When one killer falls for another

Agent: Misha
Profile: Highly trained in every method the assassins guild has to offer. Always goes by the book.

Agent: Rikki
Profile: Rogue assassin who kills only to rid the world of hardened criminals. Hates organizations. Always does it her way.

Love becomes a matter of life and death

Misha’s mission is to get Rikki to join the guild or give up her guns. He completely underestimated the effect she would have on him…and what heat and chaos they could bring to each other…

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca; Original edition (March 6, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402262825
• ISBN-13: 978-1402262821

BUY THE BOOK… Amazon | Barnes & Noble

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Kris DeLake is one of writer Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s many pen names. In addition to writing as Kris DeLake in romance, Rusch also writes romance as Kristine Grayson (who specializes in paranormals) and Kristine Dexter (who prefers romantic suspense). In mystery, Rusch writes as Edgar- and Shamus-nominee Kris Nelscott. In science fiction and fantasy, Rusch goes by her real name. Under that name, she’s a bestseller in many countries, and a double Hugo winner. To find out more about Rusch and her various names, go to her website, kristinekathrynrusch.com

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Oh is this one a mind(and body)-blowing futuristic hot tale filled with danger, passion, multiple identities, and discovered truths! Right from the beginning all the way to the end I wanted in on the action (all the action…heehee). Rikki is one bad-ass woman and Misha- well, let’s say I wouldn’t mind being tracked down by this hot assassin! Can two assassins from different backgrounds with different goals learn to trust the other in order to find out the truth? Could they ever give up all they’ve known and trust their hearts for their future? You’ll just have to read it. Oh yes, I recommend this fun and steamy adventure. And I’m definitely look forward to reading more about Rikki’s “Jack” when that’s ready which I believe is next in the Assassins Guild series.

READ AN EXCERPT

A NetGalley ebook was provided in exchange for an honest review.

1. Start a binder. This is a habit I’ve freely borrowed from Phyllis A. Whitney’s wonderful Guide to Fiction Writing, though over the years I’ve adapted her own “notebook method” to suit my own needs. Before I read her writing guide I was forever losing track of all the little bits of paper on which I’d taken notes, and forgetting ideas that came to me at odd times, but now whenever I get the first germ of an idea for a book I start a 3-ring binder for it. I label the binder, section it off with dividers like I used to do for schoolwork, and fill it with lots of lined paper. And on the first page I write the date I got the idea for the book, and what the idea was. My standard sections are always “Work Calendar”, in which I keep track of my writing progress day by day; “Plotting”, in which I write down any and all ideas that come to me (and paste in those messy little jotted notes I make while in the bathtub); “Outline”, in which I occasionally (but only occasionally) try to guess what might happen in the next few chapters; “Characters”, which I use mainly for writing down names and keeping notes on any real-life historical characters, and “Revisions”, in which I keep track of all the things I know I’m going to need to go back and change in the second draft (especially helpful if I decide to change someone’s name or age, which has happened). The rest of the binder is divided into a heap of “Research” sub-sections, depending on the book. In my binder for my book The Winter Sea, I have “Research” sub-sections for the 1708 invasion attempt, Jacobite spies, Scottish clothing for 1700-1710, English and French clothing for the same period, the Scots and Royal navies, Cruden Bay, James VIII of Scotland, Union Politics, The Irish Brigades, and several other things that would likely bore the average person but were fascinating to me and essential to the story.

2. Do the preliminary research. Research, for me, is an ongoing exercise. Throughout the writing of a book I’ll be continually reading sources, searching out material, and checking facts, and this will fuel my writing which in turn will raise more questions that I need to find the answers to…and on and on it goes. I don’t expect to track down everything I’ll need at the beginning, but I like to make a start. I scout out my locations and visit the ones I can visit (though sometimes for various reasons I’m midway through the writing before I can actually manage the travel). I talk to people who work in the same fields as my characters. And I start reading what books, articles, and original documents I can, always with an eye to finding more. But I don’t let this stage stop me from the next step, which is…

3. Start writing. Don’t wait for inspiration to strike, just sit down and start putting words on the blank page, that’s the only way I know to start a story. Again, I tend to defer to Phyllis A. Whitney’s advice that “Probably the best way to start any story, long or short, is to show a character with a problem doing something interesting”, but I realize the first line—or even the first page—of my first draft won’t necessarily be the first line or first page of the finished book. I don’t look for perfection at this stage, I just want to feel my way into the book and start “hearing” my characters, getting to know them. Often for the first few chapters this is a very slow process for me, but at some point there’s almost a “click” I can feel and the book comes to life for me.

4. Keep going forward. Which sounds basic, but I’ve learned not to go back and tinker with what I’ve written while I’m working on the first draft. When I sit down to start work each day, I read over what I wrote the day before, just to get back in the rhythm of the story, and then I go forward from there. If I feel the urge to change something that’s already happened, I simply make a note in the “Revisions” section of my binder and ignore it till the second draft, instead of wasting a lot of time polishing a scene that might not even make it into that second draft, let alone the final book. This lure to go back and rework what I’ve already written instead of pushing on with something new is what used to keep me from finishing my books when I was a teenager, only now I’ve got wise to it. Giving in would, for me, be like trying to drive from New York to L.A. if every morning I had to get up and start back in New York again. I’d never make it to the west coast doing that, just as I’d never write “The End” if I kept “polishing” instead of pushing on.

5. Ignore the urge to throw it out and start again. With every book I reach a point when I’m convinced the story’s going nowhere; that it’s rubbish, can’t be salvaged, and not nearly as compelling as the NEW idea I’ve just had for this OTHER book… I’m writing my eleventh book, just now, and I’ve been writing books and finishing them for two decades, but I still run up against this wall in every one of them. I’ve learned to just ignore it. All it means is that I’ve reached the Dreaded Middle of the novel. It will pass. The thing is, when I start a book I have a lovely, perfect vision of it, and by the time I reach the middle, what I’ve written doesn’t look at all like that first vision. As a teenager, I used to think this meant I’d done it wrong, but now I know it always works like that. I only have to soldier on and make it to the end, and then I’ll get to re-work everything in second draft, and things will look much better. Never like that perfect vision that I had at the beginning, but that’s fine. There’s always the next book, I promise myself…

6. Reward yourself. To keep myself going through the Dreaded Middle, I give myself little rewards. These change, according to the novel and my mood. Sometimes it’s a glass of wine every 50 pages. Sometimes it’s a night out at the movies every 100 pages. Right now, because I’m in a bit of a difficult part, I’m letting myself watch one episode of Scarecrow and Mrs. King on DVD every time I finish a chapter. The thing is to find whatever works as a treat for you, and use it to help yourself through to the end. And your end reward should be BIG. Something wonderful. A whole day in your pajamas with a pot of tea, and other people’s books to read. Or dinner at a fancy restaurant. What you choose is up to you—the challenge is to finish what you’re working on, so you can write “The End” and claim your prize.

So there you have it: The Susanna Kearsley method. If there’s any part of it that you can use, I hope it helps. If not, at least you’ll have a little insight into how I spend my days. And if you’re sitting down to write your novel, just remember the important thing is simply to keep at it. Best of luck!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Susanna Kearsley’s writing has been compared to Mary Stewart, Daphne Du Maurier, and Diana Gabaldon. Her books have been translated into several languages, selected for the Mystery Guild, condensed for Reader’s Digest, and optioned for film. She lives in Canada near the shores of Lake Ontario.

FOLLOW THE AUTHOR… Website | Facebook | Twitter 

The first time Julia Beckett saw Greywethers she was only five, but she knew that it was her house. And now that she’s at last become its owner, she suspects that she was drawn there for a reason.

As if Greywethers were a portal between worlds, she finds herself transported into seventeenth-century England, becoming Mariana, a young woman struggling against danger and treachery, and battling a forbidden love.

Each time Julia travels back, she becomes more enthralled with the past…until she realizes Mariana’s life is threatening to eclipse her own, and she must find a way to lay the past to rest or lose the chance for happiness in her own time.

Read the first chapter here.

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark (April 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402258674
• ISBN-13: 978-1402258671

BUY THE BOOK… Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble | Other Stores

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Review to be posted VERY soon. I can tell you though that it’s a good one!

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review from Sourcebooks.

I was inspired by Tolkien’s characters in The Lord of the Rings. I have always loved what I consider ‘true’ elven, the Sidhe, and when I saw the movie version, I fell in love with Legolas, and knew right then that I wanted a romance revolving around those beautiful characters.

Since I write a blend of historical, fantasy, and romance, a new world began to take shape in my mind, and it surprised me how it all jelled together.

I start farther back in history than the era I’m actually going to write in, so I went back to the time when William the Conqueror invaded England and split it into several baronies…a time of great change that significantly altered England’s history, and made it easy for me to alter it yet again with the introduction of The Elven Lords. Instead of William bringing England under a unified rule, I had my seven elven lords breach the barrier between their world and ours, defeat William, and take England under their own unified rule. The elven lords made seven sovereignties (baronies) using their magic and beauty, enslaved the English people, and made the king nothing more than a puppet ruler, a prize to be won in their elven war games. And humans and the half-breed children of the elven began the Rebellion for England’s freedom.

Since I used a historical world as the basis for my new series, I researched the eighteenth century, Georgian era, so I have a basis for readers to identify with. Researching the history always gives me new ideas about how to incorporate magic into the world. I often use real historical figures, and apologize to King George, who became a pawn in my alternate world, his interests focusing on the only thing he could control: the court fashions of the era.

I gave each elven lord a scepter that reflected his individual magical strength: Black for Mor’ded who rules fire, Blue for Breden who rules sea and sky, Green for Mi’cal who rules the forests, Gold for Roden who is master of glamour and illusion, Silver for Lan’dor who masters the blade, Brown for Annanor who rules the earth, and Violet for La’laylia who enspells gems. Each realm they created is altered by their primary magic, and so with the help of a thesaurus (for quick and easy use, I use Dictionary.com), I named each realm:

Firehame: Fire.

Dewhame: Sea and Sky.

Bladehame: Metal.

Dreamhame: Glamour and Illusion.

Terrahame: Earth.

Verdanthame: Tree and plant.

Stonehame: Rock and gemstone.

I love researching fashion (as frustrating as it sometimes can be) and realized that the white wigs common in the era were a perfect foil for the white hair of the elven lords. In my world, the wigs were worn to copy the beautiful locks of the elven, with powdered stone used to imitate the silver sparkles in the elven lords’ hair.

In The Lord of Illusion, we visit the realm of Dreamhame, where my heroine, Camille, is enslaved by Elven Lord Roden. We meet Grimor’ee, Dreamhame’s golden dragon-steed. And my hero, Drystan, must set aside his books to become a warrior to rescue Camille, who may hold the key to England’s freedom.

So I started with history, changed it by adding a healthy dose of magic, infused it with romance and passion, and the world of The Elven Lords was born. If you should have any questions or comments about how some of the magic was created I’d love to hear from you!

As Always, My Magical Best,

Kathryne

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Kathryne Kennedy is a critically acclaimed, best-selling, award-winning author of magical romances. She welcomes readers to visit her website where she has ongoing contests at www.kathrynekennedy.com. She’s lived in Guam, Okinawa, and several states in the U.S., and currently lives with her wonderful family in Arizona, where she is working on the next book in her Relics of Merlin series, Everlasting Enchantment.

THE LORD OF ILLUSION BY KATHRYNE KENNEDY—IN STORES FEBRUARY 2012

Lately, some of the comments I’ve received from readers regarding one of the bad guys in Forged in Fire, my debut romantic suspense, has reminded me of an interview she did after her book All The Queen’s Men came out.

All the Queen’s Men featured black ops specialist John Medina, a secondary hero she’d introduced in Kill and Tell, a prior book.  John Medina was such a strong character in Kill and Tell, readers everywhere were clamoring for his love story and I was no exception. I couldn’t wait for John’s story. But when I finally read the book, the character that intrigued me the most wasn’t John Medina, rather it was an arms dealer named Louis Ronsard. And no, Louis wasn’t the hero of the book, far from it, he was the villain.

But Linda Howard made me care about him, she made me understand why he did the terrible things he did. She didn’t white-wash him. She didn’t back off and make him redeemable. She didn’t turn him into a hero.  He was a villain plain and simple, but he was a villain who did very bad things for a good reason. A reason most people understood, a reason most people identified with.

Everything Ronsard did was for love.

Everything he did was to protect a daughter he adored, a daughter who was dying.  To save his daughter, he was willing to do anything, sacrifice anyone. Indeed everything Ronsard did, good and bad, was driven by his love for his child.

And because we understood Ronsard’s choices, we embraced him. Linda Howard said in one of her interviews the question she got asked the most was when she was going to give Ronsard his own love story.  Apparently, the volume of fan mail Ronsard got surprised her. But she said he couldn’t be turned into a hero, because even though he’d been driven by identifiable emotions, what he’d done was inexcusable.  Unforgivable.

He wasn’t hero material, because he wasn’t redeemable, the things he’d done made him unheroic.

But I wonder. . . .

A couple of months ago I read Maya Banks’ Hidden Away, the third book in her KGI series. One of the villains in this book reminded me of Ronsard, but with one big difference. In Hidden Away, even though the villain was capable of great love and felt it toward his sister—most of his dark deeds were not done in the name of love, they were done because he was a sociopath and he was looking out for his own interests. But Maya Banks did something interesting with him; she made me hope he wasn’t the horrific monster that the book’s hero believed him to believe. I kept hoping, right up to the end, that he was an undercover agent and hadn’t really done what everyone accused him of doing. Why? Because I liked him. The love he felt for his sister, and what he’d done to strike back at the men who’d hurt her—these things resonated with me. He wasn’t your token Godless monster.

Although, in some ways it’s easier to read about a Godless monster, one who is incapable of true feeling. It’s easier, because we can’t imagine doing something similar. We can’t identify with their actions, or motivations, so they’re safe. But when it comes to villains doing horrific things because of love, well we identify with that. And if we put ourselves in their shoes, yeah—that’s when the uncomfortable questions arise. What would we do to keep our loved ones safe?

Russ, the villain in Forged in Fire, is more like Hidden Away’s villain than Ronsard. He does terrible things because the outcome benefits him. But he does have one big soft spot. He has a family he adores, a family he would do anything for.  And when this weakness is used against him, he will do anything, sacrifice anyone—including himself—to save the people he loves.

Reader response to Russ has surprised me, as much as the response to Ronsard apparently surprised Linda Howard. I’ve received dozens of emails from people saying they felt bad when he died. Or that he made them uncomfortable, because they found themselves liking him. They kept forgetting what he’d done in the past.

This is a cold-blooded killer who’d sacrificed hundreds of people to his own self-interest. Who had no qualms about killing children if their deaths benefitted him, yet people felt sorry for him.

Because he was capable of love, capable of giving his life for those he loved, readers identified with him. Some of them actually liked him.

Apparently, all it takes to turn a cold-blooded killer into a sympathetic villain is a little love.

What’s the last sympathetic villain you’ve read? Are there any villains you would have liked turned into heroes and given their own story? I have to confess, I was one of the ones who wanted to read Ronsard’s story.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Trish McCallan has been writing for as long as she can remember.

In grade school she wrote children’s stories, illustrated them with crayons and bound the sheets together with pencil-punched holes and red yarn.  She used to sell these masterpieces at her lemonade stand for a nickel a book. Surprisingly, people actually bought them. Like, all of them. Every night she’d write a new batch for her basket.

As she got older her interest shifted to boys and horses. The focus of her literary masterpieces followed this shift. Her first full length novel was written in seventh grade and featured a girl, a horse and a boy. At the end of the book the teenage heroine rode off into the sunset . . . with the horse.

These days she sticks to romantic suspense with hot alpha heroes and roller-coaster plots. Since she is a fan of all things bizarre, paranormal elements always find a way into her fiction. Her current release, Forged in Fire, was the result of a Black Dagger Brotherhood reading binge, a cold, a bottle of NyQuil and a vivid dream.

You can find Trish at www.trishmccallan.com.

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Amazon Kindle

Beth Brown doesn’t believe in premonitions until she dreams a sexy stranger is gunned down during the brutal hijacking of a commercial airliner. When events in her dream start coming true, she heads to the flight’s departure gate. To her shock, she recognizes the man she’d watched die the night before.

Lieutenant Commander Zane Winters comes from a bloodline of elite warriors with psychic abilities. When Zane and two of his platoon buddies arrive at Sea-Tac Airport, he has a vision of his teammates’ corpses. Then she arrives—a leggy blonde who sets off a different kind of alarm.

As Beth teams up with Zane, they discover the hijacking is the first step in a secret cartel’s deadly global agenda and that key personnel within the FBI are compromised. To survive the forces mobilizing against them, Beth will need to open herself to a psychic connection with the sexy SEAL who claims to be her soul mate.

FORGED IN FIRE is exclusively available through Amazon.

Click here to buy!

Read the first chapter! 

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Trish McCallan’s is letting us giveaway a digital copy of Forged in Fire to a lucky commentor. This giveaway is open worldwide and will run through the month of February until 11:59pm Feb 29, 2012.

To enter the giveaway, answer the author’s question…

What’s the last sympathetic villain you’ve read? Are there any villains you would have liked turned into heroes and given their own story?

This time around I asked Linda what made her choose to write paranormal out of all the genres out there today. Here’s her response…

Thank you The Book Faery Reviews for having me here!

I’ve been asked why I chose to write paranormal and I’d have to say that it was more that paranormal chose me.

My favorite books growing up were fairy tales and my comic books were Casper the Ghost and Wendy the Little Witch. Yes, it dates me. Hm, I wonder what they’d be worth now if I’d kept them.

We have a house ghost named Frank, so yes, paranormal is all around me. I think he’s a secret cook since utensils tend to disappear at odd times then reappear in the same spot later on. We missed a potato masher for a year until it showed up without warning.

I tend to put a magickal spin on my life. Can be scary at times, but it’s also fun. I don’t have dogs. I have hellhounds. Our parrot has some wild tendencies and even our tortoise has her own methods.

I loved reading the gothic romances back in the 70s and 80s. Some even had ghosts in the attic. But paranormal romances weren’t out there. Then ideas for several paranormals came to mind and I worked them up. When I mentioned them to my then agent I heard “you’re killing me here! I can’t sell those!” I offered to send her the ideas along with wine. :}

But let’s talk timing. My agent sent them on to my editor and the day they landed on her desk was the day she came up with a calendar of books. She said my romance set in Salem, MA was perfect for Halloween and Under His Spell was out there. Not a true paranormal but I loved the elements. Along with that was A Man for Maggie, a murder suspense involving a psychic, No Room at the Inn, which was my Christmas version of Brigadoon, Twist of Fate, what I called another type of Quantum Leap, and Bells Rings and Angel’s Wings, my spin on It’s A Wonderful Life. But readers weren’t totally ready for paranormal romances. The best thing about these books are that they’re back out there as ebooks.

Even if the books weren’t selling back then the idea of paranormal was still there in the back of my mind. There was an idea lingering that would whisper you really need to listen to me.

So I did. Witches who’d been around since the 1300s formed in living color and I knew I had to write the stories.

I talked to pagan friends, researched historical facts to add as background information, and the magickal world I already lived in had become even richer to my senses.

I have snarky bunny slippers that roam the house and harass the dogs. A gargoyle that I sometimes find in my lingerie drawers. A witch who thinks my coffee is hers. Another witch who reminds me romance is a good thing. A hexster who whispers in my ear when I feel the need to get even with someone. One who lets me know I may be short but to stand up for myself as in ‘hey, I’m supposed to be waited on next” and a healer who’s sorry her power won’t cure my cold. One who loves it when I go shopping and so on.

And this is why paranormal chose me.

What about you? What does paranormal do for you? 

- Linda

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Linda Wisdom has published more than 70 novels with 13 million copies sold worldwide including traditional, paranormal, humor, action/adventure romance, and romantic suspense. Her bestselling books have been nominated for RT Book Reviews awards and the Romance Writers of America Rita Award. She lives with her husband in Murrieta, California. For more information, please visit www.LindaWisdom.com.

A DEMON DOES IT BETTER BY LINDA WISDOM – IN STORES JANUARY 2012

A madhouse is not place for a curious witch…

After more than a century, Doctor Lili Carter, witch healer extraordinaire, has returned to San Francisco and taken a job at Crying Souls Hospital and Asylum, where something peculiar and wicked is happening. Patients are disappearing, and Lili wants to know why.

And double dangerous for a demon…

Lili finds herself undeniably attracted to perhaps the most mysterious patient of all—a demented but seriously sexy demon named Jared. What’s behind the gorgeous chameleon demon’s late-night escapades?

Before long, Lili and Jared are investigating each other—and creating a whole new kind of magic.

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (January 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402236727
• ISBN-13: 978-1402236723

BUY THE BOOK… Amazon | Barnes & Noble

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Thanks to Sourcebooks, we’re giving away TWO copies of  A DEMON DOES IT BETTER. This giveaway is open to all with a US/Canadian mailing address (No P.O Boxes) will run through the month of February until 11:59pm Feb 29, 2012.

WITHOUT HER PASSIONS, SHE HAS NO MAGIC…

It’s unfortunate for Natalie that Nigel Aquarian is so compelling. With his inner demons, his unbridled heat, and his “I will conquer you” looks, he calls to her in exactly the way that nearly killed her.

BUT LOSING CONTROL MEANS LOSING HER LIFE…

That he’s an immortal warrior and that her powers rise from intense passions would seem to make them a match made in heaven, but unless they embrace their greatest fears, they’ll play out their final match in hell.

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (January 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402241976
• ISBN-13: 978-1402241970

BUY THE BOOK… Amazon | Barnes & Noble

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Stephanie Rowe is the author of more than twenty books for adults and teens, and she is a four-time nominee for the RITA Award. Her books have been sold in Germany, Australia, and France, have been on the B&N bestseller list, and have received starred reviews from Booklist. A former attorney, Stephanie lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS..I do believe that Stephanie Rowe is now officially a kept paranormal romance author for my shelves! Third book in her Soulfire series and I’m still enjoying them and looking forward to the next. Not only is there passion but LOTS of fighting action where good fights evil even if at some points it is themselves. LOVED it! If you like a good paranormal romance read that will make you laugh, fill you with awe, and of course have you pretending to be in on the “kick-ass” scenes, then you’ll enjoy Rowe’s book Hold Me If You Can in addition to her books Kiss At Your Own Risk and Touch If You Dare in the series.  All books are great even as stand alone stories even though you’ll understand more if you read the previous books since there are references back to them. I’m VERY much looking forward to Christian’s story; assuming it’s next in the series.

I received a copy from Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review.

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HE’S EXACTLY WHAT SHE’S ALWAYS WANTED,
AND SHE UNLEASHES HIM LIKE A FORCE OF NATURE…

Lucy was once the beloved Goddess of the Moon, and she could have any man she wanted. But these days, the goddesses of the Etruscan pantheon are all but forgotten. The only rituals she enjoys now are the local hockey games, where one ferociously handsome player still inflames her divine blood…

Brandon Stevenson is one hundred percent focused on the game, until he looks up and sees a celestial beauty sitting in the third row. A man could surely fall hard for a distraction like that…

BUY THE BOOK… Amazon | Barnes & Noble

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Stephanie Julian is the author of the Magical Seduction, Lucani Lovers, Darkly Enchanted and the Forgotten Goddess series, as well as The Fringe series. A former reporter for a daily newspaper, she enjoys making up stories much more than writing about real life. She’s happily married to a Springsteen fanatic and is the mother of two sons who love her even when they don’t have any clean clothes and dinner is a bowl of cereal.

Julian’s erotic romances have a paranormal bent reviewers have called “fascinating,” “truly fantastic,” “intoxicating,” “highly imaginative” and “hot enough to peel paint.”

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…What do you get when you get a bear suppressed man and a moon goddess to lock gazes? LOTS of raw, intense, animalistic sex that will have your heart racing literally from beginning to end. Not for the prim and proper for sure. Personally I felt this book to be more about the Hockey player and his discovery of what he really is than the battle Lucy is supposed to face. I would have also liked to have seen more action of evil versus bad rather than for the most part just sexual action. We end this book with only having been through a minor fight with a demon in the bedroom for a brief moment and then a semi-major fight in the end when to rescue her son. Not enough to really in my opinion. Do I still recommend this book? Sure, to someone who enjoys LOTS and LOTS of sex mixed with some paranormal shift shaping and a little fighting.

I received a Netgalley copy from Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review.

Today we have romance author Patricia Rice with us here at The Book Faery Reviews. She’s promoting her 49th novel, The Lure of Song and Magic which is a continuation of her Magic series. If you read all the way through to the end, you’ll find out details on how to win a copy for yourself from me.

So let’s get to the interview as I’m sure you’ll find her as much of a delight as I did.

The Book Faery Reviews: Hi Pat! Thank you for stopping by The Book Faery Reviews!

Now let’s pretend we’re in a NC coffee shop and someone out of the blue interrupts my coffee break with you (of course inside my head I’m jealous someone’s taking up my time with you…haha) asks you what you did for a living. After you mention you are an author who’ve they’ve never heard of, he asks what you write about and what you recently wrote about. How would you describe The Lure of Song and Magic to someone who’s never heard of your magic series or any of your previous novels?

Patricia Rice: Thank you so much for inviting me to visit! You have a very impressive website.

Lifting my “I’m not cynical, I’m just experienced” coffee mug and admiring the ambiance…  If that’s a “he” who is rudely interrupting us, I’ll simply tell him I write romance, and he’ll wander off and not bother us again unless he’s selling something!  But for someone genuinely interested in the romance genre—I’d tell them The Lure of Song and Magic is a contemporary romance with a hint of mystical magic from a siren’s seductive, and sometimes destructive, song.

TBFR: Without giving away too much, what was your favorite scene from the book?

PR: For angry gut punch—an early scene where Oz knocks aside all Pippa’s defenses, and she comes up fighting and nearly takes him out. For humor, when Pippa sets loose all the town’s wannabe TV stars, catching Oz in the midst of a three-ring circus of dancing grannies, lassoes, and singing cowboys.

TBFR: Last year I read Merely Magic and enjoyed it. Felt there was a nice even balance between the magic, romance, and history. Not too much of one element over the other. I hope to get a copy of book 2 and 3 of the historical Magic series to read more about the Malcolms and the Ives. The Lure of Song and Magic is the contemporary continuation of the series. Which era did you prefer writing in for the Malcolms and Ives? The historical or the contemporary? The concentrated details within the story are obviously going to be very different, but I wonder if it is harder to write within a time you didn’t exist in and experience or is it easier to pretend you were there in the past while you wrote? I will say that when I read Merely Magic, I felt as if I was actually there in that time with those people and the families in the woods. It was fabulous. I’d probably have to be in character for some time to be able to write something from the past so others could feel the realism of the time.

PR:  Thank you! That’s the finest compliment an author can receive. I’ve been writing historicals for years, and there’s just something very familiar to Georgian England so that I feel right at home. Of course, I’m not, and I had to do considerable research on many details. But the same can be said of contemporary California. While I’m familiar with the area I’m writing about, the details had to be researched and portrayed in such a way that a reader anywhere can understand the world I’ve created. That goes doubly so when dealing with the supernatural—the world has to be rock solid so the reader can believe the impossible.

The beauty of writing, though, is that an author can write and revise scenes long after the first draft is complete. That’s when those truly delicious tidbits materialize.

TBFR: I read you were a former CPA. Actually, my day job has me in the marketing department of an old non-profit organization for CPAs and I have to say that I’m surprised with all that creativity. Doesn’t exactly fit the CPA “profile” and I’m sure I’m not the first to say so. What made you change careers that are practically opposites? You sound like you’ve learned how to tap both sides of the brain well at the same time. What’s your secret?

PR: I’ve always been able to work from both sides of my brain. Had I been rich enough, I would have also earned a degree in psychology because I’m fascinated with how the brain works. (I test highest in aptitude for science!) I’ve always written stories and always kept accounting records—tracking where my meager pennies went in grade school. As time went on, it was far easier to find bookkeeping jobs than make money at writing. But I sold my first book the same week I started my first accounting job. Hard work is the only “secret” I know.

TBFR: There are some people that are in the closet when it comes to reading and writing romance novels. Myself, I’m a huge fan and definitely loud about it (just ask the people who interviewed me! haha). My friend who shares the love is quite the opposite when it comes to public display. She won’t let people see a romance cover if she’s reading one and she’d definitely never mention it if she was asked what her current read was. Makes me cringe when she tears the beautiful covers off if she’s commuting with her book and told her that she should just get an eReader if she didn’t want people to see what she was really reading. She thinks people look at reading romance novels as silly reading and it’s nothing but porn for women. (Personally, I get more out of them than a cheap tease but that’s just me. I can usually find SOMETHING else beyond just steamy scenes even though they’re definitely fun to read.) Do you think the rise in eReader sales will increase the sale of romance novels in e-format for that same reason my friend had? And when you decided you wanted to write romance novels, were you open and loud about it or where you in the closet and trying to keep it quiet until you knew you were loved by many fans?

PR: I respect every reader’s choice of reading material and how they choose to talk about it. I think it’s much more fun to openly and honestly discuss the books I’m reading. That’s how I learn about new authors. I had to tell my Southern Baptist deacon bosses what I wrote because I didn’t want them caught off guard. After that, everyone was curious and I’ve probably introduced a lot of new readers to the genre. But readers who don’t wish to tell everyone that they’re sentimental or enjoy reading about people falling in love or who maybe think they ought to be reading more intellectual material are entitled to their fears or beliefs. I don’t know how many people in this day and age of profanity and violence on TV still believe love is something to hide, but e-readers are perfect for those who do. And just to be clear—I think violence is way beyond more harmful than sex. We don’t hear about people dying from making love, do we?

TBFR: As a published author, are you involved in any of the marketing and promotions of your books? And if so, what method of marketing and promoting would you say to be the most effective in helping you sell your books?

PR: I may have many interests and abilities, but marketing is not one of them. I keep wishing for a marketing godmother to wave her magic wand. Instead, I let my publisher’s more experienced publicist do her thing, and I hire people to do bookmarks and websites and all those things. That still leaves me to write the blogs and do the social media, but I treat those like the old book tours, a way to talk with my readers. So, please, stop by and talk books because I’m truly lousy at promoting them! As for what works best—word of mouth, always.

TBFR: Other than the marketing and promoting of books, any advice when it comes to the writing process that you wish you had known when you first started writing?

PR: I wish I’d known that writing wasn’t a job where if I worked hard enough, I’d be promoted. Or a cozy little career where I could sit in my room and scribble all day. There are days when I think running a restaurant might be easier, except I can wear slippers while I work.

TBFR: Growing up in your tween-teen years, who was your favorite author and/or book series?

PR: I read as eclectically then as now. I loved the Betty Cavanna teen romances, Agatha Christie, Jane Austen, Ray Bradbury…

TBFR: Good authors that I too read growing up! And last but not least, what’s one question you’ve been dying to answer but have never been asked before?

PR: Where do you get those fabulous slippers? Thank you, I knit them myself.

I’d rather ask readers…Do you use Facebook to follow authors? I recently crashed mine and had to start all over (http://www.facebook.com/OfficialPatriciaRice) and I’m wondering if it’s worth the effort.

TBFR: Well, thank you again for visiting us here at The Book Faery Reviews. Hope to have you back again in the future. Happy writing to you!

PR: It’s been a pleasure and hope to visit again soon!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…With five million books in print and New York Times and USA Today’s bestseller lists under her belt, Patricia Rice’s emotionally-charged contemporary and historical romances have won RT Book Reviews Reviewers Choice and Career Achievement Awards and have been honored as Romance Writers of America RITA finalists in the historical, regency and contemporary categories. A former CPA, Patricia Rice currently resides in St. Louis, Missouri. For more information, please visit http://www.patriciarice.com/ or follow her on Twitter, @Patricia_Rice.

 

THE LURE OF SONG AND MAGIC BY PATRICIA RICE
IN STORES JANUARY 2012 

Her voice was a curse… 

When Dylan “Oz” Oswin’s son is kidnapped, the high-powered producer will do anything to get him back. Desperately following an anonymous tip, he seeks help from a former child singing sensation called Syrene, only to find she’s vowed never to sing again. Immune to her voice but not her charm, Oz is convinced she holds the key to his son’s disappearance—and he’ll stop at nothing to make her break her vow.

Only he can make her sing…
She knows the devastation her talent can bring. There’s more than a child’s life at stake, but Syrene cannot unleash her dangerous siren’s voice upon the world, even for a man who is impossible to deny…

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (January 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402255748
• ISBN-13: 978-1402255748

BUY THE BOOK… Amazon | Barnes & Noble

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Thanks to Sourcebooks, we’re giving away TWO copies of The Lure of Song and Magic by Patricia Rice to a randomly selected commenter of this post. This giveaway will run now through 11:59pm Friday, February 3rd and is open to those with US/Canadian mailing addresses (no PO Boxes).

Three HQN Authors Talk About The Art of the First Kiss 

While Harlequin is known primarily for romance, they also offer hotter fare. Today, authors Stephanie Draven, Laura Kaye and Leia Rice are here to talk a little bit about kisses and duel for the hottest. You decide!

The Fever and The Fury…“You do want to go to bed with me, don’t you, Phaedra?”

“Yes.” It was just the one tremulous word, but it was all the permission he needed. He drew her palm to his mouth. Her hand was damp, her pulse leaping beneath his lips. She was so eager. So wanting. Still, she resisted him. “Luke, you know I can’t consent to it. I can’t give you pleasure.”

“Then stop me from taking it,” he said, dragging his teeth up the pale underside of her arm, kissing the soft spot inside her elbow. She seemed entirely undone by this tenderness: she succumbed to it with a helplessness he’d never seen in any woman. It was unfair, some part of him thought. He was taking advantage of her innocence and inexperience. Someone should stop him, because he couldn’t seem to stop himself.

“Luke,” she whispered in warning.

“Stop me,” he said, his lips working up her shoulder and fastening at the pulse just behind her ear, the silk of her dark hair tickling his nose.

When her mouth fell open to speak, his thumb traced her lips and he was rewarded with another moan. His muscles tightened, every part of him straining with the thrill of torturing her for a change and in such a delicious way. “Stop me from kissing you, Phaedra. If you can.”

Stop him, she thought. Stop him!

But as his mouth inched its way along her jawline and found her lips, his honeyed kiss filled her mouth with sweetness. If her existence depended on it—and it may have—she couldn’t have stopped him. Instead, her lips parted and she offered no resistance to the tongue that touched her own.

The intimacy of being kissed by Luke was a revelation. The unanticipated joy of it rocked her to the soles of her feet. How was it that mortals could experience this and ever want to do anything else? She didn’t return his kiss, but let him plunder her mouth. And she wished that he would go on doing it forever.

The Revolutionary Mistress…Pulling the sleeve of her dress down, Rene leaned over and gently kissed the slope of her shoulder.  He kissed the curve of her neck, the line of her jaw, and finally, his lips were on hers.  He parted Mariette’s mouth with his tongue, probing it inside and around her own.  Almost instantly, the kiss went from something soft and gentle, to something ravenous and hungry.

Mariette moaned inside of the kiss.  She moaned at the touch of his fingers over her corset, which he also pushed down so that her breast popped free of its confines, skin meeting with the chilly air.  Her nipple immediately tightened, hardening into a sensitive nub that Rene began to roll between his thick fingers.

“Now what do you want from me?” He asked after breaking the heated kiss. 

In the Service of the King…Shayla’s mind erupted into a cacophony of joyous confusion. She’d been specifically told there would be no kissing. The king did not kiss. But, holy hell! Did the king ever kiss.

His large frame bent down over her, surrounding her in his heat. His full lips sucked and pulled at hers and his tongue demanded entrance and exploration, which she freely granted. His hard muscles bunched and thrummed around her, setting her body on fire everywhere they touched. The scent of powerful masculinity filled her nose, and the exquisite flavor of his tongue in her mouth intoxicated her. And, oh God, every time she felt the passing hardness of his fangs as they kissed made her whimper and moan. Her body readied itself immediately for his, moistening, opening.

Having shielded herself from physical relationships, she was astounded to learn her body had the ability to produce this crazy, urgent euphoria. Her brain scrambled to process each new, maddening sensation. In that moment, she would’ve done anything to maintain the feeling. Was it always like this?

Kael growled low in his chest as his mouth came at her again and again, and Shayla felt the vibration of the feral sound against her breasts. She squeezed her thighs together, seeking friction to satisfy even a little of her now uncontrollable lust. Her mouth was so filled with his probing tongue it was difficult to get enough oxygen, but his kisses convinced her she could live without it as long as he continued to devour her so intensely.

Never had she imagined the expression of physical love could make her feel so wanted, so needed.

His obvious pleasure throbbed against her stomach and flooded her with unbelievable feelings of power, and just a little fear. Because they were off the grid now, outside the bounds of the rules and expectations she’d been taught during her training. And she was thrilled it might mean he was as affected by her as she was by him. Wherever the king was leading them, she was only too happy to follow. In truth, she felt powerless to do otherwise.

Sooooo, what say you? Which kiss was the hottest?

About the Authors…Stephanie Draven is a multi-published award-nominated author of myth-inspired paranormal romance. Writing for HQN Nocturne, Stephanie’s Mythica series asks the question: What if the monsters of ancient mythology still walked the earth…and what if you found out that you were one of them? Currently a denizen of Baltimore, that city of ravens and purple night skies, Stephanie lives there with her favorite nocturnal creatures–three scheming cats and a deliciously wicked husband. And when she is not busy with dark domestic rituals, she writes her books.

Buy Stephanie’s Books

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Laura Kaye Voted Breakout Author of the Year in the 2011 GraveTells Readers’ Choice Awards, Laura is the bestselling and award-winning author of a half-dozen books. Hearts in Darkness is a finalist for the EPIC eBook Award for Best Novella, Forever Freed won the NJRW Golden Leaf Award for Best Paranormal of 2011, and North of Need, the first book in the Hearts of the Anemoi series, was named Grave Tells’ Best Book of 2011 and won their 5-STAR Gold Heart Award, and won Sizzling Hot Read of the Year at Sizzling Hot Books. Laura lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and cute-but-bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day.

Buy Laura‘s Books

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Leia Rice is an avid lover of everything Parisian, Ancient Grecian and Ancient Roman. She wishes that women would still wear the pretty dresses and petticoats that they did back in the 18th century, but she’s well aware how much of a pain they must have been. Leia writes historical fiction, romance and erotica in these  areas, because she cannot get enough of each respective time period.

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Eva Ward returns to the only place she truly belongs, the old house on the Cornish coast, seeking happiness in memories of childhood summers. There she finds mysterious voices and hidden pathways that sweep her not only into the past, but also into the arms of a man who is not of her time.

But Eva must confront her own ghosts, as well as those of long ago. As she begins to question her place in the present, she comes to realize that she too must decide where she really belongs.

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark (October 4, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402258585
• ISBN-13: 978-1402258589

BUY THE BOOK…

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Susanna Kearsley’s writing has been compared to Mary Stewart, Daphne du Maurier, and Diana Gabaldon. Her books have been translated into several languages, selected for the Mystery Guild, condensed for Reader’s Digest, and optioned for film. She lives in Canada, near the shores of Lake Ontario.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Fascinating time-travel book with elements of love, a “magical feeling”, and a twist. The way in which the room or clothes would just change to go from the past to the present was neat. There were times I wondered where I’d end up if that were to ever happen to me and would I stay. A book I’d definitely re-read again because I’m sure there’d be something new I may have missed. Kearsley did a great job telling the story and I look forward to picking up another by her. For those who like time-travel, history, and romance, this is a book you should find.

My Book Rating:

I received a copy for review from Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review.

But she can see that deep down, he’s just a man…
Sterling and Rebecca’s teenage romance was interrupted, but years later the heat between them flares back to life. Even though it endangers everything they’re fighting for, it’s impossible to resist picking up right where they left off . . .

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca; Original edition (November 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402251599
• ISBN-13: 978-1402251597

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Award-winning author Lisa Renee Jones has published more than fifteen novels in several different languages, spanning multiple genres of romance–contemporary, romantic suspense, dark paranormal, and erotic fiction. Her heroes are dark, dangerous, and sexy, her romances emotional and steamy. She lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…If Lisa Renee Jones’ Zodius series gets better with each book, you better believe I’ll continue reading it. Dorian, the spawn of Caleb’s twin, Adam, is just freakin’ CREEPY yet I still can’t help but be a tad intrigued by his Papa. When I thought I liked the dark Michael the best from the 1st in the series (The Legend of Michael) after reading it, you can bet I was surprised I liked Sterling even more. He’s one fine hunk of a geek who gets your adrenaline pumping with that impulsiveness! YUMMY combination! Rebecca was also an enjoyable female heroin to read as she was both beautiful and smart. The two could make anything explode from that heat of passion they possessed when together! I definitely look forward to reading The Danger That Is Damion and later the fearless and good leader Caleb.

My Book Rating:

I received a copy of this book from Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review.

I  never realized I was a humorous author until just a few years ago when I wrote several parodies in a writing contest I participated in. I figured it would just be silly and give people a break from the same ole, same ole. When people started commenting on how hard they laughed, I soon discovered I had a humorous bone.

I totally wrote  Demons Prefer Blondes, the first book in the Demons Unleashed series as therapeutic relief. I’d recently lost my grandmother, and an uncle shortly after. I needed something to keep my spirits up. I decided the best way was to write something funny. I decided the more over-the-top and off-the-wall, the better. I never planned on  actually getting this published. I didn’t think anyone would get my sense of humor. How wrong I was!

Demons Like It Hot, continues with that off-the-wall humor. One of my favorite scenes depicts this. It’s where Serah discovers her cat is really a scotch swilling, Cuban cigar smoking imp:

She closed her eyes again and took in the first breath of air. Hah! Nothing funny yet. She exhaled and took two more breaths. Still nothing. Three down, two to go. She took breath four and still felt as normal as she had before she held the stone. No biting cold swirls nipping at her nose. She sucked in as much air as her lungs could hold and blew it out in a slow breath out her nose.

“There’s no place like home.” All that was missing were the ruby slippers.

Still nothing. If she had transported herself clear across town, she would have felt something. A pinch? Wind through her hair? A TSA agent giving her a much-too-thorough pat down?

Slowly and deliberately, she opened her eyes—and wished she kept them closed.

“Wha’ the hell?” the high-pitched screech pierced her eardrums. “Where did ye come frae?”

There sat Mr. Whiskers on her black Italian leather sofa with a tub of popcorn between his cute kitty legs. One paw held a cigar, smoke wafting from it, and the other held a lowball glass of Scotch. Serah just shook her head. She should have known the cat wasn’t normal.

Interesting mix, though.

Even more interesting location.

“No smoking in my house!” She grabbed at the cigar in Mr. Whiskers’s paw. “Cuban cigars? How the hell did you get these? They’re illegal.” She put her hands on her hips. “You can talk? What in the hell are you? The Cheshire Cat?”

“Guess the moggie is oot o’ the bag. Ah was sent tae tak’ over the chimp’s job.” Mr. Whiskers pinched his cigar out. “Ah’m sorry. Ah thought ye’d be gone fer a while. The packages hae been delivered. Kalli just left.” He shooed his paw at her. “Now move. Yer blockin’ ma view. Mel Gibson is gettin’ ready tae moon the Sassenach dogs.”

A cat with attitude. Who would’ve known. Then again, he was Scottish.

“Aren’t you a little shocked that I am standing here?”

Mr. Whiskers arched a whiskered brow. “Only fer a second. Ah kent ye had it in ye. Ah’m jist a wee pisht ye did it in front o’ the tellie.” He pushed a button on the remote that sat next to him and paused the movie. With a high-pitched sigh, he flicked his now-unlit cigar.

“At least you have better tastes in movies than my last imp, even if they’re a tad historically inaccurate.”

“At “At least they got most o’ the accents right.” He swirled his scotch and took a sip. “Ah love guid Scottish whisky. It’s the water o’ life, ye ken?”

“I’m more of a Cabernet kind of girl.”

“Wine is weak.”

“Whatever, Whiskers.” She plopped into the sofa next to the demon cat and grabbed a handful of popcorn. “What’s your real name?”

“Farquhar MacTavish, at yer service.”

Before I wrote the first book in the Demons Unleashed Series, I was working on a regency  historical. Even  though it was a historical romance, it did have its moments of humor, although more subtle. Unless your name is Mel Brooks, the off the wall stuff obviously doesn’t translate well with historical works. History of the World: Part I Anyone?

Even a dark and brooding tale should have some humorous moments. One of my favorite TV Shows, Supernatural, comes to mind. Despite the fact that Dean and Sam are constantly battling dark and evil demons and monsters, it has its laugh out loud moments. Dean’s sarcastic banter adds to those moments.

Matter of fact, if there’s no humor in a story, I don’t find it that believable. Humor is everywhere. There’s no way to escape it.  People need to laugh, even in their darkest moments.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Sidney Ayers writes light paranormal and erotic romance. Her manuscripts have won or placed in the MORWA Gateway to the Best, the Valley of the Sun Hot Prospects, the Passionate Ink Stroke of Midnight, the Heart of Denver Molly, and Finally a Bride contests. She lives in Comstock Park, Michigan.

Feel free to connect with Sidney at these fine sites:

A RECIPE FOR DISASTER…

Matthias Ambrose is a demon mercenary who never took sides, until his attraction to the spunky caterer he was hired to kidnap leads him to almost botch a job for the first time in eight hundred years. Now he must protect her from his former clients, but even an ice—cold demon like Matthias struggles to resist her fiery charms.

OR THE PERFECT INGREDIENTS FOR PASSION…

Completely engrossed with planning menus and prepping recipes for her shot at cooking show fame, star caterer Serah SanGermano refuses to believe she’s on a fast track to Hades. But how is she supposed to stick to the kitchen if she can’t stand the heat of her gorgeous demonic bodyguard? As a wicked plot to destroy humanity unfolds and all hell breaks loose in Serah’s kitchen, she and Matthias find themselves knee—deep in demons and up to their eyeballs in love…

• ISBN-13: 9781402251771
• Publisher: Sourcebooks, Incorporated
• Publication date: 12/6/2011
• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Pages: 448

Well, as it turns out, scores of people would write about angels, and they’d beat me to the punch. So many, in fact, that literary agents around the Twitterverse would start moaning about how sick they were of angels. “No more!” they insisted. “It’s overdone! Enough with the angels!”

But by then, I had a trilogy full of angels under my belt, and embedded deeply in my heart. No way was I giving up on them.

I knew my angels were a little bit different. They lived in a celestial St. Petersburg of an earlier age, and there were no religious elements in my Heaven—no God or Devil, only the angelic Host of the nobility and the peasants they called Fallen. And fall they did, but it was where they fell that really grabbed hold of me. If Heaven was like St. Petersburg, I reasoned, then that was where they’d wind up in the world of Man.

Thus began an obsession with Russia that would lead me to teach myself the Cyrillic alphabet and the basics of the language, and would lead me all the way to St. Petersburg itself, and beyond, to the ancient kremlin of Novgorod.

The rest of my journey was only in my head, but my virtual travels would take me across Russia from the Far East on the Trans-Siberian Railway, and yet farther north to the White Sea port of Arkhangel’sk (which had gotten the idea of Russian angels stuck in my head in the first place). Eventually, my fallen angels would lead me into the icebound Beloe More itself to the islands of Solovki, of which Solzhenitsyn wrote in The Gulag Archipelago, “It was a place with no connection to the rest of the world for half a year. A scream from here would never be heard.”

The island fortress and monastery once used as one of the Soviet Union’s most infamous gulags is just 150 kilometers from the Arctic Circle. You can’t get much farther north than that…except, as one of my characters puts it, “the euphemistic North” of the Seven Heavens, where it all began.

So there I was, four years later, with 300,000 words’ worth of Russian fallen angels and a querying landscape that was apparently lousy with their Western kin. Luckily, I found an agent who loved them anyway. And today, my little demons have finally been officially loosed upon the world.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on angels, fallen and otherwise. Had enough of them? Or can’t get enough?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Jane Kindred began writing romantic fantasy at the age of 12 in the wayback of a Plymouth Fury—which, as far as she recalls, never killed anyone…who didn’t have it coming. She spent her formative years ruining her eyes reading romance novels in the Tucson sun and watching Star Trek marathons in the dark. She now writes to the sound of San Francisco foghorns while two cats slowly but surely edge her off the side of the bed. Jane is the author of The Devil’s Garden (Carina Press/June 2011) and The Fallen Queen (Entangled Publishing/December 2011), Book One of The House of Arkhangel’sk trilogy.

You can find Jane on Twitter: @JaneKindred

on Facebook: www.facebook.com/somewherebetweenheavenandhell

or on her website: www.janekindred.com

Heaven can go to hell.

Until her cousin slaughtered the supernal family, Anazakia’s father ruled the Heavens, governing noble Host and Fallen peasants alike. Now Anazakia is the last grand duchess of the House of Arkhangel’sk, and all she wants is to stay alive.

Hunted by Seraph assassins, Anazakia flees Heaven with two Fallen thieves—fire demon Vasily and air demon Belphagor, each with their own nefarious agenda—who hide her in the world of Man. The line between vice and virtue soon blurs, and when Belphagor is imprisoned, the unexpected passion of Vasily warms her through the Russian winter.

Heaven seems a distant dream, but when Anazakia learns the truth behind the celestial coup, she will have to return to fight for the throne—even if it means saving the man who murdered everyone she loved.

• Title: The Fallen Queen
• Author: Jane Kindred
• Genre: Fantasy with Romantic Elements
• Length: 314 pages
• Launch Date: December 2011
• ePub ISBN: 978-1-937044-52-7
• Print ISBN: 978-1-937044-53-4

 

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Thanks to the author, Jane is letting us give away 1 copy of The Fallen Queen to a randomly selected commenter on this post. This giveaway will run now through Friday 11:59pm December 16th. This is open WORLDWIDE. Printed copy can be mailed to US/Canadian addresses or E-copy if you’re international.

To ENTER giveaway leave a comment for Jane. EASY!

Of course we always love it when you…

I can hear the moans and groans now.  “I’ve already tried, but…” and the list of reasons why to a avoid a critique group grows by the minute.

“…it was too big”

“…the people were strange”

“…they didn’t get my writing style”

“…I don’t have time”

“…meet new people? Really?”

and so on.

Don’t leave!  Let me tell you how I finally, after three years of critique group shopping, found my home with the 7 Evil Dwarves.  Yes, that’s our name and we’re quite proud of it, thank you!

Writing has been part of who I am for…forever.  So in college I thought being the anti-social, reclusive hermit was a pre-requisite for every aspiring writer. I wouldn’t share what I wrote unless I was submitting to publishers. I know, if I could, I’d go back and smack myself for that alone.

Somehow as I was finishing up my first college tour, I managed to come out of my cave long enough to marry my best friend.  A few years passed, writing took a bit of a backseat as I finished an advanced tour of college, (yes, professional student did get mentioned once or twice). Writing got pushed back even further when my little family of two, went to three and eighteen months later, to four.

As you can see, insanity was bound to set in and when it finally began popping up in various forms, I knew it was time to turn back to my own self-therapy—writing.

My first problem was nerves.  I could write. That part was easy.  You could do it hiding in a closet, under a blanket with a flashlight so the little rug crawlers couldn’t find you.  You could jot a few lines in-between real work and family-raising time. Writing is a solo adventure, right? Wrong.

My very loving and patient hubby finally dragged me out of the house, pushed me out of the moving car and said, “Go spend some time with this Mother’s Writing group.”  He didn’t even wait for my response, as if it could’ve been heard over the squealing tires disappearing in a cloud of dust.

I stumbled to my feet and cautiously made my way into my very first writing group.  They were great—woman from various walks of life, writing in a variety of genres.  This first group, they were the ones that enabled me to realize how valuable a support group (aka critique group) is to a writer.

Feeling bolder, I waved good-bye to that group and began a long journey on my search for “my” critique group.  Considering I write Urban Fantasy with paranormal elements and some romance, it was a rock road.

The first group was large, twenty people at a minimum, and every genre under the sun was represented.  It was heartbreaking to hear how someone thought my work was “too dark and depressing”, or another just “couldn’t understand why would anyone believe magic could exist in the real world”. I almost gave up, but do you know what I found?

The core of the 7 Evil Dwarves.  I met others who wrote Speculative Fiction, a term I hadn’t heard used before.  Soon four or five of us decided a smaller group would be more productive.  Plus, wouldn’t it help if everyone knew what Spec Fic was?

Our group has undergone a great many changes.  Anything important always does.  It has taken us almost five years to have a solid, steady group.  We’ve had some great members stop and share their creations with us and then move on.  And yes, we’ve had a few entertaining guest, which I’m under threat of death by zombies if I reveal, so I’ll leave it to your imagination. You’ll probably come up with more exciting scenarios anyway!

There are times I’m scared to death to set my stuff before my group.  The whispers of my very loving and supportive critique group twist through my mind when I’m writing. It helps if I’m a few (or more) chapters ahead of where they’re critiquing, but when they are right behind me—I  find myself over analyzing every word I type. I become hyperaware of small edit type things instead of getting the basic story out on paper.

See the Evil 7 are damn good. They catch everything! From how many times I use “ing” to how much I truly suck at math anything (do you know what a polyhedron is? I don’t!). They’re even great therapists. I mean how many of your friends will take the time to discuss the nature of relationships between dragons and warlocks, or how manipulative a ghost can be with three young friends? Uh-huh, I thought so.

See here’s the thing, as I struggle to build my world into a cohesive reality, bring my characters to life, and figure out the twists and turns of my plots, I know there’s this great group who has my back. The Evil 7 may make me want to scream when they point out how much my new character is channeling my first one, or question the depth of trust between characters who’ve been to hell and back, but you know what? Even though the holes they point out scare me, I ever so grateful because when it’s all done and I click save for the last time, I’m going to have a story that’s stronger than what I started with. That’s why I love my critique group, even when they scare me.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Growing up on the Arizona-Mexico border, Jami Gray was adopted at the age of 14 and suddenly became the fifth eldest of 37 children. She graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor’s in Journalism and three minors-History, English, and Theater.  Shortly after marrying her techie-geek hubby (who moonlighted as her best friend in high school) she completed a Masters in Organizational Management from University of Phoenix Oregon.

Now, years later, she’s back in the Southwest where  she’s outnumbered in her own home by two Star Wars obsessed boys, one Star Wars obsessed husband, and an overly-friendly, 105-pound male lab.  Writing is what saves her sanity.

FIND THE AUTHOR… Website | Blog 1 | Blog 2 | Facebook | Twitter

It takes a monster to hunt one, and for Raine McCord, forged in the maelstrom of magic and science, she’s the one for the job. In a world where the supernatural live in a shadowy existence with the mundane, a series of disappearances and deaths threatens the secrecy of her kind and indicates someone knows the monsters are alive and kicking.  Partnering up with the sexy and tantalizing Gavin Durand proves to be a challenge as dangerous as the prey she hunts.

When the trail points back to the foundation which warped Raine’s magic as a child, her torturous past raises its ugly head.  Gavin and Raine sift through a maze of lies, murder and betrayal to discover not only each other, but the emerging threat to them and the entire magical community.

BUY THE BOOK… Black Opal Books | Amazon | Barnes & Noble |Smashwords

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Thanks to Jami, we’re giving away an e-copy of Shadow’s Edge. This giveaway runs now through December 16th. Winners will be randomly selected and winners are ONLY notified via the e-newsletter (see sidebar), as a reply to their comment, and The Book Faery Reviews Facebook page (you can “like” us in the sidebar).

To everyone struggling with the loss of a loved one.
May you find your Owen when your heart is ready.
~The Dedication of North of Need

Normally, when a story idea first comes to me, it comes in the form of the hero. Most of the time, it’s the hero who tells me what the story is, who helps me visualize it, and gives me all the foundation blocks I need on which to build a story. With North of Need, that wasn’t the case. This time, it was the heroine, Megan Snow, whose story started talking to me first. I knew from the beginning she was a grieving widow hiding out from the world and trying to avoid the anniversary of her husband’s death.

The hero was less defined to me at first. I thought he was just a snowman come to life. Totally fun, right? Plus, I am ga-ga crazy over snowmen. They’re just cute and happy and how can you not feel good about a snowman. Except hero Owen Winters wasn’t going for it. He pretty quickly informed me he was a snow god who just manifested through the snowman Megan builds, and this information set me off on an entire afternoon’s worth of research into the winter traditions of various cultures, of which it turns out there are many! But when I found the mythology of the Anemoi, wind gods the Greeks associated with the seasons, I knew I’d found not only my hero’s backstory, but a whole world for the story.

And, truly, Owen was the perfect hero for Megan. Not just because he is gorgeous (freaking gorgeous, she says!), playful, easy to please, passionate, and devoted—all of which he is, but also because, as either just a snowman or as a snow god with certain weather-related vulnerabilities, he is the perfect allegory for her greatest fears.

An allegory is an extended metaphor, when one thing truly represents another. A famous allegory would be the grim reaper, which we all understand is a symbolic representation of death. I have to admit, I didn’t plan the story with this kind of forethought—I didn’t set out to write an allegory. As a complete seat-of-the-pantser, I don’t plot out my stories enough to know what I write at the beginning will come to mean at the end (though I’m always totally stunned at how my subconscious brain works such that things always take on meaning I didn’t realize!). Nonetheless, Owen is the perfect allegory for Megan’s fears of loss and abandonment. John went out one night and never returned, why shouldn’t the same be true for Owen? Especially once she learns that, like all good heroes (and all Greek gods), Owen has his own version of Achilles’ vulnerable heel. Plus, snow by definition is transitory, unlasting, again representing her worst fears about taking a chance on love. Finally, the very season—winter—is often used as a metaphor for death, making the season/setting itself almost a character within the story.

One of the things I’ve learned about myself as a writer is that I tend to come back to similar themes in my books. Three of the four books I’ve released this year have a main character grappling with loss. Again, I didn’t really set out to explore issues of loss and grief and survival. But if books reflect aspects of a writer’s inner life, this theme would make sense for me. I went through a period between 2004 and 2008 where I experienced a lot of loss—a close friend committed suicide, my mother died unexpectedly of a stroke, my only remaining grandmother and an uncle died, I had a miscarriage. It was a lot in a relatively short period. In 2008, I started writing fiction. There was no direct connection in my mind, but writing turned into an outlet, an escape, an incredible source of positivity and hopefulness.

In a way, writing was my Owen, and I found it when I most needed it.

So that’s some of the why behind North of Need. I hope you’ll give it a try! Now, I really debated over that dedication to the book up top, so I can’t help but wonder if you have a reaction to it!

Thanks for reading,

Laura Kaye

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…A multi-published author of paranormal, contemporary and erotic romance, Laura Kaye’s hot, heartfelt stories are all about the universal desire for a place to belong. Laura is the author of the bestselling contemporary romance and award-nominated HEARTS IN DARKNESS and the bestselling and award-winning paranormal romance FOREVER FREED (NJRW Golden Leaf Award for Best Paranormal of 2011), as well as an erotic romance novella, JUST GOTTA SAY. Her fourth book, contemporary fantasy romance NORTH OF NEED, is the first in the 4-book Hearts of the Anemoi series. Laura lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and cute-but-bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day.

Buy Laura’s Books

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Her tears called a powerful snow god to life, but only her love can grant the humanity he craves…

Desperate to escape agonizing memories of Christmas past, twenty-nine-year-old widow Megan Snow builds a snow family outside the mountain cabin she once shared with her husband, realizing too late that she’s recreated the very thing she’ll never have.

Called to life by Megan’s tears, snow god Owen Winters appears unconscious on her doorstep in the midst of a raging blizzard. As she nurses him to health, Owen finds unexpected solace in her company and unimagined pleasure in the warmth of her body, and vows to win her heart for a chance at humanity.

Megan is drawn to Owen’s mismatched eyes, otherworldly masculinity, and enthusiasm for the littlest things. But this Christmas miracle comes with an expiration–before the snow melts and the temperature rises, Megan must let go of her widow’s grief and learn to trust love again, or she’ll lose Owen forever.

• Paperback: 234 pages
• Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC (November 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1937044475
• ISBN-13: 978-1937044473

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Welcome back to Laura! It’s always a delight to have an author come back and Laura’s just a fabulous one to work with and chat to. Know to my dear readers, Laura is letting us give away 2 prizes to 2 lucky readers. This giveaway runs now through December 16th so you have time to read this tale of love before Christmas. Winners will be randomly selected and winners are ONLY notified via the e-newsletter (see sidebar), as a reply to their comment, and The Book Faery Reviews Facebook page (you can “like” us in the sidebar).

Prize 1: e-copy of North of Need

Prize 2:  Full set of Trading cards of all of Laura Kaye’s books.

To enter…all you have to do is leave Laura a comment. 

Additional entries of course can be received by…

• 1 Extra Entry – Subscribe to my RSS feed
• 1 Extra Entry – Subscribe by email (see sidebar)
• 1 Extra Entry – Follow me on Twitter (http://twitter.com/farrah1230)
• 1 Extra Entry – Tweet this giveaway and don’t forget to include @farrah1230 #tbfr so I can  find it
• 2 Extra Entries – Write a post on your blog or Facebook linking to my blog; leave URL in comment.

I received a copy of the book for my honest review. No money was given for this review. All opinions above are mine and not influenced in any way.