Blog Tour: Guest Post w/ Tina Donahue + Giveaway!

WELCOME BACK TO THE BLOG, TINA! :)

 Tina Donahue is an award-winning, bestselling novelist in erotic, paranormal, contemporary and historical romance for Samhain Publishing, Ellora’s Cave, and Kensington. Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, Romantic Times and numerous online sites have praised her work. Three of her erotic romances (Adored, Lush Velvet Nights, and Deep, Dark, Delicious) were named finalists in the 2011 EPIC competition. The French review site, Blue Moon reviews, chose her erotic romance Sensual Stranger as their Book of the Year 2010 (erotic category). The Golden Nib Award at Miz Love Loves Books was created specifically for Lush Velvet Nights, and two of her titles (The Yearning and Deep, Dark, Delicious) received an Award of Merit in the RWA Holt Medallion competition (2011 and 2012). Take Me Away and Adored both won second place in the NEC RWA contest (different years). Tina is featured in the 2012 Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market. She was the editor of an award–winning Midwestern newspaper and worked in Story Direction for a Hollywood production company.

 

 

Where to Find Tina:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads

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Heat with Heart

 

As an author of erotic romance, I know how often this sub-genre is maligned, not only by critics but also by women readers.

 

Many of them are unfamiliar with erotic romance and mistakenly believe the most important element of the story will be the physical encounters between the characters. True, descriptive sex scenes make these romances sizzle. However, it’s the journey to that point that makes all the difference in the ultimate impact.

 

To explain what I mean, I recall a Calvin Kline Jeans ad where a young woman (nude to the waist) is on a sofa kissing one bare-chested young hunk, while another embraces her, and a third lays on the floor asleep as if he’s already had his fun. Titillating? Sure. Shocking? Maybe to some. Gratifying. Not really.

 

There’s another ad for an insurance company with a muscular young guy – also bare-chested – who’s holding an infant in one hand. The baby is curled up and sleeping blissfully while this oh-so-virile guy looks down in wonder. The contrast of the baby to the fully-grown man brings a smile because you just know that guy will protect the infant with his life. He’ll do anything for the child. And you know what – that makes him sexy as hell. . .far more so than the good-looking dudes in the CK ad.

 

IMO, that’s why books with lush sensuality, physical and emotional, are called erotic romance. It’s about the soul-deep connection between two people that precedes the physical gymnastics. It’s the look in the hero’s eyes when he first sees the heroine. How his heart beats wildly. How the world seems to shift for a moment, a warning that his life is about to change in the best way possible. That’s sexual tension and it’s what brings the most satisfaction when the characters finally do make it to the bedroom.

 

In my latest novel, Losing Control, Book Two of my Appointment with Pleasure series, I wanted readers to feel the intense physical and emotional attraction between my characters Catherine and Tim. To know the torment Catherine feels because of her necessary lies. And to root for their eventual connection (or reconnection). Here’s the blurb of the story and a brief excerpt to illustrate what I mean (below book cover)

~Tina Donahue

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Losing Control by Tina Donahue

Publisher:

Series: Appointment with Pleasure, 2

Genre: Contemporary Erotica

When it comes to passion, there are no rules…

 

She wasn’t supposed to hunger for him. Tim Bellamy was off-limits to Catherine, a high-priced call girl with an uneasy past. Indulging in his raw desire shouldn’t have happened, especially at a District party attended by the nation’s elite. Tim doesn’t know she works for the agency. If he did…  That’s not something Catherine wants to confess. Drowning in his strength and heat, aching to see him again, she keeps her secret.

 

From old wealth, Tim has never met anyone quite like Catherine. Exotic, elegant, earthy, she’s the best of all worlds. Their evenings are sensual delights where voyeurism, bondage and a growing bond satisfy carnal needs and stir something deep within…until he stumbles upon the truth.

 

Shaken by her lies, Tim needs to prove the depth of Catherine’s lust and yearning once and for all. For him, their erotic adventure has only begun…

 
 

 
Where to Buy:

Kindle | NOOK | ARe | Publisher

More Info:

Add it on GoodReads! | Find the Series

Losing Control by Tina Donahue

Excerpt

Unaware of her continued scrutiny, he downed his scotch and soda as though he needed it to get through the night. No surprise. As parties went, this one was DOA, perfect for the terminally dull or prissy. Of course, the less uptight attendees were enjoying each other in the mansion’s numerous suites. Catherine had heard a few of those couples in her search for a powder room. The panting and gasps pouring from behind the doors hadn’t surprised her at all. She knew the elite made their own rules, doing whatever they liked, wherever they happened to be. Fueled by power, lust and booze, they were going at each other in those bedrooms like hormone-soaked teens.

 

Exactly what she and her ‘date’ for this function should have been doing, with him giving her a much-needed orgasm, a few moments of pleasure.

 

The guy didn’t know the meaning of the term. He was twenty-six—the same as her—and a newly minted billionaire thanks to his Internet company. For a nerd, he was exceptionally good looking and a narcissist who liked to hear himself talk and talk and talk. Damn, the man never ran out of words, mostly about himself, all of them as riveting as Keanu Reeves reading the white pages without any inflection, precisely like his acting.

 

After having staved off another yawn, Catherine had left her date in the billiards room with a bunch of other guys who were equally into themselves. None of them noticed her departure through their haze of cigar smoke. Even if they had, she still would have come here, searching for Tim, drawn to him by something deep inside she wasn’t about to explore.

 

His broad shoulders rose and fell on his heavy sigh that seemed almost lonely, the way she’d felt for too long. He glanced around. For his date, a young woman with a sterling pedigree? Suppressing a frown and a pang of envy, Catherine regarded the area. None of the women nearby appeared to notice him…and he didn’t seem to be coveting any female. Was he getting ready to leave?

 

Unable to help herself, Catherine went to the landing. To do what? Stop him? Strike up a conversation that might lead back to questions about her? What then? Give him a hearty dose of lies laced with just a scrap of truth to protect her client’s ego, to make certain no one here knew the jerk couldn’t get his own date? Would it be worth it?

 

Maybe. She’d be close enough to smell Tim’s skin. Their hands might touch. She could daydream about pressing her lips to his palm, nuzzling her face against his—

 

Tim raised his empty glass, stalling her thoughts. A young man with slicked back hair nodded in acknowledgement. The guy’s short white coat was of a dated nautical design that would have looked good on the Titanic, his tray laden with a variety of colorful cocktails.

 

Without giving the server a second glance, Tim handed the boy his empty glass and suddenly looked up, meeting her eyes.

 

Catherine’s heart paused, then beat out of time.

 

Stay away from him, Alexa had warned.

 

Too late.

 

Heat poured through Catherine’s body, weakening it further. At that same moment, she saw a spark of animal interest—wanton and hungry—cross Tim’s handsome face

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Tina: To celebrate the release of Losing Control, I’m offering a contest.

I’ll choose THREE winners (at random) from those who comment on the various sites during the tour. The more you comment, the greater your chances of winning one of my backlist ebooks from this list:

1.            Adored – RWA award-winning; EPIC 2011 Finalist; 4 Stars RT

2.            Deep, Dark, Delicious – EPIC 2011 Finalist; Holt Medallion Award of Merit

3.            Lush Velvet Nights – EPIC 2011 Finalist; Golden Nib Award

4.            In His Arms – SIX 5 Star Reviews; 4 Stars RT

5.            Sensual Stranger – 2010 Book of the Year (erotic); 4 Stars RT

6.            The Yearning – Top Ten Bestseller

7.            Take Me Away - #1 Pick, Miz Love Loves Books

8.            Unending Desire – Best Book Rating LASR

9.            SiNN – Nominated for Book of the Week LASR

10.          Sinfully Wicked – Magnificent – Romancing the Book

 
 

How to Enter:

• Leave a comment on this post, with your email addy.

• Be sure to check out the rest of the tour for more chances to win! :)

Enjoy!




Until Next Time,


 


*TBQ's Book Palace is a member of both the Amazon and Barnes and Nobles affiliates program. By using the links provided to buy products from either website, I receive a very small percentage of the order. To read my full disclosure on the matter, please see this post!