Rachel Rossano's Blog, page 31

Publishing News!

Exchange is making its ebook debut October 1st on Smashwords and Amazon!
ExchangeA Science Fiction Short Story

Isolated on a distant planet, she is incarcerated for a crime she doesn't recall. She has no name, no idea where she came from, or why she is injected with drugs daily to hold these vital facts from her grasp. Despite small rebellions, she wastes away, worn and losing hope of ever being whole again.

Then he arrived. Claiming to hold the answers burned daily from her brain, he offers her a way out. But at what cost?

The trailer is on YouTube. You can read excerpts here and here. Stop by this Saturday for another.

I am eagerly watching for the cover designer's email. :)

Now to update you all on everything else I have been doing.

- Since the last update, I have received the final comments on The Crown of Anavrea from my beta readers. I still haven't gotten around to going over them (planned on doing it today, but other things came up), but I will have that done soon.

- I have begun editing The King of Anavrea (Ireic and Lirth for those of you who have been around a long time). There is a long way to go since it is over 50% longer right off, but hopefully I will move smoothly and swiftly considering it was more recently written.


- I finished off another short story. Inspired by the image on the left, it is a Medieval tale of a young woman at the mercy of her cruel half-brother. He betroths her to a man she hasn't met, but she still clings to the hope for a man who will love her in Word and Deed. I am still working on it. :) I plan on sharing excerpts on coming Saturdays.

- In other news, I have been tackling other projects like a book cover and a book trailer for some clients. I am hoping to have more similar come my way. Learning new things and producing things that help others has been a great experience.

To sum up, stay tuned. Exciting things are on the horizon. :)

- Rachel Rossano

Question: What do you think of the cover for Word and Deed?

Sweet Saturday Sample

Welcome back for another Sweet Saturday Sample of Exchange, a science fiction short story soon to be released. If you missed the first installment, you are welcome to catch up here. So, continuing where we left off...

"Down, female, 7682R."

The droid's grating mechanical voice invaded the borders of my mind, setting my teeth hard against each other. A final blast of icy air from the suite's jets meant to encourage me to move faster did the exact opposite. 

The rebel in me itched to defy the automaton until a humanoid showed her face. However, the penalty wasn't worth the temporary high of asserting my own will. My skin cringed at the memory of the waspmice. Dark pock-like scars still marred my legs from last time. I clamored out of the DS and padded barefoot across the slick floor to the cleansing stations on the far side of the room.

The android, a bulky P-73, stalked behind, whining through its exhaust hose. It probably worried I would throw another fit or fall into hysterics.  I was allowed to remember a few bits from day to day, like incidents of rebellion and punishments. With drugs and therapy, they attempted to erase the rest.

My skin crawled. I concentrated on unlatching the sealed door on the cleanser and climbing inside the chamber. A deep breath to brace myself and I pulled the panel closed. Alternating jets of tepid and steaming water blasted me from all angles. I ripped the rubber suction cells off my skin and threw them in the refuse slot. My temples throbbed where the probes had recently entered my skull. A light touch of my fingertips brought away blood. I wondered how many times had I stood here. I didn't know. It was disconcerting to never remember one day to the next.

A pathetic sputter of water-flecked air constituted the cleanser's attempt at drying my abused skin before a panel popped open with a belch of perfumed air. I coughed as I reached for the two-piece jumpsuit contained within. My arms executed the complicated movements of dressing myself without much direction from my thoughts. I knew I had been here long enough for this routine to become rote, unless, of course, I had worn clothing just like this before I came here. Or maybe I had always been here?


The image isn't the true cover, just an brainstorm idea. The post looked a bit barren without a picture last week.

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed this sample. For more morsels of guiltless pleasure, return here.

Saturday Sample Excerpt

Exchange is science fiction short story scheduled to debut later this year. It first began as an image in my head nearly a decade ago. Enjoy.

            Darkness enveloped me completely. I breathed stuffy blackness in labored pants, struggling to tolerate the closeness. Cottony, the warmth threatened to suffocate me in a billowing blanket of malevolence.

            I hated when I woke early.

            The sensors glued to my forehead and scalp screamed to be scratched, but the arm bands made that impossible. I mentally clawed for something to fixate on, anything other than the inching six walls trapping me.

            Why they called the box a dream suite I don't know. I never dreamed and it only barely contained me. Six by three by two feet, it was built to contain one average sized human. One of thirty stacked like drawers in one wall of the ward. I supposed I should have been thankful that I was a below-average-sized humanoid. Sometimes I managed to ignore the walls because I wasn't constantly in contact with them, only the padded pseudo-bed beneath my back. However, no matter how I strained, I couldn't truly believe they didn't exist.

            With a soft hiss, jets of cold air bombarded my naked feet signaling the waking time. The weight on my chest dissipated slightly in the cooler air, but in its place nagged the raw instinct to tuck my freezing feet closer to my body. I couldn't bend my legs far enough. The knowledge degenerated into panic. Hysteria edged in just as a hum and jolt warned me to check that my eyes stayed closed.

            Another whirling hum, jolt, and sucking whoosh later, piercing blue light assaulted my face as my chamber drew out of the wall into the ward. Arm restraints retracted into the sides.

            "Down, female, 7682R." 

Thank you for visiting. I hope you have enjoyed this Saturday's Sweet Sample. For more delectable morsels return to http://sweetsatsample.wordpress.com.

- Rachel Rossano

PS Don't forget to check out the five star review of The Mercenary's Marriage and the chance to win a ebook copy in this previous post.

Five Star Review and a Free Ebook Giveaway!

Jennifer Kitchens gave The Mercenary's Marriage a five star review!

It really sucks you in and brings you along on an adventurous ride.  Brice is a sweet character with courage and a tender heart.  Darius is a noble man, though definitely a warrior.  Their sweet romance is tender and realistic. 

I love her observation about Darius. I also appreciated the quote she chose to open her review, a favorite of mine as well.

"You are man and wife before God, king, and man.  May it be a blessing and never a curse."

So, now you are asking, what about that free ebook? Stop by her giveaway page, follow the rules, leave a comment, and you could win an ebook copy of The Mercenary's Marriage.


I hope you enjoyed this little commercial. ;) Come back on Saturday for a sneak peek at my SF short story coming out soon.

- Rachel Rossano

A Sweet Saturday Morsel

This Saturday's excerpt is from my coming re-release, The Theodoric Saga - Book One: The Crown of Anavrea. Eve, a slave girl with an abusive master, discovers a wounded fugitive on the brink of giving up hope. Choosing to not look the other way, she helps him to shelter. Now she has to return to face the consequences of her decision to help a stranger.

            Darkness crowded out the last light when she finally left him. He still shifted restlessly on the bed, but she could do nothing more without supplies. As a final step before leaving, she removed every weapon on his person. She doubted he would use them, but she wanted to be certain.

            First, she returned to the berry thicket. The pail lay where she dropped it. A sheathed knife lay next to a nearby tree, hidden in the grass until her toe found it. Taking these with her, she headed for her master's house. Fear rose up, threatening to override her determination.

            "He must have food, warm blankets, and medicine or he will die." 

            She said the words once aloud, but their essence pushed her forward through her fear. Each step still took great effort. Finally she stood before the aging edifice of her master's house. The sagging roof, broken shutters, and overgrown doorstep offered little reassurance of a welcome.

            Kurios, give me strength, she prayed before unlatching the back door and entering.

            The kitchen glowed with weak light from the banked cooking fire as she slipped through the opening. Her master, Mridle, waited for her with his strap and fist.

            "Where were you?" he demanded. "I had to eat supper out."

            Eve closed her lips tightly and straightened.  She dropped the pail and knife among the boots and then turned to face her punishment.

            "Not going to tell me, brat?" Mridle wrapped the whipping strap around his fist. "We shall see about that." 

Come back next Saturday for the rest of the scene.

The Crown of Anavrea is currently with my beta readers, publishing date hopefully sometime next year. For more excerpts and blurbs, visit my website.

For more sweet morsels from this Saturday return to http://sweetsatsample.wordpress.com

Design Your Own Cover Blog Hop

This looked like fun. Since I designed the new cover of The Mercenary's Marriage, I figured I would participate for fun. Here is my entry:

To view all the applicants and vote between now and September 7th, go to http://teralynpilgrim.blogspot.com/2011/08/contest-design-book-cover.html

Enjoy.

- Rachel Rossano

Saturday Sample

Today's sample is a continuation of the scene from The Mercenary's Marriage from last week. A clean romantic adventure, the book is rated PG for some violence and a death.

"Hold still," Darius instructed again.

Tears filled Brice's eyes. He is going to kill me, she thought as the metal moved against her skin. She squeezed her eyes closed and willed the tears not to fall. I will not die a coward. Courage. Her heart raced as his grip on her slave collar tightened. Then suddenly, with a sharp jerk, it was gone; her collar was gone.

No sooner had she realized what he had just done than his hand was back at her throat. Tilting her chin up, he bent his head to examine her neck.

"Good," he said mildly. He sheathed his blade and then asked, "Do you want to keep it?" He extended his left hand so she could see the strip of leather that lay there. It was strange looking, lying there limp and broken. Brice never thought she would see it in someone's hand. Shaking, she turned her face away. "I don't blame you," he said. Flinging it into the water, Darius gathered the reins and urged the horse to raise his head.

Tears coursed down Brice's face. They were not tears of joy. I don't understand. She had never felt so confused and afraid in her life. This man does not make sense and it scares me.

The Mercenary's Marriage
Available in print or ebookNow on Kindleand at Smashwords

For more sweet samples go to: http://sweetsatsample.wordpress.com

Sweet Saturday

I am participating in the Sweet Saturday Blog Hop hosted by Sweet Saturday Samples. Today's sample is from The Mercenary's Marriage.

            They stopped in the late afternoon near a river, but neither one of them dismounted. Brice longed to stretch her numb legs and aching back, but Darius had other ideas. He guided their mount straight into the river. Brice tensed as the animal's head lowered to drink. The muscles in her back clenched and she carefully peered down past her feet. Swift-flowing water coursed between the horse's legs. The animal was standing knee high in the river.
            "We are just stopping for the horses to drink," Darius said from behind her. The horse slurped loudly to emphasize the obvious. A heavy silence fell between them. Brice looked around. Other horses were similarly occupied, but none were as far from shore as them.

            Darius sighed. "I was going to wait until tonight to do this, but since we must wait for the horses…." He shifted his weight and used the arm that had been around her waist to reach for something. Brice panicked. Curling her fingers around the front edge of the saddle, she prayed desperately the beast would not move. All it would take was a small nudge and she would fall right into the river. "There it is," her companion muttered. "Hold still." 

            Rough leather covered fingers encircled the left side of her neck. Brice shivered and forgot about her fear of falling. What is he doing? Her throat closed and she considered screaming. Who would stop him? No one would. He could do as he willed with her. She was his property. A glint in her peripheral vision was the only warning she was given before cold metal touched her throat.

The Mercenary's MarriageAvailable in print or ebook

Now Available!

Recently rereleased with a new cover, The Mercenary's Marriage is a tale of earning and giving trust and love. 
Brice knew from years of abuse that men of physical power were to be avoided. However, when the walls of her master's fortress fell, one of the mercenaries claimed her as his prize. He appeared to want more than she feared.
The mercenary, Darius, wanted her trust. He wanted peace. He wanted a life very different than the one he was duty bound to live. Saving Brice from a fate worse than death was his first step toward his dreams.
Excerpt:

                A movement caught the edge of Darius' vision, but he did not acknowledge it. Jenran continued, "If we can determine which direction they took, we might be able to overtake them."
                Casually nodding his agreement, Darius swept his gaze across the room. Speaking so only his master could hear, he added, "We have an observer." The man was crouched behind one of the tapestries along the walls. Both exits were two or three hiding places from the hidden man's position.
                "Where is he?" The king did not move except to look up and catch Darius's eye as if they were in conversation.
                Just then, the figure darted between shelters. Darius felt his mouth drop; he quickly disguised it by saying, "A girl."
                "Did you just say it was a girl?" Jenran's weary eyes sharpened and focused more carefully on Darius.
                "Yes." Darius carefully turned so he could watch both his master and the girl. "Small build, dark hair, she is definitely not Gwendolyn or one of her frequent companions." The girl darted to the next hiding place. She was one sprint away from freedom. Darius knew how she felt. The tempo of the heart pounding in his chest and the taste of liberty on his tongue were both familiar sensations. "She is mine," he said. He glimpsed the king's smile.
                "If you catch her," he agreed.
                The girl darted and Darius followed. She disappeared out the door as he silently hurtled the last bench between them.
                 Brice ran for her life. The empty halls closed in around her and she was certain every sound echoed louder than the last. She needed to get away before someone saw her. Since birth, she heard stories about how mercenaries treated the women captives after a battle. She could not be discovered. Eventually, she found herself in the promenade opening into the inner gardens. The moment her eyes fell on the lush underbrush bordering and overgrowing the paths, she had an idea.
                As she turned down the nearest avenue among the trees, Brice caught sight of movement behind her. Was someone following her?

Read what others are saying about The Mercenary's Marriage: To purchase go to http://stores.lulu.com/anavrea, multiple formats available.

Off to the Beta Readers

The Crown of Anavrea is off to the beta readers. If you thought you signed up to read and didn't get the email, please let me know. I will fix the problem.

I am a bit harebrained still after the last week of sick babies and sleep deprivation. However, I am trying to get back into the habit of editing or writing. Orson and Willow are patiently waiting for me to get inspired again. I hear Ireic and Lirth (The King of Anavrea) calling me while Wren is muttering threats, mildly (if one can mutter threats mildly). We shall see where my literary wanderings lead me. For now, though, I am going to take a break.

I haven't forgotten The Mercenary's Marriage. I am waiting for the second proof copy before I hit the distribution button on the new cover. Soon, friends, soon.

~ Rachel Rossano