The Blackjack Quartet

Series · 4 books · 2012-2015

By Sadie Haller, Magdalen Braden, Katie De Long, and more

Books in series

Love in Reality

2012

TV producer Rand Jennings isn't looking for love—he's looking for a flirty female contestant for his reality show, The Fishbowl. Pretty bartender Lissa Pembroke is bright, outgoing, and the perfect "Fish" to play the part. Although sparks fly between them when Rand approaches her with the role, she wants nothing to do with him or his show ... Law student Libby Pembroke is too busy with school and work to have time for love—or reality TV. She's temporarily switched places with her identical twin sister Lissa, balancing Lissa's job with her own studies and preparing for a summer internship. So while the handsome and charming Fishbowl producer knocks Libby off her feet, there's no way she's going on national TV, and acting like, well, her sister. The irresistible chemistry between Libby and Rand can't be ignored, however, and soon Libby discovers that pretending to be Lissa gives her a freedom she's never known before. She goes on the show to be close to Rand, even though Rand still thinks she's the "flirty" twin. When Libby decides to reveal the truth, will Rand forgive her deceptions? Or will exposing her secrets—and her heart—ruin everything?

Seven First Kisses

2015

Looking for a new-to-you steamy romance series in Kindle Unlimited? Why not try seven? ZOE YORK, ZARA KEANE, SADIE HALLER, SIDNEY BRISTOL, IVY SINCLAIR, KATIE DE LONG, MAGDALEN BRADEN The SEVEN FIRST KISSES multi-author anthology represents some of the best steamy-to-scorching contemporary romance available to Kindle Unlimited subscribers. While all the stories kick off series, they are self-contained love stories—Happily Ever Afters guaranteed! Like our books? The authors in the set have more stories available for FREE through Kindle Unlimited! 'FALL OUT' (SEALs Undone #1) by ZOE YORK Drew Castle is a Navy SEAL with a bad case of indifference. Until Annie Martin shows up on his doorstep, scared out of her mind, and all of a sudden, keeping her safe becomes the most important mission of his life. And this time, he's on his own. 'LOVE AND SHENANIGANS' (Ballybeg #1) by ZARA KEANE An Irish romantic comedy featuring a crashed wedding, a labradoodle with attitude, and a second chance romance. Gavin Maguire's life is low on drama, high on stability, and free of pets. But he hadn't reckoned on Fiona Byrne blasting back into his life and crashing his wedding. In the space of twenty-four hours, he loses a fiancée and a job, and gains a wife and a labradoodle. Can Gavin salvage his bland-but-stable life? Or will he lose his heart to Fiona all over again? 'ONE GOLD HEART' (Dominant Chord #1) by SADIE HALLER Mac Wallis agrees to join the wind quintet, Dominant Cord, for the Christmas concert season as a favour to an old friend. It's her first step towards recovery after a vicious attack more than a decade before. However, sparks fly when Dominant Cord's unofficial leader, flutist, Finn Taylor takes issue with Mac's reliance on medication in order to perform. 'FESTIVE SEDUCTION' (Holiday Engagements #1) by SIDNEY BRISTOL A playful evening spent with her Dominant was all Jade expected from a snowed-in Christmas Eve. After a year of turmoil, she's ready for pleasure. But Philip has more in store for his submissive than Christmas light bondage. He'll push past her limits, and ask for everything. 'WHERE THE HEART BREAKS' (Willoughby Inn #1) by IVY SINCLAIR If there were a course in screwing up your life, Kate Spivey earned an A+. Trust is in short supply for Kate at the start of the summer before her senior year of college. Sentenced to spend it under the watchful eye of her aunt at the Willoughby Inn, Kate needs to prove that she has learned from her mistakes. 'QUEEN OF RHAPSODY' by KATIE DE LONG When Marie, a stripper, has a moment of vulnerability with her private investigator neighbor, she has no idea what she's in for—or what his intentions truly are. Rex only wants to help an old friend defend herself. It'll test his skills, make him call on people he never thought he'd see again. But as his investigation heats up, his preoccupation with Marie may become a deadly distraction. 'LOVE IN REALITY' (Blackjack Quartet #1) by MAGDALEN BRADEN Straight-arrow law student Libby Pembroke is improbably cast as the "Ditz" on The Fishbowl, a ludicrous TV reality show. It's all part of a plan by producer Rand Jennings to subvert the show and create a kick-ass movie script in the process.

The Cost of Happiness

2013

A Cinderella story set in a Philadelphia law firm filled with dark corners and scheming rivals ... Meghan Mattson resigns her summer associate job when she learns that her bipolar mother is a con artist ... using Meghan's name. Meghan convinces the Feds to drop the charges against her, but it ends her career. On Dan Howard's first day as a junior partner, he's amazed his paralegal is Meghan, Franklin Law's star student. He's thrilled to work with such a brilliant mind ... and such an attractive woman. As Dan and Meghan tackle a tricky case, they struggle to resist their mutual attraction. Even if senior partner Wallace Leith approves, others in the firm want to see them fail. Can their office romance bring them a fairy-tale ending? The Cost of Happiness is a stand-alone legal romance. It's also Book Two in Magdalen Braden's Blackjack Quartet, following Love in Reality.

Blackjack & Moonlight

2014

A super-sexy judge has to declare his love for the lawyer of his dreams before he’s even met her. Jack “Blackjack” McIntyre, Philly’s superhero judge, meets his match when Elise Carroll appears. Trouble is, she’s a lawyer in his courtroom. Stating his feelings for the court record isn’t the way to start a relationship… particularly with a woman who thinks “love at first sight” is as real as the tooth fairy. Elise wants nothing to do with Blackjack’s potent charm and alleged romantic feelings. Still, men leave when they’ve gotten what they want… and they all want sex. So she offers to skip the candlelit dinners and go straight upstairs to unwrap him like a birthday present. Jack and Elise negotiate a deal—they’ll alternate his romantic dates with her “sex only” dates. The contract works… until both of them get more than they bargained for. As Jack puts it, “falling in love isn’t for the faint of heart!” Can two legal eagles make this relationship work?

Authors

Sadie Haller

Author · 16 books

USA Today bestselling author, Sadie Haller, lives in the little blue house by the sea with one husband, two dogs, three cats, and six hens (they actually live in a littler red house out the back). She writes kinky happy ever afters for musicians, politicians, celebrities, and the occasional member of the royal family.

Magdalen Braden

Author · 4 books

In her series of sexy contemporary romances, The Blackjack Quartet, Magdalen Braden writes about lawyers, judges, law students, paralegals … an entire fictional Philadelphia legal community, in fact. Hey, she left her legal career to return to her first love, romance writing, so it makes sense she'd write about the law. As she puts it, "I needed a day job to quit, so I went to law school." Be glad she doesn't draw on her other professional experiences, which include failed caterer, failed daycare administrator, failed editorial assistant, and failed hearing tester in a flour mill. Magdalen writes about Philadelphia because she went to law school there, practiced there, and even has a British patent attorney ex-husband still living in the Victorian South Philadelphia house Magdalen bought before they married. (The house used to be part of a convent—another aspect of her past that won't show up in her steamy novels.) In a shameless bid for attention, Magdalen has been known to tell people she and bestselling author Julie James have virtually identical legal careers: Magdalen went to a better law school but Julie had the better federal clerkship. In addition to writing, Magdalen keeps busy completing her Masters in Fine Arts degree from Stonecoast, the University of Southern Maine's MFA program, one of only two in the country that acknowledges romance novels exist, let alone comprise a wildly popular fiction genre. She even submitted a scholarly essay on Susan Elizabeth Phillips' "Dream a Little Dream" in her first semester. What time Magdalen has left over is spent with her second British husband (what can she say? She has a type!) in their two-hundred-year-old house in rural Pennsylvania with their cats and dog. Magdalen's debut romance, "Love in Reality", begins The Blackjack Quartet. Book three in the series, "Blackjack & Moonlight", was a 2012 finalist in the prestigious Romance Writers of America Golden Heart® contest and will be published in 2013 after "The Cost of Happiness" (Book Two) and before "Lost and Found" (Book Four). There are rumors she's even considering a fifth book in the series. Figures a former lawyer would try to sell a fifth book as part of a quartet …

Ivy Sinclair cut her romance teeth on classics like Gone With the Wind, Casablanca, An Affair to Remember, and Sabrina. She is a firm believer in true love, a happily ever after ending, and the medicinal use of chocolate to cure any ailment of the heart. Ivy's guilty pleasures include sushi, endless Starbucks lattes, and wine. Readers of Ivy's stories can expect smoldering sweet stories of romance that tug at the heartstrings.

Sidney Bristol

Author · 60 books

It can never be said that NYT & USA Today Bestselling author Sidney Bristol has had a ‘normal’ life. She is a recovering roller derby queen, former missionary, and tattoo addict. She grew up in a motor-home on the US highways (with an occasional jaunt into Canada and Mexico), traveling the rodeo circuit with her parents. Sidney has lived abroad in both Russia and Thailand, working with children and teenagers. She now lives in Texas where she splits her time between a job she loves, writing, reading and fostering cats. Sidney is represented by Nicole Resciniti of the Seymour Agency.

Zara Keane

Author · 28 books

Zara Keane is a USA Today bestselling author of Irish cozy mysteries and romantic comedies. Zara grew up in Dublin, Ireland, but spent her summers in a small town very similar to the fictitious Ballybeg and Smuggler's Cove. She currently lives in Switzerland with her family. When she’s not writing, Zara loves knitting, running, unplugged gaming, and adding to her insanely large lipstick collection. Don't miss a new story! For news, giveaways, and TWO free stories, sign up for Zara's Mailing List at https://zarakeane.com/newsletter/ Zara can also be found in her Facebook Reader Group, the Mystery Mavens.

Zoe York

Author · 61 books

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Zoe York is a busy working mom of two young boys, wife to a very understanding soldier, and creator of modern, sexy, small town contemporary romances. She lives in London, Ontario and is currently chugging Americanos, wiping sticky fingers, and dreaming of heroes in and out of uniform.