Monday, February 18, 2019

Author interview: Satin Russell



Today, I have fellow author Satin Russell as a guest to chat about herself and her books. I first met Satin several months ago while we were both attending a holiday shopping event at Lowell Technical high school selling our books. Of course, I bought her book, Secret Hunger, which is a great read and it’s why I invited her along to talk shop. I love to hear another author’s story.   


                                                              Intro:
Satin Russell is an indie author living in Massachusetts. Growing up, she was an avid reader who wanted to be either an English teacher, librarian, or author. However, life took her in a different direction and she became a financial advisor. Then, on the eve of her 36th birthday, she decided to follow her dreams. Now, she’s published the first two books in her romantic suspense trilogy called The Harper Sisters.







                                                                               Secret Hunger Synopsis:
Secret Hunger is the first book in the Harper Sisters Trilogy. It follows the story of Olivia Harper, who is the oldest of the three sisters. Have you ever been at a crossroads in your life where you knew the decision you made would affect everything? That’s the kind of decision Olivia is facing at the beginning of Secret Hunger.

                                                                                   Secret Hunger Blurb:
                                                         **She’s chasing dreams.**

Olivia, a cafĂ© owner and cook, never regretted forsaking her dreams to finish raising her sisters after the death of their parents. Now grown, they've moved out of the house, leaving Olivia free to pick up where she left off — if she can find the courage to start over.

                                                         **He's hunting nightmares.**
Mason is a Boston police detective, recuperating from a tragic incident that left his partner dead. All he wants is to heal and get back to the job of hunting the killer down. The last thing on his mind is romance.

                                              **Finding love wasn't in either of their plans. **
But as things heat up between Olivia and Mason, events happen that make her realize she's drawn a far more sinister kind of attention. Suddenly, she finds herself fighting not only for her dreams, but her very life!

This is a romantic suspense novel with a HEA and NO cliffhanger!
Readers 18+

This is the first book in the Harper Sisters Trilogy, but each book can be read as a stand-alone.
Secret Hunger is available for sale on Amazon. http://amzn.to/2d3iaQi



                           Social Media Links:
    Website: https://satinrussell.com/
    Satin Russell Newsletter: http://bit.ly/2rxdCHS
   Twitter: https://twitter.com/SatinRussell 
   Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/2xgVLpM

Secret Hunger Excerpt:
Olivia hunched over her steering wheel while the headlights cut a swath through the hypnotic swirl of flakes. The squeak-swish of the wipers kept pace with her heart as they struggled to keep up with the storm. Luckily, the snow plows had been hard at work and the accumulation on the roads wasn’t too bad.
At the end of Centre Street, she took a left and made her way up the hill and out of town. The roads were icier here, the reason she always hated driving this hill in the winter. Olivia knew she’d have to accelerate to have any hope of making it up the slope, and mentally crossed her fingers.
The good news was she was used to Maine’s storms, having lived in the area all her life. The bad news was she was driving her 4-door sedan with no four-wheel drive and very little tread on her tires. She’d been saving up money to replace them, but hadn’t gotten around to it yet.
Just before she reached the crest of the hill, another vehicle came flying over the rise, sliding around the curve. Olivia had just enough time to take her foot off the gas and turn the wheel, barely missing being side-swiped by the reckless driver. Her car began to lose its forward momentum up the slope.
“No, no, no…come on!” She muttered as her car started to slide down the slope backwards. She pressed on her brakes and could feel the tires spinning without purchase as the backside of her car slid, angling towards the ditch on the side of the road.
“Ugh!” she pounded her hands against the steering wheel. “This is NOT what I needed right now.”
She climbed out and looked at her car lying canted sideways in the ditch. At least she wasn’t blocking the road, she thought ruefully. Olivia climbed back into the driver’s seat and pulled her cell phone out of her pocket.
“No bars. Of course. This afternoon just gets better and better,” she grumbled. It was already nearly full dark due to the storm, and the last thing she wanted to do was to wait until someone came along to help her out. Most sane people would already be cozied up in their homes by now. Who knew when the next person would be by?
With that thought in mind, Olivia secured her hat on her head, fastened her coat, and gathered her grocery bag from the passenger seat. It wasn’t too long a walk back to the house. Besides, she was already halfway up the hill. She’d just have to get Liz to pull her car out and tow it back to the shop tomorrow after the storm. Reluctantly, she locked the car, and with a final backwards glance, started the trek up the hill to her house.
About twenty yards from her car, she wondered if she’d made the right decision. The whole world felt cold and desolate. The sky was already gray, and growing darker by the minute. Soon she’d feel like the last person left in a frozen, lonely world.
Maybe she should have just stayed in her car. At least she’d be able to have the heater on. She briefly debated pulling her phone out and checking for service, but taking her gloves off to use the phone seemed unbearable in the wind.
Just then, a Ford pickup truck pulled up alongside her and the passenger window rolled down. “Hey! I’m guessing that was your car back there. Need a lift?”
Sighing with relief, she smiled and turned towards the truck, surprised to find herself facing the man she’d noticed earlier at the diner. Oh wow, was her first thought. He was even better looking up close.
He leaned across the cab and popped the door open. “Here, get in. It’s way too cold, let alone dangerous, for you to be walking alongside the road like that.”
Gratefully, she lifted her grocery bag onto the seat and crawled up into the cab. She briefly fought the wind to close the truck door, and then just sat back with her eyes closed and breathed for a moment. The man let her take a second to get her bearings, but she could feel him watching her and discreetly looked back over at him.He was dressed in a Carhartt coat that did amazing things for his shoulders. Black, tousled hair was in disarray, probably from the knit hat that was on the console beside him. His jaw had a couple of days’ worth of scruff, which just worked to make him seem even sexier. He had a high brow and straight nose, but really, it was his eyes that stole her breath away. They were clear and as blue as a distant summer’s day, and at the moment, looked more than a little concerned.


                                     Well, thank you Satin for joining us today, and good luck with all your future writing projects! Before I close, I have to slip in a promo for my upcoming release, Forgotten Love, due out 12th March, about a second chance at love. 


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Thursday, February 14, 2019

Happy Valentine's Day



The Vineyards of Allegretti 

My gift to you this Valentine's Day for 99cents. I couldn't help to write this story because of my love of Italy and wine. Fabio the hospitality manager of the Poliziano winery helped me to fill in some technical details to enable me to have an understanding of what happens on a working vineyard. Plus, I was able to visit the winery in person and met another author who worked there from NYC!!! It was a magical experience and beyond everything I imagined! It makes me want to write book 2....                                                                 #mafia #romance #vineyard #wine                                                                                                                          AMAZON 

Nearly, three years ago, we made our first trip to Italy, and I still remember strolling through the  streets of the hilltop town of Montepulciano, Tuscany, like yesterday. If there is ever I place I go could back again  and again it is Italy. We spent another couple of weeks there in 2018, touring around the south, but I have a penchant for the north and I am desperate to go back. Everywhere we went the people are friendly and warm. The beauty of the country boundless, the food mouthwatering, and even the house-wine is a gift from the gods.



Perhaps because this was the first trip in many years I made with just my husband and with four kids that is rare, but this place to me will always be magical and special. A place to sit, and savor life, preferably with a good glass of wine and one of the many fresh pastries on offer. 


                  

 Blurb for The Vineyards of Allegretti 

Photos of an intoxicated and out-of-control Vivian King, taken after a night in Paris, are splashed across the tabloids. Her memories of the night are vague. Suspended from college, her only choice is to return home to Michael Allegretti, the man who broke her heart four years ago. He holds the key to her frozen heart and her financial independence. This time, Vivian isn’t leaving until she’s claimed them both and given Michael a taste of his own medicine.

However, Michael Allegretti has plans of his own and will not allow the family's vineyards to be divided. When a disastrous business venture risks the vineyards falling into the wrong hands, he decides to use every trick in the book to keep what he has worked so tirelessly for, even if it means settling for a marriage of convenience.

With the mafia involved, plus a psychotic ex-lover, Vivian risks not only losing her heart but her life as well.
                            



Have a wonderful Valentine's Day!