Devyn Quinn's Blog, page 21

March 2011 Update

Dear Readers,

It's been quite awhile since I've updated my website and added the latest news or even done a giveaway. You'll have to forgive me. I've been writing, trying to finish Siren's Desire (book 3, Dark Tides) before the deadline came around. I am happy to report the book is finished, and will be going to my editor on March 15. That's one day before my 45th birthday. I'm also happy to report that Darkness Descending has finished the editing process and I will hopefully have ARC's in hand to give away.

I've also taken some time to redesign my website into what I hope is a user-friendly format. Please let me know if you have problems with navigation or pages loading.

So to celebrate the big 4-5, I will be giving away 5 (five) signed copies of Siren's Surrender.

How to enter? Here's all you need to do. Simply send an email with your name and address to devynquinn@aol.com. One entry per household. I will be drawing the winner(s) on March 16th, which happens to be my birthday. Books will be sent shortly thereafter.

Meanwhile, have a look around and enjoy!

Cheers,

Devyn

Siren's Surrender (Dark Tides bk 2)

 

Refusing to embrace her mermaid heritage, Gwen Lonike prefers to live as a human. All she wants is to run her hotel in Port Rock Maine, in peace. But when her sister Tessa returns from the Mediterranean with news that she had inadvertently opened the gateway to a lost mermaid kingdom–and accidentally freed its dangerous queen–Gwen can no longer hide behind her idyllic life.

Covert-ops agent Blake Whittaker is far from happy when he's assigned to trail paranormal activity back to him hometown, where he can't escape crushing memories he'd rather forget. But when he meets and falls for Gwen, he knows he can't cut and run. Yet how long can he hide his true mission from her? And how long can Gwen and her sisters remain safe from a nemesis bent on their destruction–and from Blake's own superiors, whose ultimate mission could prove the greatest threat of all?

Order your copy today!

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Read an excerpt below the reviews!

Reviews:

 "A genuinely unique tale of magical mermaids. The characters are people you can cheer for, and the storyline really keeps the pages turning. Thought-provoking historical insights give a sense of realism to a fantastic, romantic story that will have readers hoping for a happy ending for all. 4 Stars." – Romantic Times

"Siren's Surrender captures well what regular people might feel when taken into captivity for their abilities or heritage. As well as being passionate, Siren's Surrender is also realistic: people, whether they have legs or tails, react in a variety of ways under pressure and Quinn recognizes that in this fast-paced and exciting book." – Fresh Fiction

"Siren's Surrender, the second  Dark Tides Novel,  is a passionate, action filled thriller which makes you think about how a person would feel if they are captured and held prisoner because of their heritage.  Devyn Quinn  did an excellent job developing both human and non-human characters for this story that are engaging and realistic . The conclusion to this story is just right. 4 Stars." – Night Owl Reviews

"Siren's Surrender  is a wonderful second book to the Dark Tides series. It is full of adventure, and romance. 5 Hearts." – Sizzling Hot Books

"Devyn Quinn writes with a sharp sense of"Siren's Surrender  is a wonderful second book to the Dark Tides series. It is full of adventure, and romance. 5 Hearts" – Sizzling Hot Reviews humor, a breathtaking sensuality, and a vivid sense of style. I loved this book from the first page to the last!" — Darynda Jones, author of First Grave on the Right

"Devyn Quinn writes her stories exactly the way I like to read them; rich, detailed, and a touch poetic. You can practically smell the wind, feel the passion, and taste the tears." — Morgan Hawke, author of Kiss of the Wolf

 "A terrific thriller that will have readers heeding the siren's call. Readers will relish this engaging coastal Maine tale." – Harriet Klausner

Excerpt:

Sitting shoulder to shoulder beside Blake Whittaker, Gwen sneaked another glance. He sat stone still, unmoving. In fact, he barely breathed.

If she hadn't been sure before, she was now. There was no missing his vibe. This man clearly had no love of the water. In fact, he was terrified.

Sympathy welled up inside her. Everybody had a fear, some little something that sent a shiver down their spine. As the owner of her own little bag of insecurities, she could easily understand.

Without knowing quite why, Gwen laid a hand on his arm. She leaned closer so he could hear her over the noise of the motor. "Lucky has been taking people across these waters all his life. He hasn't lost one yet."

Fingers still locked in a clench, Whittaker shifted his body away from hers. "That's good to know."

Gwen purposely let her hand drop. He obviously didn't welcome personal contact. Still, she admired his determination. He was doing what his job required him to do, even if he didn't like it. That took a lot of guts. "I take it you aren't admiring the view."

His reply was short and sweet. "No."

Not a talky man at all.

Heavens. He was as friendly as a rattlesnake.

Her sympathy melted a bit. She was doing her best to be nice and all he could do was blow her off. "So are all agents trained to be rude sons of bitches or does it just come naturally to you?"

Like a robot going into motion, Whittaker turned his head. One hand lifted. He pushed up his sunglasses, giving her a view of his eyes. "They train us to be bastards," he answered with all seriousness. The impenetrable glasses went back down.

Then, quite unexpectedly, he grinned.

His smile caught her unaware, and her breath caught in her chest in surprise. "That's good to know," she squeaked like a nervous schoolgirl. Oh. My. God. The upturn of his lips made his mouth absolutely sensual.

She hadn't realized until that moment how damn good-looking he was. He had a face like granite, all sharp lines and angles: high forehead, chiseled cheekbones, strong straight jaw. He wore his black hair in a short uncombed style that helped soften the severity of his face. His suit fit him well, tailored to accentuate his muscular arms, broad chest, and washboard stomach. There wasn't a spare ounce on his lean frame.

Now that his demeanor had lost a layer of frost, he reminded Gwen of a stallion—roped and harnessed, forced to be tame. She couldn't help but think that a wild streak lurked beneath the surface of his calm, straining to break free and run loose. She could imagine how Mr. Straight-Laced Tight-Ass might be in other situations . . .

Feeling heat creep into her cheeks, Gwen quickly turned her head. While she'd never admit it out loud, she'd been reading a lot of erotic romances and wishing she was the heroine, being swept off her feet by the drop-dead gorgeous hero.

Truth be told, Gwen actually had no idea what Whittaker might be like in bed. Or any other man for that matter. Though she wouldn't admit it out loud, she'd never found a man she would dare to be that intimate with.

Yes, she'd dated, had even fooled around a little. But she'd never taken the plunge and moved any of her relationships to the next step.

She was twenty-seven years old and still a virgin.

Gwen inwardly winced. Unlike Tessa and Addison, she didn't have enough confidence in her body to strip to the buff in front of a human male. Needless to say, her boyfriends invariably got frustrated with her inhibitions and dropped her like a hot rock. And since Mers didn't age like humans, it was beginning to look like she was going to have a long, lonely life ahead.

Being the world's oldest bachelorette didn't appeal to her one bit. And just because she'd never had sex didn't mean she didn't think about it. She did. A lot.

She gave Blake Whittaker another surreptitious peek. Oh goddess, he was pure eye candy. If I were going to give it up, that man would be the one. Everything about his looks appealed to her.

But there was no way in hell she'd try getting down and dirty with a government agent. All she really wanted was for Agent Whittaker to get the hell out of town. The sooner, the better. Until that time, she doubted she'd breathe easy.

July '09 Update

Welcome to the new site. For those of you who haven't been visited before, Devyn's website has recently been in the process of changing through the later weeks of June.   I love the new look and it will be hanging around in cyberspace awhile.  Thanks  to Mina, who created the WordPress theme. She is an awesome talent!

So what's up this month? Well the days are now counting down to the release of Men in Blue, the anthology I'm in with Myla Jackson and Delta Dupree. Come July 28th, the book will be hitting stores.

I'm happy to say that early reviews have been terrific, including a respectable 4 stars from Romantic Times, along with a with a review from CoffeeTime Romance, who says, "These men in blue are pulse pounding, heart stopping, and devilishly dangerous. Each story is bound to raise your blood pressure, so I recommend you prop your feet up, get a glass of your favorite bubbly, and put in a few hours of uninterrupted pleasure time."

That's the kind of review that makes a writer smile. I have to say that I enjoyed my foray into the mob underworld and would love the chance to revisit Drew and Mara.

In other news, I have just finished the copy edit of Soul of the Wildcat (Dec 09) and it'll be going back in tomorrow's mail. What's going to be fun about this book is that I'll have an excerpt from Heart of the Wildcat featured in the back of the book! Heart of the Wildcat will be appearing in Sexy Beast 8, and my fellow writers will be Kathleen Dante and Kate Douglas. I'm thrilled to be included with both of these talented ladies. And you can bet your booties Sexy Beast 8 will have a smokin' hot cover. I can't wait to see it.

I can also announce that it's really, really official. The NAL contracts have been signed, sealed and delivered and I'll soon be jumping into the first book of my new mermaid themed series.  I'm looking forward to getting back into paranormal romance and have a lot in mind for my Mer folk!

Lastly, since it's the 4th of July, I'll be giving away an RCA 1 GIG Flash MP3 Player. Check the monthly giveaway page for details on how to enter.

As always, I thank everyone who stops by to check out the latest news!

Cheers from Devyn until next update!

June 09 Updates

Last month, updates were pretty scarce, mostly because I was rushing to meet the deadline on Soul of the Wildcat. Well, the deadline has passed and I am happy to say the manuscript is safely in the hands of my Kensington editor–which means it is off my desk. Fortunately, the editor asked for very few rewrites, which I was able to complete in a day's time and get back. Since he hasn't peeped, I am going to assume the manuscript met his approval and is winging toward copyediting. Whew! Just made it with a minute to spare.  The book is scheduled for a late Nov 09 release, and Peter was kind enough to send me a color jpg to share with readers. Get an eyeful of my eyecandy cover

I have to admit that I can't wait for this one to come out. What's more, it will have an excerpt from my Sexy Beast 8 novella (April 2010), Heart of the Wildcat, in the back.  I'll be posting some excerpts soon as I get the book's pages built!

In other news, I was thrilled to learn that Man After Midnight and Dangerous Ties both earned Cold Shower Required Awards from Pickled Cupid.  This really made my day, as it's a reader award, which means someone took the time to rad the book and let me know they enjoyed it. That means a lot in my world, LOL.  

I also got a terrific review from Lea, who runs the Closetwriter blog. Here's a snip of what she had to say about Man After Midnight: "Man After Midnight", has magical fantasy, as well as science fiction and paranormal elements combined and woven into a beautiful erotic love story. I found it to be an exciting, occasionally frightening and at times a bittersweet read. There are biblical historical references in the narrative with respect to the origins of Casedren's people that I thought was quite brilliant."

 

Now that I am caught up I'll be updating the site with the usual features, which will include the Monthly Giveaway, what I've been reading, watching and listening to lately, as well as filling you in on the latest things around the house on my blog.  Once again, I thank everyone who stops by Devyn Quinn to check out the latest news and tidbits.

May 09 Update

Since I am under the gun on a tight deadline for my Dec 09 book, Soul of the Wildcat, updates for May will be very brief. I usually try and update once or twice a month, but the days are ticking away and I really need to get this book off my desk… I managed to get the monthly giveaway page done (by repeating last month's giveaway ), updated reviews on several book pages and did get a little done on the What I Like page…

Next month will be exciting, as I'll be seeing the first reviews come in off the Men In Blue Antho, which will be out in late July. I'll also be getting some author copies in, and I can't wait to see how the book turned out. As for Soul of the Wildcat, I hear cover art is starting to come in for the Dec books and I hope to have something to post soon.

Meanwhile, there's a few things brewing behind the scenes with other projects, and I hope to have some firm news to announce soon…

Goodbye Sweetie…

Sweetie

Passed away 4/25/09 at 13 years of age.