Three geeky freebies!

The first day of school is in five days. I'm super excited. I finally get back my writing time!

This weekend is also one of the biggest gaming conventions in the world, Gen Con. Have you ever been to a huge convention? It's a phenomenal experience. So much to do!

I won't get a chance to go this year, but at least I'll get to play with my gaming group next Friday. It's one of the highlights of my week to be creative, scheme, and laugh with friends.

In celebration of geeks everywhere, my hilarious and steamy trilogy, Dice & Debauchery is free for five days!

Loose Corset (Book #1)

Layers of Lace (Book #2)

Masked Kiss (Book #3)

Starting off the summer with free geeky romance!

It's the first day of summer break in my household. While I'm excited about getting in some family time, I'll be losing a lot of a writer time.

To help my sanity, once a week, a group of gamer buddies come over to our house and we play for hours. We scheme, roll dice, and laugh like madmen.

 I'm sharing all that fun with you. Plus a little extra bit on the naughty side! Laughs, nerd talk, and steamy scenes.

The Dice & Debauchery series is FREE for five days!

Loose Corset (Book #1)

Layers of Lace (Book #2)

Masked Kiss (Book #3)

Thank You To All My Readers

Have I told you how awesome you are lately? You are. Every single one of you. I'm so grateful to you all for encouraging and supporting me.

I've celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving with my family up north last month. Now I'm prepping for Thanksgiving with my American family and friends. And while I can't send pie over the internet, I can share with you free books.

To those celebrating, have a Happy Thanksgiving!

And for everyone, have a laugh and a bit of steaminess!

Get hot geeks in Loose Corset here!

Find suspense, mystery, and naughtiness in the woods with Big Yearning!

What's behind Masked Kiss

Blurb:

Video game geek Josh Hanson never gets noticed by women until a gorgeous booth babe drags him into a dark room for a quickie.

She doesn't give him her name, and her face is covered by a silver mask. Josh is determined to find the dark-haired beauty again, but communication isn't easy in a huge hall filled with nerds. When they end up playing in a tournament later, the games extend into her hotel room. Josh wants more than just a con fling, but she's not easy to catch. Can he figure out how to beat her games and become her champion?

Buy the book:

Ellora's Cave * Amazon * B&N * Kobo

Add it to read on Goodreads.

Thank you so much to everyone who has helped promote the Dice & Debauchery series. Your support and encouragement means a lot to me.

This is the final book in my geeky trilogy. It was also the most difficult one to write because it's from the guy's point of view. I asked my male friends a lot of questions and received many weird looks. You'd think they'd be use to me doing so by now!

Book tidbit: I used the Konami Code in one scene!

Layers of Lace revealed!

Amateur cosplayer Emily Solis is determined to win the costume contest and the heart of her biggest competition.

It isn't the first time Emily has shed her costume with the gorgeous Russell Morrison. Not even her best friend knows she's been having wild convention sex with him for over a year. It was supposed to remain physical, but Emily couldn't help falling for him and his kinky ways. In a moment of passion, she rolls the dice and tells Russell she loves him. He doesn't say it back. Can she convince him they're perfect together or will she roll another critical failure?

Buy the book:

Ellora's Cave * Amazon * B&N * Kobo

Add it to read on Goodreads.

Get Loose Corset, the first book in the Dice & Debauchery series:

Ellora's Cave * Amazon * B&N * Kobo

This is my favorite book in the series. While Morgan in the first book is emotionally reserved, Emily and Russell have explosive feelings. They revel in their costume geekery and love drama. It made them so much fun to write.

Thank you to everyone helping me shout-out about my new release. You guys are awesome!

Friday Five for May 22, 2015

1. I have all three covers for my Dice & Debauchery series now. The final cover is my favorite! They make quite the attractive set too. One week until Layers of Lace is released! I won't be touring until August, but if you'd like to do a shout-out for me, I'd greatly appreciate it. Email me or leave a comment, and I'll send the info your way.

2. Today is my son's last day of preschool. I'm excited and a little sad. We were so lucky to have a super preschool. Small classes, play based program, and the best teachers ever! They'll have a graduation tonight. The kids will wear caps and gowns. It'll be amazingly cute! Plus we'll get cake. Mmmm... cake.

3. So with the last day of school is my last day of morning writing time for the next few months. I'm already mourning it. Yet when August comes around, my little guy will be in school for full day kindergarten. Full days every weekday to write. It's like this shiny, golden treasure just beyond my reach. Summer will go quickly, I know, and I'll enjoy it, but oh, that beautiful, shiny writing time. I can't stop thinking about it!

4. I'll be posting on my blog less in June and July, but you'll still see me lurking about at night. Not the creepy kind of lurking. Though, after long, hot days, I might look a little scary!

5. It's the long weekend. Yay! In my schedule: a renaissance birthday party, Dungeons & Dragons, and maybe we'll get to see Avengers 2. Have a fantastic weekend, folks!

Friday Five for May 15, 2015

1. Prepare for another dose of sexy geeks! Things are moving along with Ellora's Cave at a fast pace. I have a cover for Layers of Lace (Dice & Debauchery #2) and a release date for the third book, Masked Kiss. It's due out on June 26th.

2. I thought about doing a tour when the third book was released, but it's at the most inconvenient time of the year for me. So will it be bad to wait to do a tour until August? I don't know, but if I want to properly devote my time to it, that's what I'll have to do.

3. I'm also re-evaluating my writing goals for this year. I hoped to revise and publish my superhero novel, Super Famous, by October, but it doesn't look like I'll have the time to get to it until the fall. My new WIP is a great and slow beast. I'd hoped to finish the first draft by next week, but it is just beginning. Maybe I'll have it done in September.

4. One more week until school is out for the summer. Are there any other parents counting down and prepping themselves? I've got a visit with my family in Canada, day trips, YMCA day camp, and weekly park meet-ups with school friends all planned. Here's to an awesome summer!

5. Finally I wanted to give a huge thank you to Alex J. Cavanaugh for the You Rock Award. I love blogging because of our great community and Alex is a big part of it. Cheers to Alex and to all of you! Have a marvelous weekend.

Friday Five for May 8, 2015

1. Great news! I finally have a new editor with Ellora's Cave. She's quick, hilarious, and a geek. We get along wonderfully. She's enthusiastic about the next two books in my Dice & Debauchery series, and we have a release date for the second one called Layers of Lace. May 29th! Yeah, I know. It's not that far away! That date is also my wedding anniversary. So I'll have double the reason to celebrate!

2. Will I be doing a tour for the newest book? No. I'm still exhausted from the previous ones. I'll wait until the final book is released and then find a fun way to promote the whole D&D series.

3. With being sick and doing the revisions, I haven't had a chance to do any new writing or catch up on everything online. Next week should be quieter for me, and then I'll get everything in order before my son is on summer break. Wait. It's almost summer already?!

4. Today I'm helping my son's preschool set up for a big rummage sale. I was happy to purge more than I expected from our house. Funny how getting rid of physical things can make us feel lighter on every level. Do you like to go to rummage sales? Have you ever found a hidden treasure at one?

5. Happy Mother's Day this Sunday to all the wonderful moms and like-moms out there!

Doubling up on the tours!

Geek girl problem #491: You have so much awesome stuff you want to share, so you book two blog tours and then realize they overlap!

It just means double the fun for you!

Let's talk about games. Board games, video games, role-playing games.
Click on over to the wonderful Trisha's blog and tell us what your favorite games are.

Today we have Of Blood and Sorrow's protagonist, Erin Driscol.

Find out an interesting tidbit about why I had to rewrite the entire novel because of Erin.

My most awesome host is Carol Kilgore!

Plus, check out this awesome review by Graeme Ing.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour dresses up!

You don't have to have until Halloween to dress up as your favorite character.
Just go to a convention and join in the coplay fun!

Come over to the lovely Elizabeth Arroyo's blog and find out about my cosplay experiences.

Do you have your copy of Loose Corset yet?
Ellora's Cave  * Amazon * B&N * Kobo * Goodreads

And don't forget to enter the giveaway!
Story Cubes - sort of like a random story generator. So much fun!
Star Wars Galactic Dice Game - May the Force be with you!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour gets artsy!

Geek girl problem #798: There are only six more stops on the Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour!

Today I'm over at the super talented Heather Holden's blog talking about geeky art. Do you remember 8-Bit Theater?

It's the final month of this tour, and there's one more awesome geeky giveaway!

I'm giving away TWO dice games this month.
Story Cubes - "Let your imagination roll wild!"
Star Wars Galactic Dice Game. Roll high and channel the Force!

One for the writer geeks and one for the Star Wars geeks!
Plus, three lucky winners will get a unique Christine Rains die and swag.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour finishes February with an interview

It's the last tour date of February. How can this be? We need more geeky stuff. Thankfully there's still one more month left of the Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour. Yup, I'm crazy, I know.

Today I'm going to be grilled by the marvelous Tara Tyler. Find out if I would ever do a vlog. Would you? Do you know what it is?

There are still a few days left to win a fantastic game called Zombie Dice. There will be a new giveaway next month, but it won't have brain-eating powers!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour wants braaaaiiins!

Writing geeky romance is tricky business. Click on over to the amazing TB Markinson's blog for some tips.

Today is the last day to get TB's book, Claudia Must Die for free! It's a fantastic thriller. Quirky characters in a dire situation.

Braaaiiiiiiiins! Enter for a chance to win Zombie Dice and a unique Christine Rains die.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour teases you some more and Very Inspiring Blogger Award

Geek girl problem #432: All the new books you want to read come out on Tuesdays and you don't get paid until Fridays!

I'm over at the awesome Shannon Lawrence's blog today to hook you in with another excerpt.

 A BIG thank you to Jeff Chapman for nominating me for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award! He's a talented speculative fiction author, and I'm so happy that recently he became a part of Untethered Realms.

The rules for accepting this award are as follows:
1. Thank the person who nominated you, and link to their blog.
2. Display the award logo.
3. Nominate at least 15 other blogs (more or less) and provide a link where they may be found.
4. Then, go to their blog, leave a comment to let them know they have been nominated, and where to find the information they need to accept (rules).
5. Mention three things that inspired you the most during the past few weeks. 

Here are three things that inspired me:

1. My son's bravery. He recently had surgery on his eyes to correct an eye turn. A scary thing for a small child. Scary for anyone to have an operation on their eyes! But he didn't complain, whine, or cry. He was sweet, well-mannered, and incredibly brave even after two and a half hours of waiting at the surgery center before he was taken into the OR. What an amazing and wonderful person he's grown to be.

2. Heather Von St. James and her victory over asbestos cancer. Read my blog post here.

3. The tree in my front yard has little buds on it. I feel that excitement every year when I see it budding and know that it will soon be in full flower. It's a Cleveland Pear, and when the flowers are in full blossom, it's so pretty. My next novel will be set in early spring so I can have a tree just like it in it.

I'm not going to nominate anyone in particular. Every one of you is an inspiration. Do not doubt it.

Zombie Dice. You know you want them!

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The Geek meets the Ninja and welcome to Susan Gourley

Get your geek on!

I'm over at the Ninja Captain's blog talking about nerdy TV shows today.

While I'm away, I have some good company for you.

I'm so pleased to welcome on my blog today the very talented Susan Gourley.

Walking the Line

Thanks, Christine, for having me on your blog. Like you, I write speculative fiction, a very broad genre category. My romances are categorized as science fiction romance, and according to the reviews on Amazon, attract fans of science fiction and romance. I’m sure many of my readers are fans of both genres, but some are one or the other. The challenge is how to satisfy those readers and give them what they want when they read my books.

So how do I walk that line? Where is the line between too much real science, or fake science, and too much romance?

Romance readers don’t want a long explanation of the physics needed for my hero and heroine to travel between solar systems and galaxies at warp speed. And it is fiction, so the ability to travel beyond light speed is perfectly acceptable without a technical explanation. For one of my novel series, The Recon Marines, I invented a fuel source that explained how ships could stay in space indefinitely. But since all the characters in the novel already understood how the fuel and space travel worked, there was no reason to explain it to readers. It was accepted as part of that world.

Science fiction readers don’t mind a love story intertwined in a futuristic adventure as long as the romance isn’t too ‘hot and steamy’ and doesn’t overwhelm the external conflict of the novel. The best relationships in science fiction novels are forged in whatever battles the protagonists are fighting.

The science fiction parts of the story lend themselves to situations where an intense relationship can develop. Other worlds are likely to have severe climates, varying lengths of days and nights, as well as medical advances, and alien enemies that can make for great plot devices. I’ve used all four of those devices to put my characters into trouble or get them out of trouble.

Mixing the protagonists reactions to the plots devices with some actual and invented science will hopefully satisfy both genre lovers. Though in this business you can’t please everybody, the right balance of romance and science will make a lot of diverse readers happy.

How much science do you like in your romances? Do you know an author who balances romance with another genre perfectly for your tastes? Do you have a favorite science fiction plot device?

The Warrior and the Governor by Susan Kelley (Book #2 in Bestselling Warrior Series)

Gaviron warrior Liam has lost everything and lives only to take revenge on the monstrous raynid creatures and will risk his life without caution. Governor Siva will take any help she can get to save her desperate colony from the merciless invading species, even a suicidal fighter like Liam. As her understanding of the grim alien warrior grows, Siva tries to give Liam a reason to live. As Liam broken heart lets in Siva and her daughter, he finds he once again has someone worth dying for. Defeating their common enemy may cost them everything.

Susan Kelley is multi-published in science fiction romance and writes high fantasy as Susan Gourley. You can find her at Susan Says or on Twitter and Facebook.

* * * * *

Have you entered to win Zombie Dice yet?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Getting Geekier on the Geeky Tour

Space: the final frontier.

These are the nerds who built our ships and gadgets.

Their lifelong mission: to explore strange new fandoms, to seek out new books and new sciences, to boldly go where no geek has gone before.

Today I'm over at the wonderful Ellie Garratt's blog where I'm talking about geeks in space!

You still have a few hours left to enter January's giveaway.

Dice. You know you want them.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Time for a teaser!

The geeky fun continues!

And it's time to tease you.

Head on over to the lovely Loni Townsend's blog

for an excerpt from Loose Corset.

You still have a few days left to enter to win your own set of gaming dice!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Loose Corset Tour delivers an interview & Clare Dugmore's All It Takes

Geeks are sexy.

Find out more about nerdy me today.

I'm being interviewed at Booklover Sue's.

If you've picked up my book, please consider leaving a review after you've read it. Even if it's just one line saying you loved it or that it made you blush. Reviews are so important to authors.

* * * * *

I'm so excited to share the start of something awesome!
The wonderfully talented Clare Dugmore is posting a serial romance with each chapter being an episode.

All It Takes is one night to change the rest of their lives.

Graduating Uni, travelling Europe and buying her own place – these are on Megan Green’s to-do list.

At just twenty-two, becoming a mother isn’t.

Fast cars, expensive clothes and bedding a different women every night – this is how Kian Murphy spends his time when not in the MMA ring. 

Pre-natal scans and birthing classes are not on his agenda.

After a chance meeting and passionate encounter, Megan finds herself pregnant with Kian’s child. But with a womanizing reputation, and a temper that often leads him into trouble, Kian is hardly boyfriend material, let alone father material.

Now Megan and Kian must work out if they have All It Takes to turn their one-night-stand into a relationship that will connect them for a life-time.

All It Takes is a dual-POV new-adult, contemporary-romance about responsibility, love and discovering who you are in life. 

Goodreads | Wattpad | Figment | FictionPress

Content: 

Chapter One - First published January 21, 2015: Wattpad | Figment | FictionPress

Chapter Two - February 4, 2015

The Loose Corset tour continues!

Today my host is Susana Ellis at Susana's Morning Room.

I interviewed my geek girl protagonist Morgan Reid.

Find out what she was thinking when she first met the gorgeous Dean Bradley.

Next Stop on the Loose Corset Tour!

Ready for more geeky fun?

Today I'm being interviewed at It's Raining Books.
My favorite kind of rain storm!

Do you have your copy of Loose Corset yet?

Ellora's Cave * Amazon * B&N * Kobo

Add it to read on Goodreads!