Tiffany Allee - Temptation by Fire is featured on the HBS Author's Spotlight Showcase

Today our blog puts the Spotlight on Author Tiffany Allee. She is a Paranormal Romantic Suspense writer.

This blog is sponsored by the Buy The Book Tour.

Paranormal Romantic Suspense

Temptation by Fire

Entangled Ignite

Author: Tiffany Allee


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Visions of death haunt her . . .

Ava Keller sees the future. When she suffers a horrifying vision of a man's violent death, she knows from experience nothing she does will stop it from becoming a reality. But when she meets a strong, broken man, he makes her want to believe in second chances.

Vengeance consumes him . . .

Tortured by his past, Karson has worked tirelessly to wreak vengeance on the demons who murdered his family. But when Ava inadvertently disrupts his intricate plan for revenge, his focus shifts to an all-consuming need to keep her alive and in his arms.

Love could save their souls . . .

Thrown together by fate, Ava and Karson explore their new feelings and discover hope for the future. But they must battle the demons threatening humanity to find a destiny worthy of their love.

Excerpt

Monstrous. That was the only word for it. Deep reds and yellows flashed at me, hurting my eyes. The sparkles were almost enough to put me right over the edge. What the heck were those things?

Rhinestones? Who wore rhinestones anymore?

Only Miriam.

“What do you think, Ava?” Miriam asked.

I bit my lip, searching my mind for a way to tell her that it was the fugliest thing I’d ever seen without off ending her. I cast a quick glance about us. Thanks to the after-dinner hour, the hospital cafeteria where we sat at a chipped Formica-topped table was almost empty. No one else seemed to notice us, or the horrible dress that my best friend was waving around. But combined with the smell of disinfectant that clung to the stark white walls and pastel plastic furniture, the dress was enough to make me dizzy.

Nope. There was no way to be polite.

“I think it’s horrible,” I admitted. Miriam’s fashion sense tended toward the wild side, but that dress crossed a line. Besides the garish sequins, the neckline looked like it would hit her navel.

“Really?” Miriam held the dress at arm’s length and studied it with a critical eye. “I thought it might be nice for the graduation party. I don’t graduate from medical school every day. Might be a good chance to wear something saucy.”

I suppressed a shudder at the idea of wearing something so flashy in public. But that was Miriam. Brave and fun and willing to journey into the scariest places fashion offered. Despite our differences, we’d been best friends ever since the day in middle school when Miriam decided we would be.

Miriam got what Miriam wanted.

She was also my favorite person in the world. So it worked out pretty darn well for me.

“Besides, once I start my residency, I won’t be out of scrubs for years,” she said. “There’s only so much you can do to make scrubs look good.”

The ache that had settled into my chest ever since the reality of Miriam leaving had hit me flared into pain. I was twenty-five for crying out loud, far too old to be using my best friend as a security blanket, even if she was leaving me alone in Chicago to pursue her dream of being a medical doctor in New York City. Mentally quashing the loneliness, I forced a grin.

My grin didn’t fool her and she frowned at me, then shoved the dress back into a Nordstrom bag. “You’re tougher than you think.”

“I know,” I said automatically. My fear of getting physically near people—heck, even being in the same room as large groups—was the source of many, many, many of our arguments. Especially lately. The last thing I wanted was to get into it again. Miriam was a gem, but she spent way too much time worrying about me.

Some things weren’t fixable.

I pushed down the self-pity the thought caused. The emotion was silly, self-indulgent, and unfounded. Sure, I wasn’t exactly sociable because of the constraints placed on me by my curse, but I still had a decent life. One that was a heck of a lot better than most people’s.

As long as I was careful not to touch anyone.

“So, I need to get as much Ava-time in as I can before I go. What are you doing tonight? You should come with me to find something to wear to the party, since you have to compete against this amazing dress.”

Compete against that? So not my style. The dress was a walking banner proclaiming Miriam to be vivacious and outgoing.

And more than a bit of a daredevil. If my clothes had a sign attached, it would identify me as “cautious,” or just scream “don’t touch.” There was no competition. And shopping? A sudden need to be out of this place, alone and in my own space, hit, and I tugged on my sleeves.

Miriam’s gaze shifted, just enough that I could tell she noticed. Awesome friend that she was, she pretended she hadn’t. “Actually, I’m a little beat,” she said. “Maybe I could bring a movie over? Something filled with angst and love and Colin Firth.”

“Are you ever getting out of the Colin Firth phase?”

She pushed up from the table, face serious. “Colin Firth isn’t a phase, Ava. He’s a way of life.”

“He’s a tad refined for my taste, but”— I stood and pushed my chair in—“I wouldn’t want to deprive you of something so important.”

Miriam turned to walk out of the cafeteria when she suddenly froze, her eyes widened, and her gaze locked on something over my shoulder. She let out a quiet whistle. “Wow, cute. Forget Colin Firth.”

As casually as I could, I snuck a glance behind me.

The man was anything but cute.

He could have been anywhere from his late twenties to midthirties. His good looks weren’t marred by the thick and ropey scar that ran down the side of his face and neck. I could see him playing Double Oh Seven, not Darcy. But the way he carried himself—arrogant but guarded—seemed out of place in the quiet hospital. His gaze weighed and categorized everything it took in and made my stomach clench and my heart speed up.

Fight or flight?

I looked at Miriam. “Quit grinning at him,” I whispered. “He looks like a thug.”

Author Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy

Website: Tiffany Allee
Author's Blog: Tiffany Allee
Twitter: @TiffanyAllee
E-Mail: tiffany(@)tiffanyallee.com
Goodreads: Check Out Goodreads
Facebook: Check Out Facebook


Author Description: CPA-turned-romance-author Tiffany Allee used to battle spreadsheets in Corporate America, and now concentrates on her characters’ battles to find love. Raised in small-town Colorado, Tiffany currently lives in Phoenix, AZ, by way of Chicago and Denver. She is happily married to a secret romantic who tolerates her crazy mutterings.

She writes about ass-kicking heroines and the strong heroes who love them. Her work includes the suspense-driven From the Files of the Otherworlder Enforcement Agency series which revolves around a group of paranormal cops solving crimes and finding love, and Don’t Bite the Bridesmaid, a lighthearted paranormal romance (Entangled Publishing). Tiffany has an MBA in accounting and nearly a decade of experience in corporate finance. All super useful stuff for a writer who spends far too much time trying to figure out fun ways to keep her characters apart, and interesting ways to kill people (for her books—of course!).

SHOWCASE Questions and Answers with the Author

Congratulations on your book: Temptation by Fire. Do you have another book on the horizon? Can you tell us the timeline for its release and give us a little tease?

Thank you so much! And thank you for having me here today. I do have a new book on the horizon—the next book in my Sons of Kane series. It is the sequel to Don’t Bite the Bridesmaid, and it will be out in April. An unedited teaser can be found here: http://tiffanyallee.com/2013/10/06/teaser-sons-of-kane-book-two/

You have a good following on twitter. How important have your social media relationships been? How did you build your following in your niche? Did you use forums, newsletters and methods like that?

My social media relationships have been very important. It’s difficult to say how they work to build a following for my books, but I enjoy social media for the interaction. I’ve found it best to join the things I’m interested in, and then to simply to be genuine. It’s a great way to meet interesting people and you never know when a new reader might find you that way.

You have great covers. They carry a theme and your brand with them. How does your book cover creation process work? Do you hand over the basic theme or do you have more of a hands-on approach? Do you get your readers involved in its development?

Thank you! I fill out a cover sheet and have an opportunity to make suggestions, but most of the cover creation is left to my publisher and the fabulous cover artists they work with. I think that this works very well as they know the market and are likely monitoring what works and what doesn’t better than I am able to.

What writer support groups do you belong to? Do they help with the writing, marketing and the publishing process?

I am a member of RWA, and briefly was a member of my local chapter. I don’t have as much time to participate as I would like, so most of the benefit is just in getting the chance to meet other writers and network. I also participate on the writer’s forum, Absolute Write, and I highly recommend it to all writers.

Has the advent of ebooks changed anything in your writing, getting the book to your readers and the relationship with your readers and fans?

I wasn’t published before ebooks hit big, so I don’t have experience with print only. But I do think that ebooks are fabulous for writers. They give readers more options and offer the benefit of immediate satisfaction with the ability to download books right to an ereader. It also allows authors (particularly those who are self-published or who are with small publishers) to get books to market quickly.

What has been your experience in giving your books away free? Have you been involved in any other type of giveaways and how did that work out? What was your main goal in doing this? Did you run into any obstacles?

Since I have gone through a publisher for all of my titles so far, I don’t have total control over pricing. My books have never been offered free, but I find it an intriguing idea. I could see the benefit, particularly with the first title in a series.

What has been your experience with book tours? Did they contribute to the increase of your book sales?

Gosh. Calculating the benefit from most marketing is very difficult. Is there always enough benefit to recoup the cost in direct sales during a tour? Maybe not. However, there are other benefits that are, I think, much more difficult to quantify. Getting your name out in front of readers. Building an audience that might start small, but who will buy your other books, too. And it is helpful to get your cover in front of readers as much as possible, as they may not purchase it until they’ve seen it a few times.

I do think one of the best benefits of tours is book reviews. There’s nothing more powerful than word of mouth in this business, and how will readers find you if no one has the opportunity to read your book so they can recommend it?

What is your method of getting reviews for your novels? Do you seek professional reviews, use social media or do you rely on your reading audience to supply them?

Reviews can be tough to come by, but that’s for a very valid reason. They take a lot of time to write, and even as a writer, I’ve struggled with finding the right words to express how I feel about a book and why in a review. I think it’s important to seek reviews out in many different places. My publisher uses Netgalley, and also offers a limited number of copies to readers who want to review the book shortly before release.

Do you plan on attending the Tucson Book Festival in March? What will be your marketing plan of attack? Will you have an ebook giveaway at the Festival?

Actually, I am planning to go to the festival this year, but as a reader. I’ve never been, and I think it will be fun to go and load up on books and perhaps meet some of my favorite writers. :)



Author's Book List
Vampire Games - Entangled Ever After
She's seen the past...

OWEA Agent Beatrice Davis is haunted by the death visions that help her solve crimes. When Detective Claude Desmarais, her vampire ex-lover, asks for her assistance on a case, she'd rather help him than take the mandated leave to stave off her burn-out.

The truth won't stay buried...

Pressed to solve a series of crimes before the perpetrator blows the vampire world apart, Claude turns to a woman he thought he'd been able to leave behind. But he was wrong, and his feelings for her will only bring trouble in an investigation this dangerous.

As their passions reignite, they see a possible future together. Until her visions show her the face of the murderer--a man Claude can never betray.


Order the Book From: Amazon - Barnes and Noble
Don't Bite the Bridesmaid - Entangled Covet
Alice Shepard needs one thing: a date for her sister's wedding. And not just any date. A hunk who will make her fiancé rue the day he left her for her best friend. Her drop-dead gorgeous neighbor fits the bill—even if he is a bit quirky and never comes out during the day—and Alice has downed just enough appletinis to ask him. But she makes it quite clear that there will be no funny business.

Spending a week on a cruise ship full of humans while sleeping close to his sexy next-door neighbor sounds like a helluva bad idea to vampire Noah Thorpe. But his friends need time to get him out of a shotgun wedding—a vampire bonding that will tie his fate to a female vampire he's never met. And Alice's offer comes at just the right time.

What could possibly go wrong?


Order the Book From: Amazon - Barnes and Noble
Lycan Unleashed - A Files of the Otherworlder Enforcement Agency Novel
Detective Astrid Holmes is a sensitive, a human capable of feeling the energy of otherworlders. When she is dispatched to the horrific murder scene of a local vampire, she expects it to be just another day on the job. But when evidence is stolen on her watch, she is removed--not only from the investigation, but from her job as a member of the Chicago police department's paranormal unit.

Astrid's only hope of reinstatement lies with her ex co-worker and almost-lover, Lycan Mason Sanderson. But convincing the OWEA agent to let her assist with the investigation isn't nearly as difficult as staying alive when the murderer realizes that Astrid may hold the key to unlocking his identity.

Fighting to take down a killer could have deadly consequences for Astrid and Mason, but working together puts their already fragile relationship in jeopardy.


Order the Book From: Amazon - Barnes and Noble
Heels and Heroes
Brenda is a second-rate superhero, normally more concerned with uniform fashion than defeating bad guys. But when a violent, new super villain declares war against her city, she suddenly finds her specialized power to deafen sound in high demand.

As if facing the destructive force of a new enemy isn’t bad enough, she finds herself paired with the powerful, yet emotionally distant, Justice. Forced to work at the side of the only man who gets her heart pounding, Brenda is not only in danger of losing her life in battle, but also her heart to a man who might not be able to love her back.


Order the Book From: Amazon - Barnes and Noble
Succubus Lost - A Files of the Otherworlder Enforcement Agency Novel
Someone is kidnapping and incinerating otherworlders beyond recognition, and detective Marisol Whitman, a succubus, races to find the murderer before he claims another victim. But her pursuit is derailed when her responsible younger sister vanishes. Marisol suspects foul play and enlists support from an unlikely source: an agent from the Otherworlder Enforcement Agency, Valerio Costa.

When the trail pointing to everyone from vampires to witches dries up, Agent Costa admits to knowing more than he's shared. Marisol's sister's kidnapper harnesses more magic than she can imagine--and they're running out of time. To find her sister before her powers are drained and twisted beyond recognition, Marisol must connect the dots between cases and put her trust in Costa, a salamander who may burn her before she can solve either case.


Order the Book From: Amazon - Barnes and Noble
Banshee Charmer - A Files of the Otherworlder Enforcement Agency Novel
When she's sent to a crime scene and finds her second dead woman in as many weeks, half-banshee detective Kiera "Mac" McLoughlin is convinced a serial killer is on the loose. Incubi are extinct, her boss insists. But what else can kill a woman in the throes of pleasure? When her partner is murdered after using witchcraft to locate the killer and Mac is thrown off the case, her frustration turns to desperation.

Certain the killer is an incubus, Mac works behind her department's back to chase down slim, sometimes perilous leads. While the killer eludes her, she does discover handsome Aidan Byrne, an investigative counterpart from the enigmatic Otherworlder Enforcement Agency. Mac typically runs her investigations fast and hard, but with Aidan at her side, she's running this one "hot" as well. But Aidan knows more than he's letting on--something that could shatter their blazing romance and add Mac to the killer's growing body count…


Order the Book From: Amazon
Check Tiffany's Media Page.
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