Outside the Veil boxed set available and on NetGalley!

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I’m pleased to announce that, Outside the Veil, the complete three book boxed set detailing Jaxon and Amari’s journey and the beginning of the series, is available at all major e‑retailers! Also, for a very limited time, the boxed set is available on NetGalley for review.

I hope you take the time to enjoy Jaxon and Amari’s beautiful story of love and sacrifice.

Amazon.
iTunes.
Barnes & Noble.
Google Play.
Kobo.

NetGalley.

Who Are Carina and Marek Anyway? Plus sales, giveaway, and raffle!

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I love writing. Ever since I was little, I’ve spent hours inside my head manipulating stories to the point I would write them down. I’m a seat-of-the-pants writer, meaning I sit at the computer, stare at a blank page, and release my fingers to the keyboard. The blank page is my canvas. Instead of being intimidated by it, I find the white space beautiful because so much is hidden within that emptiness—dragons, vampires, Critons, new worlds to explore, battles to conquer, and most of all, love.

All my stories involve romance. Romance is the glue that holds my words together.

For years, I wrote stories then “shelved” them so to speak and moved onto the next one. Caller of Light was the first I showed to others, and to my surprise, got published! Since Caller was my first, I thought I’d discuss the main characters and how they originated.

Originally, my hero had the last name of Tremaine, but one morning, I realized King Marek Tremaine was boring and one dimensional. My attempts at reinventing him failed. Anything I created in my mind, didn’t work. I guess I was experiencing a form of writer’s block.

Since Carina didn’t have anyone to interact with, I couldn’t continue the story and set it aside to await inspiration. Two weeks passed, a few things happened, and for the first time, I decided to use something other than my imagination to create my characters. I chose a real person, Gerard Butler, to pose as Marek. Since I didn’t know anything about the guy, I did some research. Found out he’s Scottish! Not that being Scottish is bad; it’s just that if I was going to use him for Marek, the flavor of the book just changed. So, instead of Marek being a Tremaine, he became a Duncan. Instead of living in Trendalin, King Duncan lives in Stirrlan (a play on the Scottish Stirling Castle). He now carries a dirk instead of a dagger and a claymore (two-handed great sword). You get the idea.

Carina McKay was much easier to define. From the beginning, she displayed a down to earth sensitivity that many might mistake for weakness, but in actuality, is strength and courage entwined around a steel spine. She’s the everyday, multi-faceted woman capable of achieving great feats, not afraid to try, and willing to fight to protect those she loves. Even now, her complex, yet contradictory, simplistic character intrigues me.

I wrote Caller of Light in a sweeping, lyrical style that some people love, and some, not so much … but that’s okay. The new release of my paranormal vampire/cop story, Divergent Bloodline, is written in a more traditional style. Why the difference? I’m not sure. I guess that’s what I first saw when I sat down and released my mind and fingers to the blank page staring back at me.

.99 cent sale Caller of Light is on sale for .99 cents at all major retailers until December 18th, the lowest price my publisher has ever offered it!

Half price sale AND Giveaway – The Wild Rose Press is offering the ebook version of my new vampire paranormal release, Divergent Bloodline, for half price from their website only until Saturday, December 12th.

I’m also hosting a giveaway on Goodreads for an autographed paperback of Divergent Bloodline. Easy to enter, and you might win! The giveaway ends Saturday, December, 19th, 2015.

You also have an opportunity to win a digital ebook of Divergent Bloodline in your choice of format from TomeTender.blogspot.com. The raffle ends on December 23rd so head on over to Tome Tender and enter!

Write What You Know

Click on image to read excerpt

They say to write what you know. I don’t know who “they” are, but the advice seems sound. Since I’ve been a felony crimes prosecutor, worked the road as a police officer, and now write policy and procedure for the same police department, I decided to combine some of my passions into what is now Divergent Bloodline.

Cops are a rare breed. They witness not only the good people do for each other, but also respond to volatile, emotional situations often resulting in heartbreak. The stress officers work under on a daily basis is incredible. They form strong bonds with fellow cops to survive the mental and physical demands placed upon them. Your partner is more than a friend; your partner protects your back when you enter the building with guns drawn.

Although Divergent Bloodline is a work of fiction and focuses on the romance between a homicide suspect (who happens to be a vampire) and the detective assigned to the case, I tried to capture the special relationship officers share with each other. I hope you enjoy Divergent Bloodline as much as I loved writing it.

Half-Price Sale: My publisher, The Wild Rose Press, is offering the digital version of Divergent Bloodline for half price through their website only from Wednesday, December 9th through Saturday, December 12th.

Win an autographed paperback copy! – Enter the Goodreads giveaway for Divergent Bloodline. Giveaway ends Saturday, December 19th, 2015. Easy to enter and you might win!

.99 Cent Sale: To celebrate Divergent’s release, my high fantasy romance, Caller of Light, is available for .99 cents at all major outlets until Friday, December 18th.

Review — Until the Sun Falls from the Sky by Kristen Ashley

After reading this book, I can proudly say that I’m no longer a Kristen Ashley virgin! Yay! And I must ask myself why it took me so long to join the party? At least now I understand why KA fans are so loyal … Ms. Ashley writes one hell of a book. Her deep POV style kept me well engaged with the characters, and combined with fantastic world-building, I couldn’t stop reading.

I’m going to confess that I have a passion for vampires and Lucien is a great one! He’s strong, arrogant, and hopelessly devoted to his mate, Leah. Even with his faults, I fell in love with him. And any blunders he made along the way, he more than made up for at the end.

Leah also is a strong, hard-headed, and determined heroine who gives Lucien a run for his money and proves she’s not only a worthy mate, but his equal. Great, great read! Now off to read WITH EVERYTHING I AM, the second in the series.

Focused. Strong. True.

(Click on the image to visit Kristen)

Until the Sun Falls from the Sky — Kristen Ashley

Review — Chained by Night by Larissa Ione

Wow! I really enjoyed the first book in the series, BOUND by NIGHT, but I loved this one! Hunter is one hot alpha male and Aylin is a remarkable, strong heroine with spunk and sass. I was rooting for them from the beginning. Ms. Ione’s take on the vampire genre is intriguing and unique, her world-building fantastic, and her characters have depth and … well, character! Great read!

Focused. Strong. True.

(Click on the image to visit Ione)

Chained by Night — Larissa Ione

Review — Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning

This book—tempted and teased me, tested my patience, drove me crazy—in short, consumed my attention for two days. I love the world Ms. Moning created within the confines of modern urban society, the hidden world that normal people don’t see with hideous and stunningly beautiful Fae creatures walking among us clueless humans. Her story is complex, well written, and executed beautifully.

While Mac is not the heroine I initially envisioned, she grew on me instantly with her constant inner banter. She’s one funny gal! Jericho Barrons is dark, mysterious, not human (I don’t think anyway, I’m not sure what he is), and sexy as hell. I have a selfish reason for not giving DARKFEVER five stars—romance. I’m a romance addict. And while there is sexual tension between Mac and Barrons (achingly so), I wanted more. This isn’t a romance novel and doesn’t even claim to be so I shouldn’t even take that into consideration with my review, but Ms. Moning does such an excellent job of teasing my romantic proclivities  with glimpses of what could be, and what may be in the future that she’s guaranteed my continued reading of the series.

If you start this book, I only hope you have nothing else planned for the next two days because you won’t get anything else accomplished.

Focused. Strong. True.

(Click on the image to visit Karen)

DarkFever — Karen Marie Moning

Review — Dark Legend by Christine Feehan

I’ve read some of Ms. Feehan’s earlier books in this Dark Carpathian series. I enjoyed them then and DARK LEGEND proved no different. DARK LEGEND is a great continuation in the Carpathian novels. Ms. Feehan’s writing style is sweeping and lyrical, and left no doubt in my mind about the characters’ feelings toward each other. Francesca is a strong, independent woman who has forged her own way in life. I admired her achievements and her compassion. ­­­Gabriel is the strong, egotistical Carpathian male who, ironically, seemed a bit more in touch with his emotional self than I remember from the previous books. Although both characters were well written and I enjoyed them a lot, what truly excited me was, Lucian, the “evil” twin brother. Parts of the book even seemed more like a build-up for the next book, DARK PROTECTOR, which is about Lucian. Of course, DARK PROTECTOR is now on my to-be-read list.

DARK LEGEND is another exciting read by an author who provides a reliable satiation to my reading addiction.

Focused. Strong. True.

(Click on image to visit Christine)

Dark Legend — Christine Feehan

Review — Fated by Rebecca Zanetti

Fantastic Start to a Series!

For those who’ve been fans of the Dark Protectors series since the beginning, you’re probably wondering where the hell I’ve been. Well, all I can say in my defense is that I was a little slow. Actually, after starting a string of books that I couldn’t finish, I was growing dismayed in my inability to find something to sink my teeth into (pardon the pun). But thankfully, Ms. Zanetti restored my faith in great storytelling.

FATED by Rebecca Zanetti is a wonderful start to the Dark Protectors series. I love Ms. Zanetti’s writing style…absolutely love it! Her dialogue is sharp and witty while the storyline is a fantastic twist on the vampire theme. The heroine, Cara, is everything I look for in a lead character—strong, smart, passionate, funny—but not perfect. Talen is amazing, possessing all the attributes of a larger than life hero. He’s one HOT male!

For paranormal readers who like a good vampire story, I truly believe you’ll enjoy Dark Protectors. And for those fans who’ve already read SHADOWED (the 8th book in the series) and are now waiting in the bleachers with bated breath for the next one, well, scoot over. Although I still have 6 books to read, I’ll be sitting beside ya soon.

Focused. Strong. True.

(click image to visit Rebecca)

Fated — Rebecca Zanetti

Review — Claimed by Rebecca Zanetti

Since I’m starting to sound like a broken record concerning Rebecca Zanetti’s Dark Protectors series, I’ll most likely make this my last review and just rate the rest as I read them. CLAIMED is my favorite in the series so far. I loved Emma, and Dage is a hero to die for. Ms. Zanetti’s witty dialogue and sense of humor between the characters makes the book a fun, exciting read.

What I truly admire about Ms. Zanetti’s style is that she introduces secondary characters gradually, but integrates them in such a way that by the next book, I’m eager to read more about these well fleshed out personalities. That’s talent, and what a great way to hook the reader on the next book…like me!

CLAIMED, just another great book by a great author.

Focused. Strong. True.

(Click on image to visit Rebecca)

Claimed — Rebecca Zanetti

Review — Tempted by Rebecca Zanetti

It’s been a long time since I sat down and read a book in one sitting…a long time. And I fell into TEMPTED by accident. I’d signed up for a giveaway of Ms. Zanetti’s latest release, SHADOWED over at Tome Tender Book Blog (http://tometender.blogspot.com/), although I didn’t win, the book sounded interesting. Then while scanning through my Kindle looking for the next read, I saw that I had TEMPTED. What a great discovery TEMPTED and Ms. Zanetti turned out to be. TEMPTED is a wonderful take on the whole vampire genre. I like Ms. Zanetti’s entire concept about mates and extra chromosomes. Her writing style is sharp, sassy, and super sexy. I absolutely loved the hero, Max, and heroine, Sarah. Her secondary characters also were a joy and fleshed out extremely well.

Ms. Zanetti’s technique drew me in and the real world disappeared as I stayed up into the wee hours finishing TEMPTED. I’m not sure if I should thank Ms. Zanetti or chastise her for my lack of sleep.

If I have one complaint it’s that the ending seemed rushed. I wanted more! But I guess that’s what good writing is all about, leaving the reader wanting more and that’s what Ms. Zanetti did, left me wanting. Looks like TEMPTED is the third book in the Dark Protectors series, so I’ll have to start at the beginning, but TEMPTED worked as a standalone. And now that I’ve hopped onto the Dark Protectors series bandwagon, I’m sure I won’t regret the ride. A well deserved 5 stars!

Focused. Strong. True.

(Click on the image to visit Rebecca)

Tempted — Rebecca Zanetti
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