Laurie London's Blog, page 11

Tempted By Blood Six Sunday Preview #1

In Stores Feb 21/Digital Mar 1
I'm starting something new on my blog this week. Each Sunday on their blogs, a number of writers share six sentences they've written and I thought it'd be fun to join in. For the next few weeks, I'll be sharing six sentences from my upcoming book, TEMPTED BY BLOOD, the third novel in the Sweetblood series. It comes out Feb 21 (Mar 1 for digital).

It's Jackson and Arianna's story. I'm not starting out with the first six sentences of the book because I already posted the beginning as a Thanksgiving thank you to readers. If you missed it, you can check it out here. 

Okay. That was Arianna.

Now, here's Jackson. Warning: He's not talking to Arianna in this clip.


"Sex with me was unlike anything you've experienced before," he said, implanting a memory suggestion. "The only thing you'll remember is that I'm an amazing lover and tonight was—" he searched for the appropriate dramatic word "—in-fucking-credible."

Her eyelids fluttered briefly as the thought took hold. "God, that was mind-blowing."

"Why, thank you." There had to be a special place in hell reserved for guys like him.

You can pre-order TEMPTED BY BLOOD here:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Books A Million | IndieBound

To check out Six Sunday clips from other authors, click here.

Sweetblood series is heading across the Pond

Thanks to a reader who spotted BONDED BY BLOOD on Amazon UK, I found out that my publisher's UK offices picked up the first two books in the Sweetblood series. Dom and the gang are crossing the pond!

They're coming out in trade paperback (the bigger size) but with the same covers as the North American versions. (When they came out last year in Australia, they had different covers.) BONDED BY BLOOD will be available there in February and EMBRACED BY BLOOD comes out in March. They're both available for pre-order.

Then, low and behold, what arrives in the mail today? Several copies of the UK version of Bonded. How cool is that? I did a little jig then got back to work on Santiago's book.


UK Version

Five copies of Tempted By Blood on Goodreads

Five signed copies of TEMPTED BY BLOOD, book 3 in the Sweetblood series (Jackson's book), are being given away on Goodreads. Do you feel lucky?

.goodreadsGiveawayWidget { color: #555; font-family: georgia, serif; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; background: white; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget img { padding: 0 !important; margin: 0 !important; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget a { padding: 0 !important; margin: 0; color: #660; text-decoration: none; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget a:visted { color: #660; text-decoration: none; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget a:hover { color: #660; text-decoration: underline !important; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget p { margin: 0 0 .5em !important; padding: 0; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidgetEnterLink { display: block; width: 150px; margin: 10px auto 0 !important; padding: 0px 5px !important; text-align: center; line-height: 1.8em; color: #222; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; border: 1px solid #6A6454; -moz-border-radius: 5px; -webkit-border-radius: 5px; font-family:arial,verdana,helvetica,sans-serif; background-image:url(http://goodreads.com/images/layout/gr... background-repeat: repeat-x; background-color:#BBB596; outline: 0; white-space: nowrap; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidgetEnterLink:hover { background-image:url(http://goodreads.com/images/layout/gr... color: black; text-decoration: none; cursor: pointer; }
Goodreads Book Giveaway Tempted by Blood by Laurie London Giveaway ends February 15, 2012.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter to win

Tempted By Blood is available for pre-order!

Yes, it's official! My third full-length novel and third installment in the Sweetblood series, TEMPTED BY BLOOD, is available for preorder on all the major etailer sites. The backcover copy isn't up yet, but here it is:

He might be known for his effortless charm, but Guardian Jackson Foss is hiding a terrible secret. For months he has battled the emergence of his dark nature—deadly urges that threaten to consume him. And those cravings only intensify when he meets Arianna Wells, the human he's been assigned to protect. 
Smart and perceptive, Arianna doesn't seem like a dangerous temptress. Yet she awakens in Jackson an unstoppable need that, if left unchecked, will brand him a traitor...a crime punishable by death. 
But soon their bond may be Arianna's only hope. For stalking her in the shadows is a merciless enemy—one who will stop at nothing to claim her completely.

I loved every minute writing about Jackson and Arianna. Both of them surprised me quite a bit. I'm excited to share their story with you. As we get closer to the date, I'll be posting little snippets to whet your appetite. If you missed the little snippet I posted as a Thanksgiving thank you to readers, you can read it here.  

TEMPTED BY BLOOD goes on sale 2/21/12 but you can preorder it here:

Amazon | BN | IndieBound

Thank You Thursday - Alexis Morgan

Welcome to Thank You Thursday, where I invite an author to answer a few questions about their book's dedication and acknowledgments. I LOVE reading these little snippets at the beginning of books and often find myself wondering about the story behind them. So I decided to ask.

Today, I'm so excited to have paranormal romance author Alexis Morgan here. She's the author of some of my favorite series, the Paladins of Darkness and The Talions, and my soon to be favorite series, Warriors of the Mist. And if you've read the acknowledgments in my book (Bonded By Blood), you'll know just what she means to me.

1. In the acknowledgements of Dark Protector, you thank several people. Can you tell us about one or two of them and how they helped you?
I dedicated Dark Protector, the first of my Paladin stories, to the men and women in uniform who serve our country.  Since I was writing a story about warriors who fight to keep our world safe, it only seemed appropriate the acknowledge their real life counterparts. 

In the acknowledgements, I  thanked my agent, Michelle Grajkowski.  She has been my constant support and biggest advocate since we started working together back in 2003.   In late 2004, I nervously told her about my germ of an idea for a new paranormal series where a barrier separates our world from another, and that when there's an earthquake or a volcanic eruption, we get invaded by crazies. 

I had just picked Michelle up at the airport in here in Seattle.  Right after her plane flew  near a couple of our beautiful Pacific Northwest volcanoes and  landed at SeaTac, Mount St. Helens actually erupted.  As I was explaining the premise of the story, the televisions in the restaurant all started showing huge plumes of ash billowing up into the sky.  I couldn't have planned a better audio-visual aid as a backdrop to my story explanation. 

One of the biggest thrills in my career came when she looked me in the eye and said this would be my breakout book.  I was hoping to get to write at least three books set in my Paladin world.  The ninth came out this fall.



2. Was there anyone who helped you when you researched a plot detail? If so, who is it and what did you learn? 


My good friend Janice Kay Johnson (Superromance) patiently listened to all my excited ramblings about volcanoes and plate tectonics, both of which serve as the background for the Paladin world.  She and I took a trip down to visit  Mount St. Helens, so I could see the mountain up close and personal. 

When we arrived at the visitor center, we were looking at one of the seismographs.  Most of the recorded activity showed only small fluctuations, but there was a stretch where the lines had gone crazy.  I talked to one of the naturalists and found out that quake had happened only a hour or so before we'd arrived.  Scary stuff! He also talked to me about a piece of equipment they had on display that had been badly damaged in another quake. 

All of that helped me understand the true danger of working anywhere near the mountain.  Using the information I garnered at the center helped me make the world the Paladins live in more realistic.


3. Is there a detail or major turning point in the story that would've been different without the input of someone who read an early draft? If so, can you tell us a little more?


Oddly enough, an editor who ultimately rejected my proposal gave me some suggestions that definitely strengthened the story.  I had worked hard to bring the Paladins to life and to introduce the readers to their world.  Her suggestion was that I needed to give the heroine equal time. 

I knew who the heroine was, but I didn't really know her, if that makes sense.  I went back and considered Laurel's back story and how she'd gotten involved in the secret world of the Paladins.  I decided that she was from a small town, and that her parents wanted her to come back and settle down there. They don't understand why  she can't practice medicine there as well as she could in Seattle. Sworn to secrecy, she can't tell them about the importance of her work with the Paladins, and that added another layer of strain to her life. 


Pocket Books
Devlin Bane: Born a Paladin, he is a member of an ancient band of warriors locked in a centuries-old war against evil.   His destiny: To die over and over again to protect mankind from the Others, only to be revived each time by his mortal Handler.

But his fierce strength and courage cannot save him from gradually becoming one of the monsters he was born to destroy.

Dr. Laurel Young, who has spent years training to become a Handler, must remain detached from her patients. But each time she revives the darkly compelling Devlin Bane, he claims a little more of her soul and incites in her desires that grow wilder and wilder -- even as he inches closer to losing his humanity. As the war against the Others grows more desperate, Laurel and Devlin can't help but give in to the fierce hunger that's sizzled between them for so long. Now they'll face the ultimate battle together -- to save a dark, passionate love that goes against every rule as they join forces to fight an enemy who is closer than they ever imagined....

About Alexis:
Alexis Morgan has always been an avid reader, and she loves spending her days with hunky heroes and gutsy heroines. By the end of this year, she will have published twenty-five books, novellas, and short stories, including contemporary romances, American West Historicals, and Paranormal Romances. Next year will see the debut of her first venture into fantasy romance with a series from NAL titled River of the Damned. She has been nominated for numerous industry awards, including the RITA© from the Romance Writers of America, the top award in the romance genre.
Find Alexis here:Website | Facebook | Twitter  
Buy DARK PROTECTOR here:Amazon | BN | IndieBound

Ebook Sale at Harlequin Today Only

Load up your ereaders for 50% off all ebooks at Harlequin today only (Sunday Dec 4) using the coupon code HALFEBOOK11 at check out. I just bought 8 novels I'd been meaning to buy and the damage was only $24.

Oh, and check out the ad for their Christmas stories. It made me chuckle to see our dark, steamy vampire anthology (A VAMPIRE FOR CHRISTMAS) listed as a "heartwarming Christmas title." Hearts aren't the only things being warmed between those pages.

Go forth and download!

Thank You Thursday - Gina Robinson

Welcome to Thank You Thursday, where I invite an author to answer a few questions about their book's dedication and acknowledgments. I LOVE reading these little snippets at the beginning of books and often find myself wondering about the story behind them. So I decided to ask.

Today, I'm so excited to have contemporary romance author Gina Robinson here to kick off her new Agent Ex series! I'm a big fan of her books and can't wait to read this new series.

1. In the acknowledgements of The Spy Who Left Me, you thank several people. Can you tell us about one or two of them and how they helped you?

When I decided to set The Spy Who Left Me in Hawaii, I did a lot of research and discovered there's a large Asian, and particularly Chinese, population in Hawaii. It seemed natural that the Chinese would figure prominently in the book. But I don't have any firsthand knowledge of Chinese culture. My husband, though, has been doing business in China. His friend and colleague George Liu is mainland Chinese. Whenever I had a question about Chinese phrases or culture, I had Jeff ask George for me. That lends the book an air of authenticity that's hard to achieve otherwise.

2. Was there anyone who helped you when you researched a plot detail? If so, who is it and what did you learn?

There's a group Chinese wedding scene toward the end of the book. On one of his many business trips, my husband, Jeff, actually attended, and was an honored VIP guest at a group wedding in China where twenty-eight couples got married at once. I needed a wedding for the book and wanted something unique that I could fill with humor, something that fit into the overall plot. So I stole Jeff's experience.

I would have never dreamed up a group wedding with so many couples getting married at once. I've posted pictures of the wedding Jeff attended on The Spy Who Left Me page of my website, www.ginarobinson.com.


3. Is there a detail or major turning point in the story that would've been different without the input of someone who read an early draft? If so, can you tell us a little more?

Of course my editor, Holly Blanck, gives me fabulous editorial direction and so many pointers I can't mention them all. But Jeff is my first reader and whom I brainstorm with as I write my novels. I have a tendency to be too nice to my characters. Like an anxious mom, I don't want them to get hurt, lol.

Jeff makes sure I torture them sufficiently. There's one scene where Jeff insisted one of the good characters had to be shot. At first I resisted, appalled by the mere thought. In the end, I realized he was absolutely right. For the good of the book, the character had to take a bullet in the name of story tension.

St. Martins / Nov 2011From Gina Robinson, America's acclaimed master of the super-sexy spy thriller, comes a red-hot novel of top-secret missions, high-level intrigue, and drop-dead desire…
THEY WERE UNDERCOVER LOVERS 
If there's one thing that can ruin a vacation, it's running into your ex. Just ask Treflee Miller. If she'd only known that her husband Ty would be here in Hawaii—muscular, sun-bronzed, and infuriatingly gorgeous—she would have brought the divorce papers for him to sign. But life is full of surprises when you're married to a world-class spy…
NOW THEY'RE STRANGERS IN PARADISE 
Ty Miller can understand why his wife is tired of playing Mrs. James Bond. He's never home, he's always on a mission, and he's usually surrounded by exotic informants. He has to admit that the perfect spy makes a pretty lousy husband. But for the sake of Ty's security and Treflee's safety, they can't blow his cover. Not here. Not now. Not when his longing is so strong, her lips so tempting—and his enemies so close…


The Spy Who Left Me from Visual Quill on Vimeo.


Buy THE SPY WHO LEFT ME here:Amazon | B&N | IndieBound
Find Gina online here:Website | Facebook | Twitter

Thank You Thursday - Exclusive Excerpt from TEMPTED BY BLOOD

This Thanksgiving edition of Thank You Thursday, where an author talks in more detail about their book's dedications and acknowledgments, comes from yours truly. However, I'm deviating from my normal format.

First of all, I want to thank YOU, my readers, for taking a chance on a new author and for seeking me out online. I know that funds are tight and your time is limited, so it's the coolest thing in the world to me that you chose to read my books and found me online.

As a special Thanksgiving thank you, a treat with zero calories and no guilt, here are the opening lines of TEMPTED BY BLOOD, the next installment in the Sweetblood series, which comes out Feb 21, 2012. This is Jackson and Arianna's story and it hasn't been posted anywhere online until now.

HQN Books / Feb 2012
 
When she saw the number of vehicles parked in the second driveway on the left, Arianna Wells tensed and almost turned her car around. She hated having an audience for these things.

With her eyes forward, she drove past the house, then a dozen others in the neighborhood, and parked the old Cadillac under a streetlight around the corner. Out of habit, she scraped the wheel rims against the curb. 

Her father had loved this car and was so proud of himself when he gave it to her for her sixteenth birthday. Problem was, she'd been nineteen at the time and he'd mixed up her birthday with one of his many ex-girlfriends'. 

Adding a new scratch when she was frustrated or pissed off always made her feel better. She shoved the transmission into Park and it lurched into a rough idle.
 
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Thank You Thursday - Rebecca Clark

Welcome to Thank You Thursday, where I invite an author to answer a few questions about their book's dedication and acknowledgments. I LOVE reading these little snippets at the beginning of books and often find myself wondering about the story behind them. So I decided to ask.

Today, I'm over the moon excited to have contemporary romance author (and my awesome sister) Rebecca J. Clark!

1. On the dedication page of HER ONE NIGHT PRINCE, you mention a couple of people. Can you tell us about them?
One of those two people is you, LOL. For your readers who don't know, Laurie London is my sister. We're only 14 months apart in age. (I won't say who's older, but it isn't me. :) Laurie was always the popular, beautiful, skinny, social sister. I was not really any of those things. I wasn't a geek or a nerd, but I certainly wasn't popular. Laurie loved high school. I hated it. My book is about a woman who was also not in the popular crowd in high school, and now it's time for her 10-year class reunion. She wants to attend it as a changed woman. In my dedication I say how glad I am that I didn't meet my husband in high school, because he would have dated Laurie, not me. He was the baseball and football star, she was the hot cheerleader. He would have been nice to me, and I would've had a huge crush on him, but we wouldn't have dated.

[Laurie here. My sister has a warped memory. That's all I can say.]

2. Was there anyone who helped you when you researched a plot detail in HER ONE NIGHT PRINCE? If so, who helped you and what did you learn? 
 
I have to thank my Twitter friends. I originally wrote this story when I lived in Boise (where the story is set). During revisions, I figured some of the landmarks I mentioned may have changed so I occasionally did a shout out on Twitter, using the hashtag #Boise, to get answers.

3. Is there a detail or turning point in HER ONE NIGHT PRINCE that would've been different without the input of someone who read an early draft? If so, can you tell us a little more?
 
My hero rides a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. As I'd never been on any motorcycle before, Harley or otherwise, I was just winging it when I wrote those scenes. Luckily, my husband happened to buy a bike during the time I originally wrote this book and I was able to get first-hand research on what it was like to ride on the back of a motorcycle. When he read the completed manuscript (yes, he reads all my books) he helped me make those motorcycle scenes more realistic and believable.

Siren BookStrand / Oct 2011





Her One-Night Prince is a Cinderella story about a woman's dream to be something she's not for just one night at her class reunion. As all fairy tales go, however, happy endings don't come easily. 
Shy and sheltered Lydia St. Clair is uncomfortable around men, so she advertises for a gay man to be her date and revamp her style. Mitch Gannon answers Lydia's ad, and he's perfect for the job--he's handsome and, even more important, he's charming. 
Unbeknownst to Lydia, Mitch is straight and answered the ad as the unwitting victim of a practical joke. Before he can reveal the truth, Lydia is convinced he's her fairy godmother, ready to transform her into the belle of the ball. And Mitch, prince that he is, doesn't have the heart to set her straight.

Buy HER ONE NIGHT PRINCE here:

Amazon | BN | BookStrand

Find Becky here:
http://rebeccajclark.com
http://rebeccajclark.blogspot.com
http://shywriters.blogspot.com
https://www.facebook.com/#!/rebeccajc...
Twitter @rebeccajclark
About Becky:
Rebecca Clark has wanted to write romance novels since she read her first Harlequin Romance at age 11. When she's not writing, she works as a personal fitness trainer and group exercise instructor, where she teaches Pilates, Turbokick®, Zumba®, and yoga. She makes her home in the Pacific Northwest with her husband of 24 years, two kids, a German Shepherd beast who thinks he's a lap dog, two cats, two rats and a gecko. In her not-so-abundant free time, Rebecca enjoys reading, watching Criminal Minds reruns on TV, and doing absolutely nothing.

Thank You Thursday Winner

Congratulations, Tina! You won a digital copy of Stephanie Draven's Dark Sins and Desert Sands from last week's Thank You Thursday. Please check your email.

Thanks for visiting, everyone! And stay tuned for tomorrow's Thank You Thursday when my awesome sister, contemporary romance author Rebecca J. Clark is here.