This week on Amberkatze's Book Blog there was not one but two contests and it is time to announce the winners!

First up was author Mark Henry. His new book Road Trip of the Living Dead is now out and he was giving away a signed copy of his first zombie filled fun book Happy Hour of the Living Dead. All you had to do to win was read the interview and post about your favourite zombies. Thank you to everyone who entered and another huge thanks to Mark for being such a great guest!

So with the help of the randomizer we have a winner. So congratulations to -


Olympianlady!!!


To claim your prize email me at Amberkatzes_book_blog at gmx dot eu within the next 7 days. Include your mailing address and I will pass on the information to the author. If the prize isn't claimed within a week I will pick a new winner.


So the second contest came along thanks to the guest blog by Dakota Cassidy! She asked people to come up with more Accidental titles and boy did you all come up with some amazing suggestions! There were a few classics there and I hope Dakota has taken notes and will come up with some stories to go with some of those titles ;)

Dakota's contest had an amazing prize package. Two books of your choice and one of her own books. That makes a total of three books! This is one lucky winner the randomiser is picking! So congratulations to -


Annalisa!!!


Follow the same instructions above to claim your prize! Make sure you also let me know your book choices!

So that was this weeks contest winners! Don't worry if you didn't win this time. There are always more contests so keep coming back and try again!

Also don't forget to check out Mark and Dakota's books! I love them and I can't believe that anyone else would think any different about them :)

Labels: Contests, Dakota Cassidy, Mark Henry, winners

There are two contests still open (see the sidebars) which close tomorrow. Mark Henry is giving away a signed copy of his book 'Happy Hour of the Damned' while Dakota Cassidy is giving away 3 books!

Make sure you enter the contests before Sunday 4pm CET for your chance to win!

I am home visiting my family so I maybe a little later than usual posting the results but I promise to have them up tomorrow.

Also tomorrow will see the start of a new contest and an author interview! I forgot my calender at home but I do believe Jaye Wells is my next guest! I loved her book and it is by far the best I have read so far this year. So I hope you pop in over the next week to check out her interview!

Labels: Contests, Dakota Cassidy, General, Jaye Wells, Mark Henry

Her new book 'Accidental Human' is out this week! So what better way to celebrate than learning a little bit more about author Dakota Cassidy's accidents!

Enjoy her guest blog and don't forget to enter the contest!

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Heyyyyyyyy, everyone!

Okay, so I’m gonna keep this simple.

Accidents.

They happen, right?

And that’s what my “Accidental” series is based on—accidents.

Some big honkin’ “Oops, my bad” scenarios.

For instance, my next book (lookout—blatant promo ahead) The Accidental Human, on stands March 3, 2009 is about poor Wanda Schwartz, the third friend in a trio of women who’ve had some pretty crazy stuff go down. Like being bitten by a vampire and a werewolf. But Wanda’s different… she’s in some serious trouble, and it has nothing to do with a vampire or a werewolf. Well, it sorta does, and I know the title implies it’s not paranormal, but it is. Go on and figure that out. LOL

Obviously, the boo-boos in my series are pretty big—like life altering big. Accidentally being turned into a werewolf or a vampire is freaky-deaky. However, so far, at least for two of my heroines, it’s all turned out shiny. You’ll just have to wait and see if Wanda fares as well…

Anyway, then I began to think about titles and just how many accidents one can have i.e.; how many books can Dakota create with the theme “Sorry, it was an accident?”

Then I got some SPAM in my inbox (I promise I’m going somewhere with this)—and I’m totally serious about the subject header. It was “The Accidental Millionaire.” No lie. LOL. How bizarre is that, considering what the titles of my books are?

And here’s what I thought—I could write accidentals forevah. Really. Like, I dunno—The Accidental Mortician. How about, Accidentally Ogre? Or maybe The Accidental Breast Implant Salesman?

So, I thought— wouldn’t it be fun to see what you guys can come up with in the way of an accidental title? Whaddya say? Got some?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. And this is all ya gotta do to enter—leave a comment here in the comments section with your title, and maybe even a little bit about what your story would entail.

If you do, you’re entered to win a random drawing—and this is what you’ll get-- I’ll buy you TWO books (mass market or trade), as long as they’re already on the stands or available for pre-order. Yep on me, shipped directly to YOU. Plus, I’ll send you a signed copy of Accidentally Dead—or you can have any one of my e-books—your choice, as long as it’s still available. The drawing will end when Amber says it does (cause she’s da boss), and she’ll pick the winner.

So hit me with yer best shot, and most of all, thank you, thank you! Your support, your emails, your kind words always make me smile :)

Dakota :)

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Contest Rules -

Normal rules apply!

To enter the giveaway all you have to do is come up with a cool Accidental book title!

No Accident title = no entry!

Earn another entry for each place you link this contest on the net. Make sure you add links here for me to confirm your entries!

The contest will stay open until Sunday March 8th 2009 4pm CET and the winner will be picked by a randomizer. Entrants should check back to see if they have won. I do not hunt down winners and will pick new winners for any prizes not claimed within 7 days.

If you are claiming a prize, have emailed me and have not heard back before the 7 day limit is up then post a comment here on the blog. Your email may get sucked into my spam filter.

A huge thanks to Dakota for being a guest and giving away such a great prize!

Enjoy!

Labels: Author Guest Blog, Contests, Dakota Cassidy

I have two winners to announce today. First the winner of the Monthly giveaway and then the winner of the Maria V.Snyder contest.

So the randomiser will be helping me again this Sunday. The amount of subscribers really is amazing! I can't believe that I have that many people following my blog. So a huge thank you to you all!

So the winner of the monthly giveaway, a copy of 'At Grave's End' by Jeaniene Frost has an email address starting with -


littleminx!


Congrats on winning! Make sure you send me your mailing details within 7 days to Amberkatzes_Book_blot at gmx dot eu.


The winner of the Maria V. Snyder contest is the one I envy the most this week! The person picked out by the randomiser will get an ARC of Maria V. Snyder's upcoming release 'Storm Glass'. Who won?


Kimberly B!


Congrats to you! Please contact me using the same info as above! Remember winners must contact me within 7 days and claim their prize otherwise I will pick a new winner.

A huge thank you to Maria for an amazing interview and contest prize!

I have two author interviews and contests this weekend. The first with C. A. Milson is already up and the next one with Sharon Ashwood is coming up soon! So keep checking in!

Oh and some of my upcoming guests include -

Mark Henry
Mario Acevedo
Dakota Cassidy
Jaye Wells
Rae Lori

Labels: Dakota Cassidy, Jaye Wells, Maria V. Snyder, Mario Acevedo, Mark Henry

A pro at recruiting new saleswomen for Bobbie-Sue cosmetics, Wanda Schwartz is taken by surprise when a man actually answers the recruitment ad. A man selling make-up is absurd but when the handsome Heath Jefferson arrives at her in-home party later that day she sees he has alot of potential. Heath knows color wheels like the back of his hand and he convinces Wanda to take him under her wing. Something is strange about the guy who wants to sell make-up but Wanda hasn't the energy or time to find out what.

You see Wanda has been diagnosed with a terminal illness and she wants to spend what is left of her life doing what she wants. With a werewolf and a vampire for best friends, she has options that most ordinary people wouldn’t have, but she is prepared to take the hand that fate has dealt her. Unfortunately she isn't prepared for what fate deals her in the love department. With only months left to live she finds herself falling for Heath and his strange ways. If both Wanda and Heath reveal their secrets to each other will they manage to save each other? The clock is ticking but nobody knows that except for Wanda.

The Accidental Friends series started with a werewolf, continued with a vampire and then left us with the cliffhanger third book title. The long wait is over and the 'Accidental Human' mystery is finally solved. Wanda's time has come and the question of if or what paranormal being she becomes will not be answered here. You really need to read the book and find out for yourself.

What I can tell you though is that this third book in the series is a bit of an emotional rollercoaser ride and even though it had Dakota Cassidy's fun and witty style all the way through you will find it hard not to ponder on a few things when the end comes. I laughed, I cried and loved Wanda's story. This is a novel about love, friendship and the crap life can throw at you but it is written with style and a paranormal twist.

If you have been following this series you won't be disappointed. If you haven't already discovered this series then I suggest you catch up because this author has a great talent and I can't wait to meet it again. The Accidental Human is due for release at the beginning of March and should not be missed.

Labels: ARC, Books Read, Dakota Cassidy

Meet Frankie Lane -- trapped in her Persian cat form, homeless, lost, stuck in a Dumpster in the back of a Chinese restaurant just before Christmas. Sucks to be her. Enter Glynice the savior and all 'round pushy broad -- secretary to workaholic Sam Carsters, who spends more time devoted to his law practice than enjoying life. Determined to give Sam a reason to come home at night, Glynice rescues Frankie and deposits her on Sam's desk at his house as an early Christmas gift. In a cage. With a big red bow around her neck.

Meet Sam Carsters -- criminal defense attorney, and proud new owner of his very own cat who's half human, rockin' hot and can't seem to hang onto her human form unless she's engaged in a little thing called mating fever. And engage they do...

I enjoyed this festive story and I really liked the cat theme. There should be more were-cat stories!! Dakota is a great writer and I can't wait to snuggle up with another of her stories.

Read and reviewed for Paranormal Romance. You can see my full review when it is posted.

Labels: Book Reviews, Books Read, Dakota Cassidy, www.paranormalromance.org

to enter the Chris Howard contest! You only have till Sunday to enter!

Thanks to everyone who has entered so far. There has been a really good turn out and I am looking forward to drawing the winners!

Next weeks interview is with Jackie Kessler!

See you then!

Labels: Chris Howard, Dakota Cassidy, Jackie Kessler

The lovely Dakoata Cassidy was here this week and there was alot of entries for the contest making her my most successful guest yet!! Thank you honey!! Maybe you already know this song but this one (by my favourite Welsh band) is for you!

Okay back to the important things in life and that is the winners! Who are the 2 winners? Well I have had fun drawing this one because there were so many entries but I managed and here are the results -

The winner of Accidentally Dead the 2nd book in the series by Dakota Cassidy is a newsletter subscriber...

dncmoore!!

I will email you asap.







The second prize is a signed copy of The Accidental Werewolf by Dakota Cassidy and the winner this time is from the comments! Well done....





Ruth Schaller!!





Congratulations to both of the winners! Please contact me with your name and address asap! I will send a message if you left me a way to contact you but if you don't reply within a week I will have to pick another winner.

If you didn't win in this contest don't worry because every week there is a new contest so come back and try again!

The next interview and contest will be up in a few hours!

Labels: Contests, Dakota Cassidy, winners

There are only 2 more days left to enter the Dakota Cassidy contest!

So if you haven't already entered or have some friends who haven't entered, send them over to join in the fun!

Labels: Contests, Dakota Cassidy

Mondays bite and so do vampires. My day started really well with my copy of Dragon Wytch arriving! So I am off to read that in a moment! The rest of the day didn't go so well but I won't bore you to death with that. There are better things out there to read!

First though I wanted to say WOW!!! So many people have entered the Dakota Cassidy contest! I can't believe how many people have made comments and the contest hasn't even been up 24 hours!! Thank you guys! I hope all the guests are going to keep coming back for more!

Secondly I wanted to point out another contest that is running today. Bitten By Books has author Linda Wisdom over there today and they are giving away some goodies! So stop by and have a look.

And lastly I wanted to say that I have decided to have a monthly giveaway for everyone who is signed up for my newsletter. I will post more about it when I have decided on the prize for this month but anyone who is signed up to the newsletter will be eligible to win!

Hope you are all having a great Monday!

Labels: Book Talk, Contests, Dakota Cassidy, General, Just for Fun

This week I am really excited to have author Dakota Cassidy as my victim *cough* I mean guest on Amberkatze's Book Blog.

Dakota has alot of books out there but her most famous so far are The Accidental Werewolf and her newest release Accidentally Dead. For a chance to win one of these books keep reading! If you need to know more then don't just skim the interview but actually read it :)

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Amber - Firstly I would like to thank you for taking the time to answer my
questions! I really appreciate it!

Dakota - Thanks for having me, Amber--I appreciate the cyber time :)

Amber - To start us off could you tell us a little bit about 'Accidentally Dead' and 'The Accidental Werewolf'?

Dakota - The Accidental Werewolf is about Marty Andrews, multi-level cosmetics sales guru, bitten in a total accident by a werewolf. Accidentally Dead is the second in the series and focuses on Nina Blackman, Marty's friend and also her biggest source of grief in The Accidental Werewolf. Nina was always the pin in Marty's cosmetic bubble--she began as Marty's sales recruit, and quite frankly, she sucked at selling cosmetics. She was negative and difficult when he's at her best. But I hope folks will see that she has a real heart of gold, and she's not nearly as bad as her fresh mouth is :)

Amber - 'Accidentally Dead' has just hit the shelves and 'The Accidental Werewolf' was out in February! Things must be busy? How do you keep up with everything and find the time to write?

Dakota - I don't know--are you available for hire? LOL. Actually, writing is my full time job. I write about 10 hours a day, all told. Most times it's in snippets of three hours or so interspersed with housework, laundry, my sons and life in general. Working at home ain't easy, but for the most part I do 16 hour days :)

Amber - I know that you have written quite alot of books and I have only read your contribution to the Paranormal Mates Society. What other books do you have on offer for readers and how do they compare to the 'Accidental' books?

Dakota - Oh, my gravy--I have probably thirty or so e-books in various lengths, many of them series related and all are erotic, whereas The Accidental series is more mainstream. Hot, but not quite that hot :)

Amber - Nina is the leading lady in 'Accidentally Dead' and Marty in 'The Accidental Werewolf'. Does that mean Wanda is next up? What paranormal creature will she be?

Dakota - I'll never tell. Tee hee :) All I can tell you is this--Wanda's in deep doo-doo and it ain't pretty :) And yep, she's next!

Amber - So what is next? More 'Accidental' books? Any other projects you are working on?

Dakota - Actually, I'm working on a stand alone right now called Kiss and Hell--due out the summer of 2009. It's about a medium and the hawt geeky demon who needs her help to figure out how he ended up in Hell.

Amber - Who are you more like? Marty, Nina or Wanda? Do you base your characters on anyone you know?

Dakota - Totally like Marty on the outside. Love shoes, clothes, makeup. Nina on the inside. I think all the stuff she says--I just don't say it. LOL And I'm much like Wanda in that, I hate confrontation (unless it's in my head), and I'm very diplomatic. And there are definitely some aspects about the girls that are based on some people in my life.

Amber - In 'Accidentally Dead' we hear that Wanda reads alot of paranormal books. Do you have any favourite reads?

Dakota - Nina Bangs. Love her. Adore her. Aspire to BE her. LOL. I'm kidding. Nina was the inspiration for me to step outside the box and hit the crazy train. her concepts are wildly funny. Also love Dean Koontz, Stephen King, Michele Bardsley, and Angela Knight.

Amber - The girls all have to do some research when Nina becomes a vampire. Do you have to do alot of research for your books? Do you use Wikipedia or Vampires for Dummies?

Dakota - I hit Wikipedia a couple of times for sure, and various other sites for some technical info about clothing in a certain time period, but for the most part I just make it up. I haven't met any real live vampires to dispute my crazy concepts--so the fields wide open. LOL

Amber - With so much going on you definitely need to take time to relax now and again. So how does Dakota Cassidy relax?

Dakota - Hang on and let me look that word up. LOL. I'm a big movie fan, so I watch movies, read a book, sleep. God knows I can never have enough sleep.

Amber - If your leading girls Wanda, Nina and Marty were going to be made into a TV Series/Movie which actresses would you love to see playing the parts?

Dakota - Hmmm, I'm going Reece Witherspoon for Marty, Nina's definitely Megan Fox, and Wanda's probably Jennifer Love Hewitt. I think... Can I have more time? LOL

Amber - Anyone who reads your bio knows you have alot of goals in life. There is just one I have to ask about - You want banish the colour yellow forever. What is it that is so bad about the colour yellow? ;)

Dakota - Yellow is the color of Hell. Tee hee. Almost no one should really wear it--it's a rare person that it truly works on. And mostly, that's just been a long running gag for me. I'm really okay if you wear yellow. Most of the time. LOL

Amber - A genie comes along and grants you 3 wishes? What would they be?

Dakota - My sons suddenly have a place to live and it doesn't involve me in any way. Endless contracts to write all the books I have swirling around in my head. Move to Vegas with my honeybunny Rob and see barry Manilow at The Hilton at least one a week.

Amber - A huge thank you Dakota! It was great to have you here on Amberkatze's Book Blog! Hopefully you will come back again ;)




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Contest Time -

As always I love to have a contest to compliment my author interviews and I usually only have one prize. However this week there are 2 prizes on offer and that means 2 winners!

One of the prizes on offer this week is my copy of the new release from Dakota, Accidentally Dead.











The other prize is a signed copy of 'The Accidental Werewolf' from Dakota!











How to enter -

To enter the contest let us know what 'Accident' Wanda will have in the 3rd book? Marty became a werewolf and Nina is a now a vampire. So what do you think Wanda will be? No guess no entry!

Anyone who is already signed up for my newsletter or signs up by the end of the contest will also be entered. So if you make a comment and are on the newsletter list you will be entered twice! You can sign up for the newsletter here.

Two winners will be picked by Raffle King on Sunday 13th of July. So don't forget to come back and see if you are a winner!

All my books are registered at Bookcrossing but I do not expect the winner to journal my book or be a member of Bookcrossing.

Looking forward to seeing your entries!

Labels: Author Interviews, Contests, Dakota Cassidy, New Releases, signed copy

Nina's first day as a dental assistant doesn't go so well when a patient goes a little crazy from the anesthesia and bites her. He was cute but hey the guy bit her! Sent home by her new boss to recover she wakes up with a set of fangs and a thirst for blood. It is time to find a cure for the disease her patient gave her and where better to find one than the cute patient who infected her.

Greg Statleon lives out on Long Island and doesn't have a cure for Nina. He does however want to accept her into his clan and look after her. Nina isn't so happy about the idea and with the help of her friends Marty and Wanda she goes through every available vampire source, including wikipedia, to find some hope of a cure.

'Accidentally Dead' follows on from 'The Accidental Werewolf' and this time Nina is the one to become a paranormal creature. Marty of course was the leading lady in the last book but here Nina takes the role over nicely with a potty mouth and wit that her friend didn't have.

This is sexy, hot and funny with great dialogue and characters. This is chick-lit mixed with paranormal romance and it will appeal to anyone who likes either genre. Think Erin McCarthy, Lyndsay Sands or MaryJanice Davidson and you are where this book is. Dakota Cassidy has made it on to my have to read list and I can't wait to see what she will come up with next. Escape the dark seriousness of Urban Fantasy and have a good laugh with this great series.

Labels: Books Read, Dakota Cassidy, New Releases