Release Boost and 5+ Star Review: Worth The Wait by Claudia Connor

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Title: Worth the Wait
Series: McKinney/Walker #1
Author: Claudia Connor
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: January 10, 2017
Blurb

The first in a spin off series of the New York Times Bestselling McKinney Brothers, WORTH THE WAIT takes readers on a journey through young love into adulthood in a heartwrenching, second chance love story.Nick Walker thought nothing could destroy what he had with Mia. He certainly never thought he would be the one to destroy it.Now ten years later, Mia James is in Special Agent Nick Walker’s path once again and this time he’s determined to shed the weight of regret and finally claim the future that was always meant to be theirs.

It won’t be easy. Mia’s heart was shattered by Nick and now, just when she’d pieced it back together, it’s been broken again, bringing their past to the surface, including her own secret about that day everything went wrong.

***Every title by Claudia Connor is a Contemporary Romance and a full stand alone novel. No cheating, no love triangle, no cliff hanger.

 

 

 

 

Purchase Links
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

 

Excerpt

~twenty-four years ago Nick pressed two fingers into the sleep deprived headache pounding in his temple and tried to concentrate on professor Jenkins’s explanation of ideal gas law. He circled a line of notes, ignored the knock on the auditorium door until he heard the familiar cry. Hannah, who he’d left in the university daycare two hours ago.

The high pitched wail wasn’t his two year old sister’s hurt cry. It was her scared cry with a touch of pissed off. In the six months since their parents’ death, he’d learned to tell the difference. He’d learned a lot of things. Like if he didn’t take her to the bathroom, she’d likely wait too long and have an accident. Like green beans made her throw up, but she’d eat them if he told her to. And she would never, ever go to sleep without Mr. Bunny.

He was up, out of his seat, and halfway down the auditorium stairs before his professor laid his pen down.

Nick’s eyes narrowed on the young blonde in an oversized sweatshirt with silk greek letters sewn on the front. She held a sobbing Hannah dressed in the sunny yellow sundress he’d picked out that morning. She hadn’t been crying when he left her. Now her eyes were red and snot mixed with tears dripped into her mouth. Hannah lunged for him. His arms engulfed her small body and his heart squeezed like it always did when she held onto him.

“I stay you,” Hannah said. Each word tumbled out of her with a jerk of her tiny shoulders.

“What happened to her?”

“Nothing happened to her. She hasn’t stopped screaming for the past hour and she bit three people. We can’t keep her like that.”

Several responses came to mind.

She’s just a baby.

She missed her nap.

And the loudest of all, it was my fault for leaving her.

Hannah raised her head to look at him, giant tears hanging from golden lashes. “I bite.”

“Well. At least she’s honest.” Professor Jenkins turned his questioning eyes to Nick. “She yours?”

He hesitated, but only a second. “My sister. But yes, she’s mine.” And at that moment she became even more his, which seemed to be the case every day. Every day, a little more his.
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5Star+
Michel’s Review
They say all good things are worth waiting for and for the most part that is true.  For Nick Walker and Mia James the wait was a painful journey that changed both of their lives.
***
Worth The Wait by Claudia Connor is a spinoff of the highly rated McKinney Brothers series.  In the new McKinney / Walker series, readers are meeting Hannah Walker’s ( Worth The Risk) older brothers.  It all begins with Nick Walker, the oldest of the boys, and the man who raised Hannah after their parents death.
***
Nick Walker was a nineteen year old college boy when his parents where killed.  Rather than allowing distant relatives to break up their family, Nick stepped up.  Dealing with his fourteen year old twin brothers and sixteen year old rebellious brother was enough to keep him busy but raising his two year old sister made him a parent.  The first few months were almost impossible.  He was a boy becoming an instant father.  He was determined to give Hannah the best life possible.  When he met Mia James at school, it was the wrong time as well as the right time.  They both instantly clicked even though their lives were on different paths.  Through sheer determination Nick and Mia made their lives work.  For twelve years their lives were good.  They became Hannah’s parents.  Their relationship was finally moving towards the next level.  It was time to marry and begin their own family. But life has a way of changing things in a single moment.
***
Hannah was kidnapped at age fourteen.  The months she was missing tore Nick and Mia apart.  Their relationship crumbled.  When Hannah was finally returned and irrevocably broken, Nick had to focus only on her.  He lost himself and he lost Mia.  Mia was just as devastated by Hannah’s kidnapping.  Not only has she lost the man she loves but she also lost the girl she has nurtured and loved for years.
***
Their lives were torn apart.  They both went in different directions.  Ten years later they once again in each’s others paths.  This time Nick is going to do everything in his power to get Mia back.  He has lived with his regrets for ten long years.  He’s raised his sister.  Hannah has become a whole person.  Through the love of Stephen McKinney, she is grabbing a hold of life.  Now he must do the same.
***
I have loved the McKinney series but Worth The Wait has become my favorite.  Claudia Connor delivered an emotional story that every person can relate to.  Nick and Mia won my hearts from the very beginning.  I hurt right along with them and rejoiced when they found each other once again.  A love that powerful is Worth The Wait!
_______________________________________________

 

Author Bio

Claudia Connor is the author of the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling series, The McKinney Brothers. Her debut novel, WORTH THE FALL, hit the New York Times Bestsellers list in 2014 and received numerous Best Contemporary Romance of 2014 accolades.

Claudia attended Auburn University, where she received her undergraduate and master’s degrees in early childhood education. After teaching kindergarten and first grade for ten years, she retired to be a full-time mom to her three daughters. Always a lover of books, and always one to have stories playing in her mind, she decided to try her hand at writing. It took seven years to finish her first novel and a new love was born.

Claudia lives near Memphis, Tennessee with her husband, three daughters, two cats, and a singer-songwriter Siberian Husky. She continues to write warm, heartfelt, and emotional romances with a bit of steam, a lot of family and always a happily ever after.

Author Links

Release Blitz and 5+ Star Review and Giveaway: Worth The Wait by Claudia Connor

 

 

Title: Worth the Wait
Series: McKinney/Walker #1
Author: Claudia Connor
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: January 10, 2017
Blurb
The first in a spin off series of the New York Times Bestselling McKinney Brothers, WORTH THE WAIT takes readers on a journey through young love into adulthood in a heartwrenching, second chance love story.Nick Walker thought nothing could destroy what he had with Mia. He certainly never thought he would be the one to destroy it.Now ten years later, Mia James is in Special Agent Nick Walker’s path once again and this time he’s determined to shed the weight of regret and finally claim the future that was always meant to be theirs.

It won’t be easy. Mia’s heart was shattered by Nick and now, just when she’d pieced it back together, it’s been broken again, bringing their past to the surface, including her own secret about that day everything went wrong.

***Every title by Claudia Connor is a Contemporary Romance and a full stand alone novel. No cheating, no love triangle, no cliff hanger.

 

 

 

 

Purchase Links
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

 

Excerpt

~twenty-four years ago Nick pressed two fingers into the sleep deprived headache pounding in his temple and tried to concentrate on professor Jenkins’s explanation of ideal gas law. He circled a line of notes, ignored the knock on the auditorium door until he heard the familiar cry. Hannah, who he’d left in the university daycare two hours ago.

The high pitched wail wasn’t his two year old sister’s hurt cry. It was her scared cry with a touch of pissed off. In the six months since their parents’ death, he’d learned to tell the difference. He’d learned a lot of things. Like if he didn’t take her to the bathroom, she’d likely wait too long and have an accident. Like green beans made her throw up, but she’d eat them if he told her to. And she would never, ever go to sleep without Mr. Bunny.

He was up, out of his seat, and halfway down the auditorium stairs before his professor laid his pen down.

Nick’s eyes narrowed on the young blonde in an oversized sweatshirt with silk greek letters sewn on the front. She held a sobbing Hannah dressed in the sunny yellow sundress he’d picked out that morning. She hadn’t been crying when he left her. Now her eyes were red and snot mixed with tears dripped into her mouth. Hannah lunged for him. His arms engulfed her small body and his heart squeezed like it always did when she held onto him.

“I stay you,” Hannah said. Each word tumbled out of her with a jerk of her tiny shoulders.

“What happened to her?”

“Nothing happened to her. She hasn’t stopped screaming for the past hour and she bit three people. We can’t keep her like that.”

Several responses came to mind.

She’s just a baby.

She missed her nap.

And the loudest of all, it was my fault for leaving her.

Hannah raised her head to look at him, giant tears hanging from golden lashes. “I bite.”

“Well. At least she’s honest.” Professor Jenkins turned his questioning eyes to Nick. “She yours?”

He hesitated, but only a second. “My sister. But yes, she’s mine.” And at that moment she became even more his, which seemed to be the case every day. Every day, a little more his.
______________________________________________
5Star+
Michel’s Review
They say all good things are worth waiting for and for the most part that is true.  For Nick Walker and Mia James the wait was a painful journey that changed both of their lives.
***
Worth The Wait by Claudia Connor is a spinoff of the highly rated McKinney Brothers series.  In the new McKinney / Walker series, readers are meeting Hannah Walker’s ( Worth The Risk) older brothers.  It all begins with Nick Walker, the oldest of the boys, and the man who raised Hannah after their parents death.
***
Nick Walker was a nineteen year old college boy when his parents where killed.  Rather than allowing distant relatives to break up their family, Nick stepped up.  Dealing with his fourteen year old twin brothers and sixteen year old rebellious brother was enough to keep him busy but raising his two year old sister made him a parent.  The first few months were almost impossible.  He was a boy becoming an instant father.  He was determined to give Hannah the best life possible.  When he met Mia James at school, it was the wrong time as well as the right time.  They both instantly clicked even though their lives were on different paths.  Through sheer determination Nick and Mia made their lives work.  For twelve years their lives were good.  They became Hannah’s parents.  Their relationship was finally moving towards the next level.  It was time to marry and begin their own family. But life has a way of changing things in a single moment.
***
Hannah was kidnapped at age fourteen.  The months she was missing tore Nick and Mia apart.  Their relationship crumbled.  When Hannah was finally returned and irrevocably broken, Nick had to focus only on her.  He lost himself and he lost Mia.  Mia was just as devastated by Hannah’s kidnapping.  Not only has she lost the man she loves but she also lost the girl she has nurtured and loved for years.
***
Their lives were torn apart.  They both went in different directions.  Ten years later they once again in each’s others paths.  This time Nick is going to do everything in his power to get Mia back.  He has lived with his regrets for ten long years.  He’s raised his sister.  Hannah has become a whole person.  Through the love of Stephen McKinney, she is grabbing a hold of life.  Now he must do the same.
***
I have loved the McKinney series but Worth The Wait has become my favorite.  Claudia Connor delivered an emotional story that every person can relate to.  Nick and Mia won my hearts from the very beginning.  I hurt right along with them and rejoiced when they found each other once again.  A love that powerful is Worth The Wait!
_______________________________________________

 

Author Bio

Claudia Connor is the author of the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling series, The McKinney Brothers. Her debut novel, WORTH THE FALL, hit the New York Times Bestsellers list in 2014 and received numerous Best Contemporary Romance of 2014 accolades.

Claudia attended Auburn University, where she received her undergraduate and master’s degrees in early childhood education. After teaching kindergarten and first grade for ten years, she retired to be a full-time mom to her three daughters. Always a lover of books, and always one to have stories playing in her mind, she decided to try her hand at writing. It took seven years to finish her first novel and a new love was born.

Claudia lives near Memphis, Tennessee with her husband, three daughters, two cats, and a singer-songwriter Siberian Husky. She continues to write warm, heartfelt, and emotional romances with a bit of steam, a lot of family and always a happily ever after.

Author Links

New Release + 5 Star Review: Worth It All by Claudia Connor – McKinney Brothers Series – Book 3

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Worth It All

The McKinney Brothers Series – Book 3

By Claudia Connor

Buy : Amazon / B & N / ITunes / Kobo

Synopsis

“Read Claudia Connor for a consistently raw and emotional love story,” recommends Carly Phillips. Now the swoon-worthy McKinney Brothers series from this bestselling author continues as JT, the youngest of the trio, discovers that only love can make him whole.

She’s fighting for control. . . . Paige Roberts learned to fend for herself growing up. Now she’s doing everything possible to give her daughter, Casey, the stability she never had. But when the vivacious five-year-old decides she’s done wearing her prosthesis, Paige faces her toughest challenge yet: trusting a handsome, brooding stranger who simply wants to help.

He’s struggling to connect. . . . JT McKinney lost more than his leg in a car accident that stole his dreams of pro football. Eight years later, he’s made a new life for himself far away from his old one. His business is developing cutting-edge prosthetics and he’s more than happy to turn his attention to machines instead of people. Still, he can’t shake the feeling that something’s missing.

Will they take a chance on love? . . . When JT gets the chance to help Paige’s daughter, he takes it. He never planned on the two of them tearing down his walls or teaching him to believe in himself again. Paige might not believe in happily ever afters, but JT wants more than anything to be her prince. They’ll both have to let go of the past if they want a future.

Worth It All Teaser 3

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5Star

Michel’s Review

Claudia Connor is a gifted story teller.  Her McKinney Brothers series has captured the readers hearts.  Her flawless writing, charismatic characters, dynamic family values, and emotional plots bring the McKinney Brothers series to life.

Worth It All takes the McKinney Brothers down another road.  It steps out of Virginia and away from the immediate McKinney family (they come in later) and moves to California. It can be read as a stand alone novel or in series order.  Either way, the reader is going to love this emotional story.

Readers have met Jake ( JT ) McKinney when he was nineteen years old and in a horrific accident that ruined his hopes of becoming a professional NFL Football player.  Worth It All begins several years later.  JT’s life changed directions.  After his accident he moved to California and became a biomedical engineer specializing in helping amputees.  He’s still haunted by the past and the events leading up to the accident but has moved forward with his life.  He has kept his family at arms length and chose his own journey in life.

When JT meets Paige, the waitress at a diner he frequents, he is drawn to her.  He sees beyond the surface.  He’s sees a dedicated mother and troubled woman with her own burdens.  When JT finds out about Paige’s little girl, Casey, he has to help.

Paige is a single mother working two jobs to make ends meet for her and her daughter,Casey.  Casey was born with a birth defect that caused her to lose one of her legs.  Their struggles are very real and JT may be able to help with some of them.

What starts out as a tentative friendship and a helping hand turns into more.  JT is re-evaluting his life and beliefs.  Paige is learning that she can depend on someone and that there is hope.  Casey has both of their hearts.

Worth It All by Claudia Connor is exactly as the title reads.  This slow burn romance is beautiful.  It’s a new beginning for both JT and Paige.  Their new beginning added  a new branch in the McKinney Family Tree.  I loved it!

Read Worth It All by Claudia Connor!

Worth It All Available Now

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The McKinney Brothers Series

worth the fall

Worth The Fall

The McKinney Brothers Series-Book 1

By Claudia Connor

Synopsis

Prepare to be swept away by a talented debut author with a passionate, powerful story to tell.

They meet on a beach. . . . Abby Davis isn’t wearing a skimpy bikini or sipping umbrella drinks, not when she’s busy chasing around four little ones. And Matt McKinney isn’t looking for fun—he’s a Navy SEAL, a grown man with a long list of missions . . . and fallen brothers.

They only have a week. . . . Abby has brought her children to this beach to start over, to give them the enjoyable memories they deserve. Matt’s been sidelined by a combat injury, and haunted by the best friend he lost and the promise he made: to remain a SEAL—focused and dedicated. This leaves no time for what he’s always wanted: a family.

But a week is all it takes. . . . Matt opens her heart while Abby soothes his soul. And though they plan to say good-bye when the week is over, something magical happens on that beach, something neither can forget. Something utterly, completely worth falling for.

Buy: Amazon / Barnes and Noble / ITunes / Kobo

*****

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Worth The Risk

The McKinney Brothers Series – Book 2

By Claudia Connor

Synopsis

For readers of Bella Andre, New York Times bestselling author Claudia Connor follows up her heartfelt debut, Worth the Fall, with a novel about Matt’s brother, Stephen. When a McKinney brother falls in love, powerful emotion and overwhelming desire are never far behind.

Two hearts locked away . . . Hannah Walker spends her days coaching children through injury and trauma, one therapeutic horseback ride at a time. She knows all too well how violence can change a child and leave scars that never heal. It’s easy for her to relate to the kids; what isn’t easy is the thought of facing her own harrowing past.

Millionaire playboy Stephen McKinney could use a little coaching himself. Five years ago he encountered his most horrible nightmare—and the nightmare won. No matter what he achieves, nothing can make up for that awful night . . . or so he believes.

Both desperate for a second chance . . . Stephen is used to getting what he wants. And he wants Hannah. So when she turns him down, he’s intrigued. What he doesn’t know is that her secrets will lead him to a place he never wanted to go again . . . to a side of himself he’s tried to forget . . . a side that would scare Hannah away from ever loving him. Now his only chance to win her trust is to bare his soul, risking everything he tried so hard to protect.

Buy : Amazon / B & N / ITunes / Kobo

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Author Bio:

Claudia ConnorClaudia Connor attended Auburn University, where she received her undergraduate and masters degrees in early childhood education, and completed her studies in Sawbridgeworth, England.

After years of making up stories in her head, she finally decided to try writing them down when a friend told her oh, so kindly, that talking to imaginary people was in fact NOT normal.

Always a lover of happy endings, she enjoys movies, reading, and travel, but spends most of her time these days putting the stories in her head on paper. Worth the Fall is the first book in The McKinney Brothers trilogy. The second book, Worth the Risk, is set to be released in January 2015.

Claudia lives near Memphis, Tennessee, with her husband and three daughters.

Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads

Review: Worth The Fall by Claudia Connor- The McKinney Brothers Series-Book 1

worth the fall

Worth The Fall

The McKinney Brothers Series-Book 1

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By Claudia Connor

Synopsis

Prepare to be swept away by a talented debut author with a passionate, powerful story to tell.

They meet on a beach. . . . Abby Davis isn’t wearing a skimpy bikini or sipping umbrella drinks, not when she’s busy chasing around four little ones. And Matt McKinney isn’t looking for fun—he’s a Navy SEAL, a grown man with a long list of missions . . . and fallen brothers.

They only have a week. . . . Abby has brought her children to this beach to start over, to give them the enjoyable memories they deserve. Matt’s been sidelined by a combat injury, and haunted by the best friend he lost and the promise he made: to remain a SEAL—focused and dedicated. This leaves no time for what he’s always wanted: a family.

But a week is all it takes. . . . Matt opens her heart while Abby soothes his soul. And though they plan to say good-bye when the week is over, something magical happens on that beach, something neither can forget. Something utterly, completely worth falling for.

Buy: Amazon / Barnes and Noble / ITunes

5 Star Read

Michel’s Review

Worth The Fall by Claudia Connor knocked my socks off. Her debut book, Worth The Fall, book one in the McKinney Brothers series delivered an unpredictable, highly emotional romance that made the heart soar.

Matt McKinney, a Navy Seal, is on a forced medical leave. His cousin talks him into going on vacation on the beach with two of his blonde bimbo friends. Matt is beyond bored and would rather be scrubbing the latrine with his toothbrush than getting it on with the blonde bimbo that’s primed and ready for him. He’s suffering with survivors guilt and questioning his career as a Seal. A bimbo isn’t going to put salve on his internal wounds.

Making an escape from his cousin and friends he takes a walk on the beach. There he meets a very special friend. A young five year old boy wanting to throw a football. Making the time to make a five year old happy opens the door to his heart. He meets the very pregnant mom and her four children between the ages of six and two. One week on the beach with a beautiful widowed mother and four very precious children changes everything Matt ever thought he wanted.

He wants Abby and her children in his life permanently. One week is not enough.

As they both go back to their lives in different states , they find they are still thinking about their week on the beach. They form a long distance relationship that leads to more.

This book portrays many truthful insights into real life. The hardship of being a single mother to four children. The hardship of being single and pregnant. The difficulties of a long distance relationship. The relationship gets even harder because of Matt’s military career. Add a haunted past that makes trusting hard and PSTD and it makes the plot even heavier.

The four precious children are the glue that holds Abby and Matt together. They have enough love and faith to keep this unusual family together.

It was refreshing to read this heartfelt romance. The romance and the small family out shined the sex scenes. The reader truly connected with these characters and their story.

Claudia Connor wrote a beautiful story. I look forward to more McKinney Brothers books.

Author Bio:

Claudia ConnorClaudia Connor attended Auburn University, where she received her undergraduate and masters degrees in early childhood education, and completed her studies in Sawbridgeworth, England.

After years of making up stories in her head, she finally decided to try writing them down when a friend told her oh, so kindly, that talking to imaginary people was in fact NOT normal.

Always a lover of happy endings, she enjoys movies, reading, and travel, but spends most of her time these days putting the stories in her head on paper. Worth the Fall is the first book in The McKinney Brothers trilogy. The second book, Worth the Risk, is set to be released in January 2015.

Claudia lives near Memphis, Tennessee, with her husband and three daughters.

Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads

worth the fall