Epic New Years Giveaway

I can't believe 2013 is here!!!! 2012 has been such an amazing year! Why you ask? Well, let me give you a quick recap of my 2012:

1.        Revamped the blog and started the Indie Author of the Month, Extra! Extra! Read All About It!, & Hops, Tours, & Partays segments

2.       Celebrated 12 years with the hubs and our first year of marriage

3.       Went to the beach on vacay

4.       Gave the invocation at a WV Senatorial Debate (with 100 ppl in attendance) and did not stutter or fall off the stage

5.        Completed 9 MBA courses with flying colors

6.       Sent Soul Survivor to the most amazing editor ever along with some equally awesome betas

7.        Clocked another year with my awesome employer as a full time CPA

8.       Started 5 WIPs (I hope to finish at least 2 of them in 2013.)

9.       Read 55 books (There were a lot of sleepless nights but boy was it worth it!)

10.   And enjoyed another year of life, love, health, family, and friends!

Speaking of those friends, I’d like to give a shout out to some people who truly changed my life for the better and made 2012 off the charts for me. I’ll try to keep it brief but the list is kind of long but if you hang tight you will be rewarded with giveaways, I promise. ;)

To my 2012 Indie Authors of the Month - Tiffany King, Michelle Muto, Devyn Dawson, and M. Leighton, thank you so very, very much for spending an entire month with me and all my craziness. Having you, your work, and your characters on my lil ole blog makes me feel like a super mega cool celebrity blog host. You guys rock!

To my 2013 Indie Authors of the Month - Courtney Cole, Paulina Ulrich, and David James, thank you for agreeing to partake in the craziness that is me and my blog. We are going to have so much fun! I can't wait to see what hotties, books, and such are in store for 2013!

To Tiffany King, Chelsea Fine, Adriane Boyd, Paulina Ulrich, Courtney Cole and David James (x2)  thank you soooo much for allowing me to host partays for your new releases. They are so much fun and being a part of release day is such a thrill for me. You make me feel like a blogger super star! A special thanks to David James for inspiring the awesome partay idea with the Light of the Moon release and for being the first victim. ;)

To Hollie, you are the best! Thank you so very much for helping me through my journey with Soul Survivor. Your attention to detail, constructive feedback, and overall editing talents are unbelievable. I am and will be forever grateful.

To my betas, Michele, Jennifer, Danielle, Heather, & Paulina, thank you for agreeing to read Soul Survivor. Your feedback is priceless and unbelievably eye opening! Thank you for your time and efforts in helping me make this book something amazing!

To my twitter peeps, @chelemybelles, @javalotta, @Gabyil, @SPNHeather, @TessMWatson, @danilove413, @PaulinaUlrich, @miztrebor, and all of the rest of you lovely tweeps I've chatted  with this year, thank you for all the retweets, mentions, and super fun conversations. You guys understand a side of me that not too many people know…Michelle Nicole - the writer/book addict.

To all my Facebook fans and friends, thank you for all the comments and "LIKES"…you make me feel like the popular cool kid I never got the chance to be in high school.

To my PenPal, crit partner, beta, and sister from another mother, Paulina, you have no idea how much happiness and fulfillment your friendship has brought to my life. We are going to have so much fun at UTOPYA this summer. I cannot wait! I can always count on you to understand all of the book/blog epicness that occurs in my life. You are a blessing! Thank you!

To my husband, my family, my friends, and my co-workers, I'm so grateful that you listen to my fanatical book/writing adventures even though you have no idea what I'm talking about most of the time. LOL! I am so blessed to have you all in my life.

To my furry children, thank you for forgiving my neglectful ways and always standing (or sitting or sleeping) by me while I blog, read, write, and do everything else. Thank you for those interruptions to feed you/take you out because otherwise I would never leave my desk.

And finally to my followers, tweeps, FB friends, fellow bloggers, indie authors, and anyone else I haven't mentioned in the cyber community, thank you! Thank you for participating and promoting all of the fun and love that has happened this year on my little blog, Share the Love. Giveaways are no fun if no one shows up to play! Thank you for allowing me to make you a winner or at least entertain you with Indies, Partays, and everything in between!

So, as a token of my appreciation for an amazing 2012 I want to give you the chance to fill your Kindles, Nooks, iPads, and such with phenomenal e-books from my favorite and my soon to be favorite authors! This is what's waiting for you…

2013 Prize Packs

M. Leighton ~ Down to You & The Wild Ones (e-books)

  Michelle Muto ~ The Haunting Season & Don’t Fear the Reaper (e-books)

Tiffany King ~ Miss Me Not & Unlikely Allies (e-books)

Paulina Ulrich ~ Flightless Bird Series (e-books)

Courtney Cole ~ Dante's Girl & Mia's Heart (e-books)

Devyn Dawson ~ The Light Tamer & Enlightened (e-books)

Robert Zimmermann ~ From Where I Stand & Adriane Boyd ~ Walking Away (e-books)

David James ~ Light of the Moon & The Witch's Curse (e-books)

Chelsea Fine ~ Anew, Awry, & Avow (e-books)

Michelle's 2013 TBR List (e-books) ~ C.A. Kunz - The Modified, Amy Bartol - Inescapable, M.R. Merrick - Exiled, Liz Long - Gifted, Addison Moore - Ephemeral, Raine Thomas - Becoming, Heather Hildenbrand - Cold Blood 

There's no limit to how much you can win here on Share the Love, so be sure to enter each Rafflecopter to give yourself the best odds of winning as many of these 27 amazing books as possible. Thank you for Sharing the Love with me during 2012, I hope 2013 will be just as epic! Spread the word and good luck! Giveaway ends this Friday at midnight, east coast time. Winners will be announced no later than Sunday, 1/6/12.

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Why I Love M. Leighton ~ Week 4 Indie Author of the Month

Hello, all! 
Well, here we are again...our final week honoring the amazing M. Leighton! Don't be too sad though, this also means two really good things! #1 this is my favorite week of Indie Author of the Month, the week we all get to Share the Love with M. and tell her why we love her so much and #2 it is the SUPER MEGA AWESOME GRAND PRIZE WEEK!!! 

Just a reminder this month the grand prize consists of a signed M. Leighton paperback, some sweet swag, AND a $10 Amazon/B&N gift card!!! Hip Hip Hooray! Now, I know it is going to be really hard to follow up last week's visit with the smoking hot Cash, but I'm going to give it my best shot! 

So, why do I love M. Leighton? Wow, where to start? I feel like I was a bit late to hop on the M. bandwagon because I didn't read my first M. Leighton book until this past May when I read Madly but I am so grateful I found her. I was hooked instantly! Anyone that can make mermaids (and mermen) hot, sexy, and super interesting is beyond talented! And of course, Jackson...come on now--super mega hotness going on there! I can honestly say with every one of M's books I read I fall more in love with reading, with her characters (I swear it is a crime for one woman to have so many hot men running around in her brain but I'm glad she shares them) and with M. Leighton! 

Michelle is so absolutely amazing and the most gracious, humble person on the face of the planet! (Have you seen the super sweet thank you to her readers she has on her blog? So, heartwarming!) I am so glad we made the Twitter connection because she is super fun and joy to chat with. This leads me into the next reason I love M.--her hashtags! M. comes up with the best hash tags ever! 

#MichelleLoveIsTheBestKind is certainly my favorite hashtag ever and if you follow me on Twitter you will see that I use it often. Not only does she have the best hashtags she even emails and Facebooks with hashtags AND I love that. #TrueStory ;) I consider Michelle such a great friend and I brag her up (well technically its not bragging more like honestly sharing how amazing she is) to everyone I know! And I also make sure to recommend her books any chance I get! It is so easy to recommend her books to others. 

Why? Well this constitutes the next reason why I love M.-- her wide array of available titles. M. is an amazing writer whether it is YA, new adult, contemporary, or paranormal! She has this remarkable ability to pull you in and grab your heart and soul from the get go and she doesn't let go til the very last page. Most often, once I've finished her books I fall into what I refer to as the "M. Leighton hangover," where no other book can fully quench the thirst hers leave behind. Also, I have to admit I find myself daydreaming and reminiscing about the characters weeks after finishing her books. 

Finally, I love M. because not only is she a talented, fun, humble, sweet, hashtag fanatic, but she radiates pure joy and positivity even on her bad days! Anyone that can exude as much joy and positivity as she does just over tweets, emails, and FB messages...well that just let's me know she is the real deal. She has brought me sunshine on some of my cloudiest days with just a few words and she has provided me with so many adventures with some amazing fictional characters (such as Jackson, Trick, and Cash.) I cannot wait for this June when I'm able to meet this phenomenal woman (who I consider to be one of my role models-I aspire to be just half as amazing as her) in the flesh! Magnificent Michelle Mayhem will ensue! Guaranteed!

So to recap, I love M. Leighton because she kicks a$$ and rocks my world! Nuff said. ;) 

Now, it's your turn to #ShareTheLove for M.! See the rafflecopter below and tell me why YOU love M. Leighton to earn your final entry for the SUPER MEGA AWESOME GRAND PRIZE GIVEAWAY! And remember even though M.'s reign as Indie Author of the Month is coming to an end, you should make it a point to Share the Love with her ANY day and EVERY day! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Interview with Cash Davenport ~ Indie Author of the Month M. Leighton

So, I have the great honor of interviewing Cash Davenport…you know THE Cash Davenport-bad boy, bar owning, smooth talking, sex pot from Down To You. *dodges a barrage of stilettos*

*peeps out from behind chair* Okay, I have seriously been fangirling over this interview for like a month! Not even kidding! I was bouncing around the office telling my coworkers and texting my friends and fam that I was interviewing Cash Davenport! Mostly I got the “you’ve lost your marbles” look but I know you guys will fully understand the excitement of this milestone in my blogging career. Key word being excitement. ;)

Alright ladies and gentlemen, let’s get on with the fun.

I walk into Dual sitting down at the bar and order myself my new favorite drink, sangria. I pull out my notebook like the dorky girl that I am. I'm still getting used to these interview things and I am about to meet THE Cash Davenport. Notes are definitely necessary.

I jump when he suddenly appears at my side, leaning one elbow on the bar.  

Hi, he says with a playful yet wicked grin.  Come here often? 

I’m dumbfounded. Of course.  He’s even hotter in person than I expected him to be.  When I say nothing, he straightens and offers me his hand and a wink.  

Cash  Davenport.  You must be Michelle.

I take a moment to regain my composure. Hi, Cash! It's nice to meet you. Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me today. Are you ready for my interrogation? *winks* Let's start with an easy one, what is your favorite childhood memory?

*narrows eyes and purses lips*  Hmmm, I’d say anything involving my brother and I beating the hell out of each other.  Unless you mean older childhood.  My favorite memories from high school involve females and are much more…entertaining.  *winks again*

*blushes* Avoiding eye contact I check my notes. So, when you showed up at the bachelorette party, what were you thinking? Were you seriously going to strip for those crazy ladies or did you only do it because Olivia was enlisted to help? 

No, I wouldn’t have stripped for them.  Not even if they’d asked.  But when I saw Olivia…  I’d have stripped for her. Or, better yet, let her strip me. 

I blush refocusing on my notes, again. What does Cash Davenport like to do in his free time?

*grins*  You want specifics? *laughs*  Nah, I read a lot, believe it or not.  Law journals, magazine articles about motorcycles or bar management.  Sometimes I even like to just take the bike out for a ride.  Feel the wind in my face, the speed of the bike, the freedom of the road.

                                              

I smile glance at my notes and grin wider. Be careful how you answer this one, so do you still think accounting is for spinsters who wear their hair in a bun and have a closet full of orthopedic shoes?

*throws head back and laughs*  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  My mental picture of them now has more to do with short skirts and white cotton panties.

*giggles* Relaxing a bit I continue. If you could spend one day with anyone, dead or alive who would it be and why?

My mother.  I miss her.  And I never got to tell her goodbye.

Aww, I'm sorry, Cash. Enough of the past how bout we look to the future. Where do you see yourself in five years?

Hopefully still doing what I’m doing. I love the diversity of my work life.  But I wouldn’t mind having a family of my own to add to that. One day…

One day with Olivia, I assume. So, what is one thing no one knows about you?

That I like to cook.

                                  

Seriously, can he get any more perfect? We all have our vices and secrets. Do you have any guilty pleasures you'd like to share?

*wicked grin* I don’t know about guilty pleasures.  I never feel guilty in taking pleasure. Or in giving it.

*Shakes head* Boxers or briefs?

How about neither.

*Shakes head again* I should have expected that.*giggles* What's next on the agenda for bad boy Davenport?

I don’t really know.  I don’t look too far into the future.  It’s a habit I got into when Dad first went to prison.  I found it easier to think of the immediate future, taking things one step at a time.  Life is more controllable that way.

Alright, we are almost done. I know you're a man who likes speed so you should enjoy this. Answer with the first thing that comes to mind.

Color?   Black

Song?    Pour Some Sugar on Me *winks*

Drink?   Jack

Book?   Any book by Lee Child

Season? Summer

Holiday? Fourth of July

Person?  Olivia.  Without a doubt

I know you've got Olivia and her mad accounting skills but if you guys ever need a hand or a second opinion. I'm always available for consultation…I'm an accountant too you know. *winks* Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me.

Thank you for having me.  I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I have.*winks* 

*blushes* I smile and nod having no words available to properly respond.

  

Major, momentous thank you to the magnificent M. for arranging this off the charts amazing interview. I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did! And in case you’ve been living under a rock this week (I occasionally reside there myself) the sequel to Down To You, entitled Up To Me drops January 6^th!!! Stop by M.’s blog for the cover reveal and Up To Me teasers! And she also has an awesome 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway going on as well!  So much merriment happening right now!

Now, here’s your chance to enter to win this week’s giveaway (WHILE earning an additional chance at the GRAND PRIZE GIVEAWAY which includes an M. Leighton paperback, $10 Amazon.B&N & other cool swag.) See the rafflecopter below with the Cash trivia question of the week. ;)  

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Celebrating M. & Down to You

Welcome back to week 2 of Indie Author of the Month! Again we are celebrating the super lovely and incredibly humble M. Leighton! This week is all about Down To You...M.'s second book to hit the New York Times Best Sellers list and that is for good reason! 

First off for my younger followers I have to issue this disclaimer....this is a mature book, it is adult contemporary romance...so if you aren't "of age" put it on your "when I grow up" TBR list. ;)

Now, back to Down To You. So, this cover clearly pulls you in, right?

Now for those of you who have yet to meet Olivia and the dynamic duo of Cash and Nash Davenport. Here's a lil taste....

The scorching tale of one girl and two brothers in a love triangle…that’s not.

Olivia Townsend is nothing special.  She’s just a girl working her way through college so she can return home to help her father run his business.  She’s determined not to be the second woman in his life to abandon him, even if it means putting her own life on hold. To Olivia, it’s clear what she must do. Plain and simple.  Black and white.

But clear becomes complicated when she meets Cash and Nash Davenport.  They’re brothers.  Twins.

Cash is everything she’s always wanted in a guy.  He’s a dangerous, sexy bad boy who wants her in his bed at any cost.  He turns her insides to mush and, with just one kiss, makes her forget why he’s no good for her.

Nash is everything she’s ever needed in a guy.  He’s successful, responsible and intensely passionate.  But he’s taken.  Very taken, by none other than Marissa, Liv’s rich, beautiful cousin.  That doesn’t stop Olivia from melting every time he looks at her, though.  With just one touch, he makes her forget why they can never be together.

Black and white turns to shades of gray when Olivia discovers the boys are hiding something, something that should make her run as far and as fast as she can.  But it’s too late to run.  Olivia’s already involved.  And in love.  With both of them.

Both brothers make her heart tremble.  Both brothers set her body on fire. 

She wants them both.

And they want her.

How will she ever choose between them?

I know how she can choose...let's just share them, Olivia. ;) Good plan, right?

Now, for those of you lovelies who have yet to read the epicness that is Down To You, M. has provided us with a little excerpt to wet your whistle.

Taking a deep breath, I stand and turn toward the Hot Stripper Guy, purposely jacking my chin up another notch.  He’s still watching me with those smoky coal eyes. 

When I take a step toward him, he very slowly raises one eyebrow.  

Heat washes through me.

Must be those dangerous drinks, I think.  It has to be. 

I feel flushed and a little breathless, but I take another step anyway. 

Hot Stripper Guy takes a step away from Ginger and turns to face me fully.  He crosses his arms over his chest and waits, that one brow still raised in curiosity.  He’s not going to make it easy.  He’s leaving it all up to me, just like Ginger asked them to do. 

As if on cue, the music that’s been pumping into the room all night gets louder.  It’s a sexy song, heavy on the bass.  It’s mood music for sure.  It seems to punctuate every intense beat of my heart as I get closer and closer to those velvety eyes.  

When I stop in front of him, I have to look up.  My five and a half feet of height is nearly a foot shorter than his towering frame. 

Up close, I see that his eyes are brown.  Dark, dark brown.  Nearly black.

Sinful.

I’m lost in wondering why that particular word would come to mind when the girls start chanting for me to take his shirt off.  Uncertainly, I glance at their excited faces then back to him.  Slowly, he spreads his arms, holding them out to his sides, away from his body. 

One corner of his mouth twitches.  His expression, his body language is rife with challenge. 

I realize he doesn’t think I’ll do it.  No one probably does.

And that’s exactly why I will.

Letting the beat of the music relax my tense muscles, I plaster on a smile as I reach forward to tug Hot Stripper Guy’s shirt from the waistband of his pants.

So, there is a lot I have to say about Down To You but for the sake of time here's the condensed version. (For the full effect you can check out my review on  Goodreads.)

5 Reasons Why I Love Down To You:

#1 Cash

#2 Nash

#3 Cash

#4 Olivia - not only is she a lovable, relatable female character, she also makes the statement that accounting majors are sexy (in case you don't know accounting is my day job hence why I love this) AND she reiterates that country girls are classy smart chicks.

#5 Cash

Do you see a recurring theme here? Well, just to let you know next week this chick (as in ME) is going to be meeting up with Cash for a little one-on-one...chat that is (I am a married woman, you know) so be sure to come back next week for all that bad boy fun. Also, the sequel to Down To You, entitled Up To Me is slated to release this coming January! Wooo hooo! So, mark your calendars for that info as well. Oh and a little birdie told me to expect an epic release day par-tay when it drops. ;)

Now, onto this week's giveaway. We've got another M. Leighton e-book and swag up for grabs...all you have to do is a bit of Michelle stalking to earn your entry for this week's giveaway as well as the week 4 grand prize! Thanks for stopping by to honor the amazing M. Leighton and until next time, don't forget to Share the Love.

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