This week we are featuring author Norah Bennett and her book Everything I’ve Dreamed Of.
But before we embrace this wonderful romance novel let’s find out what drink does Norah recommend for our readers.:
“So the drink I picked is called the Brandy Alexander. My main character bakes a lot, and what’s better than an alcoholic drink that tastes like chocolate to go with all the baked goods?! Plus brandy is always a good relaxing drink.”
INGREDIENTS
- Ice
- 1 1/2 ounces Cognac
- 1 ounce white crème de cacao
- 1 ounce heavy cream
- Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
INSTRUCTIONS
Fill a shaker halfway with ice cubes. Pour in the brandy, creme de 
cacao, and the half-and-half. Shake well and strain into a cocktail glass. Sprinkle the grated nutmeg over the top. Tip: grind a fresh, whole nutmeg over the top of the drink and it’ll have more flavor than ground nutmeg from a jar.
So lets kick back and relax with this scrumptious cocktail in hand and finally check out Everything I’ve Dreamed Of:
Blurb:
Kate Willowbrook dreams of a life filled with beauty –– a man who loves her, friends, and a home. At eighteen, Kate’s dreams are replaced by nightmares when she witnesses a crime. Kate runs, 
never settling down or trusting anyone. Ten years later Kate discovers the small town of Lakes Crossing and Noah Reed.
When Noah’s wife is killed in an accident, he buries himself in work and family obligations, believing he will never find love again until he meets Kate. The more he learns about her, the more he is drawn to her and his protective instincts kick into overdrive.
Noah is everything Kate has ever dreamed of, but his take-charge attitude is scaring up old demons she fought hard to bury. If they can’t find a way to strike a balance that satisfies both their deepest needs, they could lose their second chance at love.
Excerpt
Kate pierced him with her green eyes. “I’m certain there’s no shortage of women who would be happy to go out with you. Why me?”
Noah’s cocky grin faded into a soft smile that stole her breath. His eyes darkened as he focused on her. She could feel the heat creeping up her cheeks again, and she couldn’t believe she asked him that question. She didn’t even know why she did, except that she wanted to hear his answer. If she let herself fall for this beautiful man, with a killer smile and the softest brown eyes in the world, she’d fall hard 
and fast. If she were just a toy to him, one that he got bored of and discarded after a while, she’d be devastated. She had lost so much already and survived, but Kate wasn’t sure she could survive his games. If she allowed herself to hope and dream of a life with Noah but then lost it all, she’d crumble, and no amount of superglue would put her back together.
Kate waited for his answer, her eyes locked with his and he didn’t let her down.
“Yes, I won’t deny that I’ve dated other women and there are those who wouldn’t turn me down for a date, but they’re not you.”
Noah reached for her hand, and she let him feel the tremble that ran through her as he engulfed her small hand in his. He raised her hand to his mouth and kissed her fingers, never taking his gaze off her.
“You say you’re not special to anyone, but that’s not true. I see
something special, someone special. I know we don’t know each other very well, but if you give us a chance to change that, together, we may be something special. We won’t know unless we try.”
Kate’s breath hitched, and her heart squeezed. Jesus, the man had a way with words. How did he know what she needed to hear? Now she understood what Roberta Flack meant when she sang, Killing me Softly. He was clawing at the door to her heart, and she didn’t think she was strong enough to resist him, even knowing that she may get shredded if she let him in.
Kate dropped her gaze again as they began to fill. Her breathing was ragged, and her heart broke its confines and was on the run. Whether it wanted to be caught by Noah or not, Kate wasn’t certain.
Special.
Kate had waited thirty-one years to hear someone call her special. She struggled to rein in her emotions and push back the tears that threatened to roll down her cheeks. She wanted to go out with Noah so badly it hurt. She wanted to get to know him and to be a part of 
his world, but she was terrified. Good visited her very few times in her life. The instant it arrived, she began preparing for its departure. Good was a temporary visitor and a fickle one at that.
“Come on, Kate. I can sense you’re afraid. I swear I’m a nice guy. I’ll do my damnedest not to disappoint or hurt you. Take a chance. Take a chance on me.”
Kate heard the vulnerability in Noah’s voice. She explored his handsome face, a face she was sure she would never tire of admiring. All traces of his earlier cockiness vanished. Instead, it was replaced by a rawness, an earnestness, a tenderness she’d never seen before. That was the look Kate would remember for a lifetime. Years from now, she would say that was the exact moment she knew, if Noah Reed asked her, she would be his for a lifetime.
Kate let out a slow breath and with a soft smile, she whispered, “Okay, Noah Reed. I’ll take a chance … a chance on you. I’ll go out with you.”
About the Author
Norah lives a double life. By day she is a suit-wearing, prim and 
proper, professor, administrator, researcher, and lecturer. By night she is a PJ wearing dreamer and writer of books that make people sigh, smile, cry, laugh, fall in love and believe in second chances.
Norah lives in Andover, New Jersey with her husband of thirty years, a cranky geriatric maltipoo, and an obnoxious cockatoo who runs the house and terrifies all its inhabitants.
Norah discovered the joy and escapism that comes from reading at the age of twelve and swears books saved her life and her sanity. Through reading, she has travelled the globe and learned all kinds of equally useful and useless skills such as the proper way to eat a pomegranate, carve a watermelon, or bathe an elephant. These are skills she has passed down to her two daughters who are incredibly supportive, but often wish she had a wider scope of hobbies.
Norah has a long publishing history in academia, but she started writing fiction recently. In July 2016 she published her first work of fiction, R.I.L.Y. Forever with Evernight Publishing and in January 2017 her second book, Everything I’ve Dreamed Of, was also published by Evernight Publishing. Currently, she is working on her third novel, Six Months. Digital and print copies of her books can be purchased at Amazon https://www.amazon.com/R-I-L-Y-Forever-Norah-Bennett-ebook/dp/B01IFH66CK/
Social Media Links
1 can (15 oz.) Coco Cream of Coconut
chocolate syrup and vanilla ice cream in a blender. (If using a tablespoon measure to measure the alcohols and chocolate syrup, put the syrup in last – it’ll come out more easily if the tablespoon has some alcohol in it.) Blend until smooth. Pour into the glass of your choosing and top with whipped cream and crushed candy cane. Enjoy Immediately!
taking to Nashville in the morning. I know the guys are recording at the Bird, and you are going to join them. Lay tracks, watch, produce, do whatever the hell you want. Light a fire under Holland’s ass to get herself in gear and get moved here. I just want you to go and keep yourself busy for a few days.” I stare at the boarding pass and realize the return date to Norfolk. “Jase, this is for five days.” “Yes, it is. I figure with no complications we should be back around the same time. I want you to go and do your thing, baby. Singing is your mark on this ugly world we are living in. When you sing everything seems brighter somehow, more alive, pure, and beautiful. There is no war, no wrong, no evil. There is just you, touching every heart and soul with your voice, your words, your beauty. The world needs a song, and the world needs you to sing it.”
romance genre. She is currently working on Dark Acceptance which is volume II in the Sometimes You Have To Fall Series and Through A Mother’s Eye’s which is an account of her thoughts and feelings of her son’s cancer and his path to the MLB draft. Kimberly is the epitome of a die-hard baseball Mom and professes that her favorite team is the New York Yankees. Her favorite players are Tyler Austin and the Molina brothers Bengie, Jose, and Yadier. When she’s not at a game or watching a game, she spends her time with her family or reading.
cinnamon sticks and cloves in 1-quart saucepan. Heat to boiling over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat; set aside 1 hour to cool. Strain syrup into glass jar; discard spices. Cover jar, and refrigerate until needed. Makes about 1 1/2 cups.
About the wine:
magazines and journals two years ago. It isn’t as if she doesn’t know who she is, she just isn’t sure what is relevant. Her creative writing can be read at 
Shake ingredients in a cocktail shaker together with ice.
learned your lesson… How does that promise make you feel? Because make no mistake about it, Baby, it is definitely a promise.”
married to my best friend for over eight years. Like most couples, we have our ups and downs, but I could not imagine doing life with anyone else by my side. We are Southern California transplants, currently residing in a very rural part of the east coast. I have two crazy dogs that I adore, even though they drive me out of my ever-loving mind, most days.
ingredients into cocktail shaker filled with ice cubes. Shake well. Strain into Cocktail glass. Flame orange zest over the top of the glass.
suburban town in Bergen County. At 17 years old, he moved to the Bronx, NY and attended college in Manhattan. In 2013, at the age of 24, he wrote John’s LOVE, which was then published in 2016.
to serve revenge up cold. She wants to serve it up now, and she wants to serve it up HOT. And then Kian enters her life and she knows, she just knows she is in trouble because it isn’t wise to let yourself look too long at a hunk that takes your breath away when you think his heart might belong to someone else. But what can you do, when he is in your face every single time you turn around and dark magic, and werewolves keep getting you into trouble?
And when Cain Crowton, a powerful alpha werewolf surrounded with an aura of dark magic, moves into the peaceful town of Golden, nestled in the Canadian Rockies, Wendy, Bray, and Stevie will have to use all the powers they’ve developed. For Cain is not simply a werewolf. His body and mind have been taken over by Valmod, a demon from another realm.
She was bitten by the alpha wolf, Cain, and because she was already a supernatural, the werewolf venom has a strange and devastating effect on her.
All he wants is to get to his pack and tell them he is alive, but when he finds out that Beckett Rheams has taken over his wolves, he becomes obsessed with saving them and Maven. Maven had shared his bed, but, did he love her? Was she the one destined to be his mate? 
rum, I use citron vodka. The drink holds good memories of playing with friends in San Diego several summers ago at a hotel bar that had a special on mojitos. When I ordered one the bartender said she’d run out of rum but would use citron vodka and that I would like it. I did. And that’s the way I’ve fixed my mojitos ever since.
intuitive. Since 1999, Paula’s shown writers how to use tarot, dreams, rituals and other intuitive tools to write stories from the deepest part of their imaginations. She’s presented workshops at small private events on the East Coast, and at both national and regional Romance Writers of America conferences and meetings, at the 2014 San Diego University Writers Conference, and the International Women’s Writing Guild summer conference. Paula publishes a weekly e-newsletter on writing, dreams, and tarot, and is the award-winning author of Weaving a Woman’s Life: Spiritual Lessons from the Loom.
edenfreed.com 