Author Archives: Staff

Book Excerpt

The woman stood on tiptoe in the baggage-claim area of the Dallas/Fort Worth airport looking for all the world like someone who’d been sent to collect the devil. Mitch Landry had expected Wes or one of the other groomsmen to come for him. Instead, his gaze found a statuesque blonde arching up on her toes, a white T-shirt with Jim’s Gym in black script stretched across her lushly curved breasts and long tanned legs extending from tight denim shorts. His heart stumbled then roared into a gallop.

Blood rushed from his brain to below his waist. His nostrils flared in a deep breath, as though he could smell her unique fragrance across the crowded lobby.

She hadn’t looked in his direction yet, which gave him an unfettered opportunity to study her without having to camouflage his reactions.

No make-up covered her creamy rose complexion, not that she needed any. Not then and not now. No eye shadow was required to bring out the deep blue of her eyes. Nor did her mouth need any enhancement. Her lips radiated a natural pink, although the bottom one grew redder as her upper teeth gnawed on it.

Six years had passed since he’d seen Olivia Montgomery, but he’d swear she was more beautiful today. She had an appeal that came only with age and maturity. A smile edged onto his mouth. He was surprised—pleasantly surprised—to admit how glad he was to see her.

He watched as her glare bounced around the room, searching faces until it fell on him. As a look of resignation flashed across her face, she frowned.

His smile faded. Not exactly the reaction he’d hoped for.

The Buzz

Texas Two Step kept me on an emotional roller coaster, there were moments I wanted Mitch and Olivia together and moments I wanted her to kick him in his junk. Olivia is a strong women, who right or wrong, made some tough decisions and is now paying the price for them. Mitch is a determined man, who bless his sexy lil’ soul, had to admit he was wrong. He finally sees the light and destroys his douchebag crown for good and ends up being a man dreams are made of. 5 -Star review by Guilty Pleasures, Goodreads

Why Texas Two Step is a Red Hot Read: I’m notoriously picky about romances set in Texas, as I’m sure anyone feels about their home state. To my thought, very few writers who aren’t from Texas (and some who are) portray Texas as anything but a stereotype. In Texas Two Step, Cynthia D’Alba’s hero Mitch is a rancher, but he’s more than the stereotypical cowboy.

Six years ago, his love affair with Olivia circled the drain because of Mitch’s misguided loyalty to his brother. Now, he wants Olivia back. But it’s going to take a lot more than a simple “I’m sorry” to win her over because all those years ago he left Olivia with something more than just a broken heart. Ms. D’Alba does a fabulous job with an emotionally charged reunion story and the does justice to both big-city and small-town Texas. 5 -Star review by Kelsey Browning, Goodreads

How To Purchase:

Texas Two Step, book one in the Texas Montgomery Mavericks series can be purchased through our bookstore.

About the Author:

I was born and raised in a small Arkansas town. After being gone for a number of years, I’m thrilled to be making my home back in Arkansas living in a vine-covered cottage on the banks of an eight-thousand acre lake. I started writing on a challenge from my husband in 2006 and discovered having imaginary sex with lots of hunky men was fun.

I love love love to hear from readers and there are lots of ways to find me. Online, you can find me most days at my website or my group blog.

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Book Excerpt

The next day I went to work. I was distracted, and again I could not eat. I was tired, but energized. I felt sharp, wired, caffeinated. As I lay down to bed that night, I wondered where my mind was going. It felt unharnessed, like it had jumped its tracks. Racing thoughts … spinning gears … the documents in my brain’s hard drive were shuffling and re-shuffling like a deck of cards.

I went to work on Wednesday having had no sleep since Sunday night. I kept reassuring myself that it was no big deal. People operated on little or no sleep all the time, right?

I actually felt pretty effective at work. Multitasking came naturally. At 2:45 a.m. that day, I got into my car and drove to Capital One and worked for a good two hours at a frantic pace. That was the last I saw of Capital One for over a month.

On Thursday, which marked four days with no sleep, I began having bizarre thoughts. I felt like I was very close to Jesus and God. In my sleep-deprived state, I wondered if perhaps I was Jesus? Surely the lack of sleep was playing tricks on me. How crazy it sounds to say you feel like Jesus! But to be sure, I felt a huge capacity for love, and a tremendous empathy for those around me. All the while, my mind continued to race and leap and somersault in a hundred different directions.

The Buzz

“Hilary Chaney offers readers a rare glimpse into the human interior–her very own soul.  I applaud her courage to share so boldly her voice, a voice that could change our world if truly heard by the masses.” Annie Burnside, award-winning author of “Soul to Soul Parenting.”

“Through Hilary Chaney’s deeply honest and open storytelling, she reaches others who are in the shadows of Bipolar Disorder.  She is a pioneer in the legal field in her efforts to dispel the myths and stigma surrounding mental illness.” Sarah Cearley, PhD, LCSW, Executive Director Arkansas Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program.

“Give me a congregation of Hilarys and I have no doubt we could move mountains.” Rev. Nathan Mattox, United Methodist Elder, Oklahoma.

How To Purchase:

Through the Open Door: A Bipolar Attorney Talks Mania, Recovery, and Heaven on Earth can be purchased through our bookstore.

About the Author:

I grew up in Norfolk, Virginia and went to college and law school there.  I met the love of my life in law school and he brought me back to Arkansas, where we settled down to have a family.  I have two delightful young sons and am part of the thriving family law practice.  We have fun family dinners with my in-laws, crawfish boils, riverbank parties, and a bar three blocks away.  On a cold snowy day today I think about the many days my husband and I have spent on beaches drinking cocktails in Costa Rica, Myrtle Beach, Anguilla, and Virginia Beach.  It’s 5:00 somewhere!

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Book Excerpt

“And you’re not going to make me sleep with you?”

He shrugged and made himself maintain eye contact when what he wanted to do was look anywhere but at her. Damn. Her voice was a little tight and high with that last question. Now what had he done wrong? He didn’t think he’d ever understand women.

“Right.” He dragged the word out. “No obligation.”

She drained her beer. The empty bottle dangled from the tips of her fingers. The side of her cheek sucked as she rolled it between her teeth.

“So no sex. That’s what you’re saying? I just want to make sure there are no misunderstandings this time.”

He nodded. “Sure.”

She echoed his nod and then set her bottle on the floor. “Well then, in that case, no.”

His head popped back. “What?”

Leaning toward him, she said, “No sex, no trip.”

This time, he swallowed hard. Crossed and uncrossed his legs. Adjusted his position on the sofa. “Explain exactly what you’re saying. Use small words and short sentences. I don’t think my mind is hearing correctly this afternoon.”

“Here’s the deal, Doc. I want a vacation with the five S’s. Sand. Surf. Sun. Spa. And sex.” She leaned back in her chair. “And not necessarily in that order.”

“So you want to sleep with me?”

“I want a two-week torrid, scorching-hot affair. No holds barred. Then, we walk away. No harm. No foul. Those are my terms.” She stared into his eyes. “Take it or leave it.”

The Buzz

“Wow, this is not your ordinary cowboy tale. What a great read. Totally not what I was expecting, but wow was I pleasantly surprised by this refreshing read. Yet again, a read by Cynthia D’Alba has left a lasting impression and I look forward to much more in the future.” ~ Kimberly from Book-Obsessed Chicks

“Cynthia D’Alba writes characters are that are fun and the sex scenes that burn up the page!” ~ Lisa

“I love this series and I can’t get enough of it….the chemistry…was so hot I thought my ereader was going to go up in flames. I highly recommend this series and for you to read them in order. You won’t regret it.” ~ Lori Meehan

“What a heck of a read, wow couldn’t stop reading it! It is a must read is all I’m gonna say.” ~Wendy Fedler



How To Purchase:

You can purchase Texas Fandango, Book 3 in the Texas Montgomery Mavericks series on

Amazon

 About the Author:

I was born and raised in a small Arkansas town. After being gone for a number of years, I’m thrilled to be making my home back in Arkansas living in a vine-covered cottage on the banks of an eight-thousand acre lake. I started writing on a challenge from my husband in 2006 and discovered having imaginary sex with lots of hunky men was fun.

I love love love to hear from readers and there are lots of ways to find me. Online, you can find me most days at my website or my group blog.

 Facebook  | Twitter  |   Pinterest

Book Excerpt

Pohoi had seconds to react. … She rolled to her left, missing within a twig’s length another mounted Texan who waved a long rifle, his tan horse charging toward Father Big Elk. “Father, behind you!” she hollered, now up and crawling on her knees, cheering. But her cheer soon vanished when a shot whizzed past her and toward her father. He ducked. Pohoi prepared to run to him when, for no reason, the charging horse wheeled around and bore down upon her. But Father Big Elk dashed after the mounted attacker, the muscles in his legs bulged to bursting, his face twisted with hate, his chest heaved. He steadied his hand, pulled back, threw his knife. Pohoi saw nothing else. She turned and sped like a jackrabbit into the bushes and toward Cougar Trail. A second shot fired behind her. She halted. The sound of galloping hooves faded into the distance, up and onto the Llano Estacado, her peoples’ home, the Comancheria. A chill wafted over her. She turned and ran back to her father at a lope, panic sickening her. But when she reached the site where the rider had charged and had fired his rifle, she came to a stunned standstill; the Tejanos were gone, and they’d taken her mother. All that remained to prove there’d been an attack was the disturbed dirt, her buckskin pouch of smashed yucca roots, and her father, facedown on the ground.

How To Purchase:

Pohoi and Comanche Spirit Power  is available through our bookstore.

About the Author:

A bit of a nomad, Native Texan, J. L. Chalfant has lived in Texas, New Mexico, California, Arizona, Wyoming, and now lives in Arkansas. Her adventures called for training in outdoor skills, visual arts, creative writing, and a master’s degree in special education. Today, she enjoys the writing life. Her background, and her studies in Native American, Celtic and middle-eastern cultures and histories fuel her stories. Her next work centers around a Celtic Curse and three Spirit Shades who bring their ancient battles into the present, and into the lives of three unusual people and their humorous and outrageous community.

Book Excerpt

One night there was a loud banging on our front door. Tom grabbed his rifle and ran to see what was wrong. When he opened the door, he saw a neighbor and behind him was a cross burning in our front yard.

Tom raced out and used the butt of his rifle to knock the cross over.

“god damn it, I’m sorry we didn’t kill all of them.”

It’s a wonder he didn’t catch his night shirt on fire. The neighbor who had sounded the alarm went back across the street and returned with a bucket of water. We always kept a bucket of water in the house at night, in case a spark from the fire place got loose. Tom grabbed it and that finished extinguishing the fire. The neighbor, whose name I have forgotten, offered to help Tom move the charred cross out of the street.

“NO”, Tom said quite loudly.

“I am going to leave it there for everyone to see whether they want to or not.”

Despite the commotion Tom had noticed that none of the other neighbors had come out to see what was going on, or to help. No one had even lighted a candle. Tom was as angry about that, as he was about the burning cross. He decided right then that we were moving to a different house farther away from the Capitol building.

……. “Why did they do such a thing to you? You ain’t colored.” Mrs. Hughes asked.

“Because today we are going to debate and vote on whether or not we will give black men the right to vote. It was a warning that it shouldn’t pass.” Tom explained.

“I thought the Southern states had to give colored men the right to vote before they could be allowed to rejoin the United States.” I said.

“Yes, that’s right”, replied Tom. “But some folks don’t care if Arkansas is readmitted to the Union.”

How To Purchase:

Both books in the Miss Mary Margaret series are available through our bookstore.

About the Author:

Mary Frances Hodges wrote her first story, at age seven, on the front and back of a 3 x 5 index card. Then she wrote several poems her mother thought she had copied from books for which she got a long lecture about cheating. So she quit writing until she was about 40 years old when she gave herself permission to write. She taught college level writing from research for about 20 years. While teaching research, she discovered several true events that were just too good not to tell.  At age 78, she is recovering from a mild stroke and spends most days watching TV, playing computer solitaire, and thinking about her next book, all while having a cat in her lap.

Book Excerpt

I walked out of that office with my suspicion affirmed, with the first hope of conclusion since my brother’s unexplained death years earlier. This revelation gave me the confidence to persist in my search for answers.

Years of investigation would uncover falsified paperwork, nonstandard procedures, frightening ignorance of State Law and many conspicuous coincidences. Dangerous negligence would range from a lazy doctor to an apathetic State Prosecutor. A suspect would run across America while the heat died down—cooled by an accomplice in local law-enforcement.

There were no reliable narrators so I found a voice. Today, justice is delayed by one missing piece. There is warmth, still, in this chilling account. More than a tragedy, this story offers hope that wounds can close.

The Buzz

The book is very informative,thought provoking concerning the neglect we so often experience from our authoritative leaders ,officials in charge of our communities,our safety,our very lives.It’s a sad era we live in. 5 -Star review by Margaret Swaffar, Amazon

Coming from a small town in Arkansas I know only to well the injustices that occur in small communities! It happens more than people like to admit. It its hard to say I enjoyed the book because it was such a tragic story. But yes, the book was very well written and the story was very wonderfully told. I am sorry there was no closure to this tragedy and the murderess is allowed to roam free. Hopefully justice will prevail someday! 5 -Star review by Karla Pitts, Amazon

If you like true crime stories, you’ll certainly love this one. Tonya York did a wonderful job of profiling the characters, describing and explaining each story line, and raising my blood pressure. It’s definitely a mesmerizing and unbelievable story! 5 -Star review by tjh, Amazon

How To Purchase:

Antifreeze Cookbook is available at:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the Author:

Tonya York is a writer, published author, business woman, want to be artist, lover of the Dallas Cowboys and mashed potatoes. Passionate seeker of God, new challenges and loves the quiet solitude of reading on a beach. SURVIVOR.

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