Welcome to my stop on the book blog tour for Gingerbread Kisses by Minette Lauren. This blog tour was organized by Lone Star Book Blog Tours. On my stop, I have an excerpt from the book as well as the tour wide giveaway for a chance to win an Amazon gift card and books from the author. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for more content. Enjoy!
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Series: Hot in Magnolia #4
Author: Minette Lauren
Publication Date: April 30th 2021
Print Length: 275 pages
Genre: Contemporary Romance
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Hollywood actress Ginger Lynn Harding is broke, unemployed, and stuck in the glaring spotlight of a sex-tape scandal thanks to her lousy ex-boyfriend. Changing her coveted ginger-colored hair to brown, Ginger heads to small-town Magnolia, Texas, where she plans to hide out and wait tables at the Cupcake Diner and Dive.
As a Magnolia constable and possible candidate for mayor, Roland Karr prides himself on protecting the community. When he nabs a Lauren Bacall look-alike for speeding, Roland is surprised that he lets the sassy beauty off the hook, but he can’t help it. She looks like she could use a break.
As Ginger settles into life in Magnolia, she can't stop thinking about the handsome and debonair cop, but can she risk losing her heart when she's lost everything else?
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EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER TWO OF
GINGERBREAD KISSES
BY MINETTE LAUREN
GINGERBREAD KISSES
BY MINETTE LAUREN
Roland Karr started his day by stepping in a puddle of piss. His sister, Madalyn, had picked up a mangy dog off the side of the highway the day before, as she was known to do, and had unceremoniously left him for Roland to take care of.
“Don’t be a scrooge,” she’d tossed at him as she hurried out the door at 6AM.
It was almost Christmas, and it was eighty degrees outside at 9AM. Bah humbug.
His stomach rumbled. Maddie was working the early morning shift at the diner today, so he thought he'd kill two birds with one stone. Roland knew she needed the job since her recent divorce had left her a single mom, but he didn’t have time to house-train someone else’s mangy mutt.
Before going to the station, he drove to the diner to grab breakfast and tell Maddie that she needed to find other arrangements for her rescues, but she was busy. After she filled his coffee cup, Roland let her attend a few tables before trying to have a conversation. Her ESP must have alerted her to his intent because she kept pretending that she didn't see him. He tried waving as she returned to the kitchen, but Maddie darted left to avoid him. At the same time, Maria, the diner manager, rushed from the kitchen with a full tray of breakfast food above her shoulder. As Maddie crashed into her, Maria fell forward, catapulting the tray of pancakes, syrup and all straight into Roland’s lap.
“Merry Christmas!” Maddie squeaked before apologizing to Maria and skating off to the back for a bus tub to clean up the mess.
His sister loved Christmas, and though Thanksgiving had just ended, she’d already strung up lights along Roland’s front yard shrubs and the fireplace mantle in his living room. He hadn’t protested because the one thing he enjoyed seeing most was his niece's face light up when she gazed at all the colorful lights. Kelsey had scribbled the day they were scheduled to get a fresh tree on the kitchen calendar. At exactly three weeks before Christmas Eve, they would go as a family to pick out the perfect noble fir. Kelsey assured him it had to be three weeks so that it was moist enough to last through the season. She'd heard her mother say anything earlier would be too dry before New Year’s Day.
Roland shook the holiday thoughts away. The customers in the busy diner stared back at him with his crotch covered in hot pancakes and warm syrup dripping down his inner thigh. His disastrous morning just kept getting worse.
Picking off the discarded food from his lap, he made his way back to the cruiser. He would head to the house for a quick shower and change. The talk with Maddie would have to wait.
A car whizzed past him through a school zone and he made a U-turn. Besides the dog he’d dubbed Lucifer peeing on his floor, fertilizing his front lawn, and digging holes that must lead to China, he’d had food tossed down his pants, and now, he had to do a traffic stop. Roland hated ruining anyone’s day, but the red rocket that zoomed through the stop sign in front of the school was asking for it. It was the elementary school where his niece attended second grade, and recently, there had been an accident between a parent anxious to pick up his kid and a student leaving on his bike.
Roland tried to reign in his temper as the brunette sassed him with her fancy sunglasses. Where did she think she was? Better yet, who did she think she was? He could tell by her bright red lipstick, perfectly pressed jeans, fancy top, and the gaudy purse in the seat next to her that she wasn’t from around Magnolia.
He’d bet the money he’d won from the poker game last night with the guys at the new Hank’s Honky-Tonk that she was from Dallas.
He’d felt bad about cleaning out Noah Harding’s wallet after laying down a full house, but all was fair on poker night. Besides, Roland had done Noah a big favor when he connected him to the right people who helped expedite his liquor license and building permits for the new Hank’s.
Plus, a few years ago, before Noah had left town, Roland had given Noah’s gal, Alexa Nash, a warning instead of a ticket for crashing through the front window of the original Hank’s. Back then, Noah had it bad for the pretty, single mom, but things had gone awry on the romantic front and Noah had jumped ship. Now the former military officer and entrepreneur had come back to Magnolia to re-open the new Hank’s Honkey-Tonk. Roland hoped he would also try to repair the damaged relationship he’d left behind. He liked Noah and Lexi. They had both been dealt hard hands in life and could use a break.
Putting away his meandering thoughts, Roland watched the slim brunette slide out of her car. She probably wasn’t packing a pistol in the glovebox, but you could never be too careful. After twenty years on the force, he’d seen and heard everything. Even if she wasn’t drop dead gorgeous, with her quick temper, he would have watched her like a hawk.
“Turn around and put your hands on top of the vehicle where I can see them.”
She raised her sunglasses to the top of her head, pushing back her sleek brown hair.
“Officer, I’m sure this isn’t really necessary. Can’t we do something to erase the sudden lapse in my ticket etiquette?”
Roland arched a brow and then raised his voice. “Now!”
Minette Lauren is an award-winning author who loves animals and writes humorous romance in a small Texas town.
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GIVEAWAY:
First Winner: $25 Amazon gift card + signed copies of all the Hot in Magnolia series books (including the prequel) by Minette Lauren
Second Winner: Signed copies of all four books in the Hot in Magnolia series
Third Winner: Signed copy of Gingerbread Kisses by Minette Lauren
(Continental US residents only.)
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5/26/21 - BONUS Promo: LSBBT Blog
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5/28/21 - Character Interview: That's What She's Reading
5/28/21 - Review: Reading by Moonlight
5/29/21 - Excerpt: All the Ups and Downs
5/30/21 - Bonus Scene: Chapter Break Book Blog
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6/1/21 - Author Interview: The Clueless Gent
6/1/21 - Review: Carpe Diem Chronicles
6/2/21 - Sneak Peek: The Page Unbound
6/2/21 - Review: Jennie Reads
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6/3/21 - Review: Missus Gonzo
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Thank you so much for posting Gingerbread Kisses!
ReplyDeleteNice cover
ReplyDeletenice book cover and the book sounds interesting.
ReplyDeletethis looks like an amazing read!
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