Pamela Clare's Blog, page 18

DEFIANT Trailer

Here’s a little something Benjamin and I worked up this weekend to keep you company. Enjoy! Only 22 days till DEFIANT is out!

DEFIANT — Lady Sarah’s World

 

In less than a month, you will all get to meet someone who’s very special to me — Lady Sarah Woodville.
Lady Sarah is Lord William Wentworth’s niece and the only member of his family for whom he feels any true affection. The last time he saw her before setting out for the Colonies, she was only about 12 years old, but he had a relationship with her, one built on deceiving and outwitting her mother. 
Lady Sarah is the youngest of five daughters born to the granddaughter of King George II. Her mother is Wentworth’s sister, making her the great-granddaughter of the German lairdie who, from the MacKinnon brother’s point of view, stole the throne. 
Although not a princess, Lady Sarah is the daughter of a marquess and has royal blood. She is so far above most in British society that Lady Anne Burness Campbell — Annie Burns from Surrender and the daughter of a Scottish earl — would barely have been considered fit company for her. The two most likely would never even have met had Annie visited court for some reason.

 But Lady Sarah’s life, though privileged, is not a happy one. Her mother is secretly a very severe Lutheran — remember that the family came from Germany — and raises her daughters with very little freedom and an absolutely iron hand. She keeps her daughters with her most of the day, supervising their prayers, Bible study and needlework. (I based her mother on real women from King George’s family, not because I secretly have a bias against Lutherans.)


Lady Sarah’s mother endeavors to control all aspects of her daughters’ lives and finds herself especially challenged with Sarah. Why? Because Sarah loves music and is what we would call today a child prodigy. Her Uncle William indulges her desire for music, whereas her mother sees it as a threat to Sarah’s salvation. But let’s not add any spoilers here.
Kensington Palace: Over the river and through the woods to Great-Grandfather's house we go.

Before a devastating scandal sends her into exile in the Colonies, Sarah’s only experiences of the outside world come from visits to Kensington Palace and supervised strolls through the rose gardens on her father’s estates in the company of her sisters. Rare trips to visit her grandmother (Wentworth’s mother) and great-grandfather are the highlight of her life. Suffice it to say that Sarah knows what it is to be lonely. But she does not complain, ever striving to be what her mother wants her to be.
Sit up straight! Don’t fidget! Don’t slouch!
Imagine spending your days sitting stiffly in hard-backed chairs working on embroidery for hour after hour, with your only other activities consisting of walks, Bible study, meals, prayers and trips to the privy. Imagine never having a moment alone. I can’t. But that’s Lady Sarah’s life.
Until something she does results in a scandal that results in her being all but disowned by her family and sent across he seas.
Let’s talk for a moment about the clothes she brings to the Colonies. They might be fight for Court, but they’re a bit grand for anywhere outside the governor’s household, where she stays while in New York.
I don’t often care much for gowns or fashion, but I have to say there was something delicious and appealing about the gowns of this period. I searched for authentic mid-18th century gowns in museum collections and just loved them. A few of them are written directly into the story, which I share with you at top, above and below.


This gown is made of cloth of silver. I imagine someone works very hard to keep the silver thread from tarnishing and from shredding the silk.



This is one of my favorites. I describe a gown like this in the story.




And this. So very lovely!


This is a simpler, more modest gown, and I imagine gowns like these were more the everyday dress of Lady Sarah and her sisters.



This is perhaps my favorite, and it is in the book. I love the color, the design, the beautify of it. For court, this was considered a modest gown.


And here, just for the fun of it, is a type of clothing Lord William might wear at home. Because let’s not forget that, apart from the Bible study and embroidery, Lady Sarah’s world is also Lord William’s world. Keep that in mind!

I promise you that in Defiant, you will see Lord William as you have never seen him before. Always cool and collected, Lord William. Or maybe not...



Memorize this image. It’s important. Yes, it’s a harpsichord, the instrument Lady Sarah plays so perfectly. What if Mozart had been a woman and born to a mother who viewed music as being solely the province of men and of the church? Imagine all that passion for music and so little opportunity to shine or indulge your talent or your passion.

That in a nutshell is Lady Sarah’s world. It comes crashing down, and she is sent into exile alone to a strange land to live with a family she does not know. Her only relative is Lord William, whom she hasn’t sen for so long. She knows that if she can speak with him, he might well help her out of her current predicament.

But on the journey to Fort Edward, tragedy strikes. Gently bred Lady Sarah is taken captive and dragged deep into the wilderness into a world she cannot imagine.


And now, as even Lord William knows, only one man can save her — Major Connor MacKinnon.
 

Only 27 days to go till Defiant is out!

MacKinnon’s Rangers Challenge, Excerpt & Giveaway

As of the moment I write this, we’re only 35 days away from the release of Defiant, the long-awaited third book in my MacKinnon’s Rangers series. Since Untamed was released in 2008, I’ve gotten daily emails asking me when Connor’s story would be released.

Now, that day is just around the corner.

To prep for it, I’m asking those of you who read the first two books to reread them with me so the details are fresh in your mind. I challenge those of you who already have Surrender and Untamed in your TBR to take this as the Sign You’ve Been Waiting For to take them out, dust them off, and read them at last.

Surrender tells the story of Iain MacKinnon, the eldest MacKinnon brother, and Lady Anne Burness Campbell, or Annie Burns. It picks up in the early spring of 1758 after the British have suffered years of disappointments in the war against France.

Forced to start a company of Rangers and to fight for the British, Iain is on a mission with his two younger brothers, Morgan and Connor, when he sees the lone survivor of a French and Indian raid on a homestead fighting for her life. Despite orders to stick with his mission and not interfere, Iain cannot let her be slain. He turns command of the Rangers over to Morgan and saves Annie’s life — at a very high cost to himself. Thus begins his adventure with the woman who will bring beauty and gentleness back into his war-weary life.

Untamed, Morgan’s story, picks up a couple of weeks after Surrender ends. In command of the Rangers, Morgan is taken captive by the French after he is badly wounded in an ambush at Fort Carillon/Ticonderoga. A high price rests on his head, and the French are eager to interrogate and  him, which means they must save his life. The commander puts a young convent-raised French woman, Amalie, to the task of caring for him night and day, unknowingly building a bond between Amalie and Morgan that will change all of their lives forever. 

Amalie’s father was killed by a Ranger, and it takes great heart for her to overcome her anger and grief so that she can care for Morgan. But Amalie is all heart. And soon Morgan means far more to her than she imagined. She knows the plan is to hand him over to the MacKinnon brothers’ mortal enemies, the Abenaki, once he has recovered, and she knows the Abenaki will burn him to death. She cannot bear the thought of him suffering so terribly, and looks for a way to save his life.

Defiant begins about two weeks after Untamed ends in March of 1760.  And to celebrate my good news (below), I will share an excerpt that features Lord William. I had a special request for just such an excerpt, and I aim to please.

First my two bits of exciting news:

Skin Deep has been in the top 100 for contemporary romance, both Kindle and general, since it’s release. That’s your doing. Thank you!

The reviews for Skin Deep have been overwhelmingly positive, which is encouraging. I know novellas can be a big disappointment. It’s very difficult to fit significant character development and plot into such a small amount of space. I tried very hard, and given the number of you who loved Nate and Megan’s story — and who are now demanding a story for Jack West — I feel like I succeeded at least a little.

I hope to have another I-Team After Hours novella written for you by this fall. But first I’m going to finish the next full-length I-Team novel because I heard a rumor that some of you would like that. I don’t have a title yet, but I will soon.


Second, Sweet Release, my first novel and the first book in the Kenleigh-Blakewell Family Saga, is at this moment the No. 1 FREE download for Kindle. It was the No. 1 FREE download for iTunes, too, but is now No. 2 there. Carnal Gift, Book 2 in that series, has risen to the No. 4 spot for historicals on iTunes and was #37 on Kindle historical romance this morning. So thank you again!

Here are the links. It won’t be free much longer. This is part of a special promotion and will end soon.

Kindle — http://amzn.to/LtiwpS
iBooks — http://bit.ly/Jv8h5u
Kobo & others — http://bit.ly/Jg2b7H

I’ve had a lot of inquiries about Ride the Fire. It is currently out of print, but is being reissued in February 2013 by Berkley. The reissue will feature the never-before-published (and as-yet-unwritten) epilogue. As many of you know, Ride the Fire has long been a reader favorite. I also consider it to be the book where I found my true voice as an author of historical romance. I cannot wait to share it with you all!

And now without further ado, I bring you a man you love to hate — Lord William Wentworth.

~ ~ ~

“My dearest Uncle, I most humbly beseech Your Lordship that you forgive my Boldness and make haste to aide me.  Such Affronts and Sorrows have I faced of late, that I must plead for Your Lordship’s Protection.  I dare write nothing that other Eyes might behold, so I shall say no more.  I humbly beseech Your Lordship to grant me Permission to travel to Albany that I might lay bare my Plight to you in person.  Please, I pray you, Uncle, if ever Your Lordship held me in Affection, help me now.

“Yours most bound and forever,

Sarah Woodville.”

Lord William looked up from the letter and stared out the window into the darkness, the fingers of his left worrying the cracked marble chess piece he always kept in his vest pocket—the black king Lady Anne had broken two summers past.

This was his fault. 

When Sarah had written to him pleading for his help, he’d had misgivings, but he’d ignored them.  At the time, he’d been worried about smallpox and measles, both of which had hit Albany hard this winter.  He hadn’t imagined it possible that Indians would dare strike so close to town with the war all but won and three thousand of His Majesty’s troops billeted here.

He’d been wrong.

How he wished now that he had denied her request and employed some other means of learning the truth of her situation, but the thought that she might truly need his help had overthrown all else, so he’d relented, arranging for her passage northward.  Bright-eyed, inquisitive, and talented beyond measure upon the harpsichord, she was the only member of his rather large and unpleasant family about whom he gave a damn. 

The last time he’d seen her had been six years ago just prior to his voyage to the Colonies.  She’d been but twelve years old and still very much a child.  Though her body had only begun to show signs of approaching womanhood, it had been clear to all that she would grow to become a woman of surpassing beauty.  William’s sister, secretly a severe Lutheran, had restricted her daughters to long hours of daily Bible study and needlework to prepare them for marriage and motherhood.  She’d been openly distressed by her youngest child’s beauty and passion for music, deeming both dangerous to Sarah’s immortal soul. 

But William had found Sarah refreshing and had indulged her when occasion allowed, secretly taking her to hear chamber music and lending her books about history, art, and music theory.  He’d even let her play privately on the harpsichord before His Majesty, her skill astounding and delighting the old man.  But perhaps his sister had been right to restrict Sarah.  Perhaps she’d seen something in her daughter that William had not.

Last summer, Sarah had caused such a scandal that her father had sent her away, depositing her not in the family’s estates to the north, but on the other side of the world in New York with Governor DeLancey, an old family friend.  When William had inquired as to the nature of the scandal, his sister had written to say that decency forbade her even to mention it.  Even knowing his sister’s penchant for exaggeration when it came to matters of sin, William had been intrigued by this, but the summer campaigns had prevented him from inquiring further.  He’d hoped to hear the unspeakable truth of it from Sarah on this visit.

But now she was out there somewhere, a captive of men who would not hesitate to do unimaginably cruel things to her.

As second in command of His Majesty’s forces in the Colonies, William had heard all the tales—accounts of cruelest torture, maiming, rape.  They’d always just been words on parchment to him, nothing more than the cost of war.  This one burnt alive, that one beaten and sold, this one adopted and forced into heathen marriage. 

But the thought of Sarah enduring such a fate…

In truth, William didn’t give one whit what happened to the other two captives so long as Sarah was returned to him alive and unscathed.  MacKinnon had probably guessed as much.  He’d seen the disgust on MacKinnon’s face when MacKinnon had heard that one of the captives was William’s niece. 

For a moment, I thought you’d grown a heart.

How could William expect an uncultured brute like MacKinnon to understand that Sarah was worth more than a thousand common colonial women?

“Pardon me, my lord.”  Lieutenant Cooke’s voice came from the doorway.

William turned to face him.  “Yes, Lieutenant?”

Cooke bowed neatly.  “I asked local churches to hold observances this evening so that prayers might be said for your niece.  Services at St. Peter’s begin in a half hour.”

“Well done.  Thank you.”  It was then William remembered he was in a state of undress, his wig sitting forgotten on his desk, his coat draped over a chair with his cravat.

“If I may be of any assistance, my lord… ”

William gave a consenting nod, his gaze drawn back to the window.

“Don’t worry, my lord.  Major MacKinnon will bring her safely home.”

~ ~ ~


I tried to find an excerpt that wasn't available anywhere else, but all other scenes with Lord William contained enormous spoilers, and I couldn’t do that to you.

I promise you that you will see Lord William as you’ve never seen him before in this story. His beloved niece, Lady Sarah, falling in love with Connor MacKinnon?

To launch the MacKinnon’s Rangers Re-Read and ‘Get ’em out of your TBR’ Challenge, I’m giving away one signed copy each of Surrender and Untamed for those who want to participate but don’t yet have the books. To be entered to win, just comment below.

And thanks for reading!

Book News! Sweet Release is FREE, plus an excerpt

 
May has been such an incredibly busy month. I can’t believe it’s almost over! Is anyone else’s head spinning?
My big news for this morning is that Sweet Release, my first historical novel, is FREE for a short time on Amazon.com, iTunes and Smashwords.com. That means anyone with a desktop, laptop, ereader or tablet can read it for FREE.  It’s my hope that those of you who’ve never read one of my historicals or who’ve never read my books at all will give it a try.
The story is set in 1730 Colonial Virginia and took me seven years to write, partly because my kids were little and partly because that was the time in my life when I was deeply involved in hardcore investigative journalism. The stuff you read about in the I-Team books was happening during the time I was writing this book and the few that followed.
For some of my readers, Sweet Release remains their favorite. The heat between Alec and Cassie is strong, and story has a bit of flipped power dynamic with the hero being owned by the heroine. When my readers talk about the story, they inevitably bring up “the shackling scene,” in which Cassie starts a little role-playing sex game with Alec involving, well, shackles.
Here’s a sexy excerpt:
Cassie stifled a giggle at the thought of what she was about to do. When she’d told Alec she would punish him for defying her, she’d been jesting. Then an idea had begun to form in her mind—a startling, irresistible idea. Over the course of the evening, the idea had become a plan. She’d decided at least a dozen times not to go through with it. It was, she knew, not the sort of thing young ladies from good families did with men — even after they were married. It was positively indecent, which made it all the more enticing. In the end, curiosity — and the desire to give Alec the surprise of his life — had won out over propriety, and she had decided to stick with her plan.

She glanced nervously into her mirror and smiled conspiratorially at her reflection. Her hair was twisted stylishly upon her head, a few curls tumbling down her temples and at her nape. Her cheeks and lips were touched with rouge, her eyes lined with color. She wore the same ivory silk-and-lace gown she’d worn to Geoffrey’s birthday party — the one she’d worn when she’d first called Alec by his real name. She looked ready for a ball — except, of course, there was nothing beneath the gown.

Nothing.

She smoothed her skirts and looked around the room one last time. He’d arrive any minute. The candles on her bedside table cast a warm glow over the room. The covers of her bed were already turned down. In the middle of the bed lay the only pair of shackles she’d been able to find on the plantation. Though old and unused for years, they still worked. The key hung on a silken cord between her breasts.

The creaking of footfalls on the stairs told her he had come. She smoothed her skirts nervously, her heart pounding. Could she really do this? She felt herself start to smile, but forced it away. A quiet knock came at the door. The handle turned. Alec stepped in and turned to close the door. He looked so handsome, dressed in a clean linen shirt and breeches. She had to fight the urge to rush forward and fall into his arms.

“Cassie, love, I . . . ” He turned toward her, staring. “You look beauti—”

“You’re on time, convict.” It took every ounce of determination she had not to smile or giggle. “That’s good. It will go easier on you.”

Cassie could see in his eyes the moment he understood her game. His look of confusion was replaced by surprise and then amusement before his gaze grew cold and hard. “I’m to be punished, then?”

“I can no longer tolerate your insolence, convict. I mean to teach you a lesson.” It was good she had rehearsed her lines. It would have been impossible to say them else. Was she really going through with this?

He leaned against her bedpost nonchalantly, crossing his arms. Defiant and confident, he reminded her so much of the man he’d been when she’d first purchased his indenture. “And what makes you think I’ll cooperate, mistress, when I could just as easily break your pretty neck?”

“You’ll find what I have in mind far more pleasant than what you’ll receive if you disobey.”
“I see.” His gaze raked over her body in blatant sexual appraisal, and she shivered in anticipation. “And just what do you have in mind?”

“Undress—slowly.”

He raised an eyebrow, then untied his shirt and slowly pulled it over his head. It fell, forgotten, at his feet. Candlelight cast the bronzed muscles of his arms, chest, and abdomen in glorious high relief. He reached for the opening of his breeches and began to untie them, his muscles shifting beneath sun-bronzed skin.

Cassie felt desire flow like warm brandy through her veins. “Slowly, convict.”

His gaze locked with hers again as ever so slowly he pulled on the ties, undid his breeches, and let them drop to the floor. He was rock hard, his sex thick and heavy.

She found she could scarcely breathe. “Your hair. Remove the thong.”

Not breaking eye contact, he reached back with one hand, and his dark hair slid free, falling just below his shoulders. He looked untamed, primally male, and, with his lash scars, not a little dangerous. He stepped toward her.

She stepped back and pointed to the bed. “Stop! The shackles. Lock one end around your right wrist, then pass the chain behind the bedpost, lie down, and lock the other end around your left wrist.”

He looked at the bed and saw the shackles. She heard his quick intake of breath and saw a shadow pass over his face. Then it was gone.

“Don’t you trust me, fair mistress?” His voice was dark as sin and soft as velvet. His eyes held the allure of every man who’d ever tried to beguile a woman into a false sense of sexual safety.
“Never.” She smiled and spoke in a rich, seductive voice she didn’t know she had. “But I will have your complete cooperation.”

“I see.” Naked, he walked to the bed, picked up the shackles, and closed one end around his right wrist. It locked with a click. He sat and moved backward across the bed, then reached behind his head and passed the chain behind one of the bedposts. “What makes you think these chains will protect you?”

“Do it, convict.”

He lay down, then reached back to cuff his left wrist. Click. He lay diagonally across the bed, completely vulnerable. His arms were stretched over his head. His chest rose and fell with each breath. His rigid sex stood defiantly against his abdomen. His legs, spread slightly, stretched the length of the bed, his feet hanging just over the edge. A tremor passed from Cassie’s belly to her sex.

His gaze, cold and menacing, bored through her. “Do you like what you see?”

“Aye, convict. And it’s good for you that I do.” Almost trembling with excitement, she loosened her bodice until her breasts were visible. Then she moved to the bed and began to caress him, first his feet, then his ankles and calves. Where her hands touched, her lips and tongue soon followed. She heard his breath quicken, felt his muscles tense, and reveled in his response. She worked her way up his muscular legs and over his powerful thighs, but, although she touched the sac that carried his seed, she did not touch his shaft. “You’ve a remarkable cock.”

He groaned in frustration. The chains caught on the bedpost, clinking as he strained against them. “Is this to be my punishment then? To be tortured with kisses, soft hands and words?”

Some part of her she’d never known awoke within her, and she felt herself grow more daring. Like a cat toying with its prey, she stretched across the bed beside him. She ran her fingers teasingly on his abdomen, outlining his erection.

“Your punishment is that you shall see, but you shall not touch. You shall want, but you shall not receive—not until it pleases me.”
This is your chance to download the book for free. Please help me spread the word. And if you haven’t already read it, I think you’re in for a treat. Originally released in 2003, it got a 4.5-start Top Pick review from RT Book Reviews and Alec was the recipient of their KISS Award.
You can download Sweet Release for Kindle, iBooks, Kobo and other formats, including Nook.
If you don’t have an ereader, you can download a PDF version from Smashwords (the third link above), or you can download a free Kindle or Nook application from Amazon or B&N that will enable you to read the story on whatever computer you’re using to be online now.
Enjoy!
 
I would like to thank all of you who helped make the release of Skin Deep so much fun. It seemed like the book had been available for all of two hours by the time people were posting reviews. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, both for the main story and for the short story “Marc & Julian Make a Beer Run.”

This is my first 100-percent self-published book, so I was thrilled to see the response. I was away at my younger son’s college graduation last weekend, but I found myself laughing every time I logged on because so many readers flipped straight to the back to read the short story.

Thanks to everyone helped push Skin Deep up to No. 18 on B&N and into the low 200s on Amazon.com. And huge thanks to all of you who tweeted and posted on Facebook and your blogs. I announced the contest winners for the three free copies of Skin Deep in the last comment on my previous blog, so if you posted and were hoping to win, please check. Maybe you did. I’ve only heard from one of the prize-winners so far.

 It’s available right now on Amazon.com for Kindle, B&N for Nook, and Smashwords for everything else. It’s not yet available in iBook format because it takes such an extraordinarily long time for ebooks to get through the system and up on iTunes. I’ll let you know when it’s posted there. Some readers download the free Kindle app to their iPads so they can read Kindle versions and not wait for iTunes.


If you haven’t yet read Skin Deep, I hope you’ll give it a try. If you enjoyed it, I hope you’ll share that with your reader friends.

Other news:

Benjamin and his girlfriend Lucy pose for the parental paparazzi immediately after the ceremony.

Benjamin graduated Summa Cum Laude from Ithaca College last Sunday in a ceremony that had me in tears several times. I was so proud of him and his friends — Lucy, his girlfriend, and Del, his wonderful roommate from freshman year. Benjamin now has a B.S. in Cinema and Photography and already has a job in his field, working as an assistant editor for Sender Films in Boulder. They do climbing porn — rock, alpine, ice — which is fun for him, given that he comes from a climbing family. He pulled his first all-nighter this week, helping them get a film ready for a festival and sleeping on the couch after crashing at 4 AM.

Our flower garden is in full bloom at the height of its beauty, and it really is spectacular this year. Everything is about a month ahead of schedule, with white irises already past their bloom and my rose bushes exploding with scenterrific color. All you have to do to be wafted in the scent of roses is stand on my porch. We’ll be sharing photos soon!



The countdown to the release of Defiant, the third book in my MacKinnon’s Rangers series is about to begin. The book — the longest story I’ve ever written — will be out on July 2, so we’ve got a lot of fun and celebration ahead. I’m so excited to be sharing Connor’s story with you! I cannot tell you want this book means to me.

I’m working on the next I-Team novel now — that’s the as-of-yet untitled I-Team Book 6.

Stay tuned!

SKIN DEEP is out — Plus BEER RUN excerpt & CONTEST

Skin Deep is out!

How amazing — to write a book and have it available for you in just a couple of weeks. It’s almost interactive because you’re reading it so soon after I’ve written it. This is my first truly self-published book. Although my first two historicals, Sweet Release and Carnal Gift , are currently self-published, they were first published by Dorchester in print. So this is the first time I’ve handled everything beginning to end on a book.
Skin Deep is the also first novella in my I-Team After Hours series. Here’s a quick description:
Broken on the inside



Megan Hunter has worked hard to get back on her feet, leaving the nightmare of her teenage years behind. The last thing she wants or needs in her life is a man. But when she is attacked by someone from her past, a scarred stranger intervenes, saving her life and that of her little girl. Looks can be deceiving, for despite the man's rough appearance, she feels safe with him. And for the first time in her life, she knows the stirrings of desire.



Broken on the outside



Nathaniel West paid a high price serving with the Marines in Afghanistan. He returned to his family's ranch in the Colorado mountains to heal — and be alone. Disfigured as he is, he has put all thoughts of sex and romance aside. But something about Megan brings him back to life, heats his blood, makes him feel like a man again. As danger pursues her, and the truth about her past is revealed, he vows to protect her — and to heal her wounded spirit. 

But confronting the past is never easy — especially when it’s carrying a gun. Megan will have to learn to trust Nate to survive and to claim a passion that is much more than ... Skin Deep. 


The story is more than 47,000 words long — that’s pretty long for a novella — and includes at the end a 5,000-word I-Team short, “Marc & Julian Make a Beer Run.” The story is a thank-you to my most hard-core I-Team fans. The title is somewhat deceptive because all the guys pile into Zach McBride’s SUV, though it’s Marc, Julian and Zach who enter the liquor store. The roles each hero play in the story and their significance were determined by the annual I-Team hero vote held in the I-Team group on Facebook. Marc has won two years in a row, followed by Julian, then Zach, then Gabe, then Reece. As a result, the story is told from Marc’s point of view, with lots of Julian, some Zach, some Nate, a bit of Gabe (an important bit, I might add) and smidgen of Reece.
For excerpts from Skin Deep , read these earlier blog posts or visit the Rock*It Reads website or my own website.
For a special treat, I thought I’d offer a tiny glimpse at the Beer Run, in part because so many hardcore I-Team addicts are reading it first. Yes, they’re going to the very back and reading about the Beer Run first!
Here’s a quick excerpt from the Beer Run — six alpha males on a mission:

How Marc’s volunteering to make a beer run with Darcangelo had turned into six men packed into McBride’s SUV—Ramirez had been called out on assignment—Marc couldn’t say. The moment the women had heard they were going into town, they’d been pelted with requests. Kat James, Rossiter’s wife, needed baby wipes. Kara McMillan, Reece’s wife, had forgotten to bring ice cream to put on top the pie. And Megan wanted something of a personal and private nature, which she had revealed only to her husband.
And their beer strike force had become an expedition.
“Here’s how we’ll do this.” Marc looked back over his shoulder. “Alpha Team—that’s me, Darcangelo, and McBride—will take the liquor store, dropping off Beta Team—that’s Sheridan, Rossiter, and you, West—”
“Whoa! Wait a minute!” Rossiter cut Marc off. “I’m not part of any beta team.”
“Yeah, me neither,” West added. “And don’t even suggest ‘Baby Wipe Patrol’ or ‘Tampon Squadron.’”
So that’s what Megan had wanted.
“Okay, fine.” Marc nodded. “Alpha Team will take the liquor store, dropping Team One off at the grocery store. We rendezvous at the vehicle in the liquor store parking lot at eighteen-hundred hours.”
They had their strategy. Each man knew what he had to do.
Marc would be back relaxing on the deck in no time.

Here are the links for downloading your own copy of the novella and short story, which are packaged together.
Kindle: http://amzn.to/Jjsz6GNook: http://bit.ly/J3hxgZSmashwords: http://bit.ly/JVWEH5
To celebrate the release of the books, I’m offering three free copies of it. To enter, all you have to do is share the news about the story on Facebook and/or Twitter — wherever you hang out online. Post a link to this blog or just announce the book’s release, and then tell me where you posted below. 
I’ll enter the names into a contest randomizer and pick a winner next Wednesday night!
Thanks so much for your enthusiasm for this story! The reviews have been wonderful so far. I’m so glad you’re all enjoying it.
Coming soon: A glimpse into the beautiful and tragic world of Lady Sarah Woodville.
Only 47 days till Defiant is out!

Questions from Spain

Cadiz, Spain. I got the worst sunburn of my life on this exact stretch of beach.


Lucía de Vicente, an author from Spain, tagged me on her blog for 10 questions as part of a spring meme that is popular right now among Spanish bloggers.
I thought I would answer the questions, though I probably won’t tag anyone. I post them here in the original Spanish, alongside my possibly lame translations. I understand a lot of Spanish, but I don’t write it or speak it well.
Before I get started answering, I just want to say that I spent two weeks in Spain one summer. I felt in love with the country, the people, the food, the beach. It was paradise, and I hope to visit again.

Si te dieran un billete sin fecha para viajar en el tiempo, ¿a qué época te trasladarías? If you were given an open ticket for time travel, which period of time would you travel to?
There are so many periods of history that fascinate me. It would be very hard to choose. I would have to decide between seeing ancient Rome in all its glory, seeing Crete at the height of its powers, visiting ancient Sparta, seeing the American West before it was taken away from the Native peoples, or being present during the French and Indian War (1754-1760). 
I’m a history geek, so I could choose a lot of other things, too, but I’ll limit myself.

¿Por qué decidiste escribir romántica? Why did you decide to write romance?
I decided to write romance because I love reading it. I did a lot of reading as a teenager, and romance novels are what I enjoyed most. I figured if I wrote what I enjoyed reading, I would be more likely to be successful.
¿Has pensado en alguna ocasión salirte del género romántico? Have you ever thought of leaving the romance genre?
Yes, and I probably will one day. I’ve always been interested in writing straight historical fiction. I think it would be easier in some ways not to have to worry about sex and romance and sexual tension. Plus, then I could write historically accurate stories without worrying about being too violent or not cheerful enough. History is violent.
¿Por cuál de tus protagonistas masculinos abandonarías a tu marido o pareja? For which of your heroes (male protagonists) would you abandon your husband or partner?  I’m single so I could theoretically be with all my heroes. I like that idea.
¿Con qué autora te gustaría firmar una novela a medias? With which author would you like to write a novel?
Gosh, I’ve never thought about this before. I guess I could make a list: Julie James, Jill Shalvis, Robyn Carr, Norah Wilson... I’m still thinking.
¿De cuál de tus novelas, te gustaría cambiarte por la protagonista? For which of your novels would you like to trade places with the heroine?
None! They all go through hell. I don’t want my life to be that hard. Then again, to be Annie or Tessa or Kat or Sophie... There would be distinct benefits, wouldn’t there?
¿Qué escena de todas las que has escrito te ha costado más trabajo? Which scene out of all those you've written was the most work?

¿Qué sería de ti y tu trabajo sin ordenador? What would happen to you and your work without a computer?
Impossible. I don’t think I could write without it.
¿Tus personajes “te hablan” o sólo “te molestan”? Do your characters talk to you or just bother you?
They talk to each other, but they do it in my head. And sometimes they keep me awake at night. They get especially chatty when I’ve been writing all day and try to go to bed.
¿Recuerdas cuál fue la novela que te impulsó a decir «yo también quiero, y puedo, escribir algo así»? Do you remember which novel it was that made you decide, “I can do this, too. I can write something like this”?
I knew I wanted to write novels when I read Misty of Chincoteague as a child. It was such a magic experience — disappearing into a story. I wanted to do that for other people. I wanted to write stories they could disappear into. That’s really all I’ve ever wanted to do.

For Mother’s Day, Help A Mother’s Child

A WIN FOR BERLIN    Online Charity Auction
 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ 
Meet Berlin. Author Julieanne Reeves told me about her.

She’s a charming little girl with a beautiful smile, a shining countenance and a debilitating disease. You see Berlin has Osteogenesis Imperfecta — Brittle Bone Disease.

 Berlin was born with Brittle Bone Disease and though she's only seven she already knows what it feels like to have a broken arm, leg, and fractured vertebra — repeatedly.  But you’d never know by speaking with her that her life is anything but normal. Even when Berlin's slowly making her way across campus with her mobility walker, she always has a bright smile, and will shout out to friends and parents of friends with a warm welcome and a friendly wave.  

But Berlin isn’t walking these days. You see, she recently fell and ended up in the hospital, where doctors discovered she’d re-fractured her tibia — the main bone in her lower leg — and a pin from a previous surgery had shifted through the bone.  That shift means that Berlin can’t walk until she has surgery.

Due to lack of insurance coverage, they treated the new fracture and sent her home, denying her the needed surgery.  Every day children right here in America go without needed medical care. Every Day. It is heart-breaking.

Don’t get me started on the issue of health care in the United States. As someone who lived in Denmark and Sweden, where health care is paid for by the state, where infant and mother mortality rates are lower, and quality of life is higher, I’ve never been able to tolerate the for-profit model we have. Ka-CHING should not be a sound associated with the saving of lives and the ending of human suffering.

But lamenting our pitiful health-care system won’t get Berlin the care she needs. Until her family can come up with a very large sum of money, she won’t get the needed surgery and will continue to be in pain and unable to walk. I am one of many authors participating in this auction, put together by Julieanne Reeves, hoping to help raise the money Berlin needs. Some incredibly generous members of the writing community and local businesses have contributed to this online auction, as well. 

The auction began on Friday, May 11. To participate, or to make a simple donation, click here, and start bidding on the great gifts and services donated by award-winning and bestselling authors, artists and local businesses. You’ll find everything from signed books to “Meet and Greets” with your favorite authors and artists, and a wide array of everything in between.

In addition, there are some great items up for bid from local businesses. Don’t see anything you want to bid on? No problem, keep checking back for new auctions to be added over the next week or check out one of our donation auctions.  

And thank you for caring! What better way is there to celebrate Mother’s Day then by helping a child? That’s what we moms do.

Feel free to tweet about this, to post a link to your Facebook page, to copy this text and put it on your blog or to raise awareness among your friends or in your faith communities. With determination, we can help this child.

Quick update:

Skin Deep is done! It’s in the process of being edited and proofread right now in hopes that we can get it loaded before I leave for New York next week. Right now, I’m starting the I-Team Extra, “Marc and Julian Make a Beer Run.”

If you’ve signed up for my newsletter, you’ll get an announcement when Skin Deep has gone live on Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. (It takes a bit longer for Apple to make it live as an iBook via iTunes, but at least you’ll know to start checking.)

If you haven’t yet signed up for my newsletter, click here.

Writing, writing, writing, writing

Sorry to have left you with a boring blog about my garden for so long. I’ve been trying to stay focused on finishing SKIN DEEP.

Sadly, I haven’t succeeded. Between work I needed to get done for Rock*It Reads — an investment of time — and some extra time-consuming stuff for my opinion column this week for the paper, I lost a couple of days.

Then an old lady crashed into my car in a parking lot, and that has taken up a lot of time. I was fine. She was fine. Her car was fine. Mine has about $1,000 worth of damage that she is going to cover. But spending time on the phone with insurance companies, going to get an estimate for repairs, and talking with her ate a chunk of yesterday. So aggravating!

It’s one thing if I waste my time. It’s something else if other people waste it.

SO, I’m putting the universe on notice that this is it. No more. I’m staying offline and ignoring email until this story is written.

As far as the story itself goes, I have the rest of it in my head. It just needs to come out. I think fans of the I-Team will really enjoy it.

Of course, once I finish it, it will finally be time to write “Marc and Julian Make a Beer Run,” which will be included in the back of the novella as an extra treat for I-Team fanatics. (You know who you are.)

Have a great Friday and weekend, everyone! I hope to be back on Monday celebrating.

Meanwhile back on the urban farm...

Lilacs are one of my very favorite flowers.
Just a quick blog update...
This is the craziest spring weather I can remember. Spring in Colorado is usually all about snow. But this year, we’ve had incredibly mild weather and very little moisture. The state is a tinderbox with fire conditions very high as we head toward summer. 


And down on the urban farm — that’s my house — everything is a few weeks ahead of where it ought to be this time of year. Our lilacs normally don’t bloom till May. Irises bloom in late May or early June. But we’ve got irises in bloom in the back at the same time that tulips are still blooming. The lilacs are out of control. And our peonies have big buds on them. 


Benjamin plants a mahonia bush.



As some of you know, I believe very much in growing as much of one’s own food as one can, even in a very urban setting. All that space taken up by useless grass can put food on the table and make a family less dependent on jobs, on credit, on all of the unhealthy systems that exist in our society. By taking food production into own hands, we boost our independence. 


The other benefit of growing one’s own fruits and veggies is that you can control what goes on and around them. Food safety has become a huge issue lately, and it’s a proven fact that certain chemicals, including herbicides and pesticides that are commonly sold in the U.S., contribute to cancer rates. I’d rather work a little and have a healthy meal waiting for me outside. We generally don’t shop for vegetables between June and September, which is nice.


My grandparents on both sides grew most of their own fruits and vegetables. The lived in the city, but had big lots. They grew and canned so many different things. My mother’s parents had a grape arbor, an orchard and an enormous veggie garden that fed a family of eight. My grandfather gardened up till the very end of his life. Maybe it’s in our blood. 



Our vegetable garden has been tilled and is ready to plant.



Last year we had an incredible year, though insects were more of a problem, too. I imagine it will be worse this year with the mild weather. We haven’t completed our garden plans quite yet — Colorado is still quite capable of dumping a blizzard on our heads — but I know for sure we’ll be planting: arugula, romaine lettuce, dino kale, swiss chard, carrots, green beans, broccoli, zucchini, summer squash, cucumbers and tomatoes.


We have full southern exposure on the side of the house (as you can see), so we can really grow a wide variety of foods.




Another view of the lilacs and one of the veggie beds.



We don’t have an orchard yet, but once the big cottonwood is down in the backyard — I have to pay a small fortune to have it removed before it kills someone — I’m thinking that sweet cherries, plums and apricots or pears can go in the space taken up by the cottonwood.


Benjamin wants an oak tree.


We shall see.


They look pretty empty now, but these rose beds will be alive with color soon.




Of course, out front we have our rose beds.  We are rosarians — lovers of the rose. I don’t care much for typical hybrid teas and prefer historical roses that aren’t so cross-bred that they don’t even have a scent. I have three rules for any rose bush that is planted in my garden.


1. It must have a strong scent. Why have flowers if they have no scent?


2. It must be a proven rebloomer. I want flowers all summer long.


3. It must be capable of surviving in this climate.



Fortunately, historic roses and shrub roses generally fit those criteria.



Of course, tending the garden takes a lot of time during the summer. There’s planting, daily watering (it’s very arid here), weeding, harvesting, replanting... And it goes on typically until the first frost sometime in September/October, when I end up running out with kitchen scissors for one last quick harvest, usually of greens and broccoli, before winter arrives.



This enormous cottonwood is coming down soon.



It’s almost dead and dangerous. I love it and will miss it.In the meantime, I’m working on SKIN DEEP and getting nearer to the end. I probably won’t be posting again until the story is done. But I did want to offer an update. Excerpts of the book are posted here on this blog if you’re curious.



Only 70 days until DEFIANT is released! I’m so excited to share the story with you!

SKIN DEEP update — With Excerpt!

My first goal was to have Skin Deep up by the end of March. But I had pneumonia all February and couldn’t write. Then I planned to have it up by mid-April. Well, here we are, and I’m probably four chapters away from the end.

Sorry it’s taking forever. I really care about what I write. I don’t want to give you anything less than the best story I can write, and I don’t want to give Megan, who has had such a hard life, anything less than the happy ending she deserves.

Since I’ve kept you waiting so long, I think you all deserve an excerpt. Don’t you agree?

I knew you would.

For those of you familiar with the I-Team series, Megan is a character who tugged at your heartstrings. For those of you who haven’t read the series, I suggest you read Unlawful Contact before reading Skin Deep . You’ll understand the relationship between Megan and her brother, Marc, much better if you do. And the difference could mean crying your way through a few tissues — or wiping out the box.

Before I commence with the excerpt, I’ll just point out the sexy little Rock*It Reads logo on the cover of Skin Deep . Thanks to all of you who celebrated the launch of Rock*It Reads brand with us. And watch for more events on the Rock*It Reads Facebook page and our website.

From Chapter 9 of Skin Deep :

“Be careful.  It’s hot.”

“Thanks.”  Megan took the mug of steaming chamomile tea from Nate, a part of her craving something stronger.

While he put more wood on the fire, she sipped, struggling to pull the pieces of herself back together.  She felt drained, weak, ragged.  It seemed unreal to her that she’d just bared the darkest side of her soul to a man she’d known only for a week, but she had.  She’d told him everything. 

More than that, she’d buried her face in his shirt and sobbed while he’d held her.  The only other men she’d let touch her like that were Marc and Julian, but that was different.  Marc was her brother, and Julian… Well, he was like a brother. 

What she felt for Nate was very different.

She couldn’t deny that she was attracted to him.  Usually that meant she’d want to get as far away from him as she could, and yet something about him set her at ease. 

He poured himself another drink and sat on the sofa.  “Are you warm?”

She nodded, grateful for the blanket he’d wrapped around her shoulders.

He leaned back into the cushions, his eyes narrowing as he looked at her.  “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.  Why not?”  She no longer had any secrets where he was concerned.

“That reporter your brother took hostage when he broke out of prison—he got her pregnant while they were on the run, and she married him, didn’t she?”

Nate’s question, as blunt as it was, wasn’t what Megan had been expecting.

She laughed.  “He and Sophie have been married for almost four years now, and they have two kids—Chase and Addison.”

Nate shook his head, a bemused expression on his face.  “That’s … interesting.”

Megan smiled.  “Believe it or not, Marc can be very sweet.  You haven’t exactly seen his soft side.”

“No I suppose, I haven’t.”  Nate chuckled.  “I don’t blame him for watching over you the way he does.  If I were in his shoes and spotted some strange guy walking up to my little sister’s front door after she’d been attacked, I probably would have done the same thing.” 

“Marc knows I get … uncomfortable around men, and I guess he does his best to make certain I feel safe.”  Megan looked away, took a sip of tea.

“Do you feel uncomfortable around me?”  It was a sincere question, no defensiveness in his voice, no hint that she needed to lie to protect his ego.

Megan found herself studying him from his short sandy brown hair to his deep set blue eyes to the tanned skin on the left side of his face to the scars on the right.  “No—which is kind of strange.” 

It was both fascinating—and frightening.

“Well, that’s good—I think.”  The smile lines around his eyes crinkled, a hint of humor in his voice. 

And she knew she would never get a better time than now to let him know where she stood.  “I’m never going to be with a man, Nate.  I’m telling you this now because … because I don’t want to mislead you.  I don’t like being touched.  I don’t like sex.  I’ve never once enjoyed it.”

“Never?”  His brows bent in a frown.

“Never.”  She glanced away for a moment, unable to bear the scrutiny of his gaze.  “When a man touches me, I feel … revulsion.  I instantly feel sick to my stomach.  It’s all I can do not to shove him away.  What those men did to me—it’s in my DNA.”

Even years of therapy hadn’t changed that.  A hug from a male acquaintance, a man’s arm around her shoulders, an overly long handshake—they all made her want to pull away and run.  She couldn’t even go to a male doctor.

“I’m sorry.  If I’d known… ”  Nate’s frown deepened.  “Did I make you feel that way just now when I held you?”

“N-no.”  Warmth rushed to Megan’s cheeks. 

“I’m glad to hear that.”  His forehead furrowed, and he seemed to think about this for a moment as if it were a puzzle he needed to solve.  “How about when I caught you when you fell getting off the horse?”

“No.”  Her cheeks burned hotter.

“What about the times I’ve held your hand?”

Could he see that she was blushing?  God, she hoped not!  “No, not then either.”

His gaze locked with hers.  “And last night—when I kissed you?”

“No.”  She rushed to explain.  “But we were interrupted, and I… I think maybe there just wasn’t time for me to react.”

Nate set his drink down on the coffee table.  “Do you want to test that theory?”

Megan’s heart took off at a sprint.  “Wh-what do you mean?”

“I could kiss you again just like I did last night—soft and easy—and since we’re not going to be interrupted this time, you’ll be able to see whether that sense of revulsion kicks in.  If it does, we stop.”

“And if it doesn’t?”

He gave her a lopsided grin.  “We’ll know you’ve been kissing the wrong men.”

She felt that flutter in her belly again, and time was measured in heartbeats as he watched her, waiting for her answer.  Some part of her was afraid their little experiment would fail.  Some part of her was afraid it would succeed.

There’s no point in trying.  You know how this will end, girl.

But did she?  Everything had been different with Nate so far.

She drew a steadying breath.  “How would we do it?”

“We could do it like we did last night.”  He spoke matter-of-factly, as if they were discussing how to change a tire.  “I’ll sit close to you and kiss you nice and slow, and we can see where that takes us.”

She nodded.  “O-okay.”

In a single slow motion, he shifted so that he sat beside her, his face inches from hers, his arm stretched out on the back of the leather sofa behind her.  “You tell me if you start to feel queasy or repulsed, alright?”

It was hard to think with him sitting so close.  “All right.”

“Ready?”  He reached out, stroked her cheek with the knuckles of his right hand.

“Uh-huh.”

Without closing his eyes, he leaned in, brushed his lips over hers once, twice, three times, the feather-light contact sending shivers through her. 

“How are we doing so far?”  His eyes looked straight into hers, his voice husky.

“Good.”  She didn’t wait for him this time, but rested her palms against the hard wall of his chest, rose up on one knee, and caressed his lips with hers, increasing the pressure.

More shivers.

His eyes drifted shut, his lashes long and dark.  One big hand came to rest on her hip as he steadied her.  He caught her lower lip between his, and gave it a soft tug.

Belly flutters.

Her eyes drifted shut, her hands finding their way up his chest and over his shoulders as she drew herself against him, needing to be closer to him, her arms locking behind his neck.  She tilted her head, kissed his upper lip, then his lower lip, then the corners of his mouth, her tongue tracing the outline of his lips, her senses stirred by the taste of him, by his masculine scent, by the hard feel of him.

And Megan forgot she’d always been repulsed by this.  All she knew was that she wanted more.

Excerpt (c) copyright Pamela Clare 2012

~ ~ ~
 I hope you enjoyed that little sneak peek. Chapter 9 is where we get to turn on the sexy. Because this won’t be up on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Smashwords before it’s actually available — no pre-orders on indie published books, unfortunately — I’ll be sending out an email blast to let people know when it’s done. So if you don’t receive my newsletter, be sure to click here to sign up.

My current target date is early May.

And now I need to get offline and write!

P.S. I have been going to the gym five days a week. Yeah. I rock.