I'm moderating on the 15th and blogging on the 19th

The summer just got a little steamier...

It's Hot in August in the Garden.

If you love Erotic Romance, join the Scarlet Rose authors for 31 Sultry Scarlet Nights!

31 days of scorching hot downloads from Scarlet Rose - the erotic romance line of The Wild Rose Press.

Each day two downloads from the Wilder Roses catalog will be given away. Check the calendar in the Wilder Roses yahoo loop to see which title will be given away on a select day.

For your first chance to win, stop by the Wilder Roses blog and post a comment on the day's topic.

For a second chance to win, stop by The Wilder Roses Yahoo loop.

Each night two winners will be drawn, one from those who commented on the blog and another from those who posted on the loop during that day.

Everyone who participated throughout the month will be entered automatically in a drawing for the Grand Prize, a $75.00 online gift certificate from Frederick’s of Hollywood courtesy of:

The Wild Rose Press, Wendi Darlin, Lara Dien, Samantha Gentry, Devon Gray, Helen Hardt, Janna Lee Hayes, Liza James, Jane E. Jones, Darah Lace, Mary Martinez, Anita Philmar, Allie Standifer, & KyAnn Waters

It's easy to enter for the daily giveaways and the grand prize. Your participation will automatically enter you.

More information visit
http://www.thewilderroses.com/
http://www.wilderroses.blogspot.com/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheWilderRoses

Reviewed by Whipped Cream!

Gotta admit, this is the fun part (well, at least since so far everyone's liked the story!). Sorry, Editor Bear, but getting great reviews is just a tad more fun than finding 25 synonyms for various body parts. Not much more fun (hey, anytime you "have" to think about body parts is a good day--see what a great career this romance-writing gig is?), but just a bit.

Yes, I'm spending the rest of my day editing Bad Enough. But what a great thing to wake up to: an email from Long and Short Reviews/Whipped Cream telling me that a) they'd reviewed Fortuneteller and b) it's up for book of the week (technically, review of the week, since voting is based on the reviews). And since I'd love to have Fortuneteller splashed across the top of their review page for a week....

Here's the review, and here's the link so you can check out the other reviews and vote.

Miranda knows it was fate that brought Devon into her fortune telling tent, fulfilling her grandmother's prophecy. But the sexy detective doesn't believe in fate – he's just looking for a hiding place while he figures out his next move. Can Miranda convince him that love is really in the cards?

♥ ♥ ♥

Lara Dien creates characters that captivate you right from the start. They personalities are exciting. The chemistry between Miranda and Devon keeps you reading without wanting to stop until you reach the end. The scenes are very detailed and erotic. I definitely rate this one high on the heat level and written so well you forget you're reading.

The story itself has just enough about both of their lives and their sexual encounters to keep it interesting. Also, I love that it is based on fortune telling and tarot – very unique and unusual. The first scene at the fair was quite intriguing and very steamy – something I might be tempted to fantasize about myself. I would definitely like to read more by this author.

Reviewed by Snowdrop

And notice the reviewer said the same thing as the Orlando Weekly reviewer (Liz Langley) said--"written so well you forget you're reading" ((swoon)).

Reviewed in the Orlando Weekly!

Today's edition of the Orlando Weekly has an article -- Submerged in Summer Reading -- featuring reviews of several books, both fiction and non-fiction, by local (Orlando area) authors. The Fortuneteller's Lay was one of those books!

Here's the review:

That funny feeling
The Fortuneteller’s Lay by Lara Dien
(Wild Rose Press; 78 pages; $3; http://www.thewildrosepress.com/)

From the pages: “Let’s finish you first,” he said before beginning the most erotic assault Miranda had ever endured.

“Print is dead,” intoned Egon Spengler in Ghostbusters, and 24 years later that end may be closer than we book nerds would like. We love our books, but frankly, I’d rather read something of quality on a screen than some of the tinny, insufferable caca wasting ink out there. Online or on paper, good is good. The Fortuneteller’s Lay, by Orlando author Lara Dien, is an e-book that should come with a downloadable microfiber cloth to clean the steam off your monitor as you read.

Miranda Merrill is a part-time fortuneteller; into her tent stumbles detective Devon Cole, not looking for his fortune, much less his future. The chemistry that explodes between them isn’t so much boy-meets-girl as fire-meets-kerosene. The sex scenes are juicy and numerous, paced deliciously and placed so there’s enough real life between them to make the story a story and not a series of quickies (or longies).

Since they’re forced to part as fast as they came together, finding each other again is going to be a problem, but luck has a way of aiding destiny. The wrap-up is a bit more romantic than the hot, lurid, crazily luscious, very graphic sex that precedes it (which I could have used more of; shut up), but you’re on solid ground when the worst you can say is you wanted more.

This is an erotic romance – no human depths are plumbed but the obvious ones. But it is a gem in its genre, and Dien pulls off writing’s neatest trick, which is to make you forget that you’re reading. Anyone who has ever attempted to talk dirty and failed has glimpsed the toughness of the sex writer’s task. Fortuneteller predicts good things in Lara Dien’s future.
— LL

Bad Enough and other news

Here's the cover for my new ero/rom, Bad Enough, done by Angela Anderson. Very 'Garden of Eden', don't you think? Who knew paradise was so hot?

Then, there's "Masks," which I sent off to WRP a few weeks ago...and the contract for Hungarian Masquerade (the new title), which I sent off to WRP last week.

And then there's Dreamwalk...bless my CP's tenacious heart (and rock-solid insight into my voice and style, AND her willingness to offer up ideas until there's one that works!). I'm back to being excited about working on it, after Macy gave me something to hang Liz's (that's the heroine) motivation on...

I'm reading Donald Maass' Writing the Breakout Novel and there's a lot of useful information in it. Huh, maybe that's why people keep recommending it....

"...wiggling in your seat."

I got my first review today--for The Fortuneteller's Lay.

Here's an excerpt...

"I enjoyed this story by Ms. Dien because it oozed with sex appeal from the very beginning. She took me on an adventure that was hot, sexy and I found myself ultimately wanting more. I loved the characters she created and I especially loved the different sides she portrayed of Miranda. This is definitely an erotic tale that I know you won’t walk away from disappointed. This story will have you wiggling in your seat!"

A four-heart review! Thanks, Ms. Coyle!

Here's the link:
http://www.nightowlromance.com/nightowlromance/reviews/Review.asp?ReviewId=2012