Nenia Campbell's Blog, page 8
June 4, 2023
RENT GIRL is FREE for a limited time!
My interracial cartel romance is free! - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B...
Dual timeline with dark themes and obsession of the "touch her and die" variety. If you haven't read it, check it out! ♥
Dual timeline with dark themes and obsession of the "touch her and die" variety. If you haven't read it, check it out! ♥
June 2, 2023
Author interview with catiereadsandwrites
Hey all! A few weeks ago I got asked to do an author interview with catiereadsandwrites on Instagram! You can read the interview I did with her on her blog, HERE: https://catie1024.wordpress.com/2023/...
Usually I come across as soooo awkward in interviews, but I'm really happy with how this one went. :)
Usually I come across as soooo awkward in interviews, but I'm really happy with how this one went. :)
May 30, 2023
Writing update! + what's happening vs. what's next
Heyyy all! It's been a while since I posted a writing update on here and since I just finished finished my latest WIP, I figure now is probably a good time!
In June, I will be releasing a very dark gothic romance called Raise the Blood. It's currently available on Kindle Vella for US readers only, but I will be releasing a revised and expanded version for all audiences through Kindle at the end of next month (think June 23rd as the target date!). I think readers who enjoyed my Horrorscape series will especially enjoy this one, especially if you wished that Gavin was a little bit nicer/softer to Val.
I'm currently serializing a dark faerie story on Kindle Vella which is called Detraction. I've had this title listed on Goodreads for almost ten years but hadn't really DONE anything with it yet, so it feels good to finally be checking it off the list. Currently two chapters are up and I hope to have a third out this weekend.
I'm not sure what will be next. I'm finalizing the editing for RtB and working on DETRACTION. I have a high fantasy story planned, called The Flesh Pavilion, and my two sad little tabled projects, Wildscape and Adeane and Ravina. I ended up writing myself into a wall with those two books so I need to tweak the storylines. I think I've thought of a potential solution for WS but A&R needs some reworking.
Evergloom and Court the Night are both on my mind also, and half-written, but I literally have no idea how to end them. I might actually end up serializing Evergloom at some point, though, because I think part of the problem with that book was a mean case of self-doubt lol, and the chapters are shorter and would suit the format better than some of the other things I write.
As always, my priorities might shift and change depending on inspo. When I am inspired, I can write a book in just a couple months. But when I'm slogging, it can take over a year. I try to be as transparent as I can though, and, as always, I feel so grateful to have readers as awesome as you. :)
In June, I will be releasing a very dark gothic romance called Raise the Blood. It's currently available on Kindle Vella for US readers only, but I will be releasing a revised and expanded version for all audiences through Kindle at the end of next month (think June 23rd as the target date!). I think readers who enjoyed my Horrorscape series will especially enjoy this one, especially if you wished that Gavin was a little bit nicer/softer to Val.
I'm currently serializing a dark faerie story on Kindle Vella which is called Detraction. I've had this title listed on Goodreads for almost ten years but hadn't really DONE anything with it yet, so it feels good to finally be checking it off the list. Currently two chapters are up and I hope to have a third out this weekend.
I'm not sure what will be next. I'm finalizing the editing for RtB and working on DETRACTION. I have a high fantasy story planned, called The Flesh Pavilion, and my two sad little tabled projects, Wildscape and Adeane and Ravina. I ended up writing myself into a wall with those two books so I need to tweak the storylines. I think I've thought of a potential solution for WS but A&R needs some reworking.
Evergloom and Court the Night are both on my mind also, and half-written, but I literally have no idea how to end them. I might actually end up serializing Evergloom at some point, though, because I think part of the problem with that book was a mean case of self-doubt lol, and the chapters are shorter and would suit the format better than some of the other things I write.
As always, my priorities might shift and change depending on inspo. When I am inspired, I can write a book in just a couple months. But when I'm slogging, it can take over a year. I try to be as transparent as I can though, and, as always, I feel so grateful to have readers as awesome as you. :)
May 22, 2023
RAISE THE BLOOD teaser (18+)
LOOK AWAY, CHILDREN. THIS TEASER IS NOT FOR YOU.*
*obligatory disclaimer
C/W for CNC-ish dub-con
This is an excerpt from the revised and expanded version that will appear on Kindle in (hopefully) 30 days.
You can currently read the original serialized version HERE if you live in the US (first three chapters are free!): https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/e...
Add the book on Goodreads HERE: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...
-
“I bet people call you sweet, don’t they? And good.” His hand slipped under her shirt, gliding over her ribs. The trees she was looking at wrenched violently before her eyes as his warm hand cupped her breast, spreading until the tips of them were protruding from her low-cut top. “I wonder,” he went on softly, “what they’d call you, if they saw you with me right now.”
That made her angry, but as soon as she opened her mouth, he pressed down hard on her clit and the intensity of it made something inside her combust in a rain of fire. When she cried out, he leaned down and covered her mouth with his, and at this odd angle, the top of his lip was brushing over her lower one, and the sharp blade of his nose was flush with her chin. The awkward movement pushed out her neck until the tendons were straining against the skin, and she wondered—with a sinister burst of prescience that cut right through her drunken stupor—if she looked like a sacrifice about to give her throat up to the knife.
The sudden tensing of her body made it hurt when he slid his fingers inside of her. She grunted in surprise, too caught off-guard to protest. “Rael’s loyal to me,” he said harshly, tugging at the strap of her top with his teeth as he slowly began to thrust his fingers. “I suggest you remember that, the next time you try to use him to make me jealous.”
“Please—”
“You did want to make me jealous.”
A lump formed in her throat. “Yes,” she whispered.
“Oh, Nadine.” Slowly, he dragged the other strap off her shoulder. “You should have just told me. I would have taken care of you.” With the hand that was still under her shirt, he gripped the fabric from within, letting it slip down her ribs. A second tug, and her bra followed. “Unless you like being chased.”
That depends on who’s chasing.
The passing thought she’d had in the garden returned again, full force, as it occurred to her that every time he’d let her run from him might have been calculated: a series of coups, all driving up to this.
When she came, it was cloaked in the shadows, sweat turning to sharp drops of ice on her skin. He let her chest heave, his own breathing light and even. The only sign that she was affecting him at all was still digging into her hip, just hard enough to make her squirm.
“It’s always a fight with you, though—even now.” He gently drew the finger he’d touched her with over her swollen lips. “I bet you never imagined losing could taste so good.”
She licked them, tasting herself, and saw the look in his eyes become black.
And then they shuttered, and his hand fell to his fly. “Come here—leave that alone.” She had started to pull up her clothes. “You look good a little rumpled. Less . . . buttoned up.” His eyes blazed with the trapped heat of stolen starlight. “Exactly how I imagined.”
Her heart skipped as he cradled her closer. This time, he remembered to avoid the bruise.
It occurred to her afterwards, when the unhurried movements of her mouth finally broke through the layer of ice encasing him and she had a glimpse of the dark passion boiling beneath all his careless reserve, that maybe she knew what Noelle had seen in Ben, after all.
*obligatory disclaimer
C/W for CNC-ish dub-con
This is an excerpt from the revised and expanded version that will appear on Kindle in (hopefully) 30 days.
You can currently read the original serialized version HERE if you live in the US (first three chapters are free!): https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/e...
Add the book on Goodreads HERE: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...
-
“I bet people call you sweet, don’t they? And good.” His hand slipped under her shirt, gliding over her ribs. The trees she was looking at wrenched violently before her eyes as his warm hand cupped her breast, spreading until the tips of them were protruding from her low-cut top. “I wonder,” he went on softly, “what they’d call you, if they saw you with me right now.”
That made her angry, but as soon as she opened her mouth, he pressed down hard on her clit and the intensity of it made something inside her combust in a rain of fire. When she cried out, he leaned down and covered her mouth with his, and at this odd angle, the top of his lip was brushing over her lower one, and the sharp blade of his nose was flush with her chin. The awkward movement pushed out her neck until the tendons were straining against the skin, and she wondered—with a sinister burst of prescience that cut right through her drunken stupor—if she looked like a sacrifice about to give her throat up to the knife.
The sudden tensing of her body made it hurt when he slid his fingers inside of her. She grunted in surprise, too caught off-guard to protest. “Rael’s loyal to me,” he said harshly, tugging at the strap of her top with his teeth as he slowly began to thrust his fingers. “I suggest you remember that, the next time you try to use him to make me jealous.”
“Please—”
“You did want to make me jealous.”
A lump formed in her throat. “Yes,” she whispered.
“Oh, Nadine.” Slowly, he dragged the other strap off her shoulder. “You should have just told me. I would have taken care of you.” With the hand that was still under her shirt, he gripped the fabric from within, letting it slip down her ribs. A second tug, and her bra followed. “Unless you like being chased.”
That depends on who’s chasing.
The passing thought she’d had in the garden returned again, full force, as it occurred to her that every time he’d let her run from him might have been calculated: a series of coups, all driving up to this.
When she came, it was cloaked in the shadows, sweat turning to sharp drops of ice on her skin. He let her chest heave, his own breathing light and even. The only sign that she was affecting him at all was still digging into her hip, just hard enough to make her squirm.
“It’s always a fight with you, though—even now.” He gently drew the finger he’d touched her with over her swollen lips. “I bet you never imagined losing could taste so good.”
She licked them, tasting herself, and saw the look in his eyes become black.
And then they shuttered, and his hand fell to his fly. “Come here—leave that alone.” She had started to pull up her clothes. “You look good a little rumpled. Less . . . buttoned up.” His eyes blazed with the trapped heat of stolen starlight. “Exactly how I imagined.”
Her heart skipped as he cradled her closer. This time, he remembered to avoid the bruise.
It occurred to her afterwards, when the unhurried movements of her mouth finally broke through the layer of ice encasing him and she had a glimpse of the dark passion boiling beneath all his careless reserve, that maybe she knew what Noelle had seen in Ben, after all.
May 15, 2023
NEW SUMMARY JUST DROPPED
Now that the serialized, US-only version of RAISE THE BLOOD is almost done, I've started to make plans to revise it for international release on Kindle Unlimited. The ebook version will be completely rewritten and feature both minor and significant changes.
Here's the new summary I just wrote:
FIND THE GREEN BOOK
COUNT THE SPARROWS
Shy and anxious Nadine Harnois has spent her whole life living in the shadow of her older, prettier sister, Noelle. But when Noelle mysteriously vanishes just months after her fairytale wedding, Nadine gathers her courage to go to her brother-in-law's home in Argentum to seek answers.
Caledon Cullraven, the family's youngest son, takes an immediate interest in her, becoming both her tormentor and her ally. But beneath his playful demeanor lurks something twisted and depraved, and as her reluctant attraction to him grows, so, too, does the potential for real danger.
The Cullraven family legacy goes back for generations, with secrets that run as deep and as dark as the town's abandoned silver mines. The people of Argentum are suspicious and fearful of their town's reclusive benefactors, and possibly with good reason: because the more time Nadine spends with this family, the more she suspects that they're hiding something truly terrible.
“You want to run, Nadine? Run to me.”
Here's the new summary I just wrote:
FIND THE GREEN BOOK
COUNT THE SPARROWS
Shy and anxious Nadine Harnois has spent her whole life living in the shadow of her older, prettier sister, Noelle. But when Noelle mysteriously vanishes just months after her fairytale wedding, Nadine gathers her courage to go to her brother-in-law's home in Argentum to seek answers.
Caledon Cullraven, the family's youngest son, takes an immediate interest in her, becoming both her tormentor and her ally. But beneath his playful demeanor lurks something twisted and depraved, and as her reluctant attraction to him grows, so, too, does the potential for real danger.
The Cullraven family legacy goes back for generations, with secrets that run as deep and as dark as the town's abandoned silver mines. The people of Argentum are suspicious and fearful of their town's reclusive benefactors, and possibly with good reason: because the more time Nadine spends with this family, the more she suspects that they're hiding something truly terrible.
“You want to run, Nadine? Run to me.”
May 6, 2023
Raise the Blood Playlist
Since I'm serializing this work, I decided to share the playlist now. I'll update with new songs that go with each chapter.
I hope you enjoy. ♥
1. Parliament of Owls // Agnes Obel
2. notre dame // Paris Paloma
3. Midnight Drive // Still Corners
4. In the Shadows // Amy Stroup
5. Little Bird // The Weepies
6. Eat Your Young // Hozier
7. No Roots // Alice Merton
8. Lorna // Labyrinth Ear
9. Dreaming Awake (Son Lux Remix) // My Brightest Diamond
10. Drag Me Into the Woods // Holy Fawn (thanks to Heather for this one!)
11. Run Cried The Crawling // Agnes Obel
12. Funeral // Meg Myers
13. Failure to Comply // MISSIO
14. Strangelove // Black Math
15. The Only One // Evanescence
16. Dead Man's Arms // Bishop Briggs
17. House of Metal // Chelsea Wolfe
18. In the Woods Somewhere // Hozier (thanks to Clarice for this one!)
19. When the Night Is Over // Lord Huron
20. Lose Control // Evanescence
21. Arrows // Holy Fawn
22. Beautiful Crime // Tamer
I hope you enjoy. ♥
1. Parliament of Owls // Agnes Obel
2. notre dame // Paris Paloma
3. Midnight Drive // Still Corners
4. In the Shadows // Amy Stroup
5. Little Bird // The Weepies
6. Eat Your Young // Hozier
7. No Roots // Alice Merton
8. Lorna // Labyrinth Ear
9. Dreaming Awake (Son Lux Remix) // My Brightest Diamond
10. Drag Me Into the Woods // Holy Fawn (thanks to Heather for this one!)
11. Run Cried The Crawling // Agnes Obel
12. Funeral // Meg Myers
13. Failure to Comply // MISSIO
14. Strangelove // Black Math
15. The Only One // Evanescence
16. Dead Man's Arms // Bishop Briggs
17. House of Metal // Chelsea Wolfe
18. In the Woods Somewhere // Hozier (thanks to Clarice for this one!)
19. When the Night Is Over // Lord Huron
20. Lose Control // Evanescence
21. Arrows // Holy Fawn
22. Beautiful Crime // Tamer
May 5, 2023
A note on friend requests
If you've sent me a friend request and are wondering why you haven't been accepted, it's because I've hit the friend cap. I literally cannot accept anymore friends. When I tried doing it, some of my older friends appeared to have been deleted to make room for the new, so now I keep it capped at 5k.
Luckily, people unfriend me all the time because buyer's remorse is real, and my taste in books is trashy and filled with bad takes. So as soon as a few spots open up, I go into my pending requests and add as many people I can.
Just wanted to put this out there because as someone with social anxiety, I know I tend to default to the worst possible outcome when it comes to interpreting people's behavior. I didn't want anyone to feel bad.
But don't worry! The next time I review another popular and over-hyped YA novel with my shitty opinion, we'll probably become friends. In the meantime, maybe just follow me for now. ;)
x Nenia
Luckily, people unfriend me all the time because buyer's remorse is real, and my taste in books is trashy and filled with bad takes. So as soon as a few spots open up, I go into my pending requests and add as many people I can.
Just wanted to put this out there because as someone with social anxiety, I know I tend to default to the worst possible outcome when it comes to interpreting people's behavior. I didn't want anyone to feel bad.
But don't worry! The next time I review another popular and over-hyped YA novel with my shitty opinion, we'll probably become friends. In the meantime, maybe just follow me for now. ;)
x Nenia
May 2, 2023
QUID PRO QUO is FREE for a limited time!
Hey all!
My dark stepbrother romance will be FREE for a limited time. It features a jealous and possessive hero who will do anything for his heroine but let her go.
https://www.amazon.com/Quid-Pro-Quo-s...
Enjoy! <3
My dark stepbrother romance will be FREE for a limited time. It features a jealous and possessive hero who will do anything for his heroine but let her go.
https://www.amazon.com/Quid-Pro-Quo-s...
Enjoy! <3
April 29, 2023
LITTLE DEATHS Is FREE for a Limited Time!
Hey all!
My erotic horror/thriller romance, LITTLE DEATHS, is FREE for a limited time on Kindle!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B...
It's the story of a retired horror movie actress whose life quickly begins falling apart when someone begins a series of stylized killings that mimic the deaths from her films shortly after her husband's premature passing.
Also, it's reverse age gap and her love interest is her stepson (but NO creepiness happens between them when he's underage in the flashbacks).
Please see my review on GR for a list of TWs/CWs.
My erotic horror/thriller romance, LITTLE DEATHS, is FREE for a limited time on Kindle!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B...
It's the story of a retired horror movie actress whose life quickly begins falling apart when someone begins a series of stylized killings that mimic the deaths from her films shortly after her husband's premature passing.
Also, it's reverse age gap and her love interest is her stepson (but NO creepiness happens between them when he's underage in the flashbacks).
Please see my review on GR for a list of TWs/CWs.
April 22, 2023
New Project: Raise the Blood
Hi everyone! As you may or may not know, I recently decided to give Kindle Vella a try and I've been serializing my new book, Raise the Blood, which you can read here: https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/s...
RAISE THE BLOOD is a very dark gothic romance set in a silver mining town in the California mountains. The heroine is named Nadine, and her sister, Noelle, married into a wealthy and reclusive family that lives in the town, but then she goes missing. (Ofc!) When Nadine goes there to investigate, she finds that the entire town is secretive and suspicious of how the Cullraven family ties into their town history, and that the Cullravens themselves are dysfunctional and kind of messy people.
Especially the hero, Caledon, who just wants to mess with Nadine. And do other things, too. Naughty things.
Oh, also there's a yearly hunting festival where people tend to, like, casually have terrible accidents. And an old abandoned arsenic mine. HAHA CREEPY RIGHT?
Kindle Vella is kind of a cross between Radish and Patreon. You're basically paying to read as you go after you read the free chapters. I really like the platform because it's very incentivizing to have feedback after each posted chapter rather than waiting until the book is done. Especially since my stories tend to be on the longer side. So parsing the book down to small chapter goals is actually really working for me and I'm SO excited about my latest project.
I hope you are too!
I have a couple other projects I think I might serialize (including Wildscape, which I took back to the drawing board), a fantasy novel, and a paranormal romance. All of them gothic, all of them dark. I'm not sure which one I'll do next because I'm always coming up with new ideas, but I'm very excited about all of them.
Since KV is US-only, I'll also be retooling and republishing these books as traditional Kindle ebooks once they're done. The titles have to remain KV exclusive 30 days after the completion of the last chapter, but as y'all know, it takes me about that long to edit, anyway.
As always, thanks for supporting me! I truly appreciate your readership and it always makes me so thrilled to see someone reviewing or reading my work.
x Nenia
RAISE THE BLOOD is a very dark gothic romance set in a silver mining town in the California mountains. The heroine is named Nadine, and her sister, Noelle, married into a wealthy and reclusive family that lives in the town, but then she goes missing. (Ofc!) When Nadine goes there to investigate, she finds that the entire town is secretive and suspicious of how the Cullraven family ties into their town history, and that the Cullravens themselves are dysfunctional and kind of messy people.
Especially the hero, Caledon, who just wants to mess with Nadine. And do other things, too. Naughty things.
Oh, also there's a yearly hunting festival where people tend to, like, casually have terrible accidents. And an old abandoned arsenic mine. HAHA CREEPY RIGHT?
Kindle Vella is kind of a cross between Radish and Patreon. You're basically paying to read as you go after you read the free chapters. I really like the platform because it's very incentivizing to have feedback after each posted chapter rather than waiting until the book is done. Especially since my stories tend to be on the longer side. So parsing the book down to small chapter goals is actually really working for me and I'm SO excited about my latest project.
I hope you are too!
I have a couple other projects I think I might serialize (including Wildscape, which I took back to the drawing board), a fantasy novel, and a paranormal romance. All of them gothic, all of them dark. I'm not sure which one I'll do next because I'm always coming up with new ideas, but I'm very excited about all of them.
Since KV is US-only, I'll also be retooling and republishing these books as traditional Kindle ebooks once they're done. The titles have to remain KV exclusive 30 days after the completion of the last chapter, but as y'all know, it takes me about that long to edit, anyway.
As always, thanks for supporting me! I truly appreciate your readership and it always makes me so thrilled to see someone reviewing or reading my work.
x Nenia
