NBtM: Book Spotlight, Guest Post, & Giveaway - MORE THAN THIS by. Shannyn Schroeder

More Than This

*by*

Shannyn Schroeder 

BLURB:

When a lonely teacher teams up with a handsome bartender for some outrageous acts, they both get more than they bargained for…

Learning her ex-husband is going to be a father, Quinn Adams is determined to have a baby of her own—without the partnership of a man. But her sister and friends believe she needs to focus on herself first, and step out of her comfort zone by completing a list of adventures. Challenge number one is to go on five dates within two weeks. After a few disastrous attempts, Quinn’s ready to give up—until sexy bartender Ryan O’Leary offers his assistance.

Ryan has always been the dependable one in his family, often at his expense. But lately, he’s been longing for a life—and a woman—of his own. The woman he has in mind is Quinn. Though it seems all she wants is friendship, Ryan can’t ignore the explosive chemistry he feels between them. In the hopes of becoming closer, Ryan offers to help out with Quinn’s list. But when she asks him for a serious favor, he’s afraid it will jeopardize his chance to become more than friends.

 

Excerpt:

Ryan stood at the opposite end of the bar from Quinn’s booth. Watching in the mirror, he saw a new side of Quinn. She was relaxed. When she’d first come into the bar with a crowd of teachers, she’d hung back from the group, ordered one drink, gulped it down, and left. It was like she had to make an appearance and she did the bare minimum. Now, she’d invited other friends here.

He couldn’t believe he’d almost been busted eavesdropping on her conversation. And, of course, it had to happen right when they got to a good part. He wanted to know if she got laid for her birthday. Judging by the way she looked when she came in, she hadn’t been given a birthday orgasm. He almost wanted to offer to change that, but knew she’d shoot him down.

A slight tap on his arm had him turning to look at his younger brother, who was supposed to be stocking alcohol.

“Who’s the gorgeous blonde?”

“Who?”

Michael hitched his chin up toward the mirror. “The one you’ve been staring at.”

“Oh. That’s Indy, but I was looking at her sister. Short dark hair.”

Michael looked at all three women. “She’s not your usual type.”

“I know.” The concept rubbed at him like a wool sweater.

 

GUEST POST

Thank you, Tawania, for hosting me today.

As a romance reader and author, there’s much to love about the genre, but it all really boils down to the hero, doesn’t it? In thinking about who I would name as my five favorite heroes, I discovered that my taste really varies. I’ve always had a thing for bad boy, alpha heroes, especially if they’re damaged, but lately I’ve discovered more beta heroes that I’m really digging.

Of course, the more I read, the more likely the list is to change. The heroes I pick today might not be on the list next year (although, some will be forever). And I excluded my own heroes because that kind of goes without saying, right? I don’t think I could really rank them, so in no specific order, here are my favorite heroes (for now):

1. Roarke (J.D. Robb’s In Death series) – What’s not to love about Roarke? He’s rich, beautiful, and loyal. He’s possessive, especially when it comes to Eve. Plus, he’s Irish and every now and then, his accent seeps through. He spends much of his time conquering the known universe, but he always has time to help Eve, even if it’s inconvenient. The thing that I love most about Roarke is that after his first meeting with Eve, he found a button that came from her clothes and he kept it. Throughout all the books, he carries that button as a reminder of his love for Eve.

2. Zach (Shiloh Walker’s Wrecked) – This book just came out and it gave me a huge book hangover, but it was so worth it. Zach is a beta hero. He’s been in love with his best friend for 17 years, but never acted on it. He carries that love and is willing to do anything to remain a part of her life. When they take that step to become more than friends, he’s cautious, but when we’re in his point of view, his emotion is tangible. He’s also hot and covered with tattoos.

3. Ranger (Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series) – I’m definitely in the Ranger camp for these books. I can see the appeal of Joe Morelli, but Ranger is all alpha. He’s bossy and aggressive and silent. It’s hard to know exactly what Ranger wants until he acts. I know Stephanie doesn’t belong with Ranger. There will never be a HEA for them, but I love to read him.

4. Kyle (Julie James’s About That Night) – Ahh…the Twitter Terrorist. Kyle is smart and savvy and goes after what he wants. He can laugh at the mistakes he made (taking down Twitter over a bad break-up). He’s close to his family, but he remembers the one special girl from many years ago and when he has a chance to get her again, he won’t back down, no matter how bad an idea it is.

5.  Sean Kowalski (Shannon Stacey’s Yours to Keep) – I love all of the Kowalski stories, but Sean is by far my favorite. He’s a soldier and I love a man in uniform. He steps up to help Emma by pretending to be her fiancé. He’s a man of few words, but when there’s something he needs Emma to know, he sticks it on a Post-it note and leaves it somewhere she’ll find it.  He’s strong and loyal and sexy.

After thinking about all these great mean, I’m feeling a little bit swoony.

Who would you choose as a favorite hero and why?

GIVEAWAY!!

Shannyn will be awarding a $10 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

FOLLOW the tour and comment; the more YOU comment, the better YOUR chances of winning. The tour dates can be found HERE:

http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/02/virtual-nbtm-tour-more-than-this-by.html

 

 

 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 

Shannyn Schroeder is a former English teacher, who now works as a part-time editor while raising her three kids.

Even though she wrote from high school through college (mostly poetry), she’d never considered a career as an author. Writing fell by the wayside as she focused her energy on creating lesson plans and new and fabulous ways to torment her teen students. One group in particular dubbed her “The Torture Master,” a title she carried into motherhood.

After the birth of baby number two, Shannyn resigned from teaching and fell in love with reading romance novels. She read so many books so quickly that her husband teased, “If you’re going to read so many damn books, why don’t you just write one?”

So she did.

That first book is safely buried on her hard drive, but the process set Shannyn on the path to professional author. She came to reading romance later than many, but lives for the happy ending because real life can be depressing. She writes contemporary romance because she enjoys the adventure of new love.

In her spare time, she loves to bake cookies and watches far too much TV, especially cop shows. She is recovering from her Diet Coke addiction, fears putting her foot in her mouth on social media, and has a renewed appreciation for the bad girls of the world.

 Web site: http://www.ShannynSchroeder.com  

 Twitter: @SSchroeder_

 Amazon - Kindle Edition:

 http://www.amazon.com/More-Than-This-ebook/dp/B009T9SCOO

Barnes & Noble - Nook Edition:

 http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/more-than-this-shannyn-schroeder/1113633559