#Excerpt from ENTICING by April Wood @apejaywood #AmReading #Romance #Paranormal

“That day I had gone to the Market for Mrs. Johnston.  When I came home I found the castle covered in blood.  Mrs. Johnston was dead in the scullery. I ran up the stairs calling your name.  I found you in this room on my bed. You were naked covered in blood and semen.  I didn’t know what to think,” I explained.  I took a sip of my tea.  Reliving it was making my nerves a little jumpy.

“I walked around your body not knowing if you were dead.  I bumped into my maid’s body on the floor.  Then I knew I was in danger.  You had not only drained all the humans, you also drained all the vampires. I scanned the room for a weapon.  As I was searching you sat up on the bed.  Your eyes were crazed.  I grabbed a spear just as you rushed me,” I continued.  I had to stop and take a breath.  I was getting overwhelmed.

“Please go on,” he said.

“I plunged the spear in your chest.  You fell back on the bed, presumably dead.  I ran downstairs and found the kerosene. I spread it over the house and set it on fire.  I watched for a few moments then I ran to town. I heard several years’ later rumors of your existence. But they were just rumors.”

“Interesting,” he replied.

Yvonne has been living life fairly carefree until the sudden resurface of her dead maker, Magnus. She thinks he wants revenge, but all he wants is her. She can’t resist him. He is just as mouthwatering to her now as he was when he created her two hundred and fifty years ago. As their love rekindles forces outside of them grow threatening to destroy all the happiness they have finally found. 

Her sister Annabeth is seeking revenge for the bite she suffered at Magnus’s hands. She will stop at nothing to exact vengeance on him and Yvonne. 

Will their love be strong enough for the battles ahead?

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Genre - Paranormal Romance

Rating – R

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SUMMONED #Excerpt by Rainy Kaye @rainyofthedark #Paranormal #AmReading #BookClub

I dislike having to murder someone. Kidnapping is worse. At least when I setup a kill, I know what’s coming. No connections, no honesty, no surprises. Everything I say and do are just steps to luring in my victim. Once the victim falls right into the trap, the next move is swift: crushed windpipe, fatal concussion, or a good ol’ fashioned headshot.

Kidnapping, on the other hand, is a little trickier. First, the victim has an opportunity to respond. I don’t like this. Sometimes they cry. Sometimes they manage to alert the authorities. And sometimes they escape, usually by inflicting bodily harm on me.

Dead people don’t retaliate.

The second major difference between killing and kidnapping is my conscience. I get in and out with a kill. We have no chance to bond.

Abductees require a little more one-on-one. As much as I try to keep the switch turned off, I can’t help but listen to their pleas and demands. And I usually realize I’m a jerk.

That’s exactly where I find myself one late afternoon in June. I prefer doing this at night, but moreover, I would prefer not doing this at all.

Instead, I have a belligerent nine year old girl sitting in the passenger seat of my Honda Accord, shackles on her wrists and ankles and a small stuffed bunny on her lap. She’s eying me in a way that makes me self-conscious. Like I’m the bad guy.

Probably because I am the bad guy.

“My dad will shoot you!” She glares at me. “He has lots of guns and knows how to use them good. He’ll shoot you.”

Right now, that feels more like a mercy than a threat.

Twenty-three year old Dimitri has to do what he is told—literally. Controlled by a paranormal bond, he is forced to use his wits to fulfill unlimited deadly wishes made by multimillionaire Karl Walker.

Dimitri has no idea how his family line became trapped in the genie bond. He just knows resisting has never ended well. When he meets Syd—assertive, sexy, intelligent Syd—he becomes determined to make her his own. Except Karl has ensured Dimitri can’t tell anyone about the bond, and Syd isn’t the type to tolerate secrets.

Then Karl starts sending him away on back-to-back wishes. Unable to balance love and lies, Dimitri sets out to uncover Karl’s ultimate plan and put it to an end. But doing so forces him to confront the one wish he never saw coming—the wish that will destroy him.

Summoned is represented by Rossano Trentin of TZLA.

Find out more at http://www.summonedtheseries.com

Author Bio

Rainy Kaye is an aspiring overlord. In the mean time, she blogs at <a href=http://www.rainyofthedark.com>RainyoftheDark.com</a> and writes paranormal novels from her lair somewhere in Phoenix, Arizona. When not plotting world domination, she enjoys getting lost around the globe, studying music so she can sing along with symphonic metal bands, and becoming distracted by Twitter (<a href=http://www.twitter.com/rainyofthedark>@rainyofthedark</a>).She is represented by Rossano Trentin of TZLA.

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********

Cover Design: Kris Wagner https://www.facebook.com/digitalgunman

Model: Adam Jakubowski https://www.facebook.com/LadyJakubowsky

Photographer:  Marcin Rychły https://www.facebook.com/karrdepl

@Eileen Maksym Says, "Rejection Sucks. Giving Up Sucks More." #WriteTip #AmWriting #Paranormal

For me, the worst part of being a writer is the rejection.  I tend to be an introvert (like many writers!) so it can be hard for me to put my work and myself out there in the first place.  When my efforts are met with a brief form letter or email, or, even worse, utter silence, it often makes me want to just go to bed and hide under the covers (not the most helpful of reactions).

I knew what I was signing up for when I decided to become a writer, of course; the image of an author papering their walls with rejection slips is practically a cliché, and everyone has heard the stories about famous books that were initially rejected by publisher after publisher.  But like so many things, there's a vast difference between being aware of something and actually experiencing it.

My first rejection technically came the summer after my freshman year of college, when I sent some (truly horrible) poems to literary magazines on a whim.  All rejected.  It didn't really bug me much, since I didn't have much invested in those poems – which was probably a factor in how truly, truly horrible they were!  My first story rejection was a different matter, though.  It was a weird little piece about a family trying to divest a man's estate at his funeral, while he was alive and protesting from his casket.  I did what many first time writers do: I sent it to the New Yorker. It was, of course, summarily rejected.  I was crushed.  Clearly my work sucked.  Clearly I wasn't cut out to be a writer.  Clearly I should just give up.

I wallowed for a day or so, but eventually got over it.  I kept writing, and kept submitting, because my desire to be a published author was greater than my discouragement at being rejected.  But it was a near thing, and that struggle replays itself every time I receive that dreaded form letter, even now.  It's gotten a little easier to take, but I've also developed a number of coping mechanisms.  They keep me from spending more than, say, a couple hours in bed with the covers pulled over my head.

The first thing I do is remember that every writer gets rejected, even ones who are famous or have been at this for a long time.  That's because there are many reasons that a story might be rejected, and quality is only one of them!  Let's say the story has a talking rabbit.  Maybe the editor really despises talking rabbits.  Maybe the talking rabbit angle just isn't suited for that particular publication.  Or maybe they ran a talking rabbit story just last month!

Whatever the reason the talking bunny story was turned down, it had to do with the story, not the author.  A rejection only tells the writer that the piece isn't suitable.  It doesn't tell them that they are a bad writer or that they'll never succeed as an author.  And it definitely doesn't say anything about the writer as a person.

Once these reminders have kept me from being totally crushed, I do a couple things to keep moving forward.  First, I reward myself for having put myself out there!  There's a lovely clay pot on my desk that was an anniversary gift from my husband.  Every time I get a rejection, I put money into the jar.  The more I submit my work, the more rejections I get, and the more money goes into the jar.  I've been rejected a lot, so I've amassed a lot of money that way.  The computer I'm typing on right now was funded by that cash!

The second thing I do is immediately send the story out again.  I usually have a pretty good idea of what magazines are out there that might be a good match for the piece, so I pick one and submit!  It keeps me from second-guessing the story and getting caught up in endless tinkering.  Every writer is familiar with chasing the horizon of perfection.  At some point you've just got to say enough is enough.  I had already made sure the piece was the best it could be before I sent it out to begin with: enough is still enough.

This is how I've managed to beat back the Rejection Blues!  It's not easy, at all, but it definitely can be done.  Above all, what's important for all writers is that we be kind to ourselves, and keep writing!

Tara Martin – exceptionally accomplished neurobiology major with a troubled past. Steven Trent – confident political science major with an irresistible attraction to Tara. Paul Stratton – history major who is able to hear spirits. Together, they make up the Society for Paranormal Researchers at their prestigious New England University. When they’re not in class or writing papers, the three friends are chasing their passion….ghosts.

When the group learns of a local retired couple trying to sell a house they claim is haunted, they decide to investigate. As the clues unfold, a familiar spirit interrupts their investigation and Tara finds her life in danger. Can her friends save her before it’s too late?

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Genre – YA paranormal, NA paranormal

Rating – PG-13

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Website http://eileenmaksym.wordpress.com/  

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#YA #MustRead Doubt (#AmongUs Trilogy) by Anne-Rae Vasquez @write2film

Do you love shows like J.J. Abrams' Fringe and read books like Cassandra Clare's City of Bones?

"Doubt" mashes fringe science, corporate espionage and paranormal encounters to catapult you into an out-of-this-world experience.

At 21 years old, Harry and Cristal are fresh out of university with their PhD's. Labeled all their lives as being 'weird' and 'geeky', they find true friendships with other outcasts by playing online virtual reality games.

Harry Doubt, a genius programmer and creator of the popular online game 'Truth Seekers', has a personal mission of his own; to find his mother who went mysteriously missing while volunteering on a peacekeeping mission in Palestine. His gaming friends and followers inadvertently join in helping him find her; believing that they are on missions to find out what has happened to their own missing loved ones. During Harry's missions, Cristal and the team of 'Truth Seekers' stumble upon things that make them doubt the reality of their own lives. As they get closer to the truth, they realize that there are spiritual forces among them both good and evil, but in learning this, they activate a chain of events that start the beginning of the 'end of the world' as they know it.

Doubt is Book 1 of the Among Us Trilogy. Among Us is a book series which delves into the world of the supernatural and how it intersects with the everyday lives of seemingly ordinary young people as catastrophic events on earth lead to the end of times. Among Us weaves the theme of a young man and woman, who while not fully understanding their 'abilities', are drawn together in their desire to find out the truth about the world they live in which is similar to themes used in J.J. Abrams' TV shows Fringe and Lost.

What readers have to say...

As a big fan of the show Fringe, this book appealed to me tremendously. The writing was well done, and the way the "supernatural" forces were introduced was great.

A good, clean read for any age.

It was an excellent story that I'm sure both adult and teen urban fantasy fans will enjoy. You don't have to be a gamer or know one to identify with the characters. They're very well developed and definitely feel like people. I would definitely recommend it to a friend and I'm really looking forward to the second book.

...the novel is written in such a languid style, it moves on effortlessly and absorbs the reader into the story completely. Although the story itself revolves around the online gaming industry, one does not have to have an in depth knowledge as it is ably explained and discussed within the plot line. OMGosh! I just finished reading "Doubt" INCREDIBLE! I couldn't put it down.

˃˃˃ >>> Depth and Substance mashed up with Fringe Science. Will entertain young and old alike.

This book is intended for mature young adults and new adults. Ages 16 to 45 +

˃˃˃ >>Inspired by real Truth Seekers Aaron Swartz and Harry Fear

The main character Harry Doubt was inspired by Aaron Swartz, internet prodigy and activist, co-founder of the Creative Commons and Reddit, and Harry Fear, journalist, documentary filmmaker and activist whose coverage of the conflict in the Middle East was seen on UStream by millions of viewers.

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Genre - Young Adult, Paranormal, Science Fiction, Thriller

Rating – G

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Website http://amongus.ca

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The Curse Giver by Dora Machado @DoraMachado

Chapter Five

THE NEXT FEW DAYS WERE LOST to Lusielle. Her life was a jumbled sequence of snippets, blurry images breaking up long periods of dense darkness, triggered by a sudden jostle or a twinge of pain, cold, heat or thirst. She spotted glimpses of a gray sky, spitting out rain, and campfires burning deep in the woods. There was more rain, and a face—his face—hovering just beyond reach.

Occasionally, sound trickled into her muffled world from a distant place. The wind rustled through the trees. The horses’ hooves pounded on dirt, gravel, and mud. Men spoke, snorted, muttered and snored. A low, measured voice—his voice—echoed very near, urging her to drink, eat or sleep, accompanied by the pervasive masculine scent that was her constant companion.

There were times when she came to just enough to realize that she existed in the world in-between, where gods and mortals met in dreams, where dreams and reality were one and the same. In those moments, she realized that she survived only because of someone else’s will, that if she wanted a future, she had to wake up and seize it. She kept trying, even though it required great effort, like swimming against a colossal tide.

“This way,” the voice said.

She felt listless as a corpse, but she grabbed on to that voice and followed it to a semblance of consciousness. Fighting her heavy eyelids, she managed to glimpse the man’s stern face, outlined against a background of pewter clouds.

Brennus.

She rode with him on his horse, wrapped in an oiled mantle, mostly protected from the rain. His strong arms kept her from slipping off the massive beast. His armored chest offered a hard but steady pillow. The beat of his heart echoed through the copper plates, strong, vibrant, and enthralling.

He must have realized that she was awake, because his stare swooped down on her like a hawk on the prowl, even though his voice was gentle. “Hush,” he said. “We won’t be too much longer on the road today.”

His eyes were lined with worry and exhaustion. So were the faces of the other men who rode with him. All of them were wet, tired and miserable, picking their way up a steep mountain track as the relentless rain continued to pelt them. That same rain was dripping from Brennus’s face, drenching his hair and trickling down his neck.

“The rain,” she whispered. “It’s making you wet.” She reached out to dry the water from his face, but the wound on her back protested with a pang of pain.

He caught her hand and tucked it back into the blanket. “It’s no use,” he said. “You can’t keep me dry.”

“One can try,” she said.

And he actually smiled.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“South of nowhere and north of wherever,” he said. “Far from the usual routes. We’re seven days out.”

Seven days was an awful long time to be senseless among strangers.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “Riva’s not going to find us.”

She winced when the horse missed a step.

“Hato!” Brennus called.

Why was he barking like that?

There was splashing, the sound of hooves clattering and then, “My lord?”

“We’ve got to stop. The fever’s back and she’s hurting again.”

“No place to stop around here, my lord,” the other man said.

“Send Severo and Cirillo ahead,” he said. “Tell them to find a decent camp and get a fire going. She’s got to rest.”

“My lord,” he said, “we have pressing business. We can’t slow down to accommodate her comfort—”

“Do you want her alive or not?”

The other man sighed. “As you wish, my lord.” He rode away.

She tried to tell him that she was fine, but ended up whimpering instead.

“Shush,” he whispered in her ear. “You need to sleep.”

And by the Thousand Gods, off she went, at his command, into the darkness again, following his heart’s steady rhythm as it sang a lullaby to her heart.

Award-Winning Finalist in the fantasy category of The 2013 USA Best Book Awards, sponsored by USA Book News

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Genre – Fantasy/Dark Fantasy

Rating – PG-18

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Website http://www.doramachado.com/

Dora Machado – How Fantasy Loves Romance and Romance Loves Fantasy @DoraMachado

How Fantasy Loves Romance and Romance Loves Fantasy

by

Dora Machado

People ask me all the time why I chose to write romantic fantasy. The short answer is that I can’t envision writing one without the other. The long answer might be more complex. The union of fantasy and romance is a marriage of convenience. The genres complement, enhance and enrich each other. Beyond that, romance and fantasy are the Yin and the Yang, ebony and ivory, Billy Joel and Elton John. They belong together.

I love writing epic fantasy. Fantasy is a subversive genre, requiring the mind to bend and the imagination to flex, perfectly suited for me. I love the genre’s creative freedom, the opportunity to rethink, redesign and reinterpret the human experience in fresh and diverse settings, and the mysteries that magic brings to the human equation. But fantasy without romance is like lemonade without lemons–blah, tasteless, inert. Add a voluptuous romance to a well-crafted fantasy and POW! Now you’ve got a story with grit.

This is exactly what I’ve tried to do in all of my books, and my latest novel, The Curse Giver from Twilight Times Books, is no exception. The Curse Giver is about an innocent healer named Lusielle, who is betrayed and condemned to die for a crime she didn’t commit. When she’s about to be executed, Lusielle is rescued from the pyre by an embittered lord doomed by a mysterious curse. You might think that Bren, Lord of Laonia, is Lusielle’s savior, but he isn’t. On the contrary, Bren is pledged to kill Lusielle, because her murder is his people’s only chance at salvation.

The curse tormenting the Lord of Laonia is at the action crux of the story, but it’s really the relationship between Bren and Lusielle that gives meaning to this grand adventure. The gradual transformation of enemies into allies, the clash of conflicted hearts and the forbidden passion that blooms between them, balance the action, deepen the story, and imbue the tale with a sense of gritty realism. This is the part that makes the reader care and the writer write. As Lusielle and Bren prepare to challenge the curse giver who has already conjured their ends, they must find the magic within, the inner strength to save not just themselves, but each other. In the end, romance lends fantasy the concept of affection, and affection turns out to be the most powerful magic of all.

In my fantasy novels, romance is not just a component of the story; it is the heart of the story. In my view, romance enhances fantasy by connecting the story to the experience of love, personal struggle and acceptance. Without this connection, fantasy loses focus, depth and perspective. The stories I want to tell are lush, vivid, passionate and exuberant. I can’t imagine telling them without a sizzling romance sprouting right in the middle of it all to make a mess of things. At the end of the day, romance and fantasy belong together in a genre that is as much fun to read as it is to write.

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Dora Machado is the award-winning author of the epic fantasy Stonewiser series and her newest novel, The Curse Giver, available from Twilight Times Books. She grew up in the Dominican Republic, where she developed a fascination for writing and a taste for Merengue. After a lifetime of straddling such compelling but different worlds, fantasy is a natural fit to her stories. She lives in Florida with her husband and three very opinionated cats.

To learn more about Dora Machado and her novels, visit her website at www.doramachado.com or contact her at Dora@doramachado.com.

For a free excerpt of The Curse Giver, visit:  http://twilighttimesbooks.comthingsTheCurseGiver_ch1.html.

E-mail:Dora@doramachado.com

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Suggested tags:

Dora Machado, The Curse Giver, fantasy, dark fantasy, romantic fantasy, fantasy romance, romance, epic fantasy, paranormal, paranormal romance, romance writing, fantasy writing, Twilight Times Books, Stonewiser.

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Genre – Fantasy/Dark Fantasy

Rating – PG-18

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