Screwed is out now!

Yay!

(I'm still in love with this cover!)

I just want to remind folks that this book was previously released as a part of The Sutherlands multi-author anthology a few years ago, so some of you may already have read it. It has been re-edited, updated, and about 20,000 words added.

Check out more about it here!

Other May news…

I just signed a contract with Loveswept for a new hockey series! Woohoo! Watch for more news about Wynns Hockey, coming in 2019!

I’ve been happily digging in dirt and planting my flowers. The weather here has been lovely although we could probably use more rain.

If you’re not into gardening and flowers, this might not excite you but YOU GUYS! I found a dream come true plant – a YELLOW MANDEVILLA.

My old auntie, who also used to love to garden, used to buy me a Mandevilla plant every spring—and they were absolutely lovely, but they have PINK flowers. Nothing wrong with pink, but I’m not a “pink” person. I like lots of oranges and yellows in my garden. So when I found this yellow Mandevilla, I had to have it!

Do you like Sangria? I do, especially in summer! I found this sangria that is super delicious and easy since it’s already made. You don’t even have to add fruit, it tastes amazing even without, but adding some is nice.

Enjoy your summer and happy reading!

Hello all!

It's the most wonderful time of the year! HOCKEY PLAYOFFS!

I wouldn't be this excited about it, but this year my Winnipeg Jets are IN the playoffs and they just won the second round to move on to the Western Conference final. This is the only Winnipeg Jets team in history that's made it this far in the playoffs, even going back to Jets 1.0, so the entire city is going crazy right now LOL. I'm so excited!! 

Other news

Hey I'm on Radish now! 

Have you checked out this app? It's a pretty cool way to read. There are some free things to get you started including a book by me! I'll be uploading more content soon!

This cover is AMAZING!  

I absolutely love it. I'm a little sad because it's the last book of the Aces Hockey series (out October 2018) BUT never fear, another hockey series is in the works!

Watch for more details and pre-order links!

I have a new cover!
 

Isn’t this gorgeous?? I absolutely love it. He has the perfect expression for Cash.

I don’t have pre-order links yet, but you can add it on Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31449135-screwed

Other news

MY WINNIPEG JETS ARE IN THE PLAYOFFS!!!

Some of you might not appreciate how f*cking important this! Since Jets 2.0 came back to Winnipeg, we’ve only made it to the playoffs once, and we lost in 4 (hard fought, physical) games. THIS WHOLE HOCKEY CRAZY CITY IS GOING TO GO NUTS!

Seriously.

I’m beside myself with excitement, while tempering that with some realism. *sigh* Whatever happens, I’m happy not only for me and all the other fans, I’m happy for the players. At the beginning of the season, Captain Blake Wheeler said something like “it has to be this year.” I know it’s been frustrating for him and others. So I’m thrilled for them to have this. They’ve worked hard for it. They deserve it. And we are all behind you and cheering for you to go all the way!!

Things I’m loving

Just recommended this oil to another author who also has not-curly, not-straight, frizzy hair. I swear by this stuff. My hair is so dry and frizzy, this turns it into normal-looking smooth hair.

Found this new concealer and it’s pretty awesome! I don’t know if anything will help the big bags under my eyes, but I like how natural this looks.

I hope spring weather is finding you!. We're having a slow spring, but oh well, summer will come!

I have one book with Riptide Publishing. In 2013 (2012?) Sarah Lyons approached me about Riptide's annual Christmas charity anthology. They were doing a ménage theme that year. Sarah expressed admiration for my ménage romances and invited me to contribute a story, which I did. I have met Sarah and others from Riptide Publishing numerous times at RT conventions, and participated in a panel discussion about LGBTQ romances that Sarah coordinated.

I will be requesting the rights to my book back, however it is contracted with them until November 2018.

I wish I had some brilliant, comforting words but right now all I can say is, I am so deeply saddened and disappointed about what I have learned today. To those who have been hurt by this, I'm so sorry and I stand with you.

Yay! Long Shot, Book 3 in my Last Shot series, is now out! I'm a little sad because it's the end of the series, but I'm excited for you to have Cade and Reese's story. (And lots of readers are falling in love with Jack, apparently!) For those who haven't read the first 2 books, no worries - they can all be read as a standalone, so feel free to start with this one!

I love a really good "grand gesture" from the character who screws up the most - and I think Cade nails it in this book. That's all I'm sayin'. 

View fullsize

I didn't do a February update here, for a really dumb reason. My internet was acting up the day I was trying to post and every time I tried to upload a picture, the site crashed and I lost everything. I finally gave up in complete frustration (yes there were several F bombs). So far, things seem okay so let's try this again!

The days are already getting longer - woohoo, it's still light out after 5:00 PM! Lots of people I know are off on hot holidays to Mexico or Cuba, but not me *sigh*. I had my trip "south" when I went to Chicago last month, LOL. But that's okay because I'm busy, busy writing. I'm that close to finishing Big Stick, Aces Hockey book 8, which will be out in October. And then...I'll be writing book 9, which is likely going to be the last in the Aces series.  But don't worry! I'll definitely be writing more hockey! Stay tuned for news about a new series.

Did you notice the new look for the blog and website?  Thanks to the awesome Lauren Layne and Anth at Last Word Designs for the refresh! I love how clean and simple it is!

I used to buy my favorite lip balm (and that's actually what it's called!) at Bath and Body Works, but they don't seem to carry it any more. So I went on line and googled Dr. Bigelow and found it! Yeah! I ordered a whole bunch, so I am well stocked for a while. I love this night balm because it's thick and it stays on all night, and it tastes DELICIOUS.

I'm still into these red wines that are aged in whiskey barrels. I've tried a few others now...this one's a Canadian wine from the Okanagan, which is also aged in whiskey barrels.

I haven't bought any shoes for a while, but I keep pinning pics on Pinterest - I love these ones!

Wow it’s half way through January already! Christmas is a distant memory. I don’t know about where you are, but we are living through a deep freeze here. It sounds like a lot of people are having unusually cold weather this year - apparently iguanas are falling out of trees in Florida because they’re frozen!

I just came back from a few days in Chicago, where people were complaining about the cold too. (Actually so was I, but I felt like a wimp when I got home and it was even colder.) The first day I was there was beautiful, it was actually raining a bit and there was NO SNOW which was not what I wanted to see. But I have now experienced Chicago in the winter. Michigan Avenue is beautiful at night with all the little white lights in the trees. Here's a pic of the river...

I also went to a hockey game at the United Center, which was super cool! My Winnipeg Jets were playing the Blackhawks. Sadly it wasn’t the greatest game, and we lost 2-1, but it was still a great experience (and we’re still ahead of Chicago in the standings!) Some differences between an NHL game in Chicago and in Winnipeg:

-          While announcing the opening lineup, they misspelled and mispronounced Shawn Matthias’ name (it’s not Matthais)

-          Everyone cheered and clapped through the American national anthem so you couldn’t even hear it. That seemed odd.

-          After Chicago scores, everyone sings Chelsea Dagger. I have to admit, it’s a damn good goal song and I approve of this tradition, however our Jets goal song Gonna Celebrate is good, but not really singable…

-          The girls in the Chicago Ice Crew wear little short skirts. I knew about this, but again it’s different than Winnipeg where the girls in the Ice Crew wear the same pants and jackets as the guys. Also, the girls in skirts skate around in a half-hearted way, scraping lethargically at the ice with their shovel.

Biggest difference:

-          There are a lot of Stanley Cup banners hanging from the rafters!

I went to the game with fellow hockey romance author Kate Meader. She did a fantastic recap of our evening on Facebook. It was so much fun hanging out with her!

I also did some setting research and a little shopping so it was a fabulous trip. Now I’m home and need to get caught up and back to writing!

Only one month until release of Long Shot, the last book in my Last Shot series! Woop!

Things I’m loving this month

Loving this wine! It's aged in oak whisky barrels and it tastes amazing. Here's how their website describes it: Double Barrel Shiraz has a full and generous palate with a beguiling mix of sweet red fruits and dark chocolate indicative of its origins as Barossa Shiraz; Subtle toasty vanillin.

My wonderful assistant Stacey Price sent me this for Christmas - she knows what I like! 

My new purse I bought in Chicago!

 

Stay warm, everyone! Good time to curl up with a good romance!

The end of one year and the beginning of another one is always a time to reflect on the past and look forward to the future. I’m not one for resolutions, and planning for a whole year makes me break out in hives, but I do think having some hopes and goals for the coming year is important. And of course we can learn from the past.

Some of you may know that 2017 was a difficult year for me personally. It affected my writing and I wasn’t as productive as I’d like to be. Which actually means that next year will be impacted and I’ll only have 4 books out in 2018. I’ve been accustomed to being on a 5-6 book/year schedule, so this will be different for me.

I think 2017 was also difficult for many other authors and creative people. The politics in the US had a dramatic effect on me and other authors. I’m not even American! But I care about all the readers and friends there I’ve made over the years. I also hear from many authors that it was a challenging year in terms of sales…many have noted sharp downturns. There are many possible factors but I’ve heard that a successful author doesn’t just need talent, she needs persistence. I’ve had rejections and ups and downs over a nearly 10 year publishing career, so I AM PERSISTING!

Like I said, I don’t usually make resolutions, but last year on January 1 I resolved to write in a journal every night before bed—and it could only be positive things. When I had a shitty day at the day job, or problems in my personal life, or I got a bad review on one of my books…I couldn’t write about that. It had to be positive. I admit…some days that was really hard. But there’s always something to be positive about...something to be grateful for…I have a house. A car. A job. Great kids. My dog. I am blessed and lucky in so many ways. Sometimes I’d start to write… “I only wrote 500 words today”…and I’d strike the “only” and write “I wrote 500 words today”. Or  “I went for a run but it was hard” — I’d change to “I went for a run”. It has made such a difference in my life. I’m going to continue to do this and I recommend it to anyone who struggles with stress, anxiety, self-doubt and even sleep issues.

Looking forward — I’m going to try to be more strategic in my business planning. I feel like marketing and promotion is all a crap shoot and I’m just shooting fish in a barrel any time I try something! But I’m going to try.

I hope that with only 4 releases I have more time to focus on writing and I’ll get ahead of things for 2019.

In the world… I predict 2018 will be the year of women.

This past year, men have fucked up a lot of things in the world. I’ve been fascinated with US politics since Donald Trump got elected and over the last months, I’ve observed that the people who are coming to the rescue are women. The journalists I follow who give me the best information -- Rachel Maddow, Sarah Kendzior, Natasha Bertrand. There’ve been some strong female politicians. There have been women who’ve all come forward with their stories of sexual harassment and assault by men in power, in the entertainment industry, in politics, in journalism.

The men who obsessed over Hillary Clinton’s emails, who gave Donald Trump more air time and coverage and who trashed Hillary— at least a dozen of those men have now lost their jobs because of sexual harassment.

The female voters, especially women of color, who made huge differences in Virginia and Alabama elections. The women who got elected in those elections. The women who are running for office now.

And romance writers – we can make a difference.

There are still so many misconceptions about what romance is. People think romance isn’t feminist because it shows women can’t be happy without a man, or all romance heroines are submissive doormats (waiting to be thrown over the back of a horse and ridden off with – ha!). Romance isn’t taken seriously by so many people.

Readers STILL sometimes react badly to strong heroines who go after what they want. I’ll never forget an early review for Major Misconduct – Lovey is fun and outgoing and confident and she goes after the man she’s attracted to – and a reader called her “uber slutty”. WHAT?? Others called her TSTL even though she was starting her own business and doing well at it. Heroes, on the other hand, will be forgiven for almost anything—but heroines, nope, one mistake, one bad decision, one strong assertive moment makes her a bitch, stupid, unlikeable or a slut.

I grew up in the 70s and I remember the slut shaming. Romance novels then reflected that, with rape fantasies and forced seduction—because it wasn’t okay for women to WANT sex. Let’s get past that. Let’s get past that internalized misogyny. Women should not be so hard on each other! These days, romance novels reflect strong women with agency, with goals and hopes and dreams who fall in love along their journey.

As I mentioned, I’ve had personal difficulties this past year, and being a romance writer helped me in ways I never would have anticipated. Now I recognize gas lighting. And I ask myself, if I was writing this story, how would my heroine behave? She’d be strong. She’d be optimistic that things will work out, but she wouldn’t just sit back and wait for things to work out, she’d take charge of her own life and fight for what she needs. So I am doing that.

I'd like to take the opportunity to thank the team of people who work with me -- my agent, editors, marketing and PR people, my assistant, cover artists, blurb writers, formatters...and most especially my readers. I love to write romance and I'm so grateful to everyone who helps me and to everyone who buys my books!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays however you may celebrate!

The shopping is done, the presents are wrapped, the turkey is thawing! I think I'm ready! As usual, I've probably forgotten something, but there are still a couple of days if I have. I'm now off from the day job until January 2, so I'm looking forward to sleeping in, lots of food, family and friends, and hopefully lots of writing time!

I'm filling the house with this scent...because I have an artificial tree...this smells AMAZING...

And here's my tree...

I'm on Spotify now, so I can share some favorite music! This album is still my favorite Christmas album, even though it's a children's album. My kids went to French immersion school and we played this all the time when they were little...and I still love it!

https://open.spotify.com/album/5GBsKS2KToeFYKA100Dpnu

DANCING IN THE RAIN is one of Denise's top picks for the year at Shh Mom's Reading!

And don't forget...if you haven't already read them...I have THREE Christmas stories...

All I Want for Christmas

Three of Hearts

Off Limits

For a little holiday romance reading...enjoy!

All the best of the season to you and your families!

Thanks to everyone who bought Slap Shot! I’m always so grateful when people buy and read my books. The next Aces book won’t be out for a while (July!) so don’t forget about me and my hockey guys! But I’ll have a couple of other books out in the meantime…

Long Shot - the last book of the Last Shot series - out in February

Screwed - out in May

Don’t forget about my Pinterest board for Aces hockey for some visual inspiration…and some hints at upcoming characters…

If you haven’t already got it, Breakaway is still free everywhere! Great chance to start my Aces Hockey series!

Amazon

iBooks

Nook

Kobo

Google

Reader questions of the month!

Speaking of Breakaway…

A few readers have asked about the loose ends in the story…wondering about an epilogue.

Well, Breakaway is book 1 in my Heller Brothers hockey, and the loose ends are all tied up if you keep reading the series…you’ll read more about Jase and Remi and Jase’s baby…also Heller brothers Tag and Logan. The series ends with Matt’s book, Offside, where you get a little look at the future and an epic epilogue that ties up the whole series. I made myself cry with that one. :-)

I’ve also had a few emails about my Brew Crew series:

Will there be another book in the Brew Crew series? Why isn't there an epilogue in the first two books?

When I started this series, my plan was to write 3 books. At that time, they were published with Samhain Publishing. Sales had been declining sharply and I was hesitant to write even book 2 in the series, but I’d committed to that one. Before I could write book 3, Samhain went out of business. I got the rights back and re-released books 1 and 2, and I could still write book 3, but I’ve signed contracts with another publisher that limit when I can publish other books. I’m pretty much booked up with them until March 2019. It could still happen, but it looks really hard to fit it into my schedule.

As far as an epilogue goes---I’d hoped to give that peek at the future for Levi and Sloane, and Bailey and Mason, in book 3 —  but the question gave me the idea of writing an “epilogue” that I could share with readers…so if I can find time to squeeze that in, I definitely will!

Here are a few new things I'm involved in:

Racy Reads Party Room

This is a fabulous new Facebook group I’m part of — lots of amazing authors interacting daily with readers, awesome giveaways, parties and takeovers, news about releases and sales, and lots of fun!
 

And have you heard of Book + Main?

This is brand new and I haven’t even got a good feel for it yet, but sounds like it has awesome potential as a way of discovering new authors and books. (I’m a reader too and always looking for new reads!). I’m trying it out, so come follow me and let’s find new books together!

 

I bought these new shoes...aren't they adorable? 

Wine - a really delicious ZInfandel

Lip gloss - I'm so pleased with this find! The colour (Maple) is nice and natural for me, and it has lots of pigment and is shiny, but lasts long like a lipstick.

Playlist - I'm loving Your Favourite Coffeehouse!

I'm exited for this release because so many readers have been asking about Max (Hallsy) and his HEA!. It's finally here!

Fun fact: This is the first book I've ever written that is entirely in the hero's point of view. I was nervous attempting something different, but I've always enjoyed writing male point of view scenes, and I think it turned out well. Reviewers are agreeing:

"I was overjoyed to discover that this author writes fantastic male POV…an emotional read, an incredibly sexy story, angsty at times, heartwarming at others... all in all, a really solid story. I really liked it!"    ~ Angie and Jessica’s Dreamy Reads

This post will mostly be about my recent trip, but I also want to remind you that BREAKAWAY is FREE right now everywhere! If you haven’t read my first hockey series, Heller Brothers Hockey, now’s a great time to start!

Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo | Books-A-Million| GooglePlay | Smashwords

As you may know from social media, I just got back from a trip to London, England with my daughter. We had a fantastic time. We did lots of touristy things, lots of shopping, lots of eating and drinking. One of my favorite things about traveling is wandering and stumbling upon cute little streets or buildings or restaurants, and that happened a few times. I also got to meet in person with one of my readers from my Sweet Heat Reader Group, and with fellow author RJ Scott. We had lunch one day and it was awesome to meet them in person! As well, I had a family lunch on Saturday with my uncle, three of my cousins and one cousin’s wife and three kids. We don’t get to see each other often, needless to say, so it was fantastic to get together with them.

The British people are so wonderful. They are so polite — I think they say “sorry” as much as we Canadians do. Like the day I was sitting on a bench on the Underground platform…I stuck my feet straight out in front of me to look at my shoes and a man nearly walked into them. And HE said, “Sorry, ma’am.” (I believe in translation that means, watch what you’re doing with your feet you stupid bitch.)

We also loved the British sense of humor. Maybe it’s the accent, but everything they say sounds funny.

The British are also brave. Just before we left on our trip, an explosion happened in the Underground. People asked us if we were still going. Well, Londoners have no choice. They have to deal with that every day. And so we said we weren’t going to let it stop us either. We rode the Tube many times every day. We walked across Westminster Bridge. And we thought of the people who were killed or injured in senseless tragedies.

Here are a few pictures from my trip.

Tower Bridge from Tower of London

Tower Bridge

White Tower

St. Paul's Cathedral

Afternoon tea at Fortnum and Mason

Changing of the Guard

Buckingham Palace

Big Ben

Carnaby Street

And of course I bought shoes...  :-)

Wow, it's over half way through August already!

I'm just finishing up two weeks of vacation from the day job, which means I've been writing my little heart out for the last two weeks! I finished one book and started another - yay! Also got caught up with some writing business.

I've been cleaning up my newsletter list, so if you're subscribed you may hear from me about whether you want to continue to receive my emails. I understand if you don't -- everyone's inundated with emails these days, and you can always keep up with me here, or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.

I've also been working on getting some of my former Samhain books back up for sale in print format. I'm happy to say that you can now get these books in print:

Rule of Three, Rhythm of Three and Reward of Three - Rhythm and Reward were never before available in print!

Jilted

With Strings Attached

How to Love

Slammed

Limited Time Offer

No Obligation Required

And I'm working on the rest! It's a big job, but it's nice to have that option available for readers.

And I did take a day off to go to the beach!

I love the beach. :-) 

I'm getting ready for a trip to London, England next month (Sept 17-24). I'm hoping to arrange to meet up with a couple of author and reader friends, so if you'd like to join us, drop me a line (my email is info@kellyjamieson.com or connect with me on Facebook or Twitter. I would love to sign books or give you swag!

QUESTION OF THE MONTH

Last month, Cross Check was released and I'm so thrilled with the great reviews it's gotten. I've been asked a number of times about a third Bayard Hockey book. Here's the honest answer - I did plan this to be a 3 book series. Book 3 was supposed to be about Grady and I know what his story is. But my publisher isn't terribly interested in another new adult romance. The market has changed for new adult stories. I *could* write it and self publish it, but they are correct that the market seems to have shifted, as my Bayard Hockey books haven't sold as well as others. For me it's a business decision - while I'd love to tell that story, I really have to focus my writing time on books that I think will sell better. But maybe I'll find a different way to tell that story!

SUMMER LOVE

I discovered this product earlier this summer and it's my new favorite thing! It's not a self tanner, as it washes off, it just gives a hint of color and shine -- great for arms and legs!

Next release...

isn't until October - gah! That's SLAP SHOT, which is the next Aces Hockey story - Max Hall's book!

ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR SUMMER!

It's release day for Cross Check!

So many readers have asked about the next Bayard Hockey book - it's been a year since Shut Out was released and I hate that it took so long to get Cross Check out there. That's the publishing biz for you! I hope you enjoy Ben and Ella's story!

A party girl and a clean-cut college hockey player discover that they’re not so different in this sexy, soulful Bayard Hockey novel from the USA Today bestselling author of the Heller Brothers series.

Ella Verran has three goals this semester: get off academic probation, repair her relationship with her friend Skylar, and take some responsibility for her life. All of which are hard enough without hot, snobby hockey player Ben Buckingham around to distract her. Ella can’t stand Ben, and she knows the feeling is mutual. But he’s best friends with Skylar’s boyfriend, so he’s always around—taunting and tempting Ella in ways she never thought possible.

As the star forward of the Bayard College hockey team, Ben has goals too, like playing well enough to land a spot on an NHL roster. Ben is perfectly poised on the ice, so why can’t he keep his cool around Ella? Her wild behavior rubs him in all the wrong ways—and a few of the right ones. But as they skate around each other, Ben learns that there’s more to Ella than her bad reputation. And when the line between love and hate starts to blur, he can’t resist crossing over and sweeping her off her feet.

Amazon: http://bit.ly/crosscheckKin
iBooks: http://bit.ly/crosscheckIB
Nook: http://bit.ly/crosscheckBN
Kobo: http://bit.ly/crosscheckK
Google: http://bit.ly/crosscheckG

Summer is here! I've been enjoying the warm weather and doing lots of work in the yard, meaning sore muscles, broken nails and a bit of sunburn! But we wait all winter for this so I'm happy!

Big news for June RIGHT NOW -- SHUT OUT is on sale for just $.99!! Go grab it now! This book got awesome reviews when it was released so I hope this sale gets Shut Out into more readers' hands!

Amazon

iBooks

Nook

Kobo

Google

The Bayard College hockey team isn’t where Jacob Flass thought he’d be a season ago. He was a rising star in the Canadian major junior league, cruising toward a spot on an NHL roster—until a single disastrous night on the town brought it all crashing down. Now he’s out of options, except for playing well, studying hard, and staying away from girls. He’s not supposed to be flirting with the hottest, sweetest chick he’s ever met. But how could he possibly stay away?
 
Skylar Lynwood knows that Jacob is out of her league. She’s just trying to go with the flow, which isn’t easy when six feet and four inches of total hockey hunkiness is making a play for her one moment, then giving her the cold shoulder the next. Skylar’s head tells her that this rugged athlete isn’t worth her time, but her body says something altogether different. Risking her heart for Jacob may be the craziest thing she’s ever done . . . but she won’t let him shut her out.

Join me and my Nine Naughty Novelists friends on Facebook for a Midsummer Madness party! June 20 here in the 9NN Party Cabana -- hot reads, hot book boyfriends, fun and prizes!

Reader question!

Hi Kelly, I loved Dancing in the Rain, it has become my favourite book you've written so far. Where did the idea come from & do see yourself writing another one similar to it in the near future?

The Author Note in Dancing in the Rain basically explains where the idea came from. It was actually my agent and my editor who'd been talking and suggested I write about a retired hockey player. And maybe a secret baby story. And I was all nah, I don't think so....but then I started thinking about Drew and I had to write his story. Only I didn't want it to be the usual secret baby, because these days it's hard to imagine why a woman would keep a child a secret from the father. But in this case there was a good reason. At first I thought the story would start after Sarah's death, but when I started writing it, that wasn't how it went. 

I have an idea for a couple of spin off books involving Peyton's new business that I'm mulling over...nothing definite yet...

Thanks for asking!

I love this video of this dog who feels so bad for taking the baby's toy!

My son gave my a gorgeous gift pack from Lush for Mother's Day and my favorite thing is the Scrubee! It smells so nice, and it makes my skin so soft! It has really gritty stuff in it -- apparently ground almonds and coco shell -- it makes a bit of a mess in the bathtub, but it's worth it!

Buy it

★★ COVER REVEAL! ★★
¸.•*´(¸.•*´(¸.•*´★`*•.¸)`*•.¸)`*•.¸

Long Shot will be out February 2018!

A haunted beauty inspires a Navy SEAL turned playboy bar owner to change his ways in this tender and sensual novel from the bestselling author of Hot Shot and the Heller Brothers series.
 
Waitressing at a tequila bar on the beach in sunny San Diego may not be what Reece Kirkwell wants to do forever, but for now it’s perfect—other than the flashbacks to the tragedy she caused in Boston. And the fact that one of her bosses is a domineering, first-class manwhore who’s as stubborn as he is sexy. If he’d just listen to her, she could double his business. But it would also mean getting close to someone, and that’s a risk she can’t afford.
 
Cade Hardy’s partners at Conquistadors are like his brothers, but he’s the money man trying to keep them all afloat. To blow off steam, he’s been sleeping around a little. The last thing he needs is business advice from their crazy-hot new waitress. Cade can’t figure Reece out. She’s smarter than she lets on, and she doesn’t hide her disgust for his active sex life. But after he recognizes her PTSD symptoms, Cade is determined to save her . . . unless she saves him first.
 
Kelly Jamieson’s intoxicating Last Shot novels can be read together or separately:
BODY SHOT | HOT SHOT | LONG SHOT
 
“Kelly Jamieson is an auto-buy for me. A sexy, sultry, page-turning read.”—New York Times bestselling author Carly Phillips, on Body Shot
 
 

Last week at the RT Convention I had an opportunity to participate in a panel discussion with authors Brenda Rothert and Toni Aleo — our topic was “How to Write a Hot Sports Hero”. Too bad the session wasn’t recorded but I thought I’d share some of the discussion. I don’t remember everything that was said, so this is mostly my thoughts.

We talked about why we like to write sports romance and for me it’s obvious —it’s because I love hockey. I have since I was a little girl watching Hockey Night in Canada. My high school boyfriend played hockey, so I went to his games, and he taught me a lot about hockey watching our town’s major junior team. Then I moved to the big city of Winnipeg where there was an NHL team—so exciting! Then we lost our team. Boo. Then we got it back. Yay! Go Jets go!

One thing I like about writing hockey is the players and their personalities. I talked about how hockey players are some of the most humble professional athletes there are. Sure, there are some guys who are full of themselves and have a cocky attitude, but generally the culture of hockey is to be very modest and respectful of the team. When players are interviewed after games, you don’t hear hockey players boasting about themselves. Even if they just won the Stanley Cup with a breakaway all by themselves, they’ll still give credit to the team. I love the juxtaposition of a tough, physical game on the ice and often quiet, modest players off the ice.

I think that professional athletes make good romance heroes because they have all the qualities that you want in a hero—they’re good at what they do, they’re dedicated and determined, they're willing to make sacrifices, they’re honorable because they play by the rules… and they have muscles :-) 

We talked about how much sports action we put into our stories. For me, that depends on the story. Some of us have had readers say there’s too much hockey, others say there’s not enough, and you can’t please everyone, so it has to work with the story. I think the on-ice action (because I’m a hockey writer I mostly referred to hockey) has to move the story forward in some way or show us something about our hero’s character. Some of my Aces books feature a story line where the team is desperately trying to make the playoffs, so the games are an important part of the book and add tension to the story because if they lose, they’re out.

Other authors write sports romances where the game isn’t such a big part of the story, and it’s just the hero’s career and is kind of in the background.

Another thing that came up was how much knowledge you have to have of your sport. We talked about the importance of research and how each of us have done different research and gotten to know the sport.  One thing I would say though is that just because someone knows the sport doesn’t mean they can write a romance about it — I believe you have to hone your writing craft and learn how to write well before writing any kind of romance, even if it's about a sport of which you have a lot of knowledge.

I love talking about hockey and hockey romance, so it was a great discussion! Thanks to Toni for arranging the panel and to her assistant Lisa for doing a great job moderating the discussion!

Well, it's finally done!

It was a big project and thankfully I had lots of help, but all my books that were previously published with Samhain Publishing are back up for sale!

They have new prices, some of them have sexy new covers, and some of them have updated content. I added an Epilogue to One Wicked Night and How to Love, and added an extra chapter to Jilted.

You can check them all out here...

https://www.kellyjamieson.com/all-books/

In other news...I recently signed a new contract with Loveswept Publishing for 4 more books! These won't be out until 2018 and 2019, and the books aren't written yet but expect at least some of those to be more Aces Hockey books. 

And....I'm getting ready for RT! I leave on May 1 and I'm getting excited to see author friends, reader friends and for meetings with my agent and editor. If you're in Atlanta I hope we can connect! How many pairs of shoes should I take...hmmm...

So thrilled for this release! I wrote this book last summer and it's one I'm super proud of. It's a little different for me, but rest assured there are smiles and smexy times and of course a satisfying happy ending!

Happily ever afters aren’t just for fairy tales. In this heartfelt novel, a retired athlete must become a father to the daughter he never knew—just as he discovers the power of love with a woman who reignites his passions.

Drew Sellers is drowning in broken dreams and empty beer bottles. Hockey was his world, until a bum knee reduced him from superstar to has-been. Then he learns that, thanks to a one-night-stand back in college, he’s the father of a preteen girl with major issues. Her protective aunt sees right through Drew’s BS, but “Auntie P” is no stereotypical spinster. With her slender curves, toned legs, and luscious lips, she has Drew indulging in fantasies that aren’t exactly family-friendly.

At another point in her life, Peyton Watt would have been all over a cocky alpha male who pushes all her buttons like Drew. Right now, though, she needs to focus on taking care of her niece during her sister’s health crisis, all while holding down a job and keeping her own head above water. Besides, Drew’s clearly no father of the year. He’s unemployed. He drinks too much. And he’s living in the past. But after Peyton gets a glimpse of the genuine man behind his tough-guy façade, she’s hooked—and there’s no going back.
 

Amazon: http://bit.ly/dancingrainKIN

iBooks: http://bit.ly/dancingrainIB

Nook: http://bit.ly/dancingrainBN

Kobo: http://bit.ly/dancingrainK

Google: http://bit.ly/dancingrainG

My big news this month involves one of my publishers, Samhain Publishing. They have announced they are going out of business and starting this month they will begin reverting rights to all books to authors.

I do want to say that I'm very, very grateful to Samhain, for a few reasons. They published my first ever published book - Love Me. I still remember the excitement of getting that first contract offer! Samhain helped me grow my writing career and was always professional and above board. I may have wished some of their business decisions were different, but I wasn't running that business and those weren't my decisions to make. And as they wind down operations, they continue to be helpful and professional - giving us back final files for our books which saves a huge amount of time, and allowing us to purchase cover art.

This is a pretty big thing for me because I’m getting the rights to 20 books back. BUT that also means there will be a period of time where those books are down from all retailers and won’t be available for sale. This scares the crap out of me; although my Samhain books haven’t sold huge numbers lately, they still sold some and this means NO money coming in from them while I work on getting them reformatted, new covers made for some and uploaded at retailers. 

I really hope to get them out quickly but this is time consuming, so please be patient and watch for news when I do get them back up for sale. Some of my best-selling books ever like Rule of Three and One Wicked Night are in these books and I really want to have those available to readers. And those books will keep their same beautiful covers. 

I’m also hopeful that I can do this without interfering too much in my writing schedule. I’m all set for releases this year and a couple in 2018 but I need to keep working to have books out later in 2018.

Other news…

Getting ready for RT in Atlanta!

I’ve rebranded my swag to match my new website…isn’t it pretty?

SALE ALERT!

Body Shot, Book 1 in my Last Shot series, will be on sale for .99 starting March 7! If you haven’t picked this one up yet, now’s the time!