Guest blogging and an excerpt of Taming the Lion Tamer

I'm a gust blogger with L.M. Brown today. Go here to check out my interview with Quinn Fitzgerald along with an excerpt of Taming the Lion Tamer, which comes out next week.

Here's a peek at the excerpt. Enjoy!


Quinn parked the large van along the backside of the animation studio. This spot was normally reserved for loading, but he'd understood why the department head had asked him not to bring Aseem through the front lobby. It wasn't easy to control a young hundred pound Asiatic lion in such a large space, especially if someone happened to get nervous around him. The man that had invited them today, Mr Barker, had assured Quinn the people he was bringing in to meet Aseem had all been briefed about how to act in the lion's presence. Still, Quinn wasn't taking chances. He'd seen the news stories of what happened to a big cat once it got hold of a human and he wasn't going to let that happen to his best friend.

He hopped out of the van, making sure to grab the visitor badge he'd been sent as soon as he'd agreed to bring a lion to the studio. Aseem was a pro at this. The big cat actually seemed to enjoy the human attention when they did talks at the sanctuary. Quinn supposed that was probably a result of spoiling him as a cub. In those first few months, Aseem had barely left his side, acting more like a playful puppy than the fierce predator he was supposed to be. Quinn opened up the back doors and grinned at Aseem who blinked wearily at him.

"I know, big guy, it was a long drive down to Denver, wasn't it?" he said as he undid the padlock and opened the heavy metal cage that had been built in the back of the van. "You ready to go put on a little show?" Aseem yawned, his large canines flashing perfectly white in the summer sun. Instead of being nervous about being so close to the big cat, Quinn merely complimented himself on taking such good care of the animal's oral hygiene. He put on his leather work gloves and unhooked the heavy chain leash from where it attached to the cage. He stepped back out of the way and gave Aseem a little click with his tongue. The lion huffed, but lumbered to his feet after a few more clicks. "Come on, old buddy, I'm not a morning person, either, and I still managed to drag my ass out of bed at five. You could bother to jump down out of the van. Please."

The old van creaked as Aseem managed the short leap to the pavement. "Good, thank you. It's a great cause and the director has promised us lots of goodies, so let’s go do our best," Quinn said. He stifled a yawn and then closed the back doors with a slam that echoed through the empty back parking lot.