Pelican Book Group

I’m Super Excited to Announce that …

/ Dora Hiers / 4 Comments

Pelican Book Group has contracted my Harmon Heritage Series, where three grieving siblings struggle to find healing and peace.

Rori’s Healing ~ Book 1

Still stinging from the publicity surrounding her father’s death, social phobic Rori Harmon prefers the solitude of her animal sanctuary, accepting that marriage isn’t in her future. Racecar Driver Graham Decker refuses to be wrangled into a relationship by another money-hungry female. On a philanthropy mission, he arrives just in time to assist Rori with a llama birthing, but his appearance thrusts her into the media spotlight again. Has Graham found a woman who doesn’t care how deep his wallet extends? Has Rori finally met a man who will stick around when times get tough? Is healing for a hurting heart finally within Rori’s reach?

Burn survivor Savvy McCord doesn’t blame her best friend for running away. She can’t even look at her scars without wincing. When Beck’s disappearing act spans years, she relinquishes dreams of love and marriage. Unable to face Savvy’s expectations of happily-ever-after, Beck Harmon deserts her, far away from the rumors that he’s just like his father. When the wanderer returns, dreams of forever blossom in Savvy’s heart, but she worries he’ll leave again. Can Beck convince Savvy that her true beauty comes from her inner strength and faith? Will his idea to help burn victims regain their self-confidence restore Savvy’s trust in him? Will love be what the wanderer needs to find peace for his hurting soul?

Deputy City Manager Burk Harmon has always been the strong one for his family, but recently those responsibilities have dwindled. When Lacie Heatherton, Assistant Director for Parks and Recreation, ropes him into a city-sponsored trip to the mountains with fifty seniors, Burk has two things on his mind: considering a possible promotion and wooing Lacie past friendship and into a future. Lacie has emotional scars and a thirteen-year-old daughter to remind her that men can be cruel and unforgiving. Can Burk convince Lacie to relax her “no dating” policy or will he surrender his dreams of family and love?

If you click the links on the titles, you can peek into the stories by heading to my Pinterest boards. 🙂

I’ll be sure to keep you posted with release dates and cover reveals.

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Lynn Chandler-Willis shares Chocolate Raspberry Dessert and The Rising

/ Dora Hiers / 5 Comments
Chocolate Raspberry Dessert
Chocolate Raspberry Dessert
Submitted by Lynn Chandler-Willis

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 stick (½ cup) butter or margarine, softened
¼ tsp baking powder
4 eggs
1 ½ cups (16oz can) Hersey’s Syrup            
Raspberry Cream Center (recipe follows)
Chocolate Glaze (recipe follows)

1) Heat oven to 350F. Grease 13x9x2 inch baking pan
2) Combine flour, sugar, butter, baking powder and eggs in large bowl; beat until smooth. Add syrup; blend thoroughly. Pour batter into prepared pan.
3) Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire rack. Spread Raspberry Cream Center on cake. Cover and refrigerate. Pour Chocolate Glaze over chilled dessert. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.
Raspberry Cream Center: Combine 2 cups powdered sugar, ½ cup (1 stick) softened butter or margarine, ¼ cup raspberry preserves, and 1 tsp. Water in small bowl. Beat until smooth.
Chocolate Glaze: Melt 6tbs, butter or margarine and 1 cup Hershey’s Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips in small saucepan over very low heat. Remove from heat; stir until smooth. Cool slightly.

Mmmm. This sounds and looks yummy! Thanks for sharing the recipe, Lynn. Now how about telling us a little about your latest Pelican Book Group release, The Rising?
The Rising
Purchase Link

A little boy, beaten and left to die in an alley. A cop with a personal life out of control. When their worlds collide, God intervenes. Detective Ellie Saunders’s homicide investigation takes a dramatic turn when a young victim “wakes up” in the morgue. The child has no memory prior to his “rising” except walking with his father along a shiny road. Ellie likes dealing with facts. She’d rather leave all the God-talk to her father, a retired minister, and to her partner, Jesse, a former vice cop with an annoying habit of inserting himself into her life. But will the facts she follows puts Ellie’s life in mortal danger? And will she finally allow God into her heart forever?

Excerpt:

“Jack told me you were at lunch. Caper’s is one of my favorites, so I thought I’d take a chance.” He winked at her then sidled closer. “Anyway, I was thinking about your dead kid—“

“He’s not dead.”

A waitress slammed a sandwich down in front of Ellie, and Jesse helped himself to a homemade chip.

“OK, so he’s not dead. You have sent his picture to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children?”

She huffed. “Did Jack send you?”

“No, Jack didn’t send me. I was just thinking if the center didn’t get a hit, I’ve got a few connections with the FBI, and they’ve got some really cool equipment.”

Ellie pulled a piece of bacon from her sandwich and chewed on one end. “Thanks, but no thanks. I really don’t want the Feds involved.”

Jesse snatched another chip and shook his head. “No black suit with shades is going to swoop in and take your case, Detective Saunders.” He grinned and helped himself to another chip. “I thought we could get them to run his picture through the facial recognition scanner. Maybe we’ll get a hit.”

What was with all the we stuff? The case was complicated enough. The last thing she needed was Jesse involved. She didn’t need a constant reminder of her downward spiral.


Sound great? Yeah, I think so, too. You can scoop it up and read the rest by purchasing The Rising here. 

Meet Lynn Chandler-Willis

Lynn Chandler-Willis has worked in the corporate world (hated it!), the television news business (fun job) and the newspaper industry (not a fan of the word “apparently” and phrase “according to”). She keeps coming back to fiction because she likes making stuff up and you just can’t do that in the newspaper or television news business.

She was born, raised, and continues to live in the heart of North Carolina within walking distance to her kids and their spouses and her nine grandchildren. She shares her home, and heart, with Sam the cocker spaniel.

She is the author of the best-selling true crime book, Unholy Covenant. The Rising is her debut novel.

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Have you read YOU CAN’T HIDE by Wendy Davy?

/ Dora Hiers / 2 Comments
You Can’t Hide

About the book~
Cara Dalton lives a normal, routine life until her first daring adventure lands her in imminent danger. Mistaken as a witness to a brutal crime, she becomes the target of a ruthless drug smuggler who is willing to stop at nothing to silence her. Now, she must place her safety in the hands of a wounded stranger. Undercover agent Gage McKenna knows all too well the dangers Cara is up against. Recovering from a life altering injury—inflicted by the same man who now hunts Cara—Gage faces an uncertain future of his own. As Gage and Cara team up to fight this highly motivated killer, they must learn to rely on each other or risk losing it all.


My summary~
After a ruthless drug smuggler inflicts horrendous damage to Undercover DEA Agent Gage McKenna’s leg, Gage retreats to a remote barrier reef island off the North Carolina coast to heal and lick his wounds. Weary of her boring life, Librarian Cara Dalton does something unusual and spontaneously follows her brother, Jonas, to Columbia. Seeking an adventure, she stumbles onto a chance encounter with Mercado, a drug dealer. The last thing she expects is to be hauled off to a remote coast guard station to be held under lock and key by Jonas’s surly friend, Gage. 

What I liked…
Most of the setting took place on a former coast guard station on the island. The author really made the setting come alive for me. I could almost feel the salt air kissing my cheeks and the sand tickling my bare feet.

The characters were so life-like and relatable. Surly and grumpy at first because of the pain, Sage was also gentle and caring. Direct and straight-forward, Cara says it like she sees it, and because of that, I found their dialog refreshing.

After his career-altering injury, Gage’s faith flounders. Where was God when Mercado bashed Gage’s leg? Cara doesn’t put up with his self-pity. Her sweet comments and gentle touches remind Gage he’s still a man, regardless of his injury, and that God never left him.

Loved the perfect ending, but you won’t get any spoilers from me!

Something to note…
At 175 pages, some readers may prefer beefier books, but You Can’t Hide’s concise, keep-me-glued-to-the-pages plot blended with a natural, complete romance, was the perfect size for me.
Overall…
You Can’t Hide is another nail biter from Wendy Davy, and in several key spots, my palms were sweating and my tummy clenching. I knew what was coming (no surprise there), but I didn’t know how it was going to play out. It’s the perfect size to finish in an afternoon, but really a fantastic read for anytime!

Purchase Link

Disclaimer: Sending a big thank you to Wendy Davy for providing me with a review copy of You Can’t Hide. The opinions expressed in this review are my own, and I received no monetary compensation.

Have you read You Can’t Hide? 
Do you agree with my review? What were your thoughts?

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