Guest Author: Barb Meyers & Giveaway!

Sometimes you just want to read something that makes you feel good, don’t you?  You want to read a story that makes you laugh, a story that makes you smile and sigh with the satisfaction of a heart-warming love story.  My featured author today writes exactly that kind of book.  She’s Barb Meyers, and she specializes in making you feel good.

Barb’s first book was Hidden Assets, a romantic comedy published by Avalon Books in 2001.  She followed that up with Training Tommy in 2002.

In 2008, Barb became a Samhain author, publishing the sexy romantic comedy, A Month From Miami

Here’s what Jasmine Cresswell, USA Today bestselling author, had to say about A Month From Miami:

“Barbara Meyers has written a heart-warming story of love and new beginnings as her endearing, small town heroine searches for success and finds it in unexpected places.”

Here’s the blurb for A Month From Miami:

Hair stylist Kaylee escapes small town life and is on her way to big city glamour and   sophistication when her car breaks down in a small Florida town. Broke and stranded she trades baby-sitting for car repairs with single dad mechanic Rick. She’s only a month away from Miami, but there’s thief after the secret stash hidden in her gas tank, the FBI not far behind, a little girl who wants a mommy and a special man who’s thrown a wrench into her carefully laid plans.

Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?  Yes, it’s great to read about dukes and shapeshifters, Greek millionaires and ruthless princes, but every once in a while it’s really nice to read books about normal people, even if those normal people have to deal with FBI agents and jewel thieves! And with Barb, you can be guaranteed of a heart-warming, happy ending.

Fortunately for her fans, Barb has just released a new book with Samhain.  It’s called A Forever Kind of Guy, and it sounds just wonderful:

Here’s the blurb for A Forever Kind of Guy:

First on Hayley Christopher’s list to get her train-wreck life back on track: stay away from men. Especially the ones who cause a ripple effect of bad decisions.

Still reeling from a high-profile divorce, the college dropout and former pro cheerleader is stumbling through yet another challenge—temporary custody of her nephew, Fletcher. No one knows better than Hayley that she’s not mother material. When she opens the door to her new landlord and old flame, she wonders just how many more past mistakes she is destined to pay for.

After the death of his wife, Ray Braddock is still putting the pieces back together. Hayley—and the silent little boy at her side—both bristle with emotional barriers so high, it appears no one but him can see that together, three broken people just might make a whole family.

As she watches Fletcher respond to Ray’s patient care, Hayley’s determination to hold on to her heart begins to soften. But just when she begins to think that Ray is one opportunity she shouldn’t let slip by, Fletcher’s gang-connected father threatens to make her pay for the one good choice she ever made…

Sounds exactly like the kind of contemporary romance I love to read!  If you like your romance on the real side, with dashes of humor and a whole lot of heart, I think you’ll really like Barb’s books.

For my readers today, Barb is giving away a copy of A Month From Miami.  Since Barb writes contemporary romance, let’s talk about that.  What do you like in your contemporaries?  Do you like stories about regular kinds of folks facing the challenges of life, or do you prefer more action-packed, high concept romances with lots of glamor, wealth, and adventure?  Or both?  One person who comments will win a copy of Barb’s book.

 

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21 CommentsLeave a comment

  1. I like contemporary romance to feel real….. to imagine myself in “:the driver’s seat”. Barbara’s style of writing sounds like it makes for a very enjoyable read. I would love to win one of her books!!

    • Betty, it is nice to be able to relate to the characters, isn’t it?

  2. i like to read something that feels real to me and both of those sound like great stories to me.please enter me in the giveaway 🙂

  3. Good Morning Vaness and Welcome Barb! You don’t have to enter me into the contest since I just won over the weekend don’t want to be greedy, just wanted to drop in and put my 2 cents in and say hi! Would love to read this one though, I have never been to Miami, but love Miami. lol.

    The only contemporary stories I have read were the Harlequin ones and they were quite short stories at least for me. I love the adventure type ones. Where the “hero” of the story is in a dangerous line of work, or the heroine is in need of rescuing and she doesn’t know it. Corny huh? The few that I have read it always seems to end up that way, they seem very strong willed yet the hero always seems to save her somehow from some peril.

    Not into the glamour or wealth ones since love isn’t about money or things that you have.

    • Tina, I love the woman in danger stories, too. Nothing sexier than a big, strong guy who wants to protect his woman!

  4. I like my imaginary contemporary books to be glamourous and adventurous… Kinda like Romancing the Stone… It’s a good escape… but I like humour in general in all my books and as long as it’s there, it doesn’t matter to be if it’s glamorous or normal life…

    • That’s the great thing about reading, isn’t it, May? We can have it all!

  5. I like both but I do think that it depends on my mood. I read a lot of paranormal stories but at the same time I enjoy contemporary as well. I like that they feel real and sometimes the wealthy, glamorous kind is nice but I do enjoy ones that are more real and glamor/wealth isn’t real for me.

  6. I like both as long as the heroine is a strong character. I don’t like heroines who are depressed and need rescuing. I
    don’t mind if the hero helps but I want to know in the end she was the major player in bringing about her happy ending. I’m a high school teacher and I still teach too many girls who are waiting around for Mr. Right instead of working hard towards a rewarding career. As a writer I want to show them that a strong identity and sense of self-worth are preludes to love.

    • Very wise words, Janet. It’s great when the hero and heroine can “rescue” each other.

  7. I like the characters to feel as real as possible it give me that certain “it can happen in real life” kind of feeling and makes me feel more connected to the book and it also let me feel like I could be the heroine,I hope that makes sense! I would adore to win this one it sounds so unbelievable good !

    Thanks for the chance to win !

    Desere

  8. Thanks to all of the readers who commented. My characters are down-to-earth working people. Writers are advised to write what they know so no super wealth and glamour here! More like small towns and characters struggling over the bumps in life’s road and finding each other. Happy reading to all! –Barb Meyers

  9. I like both types of contemporaries. Which I pick just depends on my mood (ex. needing humor), my environment (beach trip) or the last book(s) I read. Comedy -> drama-> realistic -> paranormal, etc. As long as there’s a happy ending, I like variety.

  10. When I read a contemporary novel, I like to read about everyday ordinary people that I can relate to. I don’t care much for reading about the rich and famous who live nothing like I live (although it is a nice escape from “life” sometimes! 🙂

    nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

  11. I really prefer a more ‘real life’ to the glam glitzy stuff — I guess because I can’t really ‘envision myself’ in those types of story lines..

  12. Fingers crossed that Miss Non-Techie (that’s me) got a readable Kindle copy of A Month From Miami sent to the winner. Thanks again to everyone who commented. –Barb Meyers


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