Author Marta Acosta tops today’s Buffet with four wonderfully funny, sizzling romantic comedies, including three books from her “Casa Dracula” series. (However, if you want to read Book 1, Happy Hour at Casa Dracula, it will cost you $5.98.

martaMarta lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She received a degree in English Literature and Creative Writing from Stanford University and has written for the San Francisco Chronicle, the Contra Costa Times, and Spaces Magazine. She’s also written under the name Grace Coopersmith. She’s an avid gardener and enjoys independent films, funny novels, loud music and lively conversations.

Marta’s brand-new novel The She-Hulk Diaries and the paperback edition of her young adult gothic Dark Companion were released on June 18. Booklist says, “Acosta’s take on the Marvel Comics superhero She-Hulk is sweet and funny and will delight readers whether they’re into superhero comics or not.”

Also Marta recently self-published a how-to guide for aspiring writers: Make It Catchy: The Quintessential Guide to Writing Query Letters. Normally the Kindle edition costs 99 cents, but today it’s free.

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.)

Midnight Brunch at Casa Dracula

Romantic Comedy
Author: Marta Acosta

Midnight Brunch at Casa Dracula

Book 2 in the Casa Dracula series. Hilarious party girl and writer Milagro De Los Santos is finally in a serious relationship with a fabulous man, Oswald Grant, MD, and living at his wine country ranch with his career-fixated relatives. It’s true that Oswald accidentally infected her with the rare family condition that makes them crave blood cocktails and need protection from the sun, but what family doesn’t have its quirks?

She thought they accepted her, so she’s hurt when she’s excluded from a midnight ceremony with special guests including a creepy family elder, Oswald’s hostile parents, and Milagro’s ex-lover, decadent and powerful Ian Ducharme.

When Milagro’s life is threatened, she flees to the desert to hide and work on a screenplay. Instead of solitude, she encounters an egomaniacal actor, a partying socialite, a sly tabloid reporter, and a lavish spa full of dark secrets. It’s all lots of fun until the bwaa-ha-ha laughter and the knives come out. Now all Milagro has to do is finish her screenplay, ambush a world domination movement, and overcome a terrible infection before she can make her way back to Casa Dracula.


The Bride of Casa Dracula

Romantic Comedy
Author: Marta Acosta
The Bride of Casa Dracula

In this wonderfully funny, romantic and sexy Casa Dracula book 3, Mil is thrown into crazy new adventures and dangerous intrigues while trying to plan her wedding to her fabulous vampire fiance.

Writer/gardener/party girl Milagro De Los Santos is having serious problems planning her wedding to fabulous Oswald Grant, MD, who has a “genetic condition” that makes him crave blood and intolerant of direct sunlight. Milagro’s future mother-in-law loathes her, her dog just died, and then her extravagant friend Nancy hijacks the role of wedding coordinator. As if things weren’t bad enough, the Vampire Council assigns conniving Cornelia Ducharme, the sister of Milagro’s ex-lover, to supervise the couple through ancient wedding traditions.

Meanwhile, Milagro’s reduced to ghostwriting the memoirs of a loony little man who claims to be a shapeshifter. A series of accidents interferes with the wedding plans and Milagro fears that someone’s out to get her…again. Is her paranoia justified or is she cracking under the pressure? And why does she keep running into her too attractive ex-lover, dangerously sexy Ian Ducharme?

Also, does she really have to make a fruitcake for the reception, or are the vampires just messing with her head?

Haunted Honeymoon at Casa Dracula

Romantic Comedy
Author: Marta Acosta
Haunted Honeymoon at Casa Dracula

Book 4 in the Casa Dracula series. Milagro De Los Santos is forced to take another ghostwriting job for hoaxer Don Pedro when she can’t pay her condo fees. Her romantic life isn’t much better. She’s conflicted about her fling with Vampire Council member Ian Ducharme and still yearning for her ex-fiancé, Dr. Oswald Grant and her life at his wine-country ranch.

When Ian’s flirtations with a pretty neighbor infuriate Milagro, she travels to London, and the blood really hits the fan. People around her are dying grisly deaths, and Milagro’s framed for murder. She escapes to Oswald’s ranch, but an accident gives her amnesia and she forgets her entire existence as the only human survivor of a vampire infection. Will Milagro make all the same mistakes, or will she discover the real killers and finally get to use the Margaritanator 3000 at her wedding reception?

Nancy’s Theory of Style

Romantic Comedy
Author: Marta Acosta
Nancy's Theory of Style

She’s the girl you love to hate because she has it all–looks, wealth, status, and far too much self-confidence. So when snooty young Nancy Carrington-Chambers flees her hardworking, but “not fabulous enough” husband for a chic San Francisco apartment and starts an event planning company, Froth, everyone is hoping for her to fail.

She hires the perfect assistant–Derek is gorgeous, British, and gay. He listens attentively to her opinions on fashion and people. Together they know they can turn society’s dreariest gala into the most exciting party of the year. Nancy’s quest for a perfectly stylish life is derailed by her growing attraction to Derek and the arrival of her irresponsible cousin’s child on her doorstep. The child insists on wearing capes and can’t understand basic fashion rules such as “Less is more.”

Nancy’s life begins to change in ways she’d never imagined. But she discovers too late that her husband isn’t as complacent as he seemed and her carefully constructed world crashes down all at once. Nancy learns that real style takes risks, but is she willing to give up everything she values for those she’s come to love?

Make It Catchy: The Quintessential Guide to Writing Query Letters

Writing & Publishing Guides > Authorship
Make It Catchy: The Quintessential Guide to Writing Query Letters (Quintessential Guides)

Catch a literary agent’s attention with a query letter that shines.

Award-winning author Marta Acosta gives you ten practical tips that will dramatically improve your query letter and give you a better chance of having a literary agent request a submission. Acosta has had success with agents and publishers contacting her and offering book deals. But she’s also been in the slush pile, received the rejections, and knows exactly what it feels like. She knows how to write a query letter that gets results. Over a long career, she is frequently asked advice from aspiring writers. This Guide is the way for her to share her knowledge and give an insider’s perspective to anyone who aspires to be published.

This guide will show you: how to target your query to agents who’ll be interested; how to avoid wasting your time with the wrong agents; how to refine every section of your query; and how to always move forward in your quest for an agent. You’ll also learn the reasons behind tips, so you can understand how agents and editors think and what they want. You’ll also learn how handle the stress of rejection, and not let it keep you from pursuing your goals.

Get a Life! 8 Steps to Create Your Own Life List

Self-Help > Motivational > Creativity
Author: Stephanie Bond
Get a Life! 8 Steps to Create Your Own Life List (a how-to short)

Are you bored? Feeling uninspired? Escape the everyday minutiae of life by creating your own Life List! This how-to short will give you a quick blueprint for brainstorming your own Life List, either on your own or as a fun activity with friends and family!

Hazardous Duty

Christian Fiction > Suspense
Author: Christy Barritt
Hazardous Duty (Christian mystery) (Squeaky Clean Mysteries)

On her way to completing a degree in forensic science, Gabby St. Claire drops out of school and starts her own crime scene cleaning business. “Yeah, that’s me,” she says, “a crime scene cleaner. People waiting in line behind me who strike up conversations always regret it.”

When a routine cleaning job uncovers a murder weapon the police overlooked, she realizes that the wrong person is in jail. But the owner of the weapon is a powerful foe . . . and willing to do anything to keep Gabby quiet.

With the help of her new neighbor, Riley Thomas, a man whose life and faith fascinate her, Gabby plays the detective to make sure the right person is put behind bars. Can Riley help her before another murder occurs?

Mad Money

Mystery > Women Sleuths
Author: Linda L. Richards
Mad Money (Madeline Carter)

When her best friend is killed in front of her at the New York City brokerage where they both work, Madeline Carter quits her job and aims for a safer life on the warm coast. But life has a way of interrupting the best laid plans and it isn’t long before Madeline’s quiet new life of day trading in the Malibu hills is interrupted by kidnapping, murder and a run-in with a corporate psychopath.

Warrior’s Bride

Historical Romance
Author: Gerri Russell
Warrior's Bride (The Stone of Destiny Series)

The Seer’s Stone. Locked away in a tower, young Isobel had watched its power slowly drive her mother mad. And now, years later, the Stone’s secrets threatened to be the death of Isobel
as well. Douglas Stewart, known as the Black Wolf of Scotland, had no intention of taking a wife, despite his father’s demands. But the moment he saw Isobel, he was spellbound by her fiery defiance and delicate beauty. They were united by destiny yet beset by betrayal. Only by opening her heart to love and living up to her legacy could Isobel become a Warrior’s Bride.

Gardening For Health

Gardening & Horticulture > Exercise & Fitness
Author: Angela Youngman
Gardening For Health : The Need to Know Guide to the Health Benefits of Horticulture (Central YMCA Health and Fitness Guides)

Whether you’re an experienced gardener or an enthusiastic novice, Angela Youngman’s fascinating guide details the extraordinary physical and mental health benefits that can stem from spending time in your garden.

This book explains how to make the most of your garden and explores the important safety considerations, exercises and precautions that need to be taken to ensure that you get the most from your outdoor space, without straining a muscle, breaking your back or damaging your knees.

With simple to follow warm-up exercises, top tips and step-by-step instructions to help gardeners of all ages to maximise the health benefits of horticultural activity, this is a must read guide for anyone who is keen to mow, dig, prune, cut, plant, strim or water their way to a dream garden and to a healthier, happier lifestyle.

Reinventing Mona

Women’s Fiction > Contemporary Women
Author: Jennifer Coburn
Reinventing Mona

What’s new? Me, for starters… It all began when my job offered me a buyout package. That’s when the realization hit: I’m young, I’m rich (thanks to a hefty inheritance), and I’m boring. Things are gonna change-starting now… Building a better man trap…

First things first: Exercise. Carrot juice. Straight hair. Whiter teeth. Clothes that fit. But wait-there’s more. I’m finally ready to take a chance on love with the perfect guy. He’s handsome. He’s smart. He’s reliable. He’s my CPA. Problem is, I’m clueless about winning him over.
… See the rest of today’s Editor’s Picks here on page 2

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