Category: Books

Spin off of the SWEET series

So I’ve gotten LOTS of emails and FB posts and tweets about Kane from Sweet Possession, and it’s not that I was ignoring you guys or purposely trying to torture you, but it wasn’t as simple as saying yes or no that I’d write a book about him. Of course I wanted to write about him and his team and delve into their shenanigans, but these things take time!

I’m happy to say that everything is now finalized and I’ll be writing a spin off series of the SWEET series involving Kane and his coworkers, boss etc.

As I’ve explained on FB, this is not a romantic suspense series. It’s very much a sexy contemporary series where the focus is on the relationship between the hero and heroine. There may well be elements of suspense on a book by book basis, but it is definitely NOT the focus of the series whatsoever.

I’m still working on scheduling and arranging it so that I have a set release schedule for all my books so that readers know that on X month I’ll have a KGI release and on Y month I’ll release a book in the new spin off series and on Z month I’ll release a historical.

I’m very excited to dive into a new series! I hope you guys will enjoy Kane and his gang as much as I will :) I’ll definitely keep you posted on any new developments as I get them!

Love

Maya

Winners of In Bed With a Highlander!

Ok guys, here is the list of Kindle and print winners. If you are a winner of a KINDLE copy, please just email me at maya@mayabanks.com so I can get your ebook to you. If you are the winner of a PRINT copy, please email me your mailing address to the same email.

Kindle winners

Kimberly, comment #94
Bobbie, comment #4
Shelly, comment #56
Staci, comment #15
Megan Burton, comment #126
MichelleAB, comment #23
Alisha, comment #70
Amy, comment #33
Suzie Glass comment #85
Alyssa West, comment #34
Jill, comment #104
Teresita, comment #124
Kate Saunders, comment #40

PRINT WINNERS

Zeneida, comment #95
Julie, comment #77
Jordan H, comment #57
Jillian, comment #2
Jeanette Juan, comment #65
Diane, comment #17
Kristie S, comment #86
Penny, comment #25
Kristina in GA, comment #75
Lynn Reynolds, comment #105
Sonali, comment #116
Crystal Coleman, comment #46
Rosie, comment #127

In Bed With A Highlander giveaway!

Oh Lordy but when I went to my own website and saw how long it had been since I’d blogged I couldn’t believe that summer is already over, the kids are back in school and that I hadn’t blogged since returning from Ireland. I’d be ashamed if I didn’t know it will happen again lol.

In Bed With A Highlander released two weeks ago and thanks to my amazing readers, it’s been on the USA Today bestseller list for two weeks now. So thank you! You guys rock hard. I’m excited for the second book in the trilogy to release, which is coming up soon! So I thought I’d give some of you who hadn’t gotten a chance to get In Bed With A Highlander yet an opportunity to win a copy here on the blog :)

I’m going to give away print copies and I’ll also give away Kindle copies to you Kindle owners. I apologize to you NON Kindle owners out there. I’d love nothing more than to be able to gift you with digital copies as well but so far Kindle is the only one who makes that possible. I think I heard that Kobo does as well but I haven’t figured them out yet *g*

So anyway I’ll stop babbling and get to the giveaway.

If you want to be considered for a copy, first tell me what books you’re buying this week or last. I know there are releases I wanted but damn if I can remember what they were and I want to go shopping! Then the next really important thing I need you to tell me is what format you’d like. If you want to be considered for a print copy, say you want the print. If you prefer Kindle, just tell me that.

Simple, right?

I’ll leave the contest open until this weekend (sometime) I’m not being too specific because Girlie has a softball tournament and I’m not sure when we’ll be home so I can’t give you a set time that I’ll draw winners. I’d like to have all winners posted by Sunday night but definitely by Monday if we end up playing really late. Please check back early in the week to see if you won! I’ll be asking all winners to email me so I can get the books out to you ASAP.

Ok let’s get this show on the road. Ready, set, go!

The winners!

Ok gang, since there were so many entries and I still have available ARCs, I drew SIX winners. And here they are

#43 Kay James

#73 Susan

#85 Alyssa Sullivan

#108 Ashley Roberts

#160 Tanya

#197 Sherri Dub

Congrats! Now here’s what I need for you to do. I need you to email me your mailing address to maya@mayabanks.com and I need this info SOON. No later than Thursday afternoon. I need to mail these on Friday because I leave for vacation early Saturday morning. So if I don’t hear from you by Thursday, I’m sorry, but you won’t get the ARC.

Facebook contest, here!

Since Facebook won’t let anyone run contests on their pages anymore, I’m going to have my promised contests for ARCs of In Bed With A Highlander here on my blog. There are no strings attached! If you want to get an early peek at the book, simply post here and tell me you want it and if you win, the book is yours. Simple as that.

I’ll leave entries open until at least tomorrow morning (maybe later if I get sidetracked because you all know that happens all the time!) And when I post the winners, you’ll need to check back and then email me your mailing address. I can’t stress this enough. I will post the winners no later than Wednesday of this week. If you don’t claim your book by Friday, you lose out. Sorry! I leave the country on Saturday and won’t be back for 12 days. I’m going to mail all won copies out on Friday of this week so it’s your responsibility to A. check back to see if you won and B. provide me with a mailing address before Friday.

Ready, set, go!

REVIEW copies of In Bed With A Highlander

I have a select few advance copies of In Bed WIth A Highlander that I am offering to reviewers and bloggers who are willing to read and post their thoughts on the story in return for receiving the book early. If you aren’t a reviewer or a blogger, don’t be sad! I also have copies that I will be giving away in a few contests I plan to run. But for this particular blog entry, I am asking for only those who have blogs or will post reviews to respond.

Here’s what I need for you to do and please read carefully because if you don’t follow the procedure it’s likely I won’t see or be able to consider your request.

Send an email to mayaATmayabanks.com with the subject header REVIEW COPY. If you don’t put this, I won’t see it. It’s that simple.

In the body of the email, I need for you to give me the URL to your blog or your review site or wherever it is you plan to post your review or your thoughts, good or bad.

I’m asking that if you send a request and receive a copy, that you read and post your thoughts/review BEFORE August 30th. If you’re planning to post at places like BN or Amazon where you aren’t able until the book releases, please state that in your email.

Requests need to be in no later than July 17th because I’ll mail them out as SOON as I return from the World Series of Softball with my daughter.

Please do NOT POST YOUR REQUEST IN THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS BLOG POST. I won’t consider that an entry. I need all the info in the email as stated above. The only “string” or stipulation to getting an early copy is that you review or talk about. You do not have to love it. You do not have to post gushing things about the book. If you hate it, you’re free to say so. I will appreciate each and every person who takes the time to post their thoughts. I will not argue with you, stalk you or otherwise act like an author off her meds ;)

This is also open to international bloggers and reviewers as all my contests are.

On the cut off date of the 17th, I will randomly draw from the entries received since I don’t have enough copies to accommodate everyone. I will then send you an email requesting your mailing address. You will only have one or two days to get back to me because I have to mail them the week of the 17th before I leave on vacation so be aware of all the fine print involved in this giveaway!

I think that about covers everything :)

RWA Literacy signing and my annual reminder

Every year I try to mention this just because it’s one of those small issues that’s important to me. Next week, the Romance Writers of America organization will meet in NYC for their annual conference and with it they will host a huge book signing event to promote literacy.

There will be hundreds of authors signing. It’s a huge event. A readers dream!

The first year that I was eligible to sign at the literacy signing I didn’t. Ok, I know, you’re thinking what?? I mean after working so very hard to reach the goal of being a published author, I sat out my first opportunity to sign at such an awesome event? Yeah, I did. I was more interested in wandering around and attending as a READER. I wanted a chance to meet some of MY favorite authors and get them to sign books.

I also made it a goal to go by the tables of newer authors who might not have the lines or the followings of some of the more established authors. And each year I remind others to try and do the same.

So if you’re going to be attending the literacy signing, do me a favor, okay? Pick out at least one new author or an author who doesn’t have a line of people at her table. Go by, talk to her, check out her book or even better yet, buy it and have her sign it.

It’s HARD to sit there swallowed up by so many other authors and feel like no one has come to see you or to get you to sign a book.

A little kindness goes a long way and you have the power to make the signing very special for an author who is new, shy or just plain terrified of the crowds.

I hope to see you there! If I remember right, I’ll have Colters’ Lady and either Hidden Away or Sweet Possession to sign. (I’m so horrible, I don’t remember which one!) So come by and say hi. I’d love to chat with you!

Looking for short story recs!

I was having a twitter conversation with Inez Kelly about how little reading time I’ve had lately. Seriously, this year has been CRAZY and the ironic thing is, that it was supposed to mark a slowdown for me. But uhm yeah, not so much. Since the beginning of the year, I’ve written a historical romance, two shorter contemporary romances for Harlequin Desire, an erotic longer novella (40k words) the 4th KGI book and now I’m immersed in Sweet Addiction. So yeah, my reading time has been non existent because along with all the work I’ve been devoting time to, things have been really busy with my family.

We’ve traveled. My daughter is playing softball and we’ve devoted a lot of time to her practices and her tournaments. The year has sped by so frighteningly fast that well, reading has just fallen by the wayside. Which makes me sad.

But I’ve found that even if I can’t commit to a full length novel (even as insanely fast as I read) that shorter works really do the trick when I really just need time to let my brain rest and enjoy something. Such was the case when I impulsively picked up Cara McKenna’s latest short story, Don’t Call Her Angel. It was perfect, see, because I was done in about half an hour. And then I could go back to work, or go take my daughter to practice or even cook supper. OMG you guys seriously don’t know how long it’s been since I last cooked lololol. My poor husband was in shock last night when I actually went into the kitchen and fixed supper.

I’m getting off topic….

So to get to my point, I’d LOVE some recommendations for SHORT stories. Novellas, short stories. But I want them to be really good. And satisfying. They don’t have to be “change the world” earth shattering. I just want something yummy that satisfies my need for a “quick fix”

Got anything for me? Oh and yeah, I should clarify, I want it to be romance. Don’t make me sad when I’m trying to work!! :)

Holiday Themed Stories

So here’s a question. When do you start looking for, wanting to read holiday themed stories? Early? Last minute? Somewhere in between? I’m working on A Colter Christmas and it’s not ALL about Christmas. Christmas occurs but it’s not all Christmassy throughout the entire story. But I’m trying to decide when to release it so I could use your feedback! :)

Sweet Addiction blurb!

This time he won’t walk away…

He awakened a need within her…

Cole is successful beyond his dreams. He can have any woman he wants, but there’s only one he can’t stop thinking about. His childhood sweetheart, Renita. He’s never forgotten his first taste of innocent love and the desire that consumed them—or the pain he brought upon her…

But now she belongs to another…

Her long ago brush with submission awakened a longing in Ren that drove her to walk the darker edge of desire. She’s become a beautiful woman at ease with her sexuality and unapologetic about her need for a dominant man. When Cole finds her again, he’s gutted that she belongs to another. Ren’s current master agrees to give her to Cole for a short time, but then she must return to his keeping. And though Cole agrees to this bargain, he knows he will never be able to let Ren go again…