Denise K. Rago's Blog, page 19
June 3, 2012
Excerpt ~ Book Two
I am presently in the midst of book two, working title Blood Tryst. Many of my readers have asked for a taste… here goes…
PROLOGUE
PARIS, July 1792
The petite, dark-haired woman stared into the brazier. Though it was July, she rubbed her thin arms to keep warm. It had been days since they jarred her from an already fitful night’s sleep to drag her husband Luc away. She could barely protest she was so weak and afraid to die, knowing she would never see him again. Living in constant in fear had taken its toll. She barely ate, rationing the tepid water and rancid bread in case her captors decided to starve her to death. Glancing at the tin plate of rotted bread, she debated whether that was a crueler fate than being beheaded. Time had stopped. Housed below ground in a stone cell she no longer knew if it were day or night.
She reflected on the milestones of her short life: growing up in Paris, the arranged marriage at fifteen to older aristocrat Luc Delacore, and all her illicit love affairs. There had not just been one, nor two, but three vampires; each one more handsome and exciting than the next. The first had been Gaétan who had seduced her with dreams of power.
Then, the mysterious Christian Du Mauré who had stolen her away, and finally, his best friend, Michel Baptiste, the vivacious, dark-haired vampire who had given her a daughter: Solange. Michel had been torn between his loyalty to his best friend and his love for her; but in the end she had been abandoned by all of them to meet her fate.
Michel had fled Paris with Christian. He no more wanted to be a father than he could be a faithful lover. It was Christian whom they had deceived, and who promised to watch over Solange from a distance, after turning her over to a French family fleeing Paris for a new life in London. She had not heard from either vampire since her arrest, nor did she expect to; Christian and Michel now lived in London, and Gaetan had taken up with Gabrielle.
She thought back to the times she had begged each vampire to turn her. Christian vehemently denied her. Immortality was the one thing she could not ply from him despite all her charms. Michel simply chuckled, which meant it was not open for debate. The best friends were opposites in every way, from their physical appearance to their views on
life and love.
It had always been this way between them, even as children. When Michel confided to Josette how Gabrielle had turned him during the winter of 1757, she
listened enraptured. Michel viewed what he was as a gift that brought him closer to God, not a curse as Christian saw it. She would listen, lying beside him after making love. His face almost animated, his green eyes full of delight as he spoke to her of the thrill of the hunt, the seduction of mortals, and most importantly; his craving for blood. Though they both feared Christian would discover their secret trysts, if he did he never mentioned it.
Josette still blushed when she thought back to one night in particular when Michel had sunk his fangs into her neck as an orgasm ripped through her, threatening to tear her apart. She believed that was the night Solange was conceived. And though she knew Solange was a miracle; something almost unknown in the vampire world, Michel avoided the child, unlike Christian who gave Solange attention. Around Solange’s second birthday he began to spend more time with the little girl, usually when Luc was away or Christian was off roaming the streets of Paris alone as he so often did.
Josette remembered watching Michel hold the child as he rocked her to sleep in his strong arms. Josette cherished those rare moments, feeling connected to the ethereal ampire though she knew that it was not his vampiric nature that made him keep his distance from Solange. Even if he were mortal, Michel was just not interested in being a father or a husband to any woman. Ironically, that was all Christian had ever wanted. Why couldn’t the child have been his? Nature played cruel tricks. Perhaps he would have acquiesced and turned her so the three of them could remain a family forever. Though Christian made her feel safe, he was impenetrable, a confessed loner who never needed much blood, at least not from her. He had a presence, yet he remained aloof and detached from both worlds, as if it pained him to be a part of either.
Josette thought that combined, Christian and Michel were the perfect man, each possessing what the other lacked. She wanted them both, together in her bed, but she knew Christian would never share her and Michel valued his friendship too much to even suggest it. The three of them existed like chess pieces, each strategically moving around the other while never disturbing the placid façade of their triangular love affair.
Something caught her eye, a force moving through the bars of her cell. She jumped up off her cot in fear, but as the dark-haired vampire emerged from the shadows, her heart jumped. With a long finger pressed to his exquisite lips, Michel floated towards her and before she could utter one word they were in each other’s arms.
May 15, 2012
We are all flesh and blood
We are all flesh and blood, sinew, tissue and skin, though being the lover of several vampires who craved my body and my blood made me feel more than human; I too felt immortal, omnipotent . I was always different. Even as a child I knew I was a bit more than flesh and blood. I had the gift of psychometry: the ability to gather information by touch. I would handle objects, such as brooches, rings, or even books. Images would run through my mind like water showing me moments in someones life or emotions which would flood me like water, washing over me until I had to pull away.
Ironically, my vampire lovers could not read me, or compel me to do their bidding, though I was easy to convince of almost anything when it came to them. Though they all professed to love me, what they wanted most of all was my blood. They all said it gave them power though more I cannot say without giving away too much of The Enchanted Bloodline Series. Soon I will have my very first interview on All Things About Books so please drop by.
May 4, 2012
The Service I provide
As a writer and avid reader, who maintains a blog, is working on her second novel and creates numerous character interviews for other blogs I continually ask myself, Am I providing the service that my readers expect of me. After a very hectic work week (yes, I have a full-time job) I went to my local nail salon to get a much needed pedicure. While sitting in the chair receiving a wonderful foot massage I looked around me. I have been coming to this salon for several years and although it is several miles from my home town, and sometimes a pain in the neck to get to with rush hour traffic I thought, why do I keep coming back?
1) The owner. Karen is a lovely woman who not only runs the salon but works there as well. She continually pitches in when needed and continually watches the quality of the work of her employees – She is service driven.
2) She is always improving her service. I generally get a regular pedicure, however, the staff is always using new lotions and potions to make the experience better for the customer. They are always looking to improve their service.
3) The owner is loyal to her customers. At Christmas time each customer receives a gift certificate for a free pedicure and March is usually her 20% off all services month. She is loyal to her customers, which translates for me to: she appreciates my patronage.
After Hurricane Irene hit last August, her salon was under six feet of water. They closed for a month. As I patiently waited for them to reopen, I asked myself why? Not only for all the reasons listed about but because they carried on in the face of disaster. They remodeled and reopened – they moved on past obstacles.
As I continually work on ways of improving the service I offer, I look to Karen and her salon as a model for someone who provides a good product and quality service.
April 15, 2012
The Vampire Book Realm
I don’t know about you but as an obsessed vampire fan I am constantly looking for new novels in one of my favorite genres. I discovered this page which features new and up and coming authors writing in this genre. If you have a moment, please drop by The Vampire Book Realm.
April 6, 2012
From Bruce to Brisket
It’s Good Friday, Passover and Easter Weekend, a time for family, food and reflection. While we prepare for all of these holidays I also had the privilege of seeing Bruce Springsteen this week in concert. I grew up with Bruce. In fact, a friend of mine in high school went to Monmouth College to be near the Jersey shore and the infamous clubs where he would play. During the concert I could not help reflect on my memories of hearing each song for the first time. Where was I? Did I like the song? How do I feel about it now. I noticed young women singing along and dancing to the music and I thought, wow, this is how music stays current, poignant and important. Each generation makes it their own, just as we did decades ago.
Bruce to Brisket
It's Good Friday, Passover and Easter Weekend, a time for family, food and reflection. While we prepare for all of these holidays I also had the privilege of seeing Bruce Springsteen this week in concert. I grew up with Bruce. In fact, a friend of mine in high school went to Monmouth College to be near the Jersey shore and the infamous clubs where he would play. During the concert I could not help reflect on my memories of hearing each song for the first time. Where was I? Did I like the song? How do I feel about it now. I noticed young women singing along and dancing to the music and I thought, wow, this is how music stays current, poignant and important. Each generation makes it their own, just as we did decades ago.
March 11, 2012
Promotions
Now through April 15th Immortal Obsession is selling through Smashwords for $1.00 in honor of ebooks. Coupon code: YD34D must be entered in prior to your checkout. Thank you for your continued support of my work and all Independent authors.
March 5, 2012
Read an EBook Week
It's Read an EBook week at Smashwords. Now through March 10th you can own Immortal Obsession for $1.00. Please support Independent Authors and ebooks today.
February 27, 2012
Some really good books
Anyone who knows me knows I am a voracious reader. Reading novels is like breathing to me. I always have a stack of books on my nightstand and numerous books waiting in the wings on my Nook. I just have to give a shout out to some recent reads that I found really wonderful.
Dead of Winter by Brian Moreland.
Comes a Horseman by Robert Liparulo
Great Tales of Horror H.P. Lovecraft
Three very different novels with one thing in common – scary, well written and scary.
On the up and coming list are:
The Wolf Gift Anne Rice
Blood Harvest S.J. Bolton
Mile 81 Stephen King
11/22/63 Stephen King
What are you reading?
January 26, 2012
Interview with Two Vampires
I have the honor of bring vampires, Christian Du Maure and Michel Baptiste to Werevampsromance where I will attempt to find out a bit more about them. Join us on February 1, 2012.
