Rockin Reads Blog Hop

Welcome to the Rockin Reads Blog Hop. What a great privilege to take part. There are prizes up for grabs at all the blogs - find the links below.

I'm giving away an ebook so keep reading.

With Halloween coming up soon, I can't help thinking about my Halloween novella, His Halloween Kisses. I loved writing this book. Although we don't celebrate Halloween much in our country yet - it is growing - I'm fascinated by the festivity of the holiday. So, I wrote a romance. Here's what it's about:

Blurb:

Ali’s never been so scared. She’s housesitting for a colleague on Halloween night, but the lights have gone out, and terrible noises and crashes send her imagination into overdrive. When her brother’s friend comes to her rescue, he kisses her in the dark three times. Once back in the light, Ali is embarrassed at allowing him to kiss her. Byron tries to ignore his strong attraction for Ali, especially seeing he’s not ready for a relationship. When Ali finds out why, she runs away, but life has other plans. What can bring them together? Fate, faith, or the memory of his Halloween kisses?

Excerpt:

The TV made a fizz, and the light from its screen compressed into a small dot. All the lights in the house went out.

A power failure.

She sat frozen for a moment, unsure what to do next. This wasn’t her own home. Where did they keep candles and torches? At her place, she stored them in the kitchen drawer, and so did her parents in her childhood house. Wouldn’t that be the logical place? Blinking furiously, she hoped to find some light somewhere to guide her to the kitchen without bumping into something. Nothing. She couldn’t see a single thing. There was no moon tonight. Probably as overcast as it had been the whole miserable, rainy, windy afternoon. She spread out her hands in front of her and walked slowly, one awkward, terrifying step at a time.

In the darkness, the sounds were magnified. Wind whined like a strangled prisoner through every window, door crack, and ceiling board. Something tapped at one of the windows from the dining room. Tap…tap…tap. Probably just a branch from a nearby bush. It couldn’t be a ghost or a zombie, could it? Her quickened pulse didn’t believe any logical arguments tonight.

Images streamed through her darkened vision—pictures of real witches, zombies with bared teeth and deathly pale faces, and horrible creatures with horrific wolf-like snouts and sharp fangs. She shivered. For some reason, tonight, Halloween was getting under her skin.

And not in a nice way.

A crash sounded in the kitchen.

Her leg remained poised for the next step, but she couldn’t take it.

She couldn’t go in there.

What was that? Terror strangled her a moment, making it hard to breathe.

Possibly only the Bauman family cat, their little black and white tabby. A smile curled her mouth in response to the calming thought. Black cat—bad luck. Yeah, she sure was overthinking this whole simple inconvenience of a power outage.

Something brushed past her leg, something warm, soft, and silent.

Hot tears sprang to her eyes.

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/His-Halloween-Kisses-Kathy-Bosman-ebook/dp/B00NLW3O20

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/his-halloween-kiss-kathy-bosman/1120353198?ean=2940150741317

Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/477020

Wattpad (first chapter free): http://www.wattpad.com/71304785-his-halloween-kisses-by-kathy-bosman?utm_source=email-uploaded_story

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/his-halloween-kisses

Itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/his-halloween-kisses/id919682735?mt=11

Book Trailer:

https://youtu.be/uxbCH6nwP0s

Giveaway

I'm giving away a copy of His Halloween Kisses to a lucky commenter on this blog post. Tell me what would make you the most scared and whether a kiss would help? :) Please also put your email address in the comment so I can send you your prize. Good luck!

White Christmas Kiss Released

Release day for my Christmas romance! Woohoo! Thank you, Astraea Press. You rock!!

Everything about the settings in this book are dreamy - white Christmas, passenger liner, Europe. All beautiful, exotic locations. It was great fun to write. And I loved working with a wounded heroine - my favourite. Rachelle's wounds are partly self-inflicted - she's too hard on herself and hasn't come to terms with her past mistakes. Don't we all suffer from regret at some stage in our lives but it becomes dangerous when it stops us from opening our heart to love.

Blurb:

Rachelle runs a little wedding chapel on the Coderica Passenger Liner. Two years on the passenger liner haven’t helped her find peace from past mistakes. Ray brings his girlfriend on the Coderica’s grand cruise to Europe. When his plans to marry her in the little chapel go horribly wrong and the relationship fails, Ray and Rachelle are drawn to each other like moths to a flame. Romance blossoms in Europe, culminating on Christmas Day. But the cruise ends and Rachelle isn’t sure she’s ready to leave the Coderica with Ray. Will the memory of their white Christmas kiss be strong enough to bring them together forever?

Excerpt:

“I’m thinking of ending the whole relationship.”

The woman walked to the fire and placed her hands near its warmth. “The air by that window is cold.”

“The weirdest thing is that I’m actually enjoying being away from her.”

“Would you like another drink?”

It was actually humorous how she avoided the conversation. He shook his head. “I’d like to get to my ship cabin safely without toppling overboard.”

“Whatever.”

“Are you feeling relaxed?”

She shrugged.

He couldn’t bear it any longer. In a moment, he rose and moved to her, placing his hands on her sagging shoulders. “What did you run away from?”

“I’m sorry?” She turned to him, her eyes haunted, cheeks flushed with embarrassment—or was it the heat of the fire?

“I can see it in your eyes…the hurt…the confusion.”

She pulled away and attempted to walk back to the window, but he grabbed her hand, desperate for her to open up and release the pent-up, albeit negative, energy. The force of their opposite movements made her spin around to face him, her soft cheeks inches from his gaze. Her lips were pursed and pale pink—no lipstick, no cracks, just smooth and plump. A warm vanilla scent wafted from her hair, mingling with the lazy smell of liqueur and wood smoke. In a moment, he’d tucked her up against him, and he’d moved his lips onto hers. The pressure he gave her surprised even him, as also the need to remain there, locked in a kiss in a smoky bar in Spain when his future wife stood vigil in a hospital back home.

He expected her to pull away and break the contact. Waited for her scathing comment to add fuel to his guilt. Instead, her whole body softened in his grasp, making him unable to retreat. He explored her mouth with simple movement, which she mirrored. They were instinctively in tune, and the arousal he experienced sent shock waves through him. It felt so intense that he was now convinced Desia wasn’t the only woman who stirred him to such passion. In fact, this felt far deeper and more intense than Desia’s…

“I have to go.” She pulled away and turned from him, grabbing her jacket in haste.

Buy Link:

Amazon

Cover Reveal - White Christmas Kiss

I warned you a few blog posts back that this would be a busy time with lots of books coming out.

But that's a good thing.

So, here it is - the cover for my Christmas romance, White Christmas Kiss.

Isn't it beautiful!?

I love this story and I loved writing it. Some stories lay close to your heart and this is one of them. Maybe because I wrote it during a difficult time in my life and also because I loved redeeming the bad girl! I delighted in giving Rachelle a chance for love. And the settings were such fun to create.

Here's the blurb:

Rachelle runs a little wedding chapel on the Coderica Passenger Liner. Two years on the passenger liner haven’t helped her find peace from past mistakes. Ray brings his girlfriend on the Coderica’s grand cruise to Europe. When his plans to marry her in the little chapel go horribly wrong and the relationship fails, Ray and Rachelle are drawn to each other like moths to a flame. Romance blossoms in Europe, culminating on Christmas Day. But the cruise ends, and Rachelle isn’t sure she’s ready to leave the Coderica with Ray. Will the memory of their white Christmas kiss be strong enough to bring them together forever?

There is a song in the book, and my friend's musical daughter is composing the tune for it. I can't wait to hear it. Here are the words to whet your appetite:

White Christmas kisses

We share with tomorrow’s wishes.

How long will they last?

Wishes last forever,

Hope never fades and dream roads lead on,

When you’re right here,

Under the falling snow,

Under the Christmas lights,

Wrapped in my arms tonight.

Don’t let go tonight.

Together we’re more beautiful than the garland tree,

The robin in flight.

Dream on, sweet lover, dream on forever,

Our white Christmas kiss lives on,

‘Til we reach the end of Christmases bright,

And hold each other’s hands through the darkest night.

Open lips, closed eyes, open hearts,

Keep your heart open forever, my love.

Don’t draw back,

I love you now.

White Christmas kisses,

Are tomorrow’s wishes,

Come true today.

I love you tonight,

When the lights are bright.

I love you forever,

Even if they dim.

Kiss me under,

The white.

Open lips, closed eyes, open hearts,

Keep your heart open forever, my love.

Don’t draw back,

I love you now.

White Christmas kisses,

Are tomorrow’s wishes,

Come true today.

I love you tonight,

When the lights are bright.

I love you forever,

Even if they dim.

Kiss me under,

The white.

What Inspired His Halloween Kisses

People have asked me whether I'll ever write a biography. I've always said my life is too boring for that. But come to think of it, I have had a few adventures. I suppose everyone's life is dotted with adventures here and there and the mundane in other places. Talk about the mundane, I love this: The Mundane Goddess

Anyway, typical me, I do get off topic way too easily, but today I want to share what inspired the opening scene in my Halloween novella, His Halloween Kisses, which should be coming out close to 31st October this year.

Ali is a young single, starting off in life. She lives with her room-mates and tries to make a bit of extra cash house-sitting for people. On Halloween night, it's blowing gusts outside and the lights go off in the house where she's staying all by herself. Strange noises and sensations send her senses and fears into overdrive. She calls her brother but his friend answers the phone. He comes to her rescue and kisses her in the dark! The kisses they share blow them both away, and thus begins a rather tumultuous relationship between Byron and Ali.

When I was a young adult living with three friends, I used to house-sit sometimes. Usually I accompanied my one friend, but once I did it on my own. A stupid decision. The house was set off a main road in a not-so-cool area of Durban at the time. The owners of the house even told me that the neighbour was a bit weird and creepy, and that I must stay away from him. Once alone at night there after work, I felt rather frightened, as you can imagine. The one night, there were many funny sounds. The house truly did seem "haunted." I use to move a heavy couch in front of my bedroom door at night just like Ali did in the story.

Anyway, my boyfriend at the time (who is actually now my husband) came to visit me there the one night. We kissed and wow, were those kisses atomic! I'd say they were one of the best I had while dating. Fuelled by fear??

So, the opening scene in His Halloween Kisses was partly inspired by true events.

I never house-sat alone again after that!

Here is an updated trailer of my book: His Halloween Kisses

Cover Reveal - My Halloween Novella

The cover for my Halloween Novella has arrived and it's GORGEOUS! AMAZING! FANTASTIC!

Here it is:

I love the colours and the atmosphere! And the little black cat sitting on the writing.

It was hard to write a Halloween book. Being a Christian, Halloween is considered by many of my faith as evil and not something we should ever celebrate. It hasn't really taken off in my country, especially the trick or treat side of it because of the crime factor, but it's becoming more popular. I've actually done a fair amount of research on the origins of Halloween and personally believe it has no evil origins. It may be used for evil purposes. I stand to be corrected though. I just like the festive feeling of having a day to dress up or make goodies, etc. I see the fun aspect of going scary - it actually helps us to deal with scary and fearful things in a way. So, no, as a Christian, I'm not anti-halloween but I don't go for witchcraft and Satanism, those types of things. I personally believe though that as Christians, we should be open to other people's beliefs. I respect those who think it's wrong but I also hope they respect me and accept that I don't see anything wrong with taking a day out of the year to celebrate and have fun in a "scary" way.

Anyway, here is the blurb of my novella. It's a fun, short read with a more young adulty feel than my other books.

Blurb:

Ali’s never been so scared. She’s housesitting for a colleague on Halloween night, but the lights have gone out, and terrible noises and crashes send her imagination into overdrive. When her brother’s friend comes to her rescue, he kisses her in the dark several times. Once back in the light, Ali is embarrassed at allowing him to kiss her. Byron tries to ignore his strong attraction for Ali, especially seeing he’s not ready for a relationship. When Ali finds out why, she runs away, but life has other plans. What can bring them together? Fate, faith, or the memory of his Halloween kisses?

I'm not going to post an excerpt yet as it's still in the editing phase. Should be up fairly soon.