Sunday, September 30, 2012

Six Sentence Sunday #12!

Howdy, friends! Welcome to my fancy place. I have snacks and refreshments on the table over there. Just help yourselves. I hope you're not allergic to peanuts. And no double-dipping the chips. You might as well shove your whole mouth in it if you're gonna do that. :P Anywaaaay, I'm sure there's another reason why you're here, besides my fabulous make-believe party. Today's excerpt is from my current work in progress, Sweet Smoke. It's about a super-sexy firefighter landlord and his adorable new tenant who is a walking fire hazard. Hope you enjoy!


          “I have a job,” he whispered into her hair. “I have two other properties I’m trying to sell, a gym membership I don’t use enough, and a woman in my life who’s a fire waiting to happen.”
          She smiled sheepishly. “Maybe that’s where the term ‘surefire’ came from.” He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and pecked a kiss to her temple. “And I think you could stand to skip the gym for a few more weeks.” 


Thanks for stopping by! Have a fantastic day! :)

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Six Sentence Sunday #11!

Good morning, friends, and happy Sunday to you! Sunday is also known as the day of rest, and resting often happens in a bed, so I figured I'd give you a sexy six featuring some 'not resting' between the sheets. :D This excerpt is from my debut release, Blind Faith. If you like what you read, get yourself a copy on Amazon. I'll even give you the 99 cents deal! ;)

          “Why am I so nervous?” she whispered. “You’ve already seen me naked. Well, mostly.”


          He kissed her and she realized baring her body was the easy part. He wanted her to bare her soul. The weight of his lips pressing against hers made her drunk with desire.


Thank you so much for stopping by! Have a great day! :)

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Six Sentence Sunday #10!

Helloooo, everyone! Welcome to Sex Sentence Sunday! :D See what I did there? I'm sharing another sex, er, six from my story called Human Touch which will soon be published as part of the Turquoise Morning Press 'Passionate Exhibitions' anthology!

           “Will I see you again?” The note of panic in her voice sliced through the sound of skin on skin, bringing the show to an abrupt halt. She shut her big, fat, stupid mouth and tried to wish away the humiliation. The question reeked of desperate, pathetic girl.
He lowered her back to the desk and pressed up on his forearms, cradling her head in his strong, capable hands. “I sure as hell hope so.”

Hope you enjoyed! If you're so inclined, take a moment and enter this contest for your chance to win an e-copy of one of Karen Stivali's books! Contest closes at midnight! Take care, and happy Sunday! :)

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Guest Blog and Giveaway with Karen Stivali!

Hello to you, my friends, fans, fellow readers, and authors! We have a very special guest here at the ol' blog today. She's my pal, Karen Stivali! Let me tell you something about Karen: she's an incredible writer! Trust me, I know. I've totally read her stuff and my face looked like this after: :D So please join me in offering her a warm welcome! And make sure to leave a comment for your chance to win an e-copy of one of her books! Details at the end of this post!

This is Karen!


Friends to lovers. It’s not only one of my favorite writing tropes, it’s how I’ve started relationships with almost everyone I ever dated. It wasn’t intentional. Sometimes it actually came as quite a shock. But there’s no denying that friends can sometimes turn into much more. That’s a common theme in my novels, and Meant To Be, my latest release is most definitely a friends to lovers story, with an unconventional twist. Daniel and Marienne start off as neighbors, become the best of friends and then…well, I’ll let you read the blurb and excerpt for a peek at what happens. 

Here's the blurb!            

Sometimes you’re already committed to the wrong person when fate finally brings you the right one.

When NYU professor Daniel Gardner’s career-obsessed wife convinces him to move to the suburbs, he hopes it’s a first step toward starting the family he longs to have. Instead of domestic bliss he finds his neighbor, Marienne Valeti. She loves her freelance design job, but must contend with a growing sense of isolation created by her husband’s indifference. A penchant for good books, bad movies, and Marienne’s to-die-for brownies sparks a powerful bond between them. Passion simmers, but they resist its lure, surrendering only in the seclusion of their minds. Their friendship helps them weather every hardship, from divorce to widowhood, leaving them both secretly wondering if it can survive a first kiss.

How awesome does this book sound? And because Karen is such a tease, she's giving us a teaser too! :D 

Marienne watched as Daniel grabbed a bottle of Coke out of her fridge.

He unscrewed the cap and took a drink. “It’s quite difficult to understand American slang when English isn’t your native tongue.”


He continued speaking but Marienne’s mind was caught on the words native tongue. Or, more specifically, tongue. More precisely still, Daniel’s tongue. She’d always loved the sound of his voice, the expressiveness of his choice of words, but sometimes she just enjoyed watching his mouth. This was one of those times. She studied his tongue as it moved to form his words, as it licked his lips when he paused to think, as it pressed against the Coke bottle when he drank. Heat prickled through her.


Is it hot in here or is it him? She was unable to focus on the thought as once again she was mesmerized. Now it was curved upward, pressing against the back of his top teeth as he looked at her, eyes narrowed


“Are you all right?” he asked. The concern in his voice caught her attention as did the puzzled look on his face.


“What?” She no longer remembered what they’d been discussing.


“You’re not listening to a word I say, and that’s not like you. I’ve been speaking total gibberish and you didn’t even react. Are you okay? You’re all flushed.”


She tried to think of a way to explain to her best friend that she’d been too busy obsessing to concentrate. He’s divorced. Frank’s gone. Maybe I should. Her heart galloped.


He leaned over and felt her forehead. She held her breath, dizzy from his touch. She wanted to scoot forward and kiss him, hard, on the lips, but didn’t dare to move. Thoughts of the kiss, and his tongue, flashed through her mind.


“You’re really warm.” His hand trailed to her cheek, flipping over so he could assess her with the back of his fingers. They felt cool and silky along the contours of her face and she pressed against them.


His brow furrowed. “You’ve got a fever.”


What? Her hand flew to her forehead. “Shit,” she said, as even she could feel the burning warmth.


He grabbed a glass from her cupboard and held it beneath the ice dispenser. The crystal chunks tumbled into it. “You must have finally caught whatever Ella had last weekend.” He filled it with water and handed it to her.


“Oh, God. You’re right.” Ella had come home sick from preschool three days ago and that was the standard grace period Marienne usually got before catching things from her daughter. She rested her head on the kitchen table.
                                                ****
Daniel smiled at Marienne’s whining; she was acting like Ella.

“Drink your water.” He opened another cabinet and reached for the Tylenol. He shook out two and returned the bottle to the top shelf.


“Here.” He rubbed his knuckles against the top of her hand. “Take these.”

She groaned.                           


“Take them.” He nudged a second time. Heat radiated from her skin. Enticing. Alluring. He shuddered, trying to shake the thoughts from his mind. “Come on now, be a good girl.”


She sat up and scowled. He smiled and dropped the tablets into her upturned hand. The backs of his fingers grazed her palm and a tingling flush rippled through him.


She stared at him, eyes defiant, then popped the pills into her mouth and took a sip of water. She flipped her head back and swallowed hard, an action that caused Daniel to gulp as well. He wanted nothing more than to swoop down and kiss her with total abandon, to feel her overheated body, to be immersed inside her. 


He said the only words he could think: “Let’s get you up to bed.”

For more information on this book and my other novels, please visit my website: http://karenstivali.com (You’ll also find some yummy recipes there for foods that are mentioned in the book!)
I can also be found at the following places:

Author Bio:            
Karen Stivali is a prolific writer, compulsive baker and chocoholic with a penchant for books, movies and fictional British men. When she’s not writing, she can be found cooking extravagant meals and serving them to family and friends. Prior to deciding to write full time Karen worked as a hand drawn animator, a clinical therapist, and held various food-related jobs ranging from waitress to specialty cake maker. Planning elaborate parties and fundraisers takes up what’s left of her time and sanity.

Karen has always been fascinated by the way people relate to one another so she favors books and movies that feature richly detailed characters and their relationships. In her own writing she likes to explore the dynamics between characters and has a tendency to craft romantic love stories filled with sarcasm and sexy details. 

This is Karen's book!


Buy links for Meant To Be:



Are you a fan of friends to lovers stories? Did a special friend in your life suddenly become much more? Leave a comment and tell me! One lucky commenter will win his/her choice of either a free e-copy of my first friends to lovers story, Always You, or an e-copy of Foreign Affairs (a romance anthology that features my short story All I Need, a prequel to Meant To Be) . Tell me your story!



Sunday, September 9, 2012

Six Sentence Sunday #9!

Goooooood morning! How's everyone doing? So glad you took the time to visit today. I have something special for you. I decided to share another excerpt from Human Touch, my erotic/romantic comedy set in a penis museum. *giggles* They really exist, ya know. There's one in Iceland. Now you're all gonna Google Icelandic penis museum and I'm gonna feel all proud and giddy. :D In the meantime, here's my six!

“I think Dumbo here is trying to tell us something. Peanuts are good for your pea-nuss.”

Nicole laughed. “Aren’t you glad you came?”

“Better me than him. I wouldn’t want to be within twenty feet of that explosion.” 



Hope you enjoyed! This story will release as part of the Passionate Exhibitions anthology from Turquoise Morning Press. Look for it in early October! Have a wonderful day! :)

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Should you or should you not let your family read your smut?

Ah, the eternal question. I am an open book. I have no secrets. Everyone that knows me knows everything about me. Even people that don't know me, within five minutes of knowing me, know most everything about me. At least the important stuff.

Which brings us to today's topic. Smut! :D I've been writing smut for a longgggg time. Certain members of my family are aware of this, but it didn't really become a HOT topic until my debut release. Blind Faith, my erotic romance novelette, released at the end of July this year. I had no intention of hiding it from my family until I recalled the day my great uncle had a near-heart attack after learning my first ever email address had the word 'sexy' in it. I thought, "Hmm. Maybe we should keep this on the down-low, at least for the older, more delicate generation."

But keeping a secret in this family is next to impossible. As my release date rapidly approached, my mother went into fits. She made me promise to refer to my writing as 'steamy romance' and to never again use the term 'smut'. Okay, Mom. Smut, smut, SMUT. :P

I was amazed and thrilled at the outpouring of support from friends, fellow authors, and smut lovers everywhere when BF released. The coolest part was having a copy of my own book on my Kindle. The not coolest part was having my mom discover my Kindle copy and demand to read it. When I hesitated, she rationalized by saying that if she knew how "steamy" it was, she would then be able to inform other relatives to either stay far, far away, or to read with caution (and increase their Viagra supply). 

So I let her read it. In the van. On the way to picking up my grandparents for a drive in the country. She was silent the entire time. Freaked me out a bit. Then my grandma sat in the seat next to her and Mom handed the Kindle over. Grandma laughed all the way through it. Okay then. I didn't realize it was a comedy. Though their reactions were quite different, both agreed that the writing was very impressive, they thoroughly enjoyed the storyline, and they loved the characters. But I think my grandma is scarred for life. Oh well. At least she knows the modern lingo for a roll in the hay. 

A few weeks ago my brother and his new fiancee came to my parents' house for a visit. His fiancee purchased Blind Faith while they were there, then she proceeded to read it in another room. Next thing I knew, she and my brother disappeared into his old bedroom, and when they emerged close to an hour later, they looked a little happier and a lot more dishevelled. I wasn't sure whether to be disturbed beyond belief or proud in my ability to cause sexy times. I settled for half disturbed, half proud.

Since then I've learned that at least three couples in my family have had sexy times after reading Blind Faith. Some of my male relatives are hugging me longer now. My aunt asked me how the porn writing was going. Am I laughing or crying? I don't even know anymore. 

So, my question to all you fine people, should you or should you not allow your family to read your smut? 

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Six Sentence Sunday #8!

Heyyyyyy there! Welcome to my blog! Why don't you take off your coat and stay a while? I'm a pretty entertaining gal, even if I do say so myself. *dances* *juggles* *sings karaoke* Sooo, you wanna see my six? Okay, I suppose. The following excerpt is from a story called Human Touch. It's about two women touring a penis museum. *nods* Oh, and there's a really cute curator named Clinton. Like the alliteration? I did too. :D


            “Apparently bulls sport one of the largest penises in the animal kingdom. This particular specimen measures 2.5 feet in length.”
“Whoa,” Julia said, "I think I’m gonna become a rodeo clown."
Her friend shook her head. “And it’s not a penis, it’s a pizzle.”
“I prefer the term purple-helmeted warrior of love.”  



Did you enjoy that? I hope so! Human Touch is but one of the wonderfully creative (and dirty) stories featured in the soon-to-be-released Passionate Exhibitions anthology from Turquoise Morning Press. Look for this one in early October! And stay tuned for more deets!

Also, also! If you'd like a chance to win a free e-copy of my debut release, Blind Faith, you better hurry! Today's the last day to enter my super-fun contest! Clicky the linky!

Thanks for coming! Hope to see you soon! Buh-bye! :)