As a gardener, I love anything with the word bloom in it. As a romance author Love in Bloom takes it one step further. :)

This month I’ve joined the Love in Bloom Giveaway Hop to feature my latest release, Ladd Springs. Perfect for the YA crowd, this contemporary novel is part mystery, part romance, and 100% Tennessee. It’s also Book #1 in a series of 5 set for release THIS year!

“I really enjoyed the fun of this book. There was a bit of steam & intensity but nothing a teen couldn’t handle. It really was a bit suspense, a bit romance, and a bit western — but completely a perfect mix! What I didn’t like: Sorry, nothing!”

~ Regina Hott, Amazon review

Delaney Wilkins finds herself at odds with hotel developer Nick Harris over a deathbed promise and a mysterious find in the Tennessee forest.  Both are after title to Ladd Springs, a mecca of natural springs, streams and trails in the eastern Tennessee mountains, a tract of land worth millions.  But Ernie Ladd, current owner of the property and uncle to Delaney, is adamantly opposed to them both.

Felicity Wilkins, Delaney’s daughter, deserves to inherit her family’s legacy, but neighbor Clem Sweeney is working against her, ingratiating himself with Ernie Ladd.  Clem is also harboring a secret that will make him a very wealthy man—unless the others stop him before he can bring it to fruition.

Complicating matters is Annie Owens.  Ex-girlfriend to Jeremiah Ladd, Ernie’s estranged son living in Atlanta, she declares her daughter Casey is Jeremiah’s, making Casey every bit as entitled to the property as Felicity—only Annie hasn’t proven this claim.  Yet.

All are fighting to get the property, but only one will walk away with the gold.  Which will it be?  Find out in the first installment of Ladd Springs…

 As part of the Love in Bloom Giveaway Hop, I’m puttin a $20 gift card up for grabs ~ reader’s choice, Amazon or Barnes & Noble.  To enter, simply leave a comment and register your email in the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Speaking of Love in Bloom…my award-winning debut novel, Jennifer’s Garden is FREE for ereaders!

“Frame by frame, Venetta’s easy prose tells of a storybook romance woven into the joys and heartbreak of everyday life.  From the glamour of the art world to the tension of the operating room to the glories of nature, this novel resonates on every level.”  ~ 4 1/2 stars RT Book Reviews, May 2012

Check out your ebook retailer to download or Smashwords makes it easy!

Welcome to the Authors in Bloom Blog Hop where some of your favorite authors & bloggers share their gardening tips, recipes and give away prizes!  As many of you know, in addition to my romantic fiction, I write a garden blog called BloominThyme.  What began as a victory garden (when victory gardens were cool :)) has now blossomed into a full-fledged hobby.  I love gardening!

I mean, who doesn’t love to be among flourishing beds of lush leaves, plump fruits and colorful vegetables?  From the bright fiery shades of hot peppers to the calming lavender of maturing black beans, my garden provides a glorious array of eye candy followed by a belly full of sweet harvest.

Okay–while that sounds wonderful and delightful, I’ve learned gardening doesn’t always work out so “gloriously.”  Sometimes the weeds take over, the tomatoes rot, the broccoli bolts, the ants eat the potatoes…  You get my point.  But once you learn a few secrets of the trade, you’ll be off to the hardware store buying a slew of lumber for your produce stand.  You’re gonna need it–especially after you’ve perused the myriad of gardening tips and fresh recipes over the next 10 days.  And remember, if my compost pile of oak leaves can grow sweet potatoes and parsley all by itself–so can you. 

St. Patrick’s Day is coming up and you know what that means…get ready for the pinching!  Fingers on your fanny, your arm, where ever those pesky leprechauns can get you, they will.  Me?  I don’t mind a pinch now and again.  In fact, this month is the 17th anniversary of when I met my husband.  Single, minding my own business and NOT looking for love at all (at that moment ;)), there he was, in a warm cozy bar tucked away in a ski resort.  *sigh* I do enjoy spring skiing.

It’s my friend’s fault.  As any good matchmaking friend, she was trying to set me up with someone else, an effort to which I was uninterested.  As she was describing this fabulous man she knew, my husband-to-be leaned over the bar to order a beer and I pointed, “Does your friend look like him?  Because that guy right there–that one’s my type.”

It was history from there.  She sought him out, made up a story and got the two of us talking.  We’ve been married 14 years this June and it was my lucky day in March, to be sure.

To celebrate, let’s say we giveaway a copy of my upcoming release ~ You can be the first to read Ladd Springs!

Delaney Wilkins finds herself at odds with hotel developer Nick Harris over a deathbed promise and a mysterious find in the forest.  Both are after title to Ladd Springs, a mecca of natural springs, streams and trails in the eastern Tennessee mountains, a tract of land worth millions.  But Ernie Ladd, current owner of the property and uncle to Delaney, is adamantly opposed to them both.

Felicity Wilkins, Delaney’s daughter, deserves to inherit her family’s legacy, but neighbor Clem Sweeney is working against her, ingratiating himself with Ernie Ladd.  Clem is also harboring a secret that will make him a very wealthy man—unless the others stop him before he can bring it to fruition.

Complicating matters is Annie Owens.  Ex-girlfriend to Jeremiah Ladd, Ernie’s estranged son living in Atlanta, she declares her daughter Casey is Jeremiah’s, making Casey every bit as entitled to the property as Felicity—only Annie hasn’t proven this claim.  Yet.

All are fighting to get the property, but only one will walk away with the gold.  Which will it be?  Find out in the first installment of Ladd Springs…

Next up will be Ladd Fortune, set for release this June with three more before the end of the year!  So get your hands on this one early — you won’t want to miss a single installment.  To enter, all you need to do is leave a comment!

Follow on Facebook for an added chance to win AND the opportunity to join my upcoming Release Party where I’ll be dishing out the scoop behind the novel, giving away prizes and doing so for a week!  It all begins April 10th in conjunction with my Authors in Bloom Blog Hop.