Lady Catherine's Salon

I hope this post finds you all well. It's been so long since I did a blogpost that some of you may think I gave up writing them! 2020 has had a profound impact on me and my loved ones, just as I'm sure it has for all of you. My heart goes out to every one of you and my fervent prayer is that by this time next year we are all in a far happier place.   Today I'd like to share with you that for the week starting Monday, September 21, 2020, I will be a guest at https://www.facebook.com/groups/LadyCatherinesSalon. During the week, I will be talking about my books and some of the research I've done as well as perhaps posting photographs of some of the Regency type items I've collected--including gowns I've worn for booksignings and public appearances over the years. I hope you'll join me there! Mind you, an assemble yourself table that turned out to have a defective key part means I'm scrambling to find a way to photograph my gowns, gloves, hat, fans, jewelry, etc in time for this week's event so it's all up in the air what day I'll be able to feature those and even how much I can figure out how to photograph at all! But that's life right now and all I can do is take a deep breath, laugh and try to get creative.  I'll also be sharing some of the reasons some of my books have been so important to me. In honor of that visit, I've put my Magic Locket Series Boxset on sale for $2.99 for the week. I love this series and hope readers will too!  Once and only once, when each sister, in turn, looks into the locket, she sees the man she is meant to marry. Is it true or only a legend? And what if she never meant to marry at all? The set contains the following books:   The Ambitious Baronet 1st book in the “Magic Locket” series: Alexandra Barlow is determined never to marry.  She'd rather rescue children.  Sir Robert Stamford has been sent to track down the very children she is protecting.  It will not be easy to overcome the obstacles between them.  But a magic locket may prove to be the key . The Widower’s Folly 2nd book in the “Magic Locket” series: Theresa Barlow writes stories, magical stories for children. Lord Rivendale has a daughter who cannot speak and the only way to reach her seems to be through Miss Barlow’s books. Both are wary of love, but in trying to help the child Anna, Tessa and William discover they have much more in common than either would have thought. The Soldier’s Bride 3rd book in the “Magic Locket” series: Lisbeth Barlow marries Lord Thomas Kepley just as he is about to return to war.  He is reported drowned, but a year and a half later, he reappears.  Together they must find a way to salvage their marriage even though he does not believe her child is his. You can find the boxset here: iBooks     Kindle     Nook   Kobo   Whether you join me at Lady Catherine's Salon or not this week, I want you to know you are in my thoughts and prayers and I wish for each of you happiness in equal or greater measure than any pain 2020 has brought you thus far. Warmest wishes always, April Kihlstrom

New Cover For AN HONORABLE ROGUE

Okay, this is my favorite cover yet. If you have the ebook already, hopefully you can just ask the vendor to update your copy and you will then have the new cover. With the print version, I'm not sure when they will be available with the new cover. It depends, I suppose, on whether or not they still have copies of the old version on hand. But I'm so thrilled with the print version that I'm going to post it here anyway, along with the links for the respective online bookstores. With luck, you might be able to request the new version. In any case, here is the new cover for AN HONORABLE ROGUE.

Kindle     Nook     Kobo     iBooks     Google Play

AMAZON      B&N

Yet One More

As you can see, I'm still having fun with new covers for my books. Here's the latest one--for CAPTAIN ROGUE. I do think he has just the right mischievous look and worth fanning oneself a time or two....

kindle & paperback   nook   kobo   iBooks   Google Play

One More New Cover

And here's one more new cover. Did I mention that if you already have the ebook you can get it with the new cover by asking for the update? At least that's true on Amazon. If you go to your list of books there and request the update, you should get it with the latest cover.

Note: I've also included the Prologue for THE WICKED GROOM at the back of this book.

Kindle & paperback   Nook  Kobo  Google Play  iBooks

New Covers

Once again, I have new covers for some of my books.

The Leverton/Witton books, THE SCHOLAR'S DAUGHTER and MISS REDMOND'S FOLLY, have always been close to my heart and I had a lot of fun writing about these two friends who met and fell in love in these two books.

kindle  nook kobo  iTunes  Google Play  paperback

kindle nook  kobo  paperback  iTunes  Google Play

And then there's DANGEROUS MASQUERADE which featured the resurrected Hell Fire Club, a truly nasty villain and, as you might have guessed from the title, our heroine undertaking a dangerous masquerade as the only way to save herself.

Kindle & paperback   Nook   kobo   iBooks   Google Play 

 

NOOK BOOK BASH

Note: If you do not have a Nook, you can get the Nook reading app free and install it on your computer or smartphone or tablet:  http://littl.ink/NookApp

And now to the really exciting news! Barnes and Noble is having a special promotion they are calling the NOOK Book Bash — where you can find Hundreds of FREE first-in-series books--including my book, The Wicked Groom! Below you'll find codes to get these books free as well as codes to get the 2nd book in the series for 25% off.  In my case, the 2nd book is The Widowed Bride. This promotion runs until February 28, 2019. Please, please, please feel free to share this information with your friends!

   

Here's how it works:

Choose a series at http://littl.ink/BookBash, then use code NOOKBASHFREE to get the first book free and code NOOKBASH25 to get the second book for 25% off!

Don’t have a NOOK? Download the *free* NOOK reading app for your smartphone or tablet at http://littl.ink/NookApp.

Happy reading!

(PLEASE NOTE: Books must be purchased on the BN.com online store, not in an app. Coupon codes don’t work inside apps.)

I really hope those of you who haven't read one or both of these books takes advantage of this wonderful opportunity and it would be great if you pass on this information to your friends as well! And check out all the other wonderful books available for free as well!

Happy reading and warmest wishes always,
April Kihlstrom

Note: Because there's been some confusion, I'm adding the following information about how to get the free and discounted books.

STEPS TO USING B&N COUPON CODES

1: Visit BN.com on your desktop or device (coupons cannot be redeemed on a NOOK device or inside the NOOK app)

2: Add featured ebook(s) to cart

3: View shopping cart

4: Apply Coupon Code below the Order Summary. Please note:

• 
  
  Coupons cannot be combined at checkout
• 
  
  To use different coupon codes, you must checkout applicable titles separately, free books in one transaction and 25%-off books in another transaction*

5: Complete check out

6: Purchased books will auto-sync to your NOOK library

7: Access your NOOK library from your desktop, NOOK device, or the free NOOK app

* (e.g. you can add 10 titles for coupon 1 and check out, then, in a separate transaction, add 10 titles for coupon 2 and check out)

Remembering

I don't often post these days, but I wanted to share some thoughts with you today about 9/11:

17 years ago today, I watched in horror, as we all did, as the towers came down. I have loved ones in NYC and worried for their safety. I mourned for all the lives lost. I cheered the courage of those who went in to help. I pondered what it would mean for our country--and the world. All around me I saw people rise to be their best. I also saw people begin to cling to whatever scrap of control they could--because it was so scary feeling helpless. People who are afraid do not behave well. All around me, I see people who still carry that fear--and desperately try to keep things the way it used to be. When they felt safe. But the world changes. Life cannot be controlled. We either go forward with hope and a determination to create the best possible world or we slide backwards into darkness. I wish for all of us the courage to choose hope. To choose kindness and love and building each other up, not tearing each other down. That would be the real victory over what happened 17 years ago.

Too Oft Betrothed

We all have books of the heart. Too Oft Betrothed is one of mine. 

This book is dedicated to my son and to every child and adult who the world sees as handicapped or disabled or mentally challenged—or whatever the latest buzz words might be. I hope it encourages my readers to realize that people like my son and like Matthew are capable of much more than the world often realizes. Our lives are richer when we look with open eyes and get to know them and discover who they really are. 

TOO OFT BETROTHED

A brother with a disability, a fiancé lost at sea, a truly nasty villainess and an American in London in 1812 while feelings still run high between Britain and the former colonies . . . what could possibly go wrong?

Judith Bosworth, of Philadelphia, loved Mr. Gilbert but he was captured by the British and they say he was lost at sea. She arrives in London, with her beloved mentally challenged brother, Matthew, in tow, determined to find out what really happened to Mr. Gilbert and whether a doctor there can help Matthew. 

Sir Richard Warfield thought it would be a good idea for his mother to invite Miss Bosworth to visit. Now he must shepherd both Judith and her brother safely through the shoals of London society. His task is even more complicated when a former love tries to destroy not only him but any possible object of his affection.

Together they must find a way to outwit those who would harm them—or Judith's beloved brother—and the answers she seeks. Love wasn't supposed to be part of the equation.

Note: The primary romance has been totally rewritten in this updated version of the book which was previously published as a Signet Traditional Regency with the original title of Twice Betrothed. 

Available In These Formats

Kindle   iBooks   Nook   Kobo  Google Play  Amazon paperback  B&N paperback


Note:  Some long time readers of my books may recognize parts of Too Oft Betrothed as being very much like another book of mine, Twice Betrothed, written and published years ago as a Signet Traditional Regency Romance. I have never been happy with some of the choices I made, in a misguided effort to write what I thought would please my editor so she would agree to publish the book. When I got the rights back, I was determined never again to let it see the light of day unless I completely rewrote the primary romance. I'm delighted to have accomplished this and can now release the revised book with a new title: Too Oft Betrothed.

The Charming Impostor

I've just updated and re-published The Charming Impostor which was originally released as a Signet Traditional Regency in 1985. It's one of my favorites and I hope you love it, too.


Lady Theodosia wasn't ready to settle down in marriage. She was still looking for adventure—adventure she hoped to find helping her friend search for hidden treasure on Viscount Stanwood's estate. The last thing she was expecting to find was love amid the cobwebs and ruins and hidden spaces.

Kindle  Nook  Kobo  iBooks  Print Amazon  Print Barnes &Noble

FREE Ebooks

Crazy as it seems, I forgot to share some important information with all of you!


First, an apology. A car accident this spring put me behind on a great many things. I am now trying to catch up but that's why you haven't heard from me in a while.

Second, I know some of you much prefer print books. I've finally managed to make Harriet Tangles With The Earl available in print. I'll give the links below for Amazon and for Barnesandnoble.com. I've begun experimenting, you see, with Nook print option. I think, though I may be mistaken, that with the B&N option, you could go into your local Barnes & Noble store and have them order a copy for you. So here are the links for Harriet Tangles With The Earl.

 (And yes, I will get to the free ebook giveaway in a moment!)

Amazon print   Barnes & Noble print

Now to the free ebooks. A group of sweet romance authors have gotten together to offer our readers free ebooks. I'm offering The Ambitious Baronet. Even if you've read the book, odds are you will find quite a few other books you might like to read and new authors you might like to discover. Note: Some of the authors do require you to sign up for their newsletter to get the free book. I have chosen not to do that so you can get the ebook for free simply by going through this link. I want as many readers as possible to enjoy The Ambitious Baronet. Here is the link to the giveaway: Sweet Romance Ebook Giveaway The site will take you through all the steps to download the ebooks in your preferred format. This is the only place many of the ebooks--including mine--are available for free.  Enjoy!

Sometimes Things Go Wrong

As hard as I try to get things right, sometimes I make mistakes and things go disastrously wrong.

Example: Two weeks ago I released a new book. Wonderful! Great joy on my part! A couple of days later I started to work on formatting the file for paperback and realized I'd left out the copyright  notice on that and a previous book. So I hastily added the copyright page and reformatted the files for ebook and uploaded everywhere.

Great, right? Except that yesterday I woke to a notice from Amazon that when I uploaded to Harriet Tangles With The Earl on Amazon, I apparently uploaded the wrong file! Even though I immediately replaced it with the correct file, the book was off sale for 24 hours and I can only hope that everyone who bought the book before that automatically got the corrected file from Amazon.

I checked the files at other vendors and those are okay. Thank heavens!

If you are someone who got the wrong file from Amazon and they did NOT send you the update with the correct file, here are the instructions to get that file:

Go to Amazon, click on "My Account", then "Manage my devices and content"--which will show the books you've purchased. Next to the title of Harriet's book, is a box for "action". If you click on that, update the book should be an option. If none of this works, please let me know and I will see what I can do from this end to get Amazon to get you the update. My deepest apologies for the mix-up!

Here is the cover of the book that was caught in the mix-up--in case you're wondering.  

I am so sorry! You can be sure I'll be double checking things in the future.

Box Set

I hope January finds you well and entering the New Year with a good head start. I hope 2017 brings you good health, happiness, prosperity and more good than you can now imagine. If it has been a rocky start, I hope 2017 brings you comfort, better times ahead and moments of joy that serve as a promise of hope. I'm having fun writing the start of a new series and hope soon to have word of when that first book will be out. Playing grandmother in December put me decidedly behind on getting it done but I can't regret the time spent with my grandchild and her parents. After all, I write, in part because I believe so strongly in love and family and kindness and hope for the future--and being with our loved ones is part of that.    Meanwhile . . . I have been lucky enough to be given back control of The Ambitious Baronet. You can see the new cover in the banner above as well as the new cover for The Widower's Folly. You can find details about the series on my website here. The Ambitious Baronet is currently on sale for $1.99. What I'm thrilled to be able to tell you is that I've also created a box set of the books and it's currently on sale for $5.99 and contains all three books shown above. Here's the cover--which I love!

Kindle      iBooks     Nook    Kobo

CONTEST--A Chance to WIN Books and a Kindle Fire!

Today, I have a fun surprise that I’d like to share with you.

To celebrate the beginning of fall, I’ve teamed up with more than 50 fantastic regency romance authors to give away a huge collection of novels, PLUS a Kindle Fire to one lucky winner! 

The contest runs from October 10 to October 17, 2016.

You can win my novel Wicked Groom, plus books from authors like Tina Gabrielle, Brenda Hiatt and Cynthia Wright. 

The Wicked Groom:  What happens when two headstrong people agree to a betrothal when they've never even met and one of them is determined to break the rules?

Enter the giveaway by clicking here: http://bit.ly/fall-regency

Good luck, and enjoy!

FREE in October

October is Down Syndrome awareness month. To celebrate, I'm making Sophy's Story available as a free ebook for the month of October. 

Sophy's Story is a great children's book, even if your loved one doesn't have Down Syndrome or other special needs and at the same time it was created so children and adults like my 39 yr old son, who does have Down syndrome, can and might very well WANT to read it themselves.

There are other Sophy books and coloring books--if you're interested--and I have more about them on the Sophy Books page. For now, here's Sophy's Story with links to the major sites.

Kindle   iBooks  Nook  Kobo  Google Play

A Scandalous Bequest

It's been awhile since you heard from me. That's because of a little girl who has come into my  life--my grandchild. I've been just a tad busy enjoying the experience of becoming a grandmother. 

I've also been revising A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST, which was first published as a Traditional Regency by Signet in 1982 and was my 2nd Regency for Signet (Penguin/Putnam/Dutton/New American Library). It was written before the advent of the internet, which means there were lots of things it was difficult or impossible to research back then. I've had to make changes to the story based on what I now know was and wasn't possible back then.

I did more than that, however. A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST was written right after my daughter was born, when life was kind of crazy, and was, in addition, very much a product of its time. Well, times have changed and so, while trying to preserve the best of the original, I spent several months rewriting A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST to make it, I believe, a better book--especially for 2016. I hope all of you will appreciate those changes and also feel it makes the book better.

I'm excited to be able to say that A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST is on pre-order this week and will be "live" and download on August 22, 2016. It's also available right now in paperback from Amazon.

Amazon       iBooks       Kobo       Google Play    Paperback  Nook

Teaser for the book:

It wasn't supposed to be like this. Marriage wasn't supposed to be for sale. But sometimes life doesn't work out quite the way one expects . . . .

Felicity Lyford hasn't had an easy time of it. That's why she leaps at a chance at a London Season—even if it is because of a rather scandalous bequest. But can she protect herself from two of the most notorious rakes in London—Sir Anthony and Lord Eastcott—and choose a husband based on her head instead of her heart? 

Note: The Nook version at Barnesandnoble.com is the one option I cannot make available for pre-order but it WILL be available starting August 22, as well.

Writing Tips For Kids (And Adults)

A few years ago, I self-published a booklet of writing tips for kids. It was available only on Amazon for kindle. I always meant to revise and make it available more widely but until now I haven't had the time to do so but now it is available on the major sites and drastically revised. It's also available in print.

Note: Rather than issuing a new edition, I replaced the previous file on Amazon. Current owners of the book should be able to simply request the update. At least I hope so!

I should perhaps mention that it not only contains information about creative writing, writing reports and essays, etc. but also has a section on public speaking--because there are some simple tips that can make speaking easier and more compelling.

Perhaps you're wondering why it says (And Adults). As much as we want to, sometimes we don't have time to wade through long books about writing or public speaking and the material is as applicable for adults as it is for kids.

If you're interested, I hope you'll check it out. Here's the information:

Kindle    Nook    Kobo    iBooks    Google Play    Paperback 

3 COLORING BOOKS!

In my last post, SOPHY'S STORY COLORING BOOK, I wrote about my Sophy Books and why they are so dear to my heart. Now there are 3 Sophy coloring books!

I've learned a lot and my keyboard has dents from my banging my forehead on it every time I got frustrated with the process, but the coloring books are finally here and available in print. I hope if you love dogs or if you have a loved one who loves dogs, is learning English, has a disability such as Down Syndrome (like my son) or autism or some other mental challenge, you will check them out.

On Amazon:

SOPHY'S STORY COLORING BOOK 

SOPHY GOES TO DOGGY CAMP COLORING BOOK

SOPHY GOES TO THE DOGGY DOCTOR COLORING BOOK

They match up with my Sophy Books like this:

SOPHY'S STORY

KINDLE    NOOK    KOBO    IBOOKS    PAPERBACK

SOPHY GOES TO DOGGY CAMP

KINDLE     NOOK     KOBO     IBOOKS     PAPERBACK

SOPHY GOES TO THE DOGGY DOCTOR

KINDLE    NOOK     KOBO     IBOOKS     PAPERBACK

Sophy's Story Coloring Book

I've been busy the last few weeks. I've redone many of the covers of my Regencies romances. If you've seen the old covers, you'll see that I've retained enough that you'll recognize you've seen or read the book before.

I've also uploaded reformatted versions of all my Regencies because I want readers to have the best reading experience possible with my books.

And I've been working on a project dear to my heart. I've written before about my Sophy Books. (Sophy named after the heroine of Georgette Heyer's book, THE GRAND SOPHY.)  As I started to work on the next Sophy book for my 39 yr old son who has Down Syndrome, I realized I wanted to try something new--an experiment.

Experiments are fun and this one is teaching me a great deal. I took the photos and text from the original book, SOPHY'S STORY, and turned them into pages of a coloring book. If this works out, I'll be doing the same for SOPHY GOES TO DOGGY CAME and SOPHY GOES TO THE DOGGY DOCTOR.

If you're interested, I hope you'll take a look.

Laugh with Sophy as chases squirrels, gets in trouble for muddy paws or searches under the Christmas tree for presents. For dog lovers of all ages and capabilities, including those like the author's son who has Down syndrome.

Note: This coloring book is companion to Sophy's Story, the book. It uses the text and photos from the original book but turned into pictures that can be colored.

This is something of an experiment for me and I hope you will let me know what you think!

SOPHY'S STORY COLORING BOOK

Beatles Medley All Together Now Music

Some of you know about my Sophy Books, designed for special needs readers like my son, who has Down Syndrome. This music video is from the All Together Now music group at the Katz JCC in Cherry Hill, NJ. I'm proud to say my son is in the video.

This video is an example of why I've created the Sophy Books (Sophy's Story, Sophy Goes To Doggy Camp, Sophy Goes To The Doggy Doctor and soon Sophy Takes Care Of Mom)--because our special needs loved ones are capable of far more than we often realize and I want everyone to have books they love to read, with characters who feel what they sometimes feel.

I'm also sharing this video because I'm so proud of my son and the others in this group!

Here's also a picture of some pottery my son made for me in his art class at the Katz JCC.

New Cover for The Wicked Groom

I've given my book, The Wicked Groom, a new cover. I will be experimenting with updating some of the other covers in the Westcott series as well.  Here's what the new version looks like:

Kindle          Nook        iBooks        Kobo 

Not completely different from the old one, just updated a bit. I also am thinking about making the Westcott series available in paperback. Stay tuned for information as we get closer to that happening!