Heartbreaker Blog Hop & Giveaway

I know all about having my heart broken by fictional characters. Between being an avid reader and an author, it was bound to happen at least a few times. Even my own characters, the ones I write about in my books, have been known to make me shed a tear or two (shhh, don't tell anyone).

To me, a heartbreaker hero can be any of a variety of hero types. Some are heartbreakers because they're bad boys - learning to live with and love them isn't an easy process, and sometimes getting along with them is frustrating at times (though they're sure to have some incredibly hot redeeming qualities to make it worth it). Maybe some are just so sexy that your heart breaks from beating so fast when they appear on the page! And others - my favorite heartbreaker heroes - are scarred, whether it be on the outside, the inside or both.

Like Ryan. Here's my heartbreaker hero.

Photo from iStock

Ryan is a Unites States Marine Corps veteran who wears the scars of war inside and out. Alone in the civilian world after being medically discharged from the USMC, he returns to his original love of competitive MMA (mixed martial arts) fighting, even though he shouldn't - with a TBI (traumatic brain injury) from an IED blast, every match is a risk he can't afford to take. And it definitely breaks Ally's heart.

Photo from iStock

But she's tough - a fighter - too.

There's plenty of heartbreak to go around in their story - Battered Not Broken - but as a reader, I think tough trials make a happy ending that much sweeter.

What about you? When a hero breaks your heart, does it make you love the happy ending even more? Let me know in  a comment including your e-mail address and you'll be included in a random drawing for these prizes...

Grand Prize #1: Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet (winner's choice) - International

Grand Prize #2: $100 Amazon or B&N Gift Card (winner's choice) - International

Grand Prize #3: Giant swag pack full of books & goodies from the hop's participating authors - US Only

My Individual Prize: A Battered Not Broken goodie pack, as pictured below - US, Canada, UK

Battered Not Broken goodie pack prize includes: signed post card, button and key chain.

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Want to earn extra entries toward the Battered Not Broken goodie pack? Try some of these Rafflecopter options below...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Battered Not Broken

Ryan Moore forged his own path when he defied his wealthy family’s expectations by joining the United States Marine Corps as an enlisted man. After a period of service that’s cut short by an IED explosion, the lingering physical and mental effects of war result in an isolated struggle to exist in the civilian world. He throws himself into competitive MMA fighting – the one thing he’s still able to excel at, even if every match is a risk he can’t afford to take.

His first encounter with amateur female fighter Ally Rivera ignites a spark of desire he hasn’t felt since before a bomb left its marks on his life and his body, but his flirtation with her turns out to be anything but harmless. She’s struggling to hold together a family ravaged by violence – a feat that isn’t easy when her father has been imprisoned, leaving her vulnerable to relatives who run a local gang. Can two unrelenting fighters overcome challenges they couldn’t defeat alone, or do the wounds of war and crime run too deep for even love to heal?

Full-length novel. (Approx. 110,000 words)

Ebook Available Now at…

  

iBooks      Kobo      All Romance

Also available in paperback.

Read an excerpt here at my site.

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Contest rules & restrictions: must be 18 or older to participate. Contest ends 02/11/13 at 11:59 pm. Grand Prizes #1 & #2 are open to international participants, while Grand Prize #3 is available to US participants only. The Battered Not Broken goodie pack prize is available to participants in the US, Canada and the UK. Contest void where prohibited.

Don't forget to check out the other participating bloggers' posts for more entries toward the grand prizes! You can access the entire list right here.