It's a Mystery Podcast interview with Dana Delamar #mafia #romance

Hi everybody! I just realized that I never posted the podcast interview I did last June with Alexandra Amor at the "It's a Mystery" podcast. (BAD DANA!) 

I had a very fun time talking to Alexandra, and I hope you enjoy the interview. We talked about how the "Blood and Honor" Mafia romance series came to be, why I love Italy, and why I'm probably on an FBI watch list somewhere. 

http://alexandraamor.com/italian-mafia-history-and-romantic-suspense-with-dana-delamar/

50% Rebate - Valentine's Day Only - at All Romance eBooks!

Want a 50% rebate on my Mafia romance series Blood and Honor? You're in luck! Today only (Valentine's Day, February 14), if you buy my books on All Romance eBooks, you get 50% of the price back in ARe eBook Bucks, which you can later use to buy more books! 

Malavita

A son determined to avenge his family. 
A daughter desperate for peace. 

Two fathers intent on destruction…

FREE

All Romance eBooks 

Revenge

A woman on the run. 
A damaged Mafia don. 

A rival bent on revenge...

All Romance eBooks 

Retribution

An Interpol agent playing a dangerous game. 
A Mafia princess desperate to escape. 

A man determined to exact retribution...

All Romance eBooks

Redemption

A mobster seeking redemption. 
A woman on a mission. 

A powerful enemy ready to pounce…

All Romance eBooks 

Reckoning

A brutal hitman. 

A fervent anti-Mafia judge. 

A far-ranging conspiracy…

All Romance eBooks

New covers and new stores for the Blood & Honor series!

About a year ago, I tried a cover experiment for the Blood and Honor series, and I've decided to try another. My original covers heavily emphasized suspense with pictures featuring hands and guns. They were great covers, but I felt I was missing a big chunk of my audience--romance readers! So the second set of covers emphasized romance by featuring a series of couples, and as I suspected, the second set of covers did seem to attract more readers. 

So now it's time for yet another experiment. This time I'm going with only hot guys on the covers, and I'm curious to see how they do. I've been playing around with these images in my posts on Facebook and Twitter, and people really seem to like them, and I think they capture the sexy, dangerous vibe of the series quite well. Here they are!

I've also included links for the newest stores where you can find the series: Google Play, 'txtr, and FlipKart!

And for those of you wondering: I'm at about the 80% mark on Redemption. A ton of editing work has come in for By Your Side Self-Publishing, so I've had to focus on that for a while. I'm still planning a summer release for Redemption--most likely July/August. 

FREE on ALL Retailers! Try before you buy!

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iBooks | Kobo | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | Omnilit | Smashwords | 'txtr | FlipKart

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Kobo | Apple iBooks | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords | 'txtr | FlipKart

Paperback US | Paperback UK

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iBooks | Kobo | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords | 'txtr | FlipKart

Paperback US | Paperback UK

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iBooks | Kobo | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords | 'txtr | FlipKart

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

I hope you enjoy the new covers as much as I do! Let me know what you think in the comments. 

Happy Reading! 
~ Dana 

GIFT CARD GIVEAWAY and BLOG TOUR for the Blood and Honor series!

Hi everyone! In preparation for the upcoming release of Reckoning, the fifth book in the Blood and Honor series, I'm doing a mega blog tour! And as part of the tour, I'm giving away a $25 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card -- winner's choice! 

I recently did an interview with P.T. Macias, owner of Lions Book Promotions, as part of the blog tour. Here it is, including a sneak peek at Reckoning, which I plan to release in the May/June time frame.  

So, can you tell us what makes Dana Delamar tick?  What got you started on the path to becoming an author?

I’ve wanted to be a writer from a very young age. In my teens, I was constantly writing romances for my sisters and my friends. They were all about the rock stars we adored. I spent hours and hours dreaming up stories!

What are you currently working on?  Would you care to share a snippet?

I’m currently working on Reckoning, the fifth book in the Blood and Honor Mafia romance series. It’s about a hit man who falls in love with the anti-Mafia judge presiding over his boss’s trial. Here’s a brief taste: 

Ruggero grabbed hold of Loredana’s arms. “Is that how you see me? As a man? Or do you see me as a Mafioso?” He pulled her close, his eyes flicking back and forth across her face, before dipping down to stare at her lips.

Both of them were breathing hard. She placed her hands on his chest, his muscles twitching beneath her hands. Her heart was pounding, her stomach flipping. “I see you as a man,” she said, the words just barely above a whisper. 

Before she could second-guess herself, she leaned in and pressed her lips to his. For just an instant, he kissed her back, then his hands clamped down on her biceps, and he broke the contact. “What the fuck are you doing?”

“I don’t know.”

Those wolf’s eyes drilled into hers. “You’d better know, Loredana. I’m not a man you can play with.”

Do you include some of your own personal experiences in your books or do you prefer to use your imagination?

It’s a mix of both. I frequently write about places I’ve been, occasionally about things that have happened to me. But since I’m not in the Mob, a lot of it is drawn one-hundred percent from my imagination!

What genre do you typically write in and why did you choose this over others?  

My first book was a hot contemporary romance (still unpublished). I switched to romantic suspense while I was playing the “what if” game trying to brainstorm my next book. I asked myself, “What if my hero isn’t such a good guy?” And that’s how the Blood and Honor series was born. 

I also really enjoy erotic romance and hot contemporary romance, so I think my next series may be in one of those genres. And I’m not ruling out paranormal either--I just need the right idea!

Do you have a specific process or a ritual you go through when sitting down to write?

Not really, though I have found that I write more easily if I’m doing it longhand in a notebook. I also like to have a cup of tea or chai with me. 

Where do you find your inspiration for your plots?  Do you have any tricks of the trade you would care to share?  

For the Blood and Honor books, I try to put myself in my characters’ shoes. What moves would I make if I were a Mafia don? How would I feel if I found out that the man I loved was a criminal--and he’d been hiding it from me? 

I also do a ton of research, reading about what real-life Mafiosos have done. I’ve picked up little tidbits here and there that have morphed into whole plots. Occasionally, things I’ve dreamed up that I thought were perhaps far-fetched (such as the Mob taking over banks) have turned out to be true. Sometimes I think I missed my calling! ;)

What is the oddest place/situation where an idea for a book/plot has come to you?

I get tons of ideas in the shower or while driving. I actually bought this notepad (Aqua Notes – you can get it on Amazon) so that I could make notes in the shower. It’s been worth every penny!

What makes a book stand out and perk your interest?

The premise. I love books with seemingly impossible conflicts to resolve. 

We all have our favorite authors.  Can you share some of yours and tell us why you like them? 

J.R. Ward, Darynda Jones, Larissa Ione, Pamela Clare, Kristine Cayne (my awesome critique partner!). They all write books with bad-ass heroes, fast-moving plots, and sexual chemistry that’s off the charts! 

We all have a pet peeve, care to share yours?

Mine is books with a great premise but that haven’t been edited. I can deal with some typos, but when words are constantly misused and sentences are so garbled that I have to read them again and again to try to make sense of them, it just becomes work to read. I hate slogging through a book. I want to get lost in the story. If I’m hitting errors in every sentence or every paragraph, I never forget that I’m reading. It bums me out!

When you’re not writing, what are the things you enjoy doing to relax?

Reading, reading, reading! And watching great TV. There are so many awesome shows on these days. One of my all-time faves is “Supernatural.” I’m a total Dean girl!

FREE on ALL Retailers! Try before you buy!

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | Omnilit | 'txtr | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Kobo | Apple iTunes | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | 'txtr | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | 'txtr | Smashwords 

Paperback US | Paperback UK

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iTunes | Kobo | Google Play | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | 'txtr | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

GIVEAWAY TIME!

I'm giving away a $25 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card -- winner's choice! Follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter below for your chance to win! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

REDEMPTION is a finalist in the 2014 Maggie Awards for Excellence!

I'm excited to announce that Redemption is a finalist in the Contemporary Single Title Romance category of the 2014 Maggie Awards for Excellence! 

http://www.georgiaromancewriters.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/2014-Maggie-Finalists.pdf

To celebrate, Redemption is on sale now for 3.99/£2.50 (regularly $4.99)!

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK |
Apple iTunes |  Kobo | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

REDEMPTION is a semi-finalist in the 2014 Kindle Book Review Awards!

I'm excited to announce that Redemption is a semi-finalist in the Romance category of the 2014 Kindle Book Review Awards! 

https://www.thekindlebookreview.net/2014-kindle-book-awards-b/

To celebrate, Redemption is on sale now for 3.99/£2.50 (regularly $4.99)!

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK |
Apple iTunes |  Kobo | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

New covers for the Blood and Honor series and exclusive giveaway!

For a while now, I've been considering whether to change the covers for my Blood and Honor series, and I finally decided to go for it. My original covers clearly conveyed the suspense aspects of the stories, but the romance wasn't coming through. 

I tried a different cover style for Redemption by putting a couple on the cover, and readers seemed to like it, so I worked with my awesome cover artist, Scarlett Rugers, to design new covers. Here they are!

Exclusive giveaway for newsletter subscribers! 

I have a limited number of paperbacks with the original covers left. Starting June 1st, I'll be giving personalized, signed copies away to the folks on my mailing list. If you'd like to be one of the winners, sign up to my mailing list by midnight Pacific time, May 31st. I'll send out a newsletter on June 1st with the details!

FREE on ALL Retailers! Try before you buy!

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iTunes | Kobo | All Romance eBooks | Omnilit | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Kobo | Apple iTunes | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iTunes | Kobo | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords 

Paperback US | Paperback UK

Kindle US | Kindle UK | Kindle CA | Kindle AU | Nook US | Nook UK | Apple iTunes | Kobo | All Romance eBooks | OmniLit | Smashwords

Paperback US | Paperback UK 

I hope you enjoy the new covers as much as I do! Let me know what you think in the comments. And if you're not already signed up for my mailing list, do it now so you're eligible for my giveaway! 

Happy Reading! 
~ Dana