Get your copy of BLUEST HEART today!

Title: Bluest Heart (Wayback TX)
Author: Amber Leigh Williams
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Contemporary western
Length: 103 pages
Price: $3.50

The anticipated sequel to award-winning Wayback novella, Blackest Heart!

The Wayback bachelor is a dying breed, but that doesn't stop Casey Ridge from wanting to settle down. For this cowboy anyone but Josie Brusky would be an easy wrangle. Unfortunately for him, the Blue Bug singer and owner of Josie's Treasures doesn't believe in commitment much less marriage.

Years ago, Josie lost her heart to Casey's charm and dimpled smile. Since then she has done everything she knows to forget him. After all, she’s known as the local harlot and the daughter of the town’s biggest bigot. Casey could have any girl he wanted. Why would he saddle himself with her? In the wake of a shattering past, she refuses to give up her independence.

Casey digs down deep to win her over, but does he have what it takes to win Wayback's bluest heart?

Excerpt:

"You remember that night behind the stable?"

She let out a small, throaty laugh. "Seems like forever ago, but yeah. Your hair was a lot longer then."

"Yours, too." He could remember it curtaining their faces, the tips of silky, red curls tickling his cheeks. Tracing the line of pearly buttons from the hem of her midnight blue blouse to the open neck-line, he touched the teardrop-shaped pearl on the thin gold chain around her neck which reminded him of the moon that night. "You were my first."

She lifted her gaze to his. Tenderness warred with uncertainty in the whiskey-colored depths. "Me, too."

His heart pattered at the memory. "I always liked that about us."

She nodded, frowning. "I was crazy about you."

The tip of his thumb traced the bottom edge of her lip. "So why didn’t it last?"

She looked beyond him, remembering. "Because however much I wanted to be with you, I knew I would be leaving the first chance I got. I wasn’t go-ing to let anything or anyone stand in my way."

"You figured I would?"

"Casey, we were so young," she told him. "Who knows what you or I would’ve done?"
He paused, running a hand over her hair. "Just for the record," he murmured, lips brushing her cheek, "I would’ve let you go."

She sighed, reaching up to clutch his upper arm. The muscle under her hand and his sleeve warmed. "Why hasn’t anyone snatched you up yet?"

"Because you’re the only one I ever wanted, Josie," he told her, cupping her chin in his hand to look her in the eyes as he said it. "The only one."

Bluest Heart (c) Amber Leigh Williams

**Be the first to get your copy today at The Wild Rose Press!

**See the first of the Wayback Ridge saga in 1st Place More Than Magic Novella Blackest Heart, only $3.00 for digital download. Also now available in paperback in The Way Back Home anthology!

**Look for Bet It On My Heart, the final story in the Wayback Ridge saga coming Spring 2010!

**Join western romance authors Beth Williamson, Alison Kent, Wendi Darlin, & many, many more all January long to celebrate Cowboy Lovin'! Eye candy, excerpts, round robins, and tons of giveaway prizes! Only at The Cozy Page...

Amber Leigh Williams, Author of 1st Place More Than Magic Novella Blackest Heart & LASR "Best Book" Forever Amore

WIN A TEN DOLLAR GIFT CERTICATE

Hi. Win a THE WILD ROSE PRESS gift certificate by visiting my website and commenting on my guest book. This month's question asks you to tell about one of your favorite authors and books. On or about March 1st, I'll draw a winner for a ten dollar gift certificate from THE WILD ROSE PRESS.

www.aklanier.com

The hot dusty town of Salvation, Texas has more than its share of secrets in 1873 when Laura Ashton's stage rolls into town. Sheriff David Slade has no idea what baggage his mail-order bride is bringing into his life. Throw in the nightmares from his Civil War days and he's got more than courting to contend with. Laura's a woman ahead of her time, a woman trained in medicine. And she's got a will that could move mountains. Unfortunately, the only mountains in Salvation are in Sheriff Slade's memory. Can the determined doctor heal his pain, or will the dark secret in her past turn up to steal his Salvation Bride?

Anna Kathryn Lanier
http://www.aklanier.com/

Lost In Translation

We all know the importance of using just the right word. Sometimes it's easy to mangle English, but when you have to translate from one language to another, things happen that you never expected.

Cracking an international market is a goal of most growing corporations. It shouldn't be difficult, yet even the big multi-nationals run into trouble because of language and cultural differences. For example...

~ The name Coca-Cola in China was first rendered as Ke-kou-ke-la. Unfortunately, the Coke company did not discover until after thousands of signs had been printed that the phrase means "bite the wax tadpole" or "female horse stuffed with wax" depending on the dialect.

~ Coke then researched 40,000 Chinese characters and found a close phonetic equivalent, "ko-kou-ko-le," which can be loosely translated as "happiness in the mouth."

~ In Taiwan, the translation of the Pepsi slogan "Come alive with the Pepsi Generation" came out as "Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead."

~ Also in Chinese, the Kentucky Fried Chicken slogan "finger-lickin' good" came out as "eat your fingers off."

~ Japan's second-largest tourist agency was mystified when it entered English-speaking markets and began receiving requests for unusual sex tours. Upon finding out why, the owners of Kinki Nippon Tourist Company changed its name.

~ When Parker Pen marketed a ballpoint pen in Mexico, its ads were supposed to say "It won't leak in your pocket and embarrass you." However, the company mistakenly thought the spanish word "embarazar" meant embarrass. Instead the ads said that "It wont leak in your pocket and make you pregnant."

~ Chicken-man Frank Perdue's slogan, "It takes a tough man to make a tender chicken," got terribly mangled in another Spanish translation. A photo of Perdue with one of his birds appeared on billboards all over Mexico with a caption that explained "It takes a hard man to make a chicken aroused."

~ In Italy, a campaign for Schweppes Tonic Water translated the name into Schweppes Toilet Water.

~ When General Motors introduced the Chevy Nova in South America, it was apparently unaware that "no va" means "it won't go." After the company figured out why it wasn't selling any cars, it renamed the car in its Spanish markets to the Caribe.

~ Ford had a similar problem in Brazil when the Pinto flopped. The company found out that Pinto was Brazilian slang for "tiny male genitals". Ford pried all the nameplates off and substituted Corcel, which means horse.

~ An American t-shirt maker in Miami printed shirts for the Spanish market which promoted the Pope's visit. Instead of the desired "I Saw the Pope" in Spanish, the shirts proclaimed "I Saw the Potato."

~ Hunt-Wesson introduced its Big John products in French Canada as Gros Jos before finding out that the phrase, in slang, means " big breasts." In this case, however, the name problem did not have a noticeable effect on sales.

~ The American slogan for Salem cigarettes, "Salem - Feeling Free," got translated in the Japanese market into "When smoking Salem, you feel so refreshed that your mind seems to be free and empty."

~ Colgate introduced a toothpaste in France called Cue, the name of of a nororious porno magazine.

~ In an effort to boost orange juice sales in predominantly continental breakfast eating England, a campaign was devised to extoll the drink's eye-opening, pick-me-up qualities. Hence the slogan, "Orange juice. It gets your pecker up."

*Found on Jokes A Day.

Anna Kathryn Lanier
#1 best seller THE PRICELESS GIFT
www.aklanier.com

Released today: "A Change of Heart"

It's finally THE DAY! Yay! My Yellow Miniature Rose, "A Change of Heart" has been released.

This story was a challenge I made to myself. I wanted to take a cliche (the secret baby cowboy story) and set it on its ear a bit. That ear-setting was one of the first things my fantastic editor, Stacy, mentioned when she contracted the story. I hope you all enjoy it as well!



Blurb:

Returning to Wyoming after a six-year absence, Jake Langley finds more than just changes in the now run down family ranch. His warm feelings for a former girlfriend have cooled, and he finds himself drawn to her sister and his former best friend, Emily. His discovery of the sisters' well-kept secret, however, upsets his long-term plans and sets duty against his heart's desire. Now, four hearts and four lives will be changed, forever.

Excerpt:

When the bell over the ice cream shop entrance rang, Emily dried her hands on the towel hanging from her waist. She stepped through the doorway, a smile on her face. That smile froze as hard as a fresh bucket of ice cream at the sight before her.

Jacob Langley.

"Hey, Emily." He said it like it had been six days since the last time he'd seen her instead of nearly six years.

"Jake." Her throat was tight with fury and hurt and she could barely speak. "What do you want?"

"Some of that caramel peanut butter ice cream on a sugar cone if you don't mind." He flashed his best grin.

Did he think they were still best friends like they were all through school? Had he forgotten what he'd done to her? Worse, what he'd done to Casey? If he thought she'd let him stay in her place any longer, he was mistaken. "Sorry. We're all out." Emily's gaze never wavered, her smile didn't thaw.

"Funny, I'm looking at it right there in front of me." He pointed through the glass case.

She tapped a sign behind her. "Then I guess I'm exercising my rights."

He pursed his lips and read the bold, black words printed on the white board: We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason.

Even cooler? I already have TWO great reviews for this story!

Four Hearts from Maura at The Romance Studio:

The author of this story packed a lot of story into a small package and does it with great skill. The characters are very real, none of them too perfect or too evil. ... The author does a good job of reintroducing the characters to each other .... Bode is also a great character who realizes just how great Emily really is. He seems to be the one person who recognizes Em’s beauty without having it pointed out to him, making him the smartest person in the story in my opinion. The author does a wonderful job of describing small tourist town life as well.

Rated "A" and and Outstanding Read from Simply Romance Reviews:

I enjoyed reading this story right from the opening page! It’s a heart warming, moving and very enjoyable mild romance. Jake, the dashing cowboy every girl falls head over heels for, has a vulnerable side to him that makes him forgivingly lovable, no matter what his past holds. Emily, the elder sister of the two and a fiery redhead who still holds a grudge against him, keeps Jake’s feet firmly on the ground, and in more ways than one! And then there’s the lovely Casey, everything a man could wish for in a woman – but is she the one for him?

Hot without the sex? Definitely! Accuracy accounted for? Without a doubt! Wishing I had a cowboy like Jake to lie in the hay with? YES PLEASE!

A recommended read for sure with a wonderful storyline! Well done, Marianne!
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I even made a book trailer *G*



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