idea presented itself. It would have to greatly improve the story or I would make note of it for a new story.  Something interesting happened. I became more focused and productive. And I started completing projects.

Taking a Leap of Faith

In my writing career, I think my best accomplishment has been to take the leap into indie publishing. I have a good friend who I met years ago at a writing conference, Christina Tetreault, who is a successful author and has offered advice and encouragement at each juncture. There is so much to know in self-publishing, you have to do so much more than just write. At times, it can be overwhelming but if you are able to push through then it can be enormously satisfying at the end of the day.

Remembering Why I Write

I write for the playfulness and sheer joy of escaping into a different world. As a writer, you have ultimate control and can let your imagination run wild. But I have learned over time how to harness this energy so I can use it to stay focused and complete a novel.

The Convenient Wedding

by Susie Warren

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BLURB:

A reluctant socialite is pulled into a scandal and must choose between her family's reputation and her future happiness.

Lucia Montgomery is from an old and powerful political family in Connecticut and desperately wants to shed her reputation as a superficial socialite. Against her family’s wishes, she seeks a position working for a fiercely contested political campaign and the dark horse in the race, Anderson Adams. She is thrown into the middle of a scandal of her own making when she is tricked into going to his hotel room. Anderson persuades her to play along with a pretend engagement then an actual wedding to save her reputation and his campaign. The media falls in love with the charismatic couple and they must figure out how to reconcile their public image with their private life.

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EXCERPT

Even though she had seen many images and video clips of him, Anderson was more impressive in the flesh. His intense presence drew her closer to him, and the rest of the party faded from view. His confidence was not surprising, but his relaxed charm was and it put her at ease.

She nodded. “Lucia Montgomery.”

He met her gaze. “My campaign manager seemed to think you go by Bella.”

Lucia gasped and shook her head. “Bella was a childhood nickname. It’s Lucia these days.”

“Bella suits you.”

“I was hoping I would have an opportunity to speak with you.”

He raised his eyebrows slightly, and she cringed at her forwardness. He didn’t need more adoration. She fiddled with the slim rope belt on her gown and smoothed the fabric down, trying to remember what she wanted to say to him.

His penetrating gaze sent a slow blush over her skin. “Do you have advice for me? It seems everyone in this room has an opinion on how I could win this race.”

Her mind went blank. “I don’t know if winning is possible.”

He looked at her intently. “Would you care to dance?”

Lucia straightened her spine. Why had she said that? Was it because she didn’t want to fall into the category of people wanting something from him? Or had his nearness elicited the truth from her?

He led her to the dance floor and she could feel his hand resting lightly on her lower back. The band was playing a love song and she realized she hadn’t even attempted her pitch for Isabel. She didn’t want to date Anderson Adams. She wanted to spark his curiosity in creating a documentary and tactfully mention her cousin. She had also wanted to appease her grandfather by being seen speaking with the candidate. But she had no intention of seeking a position in his campaign.

He gathered her into his embrace and she could feel her body respond to him. The evening was not going according to plan. She could barely string two words together and now she was dancing with him.

Her body stiffened and he said, “Relax. We can talk about the campaign later.”

She looked up into his eyes. “How did you know I wanted to talk about the campaign?”

He drew her slightly closer as they continued to dance. “There are very few secrets in politics. My campaign manager informed me that your grandfather mentioned that you are seeking a public relations position.”

She shook her head. “No, I’m not interested in working on your campaign, but I have an interesting idea for you.”

“Do you?” His face showed no expression.

She decided to go ahead and pitch her idea. “My cousin is an enormously talented filmmaker and I wondered if you had given any thought to recording your run for congress? Images of you campaigning could be used as a powerful marketing tool if done well.”

He smiled at her. “I agree. Maybe we could get together and discuss it further?”

Lucia nodded and allowed herself to let down her guard slightly and enjoy the dance. Anderson was agile and impressed her with his ability to dance. She stopped worrying about the intimacy of their embrace and let him lead her through a series of intricate moves.

After a second dance and then a third, she was slightly breathless and laughing at her inability to keep up with him. When the song ended, he said to her, “Let’s get a drink.”

She followed him to the bar and he ordered two glasses of Perrier with lime. Lucia cautioned herself not to be too taken with him. He was an expert at luring people in and impressing them. It didn’t hurt that he was a marvelous dancer.

He lifted his glass to her and said, “May that be the first of many dances.”

Amazon

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Susie Warren writes contemporary romance. Besides being an avid reader, she spends much of her free time crafting intense and complex stories about falling in love. When she is not writing, Susie works as an administrator in a small, independent school while caring for three teenagers and keeping tabs on her inventor husband. With the launching of her first book, The Forgotten Heiress, she has slowly begun to navigate the social media realm.

Susie loves to hear from readers and responds to each email and Facebook post. Please reach out to her via Facebook or Twitter @susiecwarren

For more information on her upcoming releases, new excerpts and other related postings, or to sign up for free promotions, please visit her website.

The Rosa Legacy

The first novel in The Rosa Legacy series, Ruthless Perfection, started with the idea of a traditional Italian mother who wanted her only daughter happily married. The mother, Carla Rosa Neri, along with her two sisters, Francesca and Marie, had emigrated from Italy as young girls and each went off to create a dynamic and successful family. 

Each of the sisters had an only daughter and they made sure the girls spent time together. They attended the same boarding school in the northeast and visited each other’s homes in the summer.




 

Ruthless Perfection

Carla Rosa married into the Neri family with a long history in the Carrara marble industry. Her daughter, Isabel Neri, being a filmmaker and wanting to honor her grandfather’s legacy, approaches a reclusive billionaire, Marc Santoro, to ask permission to produce a documentary about the life of a quarry worker. Ruthless Perfection is the story of how they fall in love.

The Exiled Jeweler

Francesca Rosa married into the Berceto family with a long history in the jewelry making business. The Second novel in The Rosa Legacy series, The Exiled Jeweler, is about her daughter, Emelia, who went into seclusion after a scandal tore the family apart. Emelia is a talented jewelry designer who lived a sheltered life and was drawn into a passionate encounter with her family’s rival, Alexander Armati at a gala. Outside in the garden, photographs were taken on them and sold to the tabloid press. Her family was shocked and embarrassed and sent Emelia off to Florida. Four years later, she returns when her grandfather has a heart attack and her parents are deciding to sell the family business.

The Convenient Wedding

Marie Rosa married into the prominent Montgomery family, with a successful background in politics. Her only daughter, Lucia, is fascinated by politics and becomes a campaign aide. The opportunity to work on a senate campaign in Connecticut draws her into the middle of a scandal. Anderson Adams is a dark horse in the senate race yet convinces Lucia to play along with a strategy to save his campaign. The third novel in The Rosa Legacy series, The Convenient Wedding, is the story about how they reconcile their public image with their private life.

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GIVEAWAY


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Follow the tour and comment, the tour dates can be found here 

Ruthless Perfection by Susie Warren (VBT, guest post, excerpt) GFT

Interview with Susie Warren

ELF:  What advice do you have for an aspiring author?

SW:  Keep reading. There is so much to learn about the craft of writing that it is crucial to study how other writer’s tell a great story. Pay attention to the elements of the novel that draw you in and notice where you attention wanders.

Spend time on your craft. Even after you have been writing for years, you can become re-energized by how someone else thinks about a topic. For example, I came across a writer who wrote a blog post about productivity. She had three useful strategies, when combined together enable writers to consistently write 1,000 words an hour or 8,000 words a day. I tried her technique and it worked beautifully. If you find me on twitter, I retweeted the link to her blog.

Learn how to plot. Most writers have read either The Writers Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler or The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. Vogler’s book is based on Campbell’s earlier work and it is considered more accessible. These books do an amazing job of explaining the structure of a story.

Spend time considering the emotional life of the characters. For me, the hardest part of being a romance writer is the willingness to explore the emotional core of the story. I get lost in intriguing plots and the structure of the story and have to push myself to fully investigate the emotional life of the characters. But the reader ultimately is looking for the emotional impact in the story so the setting and plot details in a well told romance will be somewhat invisible.

Writing is rewriting. I find the most challenging aspect of writing to be printing out the first draft and knowing what to do next. Once I read the entire manuscript and make notes then I begin to know what to do in terms of changes and revisions. But to take a story from good to great, you will need to learn how to tighten and polish.  This can only be accomplished by rewriting each scene several times.

Seek feedback. I enjoy being part of a critique group. The direct feedback is helpful in understanding aspects of writing that may have eluded me. For example, I was always showing and telling and it took several sessions for the group to get me to understand the issue. In a group situation, when everyone has read the same pages, an interesting discussion can result. I think it can move a writer closer to understanding the elements of their own writing.
Learn how all the pieces fit together. Writing a great book is just the beginning. There is a tremendous amount that you will need to know about branding, marketing, publishing, contracts, publicity etc… Most successful authors will cultivate relationships with other authors and industry professionals to get first- hand knowledge about the market, to understand what is changing and how to best position themselves. There is no right answer for every author but instead you will need to weigh your goals and strengths against what is happening in the publishing world.

Attend Writing Conferences. I highly recommend attending writing conferences and workshops to learn new skills and network with other writers and industry professionals. I try to reach out of my comfort zone and attend a few workshops that I’m not naturally drawn to instead of just sticking with my favorite topics. As a romance author, I attend RWA conferences but there are many local and regional writing workshops as well.







Ruthless Perfection

by Susie Warren

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BLURB:

A filmmaker wanting to honor her family’s legacy approaches a reclusive billionaire for help

Isabel Neri’s innocence captures the attention of a well-known Italian marble mogul, Marc Santoro, when she approaches him against her family’s wishes. Wanting to honor her disgraced grandfather, Isabel needs Marc’s permission to produce a film about the Carrara marble industry.

Faced with honoring an old family obligation, Marc allows Isabel to travel to Italy with him but seeks to limit her exposure to his family’s tragic past. Isabel discovers the untold story and challenges Marc to reveal the truth. She is forced to expose her own secret as their desire sparks out of control.
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EXCERPT

Isabel couldn’t believe she allowed herself to get drawn into this conversation. It was none of her business. She needed to go home and work on the schedule for tomorrow.

He looked at her and she could feel her heart race. “I have a completely different feeling about you. You are incredible at getting people to open up and, if anything, you tempt me to say and do things that I wouldn’t normally do.”

Without thinking she said, “What do I tempt you to do?”

He stepped closer and she could feel the nerve endings in her spine become heightened with anticipation.

Unconsciously, she bit her lower lip. She watched in fascination as he moved closer to her. Knowing that she should break the spell and step away, she felt powerless to do so. Her body felt hot all of a sudden and she waited for his touch without drawing a single breath. He traced his thumb over the sensitized area where her lower lip met her skin, causing her to draw in much needed air. His hand moved to the back of her neck, pulling her forward, and his mouth came down on hers. His kiss was gentle and coaxing until she opened her mouth fully and moved closer to him and then his kiss become more demanding.

Suddenly his hands were on her back, urging her closer, and his tongue deliciously explored her mouth. His body felt warm and solid as she pressed against him. The sound of their harsh breathing echoed in her head as she ran her hands over the taut muscles in his shoulders. She felt a tremor go through his body and it excited her.

She moved closer yet and luxuriated in the feel of his hard, strong body. He kissed her again and she moved onto her toes to fit her body against his perfectly.

He began to unbutton her shirt and she froze. Breaking away, she said, “We need to stop.”

“We are completely alone, cara. And you are driving me insane.” His voice was soft and coaxing as he gently touched a strand of her hair.


Amazon buy link


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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Susie Warren writes contemporary romance. Besides being an avid reader, she spends much of her free time crafting intense and complex stories about falling in love. When she is not writing, Susie works as an administrator in a small, independent school while caring for three teenagers and keeping tabs on her inventor husband. With the launching of her first book, The Forgotten Heiress, she has slowly begun to navigate the social media realm.

Susie loves to hear from readers and responds to each email and Facebook post. Please reach out to her via Facebook at or Twitter @susiecwarren

For more information on her upcoming releases, new excerpts and other related postings, or to sign up for free promotions, please visit her website.


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GIVEAWAY



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here