Category Archives: Guests
Violet Dawn is here! Blog Blitz & Giveaway by @lynnrush
Check out the newest yumminess from the awesome Lynn Rush!
In the darkest place, the Light shines brightest.
Emma’s love saved Jake from life as a vampire. But their happily ever after is threatened by a savage Vamp seeking retribution for destroying the Avenos Trinity of Evil.
A mysterious stranger enters the mix, coinciding with the first Vamp attack in months. Emma’s new friendship, and the suspicion and deceit surrounding it, further drives a wedge between her and Jake.
To complicate things, Emma is bitten by a Vamp with abilities no one has ever seen before, and that bite has left its mark.
A mark that might tear Jake and Emma apart forever…
Title: Violet Dawn (Violet Night #2)
Author: Lynn Rush
Genre: New Adult Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Crescent Moon Press
Release Date: April 1st, 2013
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Violet-Dawn-Lynn-Rush/dp/1939173213
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17160459-violet-dawn
Website: http://www.lynnrush.com
What others are already saying about Violet Dawn:
“Violet Dawn is powerful, enthralling, and refreshingly complex.” ~Carrie Butler, author of Strength
“I’ve fallen head over boots for Emma and Jake as a couple—and as an elite vampire-hunting team…” ~Kristie Cook, author of the best-selling Soul Savers Series
“Fast-paced, action-packed, Violet Dawn is basically everything you’d want from a vampire hunter novel and then some. Emma has kick-ass written all over her.” ~Kate Evangelista, author of Taste
Rafflecopter Giveaway
(Kindle is the prize) Giveaway ends at Midnight (EST) April 23rd, 2013.
http://www.lynnrush.com/GiveawayZone
Violet Dawn Book trailer: http://youtu.be/MZE8Yyv2ZGM
Find Lynn on the interwebz
Author Amazon Page: http://www.amazon.com/Lynn-Rush/e/B005G3NVBQ
Facebook: www.facebook.com/LynnRushWrites
Twitter: www.twitter.com/LynnRush
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/lynnrushwrites/
Author Bio.
Driven to write, Lynn Rush often sees her characters by closing her eyes watching their story unfold in her mind. Lynn Rush is a pen name that is a combination of two sources – Lynn, the first name of her mother-in-law, who passed away and Rush – since the author is a former inline speed skater and mountain biker. All of Rush’s books are dedicated to Lynn, her namesake, and a portion of the proceeds benefits cancer research and awareness.
Guest Author and Give@way~Cera duBois of the Hunter’s Dagger Series
The Rest of the Story…
Keeping the facts straight when writing a series.
Thank you, Amber, for having today as your guest!
*Always, thanks so much for stopping by 
*
Whether you are a reader or a writer of fiction, we often fall in love with the secondary characters or the “world” of a story. So much so, that readers often request authors to “finish” the story. This is what happened with the Star Wars universe. If you ask George Lucas, his story ended at the last scene in Episode 6, Return of the Jedi. Sure, he wrote and produced the Prequel which fans either loved or hated, but we (I’m a Star Wars fan) all wanted the rest of the story.
Do Han and Leia marry? Does Luke rebuild the Jedi Order? Does Leia become a Jedi?
Fortunately for us, Mr. Lucas made a business decision that has raked in millions for him, has kept the franchise alive and well and has, for the most part, satisfied us fans. Yes, Han and Leia not only get married, they have a set of twins, Jacen and Jaina and a son, Anakin, all of whom become favorite characters in the series about Luke’s new Jedi Order. And yes, Leia becomes a Jedi, she actually becomes a Master eventually. A lot happens in the Galaxy Far, Far Away beyond that final scene with the Force ghosts of Anakin, Obi-Wan and Yoda watching the Death Star exploding over the forest moon of Endor with the Ewoks playing primitive instruments and Luke, Leia, Han, Chewbacca and the droids rejoicing the end of the Evil Empire.
Yeah, did I mention I’m a fan? But having read this series of books, written by various writers, I’ve seen some of the problems with writing a big series. One of the biggest for me is inconsistencies… But this I can understand in a series as huge and diverse as the Star Wars books. These books aren’t written by George Lucas or even endorsed by him … Oh, he makes money from them and sanctions their plots as part of the Expanded Universe, but these authors are only using his “world” and characters. If he chooses to continue with his personal vision of the story—it will be nothing like what has been written. Something this fan hopes never happens. I love the books!
However, I think if a series is written by one author, within one “world” and with the same set of characters, he or she better get the facts straight. I hate inconsistencies and nothing will throw me out of a story faster than changing the facts late in the game.
So, how does an author prevent this from happening? Because it’s the little things that may and do bug the observant reader. Like the heroine’s sister’s green eyes (in book one) now are blue in book five—with no mention of colored contacts. Or the long lost friend whose name was John and now it’s James—without the benefit of the character changing his name.
We all have seen them, but hopefully we can prevent these with some basic record keeping. For both of my series, The Hunter’s Daggers Series and The Colton Gamblers, I use the Microsoft Office program One Note as a virtual notebook. There’s a lot of writing programs out there, and most of them have features that allow you to save notes, or information within the program. I use One Note simply because I like it and it’s easy to use, if you’re a Microsoft user.
For my series The Hunter’s Daggers, I created a virtual notebook and each book has a section. Within these sections, there are pages. I have a page in each book section for research, character profiles, calendar of events, and general notes. On the research page, I’ll copy/paste entire web pages. This makes life easy when I need to make sure my facts are straight, I simply go to my Notebook and find the article. I don’t have to do another web search. In the character profile page, I note anything I might need to know later—such as physical appearances, and any facts about that character I might need to know later. The calendar should be self-explanatory. On the general notes page, I list anything else I might need to know–like brainstorming sessions; I copy/paste the book info, like the blurb and synopsis; all the links to the files; and important dates, like when I started the book and when I finally finished it.
For example, here’s what the profile for Brad Morris/Austin Calhoun from A Hunter’s Angel and A Hunter’s Blade looks like. This was copied from my One Note page. The things in parentheses and italics I added to clarify things.
Bradley Andrew Morris AKA Austin Calhoun
*Born: August 23, 1979, age 32 at the start of A Hunter’s Angel
*Turned into a Vampire by Shane Chamberlain in January 2011.
*Eyes: Hazel/ After his turn, they glow amber when he drops his glamour.
*Hair: Golden Brown, he wears it sort of like Rob Pattinson in Twilight (LOL… I know, this is just so I can picture it so that I can describe it in the books.)
*Height: 6’2”
*Known for his one-night stands and never committing to a woman.
*His father is sentenced to life in prison when Brad is 3 yrs old after he kills a cop during a robbery of a convenience store. He hasn’t seen his father since.
*Grows up on his grandparents’ ranch in East Texas with his mother and sister Diane, who is a year and half younger than him.
*He marries Samantha Anderson when he is 18 after she gets pregnant with his first son, Brandon. She files for divorce in 2001. She remarried a rancher and lives in Texas with Brandon.
*He joins the Army after high school graduation and becomes an MP and eventually works his way into the CID (Criminal Investigation Division). He deploys to Afghanistan in 2002 and to Iraq in 2003. He ETS’s (this is a military acronym which means he leaves the Army) and joins the FBI in 2005.
*He marries his second wife, Jamie Becker, in 2005 after she becomes pregnant after a short series of one-night stands. They are married for 2 years until he cheats on her and she divorces him. She now lives in New Jersey with their son Matthew…
This goes on for every fact that makes up Brad/Austin’s character.
So, hopefully I don’t mix up something that is vital to his character. And hopefully you fall as much in love with this ex-soldier-turned-FBI Special Agent-turned vampire vampire hunter as I did when I wrote him in A Hunter’s Angel, and I just had to tell the rest of his story.
A Hunter’s Angel, Book 1 The Hunter’s Dagger Series
The serial killer stalking Clayton, Pennsylvania, isn’t all that has Chief of Police Grace Wallace worried. For a year, she’s tried to forget Special Agent Ian McHenry and now he’s the expert the FBI sent to catch the killer. She can’t stay away from him, but something primal is telling her to run to save much more than just her heart. Despite the strict code of ethics Ian vowed to follow as a vampire hunter, he craves Grace’s blood above all others. If he chooses to stay, Ian risks losing his chance at divine forgiveness. But if he leaves Grace unprotected from the evil he’s hunted for over a century, he loses more than just his soul…
***Here’s a never before seen excerpt featuring Brad, Ian and Grace***
She looked at him as if she wanted to say something, but Brad interrupted by moving in beside her. Ian hadn’t missed the two of them talking earlier while he waited with Sheryl and the children.
“We’re finishing up. I was thinking of heading back to Clayton for something to eat. I’m starved enough to eat a horse, shoes and all,” Brad said, looking at Grace.
She laughed. “Me, too. But I’ll pass on the shoes, I think.”
The sound shot right though Ian. When was the last time she laughed with me?
His answer came back to him like a double edged sword—the night you almost killed her while making love to her.
Grace brushed a lock of coppery hair from her lightly freckled cheek. Brad watched the action, and Ian sensed his lust. Ian’s jealousy was potent and instant. He fought his darker side and managed to prevent his fangs from descending.
Brad glanced at him, and Ian didn’t need to read his mind to know his intentions. Focused once more on Grace, Brad stepped closer and tilted his head toward her.
Brad was a good two inches taller than Ian. His light brown hair styled in one of the latest disheveled trends and the sun highlighted it with gold. The Texan had that cowboy charm most women easily fell for.
Ian didn’t pay much attention to their conversation. He was too busy fighting the urge to slip into Brad’s mind and make him dance around like a monkey. Maybe have him even scratch his crotch. Wasn’t that what all the Sunday paper cartoons made fun of?
He shook off the crazy notion. Ian didn’t like using his powers on his friends and rarely read Brad’s mind. But Ian couldn’t stop thinking Brad Morris was the last thing Grace needed.
The only thing that prevented him from sending Brad away was his connection with Grace. She wasn’t interested in Brad—now. But given time, would she fall under Brad’s spell as easily as if he had some sort of supernatural power? He had seen his friend charm the pants off more than one woman.
Ian clamped down so hard on his teeth it was amazing he didn’t break them off. The accent, Ian silently accused. He remembered all too well her fascination with his brogue when they’d met a year and a half ago. She’d quizzed him on it until he told her a satisfying story of picking up his Irish parents’ accents.
Brad’s chuckle quickly brought him back to the present. They talked as if Ian wasn’t even there, as if they’d known each other for years. Had they carried on like this last year? Ian couldn’t remember.
She asked, “Hey, you still hungry enough to eat the shoes off a horse?”
Brad smiled broadly. “Yep. What do you say we get out of here?
Available Everywhere E-books are sold:
The Wild Rose Press | Amazon | Barnes and Noble
A Hunter’s Blade, Book 2 of The Hunter’s Dagger Series 
Brigit Wolfe, a born werewolf, hasn’t killed a human in over a hundred years, although now, she wonders if the animal attacking people in Silver Creek, Colorado, isn’t her. But she might have bigger problems when her cowboy neighbor, Austin Calhoun, ambles into her bar. Austin hasn’t been a vampire for long, but he is determined to prove to himself that he’s worthy of his hunter’s dagger. Brigit’s rare beauty and blade-sharp tongue enchants him. She ignites a passion he thought was dead, but is she the killer his master sent him to destroy? During Austin’s investigation regarding Brigit’s involvement in the deaths, an old crime surfaces connected to her human best friend. These two immortal enemies have to join forces to solve the mystery before someone else dies. But can they survive the heat of their own desire?
***Excerpt***
“Why don’t you enlighten me?”
She glowered at him for several moments. Then she closed her eyes and spoke in a language he didn’t understand. Before he knew it, a fire sparked to life in the old stone hearth across the room. A second later, he flew out of his chair and shoved hard against the edge of the bar behind him.
He struggled against the invisible restrains, but she’d taken him completely off guard. He was powerless to break free.
Standing, she kicked the chair to the side and stalked toward him. She could kill him right here and now, but…holy hell, she was damned sexy.
She stopped in front of him and growled, “Let’s get something established about werewolves. There are two kinds. The lesser wolves who are made. And the Lykan who are born. I’m not one of the degenerates. I was born a Lykan in 1647. The first child of Valeriu and Elena. I’m an alpha and you are nothing more than a fledgling just hatched.”
He broke free of her power by drawing on his own. When he moved toward her, Austin held his hands to his side, ready to grab the special knife he had sheathed inside his jacket. His fangs had long ago descended ready for a fight. “I don’t really give a flying fuck whether you were made, born, or hatched.”
When the energy of her power touched him again, he pulled the knife, and the silver blade caught the dim light of the fire in the hearth when he opened the long switchblade. “I want to know if you’re the one preying on these people.”
Her eyes widened and she backed up a step as he approached. “I told you I didn’t attack those humans. I haven’t killed a mortal in over a hundred years. How many innocents have you snacked on tonight? How many of them did you want to kill?”
“I don’t hurt my prey,” he said through clenched teeth and held her icy gaze. He’d never let her know battling the beast within every feeding was the hardest thing he’d ever done.
After forcing himself to take a deep breath, he lowered the knife and released some of the tension zinging through his body. “If you didn’t kill those people then you have nothing to worry about. Best way to figure out who did is by working together.” He put the silver blade away, and his fangs retracted.
“What do you have planned?”
He didn’t miss the slight quiver in her voice. He should finish all this right here and now so he could get back to Ireland and whatever life he’d scraped together, but something needled him into doing a thorough investigation.
“We begin with you telling me everything you remember from those nights you became the big, bad wolf.”
Available now at Amazon and everywhere January 2, 2013.
Bio:
Cera duBois has a strong belief in never giving up on your dreams…
Although Cera was unable to read due to dyslexia and a learning disability until she was in the fourth grade, she always had a story to tell. She wrote her first novel in eleventh grade when she had to keep a journal for her academic English class. Since her life was far from exciting growing up as a farm girl in West Central Pennsylvania, she decided to rely on her imagination to give her something to write about. Over the course of the school year, she wrote a tangled romance set in the Deep South during the Civil War. Becoming an author was her ultimate dream. Despite holding a BS in secondary social studies education from Penn State University, she currently works full-time as a medical secretary. A mother of a teenage son and pre-teen daughter, she lives near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with her husband of nearly 20 years. If she isn’t sitting in a quiet corner with her laptop, warm days will find her in the English garden surrounding her house. Cera loves to read and is interested in history, romance, science fiction and the paranormal. She also writes contemporary Westerns under her real name of Sara Walter Ellwood.
Website Links:
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I’m also having a giveaway!
2 Lucky posters will be picked to receive a custom piece of jewelry designed by me. So make sure you LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS in your post!
Guest Author – Liz Crowe and Conditional Offer: Stewart Realty Book 5
Please welcome the lovely Liz Crowe to the blog today. Not only is she a terrific author, but does she have some stories to tell : )
Sometimes I feel like that chick “Dharma” – you know, from Dharma and Greg? The free spirit girl married to the zipped up attorney? One of the long running jokes on that show was that Dharma had done pretty much everything. If you mentioned you liked a Led Zepplin song she’d played backup guitar for the band. She’d piloted a hot air balloon around the world and taught sign language to chimps. You name it, she’d done it.
I find myself saying things like “well, when I lived in Turkey,” or “when my passport was stolen in Southern Spain,” or “well the fourth time I saw Paris in the springtime” a lot. And many times people think I’m full of it. When my 8 year old daughter told her 2nd grade teacher that she was born in Hiroshima, Japan and had lived in 2 other countries, and ridden elephants in Thailand when she was three the teacher called me, “worried about Julia’s tendency to exaggerate and lie.” Yeah.
Well, I’ve been blessed/cursed with that sort of life. I’ve worked in Washington D.C. for one of the largest non profit fund raising entities known to the modern world (United Way), managed a daily newspaper’s graphics and special sections department, been marketing director for a giant corporation that owns nursing homes, lived in 3 countries, travelled to many, sold real estate and now I’m a fairly successful writer and own a fast growing craft brewery. Yeah.
It’s been an interesting life and I try to channel a lot of it into my books. As a result, I have a style and sort of genre bending formula I like to call “romance for real life.” It’s full of heat, and heart but the people do not always act the way traditional romance characters do. They F%$# up in other words and I let them. They screw up perfectly good relationships by being selfish, rude, or mistrustful. I have won a lot of readers who say “GOD I threw my kindle across the room when ‘heroine’ said that to ‘hero.’ But when is the next book coming out ???”
It does not work for everyone, but it does for me so I’m sticking with it!
And check out her new release!
Available at:
Conditional Offer: Stewart Realty Book 5
Craig Robinson and Suzanne Baxter had no reason to meet, no real excuse to be friends. But when heart calls to heart…blood to blood…should two people who seem destined to be together heed the spin of Fate’s wheel?
Craig spent years floating through life on cruise control, using directionless jobs, his rock band, swimming, and a string of older women in his bed to smother feelings of loneliness and loss. He finally thought he had found his true love in one Sara Thornton — A sexy, beautiful, fellow real estate agent and mentor. But his self-doubt and innate sense of failure is only reinforced when he realizes her heart belongs to another man.
When Sara introduces him to Suzanne, a woman fighting her own demons from an abusive marriage and subsequent feelings of inadequacy and deep unhappiness, that chance moment snaps Craig’s hazy existence into crystal clear focus. A bond born of instant physical attraction is nurtured by time and shared experience, and plenty of erotic energy.
As Suzanne’s past continues to haunt her, making her push Craig away just as he thinks he’s getting closer, each of them must come to terms with their true selves and face their ultimate realities.
“Pre order” on ARe, Releases on Aug. 25.
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-conditionaloffer-907922-148.html
CONDITIONAL OFFER TRAILER (it’s awesome I love it)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvlYO_zzx18
Liz Bio:
Microbrewery owner, best-selling author, beer blogger and journalist, mom of three teenagers, and soccer fan, Liz lives in the great middle west, in a Major College Town. Years of experience in sales and fund raising, plus an eight-year stint as an ex-pat trailing spouse plus making her way in a world of men (i.e. the beer industry) has prepped her for life as erotic romance author. When she isn’t sweating inventory and sales figures for the brewery, she can be found writing, editing or sweating promotional efforts for her latest publications. Her ground breaking romance sub genre: “Romance for Real Life” has gained thousands of fans and followers, interested less in the “HEA” and more in the “WHA” (“What Happens After?”)
Her beer blog a2beerwench.com is nationally recognized for its insider yet outsider views on the craft beer industry. Her books are set in the not-so-common worlds of breweries, on the soccer pitch and in high-powered real estate offices. Don’t ask her for anything “like” a Budweiser or risk painful injury.
Find her:
www.facebook.com/lizcroweauthor
www.facebook.com/romanceforreallife
www.facebook.com/jackgordonrealtor
Other Books in the Stewart Realty Series:
Floor Time
Sweat Equity
Closing Costs
Essence of Time
Conditional Offer
Escalation Clause (November 2012)
House Rules (March 2103)
Due Diligence (May 2013)
Good Faith (September 2013)
Guest and Give@way: Sapphire Phelan
Please welcome Sapphire to the blog today to celebrate The Witch and The Familiar. Read the yummies, and check out the giveaway at the end
The Witch And the Familiar Blog Tour Stop #7—Grace Sherwood
The witch, Tina Epson in my new release erotic urban fantasy, The Witch And the Familiar is fictional. But in real life, there have been people accused (both women and men) of witchcraft. In Europe, they were burned at the stake. In the New World, at least in Salem, Massachusetts, they were hung. In Virginia, except for one hung on ship in 1600s just before it landed colonists for Jamestown, most were not. That’s not to say they didn’t go on trial, were “ducked” to prove they were witches and jailed or made to pay, but not thanks to lawmakers, many did not go through a nightmare like Salem. One woman accused of witchcraft in Virginia was Grace Sherwood.
Born in 1660, Grace Sherwood was an only child. With no sons to help him, her father taught her how to work the land and how to irrigate it well. She knew how to make things grow, and from her mother, before she died when Grace was young, she learned how to be a midwife. She couldn’t read or write, but she could memorize well. Grace could swim well and in those days, the only people who could swim were sailors’ sons. A woman wasn’t supposed to be able to swim.
She married James Sherwood and they had three sons, James, John, and Richard. She grew cotton (for cottonseed oil, nothing more), rice, and tobacco. Unlike the other women of the day, who stayed indoors and did womanly things, she would go outside to work the land and even visited the Indians, learning about herbs from them, which she also grew on the plantation. This brought suspicion on her. It didn’t help that she was very attractive in a physical way, either. It had been said that the local magistrate had tried to seduce her and she had refused his attentions.
It also didn’t help that the neighbors accused her of blighting gardens, causing livestock to die, and influencing the weather. When a neighbor had blighted cotton and the Sherwoods did not, that was because of Grace’s knowledge of irrigation, but not witchcraft. It didn’t matter. Suddenly, people began to whisper things about her—that if someone saw a firefly at night, it was actually Grace dancing in the moonlight. After Grace was accused of bewitching a neighbor’s crop in 1698, allegations kept growing over time until the Princess Anne County government and her accusers decided she would be tested by ducking. When the sheriff searched Grace’s house (which no longer stands today), there was no evidence of a witch ball, which made her a possible witch all the more in her accusers’ eyes.
The reason witches were ducked was because water was considered pure and would not permit a witch to sink into its depths. Based on this theory, the accused was tied up and thrown into the water. If the person drowned, he was declared innocent of witchcraft; if he could stay afloat until he could free himself, he was declared a witch. In this case, innocent, damned, guilty, damned—you might die either way.
Grace was tried in the second Princess Anne County Courthouse, found guilty, and consented to the traditional trial by water.
One of the many tall tales that have been handed down from generation to generation has to do with the day of her ducking. On July 10th, 1706, at 10am, her accusers tied her thumbs to her big toes cross-bound and dropped her into the western branch of the Lynnhaven River near what is now known as Witchduck Point. When they led Grace Sherwood through the crowd that had turned out to see her put into the water, she told them, “All right, all of you po’ white trash, you’ve worn out your shoes traipsin’ here to see me ducked, but before you’ll get back home again you are goin’ to get the duckin’ of your life.” When they put Grace into the water the sky was as bright blue as a bird’s wing, but immediately afterward it grew pitch black, thunder rolled and the lightning flashed across the heavens. The terrified people bolted for home, only to be washed off the roads and into the ditches by a regular cloudburst. In reality, Grace couldn’t have walked, being tied as she was and when placed in the water, Grace did not drown but floated, which was considered a sign of guilt. Most likely the ties came undone so she could swim, which she could do well. She was imprisoned for seven years and ten months. Released in 1714, Grace paid the back taxes on her property and returned to her farm, where she worked the land until her death at eighty years of age in September, 1740.
Her story doesn’t end there, for on July 10, 2006, after Belinda Nash worked hard for seven years to get Grace pardoned, Governor Timothy M. Kaine fully cleared exonerated Grace. She is the only deceased person known to be cleared in Virginia. A statute was unveiled on Saturday, April 21, 2007, on the lawn of Bayside Hospital in Virginia Beach. It was placed near the corner of Independence Boulevard and North Witchduck Road, within two tenths of a mile of the old second Princess Anne Courthouse of 1706.
Sapphire Phelan
Dark heroes and heroines with bite…sink your teeth into a romance by Sapphire Phelan today.
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2010 Prism Winner
Buy The Witch And The Familiar
Blurb:
Mortal woman Tina discovers she is part of a prophesy that says she and Charun, her demon Familiar, must make love so she can become the witch she is fated to be. If she doesn’t do it and stop the demon army bringing Armageddon to the Mortal Realm on Halloween, she won’t stand a chance in Hell.
A year later, just when Tina and Charun thought it was all over and that their life would be normal—another prophesy pops up. If Lucifer snatches Tina and mates with her before the last chime before midnight of the new year and gets her pregnant with his son, that the real Armageddon would begin, spelling the end of life as they knew it. This time they get help from an archangel, Jacokb, but with demons, Lucifer, and a cute demon bunny with fangs out of a Monty Python nightmare, out to stop them and Heaven not lending a hand, will Tina this time lose the battle and become the mother of the Antichrist and the start of a new Hell on Earth?
Excerpt (must be 18 and older to read):
Buy The Witch And The Familiar
The time had come.
About time too.
Not looking back, Charun rose from the bowels of Hell to the Mortal Realm, ending up just down the street from Cup of Tea and a Book bookstore. He shifted into the form of a handsome, naked man. His staff waved before him like a proud, hissing snake, spitting even as precum beaded at the slit. He shook his head. No, it was too soon for him to assume the man form. He frowned, thinking.
A cat!
He would become a cat. That would do—for now. Just not a horny tom cat, as the pain of his arousal washed over him. He dodged into a nearby alley and worked his organ, biting his lips when he came.
Withdrawing his hand from his flaccid penis and using the other to prop himself against the building, he spoke in demon, “Denoch er nomonaty.”
A strange feeling slammed into him and he cried out as he dropped to his knees on the pavement. Thrusting out a hand against the ground so he wouldn’t topple over, he began to metamorphose, growing smaller and smaller as he did. Black fur sprouted all over his body and head. His ears sharpened into points and shot up over his head, while his hands and feet became paws edged with sharp claws. Whiskers pinged out of his cheeks and from his buttocks snaked a long tail. He hunched over and then fell over onto his ass. Within seconds, his metamorphose completed, he was a black cat. Resisting the peculiar urge to wash his face, Charun stretched and then rose onto all four paws. He padded over to a puddle of rain water to inspect the change.
He sat down and viewed his reflection. Not bad looking as far as cats went. Lifting a paw, he splashed his image. Then back on all four paws, he trotted to the street and paused to sniff the air. He sneezed as the full force of odors hit him. A multitude of different things, from the smell of blasted sunshine to the grime of city life. The sunshine revealed to him that it would not rain for days. He had arrived a day too late. The air revealed that it had thunder stormed yesterday.
He needed heavy rain to make his first appearance to his witch. Needed it as a reason for her to feel sorry for him and take him in. From what he remembered she would not leave any animal drowning in a torrential downpour. But from all the viewing he did of her growing up he knew she wasn’t an impulsive person either. He knew that she loved animals, but felt that she couldn’t afford one right now in her life. He might end up in an animal shelter or a place like that. This kind of operation needed the right things in place. Timing, too. Timing always mattered. He had learned that long ago as an Incubus. The wrong time could always mean the lover would wake up too soon. Find that their fantasy lover was real, and that the husband, wife, lover, concubine, whoever, wasn’t what really was taking them beyond the heights of lust. One Succubus found that out the hard way when her nobleman lover woke up not to find his wife mounted on his staff but a green-skinned fiend. He knocked her out before she could call her magic up and had a priest exorcised her. Exorcism was death for a demon. Instead of sending them back to Hell, it ended their existence.
So timing was important, even now. His witch’s survival was the true equation here. If she died before he made her a witch, he knew the fate for Earth if the demons took over. There was the matter of his lust for her too. Relieving it wouldn’t be bad, either.
He cocked his head and twitched his ears. He was a demon, with strong magic. Closing his eyes, he let his magic surround him with a shimmering golden light.
Lano’ste. Na la por lestano.
His fur stood on end, the ends crackling, and he widened his eyes as the magic burned within and outside with a violent heat close to atomic. He fell onto his side, dazed, and barely noted when it shot away from him, heading toward the blue skies. It dusted the few white clouds drifting along the blue sky and they became black ones, pregnant with rain.
Still unsteady, he rolled over onto his stomach and waited until the power quieted. Charun breathed in the rain odor and gave a Cheshire cat grin. He rose to his paws and padded off, as the sound of thunder vibrated in the air.
Fuck the weather forecasters and their predictions. With magic, he’d just turned their Doppler radar upside down.
About Sapphire Phelan:
Sapphire Phelan is an author of erotic and sweet paranormal, fantasy, and science fiction romance, along with a couple of erotic horror stories. She also writes as Pamela K. Kinney, for horror, fantasy, science fiction, and nonfiction ghost books.
She lives in Virginia with her husband and two cats, Ripley and Bast.
She admits she can always be found at her desk and on her computer, writing. And yes, the house and husband sometimes suffers for it!
For more information, check out her website: http://www.SapphirePhelan.com .
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Giveaway Goodies
I am doing a giveaway for the whole blog tour April 23rd through April 28th. Leave a comment here or at any of the blogs I make at. You can leave a comment (plus your email, so I can contact you) at each blog, to get more chances, but no more than one per blog, please. The giveaway is a signed copy of The Witch And The Familiar. This is only for USA commenters though (due to price of mailing outside of US). For those outside of US, I will give instead a gift cert for price of the book at Phaze Books, so that I can email you.
Who wants some Cowboy Kink? and Give@way
Please welcome my guest Randi today, and get ready for an awesome giveaway
Yes, I Can Write Paranormal Cowboys!
Thank you, Amber, for hosting me today. I’m Randi Alexander and I write cowboy erotic romance. I’m published with The Wild Rose Press’ Cowboy Kink line. My new release, Her Cowboy Stud, is available now.
Her Cowboy Stud available at The Wild Rose Press Wilder Roses and Kindle version is available at Amazon.com
I enjoy reading paranormal romance, but the few times I’ve tried to write it, it’s been difficult for me. Last year, All Romance eBooks hosted a contest called Just One Bite. I felt a driving urge to challenge myself and write a vampire erotic romance short story to enter. I did it! This Cowboy Bites was a blast to write.
I started by creating my character’s world. My vampire was warm blooded, night walking, and when he bit a woman’s neck, he also needed to take her, sexually. I loved being able to set my own rules. It’s very freeing. I could be as creative as I chose.
I entered the story in the contest, and Oh My Gosh, it was chosen from over a hundred entries as one of the thirty-two finalists! Really amazing for me because I hadn’t written paranormal before. But it gets better! I ended out just out of the money in fourth place, but for a first-timer, that was truly incredible.
Here’s a link to the story, if you’d care to read it. It’s actually a free book download from All Romance eBooks which includes eleven other paranormal short stories as well as This Cowboy Bites. Click here for your free download.
After the contest, dozens of readers asked me to write more vampire cowboys. I spent a week creating a series of vampire cowboy erotic romance ménages – nine books in all. I pitched the idea to an editor at a writers’ conference. She loved it, and wants to see the first book as soon as it’s ready. Now, I just have to write it.
I also need to find a name for the town. The series is set in a very small town in south-central Texas. I’m looking for a name that gives the feeling of a dusty old place on a dead-end road that is nearing extinction until rich cowboys (vampires!) begin buying up all the huge ranches surrounding the town. The books will tell the story of the clashes and seductions between the town folk and the vampires.
This is where I need your help. What are your suggestions for the town’s name? Whatever pops into your mind, one, two, a dozen names, please leave a comment with your ideas. One lucky commenter will win an ebook!
Trace McGonagall’s quiet life on his Houston stud ranch is shaken up when gorgeous Macy Veralta arrives to claim an inheritance left to her in his uncle’s will. Trace sees her as just another gold digger, but he also can’t resist her curvy body. When she hints at being the perfect submissive to his Dom, he has to have her.
Macy wouldn’t have been three months late to claim her inheritance if she’d known Trace was sin in jeans. The cowboy’s dominant bearing and the smoldering glint in his eyes send shivers to her toes and stirs images of being bound in his bed and disciplined at his hand. But could Trace’s perfect seduction be part of his plan to reclaim her inheritance?
EXCERPT: Over 18 only, please.
“I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone like you.” Macy wrapped her arms around his middle.
Trace hugged her tight for a minute. Against her chest his heart beat as wildly as hers. Reaching down, Trace eased an arm under her knees and lifted her into his arms. “Wait until you get a taste of my lovin’, sweetheart. You’ll be hooked.”
She rested her head on his chest and admitted more to herself than to him, “I think I’m already hooked.” Being held in his arms tingled like magic, and her body reacted, filling and warming, flooding her needy pussy with a sweet ache.
He opened the screen door and deftly carried her in. He strode down a hallway and into a big bedroom, kicking the door shut behind them. A gigantic bed dominated the room, done up in moss green with a few gray and green throw pillows tossed on as an afterthought—the housekeeper’s doing, probably. Trace didn’t seem like the accessorizing kind of guy.
Big, clunky dark wood furniture stood around the room. A beautiful old rug nearly covered the entire hardwood floor, and a lamp in the corner cast a subtle glow over the room.
She took a deep breath, smelling the scent of man and musky cologne. “This bedroom is so masculine.”
“Just like me?” He set her on her feet.
“Exactly like you.” She ran her fingers through his hair, loving how the soft locks curled around her skin, tickling her. She tugged him down for a kiss.
He groaned as he slanted his lips over hers and made love to her with his mouth. His tongue touched everywhere, slow and thorough. His hands slid to the tie of her halter top, and he eased it free, standing back to watch as he revealed her breasts.
“Beautiful.” He stared for a moment before bending her backward over his arm, one hand at her neck to steady her, suckling first one nipple then the other. He laved them with his tongue, teasing them with sensual flicks.
The sucking and nibbling of his hot, talented mouth on her breasts drove her mad. A quaking desire filled her as her core contracted, and moisture slid from her needy lips.
Lifting the hem of her halter top, he eased it off over her head and tossed it onto a chair.
“My turn.” Macy unbuttoned his shirt, taking her time, enjoying each inch of skin she revealed. She slid it off his shoulders and let it drop. “Oh, wow.” His arms were defined, his chest sculpted and furred by a light scattering of dark hair, his flat stomach showed a hint of muscle developed by hard work, not zealous sit-ups. Lower, his narrow hipbones showed above his low-slung jeans.
Her need to touch him consumed her.
“Touch me,” he drawled, as if reading her mind.
Macy ran her fingers over his torso. She wanted him, wanted his chest pressed to her breasts, wanted his big arms around her. First, she wanted to see what hid beneath those tight fitting jeans.
At the instant she reached for his belt buckle, his fingers closed on the button of her capris. They both grinned and worked in tandem, removing his boots and socks, her flip flops and pants, and his jeans. They stood in their underwear, hers lacy and white, his black and stretched to the limit by his big, long cock.
He stared at her, a long, slow appraisal, making her skin quiver wherever his gaze touched. When he reached for her, she melted into his arms as his hands roamed across her back. He pressed his lips gently to her neck. His tongue darted out for a taste. “Aw, God.” His voice rumbled low in her ear.
His hand eased from her back to the side of her breast. His thumb traced a path around her nipple, brushing over it.
She sighed and shuddered as heat streaked from her nipple down to her slit.
His cock jerked against her belly. She abandoned any insecurity she felt and pressed her hand to the bulge in his underwear. His rod throbbed in her palm, and she licked her lips with the need to feel him in her mouth, pushing in deep, taking him down her throat as she swallowed his long shaft and sucked him dry.
“Darlin’.” He lifted her gently in his arms and carried her to the bed, laying her on the comforter. “I want to taste you. Everywhere.” His words came slow and full of promise. His half-lidded eyes turned nearly black with lust as he looked his fill of her body, not touching her, taunting her with expectation.
Macy’s back arched off the bed as a sweep of pleasure brushed over her. Tingling with need, she reached up and touched one of her nipples. “Here?”
He swallowed loudly. “Yes, there.”
Her hand snaked down her body, over her stomach. “And here?”
“Of course.” His voice growled even deeper.
She looked him in the eye, reveling in his barely-leashed desire. The tightness of his face, his flared nostrils, and tense jaw. When she slid her hand lower, he watched.
Slipping her finger inside her lacy panties, she asked, “Will you taste me here?”
*********
To celebrate the release of Her Cowboy Stud, I’m giving away, to one lucky *commenter, an e-copy of my new erotic romance short story anthology Cowboy Bad Boys. Just leave a comment today and we’ll choose a winner tomorrow. *Commenter must be 18 years of age or older to win.
I’m also giving away a custom-made messenger bag and a $50 gift certificate to Pureromance to one subscriber to my newsletter. For more details, and to sign up for this contest, please go to my website, RandiAlexander.com And while you’re there, you can read the first chapter of Her Cowboy Stud.
Good luck, and thank you!
Randi “Rode Hard and Put Up Satisfied”
Her Cowboy Stud available at The Wild Rose Press Wilder Roses
Kindle version is available at Amazon.com
Love #Vampires? Bloodstorm PreRelease Sneak Peek
So, if you’ve been following my blog the past week I announced my new release, Bloodstorm (Heart of a Vampire, Book #1).
Release date (squee!!!) is this Friday the 13th. I love those days.
Also, don’t forget to come back on Friday for my Super-Duper Release Day Par-tay
Blurb
When duty forces a shaman to stop a vampire from her revenge, love doesn’t just burn… it bites.
For two hundred years, Niki DeVeraux has been tracking the monster who murdered her family and made her a vampire. She finally catches up to him in a small Arizona town, only to face more than she bargained for. Amid an imperious vampire King, a shaky truce between the local clan and shifter pack, and a too-sexy sheriff who makes her remember she’s still a woman, Niki’s single-minded purpose is threatened for the first time since her turning.
Between his duties as Keeper of the peace for the Magic Council and heir to his tribe’s shamanistic magic, Sheriff Shane Spencer’s job is to protect humanity and stop the friction between the local Arcaine races before it turns into an all out blood war. To make matters worse, there’s an irresistible rouge vampire in town enflaming his senses.
When wolves start turning up dead, the tension between the paranormal races grows and suspicion falls on Niki. Shane knows she’s not to blame, and it has nothing to do with the primal urges she stirs within him. Working together, they must find a way to stop the hostilities from going over the edge. Trouble is, the desires raging between Niki and Shane might prove more dangerous than the surrounding threats.
Sneak Peek
Prologue
The pitch black tunnel, complete with crumbling dirt walls and cobwebs, didn’t frighten Nicola DeVeraux. The dark held nothing to fear. She’d seen too many real monsters in the years since her death.
Besides, her night vision was as good as any human’s in the bright light of day.
She stepped over a skeleton, then around the grisly remains of a wild boar.
At the far end of the tunnel, candlelight flared to life, as if welcoming her into the witch’s den. Her boots stirred up dust as she entered the small cave.
The walls glinted with a mix of crystalline dirt and flecked stone. The scent of a nearby spring layered heavy moisture in the air. In the center of the cavern stood a long rectangular table, covered by a black velvet cloth. Strange items, some unrecognizable at first–or even second–glance, littered the top.
“Ye came.”
Spinning at the gravelly, androgynous voice, Niki grabbed for the dagger at her waist.
The old crone cackled as she entered, her grin nearly toothless. Stringy gray hair straggled around her plump, wrinkled, face. Jezamine glided to the table. “I didn’t think ye’d answer my summons.”
“You asked me to come, old woman. I assume there’s a reason.” Though the dark tunnel hadn’t scared her, the witch did. Niki forced herself to take another step, though she kept a tense grip on the hilt of her still-sheathed dagger.
“What question do ye ask the gods?”
Ignoring the tension roiling in her stomach, she moved to the woman’s side. “They’re finally ready to answer me?”
Jezamine laughed again, the sound sending skitters down Niki’s spine. “Ye know they take their time, girl.”
“Fine. I want to know if I’ll finally find the man who murdered my family.”
The old woman reached for a silver cup etched with strange markings. She shook it three times before dumping the contents into a circle made from small, round crystals. Human finger bones clattered against one another. She bent over the table.
Jezamine had looked as ancient a hundred years ago as she did now. “Hmm. Yes. Mmm.” The old woman poked at one bone sticking above the others. “But what ‘bout…”
Niki eased onto one of the dark wooden stools at the far end of the table.
The priestess sprung upright, staring at Niki with her fathomless dark eyes. Her inky black lips stretched in a grimacing smile. “It’s yer birthday. Samhain be a good day for birthin’.”
Niki clenched her fists in her lap. “Not really.”
Halloween was a cursed day to be born. It had brought her nothing but pain, brought her family nothing but death.
The old woman poked at the bones again. “Maybe. Maybe ye be finding the monster ye seek, maybe be getting some other kind of lucky.” Jezamine’s screeching laugh echoed from the cavern walls.
Shivers inched along Niki’s spine and flooded into her legs. Thankfully she was sitting down. “What do you mean, some other kind of lucky?”
Jezamine’s dark eyes glittered. “Girl, I don’t think ye want me telling. Don’t think the Fates want me telling.”
“Then what about Thomas?” Her nails poked painfully into her palms.
“Lil’ girl. Why ye wanna spend all yer time tracking down pure evil?”
“Duty.”
“Duty?”
Memories flashed. The Halloween ball, celebrating not just her seventeenth birthday, but her engagement as well. The plantation in the bayou, ringing with music and laughter. At least until dawn arrived, the sun shining down on nothing but death.
Niki shook the old pain away. “Duty,” she repeated. “He owes me vengeance.”
“’Tis a fine line ye walk between revenge and justice.” Jezamine shook her head, the corners of her lips drooping in a frown. “Revenge make yer soul dark as his.”
“I don’t care.” In the far corner of the cave, wisps of white fog crept up the walls. Soon they would form into the shapes of those long dead.
She jumped to her feet, turning away. “Can you tell me anything else?”
Jezamine walked around the table to face her. “’Ware child. He who turned ye may also be the cause of yer downfall.”
Niki lifted her chin, facing down the old woman’s words, the Fates themselves. “Not until after I’ve killed him.”
Chapter One
As Shane Spencer finished the last of his beer, his deputy, Chase Campton, strode by, slapping him on the back.
“Another re-election year well done, Sheriff.”
The small crowd in the bar cheered and the waitress, Rae, slipped another bottle onto his corner table.
Shane tipped his cowboy hat politely and plastered on a fake smile, unable to join in the spirit. All day, something dark had been hanging over the town. Not that anyone else sensed it. He needed to go to his childhood home. On the edge of town, the house sat at the borderline of the Apache reservation and Moss Creek.
His father, head shaman and seer, would know what the signs meant. Once again, doubt crept up inside Shane. How did the Fates pass over the eldest in their family and choose him as their father’s successor? It had never before happened in their tribe’s history.
He nursed the beer, deep in thought.
The door banged open, a cold autumn breeze swirled the smoky air. A woman followed it in, stopping just inside the bar. The air vibrated with unseen power. Even the deepest shadows shivered. Everyone in the bar fell silent, turning as one to look her way.
She held her head high, long black hair curling over her shoulders like silk. Her bright green gaze scanned the tables. She passed over Shane without pause, only to snap back to him.
Magic filled the room and the hair on his forearms rose. The other people in the bar were forgotten. Only the two of them existed.
His heartbeat slowed, skipped a beat, sped up like a race horse barreling down the track.
The doorframe towered over her slight form. Yet her body was ripe, lush with curves. The tight blue jeans emphasized her hips, the narrowness of her waist. And the sleeveless white tank showed her breasts off to perfection.
He swallowed, though his mouth was dry.
Her eyes widened and even over the distance of the room, he heard her soft, feminine gasp. Palms slick, he shakily set the bottle back on the table.
His blood screamed primitive urges… demanding he drag her off to his cave.
It wasn’t like him.
Women, even the most beautiful, had never affected him this way. He’d met with the rich and beautiful, models and actresses galore during his time in the city. Gathering the remaining shreds of his willpower, he closed his eyes calling on the magic of his ancestors. The spirits of the earth responded and power surged through him. Magic raised the hairs on his arms and the back of his neck as the whispers of the spirits of the nearby forest filled him. Ignoring it to concentrate on what was here and now, he reopened his eyes. Colorful hues surrounded everyone in the bar.
Her aura struck him like a punch to the gut. A deep maroon, with flecks of black, revealed exactly what she was.
Vampire.
And not local.
He blinked again, letting the sight fade.
The woman finally looked away and took another step into the bar. As quickly as it had hit, the power surging through the room dissipated. People once more talked and laughed, raising their glasses in toasts.
What the hell kind of vampire was she, to cause such a raging lust?
The woman strode to the bar, her glare shouting ‘Don’t mess with me’. Though she didn’t look old enough to drink, let alone be in a bar in the first place, the bartender immediately poured her a shot of whiskey.
Shane would be talking to Henry about it later.
First, he needed to figure out what this vampire was doing in Moss Creek. Sure, the small mountain town was a hub of paranormal activity, with the local vampire clan and the shifter pack taking advantage of the surrounding nature. But rogues generally tended to stay out of places dominated by orderly clans, knowing the structure and politics were handed down by the Magic Council.
And the Council didn’t like Rogues.
Cupping the shot glass in her hands, the woman leaned towards Henry before the older man could move away.
Shane tensed in his seat. If she was looking for a meal…
Henry murmured something. The woman nodded, downed her shot and laid some money on the bar before turning and striding out.
Shane tried to relax, but he still yearned for the stranger, to touch her, smell her, nearly as badly as when she’d been staring at him, as if she could see down to his very soul.
***
Niki kept to the shadows of the forest as she skirted the parking lot. The only light came from a blue neon sign on the building’s roof, claiming someone called Henry owned the Spitfire bar.
She stopped near a clump of three trees opposite the bar. The center one was marked with a red X. How original. Yet this was where her contact wanted to meet, so who was she to complain?
It was nearly a half-hour later than their appointed time and she wasn’t quite sure why she was still here. Her stomach grumbled lightly. She needed to eat, the blood she’d consumed earlier hadn’t been enough. Without both food and blood her strength would wane. She couldn’t afford that, not now when she was so close to her prey.
She’d give this snitch five more minutes.
Only three passed before the air whispered through the forest at her back. Niki turned, knife in hand, holding it hidden down by her thigh.
“Looking for me?” a husky whisper drifted out of the darkness.
“You Baal?” She tried not to snort. Sometimes vampires tried on grandioseness, as if eternal life made them superman. Which, she guessed, in some ways it did.
“Maybe. Depends. You got the money?”
“Sure. If you have the information you promised.”
“Lemme see the cash first, lady.”
Niki reached slowly into her front pocket and pulled out two one-hundred dollar bills. The snitch tried to grab it, but she held tight. “Information first.”
He stepped into a bit of moonlight and grinned, eyes flushed with red. His thin lips drew back, revealing long fangs as he chuckled. “I got something else for you.”
She sighed. “Let me guess. You’re not going to give me the information, assuming a creep like you even knows anything.”
“Got that right.” Confusion twisted his pale features, as if he didn’t quite follow. Then he grinned again. “But you sure gonna give me something. Ain’t just money.”
Never trust a snitch. “Let’s get on with it then.” She tucked the bills back in her pocket.
His grin twitched, eyes flickered, following the money. He shook himself, confidence coming back.
She tightened her grip on the dagger. He lunged.
Niki used his momentum to fling him against the trunk of the tree. His head slammed in to the painted red X.
“Damn it,” he yelled, quickly recovering and charging her again.
She waited until he was close, then rammed her knee into his groin. Not even vampires were immune to that pain.
Hope you enjoyed
Public Display of Affection by Emily Cale
Wow. Can I just say Yummy!
Here’s a treat for ya’ll today, a peek at Emily Cale’s ‘Public Display of Affection’.
Enjoy!
Blurb:
After a heartbreaking end to her relationship with her girlfriend, Lucy Stark is looking to try something more adventurous. She turns to Madame Eve’s 1Night Stand service to help her find the perfect woman to push her boundaries and introduce her to the more daring side of a sexual encounter.
Samantha Taylor’s helped more than one woman explore her sexuality, but Lucy’s the first to really get to her. Keeping her walls up and the women she dates from getting inside is a skill she’s managed to master. After one night of unbridled passion, she has to decide whether to give up her hard exterior or let the woman of her dreams slip away.
Excerpt:
“I’m Samantha, but you can call me Sam.” She paused, hoping for a response, then shrugged. “Can I come in?”
Lucy—assuming it was Lucy?—shook her head and blinked a few times, as though she’d been in a trance. “Of course.” She stood back, holding the door open.
“Seems like a nice enough room.” Nothing extraordinary, but it didn’t need to be with the scenery that surrounded it. No one came there to see the inside of a hotel room. Well, no one except for them, and they’d be doing very little of that. The king-sized bed decked out with a forest green and brown duvet and pillows took up a majority of the room. The whole set-up looked comfortable and inviting. Too bad the activities she had planned didn’t require a mattress. Setting her duffle bag next to the dresser, she turned back toward Lucy. “So what are you up for tonight?”
Like a deer in headlights, the brunette looked puzzled by the question. “Well, I’m not sure. I thought maybe you’d have an idea or two and we could go from there?”
As timid as Madame Eve had described in her email. She’d expected the woman to at least have a few ideas, an erotic act she’d found on the internet that intrigued her. Sam bit her tongue to keep from making a sarcastic comment. No judgment. This evening was to be an introduction to the more adventurous side of intimacy. Aside from that, she hoped to quell the sexual frustration that had been brewing deep inside her. “I have a few things worked out. After that, we can see where the night takes us.” She imagined it would have them in bed before late night TV even started. “Does that sound agreeable to you?” She half expected the wide-eyed woman in front of her to back out. From her expression, it was clear she contemplated her options.
“That sounds good.” Lucy played with the edge of her black, knee-length skirt.
Sam doubted the truthfulness of that statement, but decided to give her the benefit of the doubt. “Then I suggest we get started. We are on a tight schedule at the moment.” Crouching down, she pulled a small box from her overnight bag. “Why don’t you go put this on?”
Lucy took it and turned it over in her hands. “What is it?” The pink color of the paper matched her sweater, Sam noted with amusement.
“Open it and you’ll find out.”
BIO:
Emily Cale spent the majority of her childhood as a visitor to the worlds of her favorite authors. With encouragement from her English teachers, she put pen to paper and began imagining her own stories. Preferring the fascinating lives of her characters, she majored in creative writing. When not lost in a manuscript or a good book, she enjoys crocheting, rock climbing, and playing board games. She currently lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with her husband and a very spoiled cat.
Buy Link(s):
Decadent Publishing: http://www.decadentpublishing.com/product_info.php?products_id=448&osCsid=k53gm93p0ek26d54p935na45b7
All Romance Ebooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-publicdisplayofaffection-673179-144.html
Hottie Heroes and Empaths ~ Yum
A hottie hero and an empath. What’s better than that?
Bloodsworn II: Linked by Blood
by Kathy Lane
Release: TODAY!!!
Available at The Wild Rose Press
And at Amazon.com
Blurb:
The moment the lethal Blade, Bracca Cu-Laurian sees empath, Sheren Ni-Annun, he fights his desire for the young widowed mother. Not only is his life pledged to his Bloodsworn, but his past sins make him an unfit mate for any woman, let alone an empath. For him, the line between duty and desire will forever be one he can never cross. Sheren’s late husband taught her to resent a Blade’s duty, and she has since vowed to avoid those fierce warriors. Then Bracca awakens her empathic senses with a single touch, challenging both her vow and his resolve with the depth of their mutual desire. When her young son is linked to Bracca’s Bloodsworn, the dire consequences that threaten to destroy them and those they hold dear, may also be the very thing that brings them together.
Excerpt:
Breathing hard, Sheren ran through the exercise to put her normal shield back into place, concentrating on making it stronger, denser. It appeared to be working until she became distracted by a new emotion winding sinuously over and around the half-formed shield. Desire.
Potent, all consuming, and definitely not hers.
She snapped her eyes open and caught the longing in Bracca’s eyes an instant before he blinked it away.
“You want me,” she whispered, aware her voice trembled with wondrous discovery.
“Forgive me,” he said, averting his eyes and pulling away from her. Even without his touch his guilt assailed her, the emotion strong, but not enough to overpower that yearning desire.
“I never meant to frighten you. I only sought to keep you from injuring yourself. I’ll leave—”
She grabbed his retreating hand. Not even with Sayjan had she felt such breathtaking desire. Sayjan had loved her. But her senses had not blossomed under her late husband’s touch. Not like this. Compared to what she sensed now, she’d been blind before.
With her shield half up and only Bracca close enough to sense, she found the invading emotions easily bearable. More than bearable. Intoxicating.
“Bracca…” She reached up to touch his face. He stilled instantly. Pressing her hand firmly to his cheek, she said, “I feel you.”
He swallowed hard. “How can you even bear to touch me?”
She didn’t understand his question. Not bear to touch him because he was a Blade? Or because she’d swore never to get involved with a Blade again? How could he know? Not even Karess knew of her vow. At the moment, she had trouble even remembering why she’d made it.
Slowly he raised his hand and traced the edge of her face with calloused fingers. Wonder and longing swirled through the desire with a poignant sweetness that brought tears to her eyes.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered. Head bending, he leaned closer.
Sheren knew she should stop him. Had to stop him. Yet the emotions pouring into her were like a heady draught of wine. She could no more stop drinking them in than she could stop breathing air. Merciful Luma, she wanted this.
The first touch of his lips went through her body like lightning. Her knees buckled. He caught her, one arm across her lower back, the other between her shoulders, his large hand cradling her head.
Sheren gazed up at him, clutching at his shoulders. Slowly, his gaze locked with hers, he lowered his head again, giving her every chance to turn away. She didn’t.
His lips were firm and warm. Insistent. His tongue stroked firmly against her closed mouth, demanding she let him in. She surrendered with a moan. He kissed like a warrior, invading, conquering. Sweet pleasure laced with the bitterness of desperation crashed over her. His? Hers? She could no longer separate her own emotions from those she felt coming from Bracca. Nothing in her life had ever prepared her for this…fusion.
Their bodies shifted closer. He deepened the kiss. Her hands slipped up his strong arms, fingers sliding beneath the edges of his sleeveless tunic. The hard muscles of his shoulders shifted and bunched beneath her touch. So strong, so hot…
Bloodsworn II: Linked by Blood
by Kathy Lane
Release: TODAY!!!
Available at The Wild Rose Press
And at Amazon.com
Come play with Danielle Monsch
Welcome author and fellow Plot Mama Danielle Monsch : )
She graciously agreed to one of my interviews, the brave woman. Plus, we get a sneak peak of her newest release, Loving a Fairy Godmother.
Out Now, Available at http://bit.ly/Dani_LFG
What hobby do you enjoy when not writing?
I’m an otaku, which is another way of saying I’m a very geeky person very into Japanese cartoons, comic books, movies and music. If I’m not writing and have time away from the family, I’m delving into this world. Miyazaki is god and one day, I really will learn to speak Japanese.
What would you do with $1 million dollars (tax-free, of course)?
I’m very boring and practical I’m afraid. House would get paid off, kids college funds would be fully funded, large chunks would go into retirement investments. The only slightly impractical use would be a yearly vacation. Hubby and I both enjoy travelling, and that kind of money would fund several first-class travel adventures.
If you could be any supernatural creature, what would it be and why?
My first love was vampires when I was younger, and while I may not have the all-consuming obsession I used to have with them, vampires would still be my answer today. Even the negatives wouldn’t be that bad for me. Anyone who has seen my paleness in pictures can tell I don’t do much time in the sun.
What is your favorite book? Why?
I won’t say favorite, but the book that has had the most lasting impact on me would be ‘Little Women’ by Louisa May Alcott. Partly this is due to the timing of me reading it, that area just on the cusp of pubescence where lots of things are getting churned up in the brain, but that book has had a lasting impact on my psyche. I’m sure I’m not the only girl that feels that way though. Just mention Beth dying in a group of women, see how many start tearing up.
What’s your favorite comfort food?
Pumpkin pie. My mom makes the world’s most delicious pumpkin pie, it’s a lot spicier (nutmeg spicy, not curry spicy) than the store bought stuff, and she has a real gift for making flaky crust. She only ever made pie for Thanksgiving and Christmas though, never any other time of the year, no matter how much we begged. As soon as Halloween hit, my siblings and I would start counting down the days until it was time for pie.
If you could time-travel, where would you go and why?
I’m really not a time traveller. I like indoor plumbing, pain medicine, and air conditioning too much to ever give them up. It’s not that I don’t enjoy learning about history, but actually going back to experience the stink? Blech!
Why are manhole covers round?
Asking questions like this, have you ever thought of starting up your own cult? I guarantee more money than in writing.
Do you have any upcoming news you’d like to share?
I just sold my second short story to Ellora’s Cave. It is a naughty story entitled ‘Pleasure Satellite’, release date TBD.
And the Fast Five:
Coffee or Chocolate?
Chocolate – was there ever a doubt?
Jewelry: Precious gems or gold?
Precious gems, I love color
Beach or Mountains?
Mountains. Hubby is a beach person. Somehow we remain married
Early Morning or Late Night?
Naturally late night, but as a mom I’m forced to be early morning
Fruit or Veggies?
Can I answer chocolate?
Yes dear, you certainly can
Loving a Fairy Godmother
Tiernan is one of a kind. Beyond the divine dimples, killer blue eyes, and hard muscled body, Tiernan is also the only Fairy Godfather. Most of the Fairy Godmothers have no problem with keeping Tiernan around, but Reina isn’t like most Fairy Godmothers.
Amongst Fairy Godmothers, Reina is the best. Organized, efficient, logical. So why is it when Tiernan is around, all those qualities fly out the window? Reina doesn’t like that one infuriating male makes her lose control, and just wants him gone. Circumstances arise that just might let her get her wish, though not in a way she ever wanted.
Tiernan is given an assignment and told either get a Happily Ever After or he will no longer be a Fairy Godfather. Reina is going with him to supervise, but if Tiernan gets his way, he’ll not only be supervising that luscious stubborn fairy in bed, but also get her to admit Happily Ever Afters also apply to Fairy Godmothers.
Out Now, Available at http://bit.ly/Dani_LFG
“Godfather Tiernan—”
“You can just call me Tiernan,” he interrupted.
She tried again. “Godfather Tiernan—”
“Didn’t Sara just tell you that you had to follow my directions?”
That pushed her over the edge. “Do you truly think you are going to secure a HEA when you haven’t been able to do it yet?”
He let out a derisive snort, but immediately realized that was a huge mistake. Her face lost her usual look of annoyance crossed with bemused tolerance, leaving pure ice in its place. “This is why men should not be allowed into the Godmother program. None of you have any respect for Happily Ever Afters.”
“I never said I didn’t believe in HEAs” he began, but she cut him off.
“Every case you’ve been on tells me you don’t believe, or else you would have tried once, just once, to get one!”
His hands slammed on the table as he leaned across it, his face coming inches from hers. “I’ve never tried because I believe in love! Humans need love so much, who the hell was I to screw up two people in love to get them to HEA status? I could never forgive myself if two people in love missed out on each other because of my actions!”
All anger fled her face, and a hesitant, unsure look came over features. “What do you think a HEA is?”
He drew in a deep breath, sitting down once again. “I think happily ever after is a nice way to end a story, but in the world I remember, it’s a waste.”
Her hand was halfway towards him before she seemed to remember their roles, and she pulled it back to her side. “Love is wonderful, but only love alone is incomplete. You can love someone, but they can ultimately not be right for you. Even in love, people can still be led to believe the worst of each other, still hurt each other, still decide they are better without the other,” she began, her words hesitant, as if she was trying to define to herself what it all meant as much as to him. “But the Happily Ever After is so much more. It’s finding your perfect match, love purified, refined, to such an extent that it can never be sundered. With a Happily Ever After, men can achieve greatness, as can all the generations who follow growing up in its shadow.”
“And you think jeopardizing the surety of a love match now is worth it for only the possibility of a Happily Ever After?” he asked, his voice gentle, reverent, wanting nothing to break this intimacy their words were creating.
“I do. In your view, maybe that seems cruel, but in my view, there is no greater tragedy then two people who almost make this connection but fall short in the end.”
Such a hard exterior to cover such a tender heart. “I’m not sure if I can believe as you do,” he said after considering her words. “But I never want Sara… you… to feel as if I let you down. After we get this situation behind us, I want you proud of the job I do.”
And as his breath caught at the rare smile she bestowed upon him just then, he knew all she had to do was keep smiling at him like that, and anything she wanted, whether it be his beliefs or his blood, he would give her.
Her smile faded, and the moment ended. Reina cloaked herself in her position of authority as she handed him the file that had been sitting on her desk. It was already open to show a picture of a blond girl, pretty and vibrant with a mouth full of straight white teeth, all of which was evident even underneath the dirt. “I looked over this case earlier, before I realized what was going on,” she said. “It is a good, solid HEA case. There are several challenges to overcome, but also several sources of help for the client. It is about as perfect as a case can be for this purpose, as evenly balanced as I’ve ever seen. No one can accuse the council of favoring either side. The girl’s name is Cinderella. She lives with an abusive Stepmother and two rotten spoiled stepsisters. She is a very kind, generous girl—though a little too much of a doormat, if you ask me—but outside of that, not really any other character flaws. She is much beloved in her village, children and small animals flock to her daily. In short, we exist to give HEAs to mortals like her.”
Tiernan read the file quickly, then flipped the page and took in the photo of the male who would supply the HEA. “A prince, huh? That’s pretty standard.”
“Indeed, but for the most part, we don’t mess with the classics here.” The pointed look she gave him told him he was one of the exceptions, and she wasn’t necessarily thrilled about it. Ah yes, completely back to normal.
He returned that look with a flirty smile. “I used to serve royalty, Godmother Reina. Believe me when I say, sometimes the large crown is to compensate for something.”
“Oh really? Well, I assume we can say the same thing about your sword, eh, knight?”
Maybe not completely back to normal after all. The second those words passed her lips her eyes went saucer wide, and Tiernan couldn’t say who was more shocked, him or Reina herself. There was no way he was letting this pass. His voice coming out a low growl, he replied, “Why, Reina, I never knew you were interested in the size of my sword. Anytime you want a private viewing, I will be more than happy to oblige.”
Out Now, Available at http://bit.ly/Dani_LFG
Danielle Monsch is a Romantic Geek Girl Writing in a Fantasy World. Born to the pothole laden streets of Pittsburgh Pa, she now resides in the Pacific Northwest, where they tell her that the sun will eventually be seen, but she really doesn’t believe them. She has two beautiful kids who do everything in their power to make sure she doesn’t make her daily word count, and a hubby who is her greatest cheerleader as well as her tech support.
And last, but not least, where can we find you on the internet:
www.facebook.com/DanielleMonsch
www.castlesandguns.com – group blog I’m part of focused on Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, and Paranormal
www.plotmamas.com – group blog I’m part of on the joy and strain of mixing motherhood and writing
