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Thursday, June 26, 2014

SFR Brigade's Midsummer Blog Hop


GRAND PRIZE WINNERS ANNOUNCED

http://sfrcontests.blogspot.com/2014/06/starry-nights-winners-announcement.html


CONGRATULATIONS TO RHIANNA WHO WON THE $10 AMAZON GIFT CARD HERE ON MY BLOG
 
I love the theme of this blog hop, although I can't help thinking about Vincent Van Gogh's "Starry Night" with its swirls and stars above a small village. Summer nights are fun. This is our first summer along the shores of Lake Michigan so going to the beach and watching the sunset is something we'll do often. In my science fiction romance, The Chameleon, something awesome happened to the heroine on a starry night.


Jileena stayed hidden in the shadows and watched with envy through the windows as the elegant attendees danced and mingled and enjoyed the bounteous buffet and bar. Her attention was riveted on the young Space Fleet Cadet with an engaging smile. How she wanted him to smile at her the way he did to the elderly matrons he whirled around the dance floor.
No one else seemed to notice him slip away from the festivities, except her. She pulled back farther into the shadows as he came out onto the patio. And nearly stepped on her.
“What are you doing out here, little one?” he asked as he tucked an errant curl behind her ear.
“I am not little,” she said in her most sophisticated voice. To her own ears, she sounded like the twelve-year-old she was.
“Of course not. You are a fairy queen in disguise.” Then he gave her such a grin that her heart melted right there.
With a shy smile, she lowered her lashes before looking up at him. “You are very observant. But you must not give me away.”
“Only a brigand would do so, Your Majesty.” With his hand over his heart, he said, “I will not betray you. Your secret is safe with me.”
Caught up in the play acting, she gave him a royal nod. “Thank you, brave knight.”
“If it pleases Your Majesty, may I have a dance?”
When he took her hand and bowed over it, Jileena nearly swooned. In the manner she thought a fairy queen would respond, she lifted her chin. “You may.”
He lifted her into his arms and held her against his chest. “Put your arms around my neck.”
Together they danced, him whirling her around their small portion of the patio, her legs dangling beneath her frothy gown. She had been happy before when he smiled at her. Now she was enthralled.
When the music ended, he set her gently on her feet. Again, he bowed over her hand. This time he kissed her knuckles. A storybook knight to his queen. What had been a disappointment when she wasn’t allowed to attend the ball had turned into a dream.
As he straightened, his eyes twinkled. “I have never met a fairy queen before.”
Stunned by his smile, she couldn’t even speak.
“I heard,” he said most seriously, “that if you kiss a fairy queen in the moonlight, she will grant your dearest wish.”
Without waiting for her response, he leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips. She could hardly take it in when the kiss ended. Her first kiss!
Before he could leave, she found her voice. “What was your wish, brave knight?”
“To kiss a beautiful lady.”
He strode into the light spilling from the open door then turned around. “Thank you, Your Majesty, for granting my wish.” Before he entered the ballroom, he flashed her a broad smile.
And she fell in love.

The Chameleon is available at:


What do you like about summer nights?

Enter my Rafflecopter for a chance to win a $10 Amazon Gift Card.


GRAND PRIZES

1st  $100 Amazon or B&N gift card plus 41 ebooks
2nd $50 Amazon or B&N gift card plus 28 ebooks  
3rd  3 separate winners each receive $25 Amazon or B&N gift card plus 11 ebooks 

Use this Rafflecopter for the Grand Prizes:



(Although the Rafflecopter doesn't display here, follow the link. Be sure to scroll down to find the box.)


InLinkz doesn't often like my blog. So to follow the other authors on the blog hop, click here:  http://sfrcontests.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-sfr-brigade-3rd-midsummer-blog-hop.html  
Have fun and good luck.

32 comments:

  1. Love the blog hop. I just like the theme as I love to look at the stars. jonesjnd (at) yahoo (dot) com

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  2. Love your excerpt! I know this is going to be as wonderful as your other romances.

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    1. Oh, and starry nights make me think of wishes and dreams, and everything I hope for. I hear Jiminy Cricket singing in the background...

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  3. Sounds cliché, but looking a the stars at night =)

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  4. I used to sit in my window and watch the stars and the lightning bugs flying around outside. It was fun to dream and wish for things on those childhood starry nights!

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  5. The stars.
    magic5905 at embarqmail dot com

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  6. Such a sweet excerpt! I love having fireworks on long weekends in the summer. :)

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  7. Winter lasts for about 8 months where I live so for me Summer nights are very much just a relief. Just being able to go outside to see the stars and not be freezing is a wonderful thing.

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  8. *chuckling* as I read all the comments of Starry Nights. I live where Summer never seems to end and winter is nowhere near as cold as I would like it to be. We are never happy sometimes :). I am intrigued by your story the Chameleon. Always nice to connect with a new author

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  9. Setting up the telescope!

    Thanks for the amazing giveaway!
    elizabeth(at)bookattict(dot)com

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  10. The coolness of the air and having moments to just enjoy the outside, watching the stars :)

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  11. I love the sounds, smells, and shining stars of summer nights.

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  12. First love is so memorable, even for someone called 'your majesty'.

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  13. Nice excerpt. Hope you have a great hop!

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  14. I like being able to stand outside without being cold and smell the jadmine in my garden

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  15. I live in the Deep South, so summer nights are miserable and sticky and I try not to go out in them if I can help it. The stars are brighter in the winter anyway, for some reason.

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  16. I live in Florida so the summer night are hot and humid, but it's perfect for a swim at midnight under a full moon sans. Bathing suit.

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  17. Thanks for sharing your great excerpt! Summer nights - I love all the lightning bugs we get around here - the yard is full of tiny, green, twinkling lights

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  18. I love to watch the fireflies - there are none in England where I grew up.

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  19. What do I love about summer nights? Lightning bugs, the sound of the frogs, night swimming in the pool, and, of course, star gazing. :)

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  20. What I love about summer nights is watching the fireflies with my children. I tell them not to catch them because they get squished.

    Anna
    doxisrcool at aol.com

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  21. I love the warm summer nights. I can sit outside under the stars reading a great book while drinking a glass of wine.

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  22. You all have mentioned such wonder things about a summer night. Thanks for the lovely comments about the excerpt. Today's the last day for the giveaway!

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  23. Here, the summer nights are long, long and very hot. And the best thing is swimming at night with the stars looking down. Very sweet excerpt.

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  24. I like laying on the couch in my glass top solarium, with my dog beside me, her front leg stretched out so I'll scratch her belly while I stare up at the stars, crickets in the background, frogs near the pond, and not a mosquito in the solarium to bite me. Then a raccoon waddles into the backyard and all hell breaks loose.

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  25. The blog hop has been such fun, showcasing stars in so many ways. Thanks for sharing yours.

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  26. Love the excerpt, Diane!

    I love summer nights for sitting on the patio and gazing at the stars. We're lucky we live in a very remote desert area with very little light pollution. Sometimes we can track satellites moving across the night sky. When conditions are just right, we can sometimes make out the ghostly traces of the Milky Way stretched out across the heavens. Add to this a soft breeze, the sound of crickets and the clicking of ice in a cold drink and it makes for a perfect evening.

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  27. I love opening the windows and hearing the birds sleepily chirping (although sometimes they are talkative far too late) and feeling the cool breezes. Thanks for the giveaway, enjoyed the excerpt...what a sweet scene!

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  28. Just love sitting and enjoying a starry night on a clear summer evening!

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