Category Archives: Guests
Maggie Tideswell and A Convenient Marriage
Please help me welcome author Maggie Tideswell to the blog today. She’s got some goodies to tell us about.
A Convenient Marriage, releasing October 13, 2016!
The idea of two complete strangers getting hitched has always intrigued me, for one simple reason—why would they do such a thing? Could such a relationship succeed? By successful relationship, I understand not only the longevity of the marriage…but is it possible for the participants to actually fall in love with each other in such a strange arrangement? Love is found in the most unexpected places.
A Convenient Marriage grew over a number of years. The basic story was simple—a divorcee with two children, an ex-husband being difficult over visitation, as well as a fiancée unable to commit. Holly’s friends suggested that she needed a new husband, placing an advert in the paper for one behind her back. Joshua was struck by a simple plan when he saw the ad and responded to it.
Why would Holly marry a man she’d never met, and why would Joshua respond to an ad for a husband, then actually propose to a woman he had never clapped eyes on? So, in came the dawdling fiancée, Nicole. Both Holly and Joshua were justified in not planning the marriage to be a real one, because they each had an agenda of their own, but Nicole was the injured party. For their plan to succeed, they had to marry—the real kind, down to that all-important piece of paper married—and they had to seem to be totally in love with each other. That it is all a scam, only they would know.
And here comes the ‘but’. Holly and Joshua’s plans go awry from the moment they meet on the steps of the chapel where their fake marriage is to take place, when both recognize the immediate attraction. Back at Joshua’s wine estate—yes, he is a rich landowner where Holly expected him to be a pauper—Holly meets Joshua’s mother, his brother and sister-in-law, and Nicole, the fiancée, who found out about Joshua’s duplicity in a room full of people. No one can blame Nicole for being a tad upset. Or can they? To add to Holly’s woes, she seems to have acquired a ‘ghost’ demanding she tell a story.
Amidst Nicole’s shenanigans, Joshua’s mother’s disapproval, Holly’s ex’s aggression, and the ghost following Holly around, will these two accomplish what they set out to do? Or will life get in the way?
Joshua’s and Holly’s journey through the uncharted seas of a blind marriage, where no rules apply, is a stormy one. Place your order here:
About the Author
Maggie Tideswell lives in Johannesburg—South Africa, with her husband, Gareth. She began writing when her kids were still very young,
squeezing a few paragraphs at a time between the hectic schedule of raising three children, and working full time in the catering industry. She wrote many books before considering having them published. Now that the children have all made lives for themselves, there is more time for writing.
After much experimentation, Maggie writes passionate paranormal romance, of varying levels of heat. The paranormal, things that happen for which there are no logical explanations and ghosts are of particular interest to Maggie. What events in a person’s life would prevent that person from ‘resting’ after death? The ‘Old Religion’ is another special interest. And love, of course. Why do people fall in love? What keeps them together for a lifetime when so many relationships fail?
Maggie’s advice to aspirant novelists is two-fold. Never give up, and write every day. Writing is a craft that has to be honed with practice. And the only way to practice writing is by doing it. And a bonus, never stop reading your favorite genre. Reading it and writing it is the only training for a writer.
“Maggie Tideswell’s latest novel, A Convenient Marriage, will have you turning pages as her characters cope with a marriage of convenience, well-meaning but nosy friends, a meddling ghost, jealous exes, and more. My advice: Make room on your Keepers shelf for this story!”(Loree Lough, best-selling author of 107 award-winning books, including Harlequin Heartwarming’s “Those Marshall Boys” series.)
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Nab Jami Gray’s SHADOW’S EDGE Free for a Limited Time! #freeread #uf #pnr
Nab Jami Gray’s SHADOW’S EDGE Free for a Limited Time! #freeread #uf #pnr
“This fantastic paranormal action novel is quite possibly the best book I’ve read this year. I could not put it down, and had to exercise serious self-control to keep from staying up all night to finish it.“ – The Romance Reviews, 5/5 stars
“This book has everything in it, you have your Fey, Demons, Witches/Wizards, and Shifters. What more could you ask for?! Plus you have a great story to follow. The story and characters flowed so well together, it was like watching a movie in my head! Book 2 here I come!!” – Paranormal Romance & Authors That Rock, 5/5 Fangs
SHADOW’S EDGE: BOOK 1 OF THE KYN KRONICLES
Everyone fears what hunts in the shadows—especially the monsters…
When the supernatural lurks in the shadows of the mundane, hunting monsters requires unique skills, like those of Raine McCord. A series of deaths threatens to reveal the Kyn community and forces her to partner with the sexy Gavin Durand.
As the trail leads to the foundation haunting Raine’s childhood, she and Gavin must unravel lies and betrayals to discover not only each other, but the emerging threat to them and the entire magical community.
Now available Free in eBook format at: AMAZON / BARNES AND NOBLE / BLACK OPAL BOOKS / ARe / SMASHWORDS / iBOOKS / KOBO / SCRIBD
READ AN EXCERPT
Ryder stepped in front of her, stopping her short. “Damn, Natasha is never wrong,” he teased, running an appraising look over her.
(Raine) didn’t have the patience to deal with cocky little demon frat boys and cursed herself for asking, “About what?”
He gave a low, evil laugh. “You, of course.” He stepped closer, deliberately invading her personal space. She froze, while her muscles vibrated slightly as if ready to strike. Unaware of how close danger stood, Ryder continued, “You like to live dangerously.”
She gave him a sardonic look. “I hate to be bored.”
“She didn’t mention you’re another prime example of why you don’t have to be male to have stone cold balls.” He pushed, testing her, like some naughty child. But she wasn’t anyone’s mother.
Raising her gaze, she met his smirk. From the up close and personal view she currently held, she saw the signs of latent handsomeness. His ability to grow into that promise was currently up for debate. Only a breath separated them and in her right hand, she held her wrist blade a hair’s breath away from his groin area. Her voice dropped a notch, “If you don’t want to lose yours, you’ll step back, little boy.”
His eyes flamed red for a second as he looked down to see her blade perilously close to his own set. He stepped back, but not before flashing a taunting grin and raising his hands to indicate his was unarmed. The tension between them broke when Xander called her over to see what she discovered.
Heading to the tracker, Raine shook her head. She hated dealing with demons. They were such a pain in the ass, always pushing the limits until someone bled. Frat boy from Hell better have some serious skills or when this was over, she and the demon queen were going to go a few rounds.
Now available Free in eBook format at: AMAZON / BARNES AND NOBLE / BLACK OPAL BOOKS / ARe / SMASHWORDS / iBOOKS / KOBO / SCRIBD
If you want to play in the shadows, continue the adventure with Jami Gray’s Kyn Kronicles:
Jami Gray is the award winning, multi-published author of the Urban Fantasy series, The Kyn Kronicles, and the Paranormal Romantic Suspense series, PSY-IV Teams. She can be soothed with coffee and chocolate. Surrounded by Star Wars obsessed males and two female labs moonlighting as the Fur Minxes, she escapes by playing with the voices in her head.
Come stalk Jami at any of these fine locations:
Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Google+ / Amazon
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Allison Merritt stops by with a hot demon sheriff and a Giveaway @allison_merritt
Please help me welcome the lovely Allison Merritt to the blog today. She was not only gracious enough to answer some questions, but she’s sharing her HOT! upcoming release, and giving away some goodies.
Peeps! We have a HOT DEMON SHERIFF 😀 Read on to find out more.
Allison, thanks so much for stopping in with us. And for letting us delve into your mind. First, tell me about this hot demon. If the book became a movie, which celebrities would play the characters?
If Wystan became a movie, I’d love to see Henry Cavill play him. Man, does he have the jawline and the muscles for being a badass demon-slaying hottie sheriff? Yes, yes, he does. And for Rhia, I’d like to pick Anne Hathaway. She’s so talented, and I think she’d really capture Rhia’s personality.
I’ll just say YUM! at Henry Cavill and we can move on 😉
What hobby do you enjoy when not writing?
I got a late start on watching Game of Thrones, seriously, I’m just now on season two, but I’m so into this. It makes me want to write fantasy romance. I love movies. It’s not unusual for me to bring home a different DVD ever couple of days to watch. When I’m not on my bum, I like to walk and take photographs of nature.
It has a great storyline, love the angst, LOL.
What’s your favorite comfort food?
Lemon meringue pie. I call it solid sunshine, because that’s what sunshine would taste like if you could get a mouthful—you know, if it was a thing you could taste and not get horribly burned when you ate it.
What’s your favorite color? Do you decorate your space and/or dress in this color often?
It’s blue. I have more blue shirts and a couple of dresses than normal. I told my husband not to let me buy any more blue clothes, but it just keeps happening somehow. It’s not my fault cute clothes come in blue. We should complain to the manufacturers.
Yay for blue! the best color ever.
If you could time-travel, where would you go and why?
I have an awful hankering to meet Nikola Tesla. You know the guy invented a way to get electricity without using all that crap Edison did? I curse Edison every time I get an electric bill. Tesla seems like he was a really interesting man. Little is really known about him, but I’d sure like to talk to him.
Why are manhole covers round?
They were inspired by stroopwafels. Have you ever had one of those? They’re an amazing thin wafer cookie filled with caramel syrup. They’re fantastic with ice cream.
Do you have any upcoming news you’d like to share?
Just a couple of months ago, I submitted Eban (The Heckmasters, Book #2) to my editor and I’m pleased to announce it’s coming out in April 2015. I just got the cover. I promise, between that and the story, everyone will be blown away.
Fast Five:
Coffee or Chocolate? Chocolate
Jewelry: Precious gems or gold? Gems
Beach or Mountains? Beach
Early Morning or Late Night? Late night
Fruit or Veggies? Fruit
About the Book:
Title: Wystan (The Heckmasters)
Length: 228 pages
Pubisher: Samhain Publishing
Publication date: October 21, 2014
Buy links:
Samhain Amazon B&N Google Books
Blurb:
Her search for safety lands her in a totally new kind of danger.
The Heckmasters, Book 1
Certain that an ad for a job in a small New Mexico Territory town is the answer to her prayers, Nebraska schoolteacher Rhia Duke packs her sister into a rickety wagon and heads west.
Except when they reach the near-deserted town, she learns the truth. There is no job, no future, and no welcome in the bleak blue eyes of the handsome sheriff.
The minute Rhia’s runaway team thunders into town, Wystan Heckmaster feels the change in the air. One of three sons of a demon who dared love a human, he keeps watch over a Pit guarded by seven seals, and slays any Hellbound demon that attempts to free the master imprisoned within.
With a gut full of regret and a forgotten town filled with reformed demons, Wystan is certain of one thing: he can’t be the man Rhia needs. But when the truth behind Rhia’s flight from Nebraska comes to light, Wystan must open his soul—and pray there’s enough love between them to overcome the darkness rising from the Pit.
Warning: Contains a take-no-prisoners sheriff, a woman who can’t outrun her supernatural secrets, and a dusty town where hope is as thin as dust in the wind. Author recommends keeping a glass of cool spring water at your elbow while reading.
Excerpt:
Something changed in the air the moment the wagon crossed the town’s border. Too early to be a supply train, and there was no way in hell it was visitors. Berner didn’t host town fairs, theatre troupes, peddlers, or bible thumpers.
Wystan Heckmaster slapped his battered Stetson on his head, collected the keys to the jail, then stepped out the door. The first thing he saw was a pretty woman with hair the color of maple sugar—a rich brownish-blonde. The frown on her face spoke volumes, and the air around her pronounced trouble. She made a straight path for him.
“Mr. Heckmaster. Or should I call you Sheriff? Or Mayor? I need to discuss the ad in the Lancaster County Republican with you. Someone placed an ad, but your brother tells me there is no school here. I’m sure there has to be a mistake. There’s only one Berner in New Mexico Territory. I’m very capable at reading maps. If I wasn’t, I would be ashamed to call myself a teacher.”
He doubted she had taken more than two or three breaths during the speech. If she made talking in rambling paragraphs a habit, no wonder she looked so peaked.
“Teacher?” He glanced along the street, but it was deserted as usual. “Lady, we don’t have a school here. Certainly no need of a teacher.”
Her hands balled into fists that settled on her hips. The dress she wore was patched—the egg yolk yellow faded into something even more disgusting. It had little flowers dotting the material, but they looked as worn as her scuffed black boots.
“Then what was the purpose of placing an ad in the Lancaster County Republican?”
She spoke with the fierceness of a mama bear warning predators away from her cubs.
Wystan reached into his shirt pocket and drew out a toothpick. “I didn’t place any ad in any Lancaster County anything.” He looked past her, expecting Eban to saunter up the street. Eban had to be the brother she’d referred to since Tell was still on the trail.
“Someone did,” she insisted. She fished a crumpled and much-folded piece of newsprint out of the pocket hidden by the folds of her skirt. “See? Right here it says, ‘School teacher wanted for spring term at Berner Schoolhouse. Wages paid based on experience. Room and board provided. Apply in person at City Hall, Berner, New Mexico Territory.’ I’m sure my eyes don’t deceive me.”
Wystan stared at the clipping, then back at the woman. A galaxy of freckles spattered across her nose and cheekbones, making her look younger than her eyes said she was. Full figured and sure as shittin’ a grown woman. The wariness and worry darkening her hazel eyes gave her away as one with a lot of trouble on her plate.
“I can read.”
She pulled the ad away from his face, folded it, and returned it to her pocket. “Where would you suggest I look for an explanation, Mr. Heckmaster?”
Fussy little thing. “I assure you that no one in this town did. There’s been a mistake. Sorry to inconvenience you, Miss Schoolteacher. Now turn around and head home.”
A flush colored her cheeks. “I can’t head home! I have no home to return to. My little sister and my friend are waiting at the doctor’s office for me to straighten this mess out. The ad says that room and board will be provided. I’d expected to move into a room, sir.”
“You left them with Eban?” That explained his absence.
“Beryl is ill, Sheriff. This is the first town we’ve seen in days and it was past time for her to get some attention.” Despair crept into her voice.
Wystan shifted his weight and transferred the toothpick to the other side of his mouth. “Eban’s not exactly trained in human medicine.”
The woman’s mouth opened into an O. She shook her head and seemed to regain her senses. “He’s a veterinarian? He seemed certain he could help Beryl.”
Wystan cleared his throat. “Sure, animal doctor. I’m sorry for your misfortune, lady, but as you can see, Berner’s about run into the ground. There’s nothing here for you or your friend. Might be best to move along.”
She seemed to deflate. “Move along.” Her lips moved, softly forming the words, but it was as though she didn’t comprehend them. “We’ll move along, right down the trail into the next town where there won’t be any teaching jobs either. Sylvie, Beryl, and I will starve to death on the side of the road with no one in the world to care.”
Buy links:
Samhain Amazon B&N Google Books
Click on the link for the Giveaway
About the Author:
A love of reading inspired Allison Merritt to pursue her dream of becoming an author who writes historical, paranormal and fantasy romances, often combining the sub-genres. She lives in a small town in the Ozark Mountains with her husband and dogs. When she’s not writing or reading, she hikes in national parks and conservation areas.
Allison graduated from College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri with a B.A. in mass communications that’s gathering dust after it was determined that she’s better at writing fluff than hard news.
Social media links:
Blog – http://havenovelwilledit.blogspot.com
Facebook – http://facebook.com/allisonmwrites
Twitter – http://twitter.com/allison_merritt
G+ – http://gplus.to/allisonmerritt
Goodreads – http://goodreads.com/AllisonMWrites
Pinterest – http://www.pinterest.com/allisonmwrites/
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Shadow’s Moon Cover Reveal by @jamigrayauthor
“Shadow’s Moon is an excellent addition to the Kyn Kronicles series. Gray is really coming into her own…I couldn’t put it down once I picked it up. It held my interest from beginning to end.” – Taylor Jones, Black Opal Reviewer
“Shadow’s Moon is riveting. I was caught up in it from the very first word, and I simply could not put it down. I read right through to the end, finishing at 4 in the morning. I can’t wait for the next one in the series. Gray has turned into a first class author of paranormal thrillers.” – Regan Murphy, Black Opal Reviewer
SHADOW’S MOON: BOOK 3 OF THE KYN KRONICLES, 2013 Golden Claddaugh Finalist
Even a wild heart can be broken…
A blonde, a brunette and a monster walk into a bar and all hell breaks loose.
It should have been the start of a bad joke, but days from a full moon Xander Cade, Tracker for the Northwest Motoki Pack, finds nothing funny about confronting an enraged Shifter in a crowded Portland nightclub filled with unsuspecting humans. The resulting carnage frays an already thin veil of secrecy shielding the supernatural Kyn community from public scrutiny, and ensures she can’t escape the one man she’s been determined to avoid, her Alpha and mate, Warrick Vidis. Dominating, protective and compelling, Warrick threatens her individuality like no other.
As the Northwest Alpha wolf, compromise isn’t in Warrick Vidis’s vocabulary, but when his reluctant mate, Xander Cade, refuses to leave off the hunt for a killer, he has no qualms using whoever or whatever necessary to protect her or his pack. A series of unusual deaths involving lone wolves, along with anonymous threats against him and his Pack, begin to jeopardize his normal steely control. Add in Xander’s continual reluctance to fully accept their Soul bond, and the line between intellect and instinct begins to blur, leaving him wondering if one woman’s love and acceptance will be enough to save both man and wolf.
As the danger escalates, threatening not just their Pack but those closest to them, Warrick and Xander must find a way to trust each other and accept their rare bond or risk losing everything-their pack, their friends and each other.
Now available in eBook and Print at: AMAZON / BARNES AND NOBLE / BLACK OPAL BOOKS / ARe / SMASHWORDS / iBOOKS
READ AN EXCERPT
Silence descended between her and Warrick, stretching until it played along her nerves. Slowly, like a door creaking open, he began to loosen his end of the bond. Her wolf began to settle as it sensed his. He studied her, and she could see both the wolf and man looking back. He reached out, but she stepped out of the way and caught a fleeting sense of hurt and confusion. But she couldn’t allow his touch to weaken her resolve.
“Why are you running scared?” His question was stiff.
“Let me ask you something,” she said. When he gave a short nod, she continued. “Why did you bond us?”
“You were dying.” His voice was gruff, almost angry. “I—we need you.”
Need, not love. His choice of words scraped over her heart. “Need?” she asked around the tightness of her chest.
“If we lost you, the pack would be devastated.”
“What about you, Warrick?” she whispered.
“An alpha can’t have a weakness, Xander,” he said, searing her with the brutal truth.
“So you consider a mate a weakness?” Oh, this was just getting better and better. Why had she thought she could make this relation- ship work?
“Did you forget what happened with Chavez?” he gritted out, rubbing the heel of his hand over his chest.
His movement had her realizing she was projecting her pain through their bond. Furious with herself, and with him, she reeled in her emotions. “Chavez’s mate was crazy.”
“He covered for her because he loved her, and now his pack is in upheaval.”
She wanted to punch him. The urge was so powerful, she had to curl her hands into the leather of her bike’s seat behind her. “So it’s not a mate that you consider a weakness, but the emotion behind it?” she pushed.
“No,” he growled. “You should never give an alpha wolf someone of his own.”
Confusion momentarily overrode her anger. “Why?”
His lips thinned and his jaw tightened. “An alpha is the ultimate protector. Protection of our packs is a natural directive. We will do whatever is needed to protect what is ours. Even if they don’t want to be protected.”
“Even a mate?” She kept her tone careful as she began to get an inkling as to why he was so damned determined to keep his heart out of her reach.
“To protect a mate some would burn the world,” Warrick answered. “Even at the expense of our pack. Chavez is proof of that.”
“Warrick—” she started.
He snarled and ran a hand through his hair in obvious frustration. “My wolf recognizes you as our mate.” Possessiveness stormed down their bond confirming his words.
Mate. A deep thrill hummed through her at his claim, but her heart ached because there was more to it. Dreading his answer, she asked, “And the man?”
“Is torn.” His face was grim. “Claiming you protects and strengthens the pack, but increases the danger to you.” His and me was left unsaid.
“You think you can claim me, but keep me at arm’s length? As if that will somehow keep me safe?”
He didn’t answer, but she could feel the belief in his screwed up logic. She and her wolf took exception to his assumption, and there was no stifling her growl. “I don’t need you to keep me safe, Warrick. I need you to accept me for who I am.”
Feminine fury rose and burned against his male arrogance. Her challenge was the last straw. She practically heard his control break. Swearing, he trapped her between his body and the bike before she could blink.
Being caged brought her wolf snarling to the forefront. Claws broke through and she swiped out, leaving thin bloody lines across one cheek before he captured her hands in his. He snarled back and took her lips with savage intensity. Ravaging her mouth, he took sharp bites of her lower lip before laving the stings with his tongue.
Available in eBook and Print now at: AMAZON / BARNES AND NOBLE / BLACK OPAL BOOKS / ARe / SMASHWORDS / iBOOKS
Jami Gray is the award winning, multi-published author of the Urban Fantasy series, The Kyn Kronicles, and the Paranormal Romantic Suspense series, PSY-IV Teams. Her latest release, SHADOW’S MOON was a Golden Claddaugh Finalist, and the first in her newest series, HUNTED BY THE PAST, hits shelves in July 2014. She is surrounded by Star Wars obsessed males and a male lab, who masquerades as a floor rug as she plays with the voices in her head.
Come stalk Jami at any of these fine locations:
Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Google+ / Amazon
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KC Klein on Inspiration and a Giveaway @kckleinbooks
Please help me welcome the lovely KC Klein to the blog today, talking about a writer’s inspiration. Also, make sure you leave a comment and your email to be entered in her giveaway : )
Finding Inspiration In Texas
First, I wanted to thank Amber for allowing me to come on her blog and do a guest post. What better place to talk about my latest book in the Texas Fever series, Hustlin’ Texas, than at a blog dedicated to romance? Amber has been so kind to work around my schedule and all my last minute postponements. Thank you so much Amber for working with me. Your patience has been amazing. J
A few years ago, before I even thought about writing a series, I started thinking about a sweet little love story that was centered on a headstrong young woman who had fallen for the cowboy next door. Add to it my heroine’s absolute passion for horses and a desperate rancher, and I had myself a story. So naturally when I started writing, I had to place my book in a small town in Texas. Well, the problem was I live in Arizona and had n
ever been to Texas.
I was grateful to learn that the southern part of Texas has similar landscaping as Arizona and after interviewing and following around some local horse ranchers I was able to pull off a realistic Texas setting. But…I still felt the need to visit Texas and get the feel of the local flavor.
My best friend, Pam Silva, took pity on me and invited me to stay with her family who lived in the small town of Whitesboro, Texas.
I learned a lot. I toured both small and large working horse ranches, saw long-horned cattle up close, found out in Texas that just about everything can be fried…catfish, hushpuppies, okra, sweet hushpuppies, and that no one I saw seemed as interested in pool like the woman on my cover. (What a shame.)
I also found that I wasn’t the first author, by far, to be inspired by Texas. In the Stockyard Museum in Fort Worth there is a wedding dress on display called the “Bad Luck Wedding Dress.” Due to technical difficulties I lost my pictures of the dress, but found a photo and the history of the gown on the museum website. Though you can’t tell from this photo all I have to say is that the women back then must have been very, very tiny.
Alongside the dress was a romance novel by Geralyn Dawson who was inspired to write an entire series around the legend of this dress. Here’s her book cover. 
How cool is that to find your book kept in the Stockyard Museum alongside the actual dress that inspired your book—if only. (Insert heartfelt sigh here)
Well, maybe my book won’t make it into a museum, but I hope it will make its way into readers’ homes and hearts.
Thank you for letting me share a tiny bit of what inspired me in Texas. Below is the blurb and teaser of my latest book, Hustlin’ Texas. I hope you enjoy it. If you do, leave a comment below with your email address and you’ll be entered into a drawing for an e-copy of Hustlin’ Texas.
Thanks again and happy reading.
Excerpt
Jett nodded, then glanced around the crowded bar. When he turned his gaze back on her, a person would be hard pressed to describe his eyes as anything sweet or candy like. “I was hoping you’d be up for a little game of nine-ball.”
Nikki took a sip from her beer and raised her brow in question. Nine-ball was the hustler’s game. It was short and quick, without all the rules of straight pool.
He nodded his head toward the tables in the back. “I heard you played.”
“Then you heard wrong.” She took another sip, eying him the whole time. “I’ve given it up for Lent.”
The corner of his mouth hinted at a smile. “Found God, have you?”
“Among other things.”
Jett glanced to the tables, then back to her. “One game. No money.”
Nikki shook her head. “I don’t play for fun. No thrill in it.”
He swallowed, and she could see his jaw work. “Then we’ll play for a favor. A debt. You up for a little more red in your ledger?”
She didn’t want to ask, not really, but gambling was too deep in her blood not to hear the stakes. “What’s the favor?”
He smiled, not the golden boy smile she’d come to know, but instead one that lacked any charm at all. “Well, Texas, that’s the thrill part. You don’t know until the end. Anything goes. No boundaries.”
Her heart did a funky jump-start in her chest at the possibilities, but her game face was ice-cold. “No limits?”
“None. Unless that’s too much heat for you? We could place some ground rules if you want to play it safe.”
Nikki knew what Jett was doing. It was so obvious, and yet, there was that achingly familiar thrill that zipped up her spine and buzzed in her blood. Some families were predisposed toward red hair or near-sightedness. The Logans were addicts. Throw a dart at the family tree and you’d hit a vice—drinking, smoking, shopping. You name it, and the Logans could turn anything into a compulsion. But really, under all the addictions, there was only one. One vice that was as indicative of a Logan as dark hair, brown skin, and blue eyes.
It was very basic, really. The Logans were gamblers.
There were stories as far back as her grandfather, if stories in the Logan family could be believed, who won his first car—a 1950 Cadillac—on the toss of a coin. Then there was her father, Dakota, who’d bet on every sports game invented, and even ones that hadn’t, like golf without clubs. Her father had once bet a hundred dollars on his ability to throw a golf ball through the eighteen holes. Legend had it, he’d won that hundred, but lost the money in the same night in an “I can piss into a can from the second story” contest.
So Jett knew what he was doing. And Nikki was smart enough to know this was more than a simple favor and way more than a simple game of pool. She also knew something else. Jett was no match for her in this game.
She hid her smile with a sip of her drink. The thrill of a “sure thing” was headier than any shot of tequila, more exciting than a leather-jacketed man on a motorcycle.
“Oh, I can take the heat,” she said.
“But can you handle this much heat?”
“Oh, I can handle it. Because we both know I can beat you with one hand tied behind my back and blindfolded.”
His eyebrows arched. “Then you’d best start figuring out what your favor will be.”
Nikki put down her bottle, no longer needing the buzz. “Already have.” Her car fixed…for starters. “You really think you can beat me at pool?”
God, he was so cocky. It was almost tragic.
His eyes narrowed and there was absolutely no humor in his voice when he spoke. “Oh, I’m betting on it.”
BIO: KC Klein has lived most of her life with her head in the clouds and her nose buried in a book. She did stop reading long enough to make a home with a real life hero, her husband, for over sixteen years. A mother of two children, she spends her time slaying dragons, saving princesses, and championing the belief in the happily-ever-after. Her debut novel, Dark Future, is a finalist in the 2012 Prism contest and has been honored with a reviewer’s choice award. Her other titles include a sci- fi, 2012 RONE award winning romance anthology, Hotter on the Edge, and the first two books in her Texas Fever contemporary romance series, Texas Wide Open, and Hustlin’ Texas. KC loves to hear from readers and can be found desperately pounding away on her laptop in yoga pants and leopard slippers or more conveniently at www.kckleinbooks.com. Sign for her quarterly newsletter for updates on her latest releases, sales, and free giveaways.
Blurb for Hustlin’ Texas:
“Sassy, sexy, fun, but sweet at heart, KC Klein knows how to spin a tall Texas yarn.”—Lori Wilde
“A sexy read. KC Klein’s hero is as hot as a Texan summer’s day. KC is an author to watch..” —Rachel Gibson
Only one person in Oak Groves is happy to see bad girl Nikki Logan back in town…
Oak Groves’ most beloved bachelor, Jett Avery, lives by a simple set of rules. Getting involved with a complicated woman isn’t one of them. He learned that the hard way two years ago when he spent one of the most incredible nights of his life with Nikki Logan. But then she hightailed it out of town, never to be seen again—until now. It might be time to break one of those rules…
Picking up the pieces of her life, Nikki is back in Oak Groves, face to face with the one man she’s done her best to forget. But she has her reasons for being here—and they don’t include winding up in bed with Jett. Especially since he’ll never forgive her once he finds out the truth about why she’s back…
Buy links for Hustlin’ Texas:
Amazon: http://kckleinbooks.com/HustlinTexas
Barns and Nobel: http://kckleinbooks.com/BNHustlinTexas
Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/hustlin-texas
Blurb for TEXAS WIDE OPEN:
“A tortured hero, a love that defies distance and time…this is a book you won’t soon forget.” –Cat Johnson
Katie Harris loved growing up on a ranch. She had her horse, the beautiful Texas prairie, and Cole Logan, the cowboy next door. But there are a lot of secrets hidden under a Texas sky…
Katie always knew she’d marry Cole one day—until he broke her dreams and her heart. But now that Katie’s father is sick, she’s back home, older, wiser and nowhere near the love-sick fool she once was.
Cole knows Katie doesn’t want anything to do with him. But after so many years, he can’t pretend she’s no more than a neighbor. Holding his ground was hard enough when she was seventeen. Now that she’s her own woman, Cole’s heart doesn’t stand a chance…
“Passionate, gritty and fast paced…with a hot blooded, honorable hero to make every woman’s knees go weak.”—Diane Whiteside
Buy Links for TEXAS WIDE OPEN:
Amazon: http://kckleinbooks.com/TexasWideOpenAmazon
Barns and Noble: http://kckleinbooks.com/TexasWideOpenBN
Blurb for DARK FUTURE:
A woman caught between two futures…
Awakened in the middle of the night by a future version of herself, Kris Davenport is given a mission: go travel in time to save the world–and his life. Of course, her future self doesn’t tell her who he is just sends her into the darkness and straight into an alien invasion.
…must choose between the man who has her heart…
He turns out to be ConRad Smith, the callous, untrusting military commander of Earth’s army and the world’s last defense. There’s only one way for Smith to know for sure if this strange woman is an alien spy–slice her throat. Except, he didn’t anticipate the desire he would feel as he interrogates the hot-tempered, warm-blooded woman.
…or the fate that saves the world.
As Kris and ConRad struggle to trust each other in a world on the brink of destruction, they each will have to face the ultimate choice of whether to fight or die… survive or forgive.
Buy Links for DARK FUTURE:
Amazon e-book: http://kckleinbooks.com/AmazonDarkFuture
Amazon print book: http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Future-Kc-Klein/dp/0062117041
Avon Impulse: http://www.avonromance.com/buy/dark-future-epb/
Barns and Noble: http://kckleinbooks.com/BNDarkFuture
Website: www.kckleinbooks.com
Blog: http://kckleinbooks.tumblr.com
WordPress: http://kckleinbooks.com/writing-from-the-edge-blog/
Links To Social Media:
Twitter: @kckleinbooks
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorKCKlein
Pintrest: http://pinterest.com/kckleinbooks
Amazon Author page: http://kckleinbooks.com/AmazonAuthorPage
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5163507.K_C_Klein
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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.
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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!
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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)
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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):
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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.
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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
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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 🙂
****NOW FREE at all E-tailers****
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 🙂
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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
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Please welcome Cindy Carroll ~ and Giveaway
I’m honored to have Cindy Carroll with us today. Author and teacher, she has an upcoming class on how screenwriting can help fiction writers. Check it out : ) http://www.writersonlineclasses.com/?page_id=592
Also, comment here to win a lecture packet from Cindy.
And, action!
First I want to say thank you to Amber for allowing me to guest blog here to kick off my blog tour! I love writing novels and scripts. And I love talking about how screenwriting techniques can improve your novel.
Action. There’s a reason it’s not lights, camera, passive. How boring would that be? Action is what movies and television are all about. They’re moving pictures, so they have to move. Of course there are two kinds of action. But I’m not talking action movies here with explosions, car chases, gun fights. Though I do love all that stuff. I’m talking active writing. Whether you write novels or scripts you have to keep the writing active. Avoid passive voice as much as possible.
In scripts those sections of description describing the action are actually labelled action in screenwriting softwares. Too much describing what’s going on slows the pace and lessens the white space. Scripts should have lots of white space. Script readers actually skip over large chunks of action. Novel readers would never do that would they? Uh, yes, they would.
Novels need white space too. Just because novels aren’t moving pictures doesn’t mean they can be passive. Lots of narrative in passive voice, not enough dialogue, too much introspection make for a slow paced book.
What can you learn from reading scripts and watching movies that can help your novels? Here’s an example of action that sets the scene from one of my favourite action movies – True Lies.
EXT. CHATEAU – NIGHT
The driveway and motorcourt are filled with cars. A formal dress party is in progress… a private reception for a middle-eastern dignitary. Tuxedoed men escort their diamond-encrusted ladies through the huge front doors, where they doff their overcoats and are politely scanned with hand-held metal detectors by white gloved security staffers.
The walled perimeter of the house runs along the lake, forming a kind of rampart. There is an opening, to a kind of waterway or canal, which connects to the private docks inside the grounds. There is a steel grating across the opening. The bars disappear down into the thin ice of early winter.
With the house visible BG, we CRANE DOWN below the parapet wall along which a guard is a white exposure-suit is walking… down along the dark wall to the grating… TILTING DOWN to see a glow pulsing under the ice.
Note how the action isn’t overdone. There isn’t a whole lot of description to set the scene but can you picture it? Can you picture the scene if you haven’t seen the movie? If you have seen the movie do you remember this scene? In screenwriting the writer puts in just enough detail to paint a picture but the rest of the details – the colour of the walls, what’s on the table in the character’s living room, what kind of TV they have – are decided on by other departments. Painting too detailed a picture may let the reader picture exactly what you, the writer, envisioned but it doesn’t let the reader use her imagination at all.
I talk about action and a whole lot more in my Is That Hollywood Calling? – How Thinking Like a Screenwriter Can Improve Your Novel. Comment here to be entered to win a lecture packet. If you don’t win, don’t worry! There’s still time to register for the class at: http://www.writersonlineclasses.com/?page_id=592
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Cindy
http://www.cindycarroll.com/blog
http://www.facebook.com/AuthorCindyCarroll
Amber Kallyn 