Cold Day in Hell, the second book in the Security Specialists International series, will be released by Liquid Silver Books on Monday, January 30th.

Here is the blurb:

Calista Meyers is a world-famous, soon-to-be-ex-supermodel. After arriving for a fashion shoot in Cartagena, Colombia, she realizes her agent has misled her about the nature of her last modeling assignment.

Paramilitary leader Jaime Cruz paid her slimy agent a lot of money to get Callie to his part of the world. Cruz has threatened to kidnap and kill her younger brothers if she attempts to leave the country.

What’s a Marine brat to do? Callie calls on her childhood friend Keely Walsh-Maddox and Keely’s husband Ren, the owner of Security Specialists International, to help her.

SSI sends operative Risto Smith to rescue Callie. The former Marine has had a thing for the model ever since he’d first seen her picture on a magazine cover. But he knows he isn’t nearly good enough for a lady like her. She’s an assignment and can be nothing else.

Callie knows Risto is just the man for her and decides to use the close quarters of their escape from Colombia to convince the stubborn male. When Risto leaves her in Panama and disappears, Callie is upset but not defeated. But after two months passes with no word from Risto and with her enemy Cruz in the US and back on her trail, Callie once again turns to Risto for protection.

This time, it would be a cold day in hell before Callie allows Risto to turn his back on their love.

Here is a blurb for “Stormy Weather Baby”:

Keely Walsh-Maddox is eight months pregnant and feeling boxed in by Ren’s over-protectiveness. So, when Price Teague’s doctor sister, Fiona, calls and says she is in Idaho and needs a ride, Keely takes the opportunity to escape her velvet cage and drive to Grangeville to pick up the woman. She never expected to place her unborn child in danger, but that is exactly what happens when the women find themselves being pursued by mercenaries. Normally, bad guys following her home wouldn’t faze Keely, she’d just turn the tables and shoot them. But this time, she is in early labor and doesn’t want to mess with them. At least, she has a doctor riding shot gun.

To obtain your FREE download, go to my website and click on the link on the main page. The 26,000 word novella is currently only available in PDF, but I hope to figure out how to convert it for Nook and Kindle after the holidays. Any updated on the formats will be found onthe SSI page under Monette Michaels books on my website.

I truly hope you enjoy this tale of the birth of Ren and Keely’s baby and the introduction of a future SSI romance. — Monette, Christmas, 2011

Just a note, since the overall blog hop winners won’t be chosen and announced until tomorrow, December 12th. I will follow suit and leave my blog open for comments through 12 midnight EST today, 12/11. I will announce my winner tomorrow, 12/12, after I get off work. I will e-mail my winner and make an announcement in the Comments.

As is my habit I like to share beautiful men.  So, here is Stuart, a rugby player.  See lots more of Stuart at this site.

And my favorite!

Well, I hope those pictures made you happy. I know they boosted my Christmas spirits. Too bad Santa doesn’t deliver hunky rugby players to deserving girls.

Make a comment and one person shall win a choice of either a download or a print copy of my SSI novel, Eye of the Storm.

Happy Holidays! And don’t forget to enter for the overall prizes at the end of the blog hop. — Monette Michaels

Security Specialists International Book 1

Eye of the Storm is now in print!

Just in time for Christmas, the first book in the Security Specialists International series is in print at CreateSpace eStore and Amazon.com. It is a 5 x 8 trade paperback with 364 pages and costs $13.50.

Keep an eye on this blog for a surprise Christmas present from me to all my fans: a free download of the first SSI novella, which will fit into the timeline between Eye of the Storm and the second SSI book, Cold Day in Hell, which is currently in edits.

And for my Prime Chronicles fans, yes, I am working on the second book in that series.

Happy Holidays! — Monette

But today, since I got up early to put the bird in the oven and I have some extra time, I thought I would list what I am thankful for. So, here goes — and don’t be surprised if most of them aren’t about writing in some way:

• My health — for my age I am in good shape, well, except for the extreme myopia, creaky joints and the arthritis in my thumb on my typing hand, but all in all, I expect to live to be a hundred;
• My husband of 39 years (been together for 41 years) — he is the love of my life, my soul mate and still makes me laugh — among other things;
• My son — he is a reader like his mom and is a gentle giant (and he’s single and available!!);
• My fans — without you all I would not sit my ass in my chair and write books, exposing my soul and my feelings to the world. Yeah, I write escapist genre fiction, but every written work has something of the author in it. When you love my writing, you are in a way loving me and that makes me happy and keeps me going;
• My friends;
• My critique partners and beta -readers without whom I could not do what I do;
• My wonderful cover artist, April Martinez, whom I have never met but really need to since she has become a long-distance friend  – - she is the reason some of you want to read my little books.  Her covers just suck you in. She is also the reason I can bring out my backlist with her formatting skills;
• My long-term editor Terri who is sadly leaving to pursue her own writing (and her demanding day job!) and my new editor Sharis;
• My publisher, Atlantic Bridge/Liquid Silver Books, all the admin staff, and the owner, Linda, who is  and has been a very special person in my life since way back in 2000, the early days of e-publishing.  We have survived, my friend — hope to be with you for another eleven years;
• My snug little empty-nest home and my light and airy den — finally after almost 6 years in this house, my den is de-cluttered and the energy matches me!;
• Computers — I couldn’t write without them.  Just the thought of an old typewriter and carbon paper and Wite-out gives me an ulcer and a migraine. How did we live before Track Changes?!;
• My cat Pidge who loves me and is the best lap cat ever;
• Belgian dark chocolate;
• Single malt scotch (especially Glenlivet Nadura 16-yr reserve, cask strength, nectar of the gods;
• The guy who created the South Beach Diet — I am back to my fighting weight and love the healthy way I am eating now which is why I’ll live to be a hundred;
• My 1999 Volvo S70 turbo with standard transmission — yeah, I drive a stick and will keep this car until something better comes along and since I don’t see that happening, I’ll probably be driving it as long as I can see and do the gears;
• Skinny-leg jeans — for an old lady, I can rock them;
• For Pilates since it allows me to rock skinny leg jeans and keeps my bootey up where it belongs and my inner thighs from rubbing;
• For the person who thought of lettuce-wrapping burgers — Hardee’s and Red Robin do them the best;
• Pork chops at Squealers in Indy — hey, I come from a long line of hog farmers — pork is the other white meat;
• Belgian dark chocolate — yeah, I mentioned it once, but it is well worth mentioning it again;
• Mary Stewart and her novels which is why I write at all — no one writes romantic suspense as she did — spunky heroines in exotic locales and a hunky hero.  Yeah, the sex was mostly off stage but I have a great imagination and I was reading her when I was 12 — so that was fine. I travelled the world with Mary and her heroines and for the time I spent with her novels, I wasn’t in land-locked, boring Indiana;

• My guilty pleasure reading — Cherise Sinclair’s books — love them and they are a secret indulgence, well, not so secret now.  LOL  And I have never met Cherise, just love her books and would never have discovered her if she hadn’t written me a fan e-mail! Fate works in mysterious ways; and

Well , the timer is winding down on the bird (well, a boneless turkey breast, really, and another thing I am thankful for!) so time for one last thing I am thankful for — you got it — HUNKY MEN pictures — the Internet is truly a wonderful place!  Enjoy! — Monette

Fatal Vision is now live as a Nook book at Barnes and Noble. Direct Link to the Buy Page.

I expect the Kindle version to go live at Amazon in the near future

I have plans to make this book available at other online outlets also, so please check this blog for further updates.

Fatal Vision was the first book I ever published and is still very dear to my heart. I extensively edited, revised and added new material to this new e-book version.

Cold Day in Hell takes place about six months after Eye of the Storm ends.

Calista Meyers, a Marine brat and childhood friend of Keely Walsh-Maddox, is a world-famous supermodel on a fashion shoot in Cartagena. Once she arrives, she realizes her agent has misled her and has been paid under the table to convince her to do this one last modeling job before she hangs up her Manolos forever to pursue a career in tracking drug and terrorist money for SSI clients.

Caught in a foreign country she can’t leave because the man stalking her, Jaime Cruz, has threatened to kill her younger brothers if she tries, Callie calls on Keely and Tweeter Walsh to help her.

Risto Smith, a new operative for SSI, is sent to Colombia to rescue Callie. Risto has had a thing for the model ever since he first saw the swimsuit cover that shot Callie to fame. But he knows he is not nearly good enough for a lady like her.

Callie on the other hand knows Risto is just the man for her – - a man like her deceased Marine father, like Keely’s dad, Colonel Walsh, and all the Marines she had grown up around. She quickly decides to use the close quarters of their trip to escape Colombia to bring them closer together. When Risto leaves her in Panama and disappears, Callie is upset but not defeated.

But after two months passes with no word and with her enemy Cruz in the US and on her trail again, Callie begins the wintry trip to Risto’s home in UP Michigan. It would be a cold day in hell before Callie let Risto turn his back on their love.

I am very excited about this book – - and hope my fans will love reading Risto and Callie’s story as much as I did writing it.

Hugs– Monette

If you are starting here, you are in the wrong place!  You do want to be able to win prizes, right?  The grand prize on this Halloween Hops is a Kindle with books loaded on it from some of the authors participating in this blog tour.  Other lucky entrants will win other cool stuff donated by the fabulous authors!

So, to be in the running for all these goodies, you must start HERE. Once you have visited each stop on the tour, you will see the entry form at the end. Fill it out and you are entered!  Easy as collecting candy from strangers on Halloween Night!

In light of the theme for this Ripped Roaring Halloween Hop, I have some ripped hunks for your viewing pleasure. I sure had a good time hunting these guys down.  I found them at the great Hunkdujour site — go visit and see if I am not correct in saying this site has some of the finest looking men around!

Note my theme for this hop — dark, ripped and handsome. Very drool-worthy. If you make it to the end of my blog – - and why wouldn’t you?  These guys are hot!  You will see a question.  Find the answer, tell me in the Comments to this blog,  and you will be entered to win a free download of my best-selling book, Eye of the Storm, which features the tall, dark and hunky hero, Ren Maddox.  Hint: The answer is on the first page of my web site — www.monettemichaels.com. — Happy looking!

I hope you liked the “treats” I found for you this Halloween. I had more, but I am saving them for Christmas!

Question:  What is the name of the next Security Specialists International book to follow Eye of the the Storm?  See the hint above on where to look for the answer unless you already know it, of course. 

Provide the answer by making a comment to this post.  I will announce the winner of a free download of Eye of the Storm on Halloween night.

Remember, this contest is in addition to the one for the blog tour as a whole — to enter to win blog tour prizes, you must visit every blog on the tour and fill out the entry form at the end of the tour.

Good luck to all! — Monette

When is all this happening?    Like the banner says:  October 28th-31st.  There will also be live chats with the participating authors.  Click on the banner and it will take you to the tour start page then bookmark it for later — OR – - just come here on the 28th and click on the link I will have in my blog to take you to the jump off spot for the tour.

Hugs– Monette

Here is the new cover.  I hope to have news soon as to when the book will be available.