Welcome Chelsey Ortega & Bondwitch: Hybrid

Please welcome the inimitable Chelsey Ortega. She’s going to tell us about her new release, book 2 in the Bondwitch series: Bondwitch: Hybrid.

Bondwitch: Hybrid is the sequel to Bondwitch. In book 1, Annamaria learns that she is a witch on prom night by getting her powers unlocked by the very person who locked them sixteen years prior. She goes on an adventure to learn how to use them, and picks up new friends and love interest along the way.

In book 2, Annamaria is well-versed in the use of magic, but is still a baby in the larger magical world that she belongs to. She has responsibilities she does not want, has to fight to keep her boyfriend in her life, and must choose between forming her own found family or staying within her controlling grandmother’s clutches. Meanwhile, her sister, Marianna has been elevated from side character in book 1 to secondary main character in book 2. She will need to confront her past in order to become the witch her grandmother expects of her.

The larger Bondwitch world was inspired by a single conversation with my brother: Witches would have been great in Twilight. What started out as verbal fanfiction for another series, turned into its own world, story, and characters. As I veered into my own story, I discovered that I really like writing from the underlying theme of family dynamics. Annamaria fights with her grandmother in almost every chapter, works out deep emotions with her aunt, and constantly focuses on protecting her sister. Marianna yearns to win her grandmother’s approval while also protecting her sister. The families in Bondwitch are messy, but real and relatable.

Blurb

Annamaria Lyons is finally with her grandma, but Libby holds unyielding control of her coven and granddaughters. Betrothed to a male witch, Annamaria’s heart secretly belongs to her vampire boyfriend. When Libby threatens deadly consequences if she refuses the arranged marriage, Annamaria faces an impossible choice: obey or risk everything to follow her heart?

Marianna Lyons is a big disappointment. Stripped of her magic when she was forcefully turned into a vampire, she is now an outcast, desperate for Libby’s approval. When Marianna is tricked into breaking coven rules, she faces a difficult decision: endure brutal rehabilitation, or leave her new home. As Marianna struggles to rediscover herself, will she accept her new identity, or conform to Libby’s impossible demands?

Excerpt:

“Open the gate.” Annamaria stood as tall as she could in front of the two inside guards.

 “I’m sorry, Miss. Madam Libby’s orders. No one goes in or out tonight.” His face was a mask of neutrality.

“But tonight’s the night Anthony returns.” The guard’s eyes softened, pity swirling in their chocolate brown depths. She pinched her brows. Was this why Libby snooped through her phone this morning? Annamaria looked to her left. The other guard was talking to Zeke, who bobbed his head with folded arms. She looked to her right. No one. She ran along the perimeter, calling on the air to give her a boost. Annamaria leaped upward, a strong wind from her palms catching and guiding her.

“Miss!” 

The guard ran right behind her. His fingers grazed her ankles. Annamaria’s control of the air flickered and she wobbled. She kicked at him, planted her foot against his head, and used his sturdy form to thrust herself upward. She called on a final boost of air, landing on top of the wall. The guard cried out as he landed flat on his back on the ground below. Annamaria looked over the wall. Four figures stood near a vehicle in the dark. 

She jumped and used the air to slow her fall. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she ran toward the group. The figures became clearer. Two shifter guards, Marianna, and Anthony. Annamaria made a beeline to Anthony and threw herself into his arms. He caught her without changing his stance or breath. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and he wrapped his arms around hers, nuzzling his nose into her hair. 

She kissed him in front of their small audience, and anyone else who might be watching. Anthony kissed her back, parting her lips with his tongue and lightly sucking on her bottom lip. Though they had been “dating” for the past month, their last kiss had been before she fled Will’s over a month ago. She kissed him until she ran out of breath, then inhaled and rested her forehead against his.

“Welcome home,” she whispered, gazing into his dark brown eyes and dropping her feet to the ground.

Anthony chuckled, and his black skater hair fell forward as he looked down to meet her gaze. “I’ll go away more often if this is how you’ll greet me.”

 

Bondwitch: Hybrid

The Wild Rose Press: 5/11/26

Genre: Romantic Fantasy

392 pages

Heat level: Warm

 

Buy Links

Amazon Barnes & Noble The Wild Rose Press Walmart

Other buy options: https://chelseymortega.com/bondwitch-2/

About the Author

Chelsey M. Ortega is a teacher by day and award-winning author by night. History is her first love, and any story involving magic and romance, her second love. She especially loves witches and is still awaiting her acceptance letter to a well-known school. Chelsey received her Bachelor's in History Teaching from Brigham Young University. In addition to writing, Chelsey teaches high school U.S. History and ELD. She lives in Utah with her husband, three children, and two cats. Follow Chelsey at www.chelseymortega.com

Socials:

Facebook: Chelsey M. Ortega -Author https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086032045677#

Instagram: @chelsey_mae_o https://www.instagram.com/chelsey_mae_o/ 

TikTok: @chelseym.ortega https://www.tiktok.com/@chelseym.ortega

Bluesky: @chelseymortega.bsky.social  https://bsky.app/profile/chelseymortega.bsky.social

Welcome Mona Sedrak & Her New Release Gravity

Please welcome author Mona Sedrak. She’s going to tell us about her new novel, Gravity, a heartwarming romance.

Gravity is a heartwarming story of two individuals from remarkably different backgrounds who are inexplicably drawn to one another, forming a strong friendship and falling in love, despite the odds against them. The story depicts the beautiful Middle Eastern culture I was raised in and its many traditions as well as some of its challenges. Readers will identify with this story, no matter their background because it speaks to and awakens the human heart.

Gravity is about tolerance, acceptance, understanding, and forgiveness. Finally, it is a story of love and hope. When I started writing Gravity several years ago, I couldn’t have predicted how relevant it would be today. At the end of the day, I want readers to understand that although we may be different, as members of the human race, our similarities out-weigh our differences and love is the universal language that binds us. 

Gravity: A force pulling together people and hearts.

After being shunned by her Middle Eastern family, medical assistant Leila Solomon struggles to build a life for herself and her child. Landscape photographer Aiden Stone built a career seeing what others miss, and the second he meets Leila, he is drawn to her unassuming beauty and fragile strength.

Leila cannot defy the gravitational forces pulling her toward Aiden and to the family who cast her out. To build a future with Aiden, she must face the past but is she strong enough to resist being pulled back into the family fold?

Excerpt: Aiden

He smiled, took a step back, and met her gaze. "I'm a fairly easy going guy, but I have my quirks. One of them is my persistence. When I see something I desire, I go after it with relentless tunnel vision and focus. I chase the elusive. Often, others can't see what I do, or they're simply not brave enough to take risks, defy gravity, and uncover and unleash what's hidden. But do you know what I find each and every time I trust my gut, put in the time, and do the work?"

"What?" she whispered, entranced by his voice and his molten eyes.

"Heart stopping, raw, wild, and unimaginable beauty.” Aiden grinned. “I'm a landscape photographer. Photography is not only what I do. Photography is also who I am. Through the lens of my camera, I see what others think only exists in dreams and movies. I believe. I commit. If you decide to come inside, I'll show you what I'm talking about." He spun and strode the door.

Aiden said his piece and issued a challenge. Leila could walk away or cross the threshold and take a chance, praying this time her heart wasn’t trampled. She chewed on her lower lip. Even if she walked away, Aiden wouldn’t. The man would track her down.

Standing, Leila paced. She was out of her element––stuck between two worlds. Too Americanized, she didn’t fit into the Egyptian culture. Yet, she wasn’t American enough.

Gravity

Mona Sedrak

The Wild Rose Press,  July 15, 2020

Women’s Fiction, Sweet Romance

287 pages

Buy Links

Goodreads

Books2Read

Bookbub

About the Author

Mona Sedrak lives in Cincinnati, Ohio and works as a university administrator and professor. Although she has co-published two academic books, she is now writing mainstream fiction and women's fiction. She is an avid reader and is probably Audible's best customer.

Writing and reading fiction is her escape from reality.

Mona lives with her husband of 30+ years, a geriatric maltipoo, and an Amazon Parrot named Pretzel. She binge watches too many shows to count and she loves fine brandy.

She’d love to have you contact her here:

Website

Amazon

Twitter

Facebook

Goodreads

Instagram

Leap Year Blues

Welcome to the World’s First Leap Year Blog Hop (oh there are so many word play possibilities I can’t begin to count…). To the commenter who can name the origin of Sadie Hawkins Day I am giving away a pdf copy of your choice of my four romantic suspense novels. Please make sure you leave your email address in your comment so I can contact the lucky winner.  And now for the main attraction:

Leap Year Blues

There is a tradition in England that if a woman wears a red slip on Leap Year Day the man she proposes to will accept her, love and cherish her for the rest of her life. I’m not from the UK, but I am an anthropologist and therefore willing to play by Roman rules where it suits me.

You know where this is leading. Yes, Leap Year. And this little Wile E. Coyote light bulb  went off in my head.  Ooh, ooh. I’ll propose to him. He won’t be able to deny me—after all, it’s Leap year (this is known in psychiatric circles as Denial). But, how to do it? In the words of another equally successful romantic figure, the wicked witch of the west, “These things must be done delicately.”

So, I Googled. And discovered the above tradition about red slips.  I hauled myself to Victoria’s Secret. No dice. Red lingerie is sold only at Christmas and Valentine’s day. Today we have your black, your teal, your hot pink… No? Off to Nordstroms. “My dear, scarlet niceties? I don’t think so.”

And so it went.

Around about twilight on Leap Year Eve I sauntered…well crawled…into Sears.

I love Sears. After all, Sears gave me my very first credit card, with which I bought my very first TV (a little black and white number with snazzy push buttons and a real antenna). I renewed my vows when I found the one and only red slip in the entire Washington metropolitan area.   Lacy, carmine, slinky and it fit. Sold, to the desperate little lady in bunny slippers.

I wended my way back home and booted up the laptop. Since the love of my life only communicated via email (he did not insist on my actual presence at our R-rated exchanges—a clue perhaps?) I wrote him. “I have the requisite red slip.”

He wrote back, “Huh?”

Me: “Now it’s okay for me to propose.”

Him: “Huh?” (I said he was gorgeous, not quick).

Me: “So?”

Pause. “Wait a minute, are you proposing?”

I refrained from the non-articulate and possibly insulting “Duh,” and answered with simple clarity: “Yes.”

Wait for it.

A little longer.

Okay, one looooong minute.

“Aren’t you sweet.”

“…”

For a more cheerful romance, try my latest, Triptych, in which legend, history and romance intertwine in a triptych of suspense. Click on the cover to your left for more information.

Please visit the next great blog on our hop: Juliette Springs at www.darkersideofromance.com  for more Leap Year leaps of faith…