Featured Author: Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
January 7, 2022 by Bethlehem Writers Group in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Contests, Featured Author of the Month tagged as #TheBWG, Bethlehem Writers Group, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Award, Fur Feathers and Scales, new release, Short Story Award, Th 2022 Short Story Award
About Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), is a community of mutually supportive fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories. BWG also publishes quality fiction through their online literary journal, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, and their award-winning A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology series.
Each anthology has an overall theme—broadly interpreted—but includes a variety of genres. All but the first anthology include stories from the winner(s) of The Bethlehem Writers Short Story Award.
Their first anthology, A Christmas Sampler: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Holiday Tales (2009), won two Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Best Anthology and Best Short Fiction.
Fur, Feathers, and Scales: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Animal Tales is the latest in A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology. BWG is proud to report this title also won two Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Best e-Book and Best Cover Design (Fiction).
About Fur, Feathers and Scales
The award-winning “Sweet, Funny, and Strange” series of anthologies from the Bethlehem Writers Group, continues with this collection of twenty-five tales about real, legendary, or imaginary animals. From snakes to ducks to unicorns, there are tales here to match any mood, provide a chuckle, or warm a heart.
Among our tales, Peter Barbour recounts a legend in “Why Bats Live in Caves,” Jerome W. McFadden asks the question of what animal to choose to be in “Recycled,” A. E. Decker shares an appreciation of cephalopods in “Tipping Point,” Ralph Hieb imagines an unconventional pet in “Buttons,” and Diane Sismour, in “Critter,” reveals that mules are not the only equines that can have a stubborn streak.
In addition, we are happy to present the winning stories from the 20 I 9 and 2020 Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Awards. Angela Albertson, our 20I9 winner, shares her heartfelt “Oranges and Roses,” and our 2020 winner, Brett Wolff, gives us a good laugh in “Hubbard Has a Fancy Bra.”
This eclectic assemblage of stories includes terrific tales from beloved BWG authors including Courtney Annicchiarico, Jeff Baird, Jodi Bogert, Marianne H. Donley, DT Krippene, Emily P. W. Murphy, Christopher D. Ochs, Dianna Sinovic, Kidd Wadsworth, Paul Weidknecht, Carol L. Wright, and Will Wright.
So cuddle up with your favorite pet-real or imaginary. No matter. You’ll find just the right story to share.
Next up for BWG
BWG is working on their Seventh anthology, An Element of Mystery: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales of Intrigue.
In connection with this anthology, they are hosting The Bethlehem Writers 2022 Short Story Award.
The 2022 Short Story Award will open on January 1, 2022. The theme will be An Element of Mystery (broadly interpreted).
BWG is seeking never-published short stories of 2,000 words or fewer. First Place will receive $250 and publication in their upcoming anthology: An Element of Mystery: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales of Intrigue or in Bethlehem Writers Roundtable.
The final judge of the 2022 Short Story Award is New York Times best-selling author Kate Carlisle
Books from Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), founded in 2006, is a community of mutually supportive, fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories, spanning a range of genres including: children’s, fantasy, humor, inspiration, literary, memoir, mystery, paranormal, romance, science fiction, women’s fiction, and young adult.
See the schedule of meetings and events here.
Featured Author: Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
January 1, 2022 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Contests, Featured Author of the Month tagged as #TheBWG, Bethlehem Writers Group, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Award, Fur Feathers and Scales, new release, Short Story Award, Th 2022 Short Story AwardAbout Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), is a community of mutually supportive fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories. BWG also publishes quality fiction through their online literary journal, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, and their award-winning A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology series.
Each anthology has an overall theme—broadly interpreted—but includes a variety of genres. All but the first anthology include stories from the winner(s) of The Bethlehem Writers Short Story Award.
Their first anthology, A Christmas Sampler: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Holiday Tales (2009), won two Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Best Anthology and Best Short Fiction.
Fur, Feathers, and Scales: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Animal Tales is the latest in A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology. BWG is proud to report this title also won two Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Best e-Book and Best Cover Design (Fiction).
About Fur, Feathers and Scales
The award-winning “Sweet, Funny, and Strange” series of anthologies from the Bethlehem Writers Group, continues with this collection of twenty-five tales about real, legendary, or imaginary animals. From snakes to ducks to unicorns, there are tales here to match any mood, provide a chuckle, or warm a heart.
Among our tales, Peter Barbour recounts a legend in “Why Bats Live in Caves,” Jerome W. McFadden asks the question of what animal to choose to be in “Recycled,” A. E. Decker shares an appreciation of cephalopods in “Tipping Point,” Ralph Hieb imagines an unconventional pet in “Buttons,” and Diane Sismour, in “Critter,” reveals that mules are not the only equines that can have a stubborn streak.
In addition, we are happy to present the winning stories from the 20 I 9 and 2020 Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Awards. Angela Albertson, our 20I9 winner, shares her heartfelt “Oranges and Roses,” and our 2020 winner, Brett Wolff, gives us a good laugh in “Hubbard Has a Fancy Bra.”
This eclectic assemblage of stories includes terrific tales from beloved BWG authors including Courtney Annicchiarico, Jeff Baird, Jodi Bogert, Marianne H. Donley, DT Krippene, Emily P. W. Murphy, Christopher D. Ochs, Dianna Sinovic, Kidd Wadsworth, Paul Weidknecht, Carol L. Wright, and Will Wright.
So cuddle up with your favorite pet-real or imaginary. No matter. You’ll find just the right story to share.
Next up for BWG
BWG is working on their Seventh anthology, An Element of Mystery: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales of Intrigue.
In connection with this anthology, they are hosting The Bethlehem Writers 2022 Short Story Award.
The 2022 Short Story Award will open on January 1, 2022. The theme will be An Element of Mystery (broadly interpreted).
BWG is seeking never-published short stories of 2,000 words or fewer. First Place will receive $250 and publication in their upcoming anthology: An Element of Mystery: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales of Intrigue or in Bethlehem Writers Roundtable.
The final judge of the 2022 Short Story Award is New York Times best-selling author Kate Carlisle
Books from Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), founded in 2006, is a community of mutually supportive, fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories, spanning a range of genres including: children’s, fantasy, humor, inspiration, literary, memoir, mystery, paranormal, romance, science fiction, women’s fiction, and young adult.
See the schedule of meetings and events here.
Under a Dark Moon Book Tour and Excerpt
November 27, 2021 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Rabt Book Tours tagged as #RABTBookTours, Georgian, historical romance, intrigue, mystery, Stella Riley
Brandon Brothers, Book 1
Historical Romance, Historical Fiction
Date Published: April 2021
Meet Adam Brandon … acutely intelligent and master-swordsman but gradually realising that he isn’t yet ready for the future he had previously planned.
Victim of a cruel deception, Camilla Edgerton-Foxe has a jaundiced view of the male sex and a tongue as sharp as her wits … but she also possesses an extraordinary talent.
A peculiar encounter offers Adam the kind of employment for which he is uniquely suited and which will exercise his mind as well as his muscles. The fly in the ointment is that Miss Edgerton-Foxe comes with it … as does
Rainham, viscount and master of disguise, with a frequently misplaced sense of humour.
From Paris, via London, to the mists and mysteries of Romney Marsh, these three are sent on the trail of something darker and infinitely more dangerous than the kegs of brandy that come ashore at the dark of the moon.
Other books in the Brandon Brothers Series
A Trick of Fate
Brandon Brothers Book 1
B.R.A.G. Medallion honoree.
Max Brandon is receiving bills for services he never ordered and goods he did not buy. For reasons he can’t begin to guess, someone is ‘borrowing’ his identity to cause him maximum annoyance.
When the games move closer to home, almost forcing him to fight a duel … more particularly, when they draw in Frances Pendleton, a lady he never expected to see again … Max vows to catch the man behind them, no matter
what the cost.
The result is a haphazard chase involving ruined abbeys, a hunt for hermits, a grotesque portrait … and a love story which, but for this odd trick of fate, might never have been given a second chance.
About the Author
Stella Riley is a British writer, living in Kent. She is the author of six
novels set in and around the English Civil Wars and the award-winning seven book Rockliffe Series – of which, Book Six, Cadenza, was the 2019 Readers’ Favourite for Romance and a 2021 Book Excellence award winner.
Under A Dark Moon is the second book in her Brandon Brothers Trilogy,
sequel to A Trick of Fate.
When not writing, she enjoys theatre, travel and playing the harpsichord.
Contact Links
Purchase Links
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER ONE
Within twenty minutes of bidding his friends good night and leaving the tavern, Adam Brandon became aware that he was being followed. This was annoying on several counts. He had no idea who would go to the trouble of setting a tail on him or why they would since, just at the moment, he didn’t imagine he could be of any particular interest to anyone. Admittedly, that wasn’t always true … but right now it was. Then there was the possibility that this wasn’t the first time someone had dogged his steps; that it had happened before and he hadn’t no noticed. That pricked his pride. He’d thought himself better than that.
He continued on his way without altering his pace. He considered luring the tail into a dark alley where he could be grabbed, pinned to a wall and questioned. It wouldn’t be very difficult. On the other hand, it might be premature. There was a chance, however small, that he was merely being followed by the only footpad in Paris stupid enough to tackle an armed man for the sake of a few coins. And that being so, the sensible course was to simply stroll onwards, taking a few sudden detours, to see if the fellow stuck with him.
He did … and was still there when Adam reached his lodgings on the Rue des Minimes. With a brief nod for the concierge, he ran swiftly upstairs to the nearest window and was just in time to see his follower raise a hand as if signalling to someone before melting into the shadows on the far side of the street.
Not a footpad, thought Adam with a sort of amused grimness. And not alone. What, then? And why? What possible reason could anyone have for wanting to know my every move? But whoever it is, they’re making a mistake because now I’ll have to do something about it. And that’s just tiresome.
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Meet the Cast from The Last Goodnight
November 8, 2021 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Guest Posts
THE LAST GOODNIGHT is Kade Logan’s story, the first book in my new Blood Ties series. The story, set on Kade’s Diamond Bar ranch in Colorado, revolves around the unsolved murder eight years ago of his estranged wife. Now Heather’s car has been hauled out of a nearby lake and Kade is determined to track down the man who killed her.
To handle the job, Kade hires Eleanor Bowman, a private investigator who works for Nighthawk Security in Denver. Unfortunately, their efforts to solve the murder lead them into far greater peril than either of them are prepared to handle.
It’s my pleasure to introduce you to the characters in the story.
The Hero
Kade Logan, our hero, is a throwback to another place and time. He is a real-life cowboy who owns and runs a nineteen-thousand acre cattle ranch a three-hour drive northwest of Denver.
From the day he was born, Kade was meant to be a rancher. Raising cattle, spending most of his time out of doors, it’s everything he loves—unlike his two brothers, Gage and Edge, who want nothing to do with the ranching way of life.
At six-foot-two, with sun-streaked mink brown hair and a wide-shouldered, vee-shaped body, hard-muscled from his work on the ranch, Kade has no trouble attracting women.
Unfortunately, after years of his late wife’s infidelities, there is no way he is getting trapped by a beautiful woman again. Learning to trust is Kade’s biggest issue, not one easily resolved. That and the guilt and rage he feels for not bringing Heather’s killer to justice.
The Heroine
Enter our heroine, Eleanor Bowman. Ellie stands five feet-four-inches tall, with thick dark auburn hair and a spectacularly sexy figure.
Ellie, a private investigator, specializes in going undercover, being able to blend in with different types of people and their surroundings. She’s been hired for everything from catching a cheating husband to finding employees who have been stealing for years.
Though she prefers not to carry a weapon, Ellie owns a Glock 9, semi-automatic pistol and is a very good shot.
Raised on a small ranch in Wyoming, which the family lost when the bank foreclosed, Ellie hasn’t had it easy, but even after a failed marriage, she’s managed to do a good job of taking care of herself. With her background in ranching, Ellie is the perfect person to go undercover on Kade’s ranch.
Of course, being distrustful of women, Kade is completely against the idea. Especially when he feels an instant attraction to Ellie. Though he’d like to take her to bed, having her snooping around the ranch is a whole different matter. Forced to make a decision and determined to find Heather’s killer, Kade finally agrees to hire her.
It doesn’t take long for him to admit he is damned glad he did.
The Town
The tiny town of Coffee Springs not far from the ranch is a character in the novel. There is Rocky Mountain Supply, a big metal building that’s the only mercantile for miles around. Murray’s Grocery is just down from the Coffee Springs Bed and Breakfast, which is close to the post office. Across the street, you’ll find Fred’s Gunshop and Dentistry, and just down the block, the hub of town, the Coffee Springs Café.
The place wouldn’t be a Colorado cow town without the Elkhorn Bar and Grill and its Friday night dances, with music by the local country western band.
Some of the locals include the town gossip, Frances Tilman, the stout, gray-haired manager of the mercantile; handsome, dark-haired, blue-eyed Jonas Murray, the local ladies’ man; and Sheriff Glen Carver, an attractive blond man who, like the good-looking bartender at the Elkhorn, may or may not have been involved with Kade’s late wife. Speculation is that one of her lovers killed her.
It’s Ellie’s job to find out which one. The trouble is, to do it, she needs to leash her unwanted attraction to Kade and keep both of them safe as problems erupt on the ranch and the danger escalates from an investigation to matters of life and death.
I hope you’ll watch for THE LAST GOODNIGHT and that you enjoy it.
Till next time, all best wishes and happy reading, Kat.
You can read a review of The Last Goodnight, here on A Slice of Orange. And you can read an excerpt here.
Some of Kat Martin’s Books
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Dianna Sinovic, Featured Author
November 7, 2021 by Dianna Sinovic in category Featured Author of the Month tagged as Dianna Sinovic, Featured Author of the Month, Quill and Moss, Short Stories
Author of the Month: Dianna Sinovic
Dianna is a contributing author in the last two anthologies from The Bethlehem Writers Group, Fur, Feathers, and Scales, Sweet, Funny and Strange Animal Tales and Untethered, Sweet, Funny & Strange Tales of the Paranormal. She has also contributed stories for the Bethlehem Writers Roundtable ezine, including “In the Delivery.”
Born and raised in the Midwest, Dianna has also lived in three other quadrants of the U.S. She writes short stories and poetry, and is working on a full-length novel about a young woman in search of her long-lost brother.
She is a member of Sisters in Crime, Horror Writers Association, The American Medical Writers Association, and The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC.
Dianna also has a regular column here on A Slice of Orange, titled Quill and Moss, in which she frequently includes short fiction.
Below, you can also listen to Dianna read her short story, “Cold Front” from the GLVWG Writes Stuff anthology.
Other books by Dianna Sinovic
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