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As many of you may know, our beloved sister hostess SHARON DONOVAN, tragically passed away on 11th April 2012. We who knew her, loved her, and were inspired by her courage and determination to face head on whatever life threw at her. When she could no longer see to paint she turned to writing and showed her amazing talent in the Inspirational Romance and Romantic Suspense genres, and her story 'Charade Of Hearts' was awarded the coveted Predators and Editors Award in January 2011.

This Blog was a source of great delight to her, she was one of the founder hostesses and she contributed to the fun and silliness in her own original way, and was kind enough to let her unique creation, the hunky butler 'Oliver' join us for our Friday romp and prepare 'virtual breakfast' for the guests on the following morning. It's beyond hard to have to go on without her, but we know that she would have been the first to insist that 'the show must go on.' She is, and will always be with us in spirit.
Sharon, dear friend, we will never forget you.
The Author Roast and Toast is part of the legacy you left us. Let's raise a Toast to you as well as all our guests.
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Friday, September 27, 2013

Amber Polo's wonderful Cross Country Pet-Friendly Virtual Pot Luck Roast Party



“I’ve never been to New Mexico before, have you guys ?” Vonnie stares into the huge town hall building located smack dab next door to the Local Library in Taos. She balances bowls of potato salad and cole slaw between a green jello mold, full of fruits, and all wobbly. 

The hostesses  gape at the huge tables covered with foods of all kinds. Their own arms all full of foods they each made too.


For breakfast Oliver helped Amber prepare the same breakfast Bliss, the children’s librarian Greyhound-shifter, and her werewolf hybrid boyfriend Harry find waiting for them in Taos - burritos with homemade tortillas, fresh eggs, roasted chilies, goat cheese, plus salsas (mild, hot, hotter, and sizzling) - two varieties - with or without chorizo.


AJ stares at, Precious, her beloved I phone. “Where will I put her when I need both hands to eat?”
“I’d stick it down between the girls if it was me.” Mary chuckles and shakes them for effect.

“Yeah, well we all aren’t endowed with massive book ends to hold our valuables in. Some of us use pretend big shoes to hide them in.” Lyn flutters her eyelashes, scrunches her eyes to see better, and barely misses kicking Mac as she swings her foot up to
demonstrate.

Mac rolls her eyes. “Even I know better than that Lyn, I’ve seen those boats with flip flops remember? Watch out for my jello mold Vonnie” Mac bellows at her.

“Figures, who else would make a jello mold for a pot luck dinner.” Vonnie shakes her head and the jello mold slides closer to the edge of the plate.

“Well I made scones! You Yanks don’t have a clue how to make the real things.” Lyn raises her nose and moves just in time to avoid Lilly’s bubble butt. “Did you pad that thing or what?” Lyn asks all innocently.

“No, I have it stuffed with bookmarks, postcards and even trading cards for Amber Polo’s new release, Recovered. I promised to put them on the table for her.” Lilly sticks her tongue out at Lyn.

Vonnie starts to laugh and snorts so loud that Melissa moves away. Melissa opens her mouth to speak. But before she gets more than the words, “you could use that platform as a tab.…” Mac drops her bag of home made rolls to cover Melissa’s mouth.“...ble for food.” Melissa finishes.

“Melissa, you really must think before you speak. You know how sensitive Lilly is about her rear end.” Mac watches the rolls as they disappear in different directions and several rescue dogs argue over the rolling rolls.

Mary points out all the tables covered with local delicacies, as well as a variety of foods from different regions of the country. Everything from fried chicken, pizza, homemade salads, stews, slabs of ribs, roast beef, hamburgers, lamb, brisket, fish, soups, vegetable, potato, and rice dishes, beans of all kinds.

“I’ve never seen so much food in my whole life, and it’s all fresh. Oh my God, look at the desert table!”

“Are you drooling?” Lyn shoves her in the arm. And the disaster begins. Mary falls straight into Vonnie, the jello slides down Lilly’s back and through her shirts right down her enhanced bum. She screams and tosses the Baked Beans and deviled eggs she holds in the air. Time stops as the girls gaze up and watch the aforementioned foods slowly fall to hit them as well as AJ. 

AJ, horrified, has large clumps of brown beans all over her face, covering her prescription sunglasses. She bounces her own bowls of fried okra and clam chowder off of Lilly’s butt which suddenly appears as Lilly tries to pick up her mess in vain. Mary’s lemon meringue pie finds itself plastered in Melissa’s face. 
Melissa wipes from her chin the tangy pie. “Mmmmm, not bad.” She savors the flavor as she sticks her lemony fingers in her mouth. Vonnie covered with the macaroni and cheese, AJ  previously carried, offers a bit to Melissa for a taste of the ruined lemon pie

Mac drenched in banana pudding and whipped cream she was carrying along with the rolls, notices Lyn has nothing on her at all! 


“That ain’t fair is it girls?” She points to Lyn whose, 'what me?' look is definitely not working. Finds herself covered in the various foods mentioned before.


“Thank goodness for the food inside.” Mary grins, “Why don’t we change into our spare jeans and tops and try this one more time.” She points to Amber’s next morning breakfast sign.

Special Guest- Amber Polo, Guest Author Roast and Toast :
Notice- Welcome to Our Pet Friendly Pot Luck Dinner

“I hope you’re hungry ladies.” Lyn smiles.  “We have lots of things to try.” She grabs a microphone at the entrance to the building. “Let’s welcome Amber Polo to her roast and quick someone keep an eye on our sidekicks!”

 TT, Cuddles, Nibby, Creighton, and Morena,  led by a sassy Foster wave as they scramble into the huge room. bringing in an assortment of rescued dogs, and Bastet the bookstore cat, with them. “Put the phone down AJ and help us, this could be big trouble!”


Mary sighs as she chases after Nibby. “Just another Author Roast and Toast.”



Blurb:
BOOK THREE PURCHASE LINK

RECOVERED - The Shapeshifters' Library 

Book Three by Amber Polo 

Bliss D. Light was just an ordinary children’s librarian until one day she discovered she could grow a tail. Now her life is filled with more magic than any of the fairy tales she tells the children who gather at her feet at the Shipsfeather library. Like many of the other residents of Shipsfeather, Ohio, Bliss is a dogshifter, and her newly discovered ability to change from human form into that of a sleek white greyhound has left her yearning to know more about her true heritage. The answer to all her questions, she is certain, lies with the dogshifters’ long lost Library of the Ancients and, undeterred by the fact that thousands before her have searched, she sets out to find it.

Accompanied by her best friend Harry, a disgraced werewolf/dogshifter mongrel, and hotly pursued by the evil werewolf team of Sybilla and Blaze, Bliss’s quest takes her across the sacred sites and ancient mounds of the American Southwest. Though kidnapped by dogcatchers, sold into racetrack slavery and forced to fight wolf dogs to survive, Harry and Bliss never lose sight of their goal—or each other. Because the only thing more important than finding the ancient lost treasure might just be preserving what they already have found: an unlikely love that could be the first step toward bringing two ancient enemy races together.






Amber Polo has had a lifelong love of libraries. A fascination with ancient libraries and curiosity about why werewolves outnumbered dog-shifters in literature inspired her new urban fantasy series The Shapeshifters' Library filled with librarian dog-shifters.

To help writers and readers reduce stress, her Relaxing the Writer:'Guidebook to the Writers’ High', offers suggestions and simple exercises

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OOyz3SuJ4v0/T9ZQOhym4yI/AAAAAAAABpg/YN40h2SIbWM/s250/Website%2Bbanner%2Bamber-polo.jpg

The Shapeshifters' Library is open!
Book 1 "Released"
Book 2 "Retrieved"
Book 3 "Recovered"out Sept. 2013!
Love dogs?  Love books?  Love libraries?
Hate Book-burning werewolves?

WordShaping Blog
Amber's Website

BOOK THREE PURCHASE LINK

Since parties with prizes are more fun, I’ll be giving away a copy of “Released” (Book One of The Shapeshifters’ Library series) to one lucky reader guest. Our Hostesses will impartially choose the winner.



***GIVEAWAY***
To win a copy of Amber's book, all you have to do is just leave a comment and your e-mail address.
Contest ends on Sunday and everyone who comments is eligible.

Saturday, September 21, 2013

The Winner of the Hostesses' Grand Prize is ...

Rebecca Booth.  She wins a great package of seven Ebooks - one from each of the hostesses!

Congratulations, Rebecca,your prizes are on their way. 

Thanks to our new hostesses for being such great sports and for all their hard work (even if they did leave Mary and Lyn to do the washing up) and to everyone who commented and made this Roast such fun.

The hostesses appear on-stage, holding hands, to take a bow
They hug each other and wave before leaving the stage.

"Just another Author Roast and Toast!"


Join us again on  27th September when our Guest will be AMBER POLO


Friday, September 13, 2013

The hostesses toast themselves (Or while the cats are away, the other hostesses will play)

Mary and Lyn are away for a couple of weeks. They thought it would be nice for the new hostesses to have a party  to introduce themselves, since they haven't really had chance to do so, including Mac, who's been left in charge. (You can find out more about her next week, when she has her own party to introduce her latest book.)

Oh dear, did someone say that's like leaving Dracula in charge of the blood bank?  What do you mean? Of course Mac is as good as gold, and will be able to keep them in order. What mischief could they possibly get up to while the other two hostesses are away?   


Mac snickers evilly...When the cat’s away…

“What do you think, chickies? Is this not the perfect place to throw a ‘Get to know the new hostesses’ party?”

Mac throws open the curtains in the gorgeous hotel suite overlooking Times Square. AJ, Lilly, Melissa and Vonnie crowd around her to gape down at the busy streets and sparkling lights twenty floors below.

Vonnie snorts. “I think Lyn and Mary are going to be pissed we took on Manhattan without them.”

AJ snaps several pictures with her phone. “Oh, wow. Where do we start? What should we do first?”

Lilly pops the cork on a crisply chilled bottle of champagne and begins pouring. “We’ll start here.” She passes out the glasses. “And then…” She waggles her brows. Glasses clink together.

“Shopping!” Melissa hums her appreciation of the sparkling wine. “And guys.”

“And Broadway shows.” Vonnie styles for AJ who snaps another photo.

“Food.” Mac tosses back her glass and holds it out for more. “Manhattan has the best restaurants. There's seafood, of course. Italian, French, Asian, whatever you're looking for. And the desserts! Oh, my God. I once
had a piece of cheesecake at Grand Central that was positively orgasmic. Oh, and I know this great Irish pub we can hit later. It’s just around the corner. Cocktails, wine and beer. The Irish know how to party.”
         

AJ grins. “I love a hero with a black Irish heritage.”

Melissa sets down her glass and grabs her purse. “What are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

The hostesses scramble to finish their glasses as Melissa sprints for the door. They catch up with
her at the end of the long hallway. The elevator door slides open and they all gawk at the tall, black haired man standing front and center of the crowded car. Six foot two with broad shoulders, a well-cut business suit covers his muscular frame with mouthwatering results.

“Did someone mention a black Irish hero?” Vonnie purrs.

AJ’s phone flashes. Melissa crams inside. Mac squeezes in with AJ and Vonnie in tow. Lilly leaps forward at the last second, wiggling her bottom to avoid the closing door at her back.Standing nose
to nose with tall, dark and handsome, Melissa clears her throat.

“Hi there, handsome.” She tosses her head around at the other hostesses. “We’re romance authors. Have you ever considered becoming a cover model?”

“Uh.” He blinks. Several in the crowd snicker.

Lilly chokes. “Melissa!”
“What?” Melissa shoots a frown over her shoulder. “It’s a compliment and I’m just saying what we’re all thinking.” 

Several of the women in the elevator chuckle and nod their heads in agreement. AJ sticks up her arm and snaps a picture, blind. Mac laughs and Vonnie snorts. The doors slide open behind Lilly. She grabs hold of Melissa’s arm as they all exit in the lobby and drags her toward the doors leading to the street.

“I can’t believe you did that!”

AJ grins and slips an arm around Lilly’s shoulder. “If she hadn’t, I would have.”

“Me too.” Smirking, Vonnie links arms with Melissa and Mac.

“Me three. He got off easy, Lilly, considering what would have happened if Lyn and Mary were  here.” The others laugh and Mac winks at Lilly’s shaking head. “You’re an Author Roast & Toast hostess now. You’ll learn. I think I speak for Lyn and Mary when I say, welcome to weekly lunacy and mayhem, chickies!” She shoves open the door to the clamor of thousands of pedestrian visitors and traffic congestion. Lit by a million lights, Times Square greets them like a glowing rainbow. As one, they all step out onto the sidewalk teaming with people. “Let the games begin!”

Check out our new hostesses' Websites to find out more about their books:
A.J. ~ LILLY  ~  MELISSA ~ VONNIE 

AUTHOR ROAST AND TOAST

AUTHOR ROAST AND TOAST
authorroast@btinternet.com
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