Action, Romance, and Feel-Good Family...

Are all recipes Whimsical Publications has cooked up to keep you warm and happy this fall. Check out these great new releases!


 

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Falling in love was the last thing on Marcie’s mind when she came to Milan from Philadelphia and got a great job in an international company—where a charming Italian named Roberto happens to be her closest coworker.

When Roberto tells her about his unhappy love affair with another woman, Marcie is deeply moved—and at the same time realizes that she has fallen in love with him. Roberto seems to be falling in love with her too. But how could he even think of starting a love affair right after ending another one? He is bound by ties he can’t escape—a wife he doesn’t love and a seriously ill daughter he cares very much about. She wasn’t sure she wanted any part of such an ill-fated affair.

Marcie falls into a restless sleep burdened with this realization. She awakens the next morning in Roberto’s body. This has to be a dream, she thinks, until she goes to her office and collides with the real Roberto—who has just had a dream of waking up in her body. As even stranger events follow, Marcie begins to wonder, suppose they were really in each other’s bodies? Can forbidden love be that strong?

 

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 Everything in thirteen-year-old Tim McGrew’s life stinks. It was bad enough his dad left, but even worse, he must move to his grandparent’s remote ranch on Nowhere Mountain, leave his friends and school behind, and give up playing baseball.

He loves his whacky grandma and enjoyed summer visits at the ranch backpacking and horseback riding with his
grandpa. But now Grandpa is dead. And Tim and his dog, Tiny, are the only males in a house full of women. To top off his problems, Grandma adopts a wild burro from the Bureau of Land Management and expects him to train it.

Tim hopes it’s true that Grandpa’s ghostly vibes still linger around the ranch because he needs help taming the long-eared donkey with a noisy bray, and even more important, needs advice on how to get his parents back together. 

 

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It is December 2012 and the world is on edge about the foretold end of humankind. 12 follows multiple characters
through the Mayan prediction of the end of the world. While battling for their lives, these individuals come up against natural disasters of every kind. Go on a thrill ride with Peyton, a teenaged babysitter who suddenly finds herself protecting her charge amidst devastating tornadoes. Join college student Lily Singh while she struggles to survive earthquakes in a foreign country. Follow scientist Kyle Phelps as he discovers the local volcano is about to erupt and there is nothing he can do but try to outrun it. There’s even the tale of an entire nation sinking to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, taking along its inhabitants and possibly the American news crew sent to broadcast the events. Will humanity be able to persevere as it always has? Or will they slip silently into the night, returning earth to its original owner, Mother Nature?  

New! Loving Roberto

 

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Falling in love was the last thing on Marcie’s mind when she came to Milan from
Philadelphia and got a great job in an international company—where a charming Italian named Roberto happens to be her closest coworker.

When Roberto tells her about his unhappy love affair with another woman, Marcie is
deeply moved—and at the same time realizes that she has fallen in love with him.
Roberto seems to be falling in love with her too. But how could he even think of starting a love affair right after ending another one? He is bound by ties he can’t escape—a wife he doesn’t love and a seriously ill daughter he cares very much about. She wasn’t sure she wanted any part of such an ill-fated affair.

Marcie falls into a restless sleep burdened with this realization. She awakens the next morning in Roberto’s body. This has to be a dream, she thinks, until she goes to her office and collides with the real Roberto—who has just had a dream of waking up in her body. As even stranger events follow, Marcie begins to wonder, suppose they were really in each others' bodies?  Can forbidden love be that strong?

EXCERPT: 

Flirting. It was a part of the local language. The Italian way with words, wayward and enticing. Inevitably, Roberto had abetted and encouraged her. Or maybe he had started it, and she had unconsciously fallen in step. Non importa. What did it matter why it had happened? This was Italy, where accidental love was thing to be embraced, not resisted.

Even so, her growing closeness to Roberto had seemed perfectly innocent to her—right up until that painful moment last Friday when he had confessed his affair with the other woman. And then came the weird dream this morning.

Starting from today, being close to Roberto while keeping them both out of trouble—and out of each other’s shoes—was definitely not going to be easy.

At the end of the afternoon, Roberto materialized in her office.

He approached her desk silently, the same way he always approached her in the conference room. This way of walking in on each other was a habit they both had developed recently. There was nothing premeditated about it. It was a kind of secret code, a way of saying “we belong to each other,” and it was so subtle that nobody would ever notice they were doing it. Other colleagues in the department always paused in a co-worker’s doorway to announce themselves before entering. Barging right in to someone’s office was considered rude.

“Oh, Roberto,” she said, and turned to face him.

Unlike Marcie, he was impeccably dressed in the clothes she had lovingly selected from his drawer. He seated himself without waiting for an invitation—another breach of office etiquette that they allowed themselves—and waited. She knew exactly what he was waiting for. He wanted her to con-firm that nothing had happened this morning.

“Too late for coffee,” he said. “Couldn’t get free in time, sorry. Desolato.”

She waved a hand dismissively. This was not about coffee.

“Roberto, we have to talk about what happened this morning.”

“Happened? Something happened?” Roberto glanced quickly down at his chest as if he half-expected to see something unusual there. Then he looked up, visibly relieved. His appearance—cardigan, pants, and all—was perfect.

Marcie studied his face. It was a disturbed face, but not a seriously frightened one. It was at a level of two or three on the panic scale, not a seven or eight as she had seen on his face the time the whole sound system went down the evening before the annual stockholders’ meeting. Obviously, he had not taken in the full measure of this thing that had happened. She would have to break it to him gently.

“Roberto,” she said with forced patience, “did you have a weird dream before you woke up this morning?”

He nodded. “I did.”

“Of course you did,” she said.

In order not to break the news to him all at once, she added, “I guessed it when I bumped into you in the corridor. You looked kind of tense and headachy. That’s how I could tell you probably had a bad dream.”

It did not sound convincing to Marcie, but Roberto nodded.

“So tell me, what was it? Did you dream you were in my apartment in Milan?”

“Yes, that’s it exactly!” He looked surprised.

Marcie was speechless for a moment. She had only figured this out for herself after mentally going through her own motions over and over. Only after reviewing her own bizarre morning trajectory had she worked out in her mind what must have been Roberto’s parallel experience. Not until he spoke the words was she quite sure that it had happened this way, that it was an exchange of bodies—that it had happened not just to her, but to him.

“And in this dream, did you imagine that you were me?” she asked cautiously. “I mean, like in a dream, of course—were you, in this dream, inside of a woman’s body? And did you get dressed by putting on this awful sweater?” She held up a tatty sleeve for his inspection. “And these pants?” She stretched her legs out before him. “And then did you take the subway from my stop to the office?”

“Exactly,” he said. He shook his head doubtfully. “You always amaze me, Marcellina. How did you know what I dreamed?”

“Because, um, I don’t know how to say this, but let’s just say that I thought I was you this morning. I woke up in your apartment, in Treviglio. And I was in your body. And I had to drive your car to the office. And then I bumped into you and sort of bounced back in my own body.” She paused. “And Anna Maria was still asleep when I left. She must have worked late last night, am I right?”

“Right,” he said. “Hey, how do you know that?”

“Because, Roberto, I don’t know how to say this, but I think maybe it really happened.”

Dead silence.

“Roberto?”

Silence.

Whimsical Publications' Author of the Week: Destiny Booze

About Destiny: Destiny Booze grew up at a campground in Virginia where her childhood was full of hard work. There was also an element of excitement as she met a large variety of diverse people with widespread tales about fun and adventure. She grew into a young lady with a very active imagination.

Destiny attended Virginia Western Community College for two years. Her writing career began as a community journalist, yet creative writing was always her passion. In May of 2009, she released her debut romantic suspense novel, Altered Beginnings.

Other titles by Destiny Booze: Predetermined Endings (2009), The Curse of a Mind (2010).

Destiny resides in Botetourt County, Virginia with her husband, son and house full of pets where she strives to be the best wife, mother and writer that she can be. Her family is always priority number one. Other things of great importance to her are friends, and YOU, the readers!

Find her here: http://www.destinybooze.com/

And check out her book Altered Beginnings!

 

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The headline in the small town newspaper read Girl Missing, Presumed Dead or Worse.

Leigh Lawson returned to Nags Head, North Carolina after four years with a huge shock. That big and bold headline was about her! Everyone thought she was dead!

The truth was that she was doing well. While gone, she had gotten clean from drugs and worked hard to get her
bachelor’s degree in engineering. With her life back on track, she returns home in hope that she will receive a warm welcome. Instead, she gets the townsfolks' disdain.

Everyone hates her, everyone except Jason Altarez, an ambitious and resilient reporter with his sights locked on
Leigh. He chases her with oozing charm and romance, but does he really want her or is he after his next story?

Leigh’s life soon spirals out of control when the police recruit her for an undercover assignment. They want her to go back to the life of her troubled teenage years, back into the drugs, and help them to bring the local drug supplier to conviction. It may be Leigh’s only chance to redeem herself with her family and friends. If she can complete this one assignment, the town will forgive her. The only problem is that she needs to figure out how to stay alive in the process…

Jason is her continuous partner through it all, proving his dedication to her as he struggles to keep her safe. Leigh
wants to believe he is a man of his word. She wants to believe that her heart isn’t completely foolish for falling for him, especially when she discovers evidence that Jason may be working for the very drug dealer that Leigh is trying to have arrested. Will he betray her in the end or will he demonstrate the most romantic notion of all – that love at first sight truly exists?

Whimsical Publications' Author of the Week: Janet Durbin

About Janet:

I've been told "remember us when you're famous" by several people I know, especially after they heard I've written three books. But that is not my intentions.

My intentions is to have something out there for people to enjoy, to talk about, to wonder where in the heck the idea for that book came from. Not for fame and fortune.

After is a creation from love, love for my son. It became something fun and exciting when he moved away from writing to other things. Stolen is a continuation of that fun, and Vengeance will close out that trilogy. But, fear not, other books are in outlined form for those characters. Drayco, Shyanne, and Drizzle are too near and dear to my heart to let them end so suddenly.

Innocence Taken was a step out of the norm for me. I seldom swear, much less use the type of language used in that book. But it too was fun to write. It was a challenge. A challenge that forced me to step out of my comfort zone. And I feel I met that challenge. More books with Nature and Web are planned; and who knows, they may be just as graphic. Just make sure to keep all the lights on when you read them.

I have other ideas ready when the time arises for me to get to them. And as long as there are people who want to read my books, I will continue to write them. Even if people forget who I am, I will still write. For it is not my intention to be famous and without privacy. It is my intention to fulfill a dream, which I am doing...one book at a time.

Hugs to all my readers.

Find Janet here: http://www.janetdurbin.com/

And don't miss her great scifi/adventure book After!
 


Buy meHave you ever wondered what the world would be like if something created by the government escaped? What if it was  a virus, a virus so deadly it killed incredibly fast? So fast that a cure was out of the question. What would you do?

Journey with me to find out how the twins, Shyanne and Drayco, handle the outcome of just such a virus, and how the  world around them seems to have fallen back in time to an era before technology, an era where the sword rules.

The twins become separated shortly after the deaths stop. Over time, they begin looking for one another when the  longing for family fills them. After they find each other, they learn that someone else is looking for them, as well. The  Boss wants Shyanne badly. Why—they don't know—but they're going to find out.

With their animal companion, a genetically altered mountain lion named Drizzle, the twins embark on a cross-country  journey. They encounter many obstacles along the way, but the worst is a mercenary named Ruben. He will stop at  nothing to accomplish what he is paid to do, even if it involves killing his own men. Unfortunately, he succeeds in getting Shyanne.

Now Drayco must survive his biggest challenge, a challenge filled with pain and suffering, if he is to help his sister  survive the Boss.

Whimsical Featured Author: Celia Yeary

About Celia: Celia Yeary is a seventh-generation Texan, and her life revolves around family, friends, and writing. She has five  published romance novels, one short story in an anthology, four “coming soon” novels, and published essays with a local magazine.

Celia is a former science teacher, graduate of Texas Tech University and Texas State University, mother of two,
grandmother of three, and wife of a wonderful, supportive Texan.

Find her here:  http://www.celiayeary.com/

And don't miss her great novel Heart of a Hero!

 

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Matt Carrington escapes a terrorists’ prison while in the Army, but he has difficulty escaping the trappings of a
demanding fiancé and his own parents. To get away to think, he meets pretty, girl-next-door Lauren Delaney, the kind of woman he desires. But his fiancé and his parents have other plans. They determine to have their way—no matter what Matt wants.

Lauren Delaney is an independent young woman who quickly befriends the soldier hero who comes to town. Knowing he has another life in Dallas, she holds a secret, too. But she pretends neither have a problem in order to have the summer with him.

During the long hot months, a hurricane almost destroys the town. Matt and Lauren work with a team to save as many residents as they can, and in the process fall deeply in love. When the danger is past, the two lovers suffer from their own lies and misunderstandings. Can they find peace and happiness without hurting others?

EXCERPT:

By eleven-thirty, Matt entered the River Café. He smiled when he saw his table with a reserved sign on it. He chuckled to himself, thinking she was going a little over-board, but it made him happy.

Lauren spotted him immediately and walked quickly to him, as though she had been waiting and feared another
waitress would get to him first.

“Hello. Would a small table by the window be all right, sir?” she asked formally with the menu clutched to her chest.

Matt grinned. “I see it’s reserved for someone. Maybe I could just sit at the bar.”

“Oh, I think I can pull some strings and let you have it. The person who reserved it is so good-looking he’s probably out beating off the girls. May I seat you?”

Now, he laughed. “Yes, ma’am, pretty lady, you may,” he said in a whisper as he leaned toward her.
He heard her suck in her breath a tiny bit. Maybe his nearness made her nervous, because she stumbled slightly as
she turned toward the table.

“Would you like tea with lemon?” she asked with mock politeness.

He only nodded slowly at her, while he gazed into her eyes.

Lauren stared back and didn’t move for a moment.

“Be right back,” she said, but paused a beat before she walked away.

As soon as she left, a paunchy middle-aged man approached his table. “Hello, there, son. Name’s Leonard Elkins. You are Matthew Carrington, are you not?” He rocked back on the heels of his highly polished dress shoes.

Warily, Matt studied the man in the striped dress shirt and blue pants held up by bright red suspenders. Without
standing, he replied, “Yes, sir, I am.”

“May I sit for a moment while you wait for your drink?”

“Be my guest.” He didn’t want to be impolite, but he thought the man acted a little too impertinent.

“I’ll get right to the point, seeing as how I have a short lunch time today. Bonner has an Old Settler’s Day every year at the end of August. You know. Carnival, food booths, bands, and speeches. The Chamber of Commerce would like it if you would be part of our celebration and allow us to introduce you as a gen-u-ine hero. The introduction would come between...”

“Hold on, sir. I must decline. I appreciate the gesture, but I don’t do speeches, or...”

“You needn’t speak,” he interrupted, “if you don’t want to. Just let ’em see you. But we’d really like a speech. It would...”

“Here’s your tea.” Lauren stood so that her back turned slightly to Mr. Elkins. She gave Matt a regretful look and
walked away.

“No,” Matt said firmly but politely. “I cannot. I will not. Please understand.”

“Well, I’m just not going to take ‘no’ for an answer,” he said, as he snapped his suspenders with his thumbs. “Consider this. As I see it, you’re somewhat obligated to help us out here. We paid your salary, you know, when you were in the U.S. Army. Look at it that way. Taxpayers pick up the tab, so we’d appreciate it if you would give us a little in re-turn. We’re not asking much, mind you, only about fifteen minutes or so of your time. I’ll give you a couple of days to think it over. You’re staying out at Eleanor Carrington’s place, aren’t you?”

Matt stood and placed a twenty on the table, retrieved his ball cap, placed it on his head, and began to walk out.

“Now, see here, young man,” Leonard called after him. “I was only being neighborly, welcoming you to town. No need to get all riled up.”

Hearing this statement, Matt turned back around and towered over the short, stocky man.

“Sir, good day,” he said in a low voice. “And don’t ask me again. The answer is ‘no.’ It will remain no until hell freezes over.”

In an attempt to keep his emotions under control, he walked as sedately as he could out the door. “Damn, damn,
damn,” he muttered as he moved down the sidewalk a few feet. His lunch with Lauren as his waitress was ruined. Not only did he not get to eat, the man prevented him from speaking with her. No way could he stay in there. “Damn!” he said once more for good measure.

Interview with Linda Swift

We have Linda Swift here to share about her writing and herself! Drop a comment to win a copy of her book, Single Status!

WP: What do you write?

L: I write a potpourri of genres – contemporary and historical fiction, short stories, poetry and articles.

WP: Why do you choose the genres you do?

L: I write whatever story clamors loudest to get out of my head, and it is not always the same genre or even what I had planned to write next.

WP: What made you first want to be a writer?

L: Reading wonderful books as a child sowed the seeds of wanting to write stories myself. I was an only child and I've had imaginary characters in my head since very early in my life.

WP: What inspires you?

L: I'm inspired by people and their lives, either those I have observed or those I've read about. I find historical people and events attract me now more than current situations.

WP: What kicks the brain into gear when you have writer’s block?

L: I indulge in what a writer friend calls "creative procrastination." I do busywork on the computer, write letters, organize files, or read other authors.

WP: Who is your favorite character you have created?

L: The one whose story I am currently working on. I relate to that character and suffer and rejoice with them and miss them when I finally let them go.

WP: Is there any genre you want to try, but haven’t yet?

L: I think I may try a Regency someday. I have read some recently that have more depth that those I previously read and that has inspired me to try my hand at it.

WP: What do you hope readers will take away from your stories?

L: I hope they will remember my characters as I remember some from books read long ago. I think this is the highest honor an author can achieve.

WP: What’s your latest news and do you have anything releasing soon?

L: I'm focusing on promoting the books I had released in 2011, especially Single Status which was a Whimsical publication. I am also getting some short stories ready for print.

WP: Where can we find you on the web?

L: You can visit my website at www.lindaswift.net or my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/home.php?clk_loc=5 or my author page on Amazon where you will also find all of my available books.

Interview with Tara Manderino

Tara Manderino is here to talk about herself and her writing! Drop a comment below and have the chance to win a tote bag and a free download of Heart Quest, the book that follows False Notes.

WP: What do you write?

T: I write all over the place, it seems. Paranormal / vampire, Christian, Regency, Historical U.S.

WP: Why do you choose the genres you do?

T: I love each of the genres I write -- when I’m there. It’s not so much that I pick the genres as the characters tell me where they fit. I’ve had some pretty hairy moments. In my historical U.S., of which False Notes, the first in a series is with Whimsical Publications, there are two secret service agents. Their stories lead them to trouble and romance throughout the country. While I was finishing up False Notes, which I tend to think of as Simon’s story, I could hear Luke (the other agent), telling me to hurry it up. I needed to get to his story and while I was dithering, his romantic interest, Maj, was getting further away. The man would not shut up. And when he wasn’t talking, he was stomping around in his boots. Very annoying. He finally settled down when I was half way through his story.

These men are men of action, but very much of their time, 1874, U.S. The world was a fascinating place: constant discoveries, the transcontinental railroad, and overall faster moving than the decades before the Civil War. As secret service agents, they were among the first of their breed. Their role was primarily seeking out counterfeiting then later expanded to dealing with issues of national security.

WP: What made you first want to be a writer?

T: When I realized I couldn’t afford my reading habit -- somewhere around third grade, I thought there simply had to be a way to get more books. It finally dawned on me -- actually, I think my father told me -- someone had to write those books. After that, I kept a yellow pulp tablet and a BIC ballpoint pen under my bed for some time. This was heady stuff. In the parochial school I attended we didn’t get to use ink until the middle of third grade! I think my parents felt sorry for me, and by the next Christmas I had my very own (toy, but working) typewriter. It only typed in caps, but I was a happy person. I used that typewriter for about 3 years when I graduated to a real one.

WP: What inspires you?

T: Everything and nothing.

WP: What kicks the brain into gear when you have writer’s block?

T: I would like to say I never get writer’s block, but it’s simply not true. The best way for me to overcome it is to -- not write. I either totally immerse myself in some major house cleaning project or a different craft. When I get caught up in either, all these little people in my brain start yammering at me to finish and please get to the keyboard already.

WP: Who is your favorite character you have created?

T: They’re all my favorites! I love each one of my heroes, although Simon from False Notes, is holding the place of honor at the moment. He’s very confident, always on the move, a bit brash, and yet is totally blown away by the heroine.

WP: Is there any genre you want to try, but haven’t yet?

T: While most of my books have an element of mystery to them, I haven’t written a straight cozy mystery. I think I should enjoy doing so but haven’t got around to it yet.

WP: What do you hope readers will take away from your stories?

T: I want readers to be entertained, to be taken away to a different time and place, at least for a short while. I want the reader to experience the adventure of the emerging frontier along with Simon, Luke, Kirsten and Maj in False Notes, or the ball rooms and country side of the English Regency and the gentle caring and loving that weaves its thread through all of my stories.

WP: What’s your latest news and do you have anything releasing soon?

T: Heart Quest, was released two weeks ago. This is the second book to President’s Orders, of which False Notes was first. I have another vampire / urban fantasy book coming out at the beginning of February.

WP: Where can we find you on the web?

T: I love connecting with readers and other writers! You can find me on the web at:

Website: http://tjmanderino.webs.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/taramanderino

Twitter: http://twitter.com/TManderino

Manic Readers: http://www.manicreaders.com/TaraManderino/