Summer is winding down, but there’s still time to get out there and enjoy. If you’re looking for something to do without taking a long road trip or getting on a plane, here are some suggestions for having summer fun at home.

Play tourist in your own town or city. We’re all guilty of it. We tend to overlook what makes our town or city special when we live there. There are museums, music venues, festivals, and historical sites to be enjoyed.

Check out a new restaurant. I’m guilty of going to familiar restaurants. I don’t go out often, so when I do I want to be assured I’ll like the food and the ambiance, but it doesn’t hurt to shake things up now and maybe find a new favorite place.

Go for a walk in a new part of town. Many towns and cities have walking trails in or nearby. It’s fun to explore a new area. Maybe take a friend with you.

Go on a picnic. Whether it’s the backyard or a nearby park, pack a bag full of yummy food and get out there and enjoy a sunny day, either by yourself or with family and friends.

It won’t be long before the temperatures dip and the days grow shorter. Enjoy them while you can!

Taming the White Wolf
Lone Wolf Legacy, Book 1

The lone wolf answers to no alpha or pack. From his first transformation, he knows his destiny: to be both judge and executioner for rogue werewolves. Welcome to the spellbinding first book in New York Times bestselling author N.J. Walters intense new werewolf series.

White wolf Devlin Moore has spent nearly the last century following his destiny: hunting rogue werewolves. His fate is to be the only one of his kind—hardened, feared, and brutally ruthless. Only now, Devlin’s not alone. There are two others. And if that wasn’t unsettling enough, Devlin is drawn to New York City for what appears to be a human…

As far as Devlin can tell, vibrant artist Zoe Galvani is no threat. But there’s something about her— from her unusual eyes that look similar to the same shocking hue as his own, to his growing need to mark her as his that suggests magical forces may be at play.

Now there’s no escaping each other, or the attraction that grows stronger by the second. But no one, especially a human woman, should have this effect on a lone wolf. And just when he’s sure that having her could be his undoing…the truth steps out of the shadows.

If you want to read more, you can find Taming the White Wolf here:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7NTXG92/
Entangled Publishing: https://entangledpublishing.com/books/taming-the-white-wolf
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/taming-the-white-wolf-n-j-walters/1143634327
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/taming-the-white-wolf
iBooks: https://books.apple.com/us/book/taming-the-white-wolf/id6450183902

About the Author

N.J. Walters is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has always been a voracious reader, and now she spends her days writing novels of her own. Vampires, werewolves, dragons, assassins, time-travelers, seductive handymen, and next-door neighbors with smoldering good looks—all vie for her attention. It’s a tough life, but someone’s got to live it.

Visit her at:
Website: http://www.njwalters.com
Blog: http://www.njwalters.blogspot.com
Newsletter Sign Up: http://eepurl.com/gdblg5
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/N.J.WaltersAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/njwaltersauthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/NJWalters
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/njwalters
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/n-j-walters

Thanks go out to the fantabulous Delilah Devlin for allowing me to do a guest post for her blog today.

I’m celebrating the release of Passionate Ink’s charity anthology, Hot & Sticky. 2023 marks the fifth year the members of PI have donated their time and talent to this project, and as always, all proceeds will go to benefit ProLiteracy. Last year’s anthology, Holiday Shorts, raised over $2,400, which went to support their mission of worldwide adult literacy. With seventeen amazing authors, this one will be bigger and better than ever.

My story, “Wicked Heat”, is set in the Wicked Magic world, created by my alter ego, Minette Moreau. As the stories in Hot & Sticky are short, there’s always a question of, “What happens next?”

Will Dexa and Soren have babies? If they do, will their children be snow leopards or dragons? What does their house look like? Do they have pets? You get the idea. 😊

It is my hope the following answers some of those questions—and puts Dexa and Soren on the hot seat!

If steamy contemporary romance is more your jam, I have another book coming out TODAY, Friday, August 4. Charon’s Chaos is the fifth book in my Club Apocalypse series. You can learn more about it on my website at https://raisagreywood.com.

Excerpt from “Wicked Heat”

“Welcome back to The Mating Game! It’s time to find out which of our mated couples will win a year’s supply of fresh beef from our friends at the Vanessa Springs Ranch in Wyoming. Will it be Dr. Dexa Khadka and her mate Soren, or Lyric and Todd Warner?”

The host, Chase Miller, smiled at the camera as the canned applause faded, and Dexa resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She couldn’t believe she’d let King Davryn talk her into this, but she supposed he wanted humans to see that supernaturals were just like everyone else.

“Todd, we asked Lyric what you’d do if you had the day off and an empty house. What’s your answer?”

“I’d be sleeping. Definitely sleeping.”

Laughing, Chase held a card up for the camera and a bell rang. “One point for Lyric and Todd!”

“We’re cheetahs. It’s what we do,” Lyric replied, smiling at the canned laughter.

“Soren, we asked Dexa what your guilty pleasure is.”

“Stealing things to please my mate, but I fail to see why I should feel guilt.” Soren frowned at the canned laughter. “Should I have said I did feel guilty?”

A buzz sounded as Chase held up a card, “Dexa said you like to scare the climbers on Mt. Everest when you visit her family.”

“Ah. That is my second favorite thing, but I don’t feel guilty about that either.” Soren lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it.

Dragons gonna dragon.

Dexa ignored her snow leopard’s comment and focused on Chase.

“Todd, we asked Lyric what she’d buy if you asked her to get you a treat from the store on her way home.”

“Turtle cheesecake,” Todd replied, smiling at his mate.

The bell rang a second time as Chase held up a card. “Lyric said cheesecake, and that’s another point for Lyric and Todd!”

When the canned laughter faded, Chase turned to Soren. “We asked Dexa who is the bigger pack rat between the two of you.”

“Dexa is.”

“What?” She shook her head; sure she hadn’t heard him properly over the buzzer. “Did you forget your hoard?”

“The score is now two for Lyric and Todd, and zero for Dexa and Soren. Lyric, we asked Todd what always makes you laugh.”

“That old sitcom Dinosaurs.” Todd leaned over to kiss her as the bell rang.

“Another point for Lyric and Todd,” Chase said. “Dexa, we asked Soren which of you is better with children.”

“He is.” The buzzer sounded and she gave Soren a wry smile. “Whoops.”

“Soren said you were,” Chase said. “Lyric, we asked Todd which of you takes forever in the shower?”

“Me. It’s always me.”

The bell rang as Chase held up the answer card for the camera and waited for the canned applause to fade. “Dexa, this is our final question. Which of you is more likely to sleep in and be late for work?”

“Soren.” Her lips parted and she stared at him when the buzzer sounded. “What? You’re always sleeping in.”

Chase cleared his throat and held up the card. “Err. I don’t think we’ve ever had a couple earn no points before. Are you sure you know each other?”

“Yes,” Soren replied without looking at him. “My pleasure is tied to yours, kitten, and nothing you want will ever be denied you. My hoard is yours and none of it has purpose unless it pleases you. You’re the favorite with all the cubs and dragonlets and I can’t wait to have a few of our own. And yes, you do oversleep because I turn off your alarm when you need the rest.”

“Fates,” Lyric murmured. “I don’t know if that’s scary or the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard.”

“He’s a dragon,” Todd replied. “They’re…um… You know, dragons.”

Chase stared at Dexa and Soren for a moment, then cleared his throat. “Congratulations to our winners, Lyric and Todd Warner.”

Soren stood and held out his hand to help Dexa to her feet. “I believe I’ve already won the perfect prize.”

UPDATE: The winner is…Cindy!
*~*~*

Hi, everyone! I have to start with a big thank you to Delilah for letting me come play in her space again. I always have a great time with all of you.

It’s my birthday today, and I was thinking the other day about birthdays past. The ones when you’re a kid and they’re a bigger deal. In our house when I was growing up, my mom would make us what we wanted for our birthday dinner, plus bake and decorate our cake (also the flavor of our choice). Blowing out the candles on the cake was a huge thing, making that wish. Trying to decide what to wish for. I don’t think I remember any of those long-ago wishes, I’m sure they were frivolous things, silly things to an adult, but probably important to a little kid—a new doll, some books, a new pet, things along those lines.

Now I’m the adult and the meal and cake are my responsibility, which is fine, I do the same thing for my husband and sons (though I don’t bake their cakes, my decorating skills are awful!).

I do still think about birthday wishes…what I’d like if a birthday wish could come true. I’m a writer, after all, and wishing and what-ifs are part of the job description. These days, though, my birthday wishes are much different than when I was a little girl. I would wish for my family to stay healthy and safe. For more sanity in the world, for people to care about others more and be less hateful. This week, I’d wish for people to treat animals better—there are a lot of stray and feral cats in our neighborhood, and just last week, a pregnant cat showed up; she has a flea collar, so she belonged to someone, but she’s hungry, so she’s showing up at our house where two of the strays have made their home in our carport. I could come up with a more frivolous wish or two if pressed—I’d wish to win the lottery and then I could make sure the cats in our area were all taken care of (after I’ve made sure my family is taken care of, of course, haha), or that I’d sell tons of books—but mostly I think my wishes would be more practical.

What about you? Can you still come up with some fanciful wishes to go along with more practical wishes for your birthday?  I’d love to hear about them. If you comment with your birthday wish(es), I’ll enter you into a drawing for a choice of one of my ebooks. I’ll draw the winner on Monday, July 31, 2023 after noon, so you have a little time to think of a good wish or two.

Thanks again to Delilah for having me!

About the Author

Lifelong book addict Elizabeth Andrews fell in love with romance novels as a teen, a love that’s carried into adulthood. Now she writes her own, full of sexy heroes and strong heroines. Her stories range from paranormal to contemporary, to who knows what her imagination might come up with along the way, but happy endings are a guarantee!

You can find her at ElizabethAndrewsWrites.com

About her Books

Light the Way Home
Single dad Nate Baxter has his hands full with his son and his haunted lighthouse. He doesn’t have time to spend with a woman…especially one who won’t stick around, like his ex-wife.

But Lucie Russo’s not like other women Nate’s met. She’s sweet and sexy, and his mouth waters every time he’s around her.

Will a family emergency cause him to break his relationship rules? And if he does, will his heart be broken too?

Hunting Medusa
Medusa’s Daughters Book 1: When Kallan Tassos tracks down the current Medusa, he expects to find a monster. Instead he finds a wary, beautiful woman, shielded by a complicated web of spells that foils his plans for a quick kill and retrieval of her protective amulet.

Andrea Rosakis expects the handsome Harvester to go for the kill. Instead, his attempt to take the amulet imprinted on her skin without harming her takes her completely by surprise. And ends with the two of them in a magical bind—together. But Kallan isn’t the only Harvester on Andi’s trail…

Protecting Medusa
Medusa’s Daughters Book 2: Being the Medusa will put a real crimp in a woman’s social life. Lucky for Philomena Gregory, she gave up on men long before Athena’s curse landed on her head. Not even the naked man in the bathroom will change her mind.

Ryder Ware has waited six years to meet Mena in person. Flirting on the phone and via email is no substitute for face to face when a man is so intrigued. But now that Athena’s Harvesters have found her, Mena has no choice but to let him keep her safe—and close, very close.

I’m thrilled to introduce a brand-new werewolf trilogy—Lone Wolf Legacy. The first book is TAMING THE WHITE WOLF.

Who are the lone wolves?

Since the rise of the werewolf, there has always existed a single lone wolf—with pure white, gray, or black fur and eyes that match—who answers to no alpha, belongs to no pack. Merciless and deadly, he wanders the world, both judge and executioner of rogue wolves who senselessly kill, endangering all their kind.

When one dies, another takes its place, awakening to his purpose the first time he shifts to his wolf form. Known by the sign of the lone wolf—a sickle over the heart—the short-handled, circular blade remains as a tattoo on the man and as a mark on the wolf. A lethal combination of intelligence, brutal strength, and keen instinct, he walks a lonely path, shunned by pack, always alone.

For the first time, there are three in the world—white, gray, and black—who all bear the mark on their chests. No one knows why, least of all them…

Taming the White Wolf
Lone Wolf Legacy, Book 1

The lone wolf answers to no alpha or pack. From his first transformation, he knows his destiny: to be both judge and executioner for rogue werewolves. Welcome to the spellbinding first book in New York Times bestselling author N.J. Walters intense new werewolf series.

White wolf Devlin Moore has spent nearly the last century following his destiny: hunting rogue werewolves. His fate is to be the only one of his kind—hardened, feared, and brutally ruthless. Only now, Devlin’s not alone. There are two others. And if that wasn’t unsettling enough, Devlin is drawn to New York City for what appears to be a human…

As far as Devlin can tell, vibrant artist Zoe Galvani is no threat. But there’s something about her— from her unusual eyes that look similar to the same shocking hue as his own, to his growing need to mark her as his that suggests magical forces may be at play.

Now there’s no escaping each other, or the attraction that grows stronger by the second. But no one, especially a human woman, should have this effect on a lone wolf. And just when he’s sure that having her could be his undoing…the truth steps out of the shadows.

TEASER:

Stuffing her phone in her bag, she stepped off the sidewalk. A horn blared. Tires squealed. A heavy hand landed on her shoulder and yanked her back. The deli bag slipped from her hand and dropped to the ground. Off balance, she would’ve ended up on her ass except she rammed into someone.

What the hell! Heart pounding, mouth dry, she trembled.

“Watch where you’re walking, lady,” the driver yelled, speeding away. Stunned, all she could do was blink. It had happened so fast.

“You okay?” The voice was impossibly deep and vibrated in the very marrow of her bones.

Tilting her head back, she stared up and up. Holy cow, he was one of the biggest men she’d ever seen, and every inch of it was prime. The black T-shirt he wore stretched across an acre of shoulders and clung to rock-hard abs. At a loss for words, she catalogued his features. He wasn’t handsome. That was far too tame a word. Primal sprang to mind. His face was all hard, sharp angles, his jaw stubborn. She curled her hands into fists to keep from reaching up to touch him to make sure he was real and not some figment of her overactive imagination.

Maybe I’m dead and this is heaven?

*~*~*

If you want to read more, you can find Taming the White Wolf here:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7NTXG92/
Entangled Publishing: https://entangledpublishing.com/books/taming-the-white-wolf
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/taming-the-white-wolf-n-j-walters/1143634327
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/taming-the-white-wolf
iBooks: https://books.apple.com/us/book/taming-the-white-wolf/id6450183902

About the Author

N.J. Walters is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has always been a voracious reader, and now she spends her days writing novels of her own. Vampires, werewolves, dragons, assassins, time-travelers, seductive handymen, and next-door neighbors with smoldering good looks—all vie for her attention. It’s a tough life, but someone’s got to live it.

Visit her at:
Website: http://www.njwalters.com
Blog: http://www.njwalters.blogspot.com
Newsletter Sign Up: http://eepurl.com/gdblg5
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/N.J.WaltersAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/njwaltersauthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/NJWalters
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/njwalters
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/n-j-walters

The Whole Tooth is available for pre-order now and hits KU July 6!

Beagan is a tooth fairy. She loves what she does and has never felt unfulfilled. Until one night her body freezes when a man opens a door.

Ethan is a normal guy. Just doing his best to make a good life for him and his son. Until one night he opens a door and changes their lives forever.

Can these two find a happy ever after together?

This is a steamy, fun, (almost) insta-love, paranormal romance short story with adult language, off-page parent abandonment, and “open door” sexual situations.

Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7SHMYRV?ref_=pe_3052080_276849420

About the author

Elliot Ason is a lover of all things romance, especially if there’s a monster sprinkled in there somewhere 😉 Her love of reading drove her to write paranormal and monster romance short stories. She is an indie author who also works full time and is a wife and mom – always outnumbered by two boys!

Links:
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/elliotason
Amazon Author Page: https://amazon.com/author/elliotason
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elliot.ason.author/
Newsletter signup page: https://subscribepage.io/SsPPVm
Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090142939983
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/elliot-ason
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/29742107.Elliot_Ason

The calendar says it’s summer, but when I look outside the window the view doesn’t quite agree. The trees are just getting leaves on their branches and the flowers are beginning to poke their heads above the soil. I live in a cold climate so this isn’t unusual, but I do love summer and can’t wait for it to truly begin.

Summer…just saying the word conjures up images of steamy hot nights and long sultry days. Warm sand and cool drinks with little paper umbrellas, backyard barbeques, picnics, and long holiday weekends. People slow down more in the heat of the summer, they’re not as frantic, and they relax more and go with the flow. There are baseball games to watch while sipping a cold beer, vacation days to enjoy to the fullest, and books to read while lounging on the deck.

Looking for a sizzling summer read to enjoy on the deck or by the pool? Check out the latest book in the Forgotten Brotherhood series.

Hunter Avenged
Forgotten Brotherhood Book 6

It’s taken Viking hunter Sven Knutson six frustrating months to find her. To track down the angel responsible for compromising the Forgotten Brotherhood and waking the drakon. She may be clever. Resourceful. But no one ever gets away from Sven. Ever.

All Rivka longed for as an angel was a chance to serve on Earth and help humans. Instead, it all went impossibly, horribly wrong, and she still doesn’t understand how or even why. All she knows is that she’s on the run—not only from Heaven’s dangerous elite guard, but also from the Brotherhood, who want answers.

She might just have to trust the immortal Viking whose icy blue eyes make her feel almost wickedly human. Because someone wants Rivka dead and the Brotherhood eliminated. Someone powerful enough to take on the most dangerous assassins who have ever lived. Someone who could unleash the fury of both Heaven and Hell…and Rivka is the key.

Teaser from Hunter Avenged…

Rivka awakened longings, needs he’d never experienced. I should walk away.

That would be the intelligent thing. His mottos in life were simple. Show your opponent no weakness. The most dangerous weapon in the world was a warrior’s brain. A thinking warrior lived to fight another day.

He was tossing out every tenet he’d ever lived by, allowing his emotions to overrule his common sense.

*~*~*

Want to read more? Click on one of the links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BMYKZQ2T/
Entangled Publishing: https://entangledpublishing.com/books/hunter-avenged
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hunter-avenged-n-j-walters/1142718008
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/hunter-avenged-2

About the Author

N.J. Walters is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has always been a voracious reader, and now she spends her days writing novels of her own. Vampires, werewolves, dragons, assassins, time-travelers, seductive handymen, and next-door neighbors with smoldering good looks—all vie for her attention. It’s a tough life, but someone’s got to live it.

Visit her at:
Website: http://www.njwalters.com
Blog: http://www.njwalters.blogspot.com
Newsletter Sign Up: http://eepurl.com/gdblg5
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/N.J.WaltersAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/njwaltersauthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/NJWalters
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/njwalters
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/n-j-walters

UPDATE: The winner is…Amy Dudley!
*~*~*

This old silberback is a handsome thing, isn’t he? Although, he does look liked he’s ready to eat a booger.

And why am I posting his picture? Well, my day started at 5:15 because I awoke from a nightmare, and there was no way I was going back to sleep.

I dreamed that my daughter and I had decided to hike a trail in the woods. We came across this hut that was mostly fallen down. As we passed a fallen wall, I thought I heard a sound from under the section of wall and stepped closer to peer under it. A set of glowing eyes stared back.

I backed away and told my daughter to run as the creature crawled from underneath the rubble. At first, I thought it was a silverback gorilla, because from his torso up, that’s how he appeared, but as he stood, his legs were too long and his posture was upright. I was looking at Big Foot! We ran, and he followed, bellowing down the path, his footsteps making the ground shake. We made it to the car and managed to get on the road. When I looked back, he stood in the middle of the road beating his chest.

Back home, we were nervous wrecks but laughing at our close call until I heard a thump at the back door, and it crashed inward. Big Foot folded himself downward to fit in the space and stepped inside—and that’s when I woke up.

So, it got me thinking. Why aren’t gorillas ever featured in shifter stories? Is it because their expressions are so human that it’s creepy? Aren’t they as sexy as bears or wolves? They have such ferocious-looking faces, I can’t see it, but then when you look at a bear up close, I don’t see the attraction either.

So, for a chance to win a download of your choice from my backlist, answer that question, or tell me which creatures you think make the sexiest shifters.