New Book Series! #HauntedHearts Coming September 2014

Introducing an exciting new series filled with paranormal activity, delicious romance, and plenty of suspense.

Photo by the ultra-talented Keri Neal.

Haunted Hearts Series

Coming September 2014!

Book One: Laurel Heights

Look for the cover reveal early July 2014!

Want a blurb? Okay! Here it is!

A dark cloud of deceit hovers over her family tree...

Laurel Standridge hopes to leave a difficult past behind her in California when she heads to the hills of Arkansas to claim her inheritance. Left an estate by an aunt she’s never met, Laurel takes possession of Laurel Heights, hoping it will be the safe haven she needs to recuperate from her ill-fated relationship with Rand Peterson. Secrets long buried rise to the surface when her cousin James is murdered and dumped on the highway just outside the gates of Laurel Heights.

Her past trails her to the mountains of Arkansas...

To make her dream of opening a romantic bed and breakfast getaway reality, Laurel hires Chase to help her with the renovations to the old dilapidated house. Trusting Chase is hard when she discovers he is more than just a handyman. Caught in an obligation Chase feels he cannot ignore, he agrees to help his brother take back the property Rand believes Laurel stole from him. Chase remains at Laurel Heights even after he determines Laurel took nothing of Rand’s away with her from California except nightmares, fading bruises, and a fractured rib.

Unexplained disturbances shatter her hopes of a normal life...

As Rand seethes in prison, Chase fears he will send someone to Arkansas to seek revenge on Laurel for testifying against him. Are the strange bumps, thumps, and bangs reverberating through the night caused by the murderer of Laurel’s cousin James, the man Rand has sent to exact his revenge, or a disturbed soul existing in another dimension, trying to communicate with the living? Drawn together by the intrigue surrounding Laurel Heights, Chase and Laurel become hopelessly entangled in a relationship that goes deeper than mere physical attraction. Can their love survive the haunting of Laurel Heights?

Look for excerpts from the first chapter beginning in mid-July!

The Best Snickerdoodles Ever!

My daughter and I just made the best snickerdoodles ever for Memorial Day!

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Mix together and set aside:

3 C all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

In another bowl, mix together until smooth:

2 sticks of non-salted butter, melted and cooled

2/3 C dark brown sugar, lightly packed

1 C granulated sugar

Stir into butter/sugar mix:

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

Gradually add flour mix to sugar mix until dough forms.

Mix together:

8 Tbsp granulated sugar
4 tsp ground cinnamon

Form dough into 2 Tbsp portions, roll in sugar/cinnamon
mix, and place on ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. The original recipe I adapted this recipe from suggested baking the cookies for 12 - 14 minutes at 300 degrees F, but I found because of the low baking temperature, it took my oven between 15 - 16 minutes to bake. Don't over bake. Cool for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire baking rack to set.

Enjoy!

Best Southwestern Chicken Wrap Ever!

Southwestern Chicken Wrap

This is the best chicken wrap I have ever tasted. I modified this recipe from one I found on Pinterest at this link.

This is what you'll need:

1 C cooked rice

1/2 Tbsp Chili powder

1 tsp Cumin

Salt to taste

1 C warm black beans

1 C cooked chicken, diced or shredded

Burrito sized tortilla shells

Cheese

Sour Cream

Cooking spray

I used warm rice, about 1 cup. Add the chili powder, cumin, and salt. Mix until rice is coated with spices. Add chicken and black beans and stir until mixed.

Prepare the wrap by spraying one side of the tortilla with cooking spray. Lay the tortilla on a flat surface with the unsprayed side up. I used a dinner plate. Then, layer onto the tortilla cheese, a couple of dollops of sour cream, and the rice/chicken mix down the center of the tortilla. Roll the tortilla into a wrap.

In a preheated skillet coated with cooking spray, place wrap seam side down. Press with spatula as the wrap browns, so the wrap will hold together. Brown for about a minute and then flip the wrap and brown the other side.

This makes 4-6 wraps.

Enjoy!

The Best Mini M&M Cookie EVER!

My daughter and I made these cookies for Easter and they might be the best cookies I've ever baked.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Mix together and set aside:

2 C plus + 2 Tbsp All purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

In another bowl, mix together:

1 and 1/2 sticks of non-salted butter, melted and cooled

1 C dark brown sugar, lightly packed

1/2 granulated sugar

Stir into butter/sugar mix:

1 whole egg and 1 egg yolk, at room temperature

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

Gradually add flour mix until dough forms. Fold in M&Ms.

Roll dough into 2 Tbsp portions and place on ungreased air insulated stainless steel cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. If you want, you can add more M&Ms to the tops of each cookie before baking to make sure each cookie has a colorfully decorated surface. Bake for 8 -12 minutes. Oven temperatures vary, but I found my cookies did best at just about 11 minutes. Don't over bake unless you want very crunchy cookies. Let cool for at least 5 minutes.

Enjoy!

The Repetitive Habit of Repeating Things Over and Over Again Makes Me Cringe

Repeating the same word or words over and over and over makes me cringe. I cringe when I see the same word or words again and again and again. Nothing makes me cringe more than repeated words. Okay, you get my point already, right?

There are only so many plot lines available for a writer to choose from. It’s all been done before. What the writer does different with a plot line provides renewed interest to a theme that has already been tackled by someone else. Readers expect writers to provide compelling stories that offer variety and something fresh to an old idea. Tired phrasing and repeated words create hitchy moments in narrative. Don’t give your reader any reason to toss your book aside because she’s already read another book with the same plot.

The Heinous Habit of Head Hopping #amediting

Can you imagine how excited I was the first time a publisher wanted a full read of one of my manuscripts? I was ecstatic until I got the editor’s critique. The manuscript’s biggest issue? Point of view breaks, commonly called head hopping. I was given the opportunity to correct this deficiency, so I plodded through the story and revised it, thinking I had conquered the head hopping habit. Unfortunately, I still didn’t “get” it. I am happy to say the story was resubmitted to the same publisher and accepted for publication…five years later.

I’ve learned a lot in five years, and I think I finally mastered the concept of point of view. Sure I slip occasionally, but for the most part I keep the scene in one character’s head at a time.

Cover Reveal - Love & Redemption by Chantel Rhondeau

Title: Love & Redemption (Agents in Love - Book 2)

Author: Chantel Rhondeau

Will be released: April 18, 2014

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Swearing off sex is anything but easy for bad girl Shelley Daniels. Especially after she bumps into super sexy Gavin Hart, who’s running for his life.

All Gavin wanted was fast money and a chance to start fresh. Now this jewelry thief is the target of professional assassins, ones he witnessed murder a woman in cold blood.

Gavin drags Shelley into the world she was desperate to escape, full of secret agents, assassin plots, and a frantic plan to stop a terrorist group from perfecting a new weapon. Gavin also attempts to steal what’s left of her jaded heart while they hide from the murderers.

The killers strike again, drawing the pair back to the city. When a child’s life hangs in the balance, Shelley and Gavin have a chance to make up for prior sins, but finding redemption means risking everything—including their chance for true love.

CONTENT WARNING: Language, violence, and sizzling love scenes

Add to your Goodreads TBR pile or sign up for Chantel's newsletter to get an email notifying you when the book is available!

If you missed the first book in the series Love & Deception (Agents in Love - Book 1) now is the time to get caught up with Nick and Carlie's story.

What if everything you believed in was a lie?

In hiding for six years, Carlie Hollis is tired of running. All she wants is to stay in Sayle, Washington and make a success of her struggling delicatessen. Because of her past, she’s suspicious of anyone who takes an interest in her.

Nick Kendall works as a spy in a top-secret government operation, protecting innocent people from danger. Sent to Sayle on a mission to infiltrate a suspected terrorist organization, Nick finds himself attracted to Carlie, an alleged key player of the group.

Despite her misgivings, Carlie develops feelings for the handsome stranger, believing he is there to help her. But when Nick finds evidence of her guilt, he’s given orders to do the unthinkable—eliminate the target, one he's fallen hopelessly in love with. Will he follow orders...or become hunted himself?

CONTENT WARNING: Violence, language, sizzling love scenes.

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