Red Fridays. Every Friday. Especially at the Holidays.

For my post for this month, I'm reprinting a blog message (sorry I do not have the name of the blogger to reference) I found on the internet. I thought it was beautifully written. Since so many of us are traveling during this time of year, either home, or on to loved ones, it was a good reminder of what Red Friday means to all of us who love our men and women who wear the uniform and do so much for us. As we get to enjoy our families and our freedoms, let's honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice. Least we can do.

A Story on the meaning of Red Friday Last week, while traveling to Chicago on business, I noticed a Marine Sergeant traveling with a folded flag, but did not put two and two together. After we boarded our flight, I turned to the sergeant, who’d been invited to sit in First Class (across from me), and inquired if he was heading home. No, he responded. Heading out, I asked. No, I am escorting a soldier home. Going to pick him up? No. He is with me right now. He was killed in Iraq. I’m taking him home to his family. The realization of what he had been asked to do hit me like a punch to the gut. It was an honor for him. He told me that, although he didn’t know the soldier, he had delivered the news of his passing to the soldier’s family and felt as if he knew them after many conversations in so few days. I turned back to him, extended my hand, and said thank you. Thank you for doing what you do so my family can do what we do. Upon landing in Chicago the pilot stopped short of the gate and made the following announcement over the intercom. “Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to note that we have had the honor of having Sergeant Steeley of the United States Marine Corps join us on this flight. He is escorting a fallen comrade back home to his family. I ask that you please remain in your seats when we open the forward door to allow Sergeant Steeley to deplane and receive his fellow soldier. We will then turn off the seat belt sign.” Without a sound, all went as requested. I noticed the sergeant saluting the casket as it was brought off the plane, and his action made me realize that I am proud to be an American. So here’s a public Thank You to our military Men and Women for what you do so we can live the way we do.

Red FridaysVery soon, you will see a great many people wearing Red every Friday. The reason Americans who support our troops used to be called Very soon, you will see a great many people wearing Red every Friday. The reason Americans who support our troops used to be called the “silent majority.” We are no longer silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in record breaking numbers. We are not organized, boisterous or overbearing. Many Americans, like you, me and our friends, simply want to recognize the vast majority of America supports our troops. Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect starts this Friday - - and continues each and every Friday until the troops all come home, sending a deafening message that...every red-blooded American who support our men and women afar, will wear something red. By work of mouth, press, TV – Let’s make the United States on every Friday a sea of red much like a homecoming football game in the bleachers. If every one of us who loves this country will share this with acquaintances, coworkers, friends, and family, it will not be long before the USA is covered in RED and it will let our troops know the once “silent” majority is on their side more than ever, certainly more than the media lets on. The first thing a soldier say when asked “What can we do to make things better for you?” is, “We need your support and your prayers.” Let’s get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example and wear something red every Friday. Sharon Hamilton Life is one fool thing after another. Love is two fool things after each other. Author Page ** Sharon's Blog ** Sharon's Website ** Facebook**Twitter Sharon’s Newsletter he “silent majority.” We are no longer silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in record breaking numbers. We are not organized, boisterous or overbearing. Many Americans, like you, me and our friends, simply want to recognize the vast majority of America supports our troops. Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect starts this Friday - - and continues each and every Friday until the troops all come home, sending a deafening message that...every red-blooded American who support our men and women afar, will wear something red. By work of mouth, press, TV – Let’s make the United States on every Friday a sea of red much like a homecoming football game in the bleachers. If every one of us who loves this country will share this with acquaintances, coworkers, friends, and family, it will not be long before the USA is covered in RED and it will let our troops know the once “silent” majority is on their side more than ever, certainly more than the media lets on. The first thing a soldier say when asked “What can we do to make things better for you?” is, “We need your support and your prayers.” Let’s get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example and wear something red every Friday.

New Hot SEALs Series Release! SEALed at Midnight by Cat Johnson

A snowstorm brings together one hot SEAL and one lucky lady, and heats up Christmas Eve like never before in SEALed at Midnight!

Get it now in eBook and Paperback! 

The eBook is only 99 cents for release week

Amazon    ARe    Nook   Google    iBooks   KOBO   Smashwords

The Hot SEALs Series

Night with a SEAL - eBook, paperback, audio

Saved by a SEAL ~ eBook, paperback, audio

SEALed at Midnight ~eBook, paperback

Kissed by a SEAL ~coming March 2015

Of Christmases Past

This is the story of a family left behind when their Airman deployed to Vietnam and a little girl who still believed in Santa Claus. A little girl not so very different from the military brats of this generation.

For family members who have a better memory of this than me, don't rain on my parade! I was little, memories are faulty.

We were stationed at Myrtle Beach Air Force Base when my dad received orders to deploy. It was my dad, my mom, me, and my infant brother. So my mom, my brother, and I left the warm sunny climes of South Carolina to go live with my maternal grandparents in West Virginia. I remember the day my dad left. Being in avionics maintenance, my father was stationed in Thailand during his time in South East Asia.

Skip ahead to the Christmas season. For the school Christmas pageant, my class did a dance to "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree." I still remember the darn thing and if you see me when that song comes on the radio, you'll see my spastic feet moving. But really, I'm just dancing the routine. And spastic is in the eye of the beholder.

It's Christmas Eve at my grandparents and the tree is in the front window. I think there's snow on the ground. Like most kids, I didn't want to go to sleep, but knew I had to so Santa Claus could come. I have no idea how long I was asleep, but something woke me up. Wide awake. It was still dark out, so I didn't think it was Christmas morning. Plus, I could hear talking downstairs. Definitely not morning. Being the nosy person I still am, I went exploring.

I don't remember who all was downstairs, but I remember that my Aunt Jeannie (my mom's youngest sister) was missing. When I asked my mom where she was, my mom told me that she'd gone outside to check out Santa on the roof! Now we know what woke me up!

Of course I wanted to go check, but my mom tried to hustle me off to bed. But I KNOW I heard sleigh bells as I went up the stairs. Try going back to sleep after that bit of excitement!

Cut to Christmas morning and the celebratory gift giving. I only remember one gift I got that Christmas. It was wrapped under the tree and it said "From Daddy."

From Daddy??? All the way from Thailand? Inside that beautifully wrapped box was a yellow nightgown. It had a thicker bodice made of a looped material and a soft skirt. I wore that nightgown until I outgrew it and the loops stretched out. I wore that nightgown long after my father came home.

I kept that nightgown long after I outgrew it. It had a place of honor in my dresser drawer, surviving the purge that accompanied every move - from West Virginia to Louisiana, to North Carolina to Pennsylvania. I couldn't get rid of it. My father gave it to me.

Fast forward to high school. I was putting away clothes and my mother walked in my room. Probably to make sure I was actually putting them away and not just piling them around the room. She noticed the nightgown in my drawer.

"Why do you still have that?"

"Because Daddy gave it to me for Christmas when he was in Thailand."

"You do realize that he didn't actually send that to you from Thailand, don't you?'

"Ha! The next thing you'll be telling me is that Santa Claus isn't real."

Can We Talk About Navy SEALs?

Think it's time to talk a bit. We've seen things in the news concerning reveals about Navy SEALs and their tactics, their mental capabilities and their planned missions. There is a lot of controversy about this, and I am not clear on which side of the fence I stand, except to say that I want our bravest and best-trained warriors protected, at all costs. There's a mystique to being a SEAL because much of what they do has to be kept secret. And we all know there is temptation not to keep those secrets.

So, as a writer, I walk a fine line between accuracy and storytelling, all the time worrying about protecting the fine men and women who put themselves in harm's way so we can write the crazy books we do, and go run around and do unmentionable things with our lives. Our SEALs signed on for this. They are our warriors and they want us to have a normal life.

There are details in my books I've written on purpose incorrectly. There are probably details in my books I've written incorrectly by accident. I don't think I've gotten wrong the community or the character of the men who serve as SEALs. The how of what they do might vary, but the why and the way they are I believe is as accurate as I can make it. I love the smack talk and the sense of humor these usually soft-spoken warriors have.

Now we have hundreds of writers thinking they can write Navy SEAL romances. I love reading the blurbs where SEALs perform jobs real SEALs would never do, or serve in capacities they would never serve under. Reviewers don't pick these up, and I think that's fine. The bottom line is that it's good all this misinformation is out there. I hope our enemies are reading all the Navy SEAL romances, because they'll get pretty confused when they do. If they read my SEAL stories they'll get a lot of sex education too. Some of our enemies I think might need a little of this.

And that would probably make a SEAL chuckle to himself. He'd never tell you that you are an idiot writer getting facts and figures wrong, well, maybe if you knew him well enough he would. Have I been an idiot? You bet. Proudly. Will I continue to be? Hey, the more newbie SEAL writers there are out there the better I look. LOL. Seriously. We're talking about FICTION. We aren't writing Tom Clancy or WEB Griffin or Dick Couch.

As one SEAL told me, "Just make it up. If you can imagine it, it probably happened."

And so I have.

You can watch my Chapter One Live read of SEAL's Promise here. Some adult content language some of my fans think is funny seeing me say.

SEAL's Promise Excerpt (TJ Talbot and his best friend are talking about dating and other unmentionable things - strong language here). Hear the buttery, romantic voice of my Warrior Storyteller, JD Hart, as he breathes life into my words. The audio book will be out any day now.

SEAL's Promise is available on Kindle, and iTunes, Nook and Kobo.

Sharon Hamilton

Life is one fool thing after another.

Love is two fool things after each other.

Author Page ** Sharon's Blog ** Sharon's Website ** Facebook**Twitter

Sharon’s Newsletter

Hot SEALs in Audio!

Sorry to say I can't arrange to have sexy SEAL come to your house and whisper in your ear, but I can do something almost as good...I've put my Hot SEALs series in audiobook! The first two books, NIGHT WITH A SEAL and SAVED BY A SEAL, are available in audio now and more will be coming soon.  Enjoy! Cat Johnson

NIGHT WITH A SEAL AMAZON   iTUNES   AUDIBLE 

 

SAVED BY A SEAL AMAZON   iTUNES   AUDIBLE 

It's my birthday...

but you get the present! Just comment on this post before midnight on 11/10 and you'll be eligible for a $10 Amazon GC.

Not only is it my birthday on Monday, but today is my son's birthday! When the heck did I get old enough to have a 26 year old child?? I know I've bragged about him before, but isn't that what mom's are supposed to do?? He's a 1LT in the Air Force and will graduate in May with a Masters in Computer Science. Happy Birthday, Cory!

Don't forget, the Class of '93 Trilogy is available for Kindle:

 

Deadly Briefs

 Attorney Aiden Greene’s life has become one predictable routine of work, work, and more work punctuated by weekend visits with his twins. A blast from his Air Force special operations days changes all of that in an instant. He winds up in the arms of his one true love and on the run for his very life.

Major Erika Dalton is one of the best officers in the history of the ultra-secret Air Force Security Agency. That’s one of the reasons she’s been assigned to protect Aiden Greene from an escaped Latin American drug lord intent on exacting retribution.

Except she can’t keep her mind on her assignment. Or her hands off of Aiden, despite the fact that back in the Spring of ’93, back at the United States Air Force Academy, he shattered her heart. Has fate

Trail of Desire

 

A serial killer is loose on the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania, killing couples in their tents, and the local jurisdictions have asked the FBI for help.

Hot shot Special Agent Braden Powell is anxious to hit the Trail and start camping. He hopes that the high profile case will boost his standing at the Agency, proving that he deserved the assignment after leaving the Air Force. He’s even more anxious to spend time in close quarters with his sexy new partner.

Special Agent Katrina Boyd is anything but pleased to be on a remote assignment with a loose cannon. Eight young people are dead and she’s stuck with a maverick for a partner on a case that could propel her FBI career to the next level. Compounding the disaster is the fact that her traitorous body is more than excited at the thought of sleeping next to the handsome Agent night after night. 

Call of Duty

 

 Appearances can be deceiving.
Major Chadwick Monroe knows that all too well. He is the best fighter pilot the Air Force has ever seen and he is about to defect with the military’s newest weapon. Chad has a mission very few people know about – he’s an officer with the ultra-secret Air Force Security Agency, trying to thwart a Latin American terrorist organization. He has no time for a woman in his life, or so he thinks.

Casey Wilkes doesn’t trust men in general, fighter pilots in particular. The divorced single mother burns the candle at both ends to make ends meet and provide a life for her young son. The last thing she needs or wants in that life is another jet jockey, even one who draws her in and captivates her heart. Especially one who exposes her to cutthroat blackguards. Now she just has to convince her heart.  

Don't forget to find me on Facebook! Author Felicia Forella

Happy reading!
Felicia

Hunted Is Unleashed!

I'm thrilled to announce that Hunted is now live! This third instalment of myHostage Rescue Team Series is my favorite so far and I fell utterly in love with the hard-edged, remote Bauer, so I hope you will too.

 

Blurb:

She’s the one woman he can’t have.

Past experience has taught FBI Special Agent Clay Bauer not to trust his judgment when it comes to the opposite sex, yet despite his jaded outlook there’s one woman he can’t get out of his head—and she’s off limits. They’re opposites in every way but Zoe’s gotten deep under his skin and when she’s drawn into a dangerous situation against a faceless enemy he steps in to help protect her. Then she disappears without a trace and the loss leaves him reeling. Now he’ll do whatever it takes to bring her back alive.

By the time he realizes what she means to him it could be too late.

Former family lawyer Zoe Renard has been through her own heartbreak but she can’t ignore the magnetic pull between her and Clay. When he comes to New Orleans for a conference, it’s the perfect opportunity for her to see if there might be something real between them. Just as desire ignites into something more powerful than either of them imagined, she’s targeted by a madman bent on revenge. With her life on the line, it’s a race for Clay and his teammates to find her and save her from certain death.

Buy Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
Barnes & Noble (Nook)

Kobo

iBooks

Paperback

Excerpt:

Decision made, he crossed to the slider and gripped the handle. Zoe’s head jerked up when he began to slide it open. She shut the laptop and set it aside as he stepped out. It only took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, broken by the faint glow of a streetlamp across from her building. Now he heard the quiet sounds of jazz floating from down the block, people talking as they passed by on the sidewalk beneath her balcony.

“Couldn’t sleep, or did I wake you up?” she whispered, scooting aside to make room for him.

Clay lowered himself onto the daybed beside her, momentarily distracted when the hem of the robe rode up her thighs as she bent her legs and tucked her feet beneath her. Can’t sleep because I want to be buried inside you.

“What are you doing working at this time of night?” he asked instead, reaching out to tuck a lock of silky hair behind her ear. His fingers slid through the strands in a caress far gentler than he was feeling at the moment, when all he wanted was to pin her flat on this bed and devour her, inch by inch. Another scene from one of her books popped into his head. The one where the hero had surprised the heroine from behind one night, pinning her down and taking her right there out on the lawn, where anyone might see them.

The balcony wasn’t a lawn, but the scene was hot and gave him ideas. Zoe pinned beneath him on the daybed, naked and wet for him, fighting to stay quiet while he made her come. He was rock hard at the thought.

Zoe stilled at the contact and stared at him questioningly. Thunder rolled faintly in the distance, the air suddenly feeling heavier. “Couldn’t sleep, and I like working in the middle of the night anyway. It’s quiet, the moon’s out and there’s something magical and sensual about sitting out here creating worlds and characters while jazz music floats up from down the street.”

There was something magical and sensual going on here, yeah, but it had nothing to do with the city or its music.

He let his fingertips trail along the side of her face as he lowered his hand. Her skin was so soft, just touching her like that made him hard all over. He caught her quiet indrawn breath, noted the way her nipples hardened against the satiny fabric of the robe and knew she was naked underneath.

Clay looked up into her eyes, saw the pupils expand in the faint lamplight. In the sudden stillness the air around them seemed to crackle with latent energy.

Clay gripped the edge of the quilt she’d spread onto the bed to keep from touching her again. “Tell me no, Zoe.” His voice was deeper than normal, raspy, but he couldn’t control it or the desire streaking through him.

She licked her lips, leaving them shiny in the soft light, making him want to taste those tempting curves. “Why? Because you turned me down earlier?”

He should get a damn medal for that. “Because you’re supposed to be off limits.”

Her chin came up, a defiant expression on her face that only made the desire flare hotter. He loved that she didn’t back down from his direct challenge. He got the feeling Zoe didn’t back down from anything. “Says who?”

“People who care about you.” Tuck, for one, and that should be enough. Clay was sure Celida would have said something to warn her off him too.

Zoe studied him for a moment while the heat built inside him, wanting to be unleashed. “What about you? Do you care about me?” she asked softly.

He did. More than he’d ever expected to. “Yeah.” And even though that meant he should get up and walk away, he couldn’t help but reach out a hand to touch the stubborn point of her chin, rub his thumb lightly across her full lower lip. “And so you need to tell me no, right now, before I do something you might regret later.”

She inched closer, leaning forward at the waist, and the combined lust and anticipation in her gaze made him bite back a groan. Her whisper was seductive as hell. “I’m not going to regret it.”

Clay heard as much as felt his control snap.

*end excerpt*

Oh, and just wait until you get to the pushup scene! You'll never think of pushups the same again. *shiver*

Happy reading,
Kaylea 

Home Grown and Lethal

Many of us enjoyed the movie Captain Phillips with Tom Hanks. Last year at the NINC conference I got to moderate a panel discussion with a story developer who took the book Captain Phillips wrote, and helped create a "treatment" so that the story could be shopped and funded. It was a fascinating discussion that day on how books become movies.

Today, as I leave the NINC conference again, I'm reminded of that. I saw this very boat Captain Phillips was rescued in, at the Navy SEAL/UDT Museum in Ft. Pierce, Florida. In this day and age when we have terrorists coming closer and closer to our North American soil, we think of these stories.

I used the Home Grown Terrorist connection in my new release, set to come out 11/11/14, Veteran's Day. SEAL's Promise is mainly a love story, as all my military romances are, but the subplot is that a group of terrorists plan attacks on the military men and women who guard us, on our own soil. Not only that, but in my story, their families also fall victim, just like we've seen in the news recently.

Bear in mind this book was written before the recent events in the news. But just like the real events in Captain Phillips, it isn't a matter of if it will happen, it's a matter of when. It's a theme you'll see again with Books 9 and Books 10 in the SEAL Brotherhood Series.

Here's a short excerpt:

They all stopped and observed a news bulletin that interrupted the ball game announcing a terrorist beheading of another male American journalist, along with an aid worker, who was a woman.

The American journalist had been captured over a year ago and several attempts to locate and free the man and two others, had been unsuccessful. Another aid worker from the U.K. had been executed a month ago.

The Team guys shook their heads, taking short looks at each other as they shared their private thoughts in mixed company. Team business was never discussed in front of the wives unless absolutely necessary. Since there was little chance they’d be deployed sooner than three months, all they could do was register their disgust but T.J. knew everyone was thinking the same thing. The groups were getting bolder and bolder. It wouldn’t take long before some of these actions would take place on American soil. And that meant innocents would be targeted.

   The announcer came on and showed a scratchy sign written in Arabic. Jones, being the most fluent in Pashto, squinted and swore. T.J. could recognize some characters and saw the distinctive “U.S” letters on the sign.

      The threat is considered credible. The spokesman specifically mentioned members of the military, and their families, would be targeted. No one is safe, no matter where they live. No one.

NYT and USA/Today and Amazon Top 100 Bestselling Author Sharon Hamilton’s SEAL Brotherhood series have earned her Amazon author rankings of #1 in Romantic Suspense, Military Romance and Contemporary Romance. Her characters follow a sometimes rocky road to redemption through passion and true love. Her Golden Vampires of Tuscany earned her a #1 Amazon author ranking in Gothic Romance.

A lifelong organic vegetable and flower gardener, Sharon and her husband live in the Wine Country of Northern California, where most of her stories take place.

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