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Beat Your Winter Blues Blog Hop

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Redemption by Fire
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andrewgreybooks

Beat Your Winter Blues Blog Hop

[info]andrewgreybooks
1/25/12 02:30 am
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Redemption by Fire





January 25, 2012


Don’t forget to check out Permanently Legless from J L Merrow and Tailor Made form Josephine Myles 

Coming Soon:  Academic Pursuits from Lou Harper.  Lou will be giving away a copy of Academic Pursuits at her Blog  http://louharper.blogspot.com on after its January 29th release so check it out.

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This week, we're taking a trip to some of our favorite winter getaway destinations, so hang on and enjoy the fun.  Please comment on this entry and you could win an electronic copy of Andrew Grey's An Unsettled Range.

From Josephine Myles:

For my stop, I'd like to take you to the tiny archipelago of Malta in the centre of the Mediterranean. Now, I'm not a great one for roasting in the sun so there's no way I'd choose to visit Malta during the summer months, but in the winter it's just perfect. The weather there at this time of year is mild and sunny, and there aren't too many tourists around to get in the way so you can see more of the laidback Maltese way of life. There are so many things to visit beside the beaches: grand churches, roadside shrines and stunning prehistoric temples. Even better for a typical English person like me who can't speak any foreign languages, English is the second official language there so everyone speaks it pretty fluently.

    
The best thing to my mind, though, is the buses. You haven't explored the island properly until you've got on one of its bone-rattling, vintage red and yellow buses and gone on a white-knuckle ride through the countryside! I was always excited to see how the driver decorated the dashboard. Most were covered in Catholic kitsch, but now and again you'd get a bit of Elvis memorabilia mixed in, or find someone with a thing for skeletons so it ended up looking like a Mexican Day of the Dead. British buses don't have anywhere near the same charm!
Malta: beautiful countryside, fascinating history, delicious seafood and friendly people - you don't get much better than that :)

From J. L. Merrow

I really cannot be doing with all this winter sun business. Sun? Warm weather? Isn’t that what we have summer for?

No, when I go away in winter, I want winter to pack its thermal undies and its earmuffs and come with me. Coming from the south of England, you understand, I don’t get a whole lot of proper winter. Which makes it even more magical, for me, to go somewhere they do winter right.  Like Vienna, Austria.

Okay, so a place like this would look pretty good any day—but doesn’t the snow add a certain something?  And there’s nothing like sight-seeing in the icy winter air, then popping into a Kneipe to warm up with a mug of hot Glühwein—or two, or three...

City parks are often dusty, overcrowded places in summer, full of office workers catching the sun—but in the snow, they’re magical; an urban Narnia.

From Marie Sexton:

Although I've only been there once, my favorite winter getaway is Hawaii! A couple of years ago, our entire family rented a vacation home in Kapoho for Thanksgiving. We were right on the beach. We had a private snorkeling pond and an amazing view of the sunrise over the ocean. This picture shows the sunrise from our balcony. That pool of water you can see right in the foreground was our private pond. We cooked our entire Thanksgiving meal on the grill (no turkey, but lots of fresh fish). So, who wants to go with me? Arbor Mist is on me!

From J. P. Barnaby:

Though the Little Boy Lost series took place predominantly in San Diego, I’d never been to the city until this past December to visit my friend, adult model Phillip Aubrey (http://www.phillipaubreyxxx.com). Just one week before Christmas, when it was snowing in my hometown of Chicago, Aubrey and I hung out at the beach with his sweet dog Lula, sat on the porch without so much as a jacket, visited an outdoor market, and sat outside at Rich’s (a dance club) with friends.


   

The weather in San Diego isn’t all that’s warm and friendly. While in the city, a group of friends that I’d been talking to on Twitter decided to meet up at Baja Betty’s a wonderful Mexican themed bar and restaurant in Hillcrest (the area of San Diego with the boarding house from Little Boy Lost). We spent the afternoon talking and I made some great new friends for which I am thankful. Before I started to publish, meeting new people was almost painful for me because I am incredibly shy.

Aubrey was a fantastic host. Whenever he saw someone he knew, he would introduce me as this amazing author making me sound much more interesting than I truly am. At the Colt event we went to on Friday night, he kept catching my eye to make sure I felt comfortable. But then, who wouldn’t feel comfortable in a room full of gay men in leather? The Eagle was an interesting part of the trip that I have to say was probably one of my favorite highlights.

So where would I take my readers for a warm, sunny trip this winter? I’d take them to San Diego to visit an amazing city with some truly fabulous friends because the only things hotter than the ocean beaches are the men. 

From Andrew Grey:



My favorite winter getaway is to the Caribbean. For the last four years in the middle of winter, my partner and I have gotten on plane from Pennsylvania and flown to a warm port where we board a cruise ship bound for sand, sun, and warmth. We spend a week snorkeling, lying on lounge chairs on warm, sunny beaches, and even surfing the waves (usually on the ship’s flowrider.) That week’s respite is enough of a break form cold, snow, and ice to see us through the rest of the winter.

From Lou Harper:

I live in LA, I don't need a winter getaway. This is the place where people get away to. Here and Florida. If I wanted a change of scenery, I'd go to somewhere with snow. I wouldn't even have to go far. I can see the snow-capped mountains from where I live, and Big Bear is only a few hours of drive away. I never had the urge.  However, once not long after I moved to the City of Angles and perpetual sun, I flew back to Indiana once to visit friends. I was miserable—it was gray, gray, and cold. The low hanging sky appeared trying to snuff the life out of the land below. It would've been a merci killing. So thanks, but I'm staying put.




From Ellis Carrington:

I have to say, I'm a big fan of the warm and sunny. My absolute favorite winter getaway is the Villas Shanti yoga retreat in Puerto Morelos, Mexico. It's a sleepy, relaxing and bright little seaside place where you can enjoy yoga, the beach, shopping, or just relaxing in a hammock with a good book from the local used bookstore. For the more adventurous types there are snorkeling excursions and trips to visit the Mayan ruins. I was so inspired by Puerto Morelos I used it as the setting for my angels and demons novella, Amor Prohibido. The paradise setting along with the Mayan ruins and their accompanying mythology are so fascinating. The area is so lovely, especially if you're able to wake up early enough to see the sun rise. Right now, outside my front door, the streets are icy and the temperature is in the twenties. But in Puerto Morelos it is 60 degrees and sunny, and I could eat chips and salsa outside while I listened to a band play in the square. Just the way I like it. I can't wait to get back there.   

Meet your authors:

JL Merrow is that rare beast, an English person who refuses to drink tea. She read Natural Sciences at Cambridge, where she learned many things, chief amongst which was that she never wanted to see the inside of a lab ever again. Her one regret is that she never mastered the ability of punting one-handed whilst holding a glass of champagne. She writes across genres, with a preference for contemporary gay romance and the paranormal, and is frequently accused of humour. Find JL Merrow online at: www.jlmerrow.com

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English through and through, Josephine Myles is addicted to tea and busy cultivating a reputation for eccentricity. She writes m/m erotica and romance, but finds the erotica keeps cuddling up to the romance and the romance keeps corrupting the erotica. Jo blames her rebellious muse but he never listens to her anyway, no matter how much she threatens him with a big stick. She’s beginning to suspect he enjoys it. Check out Jo’s website and blog at josephinemyles.com

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Marie Sexton lives in Colorado. She’s a fan of just about anything that involves muscular young men piling on top of each other. In particular, she loves the Denver Broncos and enjoys going to the games with her husband. Her imaginary friends often tag along. Marie has one daughter, two cats, and one dog, all of whom seem bent on destroying what remains of her sanity. She loves them anyway. You can find out more about Marie at http://mariesexton.net/.

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Erotic fiction is more than just moans, grunts, and physical pleasure. To J.P. Barnaby, erotic fiction consists not only of the mechanics of physical love, but the complex characters and relationships that lead to those all-encompassing feelings of need and longing. Sex without context is merely sex—but sex coupled with attraction, with explosive repercussions—that is good erotic fiction. J.P. authors all different kinds of erotic fiction including gay, straight, male, female, BDSM, sweet, romantic, and dark.As a bisexual woman, J.P. is a proud member of the GLBT community both online and in her small town on the outskirts of Chicago. A member of Mensa, she is described as brilliant but troubled, sweet but introverted, and talented but deviant. She spends her days writing software and her nights writing erotica, which is, of course, far more interesting. The spare time that she carves out between her career and her novels is spent reading about the concept of love, which, like some of her characters, she has never quite figured out for herself. Find JP at her website and on Twitter.


Andrew Grey grew up in western Michigan with a father who loved to tell stories and a mother who loved to read them. Since then he has lived throughout the country and traveled throughout the world. He has a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and works in information systems for a large corporation. Andrew's hobbies include collecting antiques, gardening, and leaving his dirty dishes anywhere but in the sink (particularly when writing) He considers himself blessed with an accepting family, fantastic friends, and the world’s most supportive and loving partner. Andrew currently lives in beautiful, historic Carlisle,, Pennsylvania. You can find out more at www.andrewgreybooks.com , on facebook, twitter, or email him at andrewgrey@comcast.net

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Under a prickly, cynical surface Lou Harper is an incorrigible romantic. Her love affair with the written word started at a tender age. Lou's favorite animal is the hedgehog. She likes nature, books, movies, photography, and good food. She has a temper and mood swings. Lou is a loner, a misfit, and a happy drunk. You can find Lout at http://louharper.com and http://louharper.blogspot.com.
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Ellis Carrington is a wild child who hates to color in the lines, but who lives and loves passionately. She can be found in and around the Washington D.C. area, swilling Starbucks and saying inappropriate things out loud in public. Her greatest loves are good friends, good music, and of course reading M/M romance.Find out more at EllisCarrington.com



Sixteen authors are here to do their best to make your winter brighter in January, February, March, and April. (Unless you’re south of the equator, and then we’ll just be jealous of your summer.) Every Wednesday will be a new stop on the tour (see schedule below). Be sure to leave a comment at each stop for up to sixteen chances at the grand prize: a $200 USD gift certificate to the e-retailer of your choice. Also keep an eye out for links to individual authors’ sites on their release dates for a chance to win some free books.

January 11: How We Beat the Winter Blues (hosted by Coffee & Porn in the Morning)

January 18: Favorite Wintertime Activities (hosted by Josephine Myles)

January 25: Join us for a January getaway (hosted by Andrew Grey)

February 1: Winter in My Backyard (hosted by Lou Harper)

February 8: “If I could get away right now, I’d go to...” (hosted by Ellis Carrington)

February 15: Valentine’s Day (hosted by J.L. Merrow)

February 22: Authors by the Fireside (hosted by Kate McMurray)

February 29: Join us for a February getaway (hosted by Z.A. Maxfield)

March 7: Things to Do in a Blizzard (hosted by S.A. Meade)

March 14: St. Patrick’s Day (hosted by Clare London)

March 21: Spring Break (hosted by Blaine Arden)

March 28: Join us for a March Getaway (hosted by Tales from the Writing Cave)

April 4: Favorite Winter Movies (hosted by Stumbling Over Chaos)

April 11: Signs of Spring (hosted by J.P. Barnaby)

April 18: Join us for an April Getaway (hosted by Marie Sexton)

April 25: Farewell (hosted by Joyfully Jay)

April 30: Grand Prize Announcement (hosted by Heidi Cullinan)

Every week we’ll also let you know what books are recently released and about to be released, complete with links to giveaways.

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