Win a $300 Gift Card at the New Year's Blog Hop!

Welcome to stop #77 of the New Year's Blog Hop!

To enter the giveaways, follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter below. 

Every year I tell myself "This is the year where I actually keep my resolutions! I'll lose weight this time, I'll be more organized this time, I'll exercise more this time..." and so on, and so on. And I usually fail miserably at most of them. So this year, I've set myself a few goals that I think I should be able to keep: 

1. Publish two more books. (I managed this in 2012, so I should be able to do it again.)
2. Read adventurously! Continue trying new authors and new genres. Challenge myself. I did this in 2012, and it worked out marvelously. 
3. Continue working on the organization thing. I don't want to end up in an episode of "Hoarders." (I've hired someone to help me, so I think this has a real shot. You can actually walk around my office now, so there's already progress!)

I will still work on my weight and exercising, but I think I'll try to baby-step them this time. Maybe that way I'll feel encouraged instead of discouraged when I'm not knocking those out of the park right away. 

Now it's your turn: What resolutions are you making for 2013? And which ones did you achieve in 2012?

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If, like me, you want to challenge your reading self by trying new authors and new genres, you might want to check out my Blood and Honor romantic suspense series, which is set in Italy among the Calabrian Mafia. The series chronicles the battles--both bloody and romantic--between two warring Mafia clans. Books 1 and 2 are available now. Here's a taste of Book 1:

A woman on the run. A damaged Mafia don. A rival bent on revenge...

Kate Andretti is married to the Mob--but doesn't know it. When her husband uproots them to Italy, Kate leaves everything she knows behind. Alone in a foreign land, she finds herself locked in a battle for her life against a husband and a family who will "silence" her if she will not do as they wish. When her husband tries to kill her, she accepts the protection offered by a wealthy businessman with Mafia ties. He's not a mobster, he claims. Or is he?

Enrico Lucchesi never wanted to be a Mafia don, and now he's caught in the middle of a blood feud with the Andretti family. His decision to help Kate brings the feud between the families to a boil. When Enrico is betrayed by someone in his own family, the two of them must sort out enemies from friends--and rely on each other or die alone. The only problem? Enrico cannot reveal his identity to Kate, or she'll bolt from his protection, and he'll be duty-bound to kill her to safeguard his family's secret. 

Attacks from without and within push them both to the breaking point, and soon Enrico is forced to choose between protecting the only world he knows and saving the woman he loves. 

Excerpt: 

Enrico raised a hand in greeting to Kate, and she returned his wave and started descending the steps. She headed straight for him, her auburn hair gleaming in the sun, a few strands of it blowing across her pale cheek and into her green eyes. With a delicate hand, she brushed the hair out of her face. Enrico’s fingers twitched with the desire to touch her cheek like that, to feel the slide of her silky hair. A small, almost secretive smile crossed her features, and he swallowed hard. Dio mio. He felt that smile down to his toes.

She stopped a couple feet from him. “Signor Lucchesi, it’s good to see you, as always.”

He bowed his head slightly. “And you, Signora Andretti.” He paused, a grin spreading across his face. “Since when did we get so formal, Kate?”

She half-turned and motioned to the doorway behind her. And that was when he noticed it—a bruise on her right cheek. Merda! Had someone hit her? Tearing his eyes off the mark, he followed her gesture. A tall, sandy-haired man, well-muscled and handsome, leaned in the doorway, his arms crossed. “My husband, Vincenzo, is here.”

Enrico’s smile receded. He looked back to Kate. “I’d like to meet him.” And if he did this to her, he’s going to pay.

Want to know what happens next? You can find Revenge at these retailers: Amazon US (Kindle), Amazon UK (Kindle), Amazon Canada (Kindle), Apple, All Romance eBooks, Barnes & Noble, Barnes & Noble UK, Diesel, Kobo, OmniLit, Smashwords, and Sony. 

If you prefer print, Revenge is also on Amazon US (paperback) or Amazon UK (paperback).

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Prize Giveaway!

To thank you for visiting my blog and participating in the New Year's Blog Hop, I'm giving away a $15 gift card to Amazon or Barnes & Noble (winner's choice)! To win, you must post a comment with your name and email address. Comments without an email address will be discarded. For additional chances to win, follow the instructions in the RaffleCopter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Grand Prize Giveaway!

We have THREE grand prizes. You as a reader can go to EACH blog and comment with your email address and be entered to win. (Comments without an email address will be discarded.) Yep, you can enter over 200 times!

Now what are those prizes?

1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet (international)

2nd Grand Prize: A $300 Amazon or B&N gift card (international)

3rd Grand Prize: A huge swag pack stuffed with books and more! (U.S. only)

To continue hopping, click the link below!

http://carrieannbloghops.blogspot.com/p/new-years-blog-hop.html