Happy Valentine’s Day! I’ve got a couple of surprises and what better day for them? First, if you look at the top you’ll notice a new tab for “Short Romance”. A few weeks ago, I decided to try something new with my romance writing. I’ve never written a romance short story before, and I’ve only read a few good ones. I wanted to see if I could do it. Well, I did, and I even got some help from a writing buddy with the editing (thanks, AJ!)–and a little validation, too, since he enjoyed it. I couldn’t figure out what to do with the story, though, and then I figured I might just offer it up here. At 6,000 words, “Life After” is a fraction of the length of Secrets of the Lotus or even Winter Solstice, but it’s a pretty cool story, and I hope you enjoy it.

So on to my second surprise. I’ve been very fortunate with Secrets of the Lotus in that I have gotten some good reviews and one really nice blurb from Ellen Meister, a writer I both respect and admire (and whose third novel The Other Life comes out at the end of this week and has bestseller written all over it!). But much as I appreciate these comments from writing experts, they pale in comparison to what I feel when a friend or loved one tells me they read my book and enjoyed it. So for Valentine’s Day, I asked people I know who liked my book to send me a blurb about it. Here’s what some of them had to say:

“Without a doubt, Secrets of the Lotus is the best romance novel I have ever read. It is, in fact, the only one I’ve read. But that doesn’t matter. It’s a fantastic book, with engaging characters I quickly found myself caring about. The plot is solid and engrossing, set in a great city with artfully painted scenes. There is an undercurrent of tension between the protagonist and her leading man; I dont know how many times I found myself thinking, “when are they going to get it over with already!?”. Oh no, am I a romance fan now?” — Chris, my husband

“Michelle, I have read your book, I loved it and I think others would love it also if they would take the time out from this busy world and read it. Of course I might be a little bit partial to my little girl. After all I had to wait for you to grow up and write before I got to read your first novel. Now I am looking forward to reading another. l love you.” — Carl, my dad

“Secrets of the Lotus was a great read! I very quickly got caught up in the story of Josie and Dan. I enjoyed the intrigue surrounding the kidnapping, and found I couldn’t put the book down. I was glad there was a happy ending and that Josie’s dreams came true. I await Michelle Flye’s next novel with great anticipation!” — Phyllis, my mother-in-law

“What a wonderful pleasure it was to read “Secrets of the Lotus”. Grab a glass of wine, and start reading this lovely romance, you will be swept away. I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, and the fact that it was set in NY ~ the greatest city of all time!” — A.M. Celotto, my friend

If you’ve read Secrets of the Lotus and have something (nice) to say about it, send me a comment! I’d love to put it up on my blog! In the meantime, have a wonderful day of love and friendship.