I just added a new contest over in my Bonus Features section. It’s an ongoing contest, and I’ll be giving away two historical romances (winner’s choice) every week. Most of them are signed! I’m totally giddy about this contest–these are great books, and I just love giving cool things away !

Here are the books I’ll be giving away:

Pretty cool, huh? So head on over to my contest page & enter!

Stay tuned–I’ll post the first winner right here on Friday, August 21!

Congrats to Jessica M., who won (per random.org) my most recent contest! She gets a copy of A HINT OF WICKED by me, a copy of HIGHLAND OBSESSION also by me (but writing as Dawn Halliday, lol), and a bunch of author goodies.

Thanks to all who entered the contest! I asked about online sites that you go to for book information and your entries introduced me to several brand-new-to-me sites!

Stay tuned for my next contest. I have a wild idea for an ongoing contest to build up for the release of A TOUCH OF SCANDAL…

And, if you’re a writer, be sure to check out my contest over at Dawn Halliday’s site. There’s still time to enter for a critique by agent Barbara Poelle!

Thanks again! And congrats to Jessica!

I have a fabulous contest starting tomorrow over at my Dawn Halliday site. If you’re a writer and you’re looking for an agent, this is for you! Go check it out!

www.dawnhalliday.com

I love getting reader emails. Thanks so much to all of you who have emailed me about A HINT OF WICKED!

By far, the most common question I’m receiving in emails lately, is: When will A TOUCH OF SCANDAL be out?
Answer: April, 2010.

It seems like a long way away. I have to admit, I’d love it if it were to release next month (even though I haven’t finished copyedits yet, lol!). But on the other hand, I know April will be here before we know it.

And I have a special treat to show all of you today:

Isn’t it pretty? I think they did a great job evoking the emotion of the story, and the woman looks exactly like how I imagine the heroine, Kate. (Plus blue and gold were the colors of both my universities!) Anyway, I just love it!

I’m off to the Romance Writers of America annual conference in Washington, D.C.! If you’re in the area, please come visit us! There’s going to be a massive romance writer signing on Wednesday. If not, add a comment about what you think of the ATOS cover (honest opinions, please!), and I’ll randomly select one commenter when I come home to receive a signed copy of A HINT OF WICKED! Have a great week everyone!

To win a copy of A HINT OF WICKED plus a pre-release copy of my alter-ego Dawn Halliday‘s brand-new hot Highlander book, HIGHLAND OBSESSION, just visit my CONTEST page and let me know your favorite site to go to to find great new books to read!

Here’s the cover of HIGHLAND OBSESSION. Isn’t it…yum?

Congrats to Marie C., who won my “Wicked” contest with Christine Wells. Marie wins signed copies of A HINT OF WICKED and Christine’s WICKED LITTLE GAME! Here are Marie’s favorite wicked characters:

“Wicked-yum! — Right now I’m lovin’ two men, Lucas from Nalini Singh’s ‘Slave to Sensation’ and Viscount Vale from Elizabeth Hoyt’s ‘To Seduce a Sinner’.

Wicked-eeeuuuwww! — Prince Humperdinck (from the ‘Princess Bride’)”

LOL! I love the “Wicked-eeeuuuwww” answer! Congratulations, Marie!

Wow, what a month. Between baseball, end-of-school craziness, and the book release & blog tour, I think the dust is finally beginning to settle. Well, except for the fact that my agent called to let me know book #3 is now due a month earlier, because my publisher would like to schedule 2 books for me in 2010! Yay! But…eek! For the next few months I’m going to be The Little Engine That Could…

I have a GREAT contest in the works! (Hint: It involves my agent and/or a barrel of awesome signed books!) So please check in often! I don’t know exactly when we’re going to get started, but I do know it’s going to be a blast.

I’m holding a contest with the amazing Christine Wells, whose next book, WICKED LITTLE GAME, is releasing in July. I’ve had a sneak peek at this story, and it is absolutely fabulous. If you’d like to be entered in the drawing, just visit my extras page.

Though my books generally are more about characters than they are about actual historical events, I spend a great deal of time researching the historical backdrop. When I researched A HINT OF WICKED, I spent a lot of time neck-deep in divorce and separation laws of the period, and I read some really interesting case studies! I blogged about one of them today:

My Book Addiction and More

Come by to read the wild story of the 3rd Duke and Duchess of Beaufort’s nasty divorce and comment to win a copy of A HINT OF WICKED!

Also, just a reminder, through June, the publisher is offering A HINT OF WICKED in ebook format for just $1.99 (or even less). Check the Sony eBook store, Books on Board, the Kindle store, the iPhone App store, Fictionwise (where it’s only $0.85 for club members! WOW!), or anywhere ebooks are sold.

Thanks to everyone who entered the scavenger hunt! The winner of the Victoria’s Secret products is….(((drumroll)))….

Mary P!

Mary, please email me with your snail mail address by next Friday, and I’ll get these in the mail!

BLOG TOUR UPDATE

http://www.thebookgirl.net – review and giveaway
http://yougottareadreviews.blogspot.com/ – review and giveaway

The second site talks about what happens on page 18 of the book. Are you curious what that might be? Well, head on over to Barnes & Noble, where you can click “see inside” and read up to (and beyond) page 18. It’s a great way to see whether you think A HINT OF WICKED is for you!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Well…a year and a half after I was offered my first contract from Hachette, A HINT OF WICKED is officially out! You can find it wherever books are sold. I’m so far beyond excited, I don’t even know what to say! I had this dazed, dreamlike moment when I saw my name on the sale tag at Target. Totally, completely surreal…

It’s also my anniversary, so another reason to celebrate! I’m not exactly low maintenance, so it’s a true miracle my husband has put up with me for the past (*cough*) eighteen years (*cough) (I was a BABY when I got married, really, I was!).

I’m having an ongoing release celebration…and this means plenty of opportunities for you to reap the benefits of my excitement! (I love to give stuff away when I’m in a good mood, lol!) Plus, my publisher and bloggers across the internet are giving away copies of A HINT OF WICKED.

Here are some opportunities to win stuff:

My Wicked Sexy Scavenger Hunt-giving away about $60 in products from Victoria’s Secret

My contest with amazing author Christine Wells–enter to win a copy of both our books!

Interview and Giveaway at Examiner.com

Ongoing Freebies Offering - Sign up for my newsletter as well (look on the sidebar of my blog page), because on June 20, I’ll be giving away a signed copy of AHOW, along with copies of Simply Perfect by Mary Balogh, Desire Unchained by Larissa Ione, and To Beguile a Beast by Elizabeth Hoyt to random newsletter subscribers!

Today’s blog tour stop:Drey’s Library (they’ll be giving away several copies of AHOW!)