Roxanne Rhoads's Blog, page 404

Characters in Of Sentimental Value by Fumi Hancock

CAST OF CHARACTERS
Look no further! My name is Aleta Myles…Fans in the theater world call me “L’Oprah” because of a popular skit I did in in Nashville, TN. Now, that I have jumped out of the pages of, Of Sentimental Value, into a movie screen… my dream is finally happening, thanks to the Princess of Suburbia who came my way. The Princess of Suburbia you asked? 
Then check us both out: www.ofsentimentalvaluemovie.com; the novel: www.ofsentimentalvaluenovel.com. 
Oh by the way, did I tell you that the Princess of Suburbia is my idol. See why? www.princessinsuburbia.com.
   

This is “Me~ Aleta Myles as “Siberia Tonka” (Center) in one of my scenes with my nosy Hispanic neighbors, Jessica Garza as “Jessica” (L) and Rachel Rodgers as “Josie”. Here I go again … with trailing me…
Oh by the way, part of the cast include Malik Yoba, New York Undercover and Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married?, Tommy “Tiny” Lister, Bruce Willis counterpart in the 5th Element, Deebo on Friday; as Tee the Drug Leader.

Describe yourself what is your worst and best quality?
Worst ~ I am sometimes just hot headed and snaps at people even hen they are trying to help me. Ask Jessica my nosy neighbor. This is just my way of showing my frustration and will not hesitate to tell you off in a minute. Sadly, when love came my way in an unusual package (Jake), I could not recognize it. However, once I cooled off, the only honk I saw in my rear view mirror was a forbidden fruit (Alan), a sexy, brash, multimillionaire art collector.  
Best~ I am resilient. Life kicks me down but somehow I keep jumping back up again… That must be the African bold and determined nature… Or not?
What is the one thing you wish other people knew about you?
Oh wow! I have a secret but I can’t share it now for fear that it may affect how people view me. My fear is that once the secret comes out, the debonair Alan will not look my ay. Better yet, Jake who continues to profess his love for me will run the opposite way and I will find myself alone yet again. 
So, I will leave you to figure the secret out: 
Watch the Trailer:
http://www.ofsentimentalvaluenovel.com/ - !ofsentimentalvaluetrailer/c66t
Purchase, Tags & Post Your Reviews:
Click here to sample or buy (US): Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Sentimental-Value-Fumi-Hancock-ebook/dp/B00LX2GK8K

Click here to sample of buy: (UK): Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sentimental-Value-Fumi-Hancock-ebook/dp/B00LX2GK8K/r
Amazon Website: http://www.amazon.com/Fumi-Hancock/e/B009BHBI6S/
What are you most afraid of?
I am so afraid that with the entire problem it’s caused me to travel out to America to live my dream; that I will have nothing to show for it! I fear having to go back to Africa with a trail of failure behind me.
What do you want more than anything?
For most part of my adult years, I have followed the Princess of Suburbia® career as a bestselling author and an African Oscar award winning screenwriter and Indiefest film merit award winner, I will give anything to be just like her. I want to be a bestselling author. I want to see my name blasted across the New York Times, USA Today. I want to be on national news media… be a world sensation. Is this too much to ask the creator of heaven and earth?
What is your relationship status? “Alan” played by Malik Yoba “Jake” played by Richard Neal  

I need much help in this area but I must focus now on finding the family artifact I mistaken pawned off! I have to stop the spiraling chaos surrounding my dying sister, Naiya who is in Africa and me! But if you are curious, I have two love interests, Alan the wealthy, dark chocolaty (with a tucked away female baggage) and the simple vanilla, soft-spoken Jake.
What’s a gal gotta do. Umph!
How would you describe your sense of fashion?

Oh boy! I am afraid I may need help in that area. Josie and Jessica always remind me of that, particularly when Jessica launches out to grab my “tightly wrapped” scarf.  I love my African roots, so no matter where I am, no matter what I am doing, I always make sure that there is a hint of African on me.
How much of a rebel are you?
If you ask Jake, he will tell you I am very stubborn because I am giving him a whole lot of headache with pursuing me for a date. If you asked Jessica my neighbor, she still hasn’t figured me out. Sometimes I agree with what she says but most times, we argue! Josie her sister is just flat out indifferent. So, you ask if I am much of a rebel? It depends on the cause I am fighting for. Right now, I am fighting for my own sanity, fighting to ensure that the family artifact is returned back to the rightful owner in Africa and I am doing everything I can to ensure that.
What do you considered to be your greatest achievement?
Back in Africa, I won a writing contest! Because of that contest, I was given a partial scholarship to pursue my graduate studies in writing. Hence, this is my reason for being in America. More importantly, I was the very first to win such honor in my village. So you know understand why I cannot fail! I cannot go back to African with nothing in my hands. I have to do whatever it takes to make it as a writer, if it kills me!
What is your idea of happiness?
My idea of happiness is being content with where we are regardless; being at peace with the universe; appreciating all God’s creation and just learning to live life to its’ fullest. Ouch! I believe I am speaking to myself right now as I have not been content sine the family artifact got missing.
What is your current state of mind?
At this time, when my sister’s life is hanging in the balance, the mystery woman who keeps tormenting me in my dreams… I am not happy right now and I don’t think I will be until the family artifact~ the stone is found and returned to Africa.
What is your most treasured possession?
The camera I won at y writing contest. It has come in very handy here in America.
What is your most marked characteristic?
My hair… My head. I won’t say anything beyond that.
What is it that you, most dislike?
People bugging me on the same issue set me off. Say it once, and we are done as I heard you the firs time around.
Which living person do you, most despise?
Alan’s “live in girlfriend!” She thinks she owns Alan and she has the right to talk to people any kind of way.
What is your greatest regret?
My greatest regret was I was so short of money that I had to pawn things off.
What is the quality you most like in a man?
Ummmm…. I want someone who is edgy yet soft spoken. He is kind hearted yet firm when handling situation.
What is the quality you most like in a woman?
Humility and self-respect are two qualities I love in a woman and two of which I strive for on a daily basis, as a women myself. I love someone who holds true to her believe.
Who is your favorite hero in fiction?
Thor~ He is a straight guy and does thing with a sense of honor and purpose. So do I.
Which living person do you most admire?
Jessica, once I figured out that she was not being nosy, just really being a true friend.
If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?
“My secret” and I still can’t share it. You will have to meet up with me in the novel world to find out. That is what I would love to change.
What is your motto?

Live with passion, humility and respect for others. Value your culture ad traditions because they are part of your DNA. 




Of Sentimental ValuePrincess Fumi Hancock
Genre: Mystery / Romantic Suspense
Publisher: Princess in Suburbia
Date of Publication: July 17, 2014
ISBN-10: 0990584801ISBN-13: 978-0990584803ASIN: B00LX2GK8K
Number of pages: 328Word Count: 68, 183
Cover Artist: Phatpuppy Arts Studios
Book Description:
One event Elects Who You AreOne event  Molds Your Values and Beliefs;One event  Charts the Course of Your Journey… Good, Bad or Indifferent;One event Determines Your Destiny… For LifeOne event  Will Change Your Life… Forever
Bestselling Author, Indiefest and African Oscar Award Winning Filmmaker, Host of an African Oscar nominated TV Talk show, An African Heritage Leadership Award recipient and a globally sought after transformation interventionist, Princess  Fumi Hancock  delivers an inspirational and intriguing romantic suspense story, yet laced in mystery and comedy. Of Sentimental Value, a titillating and jaw dropping adventure set between the deep rich forest of Africa and the southern flat plains of Nashville, Tennessee.
A Twenty-one year old, Young African Immigrant, SIBERIA TONKA has all the ingredients of a successful writer: Commitment, dedication, and drive to become famous. Until her dream of becoming the next bestselling media sensation in America is threatened by an inexplicable cosmic force! Buried and spiraling in unsurmountable debt and a string of misfortune hovering over her, she is forced to pawn her most valuable possession. But when told her sister’s life in Africa hangs in the balance and that would die if artifact is not returned back to the rightful owners, Siberia in desperation sets out to retrieve the artifact at any means necessary. A Mystery enigma is released and the stakes are high! The harder Siberia tries… the closer she seems yet the farther she was from solving the turmoil. 
Alas, in the midst of this chaos evolves an undeniably love triangle between Siberia, a wealthy rugged-looking African, but Nashville-based, art collector (Alan) and a simple American consignment store owner (Jake). 
Will Siberia retrieve the artifact in time to save her dying sister, Naiya? Who / what wins her heart? Money or True Love?

Book Available at Amazon
Book Trailer Produced by Cambium Break Pictures

http://youtu.be/6Nfpf3S_aGE

Of Sentimental Value Motion Picture Scheduled to Release 2015 



Starring Malik Yoba, New York Undercover and Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married? and Tommy Tiny Lister, Deebo on Friday, 5th Element with Bruce Willis.
VIP Screenings and Private Book Launches in Los Angeles, California and Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville
Award Winning Filmmaker Princess Fumi Hancock shares clip of SOLD OUT " Live" Nashville TN Red Carpet Event: http://youtu.be/s0LlaKZyI7Y
Video Reviews
Miss Haiti International, Régine Pierre Shares Her Review of, Of Sentimental Value: http://youtu.be/21hlsgE81lQ
Los Angeles

Of Sentimental Value VIP Movie Screening and Book Launch Raving Reviews Bring Producer to Tears! http://youtu.be/4VwnYXNAoHI
LA welcomes Red Carpet Screening of Award Winner, Of Sentimental Valuehttp://youtu.be/D4HlAjuwJEE
The Video Reviews
Award Winning Filmmaker, Princess Fumi Hancock Shares a “Kairos Moment” with Host, Lola Ogunleye Reviewing Of Sentimental Value http://youtu.be/417hPzsQ4C4
Gift Items Available at:

http://www.ofsentimentalvalue.com/?deeplink_referrer=ess#!cambium-break-shop/c1seb
Excerpt: Murky Haze
Spiraling through the murky haze is a stream of white smoke; Africa’s humid and gloomy weather punctuated the striking of an African “bata” drum; a sign of impending doom in this Never-never land called Oyo, set majestically in the flat plain fields of West Africa.Wrapped in ruffled white sheets and face painted with pungent white chalk, distinct tribal marks from Oyo; she chuckles and giggles out loud, sometimes overpowering the African “bata” beats rippling the air. This enigma of a mystery woman’s deep tones carries with it an air of danger and magic. Her fiendish chuckles are exaggerated by her threatening mannerisms. She adds to the mystery in the air by thrusting out her spectacularly painted arms, holding a uniquely designed African clay pot filled with bubbling steaming water. The steam spiraling out of the magical pot is hypnotic. She begins to laugh again as the rhythmic African beat gently fades, instantly replaced by an urgent tick-tock sound, intensifying the anxiety. Seeing my clandestine woman’s animated and daunting striking face, Yemoji becomes boisterous as she squints her overpowering eyes; eyeballs fiercely protruding, eliciting intense fear in those who behold the strange sight.
As the tick-tock sound gets louder, Yemoji abruptly clutches her magical pot to her bosom. Her arms stretch out with purpose, displaying her remarkably long claw-like nails. She beckons me closer. Yemoji welcomes hushes me into undeniably captivating presence, placing one finger to her sultry lips.
          “Sshh! Sshh!”
Suddenly, the tick-tock sound intensifies yet again as Yemoji’s thunderous and wickedly cold laughter reverberates into the atmosphere.          “Did you hear me? I said.... Sshh! Sshh! Siberia! Si-be-ria!”
Wisdom Nugget from Siberia Tonka:


“A person who sows love reaps a harvest of good friends and family. It doesn’t really matter where we come from; we all have something of sentimental value. And this crazy chain of events has led me to my destiny….it has led me to fight for the people I love” ~Siberia
About the AuthorPrincess FumiStephanie Hancock Ph.D.:

Bestselling Author,  NAFCA African Oscar People’s Choice Winner, Indiefest Films Merit Award Filmmaker, TV Host, Transformation Interventionist and Philanthropist are just a few accolades to describe this dynamic woman.

Born in the heart of Nigeria, Lagos State; Princess Fumi Hancock was raised to appreciate her royal roots from the South Western region of Nigeria, Emure Kingdom, where her family, the Adumori Nigeria Royal Household have ruled since the 1800s’.

After acquiring her first degree in English from one of the most prestigious colleges in Nigeria, Obafemi Awolowo University; she stormed the United States of America with a pen, a script and the dream to change the world. Little did she know that it would take her over thirty years to finally fulfill her dream of becoming a prolific writer and most importantly, one who would have the ability to translate her literary works into movies.

As an author, she has written several inspirational books for women, Beyond Idol Worship: A Diary of an African Warrior Princess; Starting Right Now to name a few! After writing these inspirational books and her return back to African after over 25 years absentia; she reaches out to help her community through her US based nonprofit organization, Adassa Adumori Foundation, Inc. (www.adassafoundation.org); she also decided to venture into the world of young adult fantasy. To her surprise, her very first young adult fantasy, The Adventures of Jewel Cardwell:  Hydra’s Nest became an amazon bestseller! There has been no stopping her since then. 

Her new novel, Of Sentimental Value, a mystery and suspense drama is yet another landmark for her. The book was made into a feature film which is scheduled for release soon (www.ofsentimentalvaluemovie.com ). In the advent of its release, it has garnered multiple award interest. It was nominated in the NAFCA African Oscar Peoples’ Choice category for Favorite Trailer and Original Score while the Princess took home the winning trophy as Favorite Screenwriter.  Since then, the movie itself has been nominated in the following categories: Best Diaspora Drama and Best Make-up. One of our supporting actors, Malik Yoba was also nominated as Actor in Foreign Film category.

Princess Fumi is one who truly believes that dreams do come true if we keep plugging away at it and never give up! Her very first crack at writing, she will never forget her professor at a college in New York telling her, “you need to quit! You are a horrible writer!” “I was devastated,” she said. But did not allow that to keep her down. With time, even the professor finally announced to the post graduate class that she was the best student he’d ever had. That screenplay, “The Royal Bird” ended up winning Best Screenplay of the year in 1988 in a New York festival. It was later auctioned to one of the largest television stations in Africa, Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).  The rest of her time today is spent presenting her new empowerment program, Your Vision Torch, an Innovator’s Prescription to Igniting Your Dreams and Harnessing Your Vision to leaders, business owners and women across Africa and the United States of America.  More details on how to bring her to your event: www.worldoffumihancock.com  

http://www.ofsentimentalvaluenovel.com
http://www.ofsentimentalvaluemovie.com
http://www.princessinsuburbia.com
http://fumihancock.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/worldoffumihancock

http://www.facebook.com/fumihancockgrimmlyn
http://www.facebook.com/ofsentimentalvalue
http://www.facebook.com/ThePrincessinSuburbia
http://www.twitter.com/fumihancock
http://www.twitter.com/cambiumbreakpix
http://www.twitter.com/Princessinsub
http://www.goodreads.com/fumihancock
http://www.pinterest.com/fumihancock
https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=4422170
https://www.youtube.com/user/cambiumbreakpictures
https://www.youtube.com/user/princessinsuburbia
http://www.ofsentimentalvaluemovie.com
 http://www.ofsentimentalvalue.com


http://about.me/fumihancocka Rafflecopter giveaway

Gingerbread DreamsSheri Williams, Erzabet Bishop,and...

Gingerbread DreamsSheri Williams, Erzabet Bishop,
and Skye Montague

Genre: Holiday Romance
Publisher: SilkWordsDate of Publication: Dec. 13
ISBN: 978-1-941847-35-0       
Cover Artist: Indie Designz
Book Description: 
Monica has a bakery and is losing money. A new flashier bakery has opened just down the street and is taking all the business during the winter carnival. She heads over to figure out what is going on and encounters several adventures.
A Pick Your Path Holiday Story at SilkWords.com


About the Author:
Sheri Williams is a wife and momma. Living in Alabama despite being a Yankee she has always wanted to be a writer. Sheri likes to dabble in multiple genres and formats liking to live dangerously while she fulfills her need to create. She loves to read and fangirl, sometimes both at once. You can find Sheri at Facebook and Twitter.
https://www.facebook.com/Williams.Sheri.Author
https://twitter.com/mygirljuju
http://www.writingwenches.com/



Erzabet Bishop has been crafting stories since she could pound keys on her parents’ old typewriter. She has only just learned that it is a whole lot more fun writing naughty books. She is a contributing author to the Silk Words website with her Fetish Fair, Gingerbread Dreams, Holiday Cruise and Temptation Resorts interactive erotic romances.
She lives in Texas with her husband, furry children and can often be found lurking in local bookstores. She loves to bake, make naughty crochet projects and watch monster movies. When she isn’t writing, she loves to review music and books.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/erzabetbishopauthor   
Author blog: http://erzabetbishop.wordpress.com/



Skye Montague is a author, illustrator, exotic dancer and occasional film producer. She's an avid LGBT rights activist and a sex educator who specializes in consent and kink. Her work includes serials Mariel Cove, Club Rook, NeXt, and the graphic novel series Eden with publisher Angels of Anarchy and Cursed Tides with SilkWords. She also works as an illustrator with Amazons Unite, which restores and releases the missing writings of Chris Anne Wolfe, and as a librettist with Ballet Renew.
http://skyemontague.com/
https://www.facebook.com/montagueskye




http://www.amazon.com/Skye-Montague/e/B00C1ZY7ME/






SilkWords is the go-to source for interactive romance and erotic fiction.
With gorgeous custom covers and a clean, sophisticated design, the SilkWords site offers a secure, upscale reading environment. In addition to content on their web site, they offer stories for purchase in the standard e-book formats.
SilkWords is owned and operated by a full-time mom with a background in genetics and an RWA RITA-nominated, multi-published sci-fi romance author.
Their technology guy and site designer was the founder of Microsoft Xbox Live.
SilkWords features two formats that allow readers to choose how the stories will proceed.
Pick Your Path:
Will she or won't she? With which man (or woman) in which location? With Pick Your Path romance, you decide. Romance and branched fiction are made for each other, like picking your favorite flavor of ice cream...positions, partners, and paraphernalia, oh my!
Reader Vote:
Readers vote at choice points and decide how the story will continue. These stories are a great way for readers and authors to connect. It’s exciting to be part of a developing story!
https://www.silkwords.com/
  a Rafflecopter giveaway


December 15 Guest blogRoxanne’s Realmwww.roxannerhoads.com
December 15 SpotlightLisa’s World of Bookswww.lisasworldofbooks.net
December 16 SpotlightBooks N Pearls http://booksnpearls.com/blog
December 17 SpotlightCounter Culture Critichttp:/www.guyvestal.com/home/
December 18 SpotlightHouston Havens  http://houstonhavens.wordpress.com
December 19 InterviewThe Creatively Green Write at Home Momwww.creativelygreen.blogspot.com
December 22 SpotlightShare My Destinyhttp://sharemydestiny.blogspot.com
December 22 SpotlightBooklover Sue http://bookloversue.blogspot.com

On Sale for .99 Waterfall by Lacy Danes

WaterfallA Dragon’s Fate NovellaBook 1
Lacy Danes
Genre: Romance, Alternate Worlds, Paranormal, Steamy/Erotic
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Number of pages: 138Word Count: 38K
Cover Artist: Kanaxa    
Book Description:
It’s easy to fall in love. Destiny requires tooth and claw.
Curses are designed to be cruel, but the one afflicting Jordan and his brothers  is almost beyond bearing. A dragon born by blood magic, he is an immortal  trapped in human form, with only one hope of finding his eternal mate. He must  bite her—and pray she lives.
One dark night, he senses the wounded heartbeat of a woman in the shadows, begging him to end her life. Ever the gentleman, he chivalrously obliges her wish. Only to discover three days later that she lives. And has married another.
Celeste always dreamed of marrying for love, but the nightmare of living in her father’s home drives her to wed the Duke of Hudson. Yet on her wedding eve, she is compelled to follow a mysterious man who professes to know her secret. A man with curious blue scales on his muscular arms—whose shadowed eyes reflect a dangerous mix of destiny and desire… 
Warning: This novel contains explicit sex, sex in water, four super-hot dragon brothers, and a curse born from magical power that has left them wondering who they are all their lives.
Available at Samhain   BN   Amazon  iTunes  Google Books

Excerpt:               Carefully stepping around scattered, fractured boards, trunks and lengths of tangled rope, Jordan and Ferrous neared the last grouping of rocks at the trees’ edge. Jordan sighed. About time.
A faint heartbeat crawled out of the obscure shadows, stalked up his spine. Something lived from this bloody mess. Though barely.
Jordan stilled.
Ferrous turned to the left. “I feel it too.”
Jordan followed.
On the opposite side of the rocks, jagged boards bumped, clattering against a boulder. A mass of tangled human remains bobbed and swayed with each lap of water against the shore.
From this mess, a heartbeat cried. Jordan closed his eyes and sighed as his stomach flipped. He would find it. He stepped into the water amid the carnage and shuddered. I must move as hastily as possible. I can do this. The sound of life grasped him as if a hand itself clasped his flesh. He flinched, then turned to the left.
An arm’s length away, half in the water, lay a woman. Her limbs were twisted and broken, as if made of nothing more than weeds. A man’s head, severed from the body it had once belonged to, floated close to her hand. Jordan’s heart pinched, and the scales on his elbows prickled anew.
No one deserved to be half alive after experiencing a tragedy such as this. He stepped up next to her, knocking the human debris away with his boot. He leaned down and wrapped one hand about her slim, bare shoulders. The other he slid beneath her knees, fisting up a handful of her full skirts. She should have drowned in such a garment. He lifted her, pulling her body up against his.
She hung like a sack of barley in his grasp. Her long, wet skirts and hair trailed cold water in a stream, trickling over the rocks and babbling down into his boots. He turned and stumbled along the slag toward the trees.
Ferrous turned after him. “She won’t live, Jordan.” He strode behind him. “Leave her.”
Her clothing, laden with seawater, soaked his coat in blood. Was it hers or the rotting blood of the pool in which she had lain? He shook his head. Don’t think about the stench. He grimaced. Think about her.
Ferrous was right. She would never live.
He fell to his knees and laid her on the high grass that bordered the trees. Her dress was that of an aristocrat, finely tailored with small pearls and embroidery now torn open down to her flesh in several places. Her hair had been swept up with the sun, golden rays that now hid beneath a cloud of red death. “I will end her suffering.” Yes, that was the correct thing to do.
“For bloody sake, Jordan. You are not to indulge unless you have an inkling she may be the one. There are no exceptions to our rules. Look what happens to Ilmir when he breaks one. Who knows what calamity awaits us in London.”
Jordan’s jaw clenched, and he narrowed his eyes, refusing to look at Ferrous, who stood behind him. “This is different, and you damn well know it. I am not Ilmir, and she is not a woman I am courting. She is dying.”
“Being chivalrous?” Ferrous threw up his hands, grumbled and walked through the trees back toward the shore. “Make haste. I wish to make this hellish scene vanish this hellish scene and be to London to deal with Ilmir.”
Did Ferrous truly think he wanted to do this? To kill another woman was the last thing he wished. Twenty years had passed… Jordan inhaled a deep breath and blew it out between tense lips. He ran his fingers down her pale cheek and around her chin, tilting her face toward his. A slender nose, full, angelic lips, and noble cheekbones. A beauty. “To a better afterlife, dear.”
He raised her chin, exposing her long, graceful neck and faintly beating pulse. Another death…
Dash it. He stared unblinking at the slight flutter of her blood beneath her skin. Relax, Jordan. He closed his eyes and exhaled. All will be well.
Prickling pain clawed through the roof of his mouth as his two pointed teeth extended into thin slivers of bone. He stared down at her neck. She had been floating in blood and seawater. He spit on her neck, twice. His saliva glimmered as it slid down her throat to the grass below. There, that should wash away the dirt she had stewed in. Or would it? His throat tightened. Don’t lick her. Be done with it.
He leaned in and pressed his teeth to her vein. His mouth opened, saliva pooled heavily, and his tongue thickened. The pouches by his back teeth filled with poisonous blood, forcing his jaw still wider. He inhaled a jagged breath. His heart leapt and pounded, vibrating through his entire being…
Bite her, Jordan. Be done with it. Bite her.
Her faint pulse bumped against his teeth, willing him to take her as his mate. Mate? Well, that urge was pointless. She would pass just as swiftly as the others. He rolled his lip back and hissed, then pressed, slicing through her soft, salty outer skin and into her tepid blood flowing below.
She didn’t flinch.
This was the first time he had taken a woman when he was not passionately joined with her. Odder yet not to have her scream. To have her do nothing but lie on the wilted grass.
He swallowed. Dirt be damned, he needed to taste her and know that one essence of the life he now took. He fluttered his tongue on her smooth skin. Warm, salty blood slid thickly down his tongue. Damn. His muscles quivered as his poisonous blood streamed from his pouches and down his teeth, twisting into her veins. His cock pressed painfully hard against his thigh.
The task was done. There would be no more. He would not take his pleasure in her. He would not know the feel of her flesh against his. He would never know her favorite color. This woman, like all the others who had come before, was not meant to be his. Enough!
He growledand opened his mouth wide. Her soft flesh slipped from his fangs. He pulled his head back, and their mixed blood trailed in streams down her neck and dress. His vision shifted and popped. Adrenaline mixed with power bubbled through his veins. This…this, he had missed.
This was what he was meant to be. His full elemental power at a glimpse. He tossed his hair back and then growled a dragon’s cry up to where the moon should hang in a radiant, colored vision. Yet only the ebony fog resided tonight. There was no moon to lighten this scene. His vision rippled with detailed clarity. Ah. Indeed. This was the power that years of existence without his mate had diminished. He wanted this power back. It had been too long. In a burst of speckled light, everything changed back to somber mist. Bloody hell. His throat closed off, and his eyes burned. No! He swallowed hard, and his shoulders sagged. This was a tease. A temptation.
He closed his eyes and shook his head. He would never know more of what the Zir were than this… Death and a glimpse of the exhilarating power they were destined to have.
He inhaled and smelled her metallic, sweet blood on his lips. His tongue traced his teeth and upper lip, gathering up the enslaving essence. Sweet orange blossoms and candied cherries. His made-up version of what she should taste like. Remember her. His jaw trembled as hot blood pounded through him to his groin. His soul wanted more of her. To mate. To love. To live a lifetime of companionship.
He clenched his teeth, and his fangs pierced his lower lip. You have done enough to end her suffering. Quite enough. Let her be. He opened his eyes once more.
A shadow shaped as Ferrous stood head down and arms straight out in the air at the rocks’ edge. “Make haste. I wait no more.”
Jordan placed her head softly back on the grass. “Will scant be a moment more of pain, beauty.” He trailed his hand down her broken arm to a heavy, thick bracelet looping her wrist. He unclasped the chain and slowly rubbed the metal between his fingers. His token of her death. He tucked the jewelry in his inner coat pocket, then rose to his full height. Turning to his left, he skulked into the inky woods.



About the Author:
Lacy Danes made a New Year's resolution to write a hot, historical romance.
A year and a half later, she achieved her goal. She lives in Portland, Oregon, where besides writing she enjoys playing cards, chasing her kids around, and savoring a great martini with the man of her dreams all while watching the world go by.
Visit Lacy at her web site.
www.LacyDanes.com
http://twitter.com/lacydanes
https://www.facebook.com/LacyDanes
December 15 More Books Than Livros (Review)http://mbtlbooktours.blogspot.com.br/
December 15 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana,  Mommy & Sissy, Too!http://3partnersinshopping.blogspot.com/
December 15 Pembroke Sinclair  www.pembrokesinclair.blogspot.com
December 16 Mila Ramoswww.jademystique.blogspot.com
December 16 Anya Breton Author's Bloghttp://blog.anyabreton.com
December 16 Kristy Centenohttp://booksbycenteno.com/
December 17 Books and Taleshttp://booksandtales.blogspot.co.uk/
December 17 Diane’s Book Blog http://dianes-book.blogspot.com
December 17  Mommabears Book Bloghttp://www.mommabearsbookblog.blogspot.com
December 18 Share My Destinyhttp://sharemydestiny.blogspot.com
December 18 feedmeinbooks (review)feedmeinbooks.wordpress.com
December 19 Coffee Addicts Books  http://www.selenityjadebooks.blogspot.com/
December 19 JeanzBookReadNReview   http://jeanzbookreadnreview.blogspot.co.uk/
December 20 SiMPLiREAD (review)http://coffeebeanzone.wordpress.com/book-spotlight/
December 20 the haven  http://claresblog2thehaven.blogspot.com
December 21 Fang-tastic Bookswww.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com
December 22 Roxanne’s Realmwww.roxannerhoads.com
December 22 Illuminite Caliginosus (review)http://darkwriter67.wordpress.com
December 23 Literariahttp://sede-literaria.blogspot.com
December 23 Urban Fantasy Investigationshttp://urbanfantasyinvestigations.blogspot.com
December 24 Marsha A. Moorehttp://marshaamoore.blogspot.com/
December 25 Penny Writeswww.pennybrojacquie.blogspot.com
December 26 Geeks In High Schoolhttp://www.geeksinhighschool.com
December 27 The Creatively Green Write at Home Momwww.creativelygreen.blogspot.com 
December 28 CBY Book Clubhttp://cbybookclub.blogspot.co.uk
December 29 Natural Bri - Pursuits of Life (review)http://www.naturalbri-pursuitsoflife.blogspot.co.uk
December 29 Booklover Sue http://bookloversue.blogspot.com

Review of Keeper of the Castle by Juliet Blackwell

Keeper of the Castle by Juliet Blackwell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely love Juliet Blackwell's cozy paranormal mysteries. They combine my love of mystery, witches, ghosts, vintage clothes and historical homes.

The latest Haunted Home Renovation Mystery features ghosts, murder and an ancient Scottish Monastery. Mel feels a little out of her league working on something so old but she's willing to learn and her construction company needs the work.

But as usual she encounters ghosts, murder and workplace mayhem. It's a good thing she has supportive friends and family by her side and an inside information from the dearly departed.

I am never disappointed by Blackwell's books. I can't wait for the next one.

View all my reviews

Why Antarctica? Guest Blog with Ann Gimpel

I just got back from my second trip to the southern oceans this year, and most people who know me have asked why I wanted to go in the first place, and why I wanted to go back. The first question is easy. I’ve always been fascinated by the wild places in the world and it doesn’t get much more remote, wild, or untamed than Antarctica. There’s something unholy about the rocking, rolling ocean and the tumbling glaciers and all that white on the Antarctic continent. And then there’s South Georgia Island with its proliferation of tussock grasses and seals and penguins. Having animals walk right up to you, nose to nose, is quite a thrill.
Even though we revisited a few places, we saw entirely different things because this second trip was coming into the Austral summer, while the first was well entrenched in the fall season. Last time, most of the penguin chicks had fledged and were already off to sea, where they actually spend most of their lives. This time, we saw tens of thousands of chicks. Interestingly, they’re about the same size as the parents, but they still sported brown feathers, which aren’t the least bit waterproof. So they can’t even consider going to sea until their plumage changes. That goes for the adults too, while they’re molting. They’re sort of dead in the water, not to make a pun, and stuck for several weeks until their new plumage comes in.
So what does all this have to do with writing? That’s easy enough. I’m one of those visual writers. I need to be able to see what something looks like in my mind’s eye to do it justice on my screen. It’s not accidental that my books that take place in cities where I’ve been. And I’m sure it won’t come as a surprise that I have a book coming next March, Icy Passage, that takes place in Antarctica.Interestingly, comments from betas and my editor at the publishing house have run full circle. Some readers wanted way more Antarctica, while my publisher wanted less. A couple of places, my editor said “too much like a travelogue.” LOL! Guess that means I’ll have to write a second book sometime. 
The ice dragons I was certain would be a part of the first book never made so much as a cameo appearance.
Icy Passage is actually more of a science fiction romance than urban fantasy, though I have to admit (blushing) that a few fantastical elements crept in. Here’s the blurb if you’re curious.Fresh out of residency, Dr. Kayna Quan opts for a tour in Antarctica. Money is short, so she hires on as medical officer aboard a Russian research vessel headed for McMurdo Station. Primed for almost anything, she plays her paranormal ability close to the vest. Being odd man out in a world where most don’t believe in magic makes her wary and feisty.
Stationed on remote South Georgia Island for two years, Brynn McMichaels is eager for a change. When cultures of the single-celled organism, archaea, overgrow their bins in his lab and begin shifting into another form, he worries he’s losing his mind and talks with scientists at McMurdo, but they have problems of their own—bad ones. After he hears about them, Brynn agrees to help. The weather’s too uncertain to send a plane, so he hitches a ride aboard Kayna’s ship and brings his mutant culture colonies along.

Attraction sparks, hot and powerful, between Brynn and Kayna, but her disclosure about her magic is a tough nut to crack. It doesn’t help that her dead father is stalking her. Lethal cultures, bizarre illness, and McMurdo’s refusal to let them land force Brynn and Kayna into an uneasy alliance. Will their fragile bond be enough to thwart the powers trying to destroy Earth, and them along with it?
Witch’s RuleThe Witch ChroniclesBook 3Ann Gimpel
Publisher: Taliesin
Release Date: 11/7/14Available for pre-order mid-October
Genre: Dark Paranormal Romance
Jenna falls in love with two very different men. Standing on the verge of Earth’s destruction, will she defy convention and follow the song in her heart?
Book Description:
Jenna’s a special witch, sort of, when her magic works, which it often doesn’t. One of three remaining demon-stalkers, she and her sister witches, Roz and Colleen, are Earth’s only hedge against being overrun by Hell’s minions. On the heels of Roz’s and Colleen’s weddings, Jenna is headed for the U.K. when a demon confronts her. Any other witch could teleport out of the plane, but not her. Frustration about her limited power eats at her. It would be pretty pathetic to get killed for lack of skills a teenager could master.
Tristan is a Sidhe warrior, but his primary gift is attunement to others’ emotions. He fell hard for Jenna, but hasn’t had an opportunity to act on their attraction beyond a few kisses because she returned to Alaska, and he’s been in the field fighting demons.
As seer for the Sidhe, Kiernan is haunted by visions, particularly an apocalyptic sending that seems to be coming true. A confirmed bachelor, he doesn’t understand his attraction to Jenna, but it’s so strong he can’t fight it, and after a while, he doesn’t even try, despite recognizing Tristan’s claim to her.

Startling truths surface about Jenna’s magic, and then there’s the problem that she’s falling in love with two very different men. At first she believes she has to pick one of them, but her spirit refuses to walk away from either. It’s impossible to choose between a seer with dreams in his eyes and a beautiful man who intuits her every need. Standing on the verge of Earth’s destruction, will she defy convention and follow the song in her heart?
About the Author:
Ann Gimpel is a mountaineer at heart. Recently retired from a long career as a psychologist, she remembers many hours at her desk where her body may have been stuck inside four walls, but her soul was planning yet one more trip to the backcountry. Around the turn of the last century (that would be 2000, not 1900!), she managed to finagle moving to the Eastern Sierra, a mecca for those in love with the mountains. It was during long backcountry treks that Ann’s writing evolved. Unlike some who see the backcountry as an excuse to drag friends and relatives along, Ann prefers solitude. Stories always ran around in her head on those journeys, sometimes as a hedge against abject terror when challenging conditions made her fear for her life, sometimes for company. Eventually, she returned from a trip and sat down at the computer. Three months later, a five hundred page novel emerged. Oh, it wasn’t very good, but it was a beginning. And, she learned a lot between writing that novel and its sequel.
Around that time, a friend of hers suggested she try her hand at short stories. It didn’t take long before that first story found its way into print and they’ve been accepted pretty regularly since then. One of Ann’s passions has always been ecology, so her tales often have a green twist.
In addition to writing, Ann enjoys wilderness photography. She lugs pounds of camera equipment in her backpack to distant locales every year. A standing joke is that over ten percent of her pack weight is camera gear which means someone else has to carry the food! That someone is her husband. They’ve shared a life together for a very long time. Children, grandchildren and three wolf hybrids round out their family.
www.anngimpel.com
http://anngimpel.blogspot.com
http://www.amazon.com/author/anngimpel
http://www.facebook.com/anngimpel.author
@AnnGimpel (for Twitter)

Guest Blog: Hunters by Aoife Marie Sheridan

Character Interview Interrogation Conducted By Steven (The REOTE) With:  Daniel aka Zee (Demon Hunter) MAIN CHARACTER
“Don’t record me” I tell Steven while staring at John through the one way mirror. Three other priests stand watching me, squirming as my eyes meet each of theirs. They seemed confused then I watch as each of them tells themselves it’s not possible for me to see them through the mirror. Wrong. 
“Excuse me” Steven’s voice drags me away from the others, my eyes lock with his and he shrinks slightly into his seat.
“Today is not a good day. So this is what is going to happen” I say. 
Steven looks unsure, looking to the mirror. He swallows his voice coming out an octave too high. “I am conducting” I lean in gripping both his hands, while shielding the action from the others who were watching.  “The only thing you will be conducting is removing my foot from your arse” I let him go and lean back. He raises a shaking hand and runs it through his hair. 
“We done?” I ask 
“Yes” one word from Steven and I lean across making him flinch while I pat him on the shoulder. “That’s a good boy” I say before leaving the room. 




TAKEN FROM HUNTERS CHAPTER THREE – THE SCHOOL – ABIGAIL
I stayed silent in Blake’s car, in no mood to talk to him since he wouldn’t let me drive. We were heading back to the base before we did our neck assignment. Going back made me think of Zee and the one word he had said earlier rang out in my mind. The fact that he said that he had never regretted saving me meant more to me than he would ever know. If I let myself get any closer, he would be the undoing of me and I was already starting to fray around the edges. I didn’t want to feel so happy about the way he looked at me; I could never act upon it or tell him how I felt. My head was getting sore. Why was everything so difficult? But I was doing him a favor and, honestly, myself too. I was saving him the enviable heartache and I was afraid of opening up to him. I didn’t want anything up here to fight for. I didn’t want to lose any more people that I love. I had lost enough.
 Blake turned on some music. It was more like background music, just light and easy, so I didn’t complain.
“Are you okay?” Blake’s words pulled me out of my torture. I didn’t turn to him, but continued to stare out the window.
“Yes, fine.”
“I know you don’t know me, but you can trust me if you need to talk,” Blake said, almost, sounding sincere.
 I snorted. “You’re right. I don’t know you. And I don’t trust people that I don’t know, or people who lie to me, so no, I don’t want to talk.” I hadn’t forgotten his intrusion in my home.
“But I redeemed myself by sticking up for you with Father Peter.”
Now, I looked at Blake, a small smile growing on his face.
“Why were you at my apartment?” I stared at him, hoping he would get flustered.
“Honestly, I had heard a lot about you, so I was curious.” He didn’t even flinch or look away from the road, but I could hear an undertone of resentment. But Why?
“Curious enough to break into someone’s home and stand over them while they slept? Blake, you need to get yourself a hobby!”
 He looked at me going red. What was it about this guy? I swear, I knew him from somewhere. It wasn’t his face, but just how I felt around him. The hairs on the back of my neck always felt as if they were rising.
“What part of the world did you come from?” I asked. Considering his olive skin and brown eyes, I assumed somewhere warm.
“Originally, from Spain, but I have been based in America for the last two years.” He didn’t have a Spanish accent.
“Why were you transferred?” I asked, since he wasn’t exactly handing out the information.“I wanted a change of scenery,” he said and smiled at me.
 I turned back in my seat, facing the road just in time to see a small child step out in front of us. I let out a scream for Blake to stop, but he didn’t, he just looked at me puzzled. We were going to hit the child, so I pulled the steering wheel out of Blake’s hands, driving us into a ditch. I braced myself as we hit the ditch at full impact, my body lifted from the seat, only to be slammed back down by the seat belt. My arms and legs were flailing like a rag doll and the impact of the seatbelt on my chest knocked the air right out of my lungs. The car flipped, landing on its roof. Glass shattered on top of us. The engine still roared as metal scratched across the earth. The car shifted for a moment and then stopped.
I could feel warm liquid run down on my face. No air could reach my lungs. I fought, but nothing came. Blackness overtook me.
“Abigail,” a soft voice called my name, pulling me awake. I opened my eyes, getting an eye full of my black hair. From the pressure on my head and what I was seeing, we were hanging upside down.
“Blake, are you alright?” I asked, turning in his direction, a sharp pain bit into my forehead, making me wince.
A loud thud filled the car. “Yes, just hold on,” Blake said, now out of his seat. “On the count of three, I’ll open your seatbelt, okay?”
“Okay.” I swallowed and braced myself for the fall. I fell, letting out a scream as my ribs protested with the impact of hitting the floor. My hands went to my side as I found it hard to breathe. Blake crawled out his window, the glass shattering.
“Wait a second!” he said, but I just wanted to get out. He removed his jacket stiffly, looking like he was in pain and laid it across the ground beside the window, covering as much glass as possible.
“Okay, come on, be careful.” He sat back on his hunkers, looking in at me.
 I crawled out, letting go of my side. The pain was almost unbearable, but I needed to get out of the car. I could feel the bite of the glass under the jacket as I made my way out of the window. We both sat there for a moment, stunned. My side ached, but it was a bit easier to breathe and my head pounded. I reached my hand up and it came away slick with blood. The little boy entered my mind. I got up too quickly and stumbled, falling onto the road.
“Abigail, what are you doing?” Blake followed me, moving slowly, his leg seemed to be bothering him. I couldn’t see a cut along his denim jeans, but I didn’t inspect any further, I needed to find the boy.
“The boy … the little boy we hit!” My heart pounded, “Where is he? Oh god, don’t say we killed him.” I stood again in the middle of the road, doing a full three sixty, but no one was in sight.
“Check the ditches, Blake. He might be hurt!”
Blake grabbed my arms and shook me, igniting the pain in my side. I winced, but he continued to speak, “What are you talking about? There was no boy, Abigail. You just pulled the steering wheel right out of my hand!”
My breathing became ragged. “I saw him …  the boy and you saw him too. He was on the road. We swerved, but I’m not sure if we hit him.” My words sounded hysterical, even to my own ears, but through my whole speech, Blake just continued to shake his head.
“No one was on the road.” He looked concerned now.
“I know what I saw!” I pulled my arms free and started to look up one side of the road for anything. He was real. He was a person. He had feet. I paused in my thoughts. Did I see his feet? I wasn’t sure. I wasn’t sure if it was just his body. My body was shaking from shock or fear, I didn’t know, but I kept looking. 
“We crashed. No, we’re fine. Honestly, just some minor cuts. She’s in shock. I’m not sure what happened. Can you just send someone down here, now? Maybe Daniel. He can calm her down.”
I didn’t know who Blake was talking to, but I didn’t care, I needed to find the little boy.  I searched the other side of the road.
“Abigail, get off the road now. What if a car comes!” Blake said, looking at me as if I was a mad woman.
“No, I need to find him first!” Blake stormed over, grabbing my arm; and tried to drag me to the other side of the road, causing the pain in my side to burn. This time, I let out a strangled cry, one that he ignored.
 “No one is there. It’s all in your head.” He practically roared it.
Tears filled my eyes.
“I know what I saw. Please, let me look for him. He could be dying!”
Blake shook his head in denial. “Fine, I’ll look this side and you take the other, but if we don’t find him, I don’t want to hear you mention this again!” he said.
 I nodded my head in agreement, not meaning a word of it.
There was no sign of the little boy or anything that would suggest he ever existed, no shoe, no foot prints, no blood. A car pulled up, Father Peter and Zee moved towards us.
Zee didn’t say anything, but pulled me into his arms. He could feel my distress. Father Peter went to Blake, who had sat down again.
“What happened?” he asked.
“A dog ran out on the road, I tried to avoid it, but I couldn’t.” Blake told the lie so easily… but why?
Zee’s body stiffened before he turned to Blake. Taking huge steps, I raced after him.
 “You almost killed her because of a dog?” His anger was so intense, radiating off him.
I could see Blake cringe back.
“Zee, stop!” I said, resting my hand on his arm and then I flinched at the movement. My side was getting worse. He looked down at my hand and then back to my face with worry, concern, and fear. “I’m fine,” I said.
“Let’s get both of you to the hospital for a check-up,” Father Peter said.
“No!” both Blake and I responded in unison. I hated hospitals and Father Peter knew it.“Yes!” he answered both of us back, while pointing to the car.
 Zee helped me into the back seat and slide in beside me. I looked up as Blake got into the front, our eyes meeting briefly. Why did you lie? I thought to myself. It made no sense!
“Your ribs are broken,” Zee whispered to me.
“It’s okay. I’ll get sorted at the hospital,” I said, but Zee was already moving his hands to my side, I looked in the rear view mirror to see if either Father Peter or Blake were watching.
 It was too risky and I shook my head at Zee to let him know, but he didn’t seem to care. He closed his eyes, his hands pushing deeper into my ribs. I let off a hiss, biting my lip until the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth and then the pain was gone. My ribs were healed.
“Thank you,” I mouthed to him, but he wasn’t done.
He took off his jacket.
“Should I turn down the heating?” Blake asked with a little too much suspicion in his voice. “Yeah, that would be great,” Zee said, not fazed at all by Blake.
What was wrong with him? I had never seen him so careless before! Father Peter was focused on the road; his only mission was to get us to the hospital safely. I glanced in the mirror again, but Blake was facing stiffly forward. Zee placed his hand on my forehead and I could feel the cut knitting itself back together. He examined it. Once he was satisfied that the cut was closed, he started cleaning off my blood. I couldn’t understand why he was taking such good care of me and doing it so openly.
I pushed his hands away, feeling claustrophobic and confused by all his fussing. He still hovered over me, searching my face, neck, and hands for any more marks. I grabbed his hand, making him look at me. My stomach fluttered when his intense blue eyes meet mine.
“I’m okay,” I whispered, needing to calm him down, but his eyes searched mine. I held my breath, finding it too much with him this close, so I dropped his hands and looked away.

HuntersBook OneAoife Marie Sheridan
Genre: Paranormal, Romance
ISBN: 9781495430725
Word Count: 62,000
Cover Artist: Airicka’s Mystical  Creations
Book Description:
Abigail is nineteen, her job she hunts demons.
Her life so far has been tough, having witnessed her family’s death and her mother’s suicide she’s taken in by a priest, who believes her when she says she sees ghosts. Father Peter trains her as a demon hunter with three other members, one being Daniel, who isn’t what he seems.
But when a possession goes wrong, and ghosts start to attack Abigail, the tight rope she had on her emotions soon starts to loosen.
Abigail draws the unwanted attention of the Vatican, and she finds out a lot more then she was willing to learn.
Knowledge is power, but for Abigail it’s her undoing, and the only thing keeping her together is Daniel.
Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/7KT2Xy6hh7k

Available at Amazon




About the Author:
Aoife Marie Sheridan has loved reading from a very young age, starting off with mills and boon's books, given to by her grandmother her love for romances grew, by the age of 14 she had read hundreds of them. 
Aoife had a passion for writing poetry or in her eyes her journal entries. It was something she did throughout her teens and into her twenties. Aoife won first place for two of her poems and had them published at a young age of just nineteen. Realising she needed to get a real job (What writing isn't) she studied accountancy and qualified working in that field for many years, until her passion for reading returned and she found Maria V Snyder. Poison study one of her favourite books has been read and re-read countless times.
Aoife's first book Eden Forest (Part one of the Saskia Trilogy) came to be after a dream of a man and woman on a black horse jumping through a wall of fire and the idea of Saskia was born. Now with her first novel published and taking first place for Eden Forest with Writers Got Talent 2013, Aoife continues to write tales of fantasy and is currently working on her third book for the Saskia Trilogy amongst other new works.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Aoifemariesheri
Website: www.aoifemariesheridan.com
Blog: https://aoifesheri.wordpress.com

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blitz: Unknown Protector by Maggie Mundy

Unknown ProtectorThe Midworlder TrilogyBook OneMaggie Mundy
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing
Date of Publication: 30th September 2014
ISBN: 978-1-61935-596-5ASIN: B00O3KOCHU
Number of pages: 243Word Count: 88,000
Cover Artist: Fiona Jayde
Book Description:
Two things have helped Nicole cope since the murder of her husband. One is running her detective agency, and the other is her guardian angel Mira. When Mira is killed by a demon, Nicole accepts the help of a Ridge, a long haired, cigar smoking diamond in the rough with wings.
Things go from bad to worse when a replacement guardian cannot be found. She has to trust Ridge, which is tricky when she realizes there are no demons or angels, just parasitic aliens that humans have built the myths of these celestial beings around. Ridge isn’t an angel or a devil, but an alien half breed known as a Midworlder.
He is also way too sexy for his own good, or is it her own good?
Available at Amazon
Excerpt: “Please don’t drop me, please don’t drop me,” Nicole repeated as she closed her eyes. She didn’t like flying in planes, let alone being dragged through the night sky by an oversexed scruffy angel who was too hot for his own good. Or was it her own good.“I won’t let you fall. Look around before we go over. I reckon you’ve guessed the events of tonight aren’t the way we normally do things. Humans aren’t meant to be aware of our flying through the night sky which means I can’t let you remember any of this.”She took a deep breath and opened her eyes. His face was close to hers as he gripped her tight around her waist. It was too dark to read what he might be thinking from his expression. His lips were so close and her own were parting at the thought he might kiss her. She trembled, but not from fear anymore and hoped he couldn’t read her mind. They were being hunted and she wanted a kiss, no she longed for it. He had to be putting the thoughts in her head.She needed to get her mind off him so she gazed down at San Francisco. Her adopted city stretched out below with steep streets reaching down to the harbor, while the lights on the Golden Gate Bridge shone in the distance, reflecting on the water below. She smiled as a tear flowed down her cheek. She had never seen it this way before. For a moment she forgot others were after them or after her in particular. She peeked over Ridge’s shoulder and glanced back over his wings as they glided through the sky. Three dark, winged shapes were following and could be seen against the light of the full moon. Maybe the full moon could explain why strange things were happening, because this was like staring at a scene from a horror movie, except it was real.The shapes of their pursuer’s bodies blurred. She turned back to the city but the lights of San Francisco were disappearing. In the moonlight she focused on the face next to her. Ridge smiled and touched her cheek with his.“It’s okay. I’m gonna get you a new guardian and all of this will go away. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”She didn’t want a new guardian, she wanted Mira back. It went dark and reminded her of when she went adventure-caving in Australia. The absolute darkness of underground where not even a trickle of light breaks through, no matter how hard you look. She couldn’t see Ridge anymore, but the closeness of him and the darkness amplified the sound of his wings. For a moment they were all that existed in the universe. His lips touched hers and her mouth opened to him only to have him pull away. Did he mean to do that?“I suggest you close your eyes and give your mind over to me,” he whispered.Nicole shook her head and tried to get herself back to reality, whatever that was. “I’m not going anywhere with my eyes shut after tonight, and from what I’m picking up at times your mind seems a bit murky to let you in again.”“Suit yourself darling, but don’t blame me if you pass out.”Pain sliced through her temple. She squeezed her eyes shut and instinctively hugged Ridge tighter. His thoughts were in her head again telling her to relax, but this time it wasn’t working. She tried to hold down the rising alarm of what would happen next. Somehow she had an inkling it wasn’t going to be good.

About the Author:
Maggie Mundy lives in Adelaide, Australia and is a member of Romance Writers of Australia, and the local chapter SARA (South Australian Romance Authors).
She recently completed a Bachelor of Arts in Drama and English. She had a short story published in the Romance Writers of Australia Topaz Anthology Little Gems in 2010 called Sea and Vines. She has three books out with Rogue Phoenix Press. Two erotic novellas called Blood Scent and Blood Oath and a paranormal romance called World Change. She also has a supernatural thriller out with Soul Mate Publishing called Hidden Mortality and paranormal romance called Unknown Protector.
She has also performed for many years in corporate entertainment for which she wrote her own sketches, which probably explains why her head is so full of characters. She loves writing romance but thinks falling in love can be scary, especially in her stories where creatures of the night really exist.

http://www.pinterest.com/maggiemundy/
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5428101.Maggie_Mundy
https://twitter.com/MundyMaggie
www.maggiemundy.com
https://www.facebook.com/MaggieMundyAuthor

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Spotlight and Giveaway with Karen-Anne Stewart

FeelKaren-Anne Stewart
Genre:  New Adult Paranormal RomanceSuspense /Contemporary
Date of Publication:  December 15th, 2014.
ISBN:  978-1502757746
Number of pages: 276Word Count:  94,000
Book Description: 
The one whose emotions I can’t feel is the one who makes me feel the most.
I was a sensitive, at least that’s what I was told by the boy who saved me from the overwhelming emotions that consumed my soul, the boy who saved me from myself when my gift became stronger. Through the years, he was my redemption, my reason to take my next breath…then, he was gone.
Jensen always told me I was strong, but I didn’t believe him until I was forced to be strong on my own, and I kept breathing without him. I’ve taken 42 million breaths since the moment he sent me away. Now, four years later, he’s standing in front of me, and I can barely breathe.
This isn’t just a story about the abilities I possess; it’s a story about something much stronger…the love of the man who possesses every part of me.
Disclaimer – Feel is intended for readers 18+ due to strong language, mature scenes, and some violence.
Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/SoWsYWu9jik

Available at Amazon
Excerpt:
I place my hand over his, leaning my cheek against the warmth of his touch before backing away so I can see him.  I’m insane for falling for him again, but it seems my heart isn’t giving me a choice at the moment, ignoring how the rest of me is scared as hell it will never survive if he breaks it this time.   “I don’t want you to hurt,” I whisper.  I don’t.     “Then, please stop fighting what we are together and get your stubborn ass over here so I can kiss you like I haven’t seen your pretty face in four long fucking years.”  I take one step towards him and that’s all he needs to wrap me in his arms, pulling me against his chest to close the rest of the distance between us as his hungry mouth collides against mine.  His teeth nip the fullness of my bottom lip then his tongue caresses and strokes the sensitive, tingling skin.  All strength in my body is stolen by the liberating dominance in his kiss, bruising and healing wrapped in one breathtaking seduction.  My knees no longer work, but the rest of my body becomes alive, responding to his touch, awakening me from the emptiness I’ve lived in for so long.  This is what I’ve craved.  What I’ve missed.  His taste, scent, and touch have haunted me, and I breathe them all in deeply now, terrified they will be gone again.    His fingers slide against my neck before softly tangling my hair in his fist.  My head spins at his gentle touch mixed with his rough, passionate kiss.  My lips part, granting his tongue all the access it wants, and he takes it greedily, sliding his tongue against mine, taming and setting me free.  His kiss is scorching, searing me as liquid heat pulses low in my stomach.  I feel the damp cotton pressing against where I need him to be so badly right now. Soft whimpers rumble up my throat, the needy pants muffled against his hot mouth. Jensen’s hand pulls me flush to his body and I feel him, hardened and throbbing, against my stomach.  My gasp fills the air.  I twist my waist, straddling myself against the muscles on his thigh. 

About the Author:
Karen-Anne Stewart  is an author of New Adult Romance who doesn't shy away from writing about sensitive issues and hot heroes.
She has always adored reading and has now fallen in love with writing. Her written works are The Rain Trilogy: Saving Rain, Healing Rain, and After the Rain, and the newly released standalone novel, Ash to Steele. Her debut novel, Saving Rain: The First Novel in The Rain Trilogy, was a nominee for the Book Junkie’s Choice Awards, and Saving Rain and After the Rain were nominees for the 2014 RONE Awards.
When Karen-Anne isn’t writing, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, hiking, and visiting new places. She fuels her addiction of creating new stories by her only other addiction, caffeine, and listening to a myriad of musical genres. Tucked away near the Blue Ridge Mountains, Karen-Anne lives with her husband, daughter, three dogs, and their cat. She plans on writing new adult romance as long as her fingers maintain dexterity.
Website:  www.karen-annestewart.com
Goodreads Author page:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6920317.Karen_Anne_Stewart
Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/SKarenAnne
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SKarenAnne
Instagram: http://instagram.com/skarenanne/

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Release Day Blitz Nicely Naughty 2 by Rachell Nichole, Caitlyn Willows, and Nona Raines

Nicely Naughty 2Rachell Nichole, Caitlyn Willows, and Nona Raines
Genre: erotic romance
Publisher: Loose Id, LLC
Date of Publication: December 16, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-62300-823-9ASIN:
Number of pages: 200Word Count: 60,000
Cover Artist: Ginny Glass
Book Description:

Gingerbread Photography – By Rachell Nichole
Walker Savidge is one of FDNY’s Finest. He’s also the only openly bisexual fireman in the city. But his boyfriend, Ben Cook, is still very much in the closet, and not comfortable with his own sexual needs and desires. Every time they get close in public, Ben pulls away. Frustrated with his partner, Walker devises a plan to help Ben break out of his shell. The owner of Gingerbread Photography has been photographing the FDNY Firefighters for their calendar for years. She’s professional and sweet, and Walker knows she’ll immediately put Ben at ease. Now all he has to do is convince his lover to do a private x-rated, Xmas photo shoot.
Ben knows Walker is fed up with his hang-ups, but he can’t seem to help it. Every time he thinks he might be okay with announcing to the world that he also likes guys, the horrors of his high school locker room stop him. Growing up in a small community that wasn’t always supportive of homosexuality has forced Ben to hide that half of himself. He’d always dated girls before moving to the Big Apple and finding Walker. Now he’s trying to reconcile the two halves of himself and give Walker what he deserves. So when Walker suggests a photo shoot, Ben agrees, though the idea makes him squirm. He knows the week of Christmas break will be the best time for the shoot. He’s told his parents he won’t be home this year for Christmas, so he doesn’t have to answer awkward questions about his love life, or break Walker’s heart by not inviting him home for the holidays.
Lexie Ginger Rosamond is trying to survive as a NY photographer. But she’s dreading the upcoming holidays and her photo schedule. She’s reluctant to take on a last minute meeting with Walker and his boyfriend, but finally can’t deny the sultry voice of one of the sexiest firemen she’s ever met. But when Walker shows up at her studio with Ben, a young man she’s already met, and kissed, she doesn’t know what to do. As the photo shoot heats up, Walker jumps into the photos with Ben, and it’s almost more than she can bear. Until the two men ask her to join them in front of the camera instead of behind it. Tempted by their heat, and deciding maybe she can give herself a special treat this Christmas, Lexie agrees.
Excerpt From Gingerbread Photography By Rachell Nichole:
BEN SWALLOWED HARD, staring into her green eyes. She was beautiful. Breathtakingly beautiful. Just like her photos. Bright red curls fell in waves around her face and shoulders, covering the tips of her jacket’s lapels. Her fair skin was pink; from the flush he could feel within him too, or from the cold, he couldn’t be sure. But she’d agreed to let him make it up to her. What the hell are you doing?He blinked, trying to clear his head. He’d been crying a mere two seconds before they’d slammed into each other, the burn of tears hot against his cold cheeks distracting him from the impending collision. Then they’d slammed into each other and he’d been flattened onto the cold concrete. She was slender, but tall. She couldn’t possibly outweigh him, but they’d struck with such force that he’d surely be bruised. Yeah, that’d be fun to explain to Walker. Walker, who’d let him just run out of the firehouse after Eddie had torn into him. “How about coffee?” he said, pushing thoughts of Walker from his mind. “Since I kind of kyboshed your other one.”She looked at the brown snow rapidly melting from the heat of her coffee, and he smiled sheepishly.“Um, sure,” she said.After a beat, she said, “I know of this great place around the corner.”His stomach lurched into his throat. Please, God, not the same place where he’d first met Walker. He couldn’t come up with a good reason to suggest somewhere else. So he silently nodded and then followed her as she led him down the street and around the corner. Sure enough it was the same place. He barely suppressed a groan as they crossed the threshold. They moved through the line quickly, though in the middle of winter the shop was swamped. A small table in the corner vacated, and she marched across the room and claimed two seats as soon as they were empty. Well, then.He followed and sat across from her. “I’m Ben,” he said, trying to ignore the dark voice in the back of his head that told him being here with her was like cheating. He couldn’t shake the feeling, though he knew it wasn’t logical. Having coffee with a girl didn’t mean he was stepping out on Walker. He’d never do that.“I’m Lexie,” she said with a smile.He tensed. He hadn’t been this attracted to a female since Reese.  Simply because he was attracted to Lexie didn’t mean he had to act on it.“It’s nice to meet you.”“You too,” she said, taking a sip of her coffee. Another warm smile crossed her lips as she swallowed. He tried really hard to ignore the way her throat moved as she drank. What would that smooth skin feel like beneath his fingers? Damn it. He shut down that train of thought.She helped a second later when she asked suddenly, with real concern, “Are you okay? You looked upset when we ran into each other.”Instantly, guilt flooded him. Yeah, he’d been upset. Which was probably why he couldn’t keep his mind from wandering to naughty thoughts. His life would be so much easier if he could bring Lexie home next month for Christmas. He’d told his parents he couldn’t get out of work. So he wouldn’t have to go home and lie to their faces about his love life. God, he hated that he’d lied to them for so long. But he loved them too much to risk changing their opinions of him when he told them he was bisexual. He wouldn’t let history repeat itself, wouldn’t end up like Jesse had. “Yeah. I uh, had a fight…with my, um, boyfriend.” Not the whole truth. He’d run away from a fight, actually. But he was too much of a coward to admit that to Lexie.She shifted in her seat, sighing. Her shoulders relaxed beneath her dark purple sweater, and he could read the relief on her face. She was relieved he’d had a fight? After a second, he wanted to smack himself. No, she was relieved he was gay. Why had he just admitted to a perfect stranger that he had a boyfriend when he couldn’t tell his own sister?“So you’re a photography student?” he asked, changing the subject. “I teach it actually.”He took a second to reassess. She was a professor. At the university where he was a student. Crap. Even if he wasn’t with Walker, he wouldn’t be able to bring this girl home for Christmas. He couldn’t date her publicly any more than he could date Walker out in the open. “Very cool. Those photos were amazing. I’m so sorry I ruined them.”She reached out and touched his arm. He warmed instantly. “Don’t worry about it. You have to stop apologizing. It wasn’t your fault anyway. I was so pissed; I would have walked straight into a pole without seeing it. It’s no wonder I bashed into you without preamble.”She didn’t make any move to let go of his arm, and he didn’t encourage one. He’d never let Walker touch him like this in public. Never gaze into his lover’s eyes with such ease. Here, with Lexie, he could let himself show affection without fear of repercussions. Lexie raised her other hand to his chin, turning his head to the side. “Hold still,” she said.He froze, and her fingers left him. From the corner of his eye, he watched as she leaned back in her chair and smiled. “Well…” She said, drawing out the word. “There might be one more thing you could do to make it up to me.”“Anything,” he whispered.“Pose for me? With those chiseled cheekbones, and that fierce gaze…you’ll make quite the subject,” she said.His throat dried. “Like naked?”



All The Trimmings – by Caitlyn Willows
When Chrissy agreed to housesit for her grandparents and prep the place for Christmas, she never imagined the icing on her cookies would be the twins next door. But they were hard-loving men who didn’t play for keeps, and she never played at all…until now.
Joe and Jess crave their neighbors’ cute granddaughter more than they can stand. She’s definitely a game changer they never imagined, blowing into their lives like the approaching winter storm, stirring up their wildest fantasies and making them want with an intensity hot enough to melt the fake icicles draped around her Grandma’s house.
Christmas with all the trimmings. Those were Grandma’s instructions. And while Chrissy knows she wasn’t referring to Chrissy laid out for Joe and Jess’s pleasure¬or they hers¬Grandma’s got some explaining of her own to do. Like how she knew about those dimples on the twin’s perfect backsides.
Christmas Candie by Nona Raines
Aidan Callahan loves Christmas. His family makes it a big celebration and he does his best to carry on the tradition. Every ornament on his huge Christmas tree has a story and holds a special memory.
He’s been hooking up for six months with Val Stenzler and would like to get closer to her, including sharing his love of Christmas. But aside from their hot sex sessions, she holds him at arm’s length. What’s the problem?Val hates Christmas. The most devastating, humiliating event of her life happened at Christmastime two years ago, and she’s still trying to get past it. There’s no room for fruitcake or mistletoe in her life. As far as she’s concerned, the holiday season can’t pass quickly enough.
Christmas suddenly becomes a lot more interesting when Val and Aidan meet Candie Hurley. She’s as sweet as her name, as sparkly as tinsel and as mysterious as the Northern Lights. Aidan and Val both fall under her spell, but will the night they spend with her bring them closer together or tear their relationship apart?



About the Authors
Rachell Nichole
Rachell Nichole is a contemporary erotic romance author, who loves writing sexy romances about memorable characters who have to fight to hold on to love.
Rachell holds two undergraduate degrees, one in Professional Writing and the other in French. She also received a Master of Fine Arts in Writing Popular Fiction at Seton Hill University. She is the author of The Marietta Hotels Series, Spicy with a Side of Cranberry Sauce, Break(Through) the Ice, To Sir, and Queen of Hearts.
Rachell lives in New York with a mountain of books, a loving family, and an invisible cat who loves to snuggle.
Website: www.RachellNichole.com  
Blog: www.DivasofDesire.blogspot.com  
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/RachellNichole  
Twitter: @RachellNichole
Author Goodreads Profile page: http://bit.ly/1vZrGId
Author Amazon Profile page: http://amzn.to/1Cy4qE1
Caitlyn Willows
Erotic romance author Caitlyn Willows weaves deep emotions and sizzling sensuality into her action-filled stories. Believing life is to be lived and felt, not merely watched, Willows delivers real-to-life characters in unforgettable tales of love, adventure, and always steamy passion. No one is more surprised than she at the direction life has taken her.  
Website: www.caitlynwillows.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/caitlyn.willows
Nona Raines
Nona Raines is a former librarian who lives in upstate New York with her many pets. She’s currently working on her next novel between walking the dog and shooing the cats off the laptop. Her erotic romances are published with The Wild  Rose Press and Loose Id. Her transgender romance His Kind of Woman was nominated for the 2014 DABWAHA sponsored by the Dear Author and Smart Bitches, Trashy Books review blogs.  Her most recent work is the romance novella Don’t Let Go from The Wild Rose Press.
Website:  www.nonaraines.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NonaRaines.author
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nonaraines
Blog: http://divasofdesire.blogspot.com/
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Sapphyria's Steamy Books  http://saphssteamybooks.blogspot.com/
Roxanne’s Realmwww.roxannerhoads.com 
Fang-tastic Bookswww.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com 
The Creatively Green Write at Home Momwww.creativelygreen.blogspot.com 
Lisa’s World of Bookswww.lisasworldofbooks.net
Deal Sharing Auntwww.dealsharingaunt.blogspot.com
Words of Wisdom from The Scarf Princesshttp://wowfromthescarfprincess.blogspot.com
Inner Goddess http://www.InnerGoddessForum.com
Not Now...Mommy's Readinghttp://www.notnowmommysreading.com
Dark Side of Romance http://www.darksideofromance.com
December Issue Bewitching Book Tours Magazinewww.issuu.com/bewitchingbooktours

Tour Blitz Stolen Fate by Linsey Hall

Stolen FateThe Mythean ArcanaBook 4Linsey Hall
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Bonnie Doon Press
ISBN: 9781942085300ASIN: B00Q0VX8Z2
Number of pages: 152Word Count: 38,000
Cover Artist: Damonza
Book Description:
Fiona Blackwood is losing her mind
Fiona is an Acquirer, an immortal who uses magic to hunt for ancient artifacts. Ever since she failed to live up to her fate and find the Book of Worlds, she’s been shunned by those around her. Worse, she’s slowly losing her mind as her subconscious keeps trying to accomplish her fated task. When she’s presented with one last chance to find the Book of Worlds and thus save her sanity, she’ll stop at nothing to accomplish her goal.
Ian MacKenzie has been in hell
For more than one hundred years, Ian has been locked in a nightmarish prison. An accomplished thief, he was thrown into hell for failing to maintain the secrecy of his magical race. When Fiona presents him with an opportunity for escape, he’ll do anything it takes to ensure that it’s permanent, even if it means betraying the woman he’s grown to care for.
A dark force could tear them apart
As Fiona and Ian get closer to finding the book, they learn that there’s more at stake than they ever imagined – like the fate of the world. When their task threatens to tear them apart, they’ll have to make the ultimate decision: life, or love?

Available at Amazon


CHAPTER ONE

Blisteringly hot hellwinds scraped across Ian MacKenzie’s flesh as he hoisted the great stone block into place. His muscles burned as he shoved it into position, and the manacle affixed to his ankle cut into his flesh. Why they made them wear these things, he had no idea. It wasn’t like the prisoners were going to flee.A desert wasteland stretched out as far as he could see, burning sands surrounding the cathedral they built in hell. Certain death awaited them in the desert, which was saying something for an immortal. It was nearly impossible to destroy the body of one of their kind, but the hellish afterworld called Moloch could do it.“It’s wrong.” The voice of the overseer boomed from behind him.Rage burned in Ian’s chest, searing his ribs and lungs like hell’s fire. It was always wrong. The great stone walls of the partially constructed cathedral soared above him. He called it a cathedral, but he had no idea what it truly was. No one ever told the prisoners what they were building. But the labyrinthine structure was never up to the standards of the designers.“Do it again.”Ian ground his teeth and picked up the sledgehammer that he used so often it was driving him mad. He swung it at the stone wall, pain singing up his arms when the hammer connected with the stone. Something in his soul tore away as he destroyed the wall over which he’d toiled.He kept up the motion until the voice of an overseer echoed across the red sands.“Enough!”Thank gods. His muscles burned, his skin stung from the hellwinds, and his mind felt near-fractured from the constant repetitive toil of build, destroy, build, destroy. One of the three overseers unlocked the chain at his ankle and Ian followed the other prisoners, a dozen of them in total, to the departure area. It was nothing more than a patch of sand guarded by two of the overseers. He joined the rest of the men in line to be transported back to the prison. When he reached the front of the line, the third overseer appeared out of the air. Ian didn’t bother to look at him as the cloaked man gripped his upper arm and aetherwalked him back to the Immortal University’s Prison for Magical Deviants in Edinburgh, Scotland. Ian cursed the aether, that ephemeral substance that connected earth and the afterworlds, as the heavens and hells of all the true religions were called. Select Mytheans—supernatural individuals who lived secretly alongside humans—were able to travel through it. It allowed the overseers to transport him from the hellish prison to the even more hellish afterworld every day for his work shift.As soon as he was shoved into his small stone cell back at the prison, his skin began to feel tight. The walls closed in on him immediately, as they always did.Ever since he’d been thrown in here, life had alternated between the painful misery of toiling at the cathedral on Moloch and the claustrophobic hell of his cell. His mind felt like it was about to crack from the strain.He scrubbed a hand over his face and grimaced at the grit. He felt like little more than an animal as he walked to the shower in the corner. It was no more than a hose over a drain, but it washed away the dirt carried by the hellwind.He pulled on another pair of the ubiquitous black pants and sweater that he’d been wearing every day for nearly a century and settled onto his bunk to count the stones that made up the walls. And dream about the past.Ian jerked when the door to his prison cell swung open. That was off-schedule. Nothing was ever off-schedule at the prison. He surged to his feet and watched the burly prison warden escort a small figure into the cell. His breath caught in his throat and his spine stiffened.It was a woman. Every muscle in his body tightened. He hadn’t seen a woman in nearly a hundred years. And this one was pretty.Her shining brown hair was pulled back from her face, and she wore trousers. And a tight leather jacket. Gods. Times had changed.He dragged a hand over his mouth as his gaze traced from thighs to hips to breasts, devouring. The fabric clung to curves and muscles, so different from the gowns of the women he’d seen when he’d last been a free man.An attractive woman used to make him stand up straighter, adjust his cravat. The vanity that he’d possessed before his interminable prison sentence didn’t stir. But the rest of him did. Made him want to kick the guard out the door and get to know her better. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” His eyes raced over her face when she stopped a few feet in front of him. Strong features and a determined gaze. She had an expression that looked like she’d roll over anyone who got in her way. “Can we have some privacy?” she asked the warden.The idiot in his pants twitched at that. He shifted so that it wasn’t evident.“I’ll be just outside the door.” The guard leveled a warning glance at Ian. He left the door cracked behind him.Her gaze met his. Steely eyes—both in color and hardness—searched his own. It made him wonder what she saw. Once, he knew she would have seen someone stylish, wealthy, good with words. A man with a silver tongue who knew how to get what he wanted. He didn’t see that man in the mirror anymore, and he had the feeling that, on the day he finally got out of this damned place, that man wouldn’t return. No, she’d see a harder man, half animal by now. Shaped by his time in prison like a canyon carved out by a river. The qualities of that man, well, even he wasn’t familiar with them.  “I’m Fiona Blackwood.” Her accent was local like his, and he assumed she’d grown up in Edinburgh, too. Though the prison contained inmates and staff from all over the globe, her Scottish burr was distinct. She didn’t reach out to shake his hand. It reminded him of what he’d become and that there was no reason to engage in the social pleasantries that were once second nature. “Ian MacKenzie.” “You’re in here for blowing up the west wing of the Scottish Museum of Antiquities,” she said.He shrugged. “Aye.”Her jaw clenched. Apparently she didn’t like his blasé attitude about the catastrophic damage he and his partner Logan had caused while trying to rob the museum a hundred years ago. It should have been an ordinary job, but their magic had gotten out of hand. “That’s it? You doona feel terrible that you destroyed ten thousand years of history? Bronze age swords and jewelry? Viking hoards and medieval art?” she demanded.“Aye, of course. I wanted to sell them. Blowing them up and getting locked in here wasn’t part of the plan.”She huffed a disgusted sigh. Didn’t like that, did she?“What do you know about the enchantments at the museum?” she asked.Everything. But he didn’t give anyone anything. The habit had started early in his life, back when he hadn’t had anything to give. When he finally had, he couldn’t see the point. It was no way to survive. “And why would I give you that information?” “I could get you out of here, if you’re interested.”The muscles in his shoulders tightened. He tried to force them to relax, to hide the thrill her words elicited. He had so damn little power in this place already, he hated to give away any more by showing how much he wanted what she offered.But it was foolish, wasn’t it? Of course he wanted out of this endless hell. “Could you, now?” He tried to stifle the raw desire in his voice.“Aye. If you help me get past the enchantments. You’re the only Mythean who can get through the museum, from what I hear.”“And how did you hear that?” Only one person knew about that, and Ian had nearly given up hope that Logan would get him out of here.“A thief that I’ve been looking for tipped me off that there’s something I want verra badly inside that museum.” Her voice shook, betraying the depth of her desire for whatever the museum kept from her. “And he said that you know how to get through the enchantments that protect the vault.”Logan. Ian focused, straining not to reveal the thrill that ran through him. Was this the day Logan would finally get him out? Whatever the plan, he was in if it meant an escape. “Aye. I can get through the enchantments.”“You’re sure?” She sounded doubtful.“Of course. I put them there, did I no’?”“Why the hell would you enchant a mortal museum? What the hell were you thinking?” Her voice gave away how incredibly stupid she thought he was. Mytheans were forbidden from revealing their existence to mortals. As long as a Mythean looked human, he could walk among mortals, interact with them—hell, even sleep with them. As long as he never let the mortals know that the things that went bump in the night were actually real.Break that rule, and the Immortal University would come down on your head and toss you into this hell for as long as they saw fit. They took their job of protecting the secrecy of their kind seriously. Though many Mytheans possessed powers that mortals could only dream of, they were vastly outnumbered. If the witch hunts had taught Mytheans anything, it was that it was best not to spook the mortals.He had most definitely spooked the mortals.“What did you hope to gain by enchanting the museum exhibits?” she prodded.Ian snapped out of the memory of arcs of magic shooting across Edinburgh’s night sky, billowing plumes of purple smoke blocking out the moon, and mortals running screaming through the streets. “Why do you care?”“If I’m going to get you out of this hellhole, I want to know what landed you here in the first place. The only thing on record is that you blew up the museum and alerted dozens of mortals to the existence of magic. It was a shit show. The university had to wipe memories and put down the mortals who were too stubborn to forget what they saw. But you’ve never said why you blew it up in the first place, and I’m guessing it has to do with the enchantments that Logan told me about.”No, he’d never said why the museum had blown up. The university hadn’t cared. All they’d cared about was the explosion and who was responsible. They’d thrown him in here and hadn’t looked back. If it would help him get out of here, he’d tell her anything she wanted to know. “I made a living stealing artifacts. Mortal artifacts sell quite well on the black market. My preferred museum was the Scottish Museum of Antiquities. Eventually, other thieves decided it was prime hunting ground as well. I enchanted the museum exhibits to stop my competitors before they got to the best bits stored in the vault. The enchantments only activate in the presence of Mytheans. The museum blew up that night because other thieves tried to use counter-magic. Something went wrong.”“So Logan was your partner?”“Nay.” It was a lie, but no way in hell was he ratting out his friend. The night that the museum had blown up, Logan had managed to escape. Ian, knocked unconscious in the blast and buried under an enormous pile of rubble, had not. “What’s there that you want so bad?”“The Book of Worlds. Mortals have it in the museum.”“What’s that?”Her jaw slackened. “How could you no' know about it?”“Never had any reason to know about it.” He folded his arms over his chest.  He hadn’t had the same education as most Mytheans growing up. It had bothered him once, but no longer. Prison had hardened that type of concern right out of him.“Well, it’s the single most important book in the world. To Mytheans and to mortals, though they doona even know it exists. It’s a record of all the true religions.”“Interesting, but what’s the big deal? Mortals would no' believe it anyway. They’re too stubborn.” Though Mytheans were the creatures of myth made real by mortal belief, mortals had no idea. They still fought over the one true god or the one true afterlife. They’d never accept that mortal belief had birthed everything from the gods to mythic creatures like witches and demons to the afterworlds where mortals went after death. It’d be terrifying to realize, particularly since Mytheans now existed independent of mortal belief.“In the back of the book is a covenant signed by all the gods—Greek, Norse, Hindu, Christian, all of them—promising no' to interfere on earth to gain more followers or more power. If it’s destroyed…” She gave him a loaded look.“The gods would no longer be bound by their promise,” he said.“Exactly. They could come to earth and wage divine war. No’ all pantheons are power hungry, but it’s in the nature of gods to seek worshippers. Many of the ancient gods’ followers are dead, and they miss the adulation. They’ll seek new ones, here on earth. And of course the mortals will fight amongst themselves to prove which god is best.”He whistled low. So not only was the book real, it was important. Damned valuable, too. His fingertips tingled.“Why is the book in the museum?” It hadn’t been there when he’d been a free man or he’d have stolen it.“I doona know. And Logan will no’ tell me unless I get your help in retrieving it. He thinks my only way into the museum is with your help. I can get you out of here for the time it takes to retrieve the book. After that, depending on your behavior, the university will reopen your case and consider an early release.”His fists clenched. “The university does no’ change its mind. I’m in here for another two centuries.”“They might. And this is your only chance.” Her voice was hard, but desperation crept in at the edges. She was lying about the university, and she wanted this. Very, very badly. Why, he wasn’t sure. But he was her only shot if she wanted to get past the enchantments he’d placed on the museum.“Well?” she asked, a brow arched. “Are you going to help me?”He nodded. No question—he’d take any opportunity to get out of here. He’d see what Logan had planned, and if that didn’t pan out he could just steal the book for himself and barter his release. Either way, freedom, that elusive dream that was once so far away, was too close now to prolong it with questions. Questions could wait. Everything could wait, until he was on the outside. “Good.” She reached into the bag at her side and pulled out a circular piece of metal. She held it up. “You’ll have to wear this.”Fuck. A gods-damned collar.“It’s been spelled so that you canna get more than ten meters from me. You also will no’ be able to use your invisibility. That had to be added specially to the collar. But considering your talents, I think it’s worth it.”An angry flush crept into his cheeks. Collared like a damned dog. Like a pet. That’d kill any chance he had of escaping. He realized that she was watching him with calm gray eyes, as if she knew how much this pissed him off.“Will it negate my other powers?” he asked. He had a mixed bag of talents, courtesy of his Historius and Sylph parents. The Historius side allowed him to find ancient, valuable artifacts and work a little magic, while the Sylph side allowed him to become invisible even though he wasn’t a full-blooded air spirit.“Your Historius talents will remain, but it will diminish your strength and speed a bit, so that you canna turn on me.” Her face hardened.“Fine.” He jerked his head. Even without his Mythean strength, he was far stronger than a mortal. He was stepping into another prison, but at least this new one didn’t have four walls. It would make stealing the book more difficult, but he’d worry about the damned collar when he got out of here.“Good.” She stepped toward him.The clean scent of her—no perfumes or fragrant lotions—wrapped around him. Soap, her skin. Nothing more. When he’d lain in bed at night, alone, so fucking alone, he’d dreamed of all the things a woman could be. The shape, sound, smell of her—in his mind, it had always been sweet scents, flowers and perfume. But this woman smelled of none of what he’d wanted for so long. Yet she had ensnared his mind all the same, lighting up long-neglected needs. She stood so close he imagined that he could feel the heat of her radiating against his arm. It made his skin prickle with awareness.The guard stepped into the room. “Everything all right?”“Fine.” Fiona pinned him with a steely gaze, trying to take control of the situation. To take control of him.He held out a palm. “I can put it on.”He didn’t want her to collar him.“I have to do it. It’s part of the spell, so that it knows I’m the one it canna leave.”He frowned, then jerked his head in assent, and she stepped closer. Effortlessly, she broke the collar in two and raised the halves of dull metal. Every muscle in his body tightened as her arms neared, anticipation and nerves burning through him. The reaction pissed him off. There’d been a time when he’d been the one in control, able to move a woman with his charm. Make her melt, make her want, make her. No longer. Prison had taken his smoothness and turned it into jagged need.She was so close it made his muscles tense up and his cock harden. Her gaze was riveted to his neck. He could feel the guard watching the strangely intimate moment as she clipped the two halves in place around his neck. Her fingers brushed against him, hot as a burn, and his nerves lit up all the way to his cock, like a live wire connected the halves. He sucked in a breath to get himself under control. The metal, only a centimeter in diameter, rested at the base of his throat, heavy and obnoxiously symbolic.“Done,” she said. “Now me.”His eyes snapped to hers. She handed him a smaller circle of metal. A bracelet. Too bad. He wouldn’t mind collaring her. He took it and she held out a wrist. “They’ll link us. If you exceed the ten meters’ distance, your body will freeze up.”“Will yours?” Sounded like a dangerous damned device if they were in a bad way. He’d be trapped.“Nay. And I’m the only one who can remove your collar.”So she was the one he’d have to convince to remove it. He drew in a deep breath and broke the bracelet in two as he’d seen her do with the collar. Though it had looked like a solid circle of iron, it broke easily in two places. He raised the pieces to her wrist, both desperate to put the thing on as quickly as possible and to stroke the pale skin of her wrist. He clipped it on her and stepped back, his eyes lingering on the circle of metal that linked her to him.“Good. We’ll go.” She turned and headed for the door.That was it? He was free to walk out? Just follow behind this no-nonsense woman and out into the sunlight? Fine by him. He followed his savior out the door, his mind buzzing with the possibility of freedom. Fiona, she’d said. Tough, and a little bit ruthless from the look in her steel-gray eyes. But damned if he didn’t like her. Hard not to—she was getting him out of this place.

About the Author:
Linsey Hall is the author of the Mythean Arcana, a sexy paranormal romance series. Before becoming a romance novelist, Linsey was an underwater archaeologist who studied shipwrecks in all kinds of water, from the tropics to muddy rivers (and she has a distinct preference for one over the other). Her books draw upon her love of history, travel, and the paranormal elements that she can't help but include.
Several of her books may or may not feature her cats.
www.linseyhall.com
https://twitter.com/HiLinseyHall
https://www.facebook.com/LinseyHallAuthor
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8588556.Linsey_Hall
http://www.pinterest.com/HiLinseyHall/
a Rafflecopter giveaway



Guest blogUrban Fantasy Investigationshttp://urbanfantasyinvestigations.blogspot.com/
SpotlightThe Reading Pile http://thereadingpile.com
ReviewParanormal Romance and Authors That Rock www.pratr.wordpress.com
Guest blogRoxanne’s Realmwww.roxannerhoads.com 
SpotlightFang-tastic Bookswww.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com 
Guest blogThe Creatively Green Write at Home Momwww.creativelygreen.blogspot.com 
SpotlightLisa’s World of Bookswww.lisasworldofbooks.net
SpotlightDeal Sharing Auntwww.dealsharingaunt.blogspot.com
Character InterviewDiane’s Book Blog http://dianes-book.blogspot.com
SpotlightAngel’s Guilty Pleasureshttp://angelsguiltypleasures.com
ReviewParaYourNormalhttp://parayournormal.wordpress.com
SpotlightMommabears Book Bloghttp://www.mommabearsbookblog.blogspot.com