Yesterday, was exciting. My daughter showed up at our door with all her kids, soaked to the skin because she’d walked with them from across the road in a deluge.  The alarm for gas went off in her house. We dumped the kids, then went back across the road to see what we could do. We live in the country and 911 doesn’t respond to gas leaks here. I got, “Call the gas company.” We called the gas company and their lone emergency service guy said he was on his way (took him 45 minutes because, again, we live in the country). We turned off the propane at the tank. Then while she waited in the car farther down the driveway, I went to the house to check the appliances to make sure they were off and to open windows to reduce the fumes.

Since it was raining buckets, there was a huge mud puddle in front of her house that I chose to avoid. I, with my stubby short legs, attempted to step up onto the side of her porch, but my feet slipped and I began to fall forward. Kelly tells me I ran a few steps (trying to get my feet under me), started to go down and reached for one of the porch posts. I whirled outward, came around again, then momentum carried me out a second time, at which time my grip loosened and I flew, landing on my right side, face to hip in the mud.

No bones were broken. She thought I’d hit my head for sure I looked so confused. But nah. I have bruises this morning. My tendons inside my right elbow feel stretched (guess I’m not destined to be a pole dancer), besides some of my daughter’s first words to me after she stopped screaming were, “You looked like a really bad pole dancer, Mom.”

Anyway, I trudged back into the house and opened windows. The gas company guy finally arrived. He said she was damn lucky the house didn’t blow there was so much gas in the air. We found the problem. An uncapped gas spigot that a kid or an animal must have turned. A simple kick would have done it. Our dumb ass renovator failed to cap the line when we they put in our dry wall and we decided we no longer wanted the wall heater taking up space there.

So, since we didn’t have fireworks yesterday (Sorry. Bad joke!), we’ll be lighting fireworks with the kids in the yard tonight. We love setting up lawn chairs and blankets while the SIL plays with the explosives.

If you’re in the U.S., what are your 4th of July plans?

One of the most common questions I get is: “Where did you come up with the idea for your book?”

Well in the case of Mist Revealed, the simple answer is: from quite a few places. Mist Revealed mixes a little of Norse mythology and a dash of my imagination, but there’s also some science twined into the storyline. For me, combining them was a lot of fun.

A documentary about global warming and the rapid melting of the world’s icebergs planted the initial spark. I couldn’t help but wonder what might be uncovered when the ice melted which then reminded me of a Scooby-Doo episode I’d watched with my children. In it, a caveman who’d been frozen in ice came alive after the ice it was encased in melted. Those thoughts lingered in my mind over the following days. I couldn’t help but think it would make a basis for a great book. And when I read a science article about an ancient virus found in the Scandinavian permafrost a few days later, my imagination went wild. I became officially obsessed with melting icebergs and ancient secrets.

I turned my research to Greenland where icebergs are melting at an alarming rate and started to delve into their culture. It seemed a natural progression for me. I love mythology and building worlds from it is a lot of fun. Being that Greenland was populated by Vikings among other races, Norse mythology became my next focus, and the tale of Ragnarok, the Norse myth surrounding the end of the world, fit the current crisis of melting icebergs and global warming perfectly. From there, I selected my players and weaved a tale that grew from what I’d originally planned. I can’t give any other details away, but I will say that I’m looking forward to future stories involving ancient alphas and their “unusual and unique” human mates.

Mist Revealed

Elemental Desire, Book 1

A woman seeking answers…

Cat, a renowned scientist, embarks on a quest to uncover the source of the unknown deadly virus that claimed her sister’s life. What she finds is a man shrouded in mystery who manages the impossible—swaying her devotion from logic to passion. But Rune isn’t simply a lover. He’s a weapon, one that has the potential to save her or destroy her.

A man searching for treasure…

Rune, a child of the mist, awakens into a world hovering on the verge of destruction. Ragnarok is coming. His enemies have been released from their prison. And he’s discovered the one woman who can thaw his frozen heart. But the race to stop the final battle isn’t the time to fall in love. Or is it?

A discovery that will change everything…

Life evolves, and what was lost can be recovered. But the truth revealed isn’t the one Cat or Rune expects. The impossible has become reality. And two lovers must make a choice—adapt or die.

Author’s note: Mist Revealed was previously released as Mist Unveiled and has been reedited.

Excerpt: 

Unable to resist the scent of heaven that had lured him to her in the first place, he buried his face into the fall of her raven hair. She smelled of something fruity and exotic. He couldn’t place the scent, but it compounded his craving. He wanted to devour her.

Deep breaths filled his lungs with her signature fragrance. Dizziness gripped him. He tightened his hold on her to stop himself from swaying and unleashed his will to influence her. With the few drops of his blood in her body, he wasn’t sure it would actually work, but he had to try something.

“Calm down. I’m not going to hurt you.”

He waited a moment for her to succumb completely to his order, but her tense body and rapid heartbeat didn’t lessen as they should have. More expletives whipped through him at the implications of her resistance. He took another breath to slow his racing pulse.

“You’re going to bring the authorities here. They’ll harass me, maybe toss me in jail, all for kissing you. You don’t want that.”

“Don’t I?”

Shit. He let his forehead fall to her shoulder and reined in his power. It was pointless to expend the energy if she was resistant to it. “No, you don’t. You can’t blame me for losing control when faced with temptation. You’re beautiful, Cat.”

She turned her head. He eased back and met her probing eyes. “How do you know my name?”

I lurked in the shadows and listened to your conversation with the innkeeper.

“I’ve been assigned to assist you in the investigation of the…” He considered what to call the deaths. Murders? Careless feedings of the eldjötnar? The crime he and his brethren were supposed to ensure didn’t happen. “The tragedies that occurred here.”

“Who are you? I wasn’t told of anyone helping me.”

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A little about Nancy…
A true romantic at heart, Nancy Corrigan is convinced there’s a knight in shining armor for every woman (or man), but you won’t find damsels in distress in her stories. She adores pairing alpha heroes with women strong enough to match them and bring them to their knees. She also enjoys flipping the traditional roles in romances because her motto is—love and people should never be forced to conform to anyone’s norm.

She holds a degree in chemistry and has worked in research but now focuses on ensuring quality. She considers it the perfect outlet for her as she’s the first to admit she has some OCD tendencies. It carries over into her writing life too. While engrossed in a novel, she has a habit of forgetting to eat and sleep. Fortunately, she’s married to her own knight in shining armor who understands her oddities and loves her anyway. They reside in Pennsylvania with their three children, dog, snake and guinea pigs. Her other interests include tattoos, animals, classic cars and all things spooky and sexy.

I admit it. I’m a complete sucker for an antihero.

What is an antihero, you ask? Well, the online Urban Dictionary defines an antihero as: a flawed hero, and therefore much more interesting than the more traditional hero. They can be working on the side of good, but with a tragic flaw, or a horrible past, or for reasons that are selfish and not entirely “pure”.

Sounds like my kind of guy.

In Undying Hunger, Markus Santini is the Enclave’s antihero. He possesses a horrible past, and as the above definition states, for reasons that are selfish, and or not entirely “pure”, he makes certain decisions throughout the span of the series that aren’t popular with the rest of the Enclave’s warriors.

But my love of the antihero didn’t begin with Markus. In fact, there are a few others that, along with Markus, make up my top five.

1. Vin Diesel as Riddick. (Pitch Black, The Chronicles of Riddick, and Riddick) I do believe he kindled my fire for the antihero with those shimmering eyes and deliciously deep voice of his.
2. Zarek (Dance with the Devil by Sherrilyn Kenyon) How could one not fall for such a scarred and tragic hero. A fan favorite of the Dark Hunter Novels that I’ve never forgotten.
3. Alexander Skargard as Eric Northman (TrueBlood) A bad boy in every sense of the word. A centuries old Viking turned vampire, yet he’s hot as blazes. Yes, I cheered for him and Sookie to be together. He was so ruthless, but with her and for her…he was tender and compassionate. Sigh. Precisely what I love about an antihero.
4. Simon Cross (Death Angel by Linda Howard) Assassin turned hero. A pure antihero who has no regrets for who he is or what he’s done in his past. Cold and calculating with everyone and everything in his world. But when his heroine steps into his life, she awakens his heart and makes him feel. And he’ll do anything to protect her. Yes! I love it when that happens.

Do you have any favorite antiheroes from book or film? Please share! I’d love to add them to my TBR shelf or To Be Viewed list. Leave a comment, and I’ll choose one lucky winner to receive a $5 Amazon Gift Card, plus their choice of a PDF copy of either book one, two, or three from the Enclave series.

Undying Hunger

All she can remember is hunger…for him.

Enclave #4

“A delicious vampire world, filled with danger, passion, and immortal warriors. You’re going to love the Enclave!” – Lisa Kessler author of the award-winning Moon Series

 

A year ago, Alexandria Stevens strode through the doors of Wicked Ways and into the arms of a man—a monster, really—who stole everything from her. Her memory. Her life. Now she’s a creature of darkness with only hazy images in her mind of that night and a confusing jumble of emotions. A fierce hate…and an even fiercer desire for Markus Santini.

Markus has walked through this world for more than a hundred years, knowing exactly who and what he was, until Alexandria undid it all. Undid him. When a former vampire colleague threatens one of the Enclave’s own, Markus is needed—but only as the dark, powerful creature he once was. And in order to become that, he must find redemption…in the arms of a woman.

Undying Hunger Buy Links:
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Add to Your Goodreads List– http://bit.ly/1GZxpl2

*~*~*~*

Jessica Lee is an EPIC eBook Award winner and international bestselling author of paranormal romance. She lives in the southeastern United States with her husband and son. In her former life, Jessica was a science geek and spent over twenty-five years as a nurse. But after the birth of her son, she left her medical career behind. During that transition, she discovered her passion for writing romance and has never looked back. Jessica Lee is currently published with Entangled Publishing and Resplendence Publishing. Plus she has several self-published titles available.

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Hey y’all!

Thanks so much to Delilah for letting me take over her blog today! I need to chat about my new book. NEED to. It’s my first release with my newest publisher, Samhain. It’s a MMF menage where everyone touches. It’s about small town Colorado, a porny old book, and three hot people who get even hotter for each other.

Here’s the official blurb.

Dark magic draws them together, but they’re generating sparks all on their own.

Culper, Colorado, is a one-everything town. One stoplight. One post office-slash-pawn shop-slash-bakery. And one bookstore, which Shiloh volunteers to watch while the owner is on vacation. It’s a nice change of pace to her lonely life.

While perusing the shelves, Shiloh finds a book that contains some shockingly naughty illustrations. When all sorts of mystical disasters start happening, Shiloh is sure they’re somehow connected to the book. But by then it’s too late to simply put it back on the shelf.

Liam and Elijah’s response to the town’s call for help is a first. Their first paranormal case, and their first in-person meeting. They’re longtime online friends with a common interest in the unexplainable, but they’re shocked by the sparks that fly, not only between the two of them, but between them and Shiloh.

Somehow the book’s dark magic is not only the catalyst, but is also feeding off their sexual attraction. They must work together to figure out how to put the escaped entity back where it belongs—before it closes the book on their budding relationship.

***

I’d love to share a wee excerpt with you, too!

Here we go!

As soon as Bella left, she Shiloh went to put out the incense.

Last thing she needed was to have a vision and burn the bookstore down.

That would make Bella grumpy.

She giggled, then clapped her hand over her mouth when the sound echoed. Looked as if it might be a long day.

The notes behind the register were incredibly clear, written in Bella’s perfectly legible blocky print. Every possible problem for the next few days had been explained, answers carefully outlined. She grinned. No, Wilhelmina was not allowed to put up any posters. Yes, Aramina Gersham, the sweet eight-year-old whose mom made llama hats, could come in and sit with Peanut Butter in the afternoons. It went on and on.

Shiloh grabbed a book randomly from the shelf. Oh, erotic divination. Delicious. Just think of all the crusty old dudes that had pawed over this one. She put it back gingerly, immediately wanting to run for the hand sanitizer.

The shelf was filled with esoteric tomes mixed with the Babe on a Broomstick titles. Crazy. She’d seen enough weirdness to not be a bitch about it, but her mother, college and living in Dallas for a bit had instilled a strong streak of skepticism.

She chuckled at the book simply labeled, Summoning in an old-fashioned Goth-y font. Summoning what?

It was dirty and smelled in that amazing way of old books—dust and history, ink and something that was only books. Shiloh imagined it was probably glue and paper and solvents or something, but damn it, it was a book about magic, she could romanticize, right?

She flipped it open, grinning even wider at spells to summon genies and selkies, wizards and goats. Why the hell would anyone bring forth a goat?

Not that she had any issues with goats. Mick had some great nannies and the best goat cheese on the Western Slope, but you could just go ask him to borrow one…

Oh. She squinted at the book. That was just a guy who resembled a goat with… whoa.

Oh, that was impressive. There were a bunch of them—well-endowed men with huge racks of antlers or horns. It was…well, obscene, but a little erotic and incredibly fascinating, especially for such an old book. She could use one or two of those, especially the one on the next page.

The thought made her look around to make sure no one was peering over her shoulder.

Just her, the smoke and the animals Thank the goddess.

She did run her fingers over the hottest-looking number with a wide chest and a big, uh, sword. “I could so handle you, buddy.”

Hell, the men in Culper were either taken, old or just passing through, and Shiloh knew how the locals treated their own who dabbled with the migrants. Even a hippie-free-love town with a hot springs wasn’t really all that permissive.

Shiloh didn’t need anything long term; she didn’t need a commitment. She needed a good, hard fuck.

Snorting, she put the book aside for later, when she wouldn’t have to worry about anyone coming in.

Still her brain kept going back to those horns, that heavy, hard prick.

By the time she closed the shop, she was a little obsessed. She wanted to take the book home. No one would notice, right? She could just stare all night.

What would it possibly hurt?

Bella wouldn’t mind. Shiloh tucked the book into her bag before locking up. She would drop Peanut Butter off at Cindy Moss’s place, where he could spend the night like a puppy pasha, and then hit the Dog House for a hot dog before heading home.

The big old house stood at the edge of town, a sentinel, gothic and wonderful. It resembled the Addams’s family house, only in better repair, and it was the main reason she’d ended up in Culper as an adult.

Daddy had loved this house with a passion, had spent hours, days, years, working on it, repairing this and replacing that. The floors were buttery smooth now, the old built-in china cabinet lovingly restored to its walnut finish.

Shiloh smiled as she wandered toward the kitchen. It was a touch bittersweet still, but mostly sweet. She could feel Daddy in every inch of this house.

She sat at the table and munched her hot dogs and fries before heading to the small back parlor to light a little fire and curl up with her book. She pulled a blanket over her lap and started reading the chapter titled Invoking the Spirit of Eros.

That was what she needed. Eros. The power of the masculine and sex. A nice big cock. She giggled at herself. Right.

That was her, slut extraordinaire. Hell, she hadn’t had a relationship in five years, easy, and she’d never just had someone for a one-night stand. Her fingers traced the image of the horned man, the muscled body, the long, needy erection.

He was so compelling. She could see why people worshipped him. She mouthed the first few words of his incantation, sounding them out.

A god that chased you through the forest, someone to make you feel things you never had. To make you wild with need. Relentless in his quest for pleasure. She pressed her thighs together, the tingle between them long forgotten, thrilling.

She traced the odd looking symbols with one finger, her fingertip sliding on the page. A shiver went through her, and she glanced at the door, wondering where the draft came from.

Silly girl.

***

Thanks so much for hanging out and reading with me! You can find Book of Love here: https://www.samhainpublishing.com/book/5478/book-of-love

I’m Julia Talbot, and I also write as Minerva Howe. Find me at www.juliatalbot.com

XXOO

Julia

Living the life of a full time writer is a dream for many of us. There are other dreams, too – perhaps, in retirement or upon winning the lottery, we’ll travel the world; visit the grandkids regularly; go to each national park in the system; or take up underwater basket weaving. But what shall we do until we can do what we want to do full time?

We could say, well, that’s not for me and go about living our lives without incorporating parts of our dreams into our daily round. But that sort of existence lacks fire and passion. It’s far better to include pieces of our dream in the now, so that we can enjoy them and prepare for when we can fully engage with them.

Here, try this: take out a sheet of paper and write down the numbers 1 through 10 on the left side. Then, writing as quickly as you can, answer the question “If I could do it full time, and money was no object, I would…” ten times.  Write as fast as you can and don’t stop to think, just answer.  Would you scuba dive in the Caribbean? Take a ride-along with your local police department? Travel to Paris to have tea in the shadow of the Eifel Tower?

Now, take a look at your list.  What are the common elements?  Art? Travel? Pets? A new place to live? People to see more often?  Whatever the commonalities, what kinds of things can you incorporate into your daily round now? If you want to write full time, why not write in the corners of your current life? You can use your lunch break at work, or get up a half hour early.  If you want to visit family, why not get some cards at the dollar store today and write them a note? If Paris calls your name, do some recon and find out where to say, what to do, and subscribe to some newsletters about the Paris travel scene?

We don’t have to wait to enjoy the life of our dreams.  If we want it enough, we can incorporate elements of it now, while we’re preparing for our full time reality.  After all, practice makes perfect.

So tell me, Dear Reader: what’s one exciting dream from your list of ten?

—

“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.”
– E.E. Cummings

The Persis Chronicles:
Book 1 EMERALD FIRE

**New** Book 2, EMERALD KEEP, out April 8th 2015!
SEALED BY FIRE, an All Romance eBooks Bestseller!

**Coming Soon!** Watch for Book 2, SEALED BY MAGIC, out August 4, 2015!

The Chicagoland Shifters series:
Book 1 BURNING BRIGHT
Book 2 TIGER TIGER, an All Romance eBooks Bestseller!

**Coming Soon!** Watch for Book 3, CAT’S CRADLE, out Summer 2015!

Other Fun Stuff:
Check out COOK LIKE A WRITER

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I recently retired from a job I’ve had for almost 20 years. You’ll notice I said a job. Yes, that’s right. It wasn’t a career, or my life’s work, or even my life’s passion. It was, simply stated, a job. One I went to everyday and got paid for.  And I’ll admit – did well.

But it wasn’t what I really wanted to do with my life, how I wanted to spend my days here on earth. No, that job didn’t fulfill me.

So I retired from it. You might ask, how are you going to support yourself now that you have no income accruing every week?

Good question, but irrelevant to this conversation. Suffice it to say, I’m okay. No worries. I won’t be starving in a garret or panhandling any time soon.

What I will be doing – and am doing– is living my dream.

And by living my dream, I mean WRITING.

Instead of devoting myself 8 hours a day to patients and insurance companies, I now am a devotee of my laptop. My “dream” has always been to write without any restrictions on my time or finances.

So, I am actually living my dream. Pretty heady stuff.  I often wonder what would have happened in my life if I’d been able to support my writing lifestyle when I was in my 20’s. Then, I look at the life I lead from twenty up until today and I realize I needed those extra 30 years of life experiences to be the person and writer I now am. I know in my twenties I didn’t have enough life views and occurrences I could have translated into my writing. I knew about life, but hadn’t lived enough of it yet.

In my twenties, my social circle was small; basically friends and family. Once I got into the workforce I was able to include other employees, and supervisors. And still, I don’t think the pool I could cull from was wide enough.

In my thirties I became involved in local businesses and on the fringe of local government…more people with diverse backgrounds were added to my expanding sphere. I learned more in depth knowledge about people, what makes them tick, what drives and motivates them. I also started realizing the very true fact that every person has a distinct and personalized story of their own. Stories that I was now able to incorporate into my writing banks and use for information to invent characters and situations.

In my twenties, love was all encompassing. Every breakup was a disaster emotionally and spiritually. In my thirties, that was still true, but I learned you can be more selective and discover what to chose and what definitely not to chose as far as a life partner went.  Forties were the time for using all that knowledge to ensure a relationship of stability and longevity.

Now, in my fifties, I know my writing is richer, fuller, and tru-er due to all those life experiences, both personal and professional. I can write an emotional scene and know I got it right, because I’ve lived through it and come out on the other side of the emotion. Better, stronger, richer for the experience. It’s a heady feeling.

Yup. I’m living the dream… and it’s a dream come true.

Symphony pianist Moira Cleary comes home after four years of touring, exhausted, sick, and spiritually broken. Emotional and psychological abuse at the hands of someone she trusted has left her gaunt, anxious, and at a crossroads both professionally and personally.

Moira’s best friend, veterinarian Quentin Stapleton, wants nothing more than to help Moira get well. Can his natural healing skills make it possible for her to open her heart again? And can he convince her she’s meant to stay home now with the family that loves her – and with him – forever?

“Remember when your cousin Tiffany got married in the backyard here?”

Confused, Moira nodded.

Quentin rubbed her bottom lip with the pad of his thumb. “When the Reverend told Cole ‘you can kiss your bride,’ and he swooped her off the ground, spun her around and kissed her silly? Remember what you said?” Read the rest of this entry »