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Adriana Kraft

Adriana Kraft

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Thriller

Out now! Pinned, by Liz Faraim @FaraimLiz #Giveaway #LGBTQ

April 22, 2023 by Adriana Kraft

Pinned - Liz Faraim
Liz Faraim has a new lesbian mystery thriller out: Pinned. And there’s a giveaway.

“Rowdy” Randy Cox, a woman staring down the barrel of retirement, is a curmudgeonly blue-collar butch lesbian, who has been single for twenty years and is trying to date again.

At the end of a long, exhausting shift, Randy finds her supervisor, Bryant, pinned and near death at the warehouse where they work. Upon the news of his death, she battles to find a balance between the joys of an exciting new relationship and the struggles of processing her supervisor’s unexpected passing.

The manner of her supervisor’s death leaves Randy unsettled and suspicious as she gets sucked into both a criminal investigation led by the police and an administrative investigation conducted by her employer.

As Randy seeks the truth, trust erodes, key friendships are strengthened, and more loss awaits her.

Warnings: violence, cancer death.

Publisher | Amazon | Universal Buy Link

Goodreads


Giveaway

Liz is giving away a $20 Amazon gift card with this tour:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Direct Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b60e8d47198/?


Excerpt

“Yeah. You wanna ride the canyon?” Bear asked as she ran her fingers through her wild salt-and-pepper hair. Buck and I both nodded. I stowed my snacks and slid on my helmet.

“Okay. Everybody’s all gassed up, right? Last gas station before the canyon is at the casino.”

“We’re good. Filled up before crossing the causeway. Now stand back,” Bear said as she did a Jackie Gleason style windup before hoisting her short leg over the saddle of her bike.

We’d ridden many miles together and I was happy to see that her bike, a massive 1600cc Road Star, which she had lovingly named Champagne, was still on the road.

Buck fired up her Harley with a bone rattling rumble. I reminded myself to ride in front of her. When I rode behind her the engine noise was too much. I paired up the Bluetooth and Spotify again and picked a 1980s hits channel. Van Morrison sang to me about tupelo honey as I pulled out behind Bear, with Buck taking sweep behind us.

As we rolled slowly by PJ’s, the checker was walking out of the front door, gazing down at her cell phone. She looked up just in time to knock me out one more time with her bright eyes and toothy smile, making my heart race. I had to force myself to focus back on riding as we pulled out of the parking lot onto the main road.

We dodged big groups of college kids on bicycles as we passed through intersections until Dairy Glen turned back into farmland. Long, ramrod-straight county roads that ran between tomato and sunflower fields took us to the next county. The coastal mountains rose in the distance, the only thing to break up the scenery of the flat valley floor except for the occasional barn, well pump, or windmill.

Before long the three of us were weaving our way through the green rolling hills of Capay Valley, the two-lane road gently curving around orchards and dormant row crop fields. I saw some farms with livestock, including a few llamas and emu. We passed through the small towns of Madison, Esparto, and Capay.

Around the bend we got to Brooks, where the small farmhouses gave way to the casino, looming large, overlooking vineyards and the foothills. A massive banner strung across the front advertised an upcoming big-name concert. After the casino we passed through Guinda, and the road narrowed further as the terrain changed from wide-open valley floor to canyon, with steep wooded hillsides. The temperature dropped several degrees in the shade of the hills.

I did my best to stay focused on the ride and the road, but the heart-stopping smile I had gotten earlier in Dairy Glen, those blue eyes locked on mine, were a big distraction. I hadn’t given any woman a second look in years, let alone have one get my heart and mind racing.

Bear cruised along, never in a hurry, taking the curves with ease. I checked my side mirror now and then to make sure Buck was still with us, her aftermarket exhaust pipes echoing through the narrow canyon. There were hardly any other vehicles on the canyon road, though we did pass a few packs of cyclists decked out in spandex, riding fancy road bikes. As we rolled by a group of bikes on a steep climb, I watched one guy’s chiseled leg muscles working hard to pedal. The lady in front of him blew a snot rocket over her shoulder and he didn’t even flinch. I was glad to have an engine between my legs and opened the throttle to climb the last bit of the hill.

At the top of the hill, we zoomed by another gaggle of cyclists, resting after their climb. They were all off their bikes, panting and sweating even in the cold. One lady was throwing up in the bushes. Her jersey said “Veni, Vidi, Vomiti.” The slogan rattled around in my brain, drawing me back to my father trying to teach me Latin as a kid. I figured it meant something like: I came, I saw, I barfed. Another lady stood by, leaning on her bike frame, totally unbothered, sucking on one of those goo energy tubes.

My fingers and toes had started to go numb from the cold despite wearing thick socks and boots, and winter riding gloves. While on a short, straight stretch I took my eyes off the road again to turn on the heated grips. I pressed the button and looked up just in time to see Bear dump her bike over farther than I thought possible. Champagne, nearly on its side, cut over into the opposite lane and back.

I scanned the road for the hazard and had just enough time to register a small rockslide, scree and baseball-sized chunks of rock bouncing down the steep hillside and onto the road. I spotted a small gap and rode straight through, pebbles pinging off my helmet and shooting out from under my tires. I checked my mirror and watched as Buck, who’d had the most time to respond, swung out wide and avoided the whole thing with little fuss. That was Buck for ya.

Bear parked in a turnout a few hundred yards up the road. I pulled in behind her to catch my breath. I yanked off my helmet and pulled the bandana down off my mouth, heart doing somersaults.

Bear slapped her chest and let out a roar that reverberated through the hills and down the canyon.

“Awooo! Jesus Christ! Did you see that, Randy?”

“I can’t believe you didn’t dump it. That was some fine goddamn riding.”

“Wasn’t my first time, won’t be my last.” She gasped and shook her hands out.

“Good thing you’ve been riding since before you could spell motorcycle.”

We laughed wildly, which helped me relax and steady myself as the adrenaline rush faded. Buck pulled in behind us, tires crunching on gravel, and killed her engine.


Author Bio

Liz Faraim
Liz has a full plate between balancing a day job, parenting, writing, and finding some semblance of a social life. In past lives she has been a soldier, a bartender, a shoe salesperson, an assistant museum curator, and even a driving instructor. She focuses her writing on strong, queer, female leads who don’t back down.

Liz transplanted to California from New York over thirty years ago. She now lives in the East Bay Area of California and enjoys exploring nature with her wife and son.

Author Website: https://www.lizfaraim.com

Author Facebook (Personal): https://www.facebook.com/liz.faraim.9/

Author Facebook (Author Page): https://www.facebook.com/FaraimLiz/

Author Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20769735.Liz_Faraim

Author QueeRomance Ink: https://www.queeromanceink.com/?s=faraim&search_type=authors

Author Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Liz-Faraim/author/B092YXBXFV

Other Worlds Ink logo

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Filed Under: Blog, Contests, Guest Bloggers, LGBT Tagged With: blue collar, butch, curmudgeonly, Giveaway, lesbian, LGBTQ, Mystery, Thriller, Transgender

New Release! Out of the Shadows, by Tim Smith @extasybooks #Thriller #RomanticSuspense

January 9, 2023 by Adriana Kraft

Today my blog guest is fellow Extasy author Tim Smith. If you haven’t dipped into his Thriller series Nick Seven, don’t miss it—you’re in for the roller coaster ride of your life!

BOOK INFO

Published by: eXtasy Books
Author : Tim Smith
Word Count :67807
Publication Date :2022-10-28
Series : Nick Seven #8
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romantic Suspense and Mystery, Thriller
Winner: Extasy Books Editor’s Choice Award

BLURB

How can a couple of former spies enjoy life in their personal corner of paradise, when things from the past keep coming back to haunt them?

What does a former spy have to do to get some peace and quiet in his personal corner of paradise? In the laidback ease of the Florida Keys, Nick Seven has carved out a life far removed from the intrigue that once defined his life in the CIA. He runs his trendy club on the Gulf, keeps a low profile, and enjoys the tropical setting with Felicia, his Barbadian lover and former co-worker. After he sees a woman being killed at a resort, Nick finds himself thrust into an investigation where there is no corpse and no evidence of a crime. The police are busy with a string of high-profile home burglaries and don’t have time to look for his imaginary victim, so it’s up to Nick to investigate. Then French con artist Marco St. Julian unexpectedly surfaces from Nick’s past. Are the incidents related? And what part does the wealthy young trophy wife of a convicted financial scammer play in all of this? Throw in a career-hungry FBI agent, a mysterious Cuban crook and an ex-patriate Irish gunrunner, and it’s more than just another day at the beach.

EXCERPT

The intruder stood in the shadows at the rear of a spacious oceanfront home on Duck Key, waiting for the right moment to go to work. The nighttime Florida sky was punctuated by a bright slice of quarter-moon and a handful of stars. The only light in the old-moneyed neighborhood was provided by ornate street lamps and security lights. Just the way the intruder liked it: enough light to see by, not enough to be seen. The background noise was a combination of waves lapping ashore and distant trawlers scooping up fresh catch. Occasionally a car would cruise by.

The home was one of many in the rich Florida Keys oceanfront enclave known as Hawk’s Cay, just south of Conch Key on the Overseas Highway. It was the kind of place that catered to a certain brand of people, like rich retirees, trust fund babies and savvy bankers who got out while the market was still good. Thousands of people cruised past it every day on their way to and from Key West without giving it more than a passing glance.

The intruder wore a black nylon catsuit that covered every inch of flesh from head to toe, as though they had been sprayed with onyx lacquer. They saw their shadow flash briefly in the glass of the French doors, tall and slender with narrow hips, an elfin-like creature gliding through the night. Their gloved fingers ran along the frame of the door that led to the interior of the home, but stopped when they located the security system sensor near the top. It was a cheap hardware-store variety contact alarm, not appropriate for such an expensive house. The person carefully slid a thin piece of magnetized metal between the two contact points, then crouched to work on the lock. Two metal picks in the keyhole were expertly moved against the tumblers until the intruder heard the telltale click of the lock giving way.

They opened the door and stepped inside, finding themselves in a small dining area off of the kitchen. The interior of the house was illuminated by one lamp from the living room. They stood still for a few moments, not detecting any sounds, then walked to the bedrooms at the rear of the home. They used a small flashlight to illuminate the way, then stopped when they reached the largest bedroom at the end of the hallway. According to the floor plan, this was the master suite.

They approached a dresser and found a small wooden jewelry chest in plain view. Their gloved hands opened it and the flashlight’s beam reflected off the gold and diamond baubles the chest contained. The intruder took a black vinyl drawstring bag from a pocket and transferred the contents to the bag.

They switched off the flashlight, then retraced their steps to the French doors leading to the deck. They momentarily froze when a car passed on the street nearby. After waiting a few moments, the person left the way they had come in and moved to the street, taking advantage of the natural cover provided by shrubs and hibiscus bushes. They made their way to a black Toyota coupe parked down the block and got in.

The driver pulled off the black hood of the catsuit, then fluffed her long dark brown hair, letting it cascade to her shoulders. She pulled down the visor and looked into the lighted vanity mirror, arranging her hair with her fingers. She checked her tanned face for a moment and satisfied herself that she looked natural, not like someone who had just committed a home invasion.

She drove slowly along the narrow street, then crossed a wooden bridge that traversed the channel that ran through the subdivision. When she reached the Overseas Highway she merged with the northbound traffic and maintained the speed limit to avoid any attention from the police routinely patrolling the highway. She glanced at the small bag of gems on the passenger seat and smiled, feeling a little giddy. She gazed forward and saw the marker sign on the right berm, the one reminding her that she was 15 miles from Key Largo.

She continued her northern trek while doing mental calculations. Tonight marked the sixth successful break-in over the past two weeks at various locations along The Keys. All were of fancy homes owned by well-to-do people with more money than they knew what to do with–wealthy industrialists and financiers who had made their riches off the sweat of blue-collar types, and the investors who fell for their scams. People who were smart enough to fleece the flock and dodge the subpoenas when the lawsuits began flying.

The woman slowed as she reached the entrance to the Sunset Resort on the Gulf side of Key Largo. She signaled her turn, then crossed the median into the parking lot, nosing the coupe into a spot at the end of the building, where there was no security camera. She got out, used a key card to enter the hotel, and took the elevator to the third floor. She hesitated before walking to her room, checking that there were no guests in the hallway.

Once inside the suite, the woman transferred tonight’s haul into a gallon-size freezer bag. She took a moment to give a closer look at something that had caught her eye. It was a gold pendant in the shape of a unicorn, about two inches long, with emeralds making up the horn and eyes, on a heavy rope chain. She pocketed the necklace, then secured the bag alongside three others in the designated hiding place.

BUY LINKS

Amazon

Out of the Shadows (Nick Seven Book 8) – Kindle edition by Smith, Tim. Romance Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Extasy Books:

Out of the Shadows by Tim Smith | Extasy Books

REVIEWS

Five Stars: A fast-paced story from the get-go, with some romantic moments between Nick and Felicia, to relieve the suspense. Plus, a few interesting twists to keep you guessing till the end.

Five Stars: Once Again, Tim Smith has penned an excellent thriller, worthy of the highest recommendation!

BIOGRAPHY

I’m an award-winning, bestselling author of mystery/thrillers and contemporary erotic romance. I’m also a freelance writer/photographer and blogger. When I’m not writing I can often be found in The Florida Keys, indulging my passion for parasailing while seeking out the perfect Mojito.

AllAuthor page:

Tim Smith, Author | Books | Series | Interview | Deals | Newsletter | Contact | Site | AllAuthor

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Filed Under: Blog, Excerpts, Guest Bloggers, Romantic Suspense Tagged With: Contemporary Romance, Romantic Suspense and Mystery, Thriller

The Mind of the Villain #TBT #RomanticSuspense #KU #Halloween #MFRWAuthor

October 27, 2022 by Adriana Kraft

Halloween’s almost here! Did you think we were going to give away the villain’s secrets on this last Throw Back Thursday in October? Think again – but what we will do is share the opening of a creepy letter he sent her:

“Dear Detective: You may be good at games, but I am a master at them. I can hardly wait… Rest assured you are the chosen one. You will reign at the fire – no one else will do. Only one more pretender before you will mount the throne.

BLURB

Whose mask will crumble first—
the enigmatic professor of Celtic Studies,
the undercover cop masquerading as a co-ed,
or the campus stalker,
biding his time to strike again?

Is anthropology professor Matt Bayfield the Blackthorn College rapist, or a potential ally? Aloof and unapproachable, Matt has academic ambitions. He can’t escape Blackthorn College soon enough, and he doesn’t want any entanglements to slow down his exit.

Nancy Appleby would like nothing more than to solve the string of campus rape cases before Thanksgiving so she can go home. The last thing she wants is a relationship to complicate her life—but she’ll settle for a fling, especially when the sex sizzles.

The stalker has his own carefully crafted timetable, with a special date just for Nancy. Can Matt and Nancy force him out of his hidey-hole before it’s too late?

BUY LINK

Available exclusively at Amazon

Always free to read on Kindle Unlimited

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Filed Under: Blog, Excerpts, Romantic Suspense Tagged With: crime, crime fiction, detective stories, Halloween, Halloween Books, lady cop, mystery detective, Pagan, Samhain, SpookySeason, Thriller, thrillerbooks, undercover cop

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