Ellie Potts's Blog, page 44
July 14, 2014
Seeing Stars cover reveal!!
Seeing Stars-Ellie Potts
Contemporary Romance
Release Date: July 28, 2014
Can one secret stop two broken hearts from mending?
Alisa, bank clerk by day-self published writer by night, gets a phone call that will change her life. Hollywood wants to make one of her books into a movie. The news comes on the day she starts vacation, excited, she leaves work early to surprise her husband. To her surprise he is already home, and well even more surprising he is sexing up the neighbor in their bed.
Heartbroken and angry she makes a decision to head off to Hollywood on her own. Before the meeting she meets her TV crush Logan Rider. Logan has not only read her book Portals, but he wants to direct the movie. The offer is almost too good to be true! Alisa is thrown into a whirlwind of Hollywood as she sees stars, learns the movie business, and uncovers a few secrets. Secrets that prove actors are just as flawed as regular people. But there is one secret that can destroy Logan’s career. Will Logan be devoured by this secret, or can he find the strength to conquer it with Alisa’s help?
Surprise, I am giving away a $10 gift card and 2 copies of Seeing Stars when it is released.
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/0e639424
July 13, 2014
The Night of Elisa Blog Tour
Title: The Night of Elisa
Author: Isis Sousa
Series: Stand Alone
Genre: Gothic/Paranormal
Publisher: Tragic Books
Release Date: May 30 2014
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook & Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
.: A Gothic Novella :.
Sometimes, life and love can follow the most obscure paths, just as they did for Elisa.
Her life becomes a dark, cold, lonely cage the day the Devil takes her as his wife. He robs her of almost everything she holds dear: her health, her wealth and what is left of her family.
Trapped between the nuances of life and beyond-life, Elisa finds herself struggling for a better tomorrow. With her health deteriorating, how will she summon the courage and strength to stand her ground? And how far will she go in the pursuit of a dream?
Embark with Elisa on this puzzling Gothic adventure set in the late Victorian era, between the world of the Living and the picturesque, melancholic Duskland.
* * *
“It is strange… How can I ‘go home’ when I have no memories of that place at all?”
- Elisa
“Stop it, Elisa. You’re bleeding, my darling!”
- Leonhard
“Ah, love, the biggest poison and most dangerous drug there is.”
- Dr. Charles
Book Links
Amazon Non Illustrated Edition
Lulu Illustrated Edition
Barnes and Noble Non Illustrated Edition
Smashwords Non Illustrated
“I am not a writer, neither is writing one of my passions, on the contrary; I see it as a necessary evil! I like to say I am an illustrator and storyteller.
I was born and raised in Brazil and since 2009, been living in Norway with my best-half. I work as illustrator and graphic designer from my home-office, in slippers and comfy clothes. (Would really prefer PJs, but here and there someone knocks on the door!)
Love Heavy Metal, Fantasy and Dark Fantasy and most forms of art.”
Author Links
Excerpt
(Chapter I – The XIIIth Hour at Duskland)
‘Elisa’ calmed and the struggle was over. How dare she speak of me like I’m already dead? I know these faces… Father Johannes was throwing holy water over her bed and chanting in Latin.
“E-l-i-s-a i-s b-a-c-k!” a loud voice echoed in the room for all to hear. Quentin was very surprised. “She is back! Father Johannes, how is it possible?”
Father Johannes’ voice was frail. He was a short, gibbous man with an aquiline nose and big, deep eyes. “God the almighty never betrays us, my son!” He raised the wooden cross with his right hand. “Whatever evil was holding her from life – from death – is here no more!” He came closer to Quentin, reaching for his ear. “She is strong, my son! Keep pretending until the last moment. We don’t want it to happen, but if she survives we don’t want her to tell anyone about what we did.”
“If she survives it will be for a very short time. I will take care of her once and for all, Father!” Quentin pretended he was seeing a miracle from the seven heavens. His young wife back from the dead! How was it possible? We did everything we could, but you persisted… “Elisa, my dearest, you’re alive! You live! You have come back to us!” Quentin continued, admiring that she had endured so much.
* * *
July 10, 2014
Bound by Love Blog Tour
Title: Bound by Love
Author: Stephie Walls
Series: Bound #1
Genre: Erotic Romance
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: April 15 2014
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook & Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
When young college student and working phenom, Annie Teasman, shows up again at the distribution center to pitch a consulting proposal to management in hopes of sealing the deal, she never suspects when their eyes lock that the gorgeous, blue-eyed, ripped Gray Dearsley will change her life forever.
Will the bright, funny, and unassuming coed from an upper class background be able to bind her heart to that of the cocky, carefree Southern playboy? As she tries to manage an impossible school load while working full-time, will her drug use jeopardize their relationship?
While Gray wrestles with his desire to lead a carefree and uncommitted lifestyle, Annie must grow up as she struggles to meet her goals and decide for herself what she needs from a relationship to be happy. Will she choose a relationship where she is bound by passionate love, or will she choose the gentle love and security of a man whose background more closely matches her own?
Set in a Southern town where the cultural divide is wide and the generation gap is even more pronounced, the book is contemporary in its approach to the issue of drugs at colleges where the demands on time for success-oriented students frequently surpass their physical capabilities.
Passionate, sensual, and erotic, Bound by Love explores some of life’s most difficult questions about love & happiness. This is not a fairytale romance; it’s the story of two people desperate to love each other through drugs, infidelity, and painful truths. Not all love is guaranteed a happy ending.
Book Links
Author Information
I’m a thirty-six year old wife to my sweet husband Jason, and mother of one to the most adorable seven-year-old girl to ever walk, Maggie. I live with my little family on the outskirts of Greenville, South Carolina where we house two cats (Star Anise aka Annie and Asparagus aka Gus) and a dog, Jack. (the largest Yorkie ever!).
I have a serious addiction to anything Coach and would live on Starbucks if I could get away with it. I’m slightly enamored with Charlie Hunnam and Sons of Anarchy and am a self-proclaimed foodie. I’m an avid reader averaging around 300 novels a year and wish I had time to read more.
I currently work full-time in the Greenville area and fill my “extra” time (haha) with reading anything I can get my hands on and writing contemporary romance novels with a hint of erotica. This has been a dream of mine for years and I couldn’t have done it without the support of my husband and BFF Tracy who both pushed me to keep going when I didn’t have the confidence or the patience.
Author Links
Blog ~ Facebook ~ Pinterest ~ Twitter ~ Website
Teasers
Unbuckling her seat belt, she slides across the bench seat toward me, placing her hand on the inside of my thigh. I’ve got on loose-fitting jeans, but the warmth from her hand makes my cock start to twitch. The movement catches her eye, turning her face slightly pink with a blush.
“I can’t help it, Annie; he likes you – a lot.” Her lips meet the side of my neck as she trails kisses down my skin. Her hand slowly caressing my thigh, inching up slightly with each circle she makes with her palm. She latches on to my earlobe with just a hint of teeth. My cock is rock hard. Moving her tongue behind my ear, her hand on my dick, cupping it firmly and she knows, without a doubt, that I’m horny as hell. “Baby, as much as I love you touching me, I’m driving and can’t participate. We’ll be home soon. I promise we can finish this there.”
Sitting up straight, she doesn’t make a sound, but her eyes are piercing mine as I try to stay focused on the road. Both of her hands are in my lap, and I jump when I feel her unbutton my jeans. “What are you doing?” Geezus, I sound like I just ran a marathon I’m so winded.
“Watch the road, Gray. I’m just having a little fun,” she teases. White knuckles grip the steering wheel as I try to stay focused to keep us from crashing, but then I hear my zipper. I lift my hips just a little so she can adjust my jeans. Reaching her right hand into my boxers, she pulls my dick out and takes it with her left hand while sliding her right down to grab hold of my balls.
“Holy fuck, Bird Dog! I can’t drive with you giving me a hand job,” I bark at her.
“That’s good ‘cause I’m not going to give you a hand job,” she mutters. Without warning, my dick is in the back of her throat. She tugs slightly on my sac, triggering locked knees. I’m panting, but she’s just getting started. Her tongue rounds the head while her left hand strokes my shaft. I peek down at her head bobbing in my lap, wondering what the hell someone would think if they drove by. Granted, it would be difficult for anyone to see inside the truck, but holy shit, she’s sucking my fucking dick while driving down I-85!
Her tongue, gah, her tongue and those lips – I had no idea a mouth could have that much suction power. I feel the tip of my head touch the back of her throat, but I can’t pull back in the seat. She’s totally in control. When she raises her head, my dick slides out of her mouth; it’s glistening from her saliva, reminding me of how it looks when I pull it out of her pussy. Her hand propelling in unison with her head, squeezing with just enough pressure to enjoy the friction while her tongue works magic. I can’t hold back much longer. “Baby, I’m gonna come if you don’t stop,” I grunt as my balls constrict.
“I want you to come in my mouth,” she says like a siren calling to me.
I realizing I could lose control of the truck and kill us both when I come, but I can’t stop myself, I can’t push her away. My dick starts surging, filling her mouth with my seed. My head falls back against the seat as I fight to keep my eyes open. By the grace of God we are still in our lane, in one piece.
July 9, 2014
The Traveler Blog Tour
Title: The Traveler
Author: Melissa Delport
Series: The Traveler Series #1
Genre: SciFi Romance
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: March 3 2014
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook
Blurb/Synopsis:
Seven years ago, Rachel gave her heart to a dark, intense stranger, who left her broken and alone.
Every day since then Rachel has thought about Dex, her memories refusing to be silenced.
Now, Dex is back, but this time he is not alone. He has brought a formidable army – their sole purpose to conquer. Fate will bring Rachel and Dex back together, but on opposing sides of a war that threatens to obliterate her world.
Pitted against the power of the elements, Rachel and her friends must survive tsunamis, earthquakes, tornadoes and fire, all the while being hunted by a powerful enemy who will stop at nothing to pillage her planet.
Fleeing for her life amidst the chaos of a raging, burning city, Rachel realizes man’s only chance of survival lies in the hands of the very person who betrayed her all those years ago.
Earth is destined to fall, but Rachel is determined to save mankind, no matter the sacrifice.
Book Links
RAFFLECOPTER LINK
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/54e9c4132/
Author InformationWife and mother of 3, Melissa Delport is the author of The Legacy Series, Rainfall & The Traveler. She graduated from the University of South Africa with a Bachelor’s Degree in English in 2000. She currently lives with her husband and three children in Hillcrest, South Africa, and is hard at work on the final book in The Legacy Trilogy.
Her first novel, The Legacy, self-published in 2013, is the first in The Legacy Trilogy, and is followed by the sequel The Legion. The main-stream publisher, Tracey McDonald Publishers, is re-releasing The Legacy and The Legion in July 2014. Book 3 of the trilogy, The Legend, is due out in 2015. Melissa has also written an independent novel entitled Rainfall, a psychological romance, and a science-fiction, action-adventure called The Traveler.
An avid reader herself, Melissa finally decided to stop “watching from the sidelines” and to do what is her passion.
“I was driving home from work when inspiration struck, and a storyline started unravelling in my head. For a few days, it was all I could think about and eventually I realized that the only way to get it out of my head, was to put it all down on paper. I started writing, and that was that.”
Author Links
Excerpt
“She’s one of them,” she counters. “She needs to die.”
“And she will.” His voice is so cold that I cringe.
“What are you waiting for?”
“Why did you abandon your post?” He changes the subject, sounding furious, and she looks almost sheepish, although she gives a haughty toss of her black mane.
“I’m bored.”
Reluctantly I tear my gaze away. This is my chance to get out of here. I can’t hang around to eavesdrop on their conversation. Without the bridge there is only one way to get back to the others quickly. I scramble over the concrete debris and, without hesitating, I plunge into the unusually icy water. The weight of the heavy jacket pulls me down, but I throw one arm in front of the other, hauling myself across the lake, the cries of the others encouraging me to keep going. After a few exhausting minutes I feel my strength waning – my numb, tired body resisting all my efforts – but the sudden frenzied screams from above rouse me from my weary numbness. Looking upward, my relief that I am over halfway across is quickly replaced by fear. The brown-haired young man who we picked up on the street near Times Square is leaning out over the side of what remains of the bridge above me, his finger pointing northeast in the direction I have just come from. Jason, beside him, is gesturing wildly, “Swim!” he roars and in a panic I turn to look.
Dex is positioned at the edge of the lake, crouched down on his haunches, his glowing eyes fixed on me, his expression unreadable. The woman is standing just a short way behind him, her jet-black hair blowing in the high wind. Dex has one hand outstretched, palm facing downward, resting on the water and under his bare touch the water is turning to ice. Spreading from his fingertips, moving much faster than I am swimming, the frozen mass moves swiftly toward me. I can feel it as well as see it, a pressure, building in the water and growing in intensity with every passing second. I come to the terrifying conclusion that I’m going to die, trapped in a cold, frozen grave. I turn and double my efforts, each stroke a grueling victory. My arms are so heavy they feel leaden and the cold biting into my skin is agony. Peter has already made his way to the water’s edge and I can see the others, having warned me, sprinting back across what remains of the bridge. I almost weep with relief when I finally feel the cold, wet earth beneath my hands and I scrabble desperately, trying to pull myself forward. Peter plunges into the water lifting his feet as high as possible as he races toward me. Grabbing the back of my jacket he hoists me to my feet and we turn and shuffle toward the others, who are still yelling, urging us to hurry. Risking another glance over my shoulder I see that the ice is upon us and I give a scream of warning. Peter doesn’t turn around but he suddenly shoves me forward and I fall into Jason’s waiting arms, safe on the hard ground. Peter gives a bellow of pain and we turn to see his legs trapped from just below the knee in the ice.
We leap forward and, as I step onto the lake’s frozen solid surface, I glance across to where Dex is still crouched. He is watching me but he stands quickly and turns to the woman who is yelling beside him, her hands indicating that she is clearly unhappy that we are still alive. Dex is replying, but there is no way to know what it is that he’s saying.
“We have to get out of here!” I whisper urgently as Jason and I tug futilely at Peter’s arms trying to pull him from the ice.
“It’s frozen solid,” Peter gasps through gritted teeth. “You need to find something to break it.” I glance around and my gaze falls on a large boulder lying on the ground nearby. I lift it and drop it heavily beside Peter’s body but the ice barely chips. I give a howl of frustration. I can hear that Dex is raising his own voice now and I turn to check on them. Voka is standing at the water’s edge, her arm raised, pointing straight at us. Dex falls silent but I can sense that he is still staring directly at me, his green eyes burning into my face.
We have all turned to watch; even Peter has stopped struggling and is looking over his shoulder, his eyes wide. A ball of fire blossoms in Voka’s hands as though out of thin air and blazes brightly, casting a flickering light over their black clothing. I grab Peter’s arm and start pulling with even more urgency but he yanks it out of my grasp and takes me by the shoulders, dropping his head and forcing me to look him in the eye. Over his shoulder I can still see the light blazing, growing bigger by the second.
“Run,” is all Peter says, before releasing me and shoving me toward the edge of the lake back towards the park. I cannot leave him; he saved my life coming into the water, and I half-turn back but Jason grabs my jacket and pulls me away. Kate is already making her way into the trees assisted by the newcomer and I stumble blindly along with Jason. Just before we reach the safety of the tree-line I hear it. It is a whooshing, hissing sound and I turn, just in time to see the fire-ball streaking across the surface of the lake. Peter looks up at me, a sad smile in his kind eyes and then it hits him, engulfing him in an inferno of flames. I feel the bile rise in my throat as the blaze suddenly goes out. There is nothing left of Peter but ash.
July 7, 2014
Seeing Stars and Playing with Magic updates.
Seeing Stars had a okay cover. But now it has an amazing cover by the most awesome Dakota Trace. The reveal will take place next Monday! And I do have a release date set as well! Release date will be July 28th!! This one is a sweet contemporary romance. Certainly something different, and it did take me longer to write then one of my other stories. I have been through at least 4 covers before the newest which again is amazing.
I have set a tentative release date for Playing with Magic as well! August 26 :)
Here is a rough blurb:
Playing with Magic
Dark Erotic Fantasy
Months have passed, and the virus has finally burnt off enough to live outside of their safe house. Autumn and Anatha have fell into a comfortable life, but Autumn’s parents have a secret that also involves Anatha and her mother. They find out that they each have a brother and they were separated very young. As the four are united, they are offered an opportunity to go learn about their magic. This comes at a time that the guys in the group want to head off on a journey to find their families. Autumn, Anatha, Mabon and Aarawn are thrust into a new magical life to learn to control, play and use their magics while others around want to control and use them up north. While Rowan, River and the others meet cannibals, weird strangers, and a crazy cult down south.
July 6, 2014
Hey out there who wants to help me with a cover reveal.
I am looking for some bloggers for my cover reveal for next Monday the 14. Please help me out if you can :)
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1E3smF-SwEl8cAeMTUMiocPwO7q0FXKIiZERWqQ2h6V8/viewform
Thanks!
July 2, 2014
Falling Angels Blog Tour
Title: Falling Angels
Author: Ami Blackwelder
Series: Angelfire Chronicles #2
Genre: Angel/ Romance Suspense
Publisher: Eloquent Enraptures Publishing
Release Date: June 1 2014
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook & Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
Caption:
Enter a World Where Love Knows No Boundaries. A World Where Boundaries are Manipulated. A World Where Manipulation Might End Everything.
Summary:
After Ali Maney becomes Angelfire the stakes are raised and Dameon would like nothing more than her death. While Ali grows closer to Kian, they also find many differences that cause friction between them and after her best friends and brother are drawn into the angel wars, Ali will never look back until the war is over.
Book Links
Author Information
Ami Blackwelder is a Paranormal and SciFi author. Her stories range from Tween & YA to Adult. Growing up in Florida, she graduated UCF and in 1997 received her BA in English and additional teaching credentials. Then she packed her bags and travelled overseas to teach in Thailand, Nepal, Tibet, China and Korea. Thailand is considered her second home now. She has always loved writing and wrote poems and short stores since childhood; however, her novels began when she was in Thailand.Having won the Best Fiction Award from the University of Central Florida (Yes, The Blair Witch Project University), her short fiction From Joy We Come, Unto Joy We Return was published in the on campus literary magazine: Cypress Dome and remains to this day in University libraries around the USA. Later, she achieved the semi-finals in a Laurel Hemingway contest and published a few poems in the Thailand’s Expat magazine, and an article in the Thailand’s People newspaper. Additionally, she has published poetry in the Korea’s AIM magazine, the American Poetic Monthly magazine and Twisted Dreams Magazine.
Author Links
Other Books in the Angelfire Chronicles
She Speaks to Angels Book 1
Dumah’s Demons Book 1.5
Falling Angels Book 2
Angel Codes Coming
Excerpt (Chapter One)
Crash
“Kian! Catch me!” My chalk-white wings spun crazy in the gust of wind as I plummeted toward the soft grass in the park. Soft or not, I didn’t want my nose slamming into the green. I already dyed my hair a new color – blonde. I didn’t need a new nose too.
Plus, I wore a pair of new black skinny jeans and I couldn’t have grass stains all over my clothes. I had to get used to wearing tube tops, since the wings ripped a few of my blouses on my first attempts at sprouting them out of my back and flying. I also hated showing my belly.
Kian’s face grimaced in pain as he saw me heading straight for him. He rubbed his fingers through his copper hair in quick thought before his glowing amber eyes caught mine, which were of silver-violet hues. I still couldn’t get over the fact that every time I grew into an angel, my eyes morphed from their natural color of sea-blue into something spectacular.
Soon after my transformation, I asked why my eyes carried a silver tint. I thought only demons had that color. Krysta snidely explained the reason well. “You turned because of one of our own dying. Death and darkness makes the color silver.” Made sense, I guess. So now, my eyes would always be a reminder of an Angelfire loss. Now, I had to get over the fact that in five seconds flat, I might be one with the earth.
Leaping towards me, Kian’s celestial form expanded its wings and the force of my body pleasantly met with his instead of the ground. Moments before I felt his regal arms embrace me, a soft bounce of our chests told me he found me. Safe. Minimal damage. Other than a slight pinch in my stomach and a few feathers bent on the right side, I felt fine.
The right side of his mouth curled up in a smile as his pink lips rubbed mine. His winged arms braced my back as his hands and fingers caressed my neck. We floated upward toward the moon; two souls bound as one. Warmth from his angel-esque form felt as if I had curled up next to a fireplace with the one I loved.
Kissing, we forgot to care about anything else around us for a moment, because we had waited so long to be physical with each other. Lost in his eyes, I never wanted to leave the safety of his chest and the comforts of his wings.
However, life has a way of changing things.
“Ali,” he whispered, “It’s time for you to use your gift.”
I flinched. The mere thought of fire scared me. How could I propel the dangerous blaze from my fingers?
“But?”
“No buts this time. This gift is your weapon. You’ll need it someday, because I can’t be with you 24-7, and we have Samuel’s life to look after now too.”
The sound of my brother’s name caused my mind to return to the night when Dameon changed my life forever: the night he murdered Nathaniel, the night Samuel saw the angel world for the first time, the night I had been changed into an Angelfire.
“Yes, my brother.” He weighed heavily on me. After all, I drew him into this world and into this danger. “I have to do this for him.”
Kian twirled me as if I were a feather in his hand. I became completely weightless. “Are you ready?”
“I think I finally am.”
My body dropped with his. Our wings went from undulation to retreat into our sides. Standing on the wet grass, I was reminded that it had rained just hours earlier. Good thing too, because it made sure everyone was indoors or had found shelter somewhere else while Kian and I used our powers.
“Just focus, Ali. You can do it,” Kian encouraged, his confident sunglow eyes on me.
A burning sensation rose underneath my palms. I could feel the heat as if standing over a stove, but every time I tried to push, nothing came out of me. I squeezed my hands, my forehead wrinkled and when I opened up, nothing.
“What am I doing wrong?”
“You fear the power. You’re afraid of what it might do, where it might go. The gift feels your fear.”
“Then how do I get over it?”
“The secret is to embrace your power. Look at where you want the flame to go and focus.”
I closed my eyes and threw my hands forward, squeezing and releasing as my thoughts churned, but only my father came to mind.
“I can’t,” I cried and threw my hands to my forehead. I fumbled backward, but Kian grabbed my shoulder to steady me.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“I know you, Ali. It’s something.”
My eyes swelled with salty tears, “It’s…it’s my father.” My chest rose and shrank several times with heaving breaths. Kian drew me into his strong form.
“I’m here. You can tell me.”
“He was a fire fighter. The fire, the smoke everyday just finally got to him, made his heart weak.”
“And he died.” Kian spoke with a low sound, a sound that told me he understood pain too.
“Just like that.” The tears slipped down my pinking cheeks.
“You don’t have to be afraid of the fire, Ali.” Kian grasped my hand. With his other fingers, he wiped my tears. “The flames won’t take you too. You can control them, own them.”
I had no more words, only heaps of emotions, I didn’t know what to do with. Fear and bravery competed with each other beneath my skin. An invisible battle waged, and then I heard the words that tipped the scales in my favor.
“Remember, Ali, this power came to you because of Nathaniel, because he is gone. Fire is a gift. Don’t let the flames die with him. Don’t let this gift die with your father. Both of them would want you to conquer your fear.”
I took in a deep breath, sniffled one last time, and nodded my head. As I turned from Kian, and entered into my own space, a space I knew would soon be the conception of a power so strong it could take life, I felt the presence of something magical. Maybe my father’s spirit? Maybe something inside of me changed?
I focused on the air pocket five feet in front of me and a flicker in my eyes fixed Kian’s full attention on my hands. However, I no longer saw my dying father, but a ghostly father and a ghostly Nathaniel standing beside me. Glowing red-orange, my palms could have been mistaken for a star.
Then, as if I had been shooting flames all my life, the fire burst out from underneath my skin and rushed into the aimed pocket of air. The fire moved at my simple command, the orangey flames swirled and swiveled in the contained space, an area that had become, for a time, my fixation.
Then, just as soon as they had been born, they died.
“You did it, Ali,” Kian said matter-of-factly.
“Yes,” I beamed, like a kid opening his Christmas gift, “I did.”
“Do it again, but this time hit the tree.” He pointed ahead.
“No, Kian, that will cause a park fire.”
“It won’t. I’ll use my gift of ice to freeze it.” My eyes shot at him half uncertain that his plan would work.
“Trust me.” I had to admit I completely did.
“Okay, here goes.” I flipped my palms up and felt the tingling of heat surge along my skin before the radiant flames shot across the grass and into the chestnut trunk of the tree. The bark lit up in crackles and the fire moved as if a forbidden dance.
Suddenly, a bolt of ice crashed into the tree, splinters of frost and bark blew left and right…but the flames, the chaotic motion of reds and oranges, shriveled into nothingness.
“It worked,” I tried not to sound doubtful it ever would.
“Again.” Kian could see the exhaustion in my face from flying, and then firing fire. The whole experience took a lot out of me, but he also wanted me ready for anything. The Were and Fanged demons wouldn’t hesitate to kill me. He knew it and I knew it.
“I’m so tired.”
“I know, but evening is our only time to practice and avoid being seen. You can do it, Ali. I believe in you.”
I sighed, and then when I saw Kian’s elegant wings lift him into the air, I somehow grew the strength to push the image of my bed pillows from the forefront of my mind.
With a deep breath, my toes pushed me into the air and I floated, every time feeling as if the first. Then I grabbed onto Kian’s outstretch hand. Freezing.
“I need you to use your gift while flying,” he spoke with cold air clouting my face.
I nodded and then let go of him to lift my palms forward. I had to do this, not only for myself, but also for my family. At any time the demons could kill Samuel to get their Essence back, or even try to get at him through Mom. I already lost my father. I couldn’t lose anyone else.
With two arms up and one leg balancing, I felt as if I belonged in a David Copperfield performance and if I hadn’t been the main attraction, I’d be the one in the audience making notations in my mind like, he is totally using wires! Wings are so fake! Except nothing about this could be more real, even though, sometimes I could hardly believe this angel existence myself.
I focused on flying and not on plummeting to the ground as I had done so many times before. Harder than it looked. I’d been surfing only once in my life. A vacation trip I took with Dad and Samuel a long time ago. I remembered the waves under my board, and how they pushed me every which way and I remembered how unbalanced the world seemed at the time. However, surfing didn’t come close to the difficulties of flying. Every time I looked down, I became nauseous and whenever another gust of wind rushed past me, I lost my balance.
Still, I had to get over myself. Nathaniel would not be proud, and I owed it to my father and to my brother. If they could risk their lives every day as a fireman and a policeman to serve the city, then the least I could do would be to serve as AngelFire.
I managed to hover above ground without tumbling downward for several minutes and actually felt stable. Then I grew courageous and threw my palms into the pocket of wind that crashed past me. Fire lit up the sky. I went from magic act to circus performer, just like that.
The fire didn’t last long, because ice soon melted into the flames and then fell like rain, making the park seem like the next hot spot for a Harry Potter movie.
“You did it!” Kian grinned and threw his fluffy feathers around me. He engulfed me completely and I never felt safer than when I rested in his chest. His arms would always protect me.
It never felt long enough with him, but I needed more practice using my gifts. After all, New York depended on the Angelfire and me to keep them safe from the demons, and though a thankless job, where the human world never even knew what went on around them, I knew.
After squeezing Kian tightly, I fluttered further up into the dark night sky and balled my fists before forming a mental picture of fire. I bolted toward Kian who still hovered above the ground below me and then released my palms in the opposite direction. Flames spread over the air like a forest fire, as if my mind moved the waves of sparkling color…and I guess my mind did.
I controlled the fire bursting from my hands, the chaotic movements of red as they mesmerized me, until Kian propelled two icicles, one from each palm, into my sea of flames. Within seconds, the ice swallowed the heat emanating from the flames, cooling my skin, until eventually, the very core of the fire itself extinguished.
We both stared at each other as if something otherworldly just took place, and in a way, something just had. His eyes reminded me of the fire in the sky, so brilliant and bright. I couldn’t take mine off of his.
“Ali,” the sound of his voice kept my full attention, “promise me something. Promise me, you’ll never get lost in this angel world. We lose too many to the other side for this rush of power. I can never lose you.”
I must have appeared dumbfounded. I never even contemplated the effects these kinds of powers would have over me. If anything, I felt afraid of them, not longing for more…but still, many like me, or maybe even better than me, had fallen vulnerable to the darkness and had been snatched up into the flock led by Azrael and Dameon.
My celestial eyes locked with his concern, “I won’t.”
He drew closer to me, with wings flapping, and his bare chest damp with moisture from his melted ice. A shiver rushed through him from a gust of passing wind and his hands trembled. Hairs on his chest stood on end. “I won’t,” I repeated and tugged his chilled form into my warm breast, then I wrapped my wings around him. “You are all I want.”
His icy body absorbed my heat, the heat from my fiery hands. This warmth and those reassuring words could be my only solace for him. He saved my life during junior year and I felt I owed him more than just my loyalty. However, for tonight, this would have to be enough.
When the sun began to rise, we ended our practice as we had many nights prior and then we headed out of the park. We flew side by side until reaching my house and then I crept through the open window. Kian followed.
“I’ll come by late in the morning. We’ll go to the Angelfire house together,” Kian mentioned as an afterthought.
“I’d like that.” I had wanted to go for sometime, ever since turning angel. Questions swirled in my mind that I knew only the house could answer. Answers only Sammael had, answers only the secret books held.
“I can see your mind racing. What is it, Ali?”
I shook my head, “Nothing.” Actually, everything. I needed to know more about the Weres and Fanged demons and more about Azrael and Dameon. If I was going to help defeat them, I needed to know all I could, but I also knew the Angelfire house kept tight reins on all their secrets.
I would have to play this one well.
After giving Kian a soft kiss on the cheek, he pulled me closer and our lips met. His heavenly features and tender touch always left him unforgettable. No boy had ever kissed me before as he had, as if everything in his fiber poured out of him in that single moment just to be with me.
Climbing into bed, my wings collapsed into my sides. I hardly felt the transition anymore. I didn’t feel as exhausted as I once did when I had been human, but I still needed my sleep. Kian brushed my blonde hair as I closed my eyes and he eased my way into a dream. With him near me, dreams came easily.
Beautifully Used Cover Reveal!
Title: Beautifully Used
Author: Susan Griscom
Series: The Beaumont Brothers
Genre: New Adult Contemporary
Publisher: Amber Glow Books
Release Date: Aug 2014
Edition/Formats It Will be Available In: eBook & Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
Brodie Beaumont – “I’m not going to pretend to be somebody I’m not. I like who I am, and I don’t need you or anyone else judging me. I’m not going to lie; I like women, and I don’t mind that they use me. Besides, I’m never really sure just who is using whom. Sure, I have a past, but who doesn’t? And maybe that’s why I act the way I do. But that’s neither here nor there, because I really don’t care.”
Gabrielle Demeres – “I’d learned the hard way what type of guy Brodie Beaumont truly was. His crude seduction tactics earned him a slap to the face after he actually groped my breasts while attempting to kiss me. I can’t say I was looking forward to another encounter with Brodie Beaumont. As my eyes fell upon a large pair of men’s DC Court shoes facing right toward me, I reluctantly looked up to find the man himself in all his yummy glory standing three feet in front of me, frowning. Yeah, I know, I had slapped him and declined his not so eloquent offer, but the guy was still hot despite his lack of discretion in the romance department.”
Forced to spend time together, Gabrielle and Brodie face the unthinkable on what was supposed to be the most memorable day of her best friend’s and his brother’s life. Would they be capable of overcoming their aversion for one another while coping with their own troubled pasts? Or is their hostility just skating the fine line between love and hate?
Giveaway
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/54e9c4134/
I grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania, spending most of my time daydreaming or playing around in the mud. I grew out of the mud play, well, most of the time, a good soak in the mud is always fun. I still daydream often and sometimes my daydreams interrupt my daydreams. So, I write to remember them. If I didn’t write, I think my mind would explode from an overload of fantasy and weirdness. To the annoyance of my friends and family, my characters sometimes become a part of my world. During my childhood, I would frequently get in trouble in school for daydreaming. Eventually, my vivid imagination paid off and I had the privilege of writing and co-directing my sixth-grade class play–a dreadful disaster, though not from my writing, of course. I’m pretty sure it was the acting.
I enjoy writing about characters living in small quaint towns and sometimes they tend to lean toward the unusual and edgy.
My paranormal playing field delves into a different milieu, abandoning vampires and werewolves, but not discounting them. Someday I might like to write a novel about vamps and those furry creatures. But for now I like the bizarre mixed with romance. A strong hero or heroine confronted with extraordinary forces of nature, powers and capabilities gets my blood running hot as does a steamy contemporary romantic suspense.
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Excerpt
Chapter 1
Brodie
The buzz coming from under my pillow pounded between my ears like thunder. I’d set my phone on vibrate, and it was determined to ruin a perfect slumbering morning. I stuck my hand under the cushion attempting to silence it, but only managed to knock the offending instrument onto the floor.
The girl beside me pulled herself into a cute little ball with her knees hugging her chest, and her adorable little behind shoved against my cock. She moaned something about it still being dark outside. No shit. I frowned, and rolling over reached for my phone, unfortunately catching a glimpse at the digital clock on the nightstand in the process. A glaring red four-fifty-nine assaulted my eyes with brilliance that even Einstein would have been shocked by. The brightness made it impossible to determine who in God’s name was sending me a text so early in the morning.
I let the phone slip from my fingers to the floor without bothering to read the message. There was nothing in this world so important at five o’ fucking clock in the morning that couldn’t wait. I rolled back toward the hottie. “Sorry, baby,” I whispered into her neck, and showered her with little kisses there, wishing I could remember her name. Casandra, Clarista, Carry? It was one of those C names or was it K? No matter. Normally, I was pretty good with names. I’d never once called a woman the wrong name, but this girl had such an uncommon, yet so close to common name I’d had trouble all night long, and had to resort to calling her baby or sweetheart. I hated using those terms of endearment because none of the girls I’d been hooking up with lately were someone I’d like to think of as endearing. “Go back to sleep,” I said, sort of more of an order to myself than to her.
When she scooted back against me, moving her hips the way she did, she all of a sudden seemed very endearing to me. I rocked with her, closing my eyes, shutting out the visions of the bedroom I was in with its dark purple wall and massive black and white picture of a nude couple embracing on the adjacent pale pink wall. Lacy, pale pink curtains hung in the window. Not my room. This was a commonality for me recently, waking up to find myself in unfamiliar, feminine surroundings, since privacy at home had become an issue. That explained the bright digital clock beside the bed—not something I would ever own.
Cassandra, Clarista, Castalia, or whatever the fuck her name was, let out a sexy moan before turning around and wrapping her hands around me. Stroking and squeezing oh so firmly just enough to make a guy not only forget where he was, but not care. God, it felt so good, but not as good as when her tongue slid over the tip right before taking me in her mouth.
I must admit, my breath hitched as the tip of my cock hit the back of her throat, and I caught the slight gagging sound she made. “Oh, baby. That feels so good.” Actually, this Cassandra or whatever, was a bit mediocre in this particular department, but I wasn’t about to complain. Any attempt at a blowjob was better than none at all in my book.
This was my life. I wasn’t complaining. Nope, not at all. Today was starting off much like any other day lately; lazy, with a little romping between the sheets. It got my blood running, and today I needed to be on my game. Today, or tonight rather, was my brother’s bachelor party, and I was hosting it.
Buzzzzzzzz.
My phone again. “Hey, baby. Give me a minute will ya?” I groaned, pulling myself out from the soft sucking and into the cold air. Shit. What was wrong with me? I leaned over the edge of the bed and picked up my phone. This time I read the message. Only it wasn’t a message. It was an alert I’d set on my phone as a reminder. Pick up Gabby from airport. My brother’s soon to be bride’s maid of honor—and a major pain in my side—was flying in this morning at six-twenty, and I’d been volunteered by Jackson to pick her up. Thanks a whole hell of a lot, Bro.
“Fuck.”
“What’s the matter, Brodie?” she asked, licking her lips and grabbing for me like she’d just had her favorite lollipop taken away.
“I gotta go.”
“What? Why?”
“Sorry, baby.” God, what was her name? “I promised to pick up a friend from the airport.” Friend was a huge stretch of the English vocabulary when it came to Gabby. Gabriella Demers was not my friend in any sense of the word. In fact, she hated me.
The last time I saw Gabby, which was about a year ago when she’d spent a few nights in my house while visiting with Lena, she’d told me to go bungee jumping from a bridge without the bungee cord. Ouch. All I’d done to deserve that nice suggestion was tried my damnedest to show the woman a good time. Of course, my idea of a good time and hers were completely different, which I found out the second my lips brushed gently against hers and my hand strategically covered her left breast. She’d shoved me away so fast my poor lips never got the chance to make even a hint of a memory of hers. Right before she told me to go jump off the bridge, she’d slapped me and said I wasn’t her type. It was when I insisted that I was that she got nasty about it. Pffft. I was every woman’s type. But hey, I copped a clue right away and backed off the minute she shoved me away, she didn’t need to make an imprint of her hand on my face. There was something disturbing about that chick.
I shook the memory away and grabbed the waist of the one I was with, pulling her back against me. “I wish I could stay, baby, but I did promise my brother.”
“Can we hook up again tonight?” she asked.
“Sorry, no can do. Got a bachelor party to host.” Glad for once I had a bona fide excuse at the tip of my tongue.
“Aw. What about tomorrow night? I’ll only be in town for another couple of days.” Relationships just the way I liked them. Short and noncommittal. “We could have a replay of last night, maybe even make a movie so I have something to remember you by.”
Make a movie? No way. I had a fine physique and all, and I may be promiscuous, very free with my organs, some might even say I’m a man slut, but I didn’t need my ass in a starring role plastered all over the internet. “Love to, except I have commitments this weekend.” Besides, I’d never spent the night with the same woman more than twice, and this one was barely worth the one I’d already spent.
I quickly pulled up my pants and shrugged into my shirt. I pulled on my boots and grabbed my phone, and as I headed for the door she purred out. “Call me?”
“Sure, baby.” I lied as I shut the door, and deleted her number from my phone. I never saved them, and I never answered my phone when the number came up without a name attached.
Other Works by Susan Griscom
Allusive
Aftershock
Brief
Interludes
*The Beaumont Brothers*
Beautifully
Wounded Book 1
Beautifully Used
Book 2 Coming Soon
*Whisper Cape Series*
Whisper
Cape Book 1
Reflections
Book 2
A
Secret Fate Book 3
Whisper
Cape Boxed Set Books 1 – 3
July 1, 2014
Anyone on Booktropolous Social?
It is a new social site for readers, writers and bloggers. It’s new come add me, or what is your user name I’ll add you.
https://booktropoloussocial.com/index.php?do=/profile-711/
June 30, 2014
Awaken the Elements book 2 out in August!
Awaken the Elements-Book 1 of The Elements Trilogy
Dark Erotic Fantasy-f/m, m/m/f menage, m/m
Blurb:
Autumn has tried all her life to be normal, and it worked mostly. But Autumn is not normal. She doesn’t know exactly what she is or why she is so different. She does know that she can make plants grow without water or dirt, she can talk to trees, and when she is mad she can make the earth move around her. There is one other person who is different like her, Anatha, her cousin. But the two have never really gotten along.
As a virus sweeps the globe, making people seek government sanctioned safe houses. Autumn and Anatha’s family find themselves in an unlikely safe house. But they are not alone; there are friends, ex-friends, ex-boyfriends, a reunited boy band, and a wannabe rapper. Friendships grow and jealousies run crazy, as two men spark a passion in Autumn she had never felt before.
During their first summer, Autumn and Anatha, perform a summer solstice ritual which awakens the magic inside them, leading them on the path towards their destiny. But first they need to learn to control the magic that is in them as well as learn to get along, or they will destroy everything around them.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IFV9RCS
