Title: Five Alarm Alphas
Authors: Lexxie Couper and more
Feeding the Flames ~ Leah
Breamel: When chef Tabatha Morgan returns to Barnett Springs, her burning crush
on firefighter Zac Buchanan flares back to life. Trouble is, Zac has made a
promise to keep his distance from Tabby, so Zac’s best friend and fellow
firefighter Quinn decides to help feed the flames of their mutual desire.
Combustible ~ Lexxie
Couper: Arson investigator, Desmond Russell is the best in Australia. Cool,
calm and collected, nothing ruffles him. Until he meets Outback fire brigade
captain, Jess Montgomery, a woman who ignites all his sexual desires. The
initial spark will engulf them both…but will their hearts survive the inferno?
Wet Down ~ Delilah Devlin:
Out with the old, in with the new...Or so Sherry Thacker thinks. Problem is,
her ex is always on her mind and right across the street. When a “Wet Down”
ceremony to retire an old fire truck is planned by the city council she has to
put aside her hurt and anger and do her job. Blake Thacker wants his wife
back—in every way and he’ll use whatever means necessary to win her back. Sex
is always best served WET.
Two to Spark ~ Marie Harte:
When a psychic predicts that a faulty toaster, a black cat, and the wrong
address will bring Cooper together with Ms. Right, he shrugs off the notion as
crazy. But before long, fate has something else in store for the sexy
firefighter when a spark of attraction ignites into true love.
Controlled Burn ~ Desiree
Holt: Montana Wade was home after writing off the past ten years of her life,
but she needed one more night of courage before she faced her family. Boone
Crider, hotshot firefighter, was burned out form the rash of malicious fires.
They thought one night as strangers would cure them both, but the fire they
started between them soon became a barely controlled burn.
Up In Smoke ~ Lissa Matthews:
Half-brothers, Josh and Jay, share everything from a house, to a love of curvy,
older women. So when their dream woman accidentally sets her kitchen on fire,
they ride to her rescue, sirens blaring, promising to kindle flames that may
never be extinguished.
Rekindled ~ Cari Quinn:
Some blazes refuse to be contained. It's been months since ex-firefighter Katie
Kemp has spoken to her former lover and squad mate, Dash Carlton. But when a
late night drive down memory lane leads her to a small fire at Dash's house,
she realizes she's not willing to turn her back on the hottest flame of her
life.
Into the Fire ~ Shelli
Stevens: Shannon has always prided herself on holding her own in the male
dominated field of firefighting. She likes to be in control. Until she strikes
a bargain with a sexy man from her past who makes her give it all up in the
bedroom.
While we want as many
people to enjoy this collection of original novellas as possible, it is
intended for mature readers, 18 years of age and older.
Buy Links
Review
The common theme is people who put out fires.
All the stories are HOT and make you want to hose yourself down while reading them.
There are women firefighters as well so go equal opportunity and well done to those authors.
The hottest stories are those of submission and menages.
I was given a copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.
About Lexxie Couper
Lexxie Couper started writing when she
was six and hasn’t stopped since. She’s not a deviant, but she does have a
deviant’s imagination and a desire to entertain readers with her words. Add the
two together and you get erotic romances that can make you laugh, cry, shake
with fear or tremble with desire. Sometimes all at once.
When she’s not submerged in the worlds
she creates, Lexxie’s life revolves around her family, a husband who thinks
she’s insane, a indoor cat who likes to stalk shadows, and her daughters, who
both utterly captured her heart and changed her life forever.
Having no idea how old she really is,
Lexxie decided to go with 27 and has been that age for quite some time now.
It’s the best of both worlds – old enough to act mature, young enough to be
silly.
Lexxie lives by two simple rules –
measure your success not by how much money you have, but by how often you
laugh, and always try everything at least once. As a consequence, she’s laughed
her way through many an eyebrow raising adventure.
Anthology Questions:
Was it easier to
write your story knowing about the concept beforehand or was this a story you
had already thought about writing?
I’ve got a thing for firefighters (I’ve written four of them so far, five if you
count Desmond, the hero of Combustible) and my father is a retired firefighter
(no, I don’t have Daddy
issues, I promise) so it’s a world I know
quite well.
What inspired you
to write about these particular characters? What was the deciding factor in
choosing their story for this Anthology?
I wish I could remember the exact
moment the hero, Desmond, smacked me in the face and told me I was writing his
story. Desmond was a minor (but pivotal) character in Muscle for Hire, Heart of
Fame Book Two, and I always knew—even while writing that book—that he was going to come along one day and
demand more of my time. I must admit, I was taken by surprise by his sexual
domination side. And as for the heroine…well, Jess was one of those characters that just
leapt from the page and took no prisoners. But boy, do the pair of them spark
off each other (spark? Get it? Hee hee hee)
What’s your favorite line from your story?
Hmmm….this is a tricky one, but I think I’m going to go with this line: By the time the chopper had landed, she was one “burn pattern
indicates” away from a freaking orgasm.
Give us the
inside scoop on another author in the anthology. (Share a “secret” or funny story)
Oh oh oh! Ready? Lissa Mathews is a sucker for punishment…err….I mean, a goddess who deserves all the Tim Tams
in the world. She offered to take on the job of being in charge of the
financial side of this International affair despite it being a logistical
nightmare of epic international tax rules.
Would you
consider doing this type of collaboration again?
This is my second (the first was the Down and Dirty box set with Sami
Lee, Jess Dee and Rhian Cahill). Both have been awesome experiences so yes, I'd
love to do it again with the right people :) The question is, could those
people put up with me?
What’s up next for you?
Writing wise, way too many different manuscripts to list here, but
amongst them is the third book of the Outback Skies series (the first book in
the series releases January next year) and a super special secret I can't
really talk a lit at the moment but it involves a sexy Aussie bodyguard and a
reclusive horror writer from his past...
Is there anything
you find particularly challenging in your writing?
I rarely write typical heroes and or heroines. I've written
ADHD-suffering heroes, heroines who have Parkinson's disease, heroes whose
parents were murdered in front of them, heroines who didn't know they were a
dragon-shifter and heroes who discover they are the father of a 15yr old son.
In one of my latest WIPs, my hero had third-degree burns over 40% of his body,
including half his face and his genitals. I seem to like to see how difficult I
can make my characters' lives...and as a consequence, how difficult I can make
find their HEA for me :) I suspect my muse is a sadist.
Can
you share a little of your current work with us?
Absolutely. This is an
(utterly) unedited snippet from Sliding
Down, the first book in my Solo Dads
series, which hopefully will be available early next year (I’ve set myself a Dec 1 deadline for
getting it finished. Fingers crossed!) Ready?
Even as Grant
Phillips laughed his way down the slide, hugging Sasha to his body as they
twisted and banked up and down its wet sides, a part of his mind kept returning
to the woman in the skimpy purple bikini.
Damn, she’d been—
“Watch out!”
The cry, frantic and terrorized at
once, sounded behind him, a second before something slammed into him.
Something warm and soft with legs.
Legs that suddenly appeared either side of his hips. Long, feminine legs.
“Oh God,” the warm soft thing with
legs gushed behind him, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”
It took a second for Grant to
register the warm soft thing now pressed to his back was the woman in the
skimpy bikini, her legs damn near wrapped around his hips, her hands clinging
to his shoulders.
It took another second for his brain
to register her breasts were squashed against his back, her sex nestled against
his ass. A further second to acknowledge her wet skin was slipping and sliding
against his as they barreled down the waterslide, a friction way more evocative
than his brain as prepared for.
He twisted as much as he could to
look at her over his shoulder, hugging Sasha—now laughing and squealing with
delight at their abrupt acceleration—harder as he did so.
The woman in the purple bikini clung
to him, eyes squeezed shut, a look of mortified dismay twisting her face.
He opened his mouth to say
something—who knows what. Hi, I’m Grant, maybe—a heartbeat before they hit one
of the slide’s notorious hairpin curves and any hope of doing anything but ride
out the g-forces and splashes of water was destroyed.
Sasha squealed with excited joy
again, no doubt on an adrenaline high. The woman let out a strangled eep, her arms wrapping around his torso
with desperate strength. Her breasts mashed to his back, warm and soft and
undeniably there. Her thighs pressed at his hips, squeezing him in the same way
a bareback rider holds a horse.
Grant ground his teeth at the
contact and, gripping his daughter tighter, fixed his stare on the rush of
water and blur of blue tubing ahead of him.
It was that or—
Another hairpin bend whipped the
unformed thought from his mind.
All three of them banked up the side
of the slide, Sasha laughing the whole way, the woman in the purple bikini
slipping against his back, her apologetic cries echoing through the tunnel.
Cries that became giggling squeals
as they continued their rapid, wet decent. Giggling squeals that became almost
euphoric pants and gasps. Pants and gasps that sent wholly inappropriate
thoughts and images through Grant’s head.
But Christ, were they infectious.
Despite the situation, despite his
body’s unsettling response to the damn near naked woman pressed against him,
despite the fact all three of them were moving way too fast for his peace of
mind, he found himself laughing as well.
Laughing and giving himself over to
the rush of it all.
The thrill.
Their laughs filled the narrow
tunnel. At every whiplash-fast bend the woman’s thighs gripped him tighter. At
every banking corner her breasts slid against his back. On every straight, she
laughed out one apology after the other.
And then, in an assault of sunlight
and hot air, they were flying through the air, momentum impelling them from the
end of the slide into the shallow pool at its conclusion.
When you start a
book, do you already have the whole story in your head or is it built
progressively?
I am a panster through and
through. I've only ever plotted one book (Suspicious Ways) and I have to admit,
I almost didn't write if after doing so. I already knew the ending :) Every
book I write is a surprise journey to me. I never know what's going to happen.
Tell us something
that people would be surprised you know how to do.
Break a person's clavicle with my palm. I used to be a martial arts
instructor and damn, could I kick butt!
About Shelli Stevens
Anthology Questions:
Was
it easier to write your story knowing about the concept beforehand or was this
a story you had already thought about writing?
I actually love being given a theme and then being told to run with it.
Write a story. It challenges me and I think gives me more freedom sometimes!
What
inspired you to write about these particular characters? What was the deciding
factor in choosing their story for this Anthology?
These two characters have just been floating around in my head. I love
a firefighter hero, but I started to think...I want to write a confident, tough
chick who loves giving up control in the bedroom.
Would
you consider doing this type of collaboration again?
I’m going to be in one more collaboration, and then we’ll see what I’m
up for!
Where
do you find your inspiration?
Every day life and situations. Often I’ll
have one scene in mind for a book, and the story will develop around that.
Is
there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Often it’s just sitting down and making
myself write. I’m too easily distracted by the internet and the outside world.
Summers, with my child home, are super hard to be productive.
Does
music play any type of role in your writing?
I often create a playlist to write to. The type of music depends on my
characters’ personality.
Do
you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thank you for all you’ve done for me.
What
makes the perfect book hero?
I think
this can vary for every reader. For me, I love writing a hero who can have
strong alpha tendencies, but whose weakness can be the heroine. Some humor.
Maybe a bit tortured.
When
you start a book, do you already have the whole story in your head or is it
built progressively?
I’m a pantser. Which means when I write a
book it’s a little bit like a Connect the Dots puzzle. I have ideas along the
way but anything goes between. I never know how the story will completely
unfold.
When
and why did you begin writing?
I started
writing books in middle school. I was a huge reader, and with it came the
instinct to write my own romances.
About Leah Bramel
Anthology Questions:
Was
it easier to write your story knowing about the concept beforehand or was this
a story you had already thought about writing?
I had been fiddling around with the
characters in Feeding the Flames for a couple years now; I’d actually started
writing their story 2 years ago but put it aside when my Carina Press editor
contacted me to write The Grady Legacy series. So having some time to let them
form in my head made them easier to write this time around.
What
inspired you to write about these particular characters? What was the deciding
factor in choosing their story for this Anthology?
Because I’d been thinking about
these characters for so long and since both Quinn and Zac were firefighters, they
were an obvious choice when Lexxie contacted me and said she was putting
together a firefighter bundle. I suspect they telepathically contacted her when
I met her in Kansas City last year. ;)
What’s
your favorite line from your story?
“Makin’ out with a woman is a lot
more romantic in a bed than in the front seat of your truck, I promise.”
Give
us the inside scoop on another author in the anthology. (Share a “secret” or
funny story)
Lexxie Cooper, Shelli Stevens and I
had breakfast together in New Orleans during the RT Booklovers’ convention to
discuss the anthology but since Lexxie is from Australia, Shelli from the US,
and I’m from Canada, we ended up discussing the different types of bacon each
of our countries use. Now everytime I eat bacon I think of Shelli and Lexxie.
Would
you consider doing this type of collaboration again?
Yes, it’s nice to have the support
of a group of authors of a variety of experiences and finding out we have so
much in common.
What’s
up next for you?
I’m finishing up WRANGLING THE PAST,
the final book in my contemporary western series THE GRADY LEGACY, and
repackaging and release some formerly published short stories – CHERRY COTTAGE,
FIRST NIGHT, and UNASHAMED. After that’s
done, I’m getting back to writing the next book in my HAUBERK PROTECTION
romantic suspense series. (So many stories to write, so little time!)
Does
music play any type of role in your writing?
I often create a playlist to listen
to while I’m writing, especially for my western stories. And if music isn’t
playing then I have background sounds – using apps like Relax Melodies by Ipsos
Soft or Calm.com to help prod my creative side.
How
can readers discover more about you and your work?
If a reader wants to know more about
my books, they can visit my website (http://bit.ly/1o6z7If) or look me up on
Goodreads ( http://bit.ly/1iXjNMa ). But
if they want to see what I’m visualizing about the locations my books take
place in, or how I visualize a character, then they can visit my Pinterest
boards (http://bit.ly/1kLL0yc ) If they’re in Canada,
I’m going to be attending Bookapalooza
in Oshawa Ontario, November 22nd, and April 2015 I’ll be at Romancing the Capital in Ottawa. (more
information can be found on my website). I will probably be attending more
conferences such as Lori Foster’s Reader
and Author Get Together next year but those aren’t open for registration
yet.
When
you start a book, do you already have the whole story in your head or is it
built progressively?
It’s different with every book. Some
characters, like Sam Watson of PRIVATE PROPERTY (http://bit.ly/1tMoZUQ) and PERSONAL PROTECTION (http://bit.ly/1qGYzRm) , or Sarah, Jackson and
Nate, the characters from TANGLED PAST (http://bit.ly/1q68bqM) , walk into my head fully
formed and sit down and dictate their story. Other times, the stories are built
progressively—where I start telling the story thinking it’s going to go off in
one direction until a character does something I wasn’t expecting and realize
he knows better and I build the story from there. I’ve tried plotting
meticulously but generally by the end of the first page, the story has already
taken off in another direction, so I guess as much as I want to call myself a
plotter, I also write by the seat of my pants on occasion.
Is
there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Sometimes I have a main character,
like Gabe in my upcoming release WRANGLING THE PAST, who, like most men, is not
a big talker. The trouble is, I need him to talk to me, to tell me his story so
I can do his character justice. So writing an alpha male who doesn’t want to
co-operate can be very challenging. Okay, I know there are non-writers thinking
that sounds overly dramatic, and there are those who say “there is no muse, you
just have to push through” and they’re (somewhat) right, but it really helps
make writing easier for me if the characters are cooperative instead of being
stubborn and saying “that’s not what I’d do” or “I want to do that instead” or
worse, “grr, not talking to you anymore.”
The other challenging thing for me in a romance is to not let the
outside plot overpower the romance angle. I love writing romantic suspenses,
but I have to keep reminding myself that my readers are more interested in the
romance and the sexual tension than the outside plot – because I often find in
my first drafts I concentrate more on the outside plot and realize at the end
there’s very little about the romance and then have to start all over again.
Anthology Questions:
Tell
us about your first book. What would readers find different about the first one
and your most recent published work?
Oh,
wow. Does that take me back! My first book was Blackthorne’s Light, a paranormal romance (vampire) novella. At the
time, ebooks were brand new and the Kindle didn’t exist. It was my very first
erotic romance, and back then “erotic” was a lot tamer than it is now. I
blushed anytime I used a four letter word. Now, heck no. LOL My writing has
gotten much cleaner with better flow and character. I still love going back and
reading where my mind took me, but my work now is much more enjoyable. At least
to me.
Does
music play any type of role in your writing?
Oddly,
I find writing to music to be distracting. I write in complete silence, so I
don’t have lyrics competing with my brain while choosing words.
Is
your book based on someone you know, or events in your life?
Not
especially, though my firefighting details are from an actual fire chief who’s
married to a friend of mine. His wife is making him answer all my questions. J Though he’d have helped me
even if she hadn’t ordered, er, asked him to.
Do
you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thank
you for reading my stories. If I’ve entertained you, then I’ve done my job.
Happy reading!
How
can readers discover more about you and your work?
My
website is kept updated, and I have a monthly newsletter I send out, with the
additional note about new releases. Marieharte.com has all the answers.
Do
you have a special time to write? How is your day structured writing-wise?
My
sweet spot is anywhere from 9am to 4pm. I prefer writing during the day, while
my kids are in school. But during the summer I become a major night owl,
staying up until 2 or 3am. I’m naturally a night person, but I don’t like
writing too late at night because I’m groggy the next day.
When
you start a book, do you already have the whole story in your head or is it
built progressively?
Typically
the trope or plot is there, and I weave the characters in because the plot
functions on the cornerstones of the characters’ traits. I can’t plot the whole
thing out. I know that A gets to Z, but often how they get there is a mystery.
When
and why did you begin writing?
I’ve
always been a writer. I used to write for fun as a kid to entertain myself, and
I was a great storyteller to friends. But as I grew older, I wanted it to be my
calling. I majored in English from college, then got sidetracked by real life. J But the dream has always
been to write fulltime. Now I’m living the dream, and I consider each day I can
do it a blessing.
When
did you first consider yourself a writer?
When
I sold my first book. Most everyone I knew considered me something else,
because ebooks weren’t “real books,” but I persevered. In 2004 it all started,
and I haven’t looked back.
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