Madhuri Pavamani's Blog, page 17

#WednesdayFreeWrite – KNOCK KNOCK

KNOCK KNOCK

Knock knock, who’s there?

Me

that woman you chatted up in the elevator

all those years ago

making her so nervous

because you were older

more sophisticated

staid

and so not her style.

But I liked your eyes

and your voice

and your smile did things to me I wasn’t quite expecting

Knock knock, who’s there?

Me

that woman you stutter-stepped on the staircase

in the office

as I walked with that partner

who laughed and cracked a joke

because you’re also a partner and share the same interests

and speak the same language

or do you

because I could swear the whole time he was speaking to you

you were watching me

and I don’t think you heard a damn word he said

Knock knock, who’s there?

Me

that woman who spied you down the hall

so far away

and I knew it was you without even really knowing you.

But I could spot your walk anywhere

the way you hold yourself

and stand heads above the crowd

the way your suit drapes your body

and accentuates your easy grace.

It’s captivating

you captivate

and even though I know I should

I cannot stop thinking about you.

Knock knock, who’s there?

Me

that woman who’s not so young anymore

definitely not the twenty eight year old who caught your eye

and yet

you stop

and stare

standing amidst a crowd of colleagues

focused on the woman you’ve never worked with

nor spent any significant amount of time in her presence

but crave like a sickness

the woman who makes you nervous

just standing next to you in line

and even though you know you should

you cannot stop thinking about me.

Knock knock, who’s there?

Me

that woman who knows what she wants

and at this stage in the game

when she’s confident and ballsy and smelling herself

is willing to take it.

And yeah, I know

I shouldn’t do this

but it’s late at night and hardly anyone is in the office

so relax

and have some fun

and fuck me like you know you’ve been wanting to

for fourteen years straight.

Knock knock, who’s there?

Me

that woman standing in front of you with her hands in your hair

sighing

as you unzip my pencil skirt

and let it pool at my feet

and cup my ass

and flick.

Off with one garter

and then the other as you run your thumb

across the damp of my utterly useless panties

and I gasp

and you hiss

and we both know we’re fucked.

Knock knock, who’s there?

Me

that woman you fucked

and who fucked you back

hard

and fast

and like you’d never been fucked before.

And I know it’s tough baby

because my ass is fine

and my face is gorgeous

and my lips

fuck, my lips are like heaven

but me and you, we were never going anywhere.

I’m married.

You’re married.

It was all just good fun.

So please

stop knock, knocking.

My #WednesdayFreeWrite series is based on what I write during the 10 minutes allotted my writing group’s Wednesday Prompt. This prompt from several weeks ago was KNOCK KNOCK. As always, these pieces are works of fiction, erupting from my incredibly over-active imagination. They are unedited and unscripted and just super loose and probably my favorite ten minutes of the week. They’re perfect in their imperfections and I hope you enjoy.

#BookReview – BREAKING FAITH by Joy Eileen

Romance

August 18, 2015

youth

folly

naïveté

first love

anger

aggression

violence

brutality

escape

healing

Faith

Kill

For a debut novel, Joy Eileen spares no punches with BREAKING FAITH, the first book in her JackholeS Series. She dives right into the harsh shit, the violent shit, the scary shit and comes out on the other side, leaving her readers with a glimmer of hope, a ray of light, a hint of promise.

Right there, some of you who have read the book might say, hold up, Madhuri, you’ve got it all wrong, the book is full of hope and light and promise because Faith escaped, but that escape was only the beginning.

For those of you who have not read the book, I’m sad for you and also kind of laughing…because I’m a snarky bitch like that and kind of love the fact that I have an ARC and you don’t.

And even though I hate giving recaps of a book in my reviews, since BREAKING FAITH hasn’t released yet, I’ll go against my nature this one time and be kind of nice and give you enough background on it so you know what is the what. Here goes:

Faith meets Jason, who’s gorgeous and charming and knocks her off her feet. They start dating, he turns into a raging asshole with some serious violence issues, she suffers his abuse until she says enough is enough and escapes. She stumbles into a bar and a crew of up-and-coming rock stars and Kill and begins the process of healing herself.

Of course there’s more to the story, so much more, but you’re going to have to grab the book to get all the poignant, sometimes funny, sometimes sexy details.

What I will say is this: Joy does a great job of taking us through the destruction of a young woman by the man she thought loved her, having us live through her heartache and stress and fear. And let me tell you, that stress and fear is palpable – you cringe and your pulse races as you wait for Jason’s next explosion. She then walks us through Faith’s slow and purposeful and determined reclamation of herself and this is what I was talking about earlier – for me that healing process is the glimmer of hope Joy sows in tiny pieces here and there throughout her novel. It’s long and bumpy and just when you think Faith will move forward, she takes a couple of steps backwards, but I loved that about her and found her journey to be refreshingly realistic.

Because we all know what we really wanted to have happen. We wanted Hollywood, lights, camera, sex.

We wanted Kill.

We wanted that moody, sensitive, caring rocker with the sexy, dirty mouth ALL over Faith. We wanted Faith all over him. We wanted them together in the most basic of terms, fucking each others’ brains out every night after work…because we’re all filthy bitches like that.

Instead, Joy teases us, toys with us, makes us all tingly and hot because even though we all love Kill, and we especially love Kill loving all up on Faith, Joy knows that first and foremost, Faith needs to love herself. She needs to heal and put herself back together, slowly and carefully, and once she’s done that, then maybe Faith and Kill will have a future of loving each other.

Unfortunately for us, we’ll have to wait for book II in the series to see if that finally happens.

I hope you’re somewhere right now, furiously writing, Joy. And I hope whatever you’re writing includes lots of Faith and lots of Kill doing lots of deliciously dirty things to each other.

Because I’m a raunchy bitch like that and I know you are, too, girlfriend.

#wickedsmirk

To snag your own copy of BREAKING FAITH before its August 18th release date, click HERE.

#TuesdayTeaser – DUTCH, The Keeper Series Book One

Dutch Mathew is a lethal killer for The Gate.

Juma Landry has nine lives.

He is tasked with ending each and every one of them.

She isn’t going to make that easy.

DUTCH

The Keeper Series Book One

October 12, 2015

In honor of #Teaser Tuesday, here’s a snippet from my upcoming dark erotic romance, DUTCH, book one in The Keeper Series. If you love your raunch with a twist of romance, then make sure to add DUTCH to your Goodreads “to read” shelf by clicking HERE

“You’re a little cagey about my question and you answered it with a question, sure signs of a bullshitter,” I skillfully ignored his statement as to my job status and teased him, “you’re wearing custom-designed wings + horns sneakers, your flask is filled with pristine bourbon but not one I know which leads me to believe it’s difficult to find, and your underwear costs a fortune.”

And here I smiled the kind of smile I felt in my eyes because I liked that I knew his brand of underwear and I liked that he liked I knew his brand of underwear and I could tell he liked it because the longer I spoke the more he relaxed.

“Your hair is perfect as is your manscape.” I winked and he laughed and it sounded genuine not that sarcastic bark he tossed my way the first time we met. “You’re the kind of guy I would spot in a bar, strip off my clothes, and ask him to fuck me.”

“Like Hitler’s Wet Dream?” he asked with a raised brow.

“He ripped off my panties,” I corrected, “I’ve only stripped for you.”

“I feel so much better.”

“I had no idea it was a problem,” I replied with a smirk, “but we’re not talking about who I fuck, Dutch, although that was a clever attempt at making this about me and my pussy instead of you and your 9 to 5.”

He stood across from me looking like he couldn’t quite believe some of the words escaping my lips but against his better judgment found me amusing. I reeled him in and it was intentional – I wanted him to know I got it, the caginess and unease, and it was fine. We weren’t going to make a thing of it because it didn’t matter. At least right now it didn’t…

Want to read an ADVANCED REVIEW COPY of Dutch? Join the ARC tour hosted by Bare Naked Words and receive an ARC to read and review on either your blog, Goodreads or Amazon by the end of October by clicking HERE.

The Keepers Are Coming – DUTCH Cover Reveal

Ummm yeah, so in case you didn’t know, I have a book coming out soon. #wickedsmirk

I know you know I have a book coming out soon because it’s all I seem to talk about as of late, but I can’t help it, I’m pretty excited. It’s dark and dangerous and so goddamned sexy and I can’t wait for folks to dive into everything that is Dutch and Juma and just. get. wrecked.

Here’s a blurb to whet your appetite:

Arrogant, handsome, and detached, deadly assassin Dutch Mathew has an insatiable appetite for bourbon, cigarettes, and women. A Keeper for The Gate, the shadowy organization designed to control Death and her Poochas, those reclaimers helping the dead cross back to life, he has three simple rules for anyone sharing his bed: no talking, no kissing, no touching.

Juma Landry is all about talking and kissing and touching. The more talking and kissing and touching, the better.

And as one of Death’s Poochas, the best in fact, she is Dutch’s next assignment. He is tasked with ending each and every one of her nine lives but with her sharp banter, beautiful smile, and hips made for all kinds of wickedness, she isn’t going to make that easy.

Set in New York City and Trivandrum, DUTCH, book one in The Keeper Series, is a unique and sexy urban fairytale – a must read for anyone who likes their raunch with a twist of romance and a hint of magic.

One of the advanced readers of DUTCH said that Dutch and Juma “linger” and I certainly hope so because they fucking haunt me. Writing their story drained me on so many levels and it’s going to take me a few more days before I’m ready to start on part two of their journey.

But that’s okay because in the meanwhile, I’ve got a couple of months of promotion ahead of me, including a cover reveal being hosted by the fierce women of Bare Naked Words.

As with the brilliance she worked on The Sanctum Trilogy, my uber-talented friend and graphic design artist, Michele Mason Holmberg, has worked her magic with DUTCH and folks, you won’t believe the stunner she’s created for my dark romance. It’s breathtaking and I can’t wait to share it with everyone.

The reveal is set for August 17th. Mark your calendars and set your countdown clocks because you don’t want to miss this one.

And for any bloggers out there who might be interested in participating in the reveal, click HERE for Bare Naked Words’ sign-up form.

#ThursdayThoughts

#wickedsmirk

#WednesdayFreeWrite – FOUR IN THE MORNING (for Miv)

FOUR IN THE MORNING

It’s four in the morning. The hour when Madame Angst knits large black sweaters, and blood sugar goes downstairs to putter around in the basement.

The perfect time for all kinds of mischief and madness.

I drum my nails on the marble countertop, the black tips click-clacking to some random rhythm I’m neither in tune with nor paying attention to because I’m much more interested in the hum of her blood. Which isn’t really a hum at all but more of an uh-uh uh-uh uh-uh as her heart pushes it through that chamber of life, out to her fingertips and toenails and everywhere in between.

She glances up from her reading and smiles, totally unaware of my wicked thoughts, my hunger, my need. Oblivious to the fact I could kill her with one bite. Only certain that she loves me and especially loves the fact I have no problem staying awake, up until all hours of the night while she writes and reads and edits, then writes some more until her eyes close under the extreme weight of her exhaustion and I am able to slip into the remaining minutes of darkness and hunt.

But tonight and that smile and that flash of something in her eye makes me think I should put out this cigarette, slip from my bar stool, and crawl onto her lap, which is exactly what I do. She is shocked but silent as I carefully take her notes and her pen and place them on the table next to her coffee and her smokes, then lean close and run my breath along her throat, my lips so close to her warm skin and yet, not close enough.

Uh-uh uh-uh uh-uh, her blood calls to me as she wraps her fingers around my arms and sighs and arches into my touch. “Please,” she whispers and I relent and press a kiss here and then there and then a little higher until our lips find each other and our tongues slash and tangle and uh-uh uh-uh uh-uh, her blood is singing to me, calling me, taunting me, and it happens.

Fangs escape hiding places while hands are teasing nipples and fingers are stroking thighs and bodies are pressing against each other in desperate need and I’m lost in her taste and my hunger and our fire and before I can stop it her tongue finds my secret and everything stops.

Her shirt is open and her hair is wild and her lips are swollen and she is breathing hard as the wheels in her head spin and evaluate and analyze and fucking god she’s sexy when she’s all introspective and shit. And I know that even though I am not what she ever anticipated or expected, I fucking pray I am what she wants, my breasts and lips and smile and wit and fingers and fangs.

Long eternal silent minutes pass.

Uh-uh uh-uh uh-uh, her blood sings, calls, taunts. And I stand on the cliff with my toes hanging over ready to jump into the river of her rejection and swallow my tears and continue my endless life of loneliness and solitude because of course someone like me should never expect anything beyond loneliness and solitude, when she reaches out and grasps me behind my neck and pulls me close, her breath warm on my mouth, her fingers tangled in my hair.

“All those four in the mornings and you never once…,” she trails off, her voice full of longing and desire and wonder.

“I always wanted to but I never once dared,” I agreed, “because more than life itself, I love you and all of your four in the mornings.”

My #WednesdayFreeWrite series is based on what I write during the 10 minutes allotted my writing group’s Wednesday Prompt. This week’s prompt is extra special because it honors one of my fellow Muses, Miv London, and her daughter Sarah, who might have passed but shares her spirit with us everyday. It’s wonderful being gifted Sarah’s words and I only hope and pray Miv likes what’s on the page. I told myself I would not use the word “fuck” because this feels so sacred, the gift of Sarah’s prompt, and then lo and behold, there she is in all her F and U and C and K glory. And for a second I paused, because could I really use fuck in my piece, but then I laughed and remembered that Miv always loves when I bring the sexy. So hopefully this fuck is just kind of extra special.

As always, this piece is  unedited and unscripted and just super loose and probably my favorite ten minutes of the week. It’s perfect in its imperfections and I hope you enjoy.

#TeaserTuesday – DUTCH, The Keeper Series Book One

Dutch Mathew is a lethal killer for The Gate.

Juma Landry has nine lives.

He is tasked with ending each and every one of them.

She isn’t going to make that easy.

DUTCH

The Keeper Series Book One

October 2015

If you love your raunch with a twist of romance, then make sure to add DUTCH to your Goodreads “to read” shelf by clicking HERE

If you’re a writer or a blogger and would like to receive an ARC of Dutch to review prior to the October release date, please contact me at mblaylock4@gmail.com

#BookReview – The FIT Trilogy by Rebekah Weatherspoon

 

Romance

Published June 2014 – April 2015

First things first, I’m a sucker for a good romance. So much so, that often if your book doesn’t have at least a hint of it, I tend to lose interest. I admitted as much in my recent radio interview.  Add some kink to the fun and I’m sold.  The more kink, the better, because I’m a little filthy like that. Include some diversity in your cast of characters and honestly, I’m yours forever.

So it makes perfect sense that when I discovered Rebakah Weatherspoon on Twitter, I immediately added her FIT Trilogy to my TBR pile. As soon as I finished writing Dutch, I dove into her world of sorta kinky, totally diverse, sexy trainers, their clients, and friends.

I pretty much devoured the trilogy in about five hours. The books are short and sweet, romantic with a touch of not-so-vanilla sex, but what I really, really, really love about them is all of the fabulous, luscious, sensual diversity, written the way I like it: not in your face, making a huge statement, banging you over the head every ten words kind of diversity, but rather just a simple, very matter-of-fact, very everyday kind of living diversity. It’s real and it’s representative and it’s fucking refreshing to read in a genre dominated by white girls and their billionaire (white) boyfriends.

Bravo, Rebekah.

I also must say, as a woman I really appreciate the fact Rebekah creates women who are curvy and athletic and strong and their men find them fucking sexy as shit. They’re not model thin, ten feet tall, Giselle wannabes – they’re real, with some muscles and some curves, and are pretty content with that state of being. It’s such a healthy take on the female body and mind and I have to say, it’s all kinds of sexy. There’s nothing quite like reading a woman who is confident in her own skin, loves her body, and speaks her mind. Seriously, that alone gets me all hot and bothered and is one of my favorite aspects of Rebekah’s books.

And finally, even though I don’t want to play favorites, I’ve gotta give a shout out to the final title in the trilogy, Sated, and the story of Daniel and Keira and their kinda sorta kinked up nerd love. Their banter, their energy, their nerdiness is endearing and because their story is short and sweet, as are all of the books in the trilogy, you close the cover wanting more. More Keira, more Daniel, more nerd love.

So thanks, Rebekah, for giving me my trifecta: romance + kink + diversity. And like I said, I’m now a fan forever.

#WeNeedDiverseRomance

and of course, don’t forget

#WeNeedDiverseMenWithFacialHair

because one day soon, it’s going to be a Twitter trending topic.

In the meanwhile, grab Rebekah’s books and enjoy the men and women of FIT.

#SundaySnippet – DUTCH, The Keeper Series Book One

Arrogant, handsome, and detached, deadly assassin Dutch Mathew has an insatiable appetite for bourbon, cigarettes, and women. A Keeper for The Gate, the shadowy organization designed to control Death and her Poochas, those reclaimers helping the dead cross back to life, he has three simple rules for anyone sharing his bed: no talking, no kissing, no touching.

Juma Landry is all about talking and kissing and touching. The more talking and kissing and touching, the better.

And as one of Death’s Poochas, the best in fact, she is Dutch’s next assignment. He is tasked with ending each and every one of her nine lives but with her sharp banter, beautiful smile, and hips made for all kinds of wickedness, she isn’t going to make that easy.

Set in New York City and Trivandrum, DUTCH, book one in The Keeper Series, is a unique and sexy urban fairytale – a must read for anyone who likes their raunch with a twist of romance and a hint of magic.

Add it to your Goodreads “to read” shelf by clicking HERE and watch for it to hit stores this Fall 2015.

Want to be part of the August 17th cover reveal for DUTCH, hosted by Bare Naked Words? I would love for you to help me get out the word – click HERE for the sign up form.

#BookReview – MONSTER by Kayti Nika Raet

YA Dystopia

Published July 18, 2015

Don’t Get Killed

In MONSTER, Kayti Nika Raet does it again, bringing the fierce and amazing with her fourth installment of The Outsider Chronicles. Set mostly in the city of Cherai, MONSTER recounts Niko’s desperate struggle to maintain control of the city while killers roam the streets, Slithers haunt the dark spaces, and death and desire commingle in such unfair interplay that one can only close their eyes, hold their breath, and hope.

For what, I’m not sure.

A happy ending, I doubt it.

Perhaps some hints of laughter and light, here and there.

Maybe.

But that’s a conversation for book five.

Right here and right now I can tell you that MONSTER grabs hold of the reader from page one and never lets go. As usual, Kayti excels in the action and fight sequences, thrilling and terrorizing with each slash of a blade or hiss of a Slither. She also exhibits a mastery of the quiet, the fraught, the hushed.

There is not a single extraneous word anywhere in Kayti’s manuscript, each one matters, and you get the sense they’ve been pored over and considered and studied with the eye of a meticulous word warrior determined to bring her readers to their knees. And here she succeeds tenfold.

MONSTER, for all its horror and despair, is full of the feels. Everywhere.

Grief.

Love.

Fear.

Need.

Hunger.

Pain.

Devastation.

It’s all here and it’s brutal and gorgeous and stunning and you find yourself wanting to stay lost in Kayti’s world of perfect words forever.

And then for a raunchy bitch like myself, there’s Chapter 37. I kind of feel like Kayti wrote that chapter for me and my filthy little heart. #TeamSonghay because really, must you ask? And if you must, don’t. Just get the book already.

The first time I read MONSTER, I told Kayti she did the impossible and wrote the perfect novel. After reading it a second time, I stand by that statement: MONSTER is perfection.

Bravo, Kayti, you badass #WriteBitch.

Oh, and girlfriend, if you’re starting to smell yourself right now, thinking about all the ways to kill Songhay for your big grand bloody finale, you better reconsider, love. #justsaying