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Bible in a Year?/The Dare

Dayo Benson

I’ve been working on my goals for this year. My writing goals, as usual, are pretty unrealistic. I don’t know why I do this to myself but let’s see how close I can get to achieving them šŸ™‚ I won’t bore you with exactly what they are, but they’re all about how many books I want to write and how many words a day I need to be writing in order to achieve that.

Bible in a Year

One of my personal goals is to read through the Bible. The last time I read it through, it took me much longer than a year. I really don’t like the idea of reading through the Bible in a year and have always been pretty resistant to it, but I’ve decided to give it a go. I don’t know if I’m actually going to make it, and it feels like an unrealistic goal for me but I know lots of people do it every year. To be honest, I think that reading the Bible in a year is one of those things that some people decided to do and now it’s become almost like a ‘must do’ for everybody (at least among the Christians that I know).

One of the main reasons I don’t like the idea is because I feel like I’m just rushing. It’s hard to ‘meditate’ on four or five whole chapters. There are just too many lessons to draw from such a large chunk. I’m one of those people who meditate on one verse and write a page of notes on it. Okay, that’s really slow and painstaking, but we’re all different. Anyhow, I’ve decided to give it a try. I’m already three chapters behind, and I’m making a conscious effort not to write notes on every verse, but I am still making notes of things that I just can’t ignore, ha ha.

The Dare

I finished writing The Dare early last year, but put it aside. I should have released it in December, since a significant portion of the book takes place in December, but I decided to release The Runaway instead. I’ve had emails from people who want books without any supernatural stuff in them so this book is for those of my readers who don’t like supernatural thrillers. It’s book one in a trilogy. Here’s the back cover blurb:

A good girl with an edge, a bad boy with a heart, and a devastating secret.

Sloane:
ā€œI dare you to kiss Marshal.ā€
If I knew what was good for me I would have run a mile when I heard those words. But I didnā€™t, and now Marshal, the campus bad boy, is stalking meā€”his version of courting.

Marshal:
Iā€™ll admit to nobody that Iā€™m a sheep in wolfā€™s clothing. My reputation served me well until Sloane got close enough to peel away the faƧade.
But our parents have a crazy secret that is tearing Sloane apart. And it might spell doom for our relationshipā€”just when Iā€™ve lost my heart.

Is love enough for Marshal and Sloane, or are there too many obstacles?

The Dare is already available for pre-order, but as usual I’ll send an email alert on release day. Release day is 26 January šŸ™‚

So…what are your new year’s resolutions/2017 goals?

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Out Now: The Runaway

Dayo Benson

Season’s Greetings šŸ™‚

Hope you had a good Christmas. Mine has been lovely. My dad turned 60 on Christmas Eve so we had a surprise party for him yesterday. He was so overwhelmed. It was lovely to see the surprise on his face when he walked into the room and saw everyone including friends who’d travelled in from London and other parts of the country.

Anyway, the festivities are over for me now. It’s back to work šŸ™‚

The Runaway has finally been released. Junior’s story is out guys. Get your copy at:

Amazon UK, Amazon US, B&N,Ā iBooks, Smashwords.

Kobo shuts down for the holidays, but the book should be available on there soon.

From the Back Cover

How do you keep a new faith when your own brother would kill you if he ever found out?

By faking death! At least thatā€™s what Junior Lincoln decides to do. As the youngest of the twelve Lincolns, and being full brothers with Jared, he knows that his new faith will never go anywhere if he doesnā€™t do something. With assistance from the FBI he assumes a new identity and relocates to a small town.

His aim is to lay low, blend in and finish his college degree. But if he wanted to do that he shouldnā€™t have taken a job as a relationship counselor, fondly known by the townsfolk as the Love Doctor. He shouldnā€™t have let himself fall for his first client. And most of all, he should have made sure it never got out that heā€™s an ex-practitioner.

How do you make your childā€™s father marry you?

Hazel Robbins, desperate to make Nate fall in love with her so that their daughter will have a better childhood than she had, turns to Junior, aka the Love Doctor, for help. But as they spend time together, their ‘practice dates’ begin to feel like the real thing.

When paranormal activity begins to sweep across the college campus, Hazel and the other students look to Junior for help. Heā€™s the only one who seems to know what to do about it, and his prayers work.

But can Junior continue to depend on God when his life is suddenly in danger, or will he turn to the craft that he’s so used to relying on?

And can Hazel and Junior have a happy ending if she finds out his true identity?

Amazon UK, Amazon US, B&N,Ā iBooks, Smashwords

As always, get in touch once you’ve read it. I want to continue to write books that resonate with readers, and the only way I can do that is by getting your feedback. Email me: dayo@dayobenson.com. My email address was down for a while, but it’s all sorted now. So apologies to everyone who tried to email me and couldn’t get through. Unfortunately, all those emails can’t be recovered šŸ™ Thankfully, the issue has been resolved šŸ™‚

Happy New Year in advance.

Dayo xx

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Out Now: The Model (The Lincolns 2)

Dayo Benson

The Model: A Christian Romance (The Lincolns Book 2) by [Benson, Dayo]The Model is book number 25 for me (I think) so you’d think I’d stop getting excited about release days, but I haven’t. I’m so excited it’s unbelievable šŸ™‚

Get your copy at:Ā Amazon UK, Amazon US, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords.

The Model is Ash Lincoln’s book and he was a blast to write about. The Lincoln boys are supposed to be real bad boys, but only a few of them are really actually bad. Most of them are sensitive deep thinkers who despite their wealth and success aren’t really happy and want more out of life.

Keltie, our leading lady, challenges Ash and pushes him to exasperation with her unwillingness to give in to a second date or open up to him. She’s perfect for his inflated ego and her faith makes him question his own beliefs.

Here’s the synopsis again:

Heā€™s in love. Sheā€™s just doing her job.
Or is she?

The first rule of undercover work is not to fall for the guy you’re investigating. The second rule is not to continue working on a case that your boss has taken off you. FBI Special Agent, Keltie Nicolls, has broken both.

After one undercover date with hot new model, Ash Lincolnā€”a man who is as dangerous as he is attractiveā€”Keltie decides she doesn’t have the strength to withstand his lethal brand of appeal. But backing out is not an option because Ash is like a sleeping lion that she has disturbed. She is his prey. And he seems bent on catching her.

His methods are intense.
His love is passionate.
But his worldview is toxic.

Can she guard her heart or will she be consumed?

***

I’m just wrapping up the next Lincoln book, which is called The Runaway. And, in my opinion, it’s even better than The Model because the brother in The Runaway is already a Christian and he’s getting to grips with all the changes in his life šŸ™‚ You can tell I love writing this stuff.

Here are the links for The Model again: Amazon UK, Amazon US, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords.

As ever, let me know what you think once you finish reading The Model.

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Sneak Peek of The Model (First 3 Chapters)

Dayo Benson

I promised to put up the first few chapters of the next Lincoln book, so here they are. Click on the book cover at the end of this blog post and it’ll take you there šŸ™‚

I just read the ending of the book and gave a nice big sigh. I love happy romantic endings. But Ash and Keltie go through a lot of drama before they get there. Here’s the back cover blurb again.

Heā€™s in love. Sheā€™s just doing her job.
Or is she?

The first rule of undercover work is not to fall for the guy you’re investigating. The second rule is not to continue working on a case that your boss has taken off you. FBI Special Agent, Keltie Nicolls, has broken both.

After one undercover date with hot new model, Ash Lincolnā€”a man who is as dangerous as he is attractiveā€”Keltie decides she doesn’t have the strength to withstand his lethal brand of appeal. But backing out is not an option because Ash is like a sleeping lion that she has disturbed. She is his prey. And he seems bent on catching her.

His methods are intense.
His love is passionate.
But his worldview is toxic.

Can she guard her heart or will she be consumed?

***

I’ll be sending out review copies soon. If you’d like a free review copy email me: dayo@dayobenson.com.

**Click the book cover to read the first 3 Chapters**

2-the-model-5
November 4, 2016

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The Next Lincoln Book: Toxic/The Model

Dayo Benson

2 the model 5.jpgThe next book in the Lincolns series was supposed to be called Toxic, but it’s now called The Model and will be out November 4th šŸ™‚

You can pre-order from Amazon UK & Amazon US

I don’t want to bore you with the details of why the title has changed :-S But the title of each book in this series will be named around the job of the main character, or their circumstances. Since The Lincoln Manifesto gives an idea of what job each brother will have, you’ll be able to work out which Lincoln brother eachĀ book is about just by the title–for most of the books anyway. There’ll be one or two that won’t be titled by the main characters job.

So, The Model is about Ash Lincoln, the second eldest son. He’s the level-headed brother who is Jared’s voice of reason and who calms the other brothers down when they’re mad at Jared. So what happens when he starts having his own little crisis and falls out with Jared himself?

Here’s the back cover blurb:

Heā€™s in love. Sheā€™s just doing her job.
Or is she?

The first rule of undercover work is not to fall for the guy you’re investigating. The second rule is not to continue working on a case that your boss has taken off you. FBI Special Agent, Keltie Nicolls, has broken both.

After one undercover date with hot new model, Ash Lincolnā€”a man who is as dangerous as he is attractiveā€”she decides she doesn’t have the strength to withstand his lethal brand of appeal. But backing out is not an option because Ash is like a sleeping lion that she has disturbed. She is his prey. And he seems bent on catching her.
His methods are intense.
His love is passionate.
But his worldview is toxic.

Can she guard her heart or will she be consumed?

***

I think I might post the first few chapters over the coming weeks, just to give you a taster šŸ™‚

God bless.

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Out Now: The Lincoln Manifesto!!!

Dayo Benson

the-lincoln-manifestoThe Lincoln Manifesto is out, guys.

Thanks to everyone who pre-ordered it. This is the first time I’ve ever set a book to pre-order so I felt quite giddy watching all the pre-orders come in šŸ™‚

I’ve recorded a short video of myself talking about the book. If you’re in the mood for my Northwestern British accent Click Here and watch it šŸ™‚ A word of warning: if you’re not British you probably think everyone in the UK has a posh accent. The accent you’re used to is the southern accent that Londoners and people from all around that area have. Mine is nothing like that ha ha.

The Lincoln Manifesto is available for a special launch price of Ā£/$1.99 at:Ā Amazon UK, Amazon US, Barnes & Noble, KoboĀ &Ā SmashwordsĀ (coming soon to iBooks).

I hope you enjoy it xx

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Back Cover Blurb: The Lincoln Manifesto

Dayo Benson

the-lincoln-manifestoI just hit publish on The Lincoln Manifesto. Yay!!! It’ll be out on Monday (26th September). It should even be available for pre-order at Amazon soon. Maybe even today šŸ™‚ Anyway, I have those horrible butterflies I get every time I publish a book. This is my 25th book, I think. Shouldn’t I have stopped getting butterflies now? It’s not a nice feeling :-S

Anyway, I just realized I haven’t posted the back cover blurb anywhere for you guys to read, so here it is:

Ivy was born to marry a powerful practitioner. Saul is that powerful practitionerā€™s brother. Their love is forbidden.

Every year at the Choosing Ceremony, powerful practitioners gather to select a partner. Twenty-two-year-old Ivy Coates was born to be selected. The lifestyle that comes with such a destiny is one of restriction and confinement. As the Choosing Ceremony approaches, Ivy decides to take one night to live her life, have fun, and act her age. But when she shows up for what should be a harmless barbecue at a friendā€™s mansion, she runs into Saul Lincoln, the hot bad boy that made her restless with her life from the day she started college four years ago, and who persuaded her to do something that she shouldnā€™t have.

When Jared selects Ivy at the Choosing Ceremony, Saul knows he should let her go. Ivy knows that too. She now belongs to Jared. Maybe she could even fall in love with him if he wasnā€™t such a control-freak, if he didnā€™t abandon her for days at a timeā€¦and if Saul didnā€™t exist.

Then, Saul decides he wants her heart and comes up with a reckless plan. Ivy has always lived by the stringent rules that guide her life. Would she dare to run away with Saul?
It would bring shame upon the organizers of the Choosing Ceremony.
It would mean a lifetime of hiding
If she is ever caught, it would mean death.

Is Saul worth the risk?

***

I’m excited about this series because I truly believe that anybody can be redeemed. Nobody is beyond redemption. I really hope you enjoy it šŸ™‚

God bless.

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Cover Reveal – The Lincoln Manifesto

Dayo Benson

the lincoln manifesto.jpgI’m excited to announce that The Lincoln Manifesto is the next book I’ll be releasing. It’s in the dressing room having final preparations made before the show šŸ™‚ It can’t wait to be presented to the world šŸ™‚ šŸ™‚ šŸ™‚

Release Date: Monday 26th September!!!

I’m so pleased with the cover. I was breathing down my husband’s neck while he was designing it, being a total pest.Ā We’re going with this greyed-out theme and brightĀ title font for this series, which will be called The Lincolns.

About The Lincolns

Each of Luke’s sons (Juda’s and Zeke’s half brothers) will get their own book. This series isĀ different from the Crystal series in that they’re mainly romances rather than action books, although some have a littleĀ action in them. they’ll be standalones, so you don’t really have to read one before you can read another. And of course they have someĀ supernatural stuff thrown in. However, I don’t want to have to write from a practitioner’s point of view for so many books so I’m gonna make a bunch of them get saved in one fell swoop so that they’re already Christians by the time I get around to their books. But in book 1, The Lincoln Manifesto, none of them are saved. Imagine the havoc? 12 young men running riot fighting over women and learning lessons about brotherhood, loyalty and God. I’ve written the first three books and they’ve been a blast.

My husband designed theĀ cool series logo.Ā the lincolns logo.png

About The Lincoln Manifesto

Spiritual Stuff:

There has been revival in the nation after the downfall of Luke and Yelissa and the acts of God that the nation witnessed. But not everybody is happy about this. Jared Lincoln wants to beĀ at the forefront of getting the nation back to its spiritually dead state. He lays out his plans at the end of the book.

Romance Stuff:

Remember how in Legacy, Saul told Juda that he was helping him because Jared is engaged to a girl he likes? Well, the Lincoln Manifesto is all about that.

Other Stuff:

The bookĀ covers the events of Jailbreak and Legacy but from the POV of Luke’s children. It was pretty tough deciding what to include because I didn’t want to have too many spoilers in it in case people read it before reading the Crystal series. So you hear about Juda’s trial and all the havoc Yelissa is wreaking but a lot of things are left out. Crystal, Pastor Dan and Tom (the FBI chief) have appearances, which was cool to write.

The Lincoln Manifesto is a prequel to the whole series. It introduces you to the brothers and shows you how they all come by the jobs they have when you read their individual books. The Lincoln Manifesto is told from the POV of Jared Lincoln (the eldest), Saul Lincoln (the fifth son) and Ivy, the chick who’s caught in between them. And I had to throw in some angels (or messengers as practitioners call them, lol).

After this book, you only get the POV of one brother at a time and his love interest (i love the term ‘love interest’ hee hee). I thought it’d be tricky balancing 3 POVs for this book, but it was okay. The story flowed out in 3 weeks.

The next book in the series will be called: Toxic

The book after that will be called: Poison šŸ™‚

I can’t wait for you to meet the Lincoln boys. You already know that Jared is bad news after he helped Abha kidnap Crystal in Wedding Kidnap (Crystal 7.5) and then became a red robe in Legacy (Crystal 9). But most of the other brothers aren’t as uptight as he is. In fact, after seeing how Luke fell and watching Juda and so many other practitioners get saved, some are very open to getting saved themselves.

Pinterest Board

I’ve started my Pinterest Board for the series, but there are only a 11Ā pins on it so far. Check it out HERE.

Other Projects

For those of you who don’t want books with supernatural stuff and practitioners, I’m releasing a trilogy called The Dare Series before the end of the year. I just got in touch with an editor to get started on the edits. But more about that another time šŸ˜€

God bless xx

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Upcoming Books/Survey Results: What do you want to read next?

Dayo Benson

Image result for SURVEYI created a survey a last yearĀ asking you guys what you want me to write next. Thank you very much to everyone who responded!!! It looks like I have my work cut out for me over the next 2-3 years. Here are the results of the survey:

Answer Choices Responses
More books about Crystal, Juda and the team 70.71%
A series like the Beauty for Ashes Series (Lexi & Jace) 47.47%
A completely new romantic fiction series 39.39%
Something with supernatural elements like the Crystal series 38.38%
A series about Luke Lincoln’s other sons 30.30%
A standalone book that isn’t part of a series 28.28%
A series like the Pure Passion Series (Lust, Bondage & Purity) 19.19%
A series like the Drew Ashley Series (Breaking Point & Blurred Vision) 16.16%
Something with no supernatural elements 12.12%

Just in case you’re wondering, the results add up to more than 100 because you were allowed to select more than one option šŸ™‚

Iā€™ve decided to do anything thatā€™s gotten over 30% of votes because that’s roughly a third of my readers and a third is still significant.

So…I cannot believe that 70% of you still want to read more about Crystal and her buddies. I wasnā€™t entirely sure anyone would make it through the whole 9 books of the Crystal series, never mind wanting more.

Hereā€™s whatā€™s going to happen:

More books about Crystal, Juda and the team (70% of votes)

Iā€™ll be writing a season 2 series. You know the way TV shows are in series? Well I’ve decided that the Crystal series is just season 1. Season 2 is tentatively titledĀ The Crystal Chronicles. Iā€™m excited about it because Iā€™ve been brainstorming and I already have some awesome ideas and a rough overview of what each book will be about. It wonā€™t be out for a while though. I think we all need a little break so that when season 2 comes out itā€™ll be nice and exciting for us (absence makes the heart fonder and all that šŸ™‚ ) Besides I need time to write it. I’m going to keep brainstorming, but I’ve scheduled the actual writing of the books for next year. I’ve already done my writing schedule for 2017 which is really exciting. I’m hoping to get all the season 2 books written next year then release them all in quick succession in 2018.

A series like the Beauty for Ashes Series (47% of votes)

This one is pretty easy. I figured I could dash it off without too much trouble so Iā€™ve already written book 1. Itā€™s called The Dare. It has a lot of the same elements as the Beauty for Ashes series, but itā€™s also pretty different, and a lot more gritty (I think). Apart from the drama in the main relationship in the book there’s drama with the hero and heroine’s parents too. I’ll tell you more about this series soon, since the first book is already in editing and will be out pretty soon.

A completely new romantic fiction series (39% of votes)

Iā€™m really excited about this one. I donā€™t want to say too much, because it wonā€™t be out for a while, but itā€™s in the works.

Something with supernatural elements like the Crystal series (38% of votes)

This one is very exciting. For someone who canā€™t stand to watch or read anything ā€˜scaryā€™ or too intense, I canā€™t believe how much fun I have writing this supernatural thriller stuff. Obviously I wouldnā€™t have so much fun doing it if it wasnā€™t deeply romantic too :-). This one is set in the world of the Crystal series and stars Angel, one of Yelissa Neirā€™s protĆ©gĆ©s. You met her in Legacy (Crystal 9). I think Trixie, Crystal’s awful ex-best friend, is going to feature as one of the villains.

A series about Luke Lincoln’s other sons (30% of votes)

This is in the works too. In fact Iā€™ll be ready to release book 1 soon. It’s a prequel that introduces you to all the brothers. Each brother is going to have his own book. Think the current billionaire bad boy romance trend but with a big dose of Jesus and some supernatural elements šŸ™‚ I’m being careful not to make the boysĀ all clones of Juda. Jared, the eldest, is pretty similar to Juda (before Juda was saved) but the other boys have their own personalities and are very different. I’ll blog more about this series over the next few weeksĀ and should be able to do a cover reveal for the first book, The Lincoln Manifesto, very soon.

***

So, I hope youā€™re satisfied that I listened to your opinion and will act upon your feedback. Itā€™s going to take me a while to get through all these projects, but rest assured that theyā€™re coming.

God bless,

Dayo xx

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Cleansing my Palate – Pressure (Pure Passion 4)

Dayo Benson

PRESSURE COMPLETE.jpgHowdy guys,

I’m in that funny little place where I’m between writing projects and I don’t quite know what to do with myself. Well, actually I do know what I should be doing. I should be editing the four books that are sitting on my laptop waiting to be released. But I don’t like editing. Writing is much more fun.

I have done some editing, though. I finished editing Pressure (Pure Passion 4) last week, and even sent it on to anĀ editor, which is pretty exciting. TheĀ Crystal series was quiteĀ intense, so it was nice to work on something a little milder. It totally cleansed my palate.Ā I think I’ll release that next so that you all can cleanse your palates too.

I have lots of thrillers lined up to write, and also lots of sweet romances. It’s hard to decide what to write next. Today, I asked myself ‘What kind of writer do you want to be remembered as?’ Someone who wrote sweet, run of the mill Christian romance, or someone who wrote books that were deep and thought provoking and made people pause to think. I do like writing sweet romance, and romance can be powerful and meaningful. But thrillers are really growing on me. TheĀ best is when both genres are combined as romantic thrillers. I think that adding some romance into a thriller (especially if it’s an agonizing romance, like Juda’s and Crystal’s was to begin with) makes for addictive reading. And it means I don’t get bored with writing šŸ™‚

Do you ever feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day for all the things you want to do? My best friend asked me last week if I have any more books planned. I was like, “girl I have 175 books on my ‘to be written’ spreadsheet.” She probably thought I was joking. I wasn’t. And I feel a sense of urgency about writing them, because I don’t want to spend the rest of my life looking at that spreadsheet. I want to write all those books by the time I’m 40. My husband just shook his head at me when I told him that. To be honest, I know it’s crazy, but there’s no harm in trying. If I miss my goal, I’ll settle for 45. Or 50. Nah, 40 would be ideal. (No questions about my age please :-))

Anyway, soĀ I’m taking a break from practitioners and craft and light vs. darkness (:-) ). Pressure, a contemporary Christian romance that I wrote back in 2013, will be next. I’ll release once I get it back from theĀ editor and I’ve had a quick look over his amendments. (Yes, my editor is a dudeĀ this time. I just hope reading all the romantic elements of Pressure isn’t too torturous for him, ha ha).

Here’s the back cover blurb for Pressure:

A woman in despair.

Brooke Chandler has lived with the guilt of her brotherā€™s death for nine years. Despite her efforts to put the loss behind her, it still haunts her. It doesnā€™t help that her parents blame her, or that they see her guilt as an excuse to control her.

On the eve of her wedding to a man selected by her parents, Brooke runs away. Never mind that her fiancĆ© is the son of the biggest preacher in the city, or the fact that as a preacherā€™s kid herself, she is supposed to follow the rules.

James Cassidy knows a thing or two about pain, having been jilted by the love of his life two years ago. He didnā€™t think he was ready for love again, but thereā€™s something about Brooke that stirs him the way no other woman ever has. But can he love a woman who has jilted another man, just as he was jilted?

Even if he can, Brookeā€™s heart is surrounded with seemingly insurmountable walls.

When Brooke decided to leave, she didnā€™t expect to run straight into the hands of a new man. And she didnā€™t expect to fall in love.

Can Jamesā€™ faith cause Brooke to rethink her decision to turn her back on God? And can his love bring her healing?

Pressure is a compelling love story of faith overcoming fear, and freedom from guilt.

***

I’m terrible at writing book descriptions. Some of you have told me that in the past (thanks for that feedback, ha ha). I really tried hard with this one. It might change. I’ll see if my editor has anything to say about it.

Ciao xx