SARA News - The "we're still here!" edition.

Hello dear SARA readers,

We'd like to thank you.

Here at SARA, we are actual people.  I know, right?  Epically amazing.  We have soccer-mum cars, mortgages, dust bunnies under the bed and 'it's a bit small' pay packets.  We're people you see on the street, likely wearing trackies and sporting something lunchy on the fronts of our t-shirts, as we ate at the computer.

We're extremely normal.

Well, except for the fact that we're constructing steamy sex scenes in our heads about sixteen hours of the day, and a further four hours are spent wondering where to leave the body that became dead in chapter two so that the hero can find it, thus perform consequent heroic deeds and ergo, get the girl.

That leaves four hours for sleeping, toting kids to sports (and reading whilst waiting in the car!) and writing blog posts.

You may have noticed we haven't posted good news for a while, a phenomenon we can link back directly to the fact that there are sadly only twenty-four hours in a day.  It's not because AWESOME THINGS haven't happened...

But thanks for sticking with us.  We love you for it.   No-one said it better than Sahvage: truly, madly, deeply.

So, we are very pleased to bring you NEWS!!


Liana Skrzypczak is one of our newer members, and hel-lo!, girl be making WAVES!  Liana is very excited to have been awarded the shared-winner gong for the Hachette Mentoring Program for her dystopian YA manuscript, Gold, along with another Adelaide writer, Rose Hartley.

Congratulations, Liana!  Check out her super-cute blog at the link above.


Harlequin author Elizabeth Rolls has a new book coming out in February In Debt To The Earl.

But wait, there's more...

A follow-up book is in the pipeline, too.  Rejoice, historical fans!  

Beach romance more your swag?  Victoria Purman is pleased to let you know that her fourth Boys of Summer book, Hold On To Me, is due out mid-December.  Get your banana lounge and your cooler bag ready, 'cos you'll be unable to put this one down this summer!  Key words here... YOUNGER MAN!

HOLD ON TO ME A Boys of Summer novel  – Out December 14th in shops and ebook

Can she learn to trust him and love again? Stella wasn’t looking for love and especially not from a younger man… When Stella Ryan’s successful life in Sydney crumbled, she returned flat broke and broken hearted to the beachside town she’d once called home. Five years on, she’s opened a boutique and rebuilt her life in the tourist haven of Port Elliot. Luca Morelli has been working flat out to establish his own building company in the city and doesn’t have time to be driving back and forth to the beach to do a small job in a shop that was almost destroyed in a fire. But he soon changes his mind when he meets the glamorous owner. Before long, Stella and Luca find that a working relationship isn’t the only thing developing between them. But the closer they get, the ghosts of Stella’s past come back to haunt her once more. Can she ever believe a man again? And if she can, is the much younger Luca Morelli the man she can trust with her heart? 

Lilliana Rose has been a busy writer/poet!  Not only has she recently released Soul Dancer, but she's also had a cover nominated for Best Cover at the AusRom Reader's Choice Awards for Chasing Dust Storms.  Vote for it here...

In a world where Soul Dancers are enslaved, Zarifah must over come corruption and lead the other dancers to freedom. Forced to harvest emotions from patrons each night she becomes addicted to happiness, which threatens to get in the way of a forbidden relationship with fellow dancer Torin and stop her from challenging the Regulators, the emotionless humans who feed on the emotions harvested. 
Check out what the other SARA's have been up to at the SARA website member page, or stalk us a bit on Facebook and Twitter.  We'd love that!  

Finally, I leave you with a familiar set of... eyeballs.  Our very own Erotic Fiction author Kyoko Church talks to the very swanky Adelaide Hills Magazine about sex and shame. 

The future of the Soul Dancers depends on Zarifah being a leader, but she may not be the saviour the followers had hoped for.




Until next time, we wish you very happy reading!

Emmeline.  x

SARA News - kicking 2015 off with a bang!

Hello, dear readers, and welcome to the first 2015 instalment of the very sasstacular SARA News!
All of us at SARA trust you have had an excellent start to this brand new year, and we KNOW it's going to be full of fabulously excellent reading.
Oh, the excitement!

What better way to start news for 2015 than with a few tasty tidbits from Lilliana Rose?  

Lilliana has a novella coming out mid-March, called The Clockwork Heart from Less Than Three Press.  Want to know the bestest part?  If you pre-order it now, you save!

Haunted by a past lover and left with scars so deep Libby gave up her life as an explorer, she spends her days trying to avoid bad memories by training ruthlessly with Helen, the woman she hired to teach her self-defense. Helen is beautiful, appealing, and could be what Libby needs to climb out of her past once and for all.

Until the past returns and threatens to destroy Libby, and all that she holds dear, once and for all.

In other very marvellous news, Lilliana is also on film!  Well, not her, precisely (actually, I can't be definitive about that... :)), but a script that she has penned:

The TAFE SA students have made my short script into a short film; Collection. (I was one of four scripts selected to make into a film, from over 50 entries).

It was exciting seeing the film and the students did an excellent job capturing the essence of what I had written. 

The film is about a young girl, Tammy with an over active imagination and the adventures she conjures when she has to take out the rubbish, down a very long driveway!

In our second piece of newsiness, Sandy Vaile has recently signed a contract...

Motorbike-riding chef, Mya, has a serious mistrust of men. Since she became the guardian of her disabled mother, self-reliance is a way of life. She doesn't need a man -- in fact she can knock most of them on their arses -- and she definitely doesn't need her cocky new neighbor, Detective Luca Patterson, linking her to his latest jewelry counterfeit investigation.

Luca's professional boundaries blur after an unexpectedly, sizzling interlude with Mya. She is sexy, feisty and so many kinds of wrong, but he can't stop thinking about her. The problem is that her name keeps popping up in relation to his case.

Mya is threatened by an anonymous foe who is hell bent on revenge. Will she try to fight her way out of this one, or put her faith in Luca to avoid becoming the next victim?

A romantic suspense story published by Crimson Romance.

Stay tuned for pre-order info.


Until next time, happy reading.

Emmeline.

Reading Adventures: holiday reading

Well it's the end of January now, but since we've been on a break, I would like to say 'Happy New Year!!' Did everyone have a little bit too much bubbly and food over the holiday period? I know I certainly did - the food not the bubbly. Well not much anyway :)

This was meant to be the last edition of 2014 however... (sorry, life!)

Welcome to our first edition of Reading Adventures for 2015. What did SARAs have on their reading pile for the holidays? 

Let's see...


SARAs reading SARAs
It seems there were a few books that were in common on the SARA reading lists and they were books by other SARA authors!

Stone Castles by Trish Morey

- Linda Knightley
- Lilliana Rose
- Suzie Hindmarsh-Knights

(Eleni: it's in the top 10 of my TBR)

Fake by Beck Nicholas

- Lilliana Rose

- Eleni Konstantine

"This was the first book of my reading rank for 2015. 

What an amazing book. Beck Nicholas is one talented writer. Loved the voice and this story of revenge and secrets. I would have loved this book as a YA. Looking forward to more from this amazing author!"

The Road to Ruin by Bronwyn Stuart

- Linda Knightley

- Suzie Hindmarsh-Knights

- Anne Oliver

(Eleni: it's in the top 10 of my TBR)












Of course, there were non-SARA books ......

Linda Knightley had been looking forward to - 

River Road by Jayne Ann Krentz

Seventh Heaven by Catherine Anderson

Called by Fire by Delwyn Jenkins

(Eleni: Linda, Delwyn's book is on my 2015 TBR pile!)

Lilliana Rose had been looking forward to - 

A Dance with Dragons, Part 1: Dreams and Dust by George RR Martin

Clockwork Prince (The Infernal Devices, book 2),  by Cassandra Clare

(Eleni: both of these are on my 2015 TBR piles, Lilliana. Great minds!)

Anne Oliver had been looking forward to - 

Re-reading Nora Roberts' The MacKade Brothers bundle. 

"I love her old romances".

(Eleni: Just before the Christmas break I finished listening to her The O'Hurleys series. Thoroughly enjoyed.)

Alison F had been looking forward to - 

I am looking forward to settling down with I selection of 'new to me' Betty Neels books I scored from Book Depository. These have been saved up for my 'Christmas Treat' which means lying in bed during daylight hours and reading and not feeling the least bit guilty about it!

Okay I lied - I will feel guilty about not doing the housework, but it is Christmas after all. 

(Eleni: One of these days I have to read a Betty Neels book. I have one on my TBR pile.)



Dianne had been looking forward to -

Writing Without a Parachute: the art of freefall by Barbara Turner-Vesselago.

A book on loan from the SA Writers Centre.

(Eleni: Dianne, this looks like a book after my pantser heart!)











Suzie Hindmarsh-Knights was reading - 

Vicious Circle (Hector Cross, book 2) by Wilbur Smith

"It's dark."

(Eleni: One author not on my TBR pile - yet!)

Liana Skrzypczak read - 

These aren't that Christmassy (in fact they're kinda depressing), but this is what I read these holidays!


Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

The Colour Out of Space by H.P. Lovecraft (Short Story)

The Golden Bird by Wilhelm Grimm (Short Story)

(Eleni: Going to the classics, Liana!)

Eleni Konstantine managed to read a few books in early January (damn cold kept me from reading between Christmas and New Year's Eve).

Fake by Beck Nicholas - 5 stars! (- see above for review)

Home for Christmas by Fiona Greene (novella) - 5 stars!

"I try not to be biased when it comes to reviews of people I know and respect. But I suppose we all have our biases. I was lucky enough to read the pre-submitted version but I read this story again in this form, and it blew me away. This a sweet story about two people falling in love slowly via long distance. There is so much heart and soul entwined and it's easy to get swept away. This was perfect holiday read. A book to leave you with a smile on your face when you finish. "

After Dark (Harmony #1) by Jayne Castle (audio) - 4 stars

"Humans on another planet into the far future."

Much Ado About You (Essex Sisters #1) by Eloisa James - 5 stars!

"Delightful historical romance with wit and charm."

I hope everyone had a relaxing time reading. Check in next time with some more Reading Adventures.

Southern Speak featuring Lilliana Rose

A Romance with Books

by Lilliana Rose

My romance with books is about to end…

Gasp!

Let me explain.

Moving homes is one of the most stressful things we can do in our lives. And once again I've moved house (I'm hoping that I don't have to do this ever again but of course I probably will). My books have survived three different moves in recent years, some of them now have bent or torn covers (I'm internally crying). I'm one of those book owners who wont even dog ear a page (who would do that?), let alone mark the book with pen or highlighter (off with your head!).

Settling into my new home, I've finally been able to start unpacking boxes upon boxes of books that had been in storage for the last 18 months. It's like getting reacquainted with long lost friends. I'm remembering the worlds that the stories took me too, and revelling in emotions evoked from the journey the books took me on.

What has changed for me during this particular move is that I should have about another 5 or more boxes of books, but I haven't because I've been purchasing ebooks. The main reason I've done this (which I'm reminded as I nearly break my back moving another box of books) is because of the lack of space. My bookcase is over flowing with wonderful words and information that I love to dwell in. But I need room to live in my home as well!

There are also other reasons. My books have collected a lot of dust over the years, and I've got a packet of tissues nearby and have dosed up on anti-histamines (unpacking books can be dangerous to your health). And with the thought of moving again I'm tempted to give my books to the Salvos and let them have a new owner. (I don't want to keep them in storage)

What is wrong with me?!

I can't believe that I would ever think this. I must be sick. Don't worry I haven't departed with my book-friends, but some of them have been marked to go to new homes, which I am saddened by, but times have changed. I already have a lot of 'stuff' to take with my when I move and I just want to lessen the material wealth that I've gathered over my lifetime. I love my books, but the reality is that I'll never read most of them again, because there isn't enough hours left in my life time, plus there are new books to get to know and to have an affair with.

At the same time I'm torn. My heart is broken from this unexpected break up, which is made worse when I look at my bookcase, and the memories flow from the stories it holds, because there are also other memories evoked in me. Presents from sisters, parents, friends. There are my books from childhood (I'm keeping these) and there are books that have helped me when studying or show a journey of whatever theme I was obsessed in researching at a particular time in my life. I'm not sure I want to part with these friends. They are still gems to be held, and I like to glance my eyes over their wonderful features, check out their spines, smell their musky scent – something that I can't be done with ebooks.

However, this is where I find an unexpected advantage of having an ebook. While I can't view them on a bookshelf as I wander past cleaning the floor, or looking for one that I haven't read (so many of these!) by simply standing and staring at the shelf because ebooks are tucked away. But what's become a necessity for me is that ebooks only take up electronic space, at which I have so much more of compared to the physical space. Plus they don't take up heaps of box space, or near break my back when moving, or give me hay fever.

With sales of ebooks slowing, and print sales holding their own in the market, I've stepped across the line, gone past the point of no return, and electronic books are my preferred option when buying a book.

I will still have romances with books, it's just to a slightly different tune; the one of cyber space.

What have you done with your loved books? Have you kept them? Will you always keep them?

Fantastic article Lilliana. My bookshelves are overflowing too.
Now you can learn more about Lilliana's book. Love the cover
Change of Heart
by Lilliana Rose

click here to buy at Rogue Phoenix Press

click here to buy at Amazon

click here to buy at Barnes and Noble

Blurb
Vickie wants spice in her life, but her husband George is more interested in his work as a doctor. As a Victorian lady she is struggling to find her place in the world. An outbreak of a mysterious illness threatens the ordered world of Vickie and George. George becomes ill, and Vickie is left to care for him, keep him safe, as well as trying to work out the cause of the mysterious illness. Vickie must take charge in her world in order to survive.

Author Bio 
Lilliana is a creative writer and poet. She enjoys pulling levers and turning cogs in steampunks worlds and dreams of travelling around the world in an airship wearing funky modern Victorian clothing. With over 40 poems published her poetry and stories are spreading wings, extending out to various magazines and journals around the world. ‘Change of Heart’ is her latest publication in the steampunk

SARA News

It's sizzling hot in SA and so is our News. Grab a cool drink, sit back and relax, and enjoy the view...

Debut novel from Maggie Mundy!

Watch out Amazon, Hidden Mortality has hit your e-shelves!

In Bath in 1850 a witch is murdered in a ritual granting longevity to four men. What they are not aware of is that she has bestowed the same power to another called Seth to avenge her death.

Cara is a descendant of the witch and fills her days with food with her Irish-themed catering business. Her nights are another matter; they are full of erotic dreams of a mysterious lover, or nightmares with mutilated bodies. So this wasn’t the best time for her Nana to tell her she is coming into her power.

Of the original four immortals, Vincent is the only one left and to stop his own long life from fading he needs another witch to kill. Seth was meant to protect the witch’s descendants from a distance, but with Cara he can’t stay away. He has to make a choice to love Cara, or avenge the original death and possibly die himself. Cara has the fight of her life on when one man comes to kill her, and another to love her.

Buy link: Amazon

Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing


Congratulations Maggie on your debut novel! (Blood Scent was a novella)

Busy bee features in anthology

'Hide N Seek' is a short story by Lilliana Rose features in 'The Grotesquerie' anthology. The game of hide and seek isn't played with innocence and has more sinister consequences for not just the individuals who play, but the also the community, and its future.

The anthology is now available in
print (Mocha Memoirs Press $13 US) and eBook  (Amazon $5.99 US

Twenty-two short horror stories written by women are here on display for your enjoyment or your perverse fascination. Within these pages, beauty becomes deadly, innocence kills, and karma is a harsh mistress.

Published by Mocha Memoirs Press

Danielle's on Fire!

Danielle Belwater (formerly Danielle Sevenwaters) has a lovely sizzling cover for her YA Of Fire & Roses, out on Valentine's Day!

News Queen!

Victoria Purman hit the My Harlequin News this week with her new release Someone Like You.

Sassily good news indeed, ladies. 

Here's to some more in next issue....

SARA News ~ time to get SASSY

Time to get a glass of vino*, sit back, relax and read our SASSY news...

Smoking hot cover - again

Lilliana Rose has received her amazingly spiffy cover for her steampunk novella 

'Change of Heart' with Rogue Phoenix Publishing coming out August 2014. This hot on the heels on the cover for Circus Escape a couple of weeks back. 

Someone Like Victoria

Victoria Purman's  Someone Like You by Harlequin Australia is out now!

What on earth has happened to Dan McSwaine?

When Lizzie Blake knocks on the door of Dan McSwaine’s beach house at Middle Point, she barely recognises the man who answers. Whatever happened to the guy who swaggered into her home town with a grin and left with her heart in his back pocket? Lizzie wonders if he’ll ever be that man again — and if she should risk everything she’s built her life on to help him.

Dan can’t normally bear to be more than ten minutes from a hip bar, an imported beer and a group of hot women. So what is he doing holed up in a falling down beach shack at Middle Point? All he knows is that he’s made some crazy decisions since the night a truck slammed into his car and almost killed him. The first one was to think that buying a crumbling piece of coastal real estate was a good idea. The second crazy decision was to try to hide away from the world when a woman like Lizzie Blake is determined to drag him right back into it…

Sounds like a damn amazing reading okay, so of course here are the buy links: 

Harlequin | iBookstore |  Amazon | Amazon Australia | Kobo | Booktopia | Google Play

More fabulous news as it's also been selected by iBooks as one of the Best Books of February.

Doomed Love? 

Check out this hauntingly lovely book trailer  for   Danielle Sevenwater's 

upcoming release, Of Fire & Roses. 

* I was going to say get a cup of tea, but in honour of our SARA lady in red, Emmeline Lock, I thought wine would be better.



More SASSY News next week....