THIRD TIME’S A CHARM
Author: Marquita Valentine
Publisher: Marquita Valentine
Genre: Contemporary
Release Date: September 5, 2012
Digital Price: $2.99
Pages: Unknown
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Not even Holland Springs’ Most Notorious Resident can stop this Love Spell.

Customers come to Rose Holland’s apothecary shop for three things: to hear her uncanny matchmaking advice, to buy the “magical” hair and skin products she sells, and to accuse her of trying to steal their men. For years Rose has been entirely innocent and almost content with that status quo. But that was before sexy, smooth-talking Sasha Romanov came to town and made her want to use her love potions on him… until he broke her heart. Now corrupt town officials want to seize her land and sell it to an industrial giant, and her only hope for help looks like the one man she can’t trust—or stop herself from falling under his spell.

Alexander “Sasha” Romanov seems like every woman’s dream: charming, handsome and fabulously rich. But while the people of Holland Springs think he’s in town to generously invest in their economy (and possibly one of their daughters), Sasha struggles to save his sick mother from his vicious uncle’s plans by doing everything the greedy businessman wants. And Vlad Romanov wants Rose Holland’s land—at any cost.

Despite Sasha’s vow to get the job done and keep his hands (and everything else!) off Rose, the blue-eyed witch enchants him. But his mother’s life remains in the balance. Sasha must find a way to protect his mother, sabotage his uncle’s plans, and win the woman who’s captured his heart without destroying everything she loves.

“A refreshing, whimsical contemporary romance with complex characters and bursts of emotion that tugs on your heartstrings. Kept me up till one AM reading!”~ Carly Phillips, NY Times Bestselling Author

~~~

EXCERPT

Rose closed the door and whirled to face him. “Could you be more rude?”

“Let me have a go at him and you can judge for yourself.”

Fisting her hands on her hips, she glared at Sasha. “You- you spoiled—”

Sasha pounced, backing her up against the door and placing a palm along each side of her head. “Yes, I’m spoiled. I’m ruined and it’s all your fault.”

She gaped at him. “My fault?”

“Yes, yours—the woman who drives me insane. The woman I dream about kissing.  The woman I hunger to be inside.” His head dipped down, full lips and sexy beauty mark at the corner dangerously close.  “And right now, I’m so damn jealous that I want to…” He turned away but she placed her hand on his jaw and forced his face back to hers.

“To what?”

The heat in his eyes made her legs tremble. “I want to lock you in my bedroom with me and not let you out until, until…”

She licked her lips. “Until when?” she prompted. A small part of her reveled in this, his torture. She wanted him to hurt. To feel something.

He laughed, but it was mirthless. “Never, I never want to let you out.”

“Why?” she demanded. “What’s changed between last week and tonight?”

“Nothing. Everything. Christ, Rose. I’m so damn sorry and…and I don’t know what to do or say.” He looked as though he truly meant it.  Regret seemed to fill his green eyes and she couldn’t make herself look away. This was the real him.

“You made me cry,” she whispered.

He rested his head against her forehead, his golden hair soft and silky. “I’m a bastard.”

“I waited up for you. I put on my prettiest dress.” Tears grew thick in throat. She would not cry in front of him. She only wanted him to know how badly he hurt her.  But honestly, if he’d cared, he wouldn’t have been so cruel in the first place. Lifting her shaking hands, she tried to push him away, but he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

“Forgive me,” he said, his breath hot in her hair. He kissed the side of her neck, her jaw and her cheek. “I need your forgiveness, Rosebud.”

Turning before he could find her mouth and she lost all self-control, she said, “I’ll give you another chance.”

She wriggled out of his embrace, running upstairs to her room and shutting the door behind her.  Pressing cold fingers to her heated cheeks, she closed her eyes and sank to the floor. What had she done?

Marquita Valentine writes small town romances that are anything but small. Lisa Kleypas, Carly Phillips and Rachel Gibson are among her favorite contemporary authors. Marquita met her husband aka Hot Builder at Sonic when they were in high school. She suggests this location to all of her single friends in search of a good man — and if that doesn’t work, they can console themselves with cheesy tatertots. She lives in North Carolina in a very, very small town with Hot Builder and their two children. 

You can find Marquita all over the internet:

Goodreads ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~  Website ~ Blog

What’s your favorite spooky Halloween story or movie? Mine—Hocus Pocus and Beetlejuice. I like a little humor thrown in with the scary. J Two lucky commentors will win an e-copy of Third Time’s a Charm!

Thank you for hosting me again, Beverley!

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By Authors, eBooks, Giveaways, self-publishing55 Comments on Giveaway: Third Time’s A Charm by Marquita Valentine

55 Replies to “Giveaway: Third Time’s A Charm by Marquita Valentine”

  1. I love Hocus Pocus too. It’s one of my favorites to watch in October with my kids. As far as really scary movies, I guess I prefer classic slasher movies like Halloween and Friday the 13th and just about anything Stephen King writes. I like to get scared but I really don’t like all the gore.

    1. Hi Ora,

      I think the music is what helps scare me. It makes me want to shout at the characters, “Don’t go in there! Can’t you hear the creepy music?” 😉

      Not a fan of the gore either, but it’s rather exciting to get scared and jumpy at times. 😀

      Thanks for stopping by!

  3. Hi Laurie,

    I think Michael Keaton really made Beetlejuice. He was hilarious and gross. I don’t like really scary movies either. I cover my eyes the *entire* time! LOL!

    Thanks for stopping by!

  4. I’m not a scary movie fan at all. I love halloween though! But my favorite halloween story is It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

    1. Hi Robyn,

      It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is such a classic. Although I have to admit that The Simpson’s Halloween nod to it made me giggle a lot. 😉

      Thanks for stopping by!

  5. My all time favorite Halloween movie would have to be Hocus Pocus, too! Ever since it came out, I’ve been addicted to it! I had a fascination with witches as a young girl, and this movie was right up my alley. I LOVE singing along, too. Does that make me weird?

  6. Hi Emily,

    Right now Target has the DVD of Hocus Pocus for $5. I was so tempted to buy it, but thought I’d wait until later. I bet it will be gone as soon as I go back. 😉 I love witches, too. So does my mom. She named my sister after the one with the twitchy nose. Also, one of the inspirations for Third Time’s a Charm was the movie Practical Magic.

    I thought singing along was required. I guess that makes me weird, too. 😛

    Thanks for stopping by!

  7. I don’t have a fav Halloween movie, but I have a fav. Spooky character: Casper the little cute ghost. I have a question for you: is this novel ever going to be available in print? Thank you for the giveaway!
    minadecaro at hotmail dot com

    1. Hi Mina,

      Did you ever see the movie Casper? I thought it was sweet when we got to see him as the “little boy”.

      Great question! And the answer is yes. It will be available in late November. Right now I’m approving the final print proof of Twice Tempted (the first book in the Holland Springs Series) and as soon as that’s done, it’s Third Time’s a Charm’s turn. 😀

      Thank you for stopping by!

      1. Yes, I saw that movie and loved it…sweet, bittersweet actually. So glad to hear your novels will be available in print. I still love my oldfashioned paperback or hardcovers, especially for sweet romance and gorgeous cover artwork.

  8. I’m like the rest here…I don’t care that much for spooky stories or films. That said, I did like Amityville Horror

    1. Hi Kara,

      That’s a big favorite in my household. My kids LOVE The Addams Family. We even dressed up as the characters one year for our annual Halloween party. My daughter watched You Tube clips of Wednesday so she could get her character right. I swear that child (she was six at the time) didn’t crack a smile the entire night–until we took her picture. LOL!

      Thanks for stopping by!

  11. Hello Marquita. I have sooo many favorite Halloween movies that it is very hard to pick just one. I would have to put Bettlejuice at #1 for entertaining Halloween movies. As a kid I loved It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Then there is the Simpson’s yearly Halloween specials that I love. I do have a question for everyone: What is your favorite horror novel? (If you have one). My favorite horror novels have all been written by Stephen King. He is THE BEST!!
    Have an AWESOME day Marquita!!

    –DREW
    agrigaliunas (at) yahoo (dot) com

    1. Hi Drew,

      What about M. Knight Shyamalan ‘s The Village or Signs? Those made me JUMP in my seat at the movie theater!

      SK’s Salem’s Lot scared the bejeesus out of me as did It. In fact all of his novels scare me to death, but I LOVED them as a teen.

      You have awesome day, too. And thanks for stopping by!

  12. I enjoyed Hocus Pocus, Beetlejuice, and Ghostbusters. I don’t like the scary, gory stuff in my movies.

    1. Hi Cathy,

      Ghostbusters!!! Thanks for reminding me of that movie. Never gets old and is sooo funny, especially when they try to clear their minds of everything and the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man shows up. hee!

      Thanks for stopping by!

  13. I love Beetlejuice, too, for its originality and laugh out loud moments. And I would never miss an annual viewing of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”. (It’s on ABC 10/31 @ 8pm)

  14. I like all of the Halloween movies but I always come back to the Charlie Brown It’s A Great Pumpkin movie. i love that one and it helps me realize it is that time of year again.
    Your book sounds really good and i have added it to my TBR list.

  15. Funny talking about scary movies. I’m a fan and not a fan. I love a bunch of them, but for the longest time couldn’t watch because I would get scared. Now October is my scare month. I draw the line at zombies, but I actually love the movie Zombieland because it’s hilarious.

    My favorite Halloween Movie is: *drumroll* The Nightmare Before Christmas. I do not consider it a Christmas movie at all. I also enjoy the Scream movies, Practical Magic, Casper, The Brother’s Grimm, Dracula (Keanu Reeves version), Beetlejuice. I’ll watch some of the scarier ones if it’s the middle of the day. Lol 🙂 Love the excerpt and will definitely be checking this one out.

    1. Hi Landra,

      I know exactly what you mean. I love being scared but hate the really bloody violent ones. OMGosh! Zombieland was awesome. The rules had me crying. I feel totally equipped to handle any Zombie Apocalypse now. 😉

      Watching the scarier ones in the middle of the day sounds like an excellent plan to me! 🙂

      I’m so glad you loved the excerpt! Thanks for stopping by!

  16. Ghostbusters, Caspar, and The Sixth Sense. I suppose I just like the children’s movies.

  17. Hi Marquita, welcome back to The Season Blog!! 🙂 Love the excerpt.

    My favourite Halloween movie is its namesake with Jamie Lee Curtis. LOVE that movie. It still scares the bejeezus out of me.

    1. Hi Beverley,

      Thank you for having me back. I love coming on your blog! I’m so glad you loved the excerpt. 🙂

      You are a brave, brave woman! I’ll stick with Hocus Pocus, lol!

  19. I have to say that I love the original Halloween too – I also thoroughly enjoy any Headless Horseman show I can find, especially Sleepy Hollow!

    Love the excerpt!

  20. Hi Sharla,

    Did Tim Burton direct Sleepy Hollow? Seems like he would do a really twisted version of the Headless Horseman. 🙂

    And yay! I’m so glad you loved the excerpt!

    Thanks for stopping by!

  23. I like Halloween (but only the first one) and Beetlejuice. I don’t watch as many movies as I used to so difficult to think of any other favorites! I don’t mind scary movies – I liked Seven (although not a Halloween movie).

    1. Hi Karen,

      Seven is the one with Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman and the whole deadly sins. That movie was FREAKY. Holy moly! I think the scariest non-Halloween movie I’ve ever seen is Event Horizon. OMGosh, I am *still* mad at the husband for making me watch that with him.

      Thanks for stopping by!

    1. Hi Sallie,

      Oh thank you! Sasha and Rose’s relationship has so much angst that I cried while writing certain scenes. :{ A first for me. Or maybe I was channeling the author heroine of Romancing the Stone while writing? ;P

      Thanks for stopping by!

    1. Hi Janie,

      Amazing how well Ghostbusters has held up to the test of time, especially with all the really high tech movies over the years. I can’t wait to watch it again. 🙂

      Thanks for stopping by!

  28. So many of my favs have already been mentioned, Beatlejuice, Practical Magic, Ghostbusters and two of my all-time fav thrillers Seven and Event Horizon. Two more top picks: Witches of Eastwick and The Shining. Just gotta luv Jack Nicholson.

    Your novel, Third Time’s a Charm, sounds like a captivating read and such an enticing excerpt.

    1. Hi Kamla,

      Jack Nicholson makes an excellent bad guy, especially as the Devil. *shudder* Thanks for adding more great scary movies to the list. 🙂

      And thank you. I am glad you enjoyed the excerpt. 🙂

      Thanks for stopping by!

  29. I never saw the movies you describe. I’ve seen some children’s Halloween movies. I did see “Ghostbusters” and loved it for its emotion and love story. I never thought about it in relation to Halloween.
    Your book sounds very appealing, Marquita.

    1. Hi Elaine,

      You might be better off not seeing some of them. They are not for the easily scared (ahem, ME!). 😉

      And thank you. I’m glad you found it to be so. 🙂

      Thanks for stopping by!

  31. Hey, Marquita – after a night’s sleep I realized it was “Ghost”, not “Ghostbusters” that I loved (with that emotion and love story). Getting old. 🙁 Good luck with “Third Time’s a Charm”. 🙂

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