Spring Into Love

The only thing better than romance is FREE romance. Check out over one hundred free romances from dozens of authors, including several Romance, Eh? writers.

Choose your e-reader type and go to town one-clicking all the books you can stuff into your Kindle (or Kobo or Nook or iPhone). But be warned, some of these sales are one day only so you'd better get started here.

Clean Sweeps with @elle_rush

Spring has sprung.

The grass is riz.

I wonder where

The birdies is?

It’s here. Old Man Winter can take a hike. And with that, he can take all the salt and sand from the streets, and the unwashed windows with five months of dust spatters on them, and all the extra layers of clothes.

You know what I’m getting at, right?  It’s time for spring cleaning.

Out with the old, in with the new. So long, clothes that don’t fit anymore, or that you know you won’t want next winter. Goodbye, shoes you found at the back of the closet that have a hole in the sole that you never got around to throwing away last fall.

Some people tend to accumulate things. I’m a person who never throws anything away. I went through my filing cabinet and found 1-year warranty cards for things that I bought in 2005. I wish I were kidding. My recycling bin is filled to overflowing this week.

Cleaning is not a romantic idea but it’s a fact of life. (Unless you have a significant other who does half of the cleaning and the laundry, in which case it is a labour shared and still not fun but it's only half the work.) On the plus side, you can reward yourself for all your hard work with a book at the end of the day.

I got a little lucky. My spring cleaning was combined with moving, so everything was getting scrubbed and washed anyway. I purged bags and bags of junk, and put together half a dozen boxes to go to Salvation Army and the like. My house is literally lighter than it used to be. [Correction – not everything got scrubbed. I still haven’t done the windows. But I did do the kitchen cupboards.]

I even did the junk drawers. And my bookshelves. Yes, there is stuff in my bookcase that can go. I can’t bear to throw out a book, although I have recycled a few when I’ve had to buy replacements copies. I may be the only person you’ve ever met who has bought three copies of French/English and Spanish/English paperback dictionaries and used them to death.

I often read books I enjoy more than once, which is a problem when I don’t enjoy them. I probably have a shelf’s worth of books that I don’t plan on reading a second time, or that have been in storage for so long I’ve forgotten why I kept them in the first place. What do to do with them?

In Winnipeg, we can donate them to the Children’s Hospital Book Market.  (You may have something similar in your area.)  You can trade them in a used book store, give them to a second-hand/charity store, or donate them to your library if they are new enough and in good enough condition.

I’ve recently discovered a third option.  Long-term health care facilities, nursing homes, and women’s shelters often are looking for books too. If you have some good quality paperbacks and hardcovers, consider donating them at a centre near you.  Call the main desk and ask if they have a library that takes donations.  Romances are always appreciated. Mysteries are too. I’ve found that biographies – particularly about sporting figures – are also very popular.

This is less of a problem now that I have an e-reader. Whether you have one book on it or a thousand, it still only takes up half an inch on your bookshelf.

If you’ve done your spring cleaning, or are saving it for March Break, I salute you. 

***

May I offer you a free read to celebrate after you are done?

Free e-copy of SCREEN IDOL - Hollywood to Olympus Book 1

When an actor who will do anything for a part has to romance a woman on a fundraising mission who wants nothing to do with him, he’d better hope Hollywood magic is real enough to give them both a happily-ever-after. 

Sydney Richardson should have trusted her instincts and locked the door when a Greek god appeared on her doorstep at sunrise. After months of work, she needs every second of the day to wrap up a two-part fundraiser for burn victims like herself and she can't afford to waste time with a TV hunk, no matter how good he looks in a toga. 

Chris Peck, worshipped by millions as Zeus on the hit drama Olympus, desperately wants to prove to the producers of a soon-to-be-cast romantic comedy that he doesn’t need fight scenes or special effects to make the jump to the big screen. Acting as the slave-for-a-day in the show’s fan appreciation contest was supposed to cement his everyman credibility but the winner wants nothing to do with him. 

Chris is captivated by the woman who refuses to fawn over his looks and fame, and he promises to put her fundraising efforts over the top if she’ll spend the day with him. However, just when he convinces Sydney they could have a chance together, the movie’s producers offer him an audition that would mean breaking his promise and leaving Sydney in the lurch. The king of the gods has until sunset to prove to his new off-screen love interest that Hollywood magic and reality can co-exist.

Starry Skies, Awesome Buys, and Freebies! @jsubject #books #romance

For those who don't know, the Perseid Meteor Shower is upon us. And early this morning was supposed to be the best time to see them with 150+ per hour. If you didn't catch them this morning, you can still catch them between 1 AM and 4:30 AM in the North Sky (by the constellation Perseus) for the next couple days until the full moon. More info on Space.com.

Unable to catch it outside? Or want more shooting stars? You can read about Tamara and Josh's experience watching the meteor shower in Beneath the Starry Sky. It's only 99¢ USD at Amazon for the month of August. (Yes, this was planned.)

Amazon US | UK | Canada | Germany | Australia

I have a new release this month as well. I am part of a sampler (first chapters only) with a bunch of other sci-fi romance authors. And you can get it for FREE. In fact, I'm part of Volume Six, and there are five other volumes that are available for FREE as well.

Welcome! You have arrived at a portal to the galaxy. 

Enter, and you'll be introduced by award-winning authors to worlds beyond imagining, with heroes & heroines who dare to take it to the edge and beyond. Count on these adventurers to take their best shot … at their enemies and at romance! 

Each free volume contains 10 first chapters, with links to purchase any or all of the complete books, should you wish.

Amazon | Nook | Kobo | iBooks

ARe | Google Play | Smashwords

Find Volumes 1-6 at:

ARe | Amazon | Nook | Kobo

or find all links at SFRPortals.blogspot.com

Volume Seven is coming soon.

Wishing you many great book to read!

Jessica E. Subject is the author of science fiction romance, mostly alien romances, ranging from sweet to super hot. Sometimes she dabbles in paranormal and contemporary as well, bringing to life a wide variety of characters. In her stories, you could not only meet a sexy alien or two, but also clones and androids. You may be transported to a dystopian world where rebels are fighting to live and love, or to another planet for a romantic rendezvous.

When Jessica isn't reading, writing, or doing dreaded housework, she likes to get out and walk with her giant, hairy dog her family adopted from the local animal shelter.

Jessica lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two energetic children. And she loves to hear from her readers.

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