Becoming a published romance novelist took quite some time for Abigail Strom. After earning an English degree from Cornell University, she pursued a Human Resources career, got married, and had a son. All the while she was writing novels and submitting them to editors with no luck. Finally, an editor at Silhouette Special Edition phoned her and suggested some changes to her fourth manuscript. Abigail revised the book and the result was her first published book in 2010.
Asked what enabled her to continue writing and submitting new manuscripts despite constant rejection, Abigail cites an inspiration quote she found in a Robert Heinein book:
There’s no such thing as luck. There’s only adequate or inadequate preparation to cope with a statistical universe.
That quote gave her the confidence to enter her manuscripts into contests, and she won many of them, including Heart of the Rockies.
Abigail tops today’s Buffet with Cross My Heart, Book 2 in her four-book Landry’s series.
As usual, each book listed here has gone FREE within the past 24 hours. Warning: Kindle book promotions can end without notice, so before downloading click the link “See Kindle price at Amazon” to verify that the book is still free. (Prices and availability may differ outside USA.)
Cross My Heart (A Contemporary Romance Novel)
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The last thing Jenna Landry wants is to fall in love. The former rock musician is getting ready to start a new job and a new life in L.A., and she’s only back in her hometown for the summer. Nothing could tempt her to stay any longer than that…not even the sexy doctor next door.
Michael Stone has a reputation for being as cold as ice. So what is it about his free-spirited neighbor that sets him on fire? The strait-laced M.D. has his hands full with his career and his teenage daughter, and even if he were looking for a relationship, he knows Jenna is all wrong for him.
So why does being with her feel so right?
Goodness & Mercy
Religious Fiction > Historical
Author: Patti Hill
After the death of her parents, sixteen-year-old Lucy Richter struggles to keep a promise to her father–to save what remains of her family. Lucy fails tragically but won’t allow her dwindling family to disappear. She shanghais her twin siblings, Goody and Mercy, from a Wisconsin orphanage to a Colorado peach ranch and an aunt who is a less-than-welcoming stranger. Lucy is prepared to keep the peace with her aunt, but will her sister’s gifts draw unwanted attention and crush Lucy’s dream of family?
And World War II rages on. Absent men strain the running of Honey Sweet Ranch and force alliances of the most intriguing and unlikely kind, including German POWs. Within these relationships, Lucy is given the chance to discover an unfamiliar and healing faith.
Death Turns A Trick
Mystery > Cozy
Author: Julie Smith
A rollicking tale of murder, romance, and a bordello… The first book in the Rebecca Schwartz mystery series by Edgar Award Winner Julie Smith
Rebecca Schwartz, nice Jewish lawyer with a few too many fantasies, is happily playing the piano in a whorehouse when she suddenly finds herself assigned to make sure a near-naked state senator escapes a police raid. That dirty job done, a lovely evening turns even more delightful when she’s picked up by the cops and spends the next two hours at the Hall of Justice. Could this day get any worse? Of Course! Guess who arrives home to find a dead hooker on her living room floor!
Handsome Parker Phillips, Rebecca’s new beau and the most attractive man she’s met in ages, is arrested for the murder. (Worse, she suspects he might actually have done it.)
On the plus side, another very attractive man is following the case–reporter Rob Burns of the San Francisco Chronicle, a possible ally. And there are other possibilities.
Deposit Slip
Christian Fiction > Suspense
Author: Todd M. Johnson
When Jared Neaton grew tired of the shady ethics of his big law firm and left to go out on his own, he never expected the wheels to fly off so quickly. One big case collapsing on him has pushed him to the brink and it’s all he can do to scrape by. He can’t risk another bad loss.
Erin Larson is running out of options. In the wake of her father’s death, she found a slim piece of paper–a deposit slip–with an unbelievable amount on it. Ten million dollars. Only the bank claims it has no record of the deposit and stonewalls her attempts to find out more. This lawsuit, her last chance, has brought only intimidation and threats. Now she needs to convince Jared to take a risk, to help her because the money is real. And both need to watch their backs as digging deeper unleashes something far more dangerous than just threats.
Collapse
Science Fiction > Dystopian
Author: Richard Stephenson, Susan Hughes, LLPix Photography
What would it take for the United States to fall from within? In a not too distant future, America is put to the test. With the American people deep in The Second Great Depression and two of the most powerful hurricanes on record to contend with, the United States is in no condition to deal with hidden terrorists on its soil, maniacal politicians, and the most formidable military threat the world has seen since the Third Reich.
This is the story of three men from three very different walks of life: Howard Beck, the world’s richest man, also diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome; Richard Dupree, ex-Navy SEAL turned escaped convict; and Maxwell Harris, a crippled, burned-out chief of police of a small Texas town. At first, they must overcome their own struggles and fight for their survival against impossible odds. In the end, the unlikely trio must band together to save their beloved country.
Empires topple. Nations crumble. Civilization is fragile. In 2027, America will fall.
Vigilare
Fantasy > Paranormal & Urban
Author: Brooklyn James
- $6.99 List Price
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Detectives Gina DeLuca and Tony Gronkowski investigate a string of murders among Vanguard’s most loathsome population, rapists and pedophiles. With fed up citizens, the city is on the verge of a vigilante uprising in support of their seemingly superhuman Vigilare with the sparkling emerald green eyes. Friend or foe, Vanguard Police Department has a job to do in bringing the vigilant one to justice, causing their own internal battle with right and wrong, immoral and just.
Following their leads, Detectives DeLuca and Gronkowski find themselves pulled into a mysterious world of super blood and super powers, and closer to the Vigilare than ever expected.
Outview (The Inner Movement)
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Spirituality
Author: Brandt Legg
Nate’s father died mysteriously when he was 12. His older brother knows the truth but their mother had him committed to a mental institution. As the Outviews try to take over his mind, sixteen year old Nate fears his turn is next.
During the search for his brother, Nate and his three school friends fight to stay alive. Along the way they encounter five mystics who show Nate his lost powers, teach the forgotten wisdom and reveal his extraordinary destiny. In time, Nate discovers that everything he believed about his life is a lie, and that the world contains secrets far more beautiful than he could ever have imagined, and evil far more terrifying than he could ever have feared.
The Ruth Valley Missing
Mystery > Women Sleuths
Author: Amber West
Jameson Quinn is sick of trying to find herself in the big city. After a gallery opening ends in a trip to the ER and an argument with her self-involved boyfriend, she decides to take off for the peace and quiet of a small town — Ruth Valley.
The small town has everything Brooklyn lacked: simple people, peaceful surroundings, and a feeling of safety. Jameson even finds the perfect house to rent from the town’s most eligible bachelor, Sheriff Jack. Life is finally headed in a promising direction.
But something isn’t right. A young man is mysteriously injured, then disappears — and Jameson finds he isn’t the only person to suddenly vanish. The suspicious behavior of an abrasive nun and a creepy priest set her off on an investigation of what’s really happening. Will she figure out the secrets of Ruth Valley before she’s the next to go missing?
The Cloud Seeders
Literature & Fiction > Nature > Weather
Author: James Zerndt
Serve Your Country, Conserve Your Water, Observe Your Neighbor
This is the slogan of the Sustainability Unit and of a country gone eco-hysterical. After nearly twelve months without rain and the hinges of the world barely still oiled, Thomas and his younger brother, Dustin, set out across a drought-ridden landscape in search of answers. What they discover along the way will change their lives, and their country, forever.
The Philanthropist’s Danse
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Author: Paul Wornham
- $2.99 List Price
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Twelve people. Five days. One fortune.
Johnston Thurwell, one of the world’s richest men, dies unexpectedly. His family expects to inherit his wealth, but instead discover the dying philanthropist has spent his last days planning something called The Danse. The twelve most important people in his life are brought together to decide the most important question at the end of it. Who will inherit his fortune?
The family is sequestered in the philanthropists’ remote country mansion with a group that includes his best friend, his most loyal servants, and his greatest rival. They must agree who among them will share the fortune, but they must do it against the clock. Every twenty-four hours, the fortune is reduced. In just five days, it will all be gone.
The desperate family will do anything to save their inheritance. Except share it.
Curbchek 2nd edition
True Accounts > True Crime
Author: Zach Fortier
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The story of a damaged cop, Zach Fortier. Fortier worked in the police department for the city where he grew up. One foot in the world of the cops, courts and legal system. The other in the world of gangs, drugs, thugs and street violence. Where the laws and rules are made by the strongest, the schemers and most brutal. Read about the transformation of Fortier from a green rookie to a damaged paranoid veteran seeing danger in every situation. Follow along as he walks this tight rope. Trying to make difference, breaking the laws he promised to enforce.
RanDumb-er: The Continued Adventures of an Irish Guy in LA
Biographies & Memoirs > Humor
Author: Mark Hayes, Robbie Williams
From Beverly Hills mansions to Irish country lanes, super-yachts to side-alleys, howling cougars to psychotic nutters, stand-up spotlights to police helicopter searchlights, superstar highs to inner demon woes, along with so much more, Mark Hayes takes us on quite an adventure in RanDumb-er, the random but hardly dumb tales of an Irish chancer.
From one side of the world to the other, in and out of the fantasy of Mark’s reality, all with a smile and a belly-aching laugh, RanDumb-er will draw you in and make you believe in the spirit of your inner five year old once more.
How To Build a Blog That Makes Money
Small Business & Entrepreneurship
Author: Eric Allyn
This simple to follow tutorial will teach you how to start a blog on your own domain and get it making money.
Eric Allyn is a professional content publisher and has built more than 50 blogs since 2008. He has sold more than $500,000 worth of products and services, and generated thousands of leads for online companies using the blogs he has built from scratch. He teaches you what he has learned over the years to create a blog that generates income.
Where’s My Son?
Christian Fiction > Suspense
Author: John C. Dalglish
Michael Barton comes home to find his infant son gone. There is no trace of the kidnappers, and the police have no leads. Michael is driven by a promise and he won’t stop.
Detective Jason Strong led the task force to find Michael’s son and has become his friend. But as Michael’s darkness grows, Jason fears he may be the only one who can stop him.
It is a race against time, as the detective tries to stop the events that will change everyone, before it’s too late.
Mutant Cinema: The X-Men Trilogy from Comics to Screen
Movies > History & Criticism
Author: Thomas J. McLean, Kevin Colden
Since X-MEN first wowed audiences, it and its sequels have proven incredibly popular, paving the way for a wave of Hollywood comic-book adaptations. MUTANT CINEMA is the definitive, totally unauthorized study of the original movie trilogy, tracing its origins, history, and impact… from the very first issue of the comic book through the final moments of THE LAST STAND — and beyond.
Within these pages, readers will find detailed, scene-by-scene examinations of all three films, revealing the comic-book stories that infuse every aspect of the movies. Readers will also learn about each film’s development process (including behind-the-scenes stories), omitted scenes and storylines, critical and fan reception, and box-office performance. Also included is a brief history of X-Men comics, a history of previous adaptations (including early cartoon appearances, the successful 1990s animated series, and initial attempts to bring the X-Men to the big screen), what the future may hold for the franchise, and tips on some essential X-Men reading.
… See the rest of today’s Editor’s Picks and the Kindle Daily Deal here on page 2
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