Hello friends! Welcome to the 2020 Favorite Things Gift Guide, put together by some of your favorite romance authors. Whether you're just starting your holiday shopping or you're searching for one last gift for that special person, we hope you'll find this list fun and helpful! With everything from cozy cardigans and hot chocolate to lip gloss and board games, we've got you covered with all our favorite things. And of course, don't forget to check out each of these wonderful authors and their books (because we all know books make the best gifts!). 

Enjoy and happy shopping!
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Here's a sneak peek at my upcoming release, Otherwise Engaged! Enjoy!

Chapter One
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Hertfordshire, 1822
Of the many things that could be depended upon to make a young lady swoon, a love letter certainly made the list.
     I perched on a low rock in the center of the quiet meadow, one knee tucked to my chest, the skirts of my riding habit spread about me. The sun shone fiercely against the cloud-strewn sky, as if demanding my attention, but not even the brilliance of the sun could steal my focus from the letter in my hands, though I’d read it a dozen times or more.

     My dearest Rebecca,
How is it that I can miss you before you have even left Brighton? I know I will see you tonight, but already, I ache to let you go, not knowing when we will see each other again.

     I sighed aloud. Stella snorted from where she grazed a few paces away, as if mocking me.
     “Oh, hush,” I said. “You cannot judge me. You’ve never been in love.”
     My horse did not offer a response, which was just as well. I’d heard that love could cause madness, and a talking horse would surely be an alarming symptom.
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Here's my 2019 Writing Wrap-Up! It was an amazing year.

• Released my first indie published book, Beauty and the Baron
• The Truth about Miss Ashbourne was announced as a Whitney Awards Finalist!
• Attended two conferences and loved spending time with my favorite writing friends
• Released Miss Adeline’s Match
• Secrets and Suitors received a Publisher’s Weekly Starred Review!
• Released All Hearts Come Home for Christmas and Secrets and Suitors
• Wrote and edited my 2020 release, title TBD
• Taught at and attended the Regency Retreat

 
It was crazy and overwhelming to release four books in a year! 2020 will be much calmer with only two planned releases, a novella and a full-length. I can’t wait to see what the New Year will bring, and I’m so glad to have made amazing connections with you all. I’m grateful for your kindness and support! Happy New Year!

I wrote this scene over two years ago, back when I was editing my debut novel,  The Truth about Miss Ashbourne. I was struggling with getting this scene right, and so I decided to write it from William's POV (point of view) in order to better understand his character. And I ended up loving him and this scene even more! I hope you'll enjoy this fun little insight into William!

If you've read The Truth about Miss Ashbourne, then you'll recognize this scene. If you haven't, then here's a bit of background: William Rowley (our POV character) has just inherited the estate of Havenfield after the death of Sir Charles, who is Juliana Ashbourne's estranged grandfather. Sir Charles left Juliana an inheritance, but in order to claim her ten thousand pounds, she must spend a month at Havenfield with her family she's never met. Juliana has just arrived during a rainstorm, and William comes across her seeking shelter in the stables.

*** This has not been professionally edited, so any mistakes or typos are my own. Happy Reading!

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​Stowaway sensed the coming storm long before I did. He tossed his head and pulled against his bridle, startling me from my thoughts to notice the uptick in the wind, the black clouds pooling on the horizon.

I rubbed his neck to calm his agitation, but he only let out an uneasy snort. 

“All right, we’ll head back,” I muttered to him, turning him to face the oncoming tempest. Lady Rowley and the rest of the family would surely have left for their dinner party by now, so I would be safe from discovery. 

I dug my heels into Stowaway’s flanks, and he leaped into a gallop, dashing across the wooded hill on the western edge of the estate. The howling wind whipped past me, but I paid it no mind. I grinned into the gale, urging my mount faster, faster. Stowaway responded with a burst of speed, hooves barreling into the grass at a furious pace, kicking up clods of dirt that soon turned to mud as the rain descended upon us. 

We emerged from the trees, Havenfield looming before us. Even through the wind and rain and clouds, the estate still inspired awe: gray stones stained with moisture, slick green ivy climbing the walls. The windows, normally brightly lit, were murky in the descending darkness. No doubt the servants had already retreated below stairs, taking advantage of their well-deserved evening off. ​
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Secrets and Suitors - My newest release! A friends to more romance with unrequited love, the London season, Vauxhall pleasure gardens, and maybe even a duel :) I think you'll love it, but don't take my word for it. Publisher's Weekly called it "elegant and thoroughly gratifying" (a Starred Review!)

Where to buy it: Seagull book currently has the paperback for only $11.19! No idea how long this sale will last. You can also get the paperback on Amazon for $13, or the Kindle version for $5.99.

Miss Adeline's Match - Matchmaking gone awry, brooding, Darcy-esque heroes, fox hunting, snowstorms, and romance aplenty! I LOVED writing the characters in this story, and it has some of my absolutely favorite scenes!

Where to buy it: This Kindle version is only $1.99 on Amazon right now! Grab one for a friend AND for you! Cheapest paperback I could find is at Seagull Book for $13.59, but It's also available on Amazon.

Beauty and the Baron: This novella is the PERFECT stocking stuffer! This is my Regency retelling of Beauty and the Beast, and is my best-selling story! Find out why it has almost 250 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ reviews on Goodreads!

Where to buy it: Kindle is only $2.99 on Amazon, and the paperback is $7.99.

The Truth about Miss Ashbourne - This is my debut novel and my book baby! Still probably my personal favorite of my books (but don't tell the others). A governess needs to spend one month with her estranged family in order to collect her inheritance, but the handsome—and irritating—new heir to the estate is making things much harder than necessary.

Where to buy it: The paperback is only $9.99 at Seagull book right now! Again, I'm not sure how long this sale will last. The Kindle version is $7.99 on Amazon.

All Hearts Come Home for Christmas - If you read one Christmas book this year, make it this one! I got to combine forces with Sarah M. Eden, Anita Stansfield, and Esther Hatch, and let me tell you, this collection of novellas combines humor, sweetness, romance, and Christmas spirit like none I've ever read before.

Where to buy it: No sales on this one right now, unfortunately. But you can grab it on Amazon in paperback or Kindle!

I'm so excited today to share with you the first two chapters of my newest Regency romance, Secrets and Suitors. This story is so close to my heart, and I hope you will enjoy getting to know Nora and James.

*****

I was absolutely thrilled last week to learn that my upcoming novel Secrets and Suitors received a STARRED review from Publisher's Weekly! This is absolutely the highest praise, and I was shocked to my core! I love this book so much and it meant the world to me to know that PW thought it worthy of both a review and a star. 

Here's the review for those curious. (And here's a link to the actual review!) Can't wait for this book to hit shelves Oct. 1!

Here it is!! Isn't it BEAUTIFUL? I love love love this cover so much. It fits my story to a T, and I just adore classic silhouettes on a cover.

Fun story: This was actually a cover option for my second book, Miss Adeline's Match. I loved it so much, I asked my publisher to save it for my next book, because I knew it was absolutely perfect for my main character, Nora. 

Wanna read more about this story? Here's the cover blurb! And get excited for this story to hit shelves THIS October!!

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Reluctantly returning to London for yet another Season, shy Nora Hamilton has nearly given up hope that she will ever find the love match she longs for. After all, the one man she does harbor feelings for—her closest friend James—has made it perfectly clear he views her as just that: a friend. With James traveling half a world away, and Nora’s father pressuring her to marry for wealth and status, Nora is forced to set aside her desire for love and accept the future she has always dreaded. 
Until James returns unexpectedly, and Nora’s feelings once again rush unbearably close to the surface. Determined to save what is left of their friendship, Nora ignores her own heart and allows herself to be swept up in the London Season, soon finding herself the object of two very different gentlemen’s affections. Though she should be thrilled, both men come with a glaring fault: neither is the one man who holds her heart. 
But there is much more at stake than heartbreak. When long kept secrets are laid bare, Nora must face the fears that have plagued her all her life, and decide what true love is worth.

​I’ve mentioned a few times on social media how the other Forever After authors and I put together a photoshoot for our covers, and I have had SO many questions and interest in this, I decided to put together a blog post about it!

Choosing to do a photoshoot was actually a hard decision for us. First, LOGISTICS. There are five authors in our series, and we are spread all over: Utah, Arizona, Missouri, and Massachusetts. How could we make this work? Second, MODELS and HAIR. None of us are models, unfortunately. Well, except for Arlem, but I’ll leave that for another time, haha. And while we have mad writing skills, hair and makeup is not our forte. Third, COSTUMES. If you’re not aware, Regency dresses are sometimes hard to come by. 😜

But after a lot of thought and discussion, we decided that it was important for us to have unique covers, with models and images no one had ever seen before. And so we pushed ahead with our photoshoot, and the planning commenced!

That’s where the amazing Arlem Hawks comes in. If you don’t follow her on Instagram, go do that immediately! She posts the most amazing things that she makes, including these dresses, Regency stays, and petticoats. This photoshoot would not have been possible without her. She is an amazing seamstress and sewed every single dress you see on our covers. I KNOW. Sewing is not a talent I have, so I am grateful she does! 

​Not only did Arlem volunteer the use of her amazing dresses, she also flew in to Utah and helped me organize and run the shoot. She is the BEST! And then we were so lucky that our other authors had incredible family and friends that we enlisted to model, do hair, and take photos for us. We are SO grateful for their help, and in making our covers as beautiful as they are. 

​We met with our four gorgeous models on a Saturday in November and spent two hours doing hair, makeup, dressing, and posing! It was a BLAST. A huge shout out to Stephanie Lance Photography for her incredible photos (and for being patient with us as we figured things out as we went!). It was seriously such a fun day, seeing all our beautiful models decked out in Regency dresses, hairstyles, and accessories! 

​The best part of doing our own photoshoot is that we got to pick exactly what we wanted. For example, I was able to choose the hairstyle and dress for my model, knowing what my character looked like and what I wanted for the cover. And I think it turned out AMAZING, if I say so myself.

Here's the beautiful (and generous and wonderful and kind) Amanda, who plays the part of my character Rose in Beauty and the Baron.

And here are a few shots of her. We knew we wanted to photoshop different backgrounds behind each of our models (the different locations for our stories) and so we weren't concerned about the background. Just in case you were wondering about the outlets, haha. 

And just for fun, here is the actual photo that made it onto my gorgeous cover, designed by Shaela Kay of Blue Water Books. Isn't that so fun??

I am DYING to share the other photos of our gorgeous models, but since we haven't revealed all the covers yet, you'll have to wait and see for yourselves! All in all, we counted our first photoshoot a success! We learned a lot and are already looking forward to our next one, where we'll be even more prepared. 

I hope this gives you all just a little taste of how much thought, work, and planning has gone into our Forever After series. We are determined to make these books beautiful inside and out, and are again so grateful to those who gave their time and talents to help us achieve this! 

Beauty and the Baron is available NOW on Amazon, and The Captain and Miss Winter (a retelling of Snow White and Rose Red) is available for PREORDER. I can't wait to share all these incredible stories and covers with you!