The Rainbow Studio

Busy

2012-02-01T08:13:00.000-08:00

I’ve been busy working on books. Creating new characters and exploring new places. I love that about writing the things you get to create and be a part off. The fun of it makes the time past really fast. You don’t even see it when it does. So although I was busy it was worth it and fun.

Talia Carmichael
http://taliacarmichael.com/
Fill Your Cravings

Blog: http://taliacarmichael.com/blog
Newsletter:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/taliacarmichael

Buy Sparks here

A Not-So-Inspirational Setting by Emily

2012-01-30T05:24:00.000-08:00

My most recent release, Public Display of Affection, takes place in Estes Park, Colorado. I grew up near there and have many fond memories of the area. The view is well worth the drive all by itself. I always forget how breathtaking the mountains are until I get there.

From estespark-colorado.com

Still, of all the memories I have, not a one would qualify as even close to being the inspiration for a sexy story. The majority of them are actually from the retreats I was forced to attend with my church. Three long days each year stuck in a cabin and forced to read through the Bible. Though, you put a dozen teenagers in close quarters, and we are bound to get into some trouble.

1. A friend and I were put on dishes duty and put the wrong soap in the dishwasher. We then proceeded to giggle the entire time we attempted to clean up the mess, which only got us in more trouble.

2. A particularly rowdy group convinced my Pastor to rent American Pie. Somehow we convinced him it was a coming to age story about teenagers getting to know themselves. He actually watched the entire movie with us without turning it off.

3. I was given permission to go find a "neighbor" who would loan us some sugar for dinner one night. The friend who left with me and I took over an hour to perform this task. Mainly because we got lost in the woods and made very little effort to find our way back.

Let's say that most of the trouble I got in was from questioning the teachings. So, this past summer I got to resume to the exact same camp for a wedding. While I spent the whole time running around like a bridesmaid with her head cut off, it did help me to see how beautiful the place was and what a terrific backdrop it made for a romantic encounter.

Public Display of Affection

After a heartbreaking end to her relationship with her girlfriend, Lucy Stark is looking to try something more adventurous. She turns to Madame Eve’s 1Night Stand service to help her find the perfect woman to push her boundaries and introduce her to the more daring side of a sexual encounter.

Samantha Taylor’s helped more than one woman explore her sexuality, but Lucy’s the first to really get to her. Keeping her walls up and the women she dates from getting inside is a skill she’s managed to master. After one night of unbridled passion, she has to decide whether to give up her hard exterior or let the woman of her dreams slip away.

Available from Decadent Publishing, Amazon, All Romance eBooks, and most e-retailer.

You can find me online on my blog or on Twitter.

Writing to Music - BLMorticia

2012-01-26T06:00:00.000-08:00

Greetings peeps. Welcome to another post from the wicked gal, BLMorticia.

Today, I’m posting about the music I use as inspiration while writing. What does that usually entail? Well it could be anything from something simple like some light jazz or contemporary to something heavy like Devildriver or some old fashioned Metallica.

A lot of writers complain they must have complete silence, that the music distracts them when they try and create. Well, I’m different. I need the music especially if the scene is highly emotional or tense filled.

If it’s a light hearted scene with a bit of comedy? Maybe something upbeat or a dance tune that gets me thinking some happy thoughts or if it’s overly romantic with hot sex, like the first scene between Nathan and Bryant in My Lieutenant, it was some slow, “baby making,” tunes like Sade or the Love Jones Soundtracks, which all of us muses listen to frequently.

However, since I am the wicked muse, I mostly turn on the heavy metal to write by. During You Don’t Ask, We Don’t Tell, a lot of the moments with Cody as he tried to deal with the fact he was gay were tense and needed that rockin’ soundtrack to get him thinking of angst. For that, I turned on the iTunes satellite radio and left it on the Dark Metal station.

Perfect music for the angsty piece! Old Metallica, Megadeth, Lamb of God, Pantera, old Sevendust, Slayer, etc to get Cody in the mindset of anger over his father, his situation where he left behind his lover, and dealing with his own mistake of joining the army when he didn’t have to.

*raises the hands and flashes the horns*

Throughout I felt the agony from my character and all because of the music I had in my ears.

Look for You Don’t Ask to come out in 2012 from Rebel Ink Press and as always, for more on me, please visit Erotica With Snark.

Thanks to Rebel for giving the snarky gal so much support! Please leave me your thoughts. What music gets you going?

Coming Feb 3, 2012 BLMorticia with her snarky series about a man looking to shed his "gayness" The Army's the place to get right, right? Think again!

Booktrailer

Overall Blurb

A gay curious young man whose fell over the fence more than a couple of times is seeking the armed forces to become more of a straight man under the duress of his family. He leaves behind his on and off again lover, Dari Kirk.

At the local recruiter’s office, he meets Corporal Justin Belvidere who can tell he’s hiding something. Running away from something he needs. He knows just what training facility to send him to. The one part of the army that everyone knows to be one of the finest and most upstanding platoons in the armed forces but they have hidden secrets.

Captain Morris Dunst runs Army company 9669. A proud group of men known for their tenacity, wit, and strength. He’s produced some of the best soldiers in his ten year tenure, teaching them how to be real men.

That take it all like men.

Cody is unaware he’s stepped into the platoon that makes the gay man realize his true potential as a well adjusted uncloseted male in the homophobic society. Morrie makes sure of that along with his right hand man and boyfriend, Lieutenant Darios Bright.

Cody will walk out of company 9669 with a new outlook and respect for his newfound manhood. The men in the platoon will see to it.

All information in the book about army life is factual while the company itself is all fiction as well as the characters. Its intent is to be humorous while showing the growing pains of a young man as he learns how to accept his homosexuality and the relationship with his lover without fear.

Book One

Basic Training

Book one begins with the introduction of Cody McCayne and his childhood friend Dari Kirk who have been having sex on the down low for a while until they are found out. This scares Cody and he decides to cease their relationship.

Due to the constant taunts and chiding of his father and peers, he decides that joining the army is the answer for him to “get right” in his words. He thinks this will dispel his gay persona and make him a real man.

However, during his ten week tenure he’ll meet the characters at Fort Jackson of company 9669, the only all gay and lesbian platoon who operate as straight soldiers by day but play and teach at night. This section is run by Captain Morris Dunst and his lover, first Lieutenant Darios Bright.

Excerpt Subject to Change after edits PG

When he straightened the wheel, he got out the truck, sprinting to the place he hoped held his ticket out of here. He opened the doors, letting a couple of army men out before he went in.

“Wow,” he mouthed, glancing about the place as if he were a tourist. Large hallways, cream colored walls with decorative crown molding. The floors were made of linoleum. Everything was so clean. The glare blinded Cody.

His eyes fixed of the small line of men huddled together to hand their papers to a soldier sitting behind the desk. Cody tightly gripped the application in his hands.

Do I really want to do this? How will I handle being yelled at by someone basically the whole time I’m there?

Suddenly, young McCayne began to question his decision. He tapped his feet, fumbling with his free fingers as he eyed the men talking with the representative.

Why am I doing this?

Yes, why the fuck was he? Joining the army just so he could gain acceptance? Make his asshole dad proud of him? Would this be worth it?

“Iknowiwantthisiknowihaveto…damnit!” He grit his teeth.

What if he didn’t like army life? What if the captain was an asshole he wouldn’t be able to tolerate?

What am I saying? They’re all assholes. None worse than my dear old dad.

The men in front of him inched closer to the recruiter’s desk.

Cody could feel his palms sweating along with his brow.

What the fuck? I need to man up. That’s my whole reason for doing this right?

He straightened his shoulders and cleared his throat.

Only one more ahead of me. I can do this!

The young man shrugged his shoulders and gulped hard. He stuffed one hand in his pocket and eyes darted from left to right.

Oh my fuckin’ God, I’m gonna…

“Next!” The man in front of him moved away and suddenly it was Cody’s turn. “Yes…um…Sir?”

The guy behind the desk gave him a wry smile. “Yeah, you ready to come serve your country, boy?” He has a slight southern accent and piercing blue eyes.

Damn, the man is hot.

BIO: BLMorticia considers herself the snarky and wicked side of author Sharita Lira so expect her to tap into the taboo and unleash her fantasies on the world through her words. When not writing, she does biweekly posts at fellow author Blak Rayne’s blog,

http://blakraynebooks.blogspot.com, posts with Rawiya at Erotic Diaries and a feature with fellow Rebel Cassandre Dayne called the Wicked Women Wednesdays.

For more information, please visit, http://www.thelitriad.com and to ask any questions, email srlmort71@gmail.com

Links

The Literary Triad - http://www.thelitriad.com/#!

The Literary Triad on FB - https://www.facebook.com/TheLiteraryTriad
BLMorticia – http://blrawiyaerotica.blogspot.com/

Twitter - http://twitter.com/#!/rawiyamikembl

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSharitaLira
Kindlegraph - http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/rawiyamikembl

Latest books on sale – My Lieutenant Now available at Amazon, ARE and Bookstrand

Booktrailer - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i62rSF-wr1w

Something New on the Menu Book One Something Fresh Served Hot Now available Amazon, ARE, and Smashwords.

the power came back on!

2012-01-25T11:46:00.000-08:00

Hey, y'all!

it was a wild night last night here in central Texas. Thankfully, we didn't get the tornado on this side of town, but at about 7am (the storms blew in at 3) lightning hit the transformer that sits just outside the backyard. There was fire. There was power outage. Luckily, we lost a switch for the server and one small machine, but otherwise, we're intact.

I was going to talk about avalanches in Colorado, as that's what my upcoming book, Loose Snow is about, but this whole thing has me thinking about a whole different kind of storm..

What if every time lightning hit the ground or a tree or something, a new elemental spirit was created? Imagine it, hot, naked guy appearing and searching for his other half... Yum. I like it. *grins* Seriously, what else can you think about in a storm like that?

OKay, well, I had this

She woke me up and insisted I hold her... That lightning freaked her right out

What else do y'all do in a thunderstorm? Tell me!

Here's a sneak peek at the cover of Loose Snow

XXOO

Julia

Introducing... Megan Slayer... It's Gonna Get Hot!

2012-01-19T02:00:00.000-08:00

Hiya! Some of you know me, some don't. For those who've never come across me, I'm Megan Slayer. I write hot stories of romance lost and won again. I've been told my stories have the theme of the second chance romance. I never thought about it before that was mentioned, but it does fit. My characters have lost at love more than once and are getting the second (or third) chance at forever.

Maybe that's why one of my favorite songs is "Someone To Love" by Queen. There's a person aching for love, wanting a second or third chance at the elusive love-to-last-forever, and wanting romance. I could listen to the pain and heart ache in Freddie Mercury's voice all day long. What about you? What's your favorite song? Favorite second chance love song? Tell me, I'd love to know!

And speaking of second chance romance, here's a little bit from my latest MM romance, out with Total-E-Bound, Permanent.

Sometimes love just ain’t enough...

River Cortland trusted the person he loved. His faith couldn’t protect him from the bitter sting of a cold-hearted Domme. If he’s going to learn to trust again, he’s got to deal with his past. His roommate and best friend, Tory, has seen the physical damage and hasn’t walked away. Can he deal with the emotional scars as well?

Tory McClellan wanted the carefree life...until one night with River changed everything. There’s more to the shy art teacher and Tory wants to know everything-how he tastes, the scent of his skin, the feel of his body as they make love. What terror lies behind River’s brown eyes? Better yet, how can Tory make the sadness go away and be in River’s life, permanently?

Reader Advisory: This story contains flashbacks of a rape, anal sex, light bondage and spanking.

EXCERPT:
Tory clinked his beer bottle with River’s. “You up for a piece of ass?”

Frowning, River shifted his gaze for a split second and wriggled his brows. “Are you offering?”

“If you’re in, I’m in. Women aren’t worth the hassle.” He grinned and rested his hand on River’s thigh. “You seem happier overall. I like it.”

River stared at him a moment to regroup his thoughts. Tory McClellan, sportscaster for News Channel Twenty-Five, wasn’t the type of guy to swear off chicks. Women practically fell at his feet. As Tory appraised River with his amber eyes, River swore his body temperature kicked up a thousand degrees. Tory parted his lips as he brought his bottle to his mouth once more. What did he taste like? River glanced down at the bulge in Tory’s jeans. He’d seen him stroll out of the shower plenty enough to know Tory wasn’t lacking. Even soft, he made River look small. River shifted in his seat. He wanted to lick Tory’s abs. Just follow the solid curves until he ended up at the pleasure trail of tawny hair leading to his cock. Tory never said anything outright, but River sensed Tory’s inner desire to dominate and keep control. Made sense, but hell, would he freak if River made an advance?

“You’re not really gay.” Oh, that sounded smart. Damn it. River shifted as Snowflake sniffed the air and stretched. She scampered onto the floor, flicked her tail in the air in her silent ‘screw you’ and left Tory and River alone on the couch. Even she thought he sounded stupid.

He turned back to Tory and gasped. Cocoa glittered in the depths of Tory’s eyes as he licked his lips. If he moved a little closer, River would be able to feel the texture of Tory’s lips against his.

“You never asked,” Tory murmured, swiping his tongue over the peachy skin. “And I wasn’t about to make a move that night.”

Jerked from his more than too personal appraisal of Tory’s mouth, River stared. “Huh?”

“You suck at subtlety. I know you look when you think I don’t see and I remember the way your body reacted when I held you. I liked it.” He closed the gap between them until only a breath kept them apart. “I’m not innocent and I have done some experimenting.” He inched closer, his arm and knee bumping River’s. “But I’ve waited too long for you to make a move.”

Not innocent? Experimenting? Make a move? If River didn’t know him better, he’d think Tory was attracted to him. The guys who tried to pick River up weren’t nearly as handsome as Tory. Most of the women hardly held a candle to Tory’s natural charisma.

“River?”

~ ~

Megan Slayer - Sometimes It's Fun to Squirm

http://www.wendizwaduk.com/
http://wendizwaduk.blogspot.com/
http://wendizwaduk.com/indexMegan.htm
http://theauthormeganslayer.blogspot.com/
Friend us both on FaceBook and Follow us on Twitter!

Its always better on dirt!

AND THE CAT CAME BACK - M/M CONTEMPORARY ADULT

2012-01-16T06:46:00.000-08:00

"Hey, mom, I'm a star!" says my 4-year old Persian who plays Foofuss in this story and is also one of the two handsome guys on the cover:

And The Cat Came Back
by Christiane France
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-232-4 (Electronic)
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/AndCatCameBack.html
Home renovator Seth Lawley is ready to settle down if the right man comes along, but he’s cautious. He believes he who hesitates saves himself a whole lot of heartbreak.
Grant Kenyon, on the other hand, is ready to take a chance. He figures anyone who hesitates when it comes to grabbing what he wants from life risks losing out.
Foofuss, Grant’s bossy, matchmaking Persian cat, has decided his master needs company and Seth is it...that’s if he can figure out the perfect plan to bring the two of them together.
Excerpt:
...I figured my best chance of exposing the ghost was to spend tonight and however many other nights it took, camped out at Sweet Briar. I’d leave my truck far enough away so it wouldn’t be noticed, and go in and out via the back door.
I got there a little after eight. There was no SUV or any other type of vehicle parked along that stretch of the road, so I settled down to wait. Over the next few hours, a number of different vehicles appeared. Some stopped to let off a passenger or pick someone up, and some just kept on going, but none of them parked.
At midnight, I gave up and went in search of my sleeping bag. The power was supposed to be turned back on today, but there was a message on voice mail to the effect it wouldn’t be happening until tomorrow. In the meantime, the house felt cold and damp, and I was freezing my butt off.
Between a shaft of moonlight shining through the kitchen window and a hazard light I kept in the truck, I managed to find the flask of hot coffee I’d brought with me and set up my bed for the night.
I was about to take off my work boots and settle down when I heard a faint scratching on the glass.
I didn’t need to guess who it was; I knew. And sure enough, when I went over to the window, there was Foo, sitting on an old wooden box, glaring in at me from the other side. His mouth was going a mile a minute, demanding to be let in.
For a brief moment, I considered ignoring him. But then he cocked his head to one side and mouthed a silent, Pleeeease. He looked so damn cute I gave up.
I opened the back door. “You want to come in?”
He made a noise somewhere between a growl and hrmph, jumped down from the box and headed away along the side of the house. At the corner, he stopped and looked back, his big tail twitching back and forth as if to say, Move it man. I’m waiting.
“You want me to take you home?”
He disappeared around the corner. I followed and found him waiting in the middle of the driveway. He continued on to the street, turned toward home and then hesitated again.
It was clear he wanted me to follow him home, and I wondered why? I knew animals were capable of amazing things, and I wondered if something was wrong with Grant. Had he hurt himself, and Foo was out, looking for help?
But in that case, how did he get out? Or was he out and couldn’t get back in?
I grabbed Foo, hurried over to Grant’s house and pressed the buzzer. There were lights on, but since I couldn’t hear anything, I pounded on the door, praying he was okay.
The hall light came, and I heard Grant’s voice saying “Okay, okay, I’m here. What’s the problem?” Then the rattle of the safety chain as he opened the door.
He was still dressed, but he looked sleepy with his hair all ruffled up. And I hadn’t seen him wearing glasses before. The oblong-shaped, dark-rimmed glasses made him look cute and sexy, and…
I released my breath in a soft whoosh, put Foo down and wrapped my arms around him, virtually in one quick motion. “Thank God you’re okay! When Foo showed up and started scratching on the window, I thought… Never mind what I thought.”
He laughed and hugged me back. “As you can see, I’m fine. I was waiting for Foo to come home so I could lock up. I guess I fell asleep. More to the point, what are you doing out here at this hour?”
“I, umm…” I remembered, belatedly, the door was still open. I looked down and there was Foo, gazing up at the two of us with a smug, gotcha expression on his furry face. Unless I was very much mistaken, getting the two of us together had been the reason for his visit. “Would you believe looking for ghosts?”
“Ghosts? Hmm…” Grant’s hands slid down my back and he pulled me closer. I groaned softly as my cock reacted. Kicking the door shut with my foot, I gave in to what had been in the cards since the moment our eyes first met over at Sweet Briar...
Cool mysteries and hot romance - http://www.chrisgrover.ca
Latest Release: AND THE CAT CAME BACK - http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure
Coming soon: THE RIVALS
http://www.myspace.com/185513895 http://twitter.com/chrisgrover2
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Just released! A Cat Named Hercules by KC Kendricks

2012-01-15T11:49:00.000-08:00

A CAT NAMED HERCULES
contemporary gay romance
available now at
Amber Allure

New in town, Shiloh Rudy joins a group of civic-minded volunteers to better acquaint himself with his recently adopted community. It’s a good way to make friends, network, and help make a difference, not to mention perhaps meet someone interesting—in a romantic sort of way. The one thing Shiloh didn’t expect was a love to rival all others to come with four white paws.

Gale Widmyer is on his feet and moving forward after piecing his life back together following a series of wrong choices. The one bright spot in his existence, even in his darkest moments, was the fulfillment of his dream to become a veterinarian. Gale’s making good on a promise to himself when an abandoned kitten leads him to Shiloh Rudy and a chance at the happiness he never hoped to have.

Laying the cornerstone for a developing relationship comes easy for Shiloh and Gale. But the wounds of the past often remain unhealed at their deepest point. A few careless words erect a wall of silence between the two men, one Shiloh has to breach if he hopes to win Gale back. But it will take more than apologies to win Gale’s forgiveness and put old fears to rest. It’ll take a cat named Hercules...

INTRO:

…The abrupt weaning I understood, but the other? Who would do that to such a helpless creature? “Then I’m keeping him.”

“In that case, your kitten has fleas, ear mites, and a touch of conjunctivitis. He’s also under nourished and almost surely has worms.”

My heart pounded as I snatched the kitten from Galen’s hands and tucked him safely against my chest. “Is he going to die?”

Galen pushed his sunglasses up to rest on top of his head and grinned at me. I fell into his gorgeous hazel eyes as he stared into my sky blue orbs with open curiosity. Damn, the man had long eyelashes.

“He’ll be fine. Do you think we can finish our chores here this morning, or do we need to go straight to my clinic so I can treat him and fix you up with what you need?” He poked the kitten’s paw and those tiny, wicked claws popped out again. “You’re in for a real treat with this little guy.”

I’d go anywhere he asked me to go, but I didn’t want to appear too eager. “Oh? Why is that?”

“They call cats with these black and white markings a ‘tuxedo’ because, obviously, they look like they’re wearing one. This fellow has the added bonus of white ‘gloves.’ Tuxedos tend to have a lot of personality.” Galen squeezed my elbow. I thought his hand lingered a moment too long, but perhaps it was just wishful thinking.

“C’mon. I’ll tell the other work crew they’ll have to finish pulling up these bricks and we’ll go to the clinic.”

“Thanks, man. I owe you.”

I knew I was in two kinds of trouble when he nodded and grinned. “I’m afraid you will…”

EXCERPT

...Gale opened his front door and moved back so I could step inside. Complimenting his choice of attire required breathing, and he’d knocked the air right out of me. Black slacks, a maroon-and-black long sleeved knit shirt in a classic argyle pattern, and loafers had never affected me like this before. I managed to speak the inane phrase.

“Wow. You look great.”

He smiled at me as he closed the door. “Thanks. So do you.”

Gale reached for me, then stopped. I hated to see his uncertainty. It was more proof he needed to do some living before he got serious about anyone, including me. I smiled and closed the distance between us, slipping my arms around his waist. Our lower bodies touched, then he leaned into me. His lips opened as my mouth covered his, and I tasted the cinnamon freshness of chewing gum recently disposed of. He pulled away.

“What? You’re grinning.”

“I am. I just learned what gum you like.”

He rolled his eyes. “You’re a little nuts, aren’t you?”

I was nuts about him, but I couldn’t say the words aloud. “I’m no more crazy than the next guy.” I kissed him again, enjoying the connection between us.

Gale deepened the kiss and my body responded with a delicious jolt of arousal that sent heat all the way to my toes. My cock swelled, eager to convince to me to forget dinner and go hungry this evening. Gale rested his forehead on my shoulder.

“I could get all stupid and say we should forget dinner and just go to bed.”

I ran my hands over his back, feeling the lines and planes of the lean body under the soft shirt. Was he hard, too? I cupped his ass to steady him and pressed my pelvis tightly to his.

“We’re at the same level of ‘stupid,’ but we’ve got to eat.” I squeezed his butt. “Don’t we?”

His stomach rumbled, and we laughed. I loved being able to laugh with him. He kissed me with those cinnamon-flavored lips again, then released me. “I am hungry, Shiloh. Let me get a jacket.”

“We have time for a quickie, you know.” Damn. I shouldn’t have said that. The sharp interest in his shining gaze was total agreement. He grabbed my hand and dragged me toward the oak stairs.

“Nice place you have here.”

“Don’t try and change the subject. Remember, I’ve been deprived. I have to make up for lost time.”

I barely noticed his bedroom. We’d both dressed for each other with such care and now clothing flew in all directions. His hands brushed across my chest, cool with excitement, then he turned away. Gale yanked the bedspread down and jerked open a drawer in the large bookcase headboard and tossed condoms and lube onto the pale blue sheet. I grabbed his hips and bumped my pelvis to his ass.

“No time for that.” I planted my left knee on the bed, held on tight to him, and rolled us onto the mattress. “Hand job. Then we get some food into us so we can come back and do it better.”

He grunted as he broke free of my grasp and crawled up to the pillows. “I guess we can leave our socks on, huh?”

“Yep.” I knelt over him. Gale laughed and caressed the inside of my thighs. I shivered, but not with cold. My sac tingled and drew tight to my body as he cupped it.

“Tell me you don’t plan to shoot all over me again.”

I grinned and flopped down beside him. “Not tonight, at least.”

“What do you plan to do to me?” He shifted to face me.

I rolled onto my side and fisted his hard dick.

“Just this right now...”

A CAT NAMED HERCULES
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-234-8
contemporary gay romance available now at
http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/CatNamedHercules.html

KC Kendricks
website at: http://www.kckendricks.com
blog: http://www.kckendricks.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks
mailing list at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/betweenthekeys
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1989106.K_C_Kendricks
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Kc-Kendricks/1439574042
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/kckendricks

The journey begins with a runaway prince

2012-01-04T08:05:00.000-08:00

2012 is already looking to be a fantastical year for me, I hope it is starting off promising for everyone else ^__^

No small part of my excitement lies with the fact that this year I will be publishing a series very dear to me. I am a fantasy junkie. No matter how much fun I have writing contemporary, paranormal, and everything else I play with, my heart lies with fantasy. My excitement to see this series published is beyond ridiculous. :D

The Lost Gods is a five book series, each book focusing on a particular country. The first book, Treasure is about the kingdom of Kundou, a nation that worships the Dragons of the Three Storms. It's a small island nation, but holds dominion over the seas as well. This story focuses on four characters: a prince who is running away from home, his secretary and only friend, the merchant they hire to take them away, and the Captain of the ship they use to run away.

The official blurb:

Nine gods ruled the world, until the ultimate betrayal resulted in their destruction. Now, the world is dying and only by restoring the Lost Gods can it be saved.

Nine hundred years ago, the Dragons of the Three Storms, gods of chaos, tried to destroy their land of Kundou. Only by rising up and slaying the Dragons and stealing their power was Kundou saved. Now, that power resides in the royal family and grants them the right to rule.

But that power comes at a terrible price, and Prince Nankyokukai is determined that he will be the last to pay it—even if it means surrendering his chance with the man he has waited for his entire life.

-----

An excerpt can be read here. Treasure comes out January 25th at Less Than Three Press, with the rest of the series to follow every other month :D

Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to read. Enjoy the rest of your week, and the coming weekend!

Megan Derr
maderr.com
lessthanthreepress.com
@amasour

Desktop my fondness

2012-01-03T06:42:00.000-08:00

At the end of the last year I had to send my main computer - my laptop - out for repair. That left me to use my old desktop. My desktop (aka dinosaur) is over 10 years old so it's extremely slow. It takes 20 minutes or more for any program to move on it. At first it was frustrating. But then after being on the dinosaur for a few days it made me think of all the good times I’ve had using it. So I’m viewing it more fondly. It has server me well. Time for it to retire with grace. Once I get a new desktop I’ve decided to have a memorial for the dinosaur. A great send-off for all our wonderful times. In a way I’m glad that I was able to end the year using the desktop. I was even able to complete my WIP I was working on when my laptop acted up.

Using the desktop and being extremely patience with it's slowness I was able to make my goal of finishing up the book before year end. Yay! Good job, dinosaur *patting the side of my desktop and giving it a hug*

Happy 2012!

Talia Carmichael
http://taliacarmichael.com/
Fill Your Cravings

Blog: http://taliacarmichael.com/blog
Newsletter:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/taliacarmichael

Buy Sparks here

The Vampire & The Werewolf: A New Orleans Christmas

2011-12-31T09:00:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

Hope you've been relaxing, and celebrating with those you love! December 2011 ended with my first-ever m/m release. The story came organically from the erotic paranormal m/m/f series. After several readers and reviewers mentioned wanting to see the story of how Lawrence and Trevor met ... here it is!

The Vampire & The Werewolf: A New Orleans Christmas

Louisa Bacio

Vampires and werewolves don’t mix … or do they?

Before there were three, there were two. When a vampire swoops in to save Trevor from a rogue gang’s blood sport, the werewolf must fight his own inhibitions. The magic of New Orleans and the holiday season bring together these two unlikely lovers.

“In her first foray into the m/m genre, Ms. Bacio sets the pages ablaze in this sexy Christmas tale featuring two irresistible characters from her The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf series. There’s nothing better on a cold winter’s night than cozying up with the vampire and the werewolf as they come together in this sizzling story. This is my Christmas present to myself.”

Rebecca Leigh, author of Dirty Housewives

Available via Ravenous Romance and on Amazon Kindle.

Here's to a fantastic 2012!

Louisa Bacio

http://www.facebook.com/louisabacio

http://www.twitter.com/louisabacio

http://louisabacio.blogspot.com

Happy New Year's from Missy Lyons

2011-12-31T07:02:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year's everyone!

It's time to end the year 2011, whether we are ready or not--and I am ready!!

I am finding myself looking back over the year and evaluating what I did well and what didn't work. I think 2011 kicked my butt and then turned around and did it again. My husband lost his eye this year and my babygirl underwent a her first surgery. My priorities changed and I began to deal with what was most important to me--family. I stopped writing for the first half of the year and then took it up again in Summer and Fall and I think my word count for the year ended up being around 80,000 words. Not bad for putting my writing on a back burner. It's been quite a ride. Now I can't wait for this year to end so I can take the reins back to my life and get this horse and pony show started. lol

In 2012 I already have two releases scheduled and plans to use my time more wisely. I have a few friends that have already written down a list of the books they plan to write. Me? I'm not so organized, but I will be writing.

What are your plans for the New Year?

Lots of love to you all and I hope all your hopes and dreams come true for 2012! Happy New Years!

Missy Lyonswww.missylyons.com

Tonight I plan to break out the bubbly and celebrate until I can't party anymore and then I'll be sleeping it off tomorrow just like this guy. lol Enjoy your New Year's y'all!

Missy Lyons is the author of these m/m books:

Bareback on the Beach
Beach Bound
Heart of a Cowboy

Letter to Santa

2011-12-22T09:25:00.000-08:00

Dear Santa,

I've been a very good writer this year. I've barely killed off any characters (and all of those were important to the plot or evil). I've let the happily ever afters abound. I have worked very hard to stop using the word 'just' every other sentence and I met all...okay, most... well, some... all right! a couple of deadlines.

For Christmas this year I'd like a 10 pound bag of Kona coffee, for there to be 28 hours in the day instead of 24, and a cowboy with tight Wranglers that can cook and who will do dishes and laundry. Also, if he knows about plumbing and how to fix that tricky outlet in the garage, that would rock.

Also, please send Julia a werewolf (if he can deal with refencing the back and replacing the gutters and soffit, that would be a bonus). She likes them big and, Santa, he really needs to be willing to play with my cowboy.

Biting is fine.

The pack here would all very much like new rope bones. Sonny says that he has been a Very Good Dog and would like a new rubber chicken to chew the toes off. Sadie needs Greenies with glucosamine, and Kissy says she deserves a squeaky snake for not living up to her 'Destroyer of Worlds' nickname and leaving the Christmas tree standing.

Also, Santa, if you'll tell our family to give us a year off of new babies, I'd appreciate it. We sent a nephew home this year, but we gained the Boo baby, so we're even up. I can only crochet so many baby booties.

Thanks ever so.

BA Tortuga
The Good One. ;-)

http://www.batortuga.com
Because sometimes fistfights are foreplay.

How to Deal with Story Challenges: You Write

2011-12-21T08:04:00.000-08:00

So I'm winding down the last few pages of a story challenge...

But what does one do with prompts like this??

1. the setting ~ a bar that magically appears as a haven to those who have been dumped on NYE

2. some background to one of the main protags ~ one has never had a NYE kiss and is determined that this will be the year

3. another character/s ~ an unusual trio of fairy dragmothers in all shapes, sizes and powers

4. a conflict ~ the main characters are officially strangers but have a history of – seeing each other at the most embarrassing moments

5. an object/phrase/theme/whatever to be mentioned in the story somewhere ~ pickled eggs

Thank you very much, Kris from Kris 'n' Good Books for such a great challenge. I should have this story~Dragma's Tavern~for y'all just in time for New Year's Eve. Best of all, no matter how silly it turns out to be, it's FREE! I'll blog about it further on my site bryltyne.com when it's finished.

Here's a sneak preview:

"Where're we going?" I shifted in my seat,checked and confirmed the blocked door and window locks as inconspicuously aspossible. Obviously, we weren't going "out" anytime soon, other thanoutside of town by the looks of the rapidly passing barren landscape. "Itake it your intentions over the last few weeks have been more businessoriented than pleasure." I said it with a chuckle, hoping he'd change hismind since this was New Year's Eve. For chrissake, who'd rather shoot someone atthe stroke of midnight than kiss? I wouldn't; I was a lover not a fighter. Toobad my family didn't see it that way. He cleared his throat, and I met a look Icouldn't quite read. "Really." That's about all I could think to sayas I stared into his eyes. Eyes that said no more than "I'm not here forgames." Neither was I. Not now.

To think I actually entertained the thought that hemight be the one. I looked back out the window and at the darkening horizon. Joe,Jim... John—Yeah, from this moment forward, I'd refer to this stooge—my latestliar of a boyfriend, for this wasn't the first time this'd happened to me—asJohn. Three weeks ago when we'd met for the first time at Porgy's, he'd told mehis name was Steve, but if he tried to tell me the truth now, I had no reasonto believe him. Sometimes they did that, just before pulling the trigger orsnapping open their switchblades; some crazy notion came over them to confessall their sins to me... as if that would change the outcome of their destination.

Whyme? Thatwas my question as the limo sped along the highway, toward the Ruby Mountains:why was I—the youngest of four—voted most likely heir to a family business Iwanted no part of to begin with. Besides, what bragging rights are there inmaking your fortune in pickled eggs? So, gramps had diversified and landed thisprotection gig in Elko, one my godfather, Franky, insisted I carry on since myfather had disappeared—rumored to have become part of the courthousefoundation—long before I was out of diapers. No matter how enterprising myancestors were, didn't mean I was proud of the path they'd chosen.

I hated my life.

"Listen, we don't have to do this," Isaid, offering what's his name a chance to change his mind as I met his gazeonce more—a gaze that told me he was set in his decision. But his smirk told mehis resolve came from money than conviction. "One last chance to changeyour mind."

In less time than it took me to swallow my disgust,his growing smile garnered my left knee, and the back of his head reflected offmy corresponding elbow. The limo swerved, accommodating our tumble into a pileon the floor. A series of short jabs later, a flip of my wrist, perfect handplacement, a quick snap. Jim, Joe, Bob, Ray... Steve—John lay crumpled andlifeless.

Brushing the dust from my lapels, I retook my seat.Seconds later, I cracked my neck, then smoothed back my hair. I couldn't dieyet. Twenty-four and I hadn't got a proper New Year's Eve kiss—the ones fromAunt Sue and Uncle Hugh when I was twelve sure as hell didn't count. I glancedat the body, still not breathing. Stupid fucker. Like I said, I'd been throughthis before. Numerous times, in fact, since I'd turned twenty-one, and alwaysjust before some holiday. This year's attempt simply happened to fall on NewYear's Eve.

Him or me. Seemed I was forever watching my back. Survivaldidn't count against your record to the big guy, did it? I drew my weapon,tapped on the glass separating me from the driver. The light flicked on as thewindows separated, and, with a firm nudge to the back of his head, I got hisattention. "Pull it over. I'm out of here."

Sweat trickled down his face from under his cap, buthe didn't try anything funny, just pulled the beast onto the shoulder and hitthe locks. I couldn't help but take a final look at the man called Steve, thesame man that finally, who after months of wining and dining, I'd decided togive my heart. Greed's a motherfucker.With each passing year, I hated being me a little more. Pathetic for someone so young, my next thought. The driver revvedthe engine. "Good man," I said upon exiting into the cold, dry air.

Without hesitation, he whipped the limo around andheaded back toward town. I wouldn't have hurt him. Not like any driver had adog in the fucked-up power struggle I knew as the status quo. The star-filledsky came better into focus the farther from me he got, and before histaillights were out of sight, I found myself surrounded by darkness, nightsounds, and a thick blanket of stars. I pulled out my cell phone— Great! The air left my lungs. No service. Just how far into the mountains was I?

Happy Holidays!

Bryl R. Tyne is a wrangler by nature and a writer by choice, published with Noble Romance Publishing, Ravenous Romance, Dreamspinner Press, STARbooks Press, Untreed Reads Publishing, Changeling Press, Amber Quill Press, and Riptide Publishing. Check out Bryl's bi-monthly column: My Way Find out more about the author at: bryltyne.com

Christmas Homecoming

2011-12-20T09:41:00.000-08:00

That's the title of my new Christmas release which comes out tomorrow. It's a Hammer Club story and a little bit of it takes place at the Hammer Club's annual Christmas Charity Auction. Christmas Auction and Christmas Angel are the other two stories set at the Hammer Club Charity Auction.

Grady's been waiting for over two years to see his lover, Joey, who's been deployed in Afghanistan. It looks like it's going to be Valentine's Day at the earliest before they're reunited, though. Oliver's been keeping Grady busy during the holiday season, and he just might have a Christmas surprise for Grady that the man will never forget.

Look for it December 21 at Torquere Books

I want to send a special shout out to those of you with loved ones who are deployed. A very peaceful and healthy holiday to you all, and may your loved ones come home soon, healthy and whole.

Happy Holidays and a healthy New Year to all!
Sean Michael
smut fixes everything
www.seanmichaelwrites.com

Sweet Seasons - KC Kendricks

2011-12-19T02:04:00.000-08:00

This is the time of the year when along with the external hustle and bustle of the holidays we all turn a bit introspective. Twinkling lights, silver bells, blow-up Santa’s on the neighbor’s lawn and mistletoe can only get a person so far. At the end of the day we need to take a deep breath and ponder that age-old question, “Where did this year go?”

I come to the Christmas season with my health and sense of humor intact. My muse is full of herself these days and I’ve more ideas than time. Homes are decorated and it’s time to visit and enjoy all the twinkling lights. Friends have been baking and there are cookies to be had. The Christmas day menu is planned, and the turkey purchased and in the freezer. The mailbox at the end of my lane yields greeting cards every day.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and “date” myself a bit. Way back in the seventies (“if you can remember the seventies you weren’t really there”) singer/songwriter Carole King released a song called “Sweet Seasons.” There are a few lines in that song that have stayed with me across the years:

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose
But most times you choose between the two

Those words have been true of my life, not just in 2011. All in all, this was a pretty good year. I’m more aware of what I can accomplish in an evening. I used to angst over not writing more, or not promo-ing more, or not networking more, now I seem to be able to take it in stride. It will all get done, sooner or later. Since it’s December 14th, it will likely be later.

But what did I accomplish this year? Looking back, a lot more than I thought! Come with me on a brief recap of the year. Roll over the book titles and the link will pop up.

December Promise. A story about two college lovers who reunite after twenty years. A lot can happen between one December and another.

Beneath Dark Stars. The sequel to The Back Stairs and the second in the tales of Sundown and Fallon. Stay tuned as more adventure awaits the pair.

Sundown. The paperback with The Back Stairs and Beneath Dark Stars.

Between the Moon and the Deep Blue Sea. A young man gets a chance to reshape his life and become an equal with his new lover.

Your Whisper in the Dark. Book four in the Men of Marionville series. Life has a strange way of giving you what you need.

Whispered Confessions. The paperback with What You Don't Confess and Your Whisper in the Dark.

Highway Nights. You never know when love will walk through your front door and seduce you. Be ready.

Forever Tonight. The paperback with December Promise and Highway Nights.

Double Deuce. One of my favorite characters - Ian Coulter, private eye. He's smart and sexy, and not the type to settle down.

No wonder I'm out of breath!

May you and yours be healthy and happy this holiday season.
Merry Christmas!

KC Kendricks
website at: http://www.kckendricks.com
blog: http://www.kckendricks.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks
mailing list at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/betweenthekeys
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1989106.K_C_Kendricks
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Kc-Kendricks/1439574042
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/kckendricks

What to Do with Two?

2011-12-16T00:01:00.000-08:00

I'm in a bit of a unique situation this week. One I've seen a few authors deal with and the best thing to do is to make light of it and take advantage of it as much as you can. What do I mean? I released two books, in two different genres from two different publishers with only a day break between them. No, I've not started pulling out my hair...yet. LOL Fortunately, both books are GLBT so they do share that commonality.

In reality, the two books couldn't be more different.

On one hand there's Slow Break. The fourth book in my sci-fi/futuristic Sypricon Masters series with Decadent Publishing deals with the consequences a submissive, Jack, encounters when he returns to the BDSM club he abruptly left six months ago. It also means he's returning to Denton, the Dom he turned his back on without an explanation. It's not an easy journey for either of them, especially when feelings complicate matters.

Buy Link:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006M770V2

Blurb: Jack Cotton thought he’d made the right choice to walk away from Tawse, the only BDSM club on Sypricon. But a life-altering tragedy has shown him the error of his ways. Now, he’s ready to make amends and is more than prepared to kneel before the Dom he left so abruptly.

Denton is bound by the rules of Tawse, and he knows Jack’s membership has been terminated. But Jack’s return is all too personal and his actions can’t simply be ignored. Forced to make a choice, Denton does the only thing his instincts as a Dom tell him. After all, some men, like rules, are meant to be broken.

On the other hand, there's Hard as Stone. A paranormal erotic romance novella from Ellora's Cave, Hard as Stone deals with Brady, an emergency room doctor who has reached his breaking point. Unknown to him, he has a watcher, Garett, looking out for him that finally steps from the shadows when he sees he's needed the most. The two men share one explosive night of passion together but Brady awakens to find he must face the light of day on his own. Unwilling to settle, he takes matters into his own hands.

Buy Link: http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9796-hard-as-stone.aspx

Blurb: Brady thrives on saving patients in his busy emergency room, but when things don’t go according to plan, nothing prepares him for a chance encounter. There’s something familiar, and mysterious, about the downright sexy-as-hell stranger he encounters on a busy Chicago street.

In Garrett’s world there are no coincidences. He’s been standing as the doctor’s secret guardian for years. Driven by a burning need Brady unknowingly awakened more than a decade ago, Garrett finally breaks his silence. He steps in to show Brady there’s more to life than rescuing those in need.

Roused by their desperate passion for one another, their desire reaches an explosive breaking point. Brady realizes one night isn’t enough, but Garrett is bound by rules he can’t change. Now Brady’s healing touch may save more than just a life—it may just save Garrett’s soul.

So, two books, three days and four men equal one very tired author. *g*

~*~

Sara Brookes is an award-winning, multi-published author who has always been fascinated by the strange, the unusual, the twisted and the lost (tortured heroes are her personal favorite). She is an action movie junkie, addicted to coffee and has been known to stay up until the wee hours of the morning playing RPG video games. Despite all this, she is a romantic at heart and is always a sucker for an excellent love story. She loves to connect with readers on Twitter and Facebook

You can find out more information about Sara's books at her website.

New Release! Needing To (m/m, Roughstock)

2011-12-15T19:24:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all! Happy December! I'm tickled to share my holiday piece, Needing To, with you. Needing To was inspired by a trip to Vegas this year with my partner, Julia. We were sitting in our hotel room and watching the hotel TV and playing the what-if game.

What if there was this rodeo cowboy and what if he saw a rock star at a resort.

What if said rock star was an old friend?

What if the cowboy decided to just go say hi?

;-)

Official Blurb: Boone doesn’t think he’ll find much on his Reno hotel TV, but he’s looking for a little something to brighten his day. Instead of adult entertainment, though, he finds an advertisement for the headlining act at the casino, rock star Gerald High. Boone doesn’t know Gerald High from Adam, but he knows the man behind the stage name: his old high school buddy, Danny.

Lead singer Danny is a mess when Boone forces his way into the penthouse suite, not sure he knows what day it is, or even where he is. He remembers Boone though, the cowboy who got away all those years ago. Can Boone give Danny the merry Christmas he never expected to have?

Sample

“You like all this, Danby?” Suddenly he had the terrible urge to grab Danny and run. Like he had a right to after all these years. This wasn’t like the Danby he knew, though. Not at all.

“No.” Danny looked him right in the eyes, looking about a million years old, and so sad. “But that’s the way it is. This is what I do. Why did you come, Dub?”

“Because I wanted to see you. I think about you a lot, man.” Okay, it was usually when he was drunk, late at night and lonely o’clock. Didn’t mean it wasn’t true.

“Oh.” Danny smiled and for a second the man was nineteen again, full of mischief. “You still passing for straight?”

He laughed, the sound surprised right out of him. “These days I’m passing for a monk.”

“That’s a damn shame. You were always good with your hands.”

“I’m even better with my mouth.” His cheeks heated, but he’d been told it was the truth. More than one cowboy had said so in the back of a king cab. It was probably a lie, since he was always in a hurry, but they’d said it.

“That doesn’t surprise me.” Danny’s lips quirked in a one-sided smile. “You look like walking sex.”

His face was going up in flames. “Yeah? Thanks.” He wasn’t nothin’ special. Just Wranglers and a white shirt and his boots and hat, but if Danny liked it, he was pleased.

“Yeah. Come on. I want some sun.” Danny stood up, swaying dangerously, and led him into a pair of double doors, past a huge bed with crumpled covers.

He moved right up to support Danny with one hand, following him to the balcony, which was huge. Even had picnic tables. The view was fucking amazing.

“Nice.”

“Yeah?” Danny shrugged. “I like the sun.”

Boone didn’t bother to point out that it was snowing. Danny was going to catch his death, for God’s sake. It was almost Christmas, and in Reno that meant cold.

Danny plopped down, the man’s face ghostly white with the weird makeup.

“Be right back, man. I need to use the head.” And find a washcloth and a blanket.

“It’s right there.”

The bathroom was fucking enormous, strewn with pills and make up and towels, along with sheets of paper covered in scribbles. Music. The whole thing was sad. It looked like Danny hid in the head a lot.

Some of the scribbles could be good songs. Danny still had it. It was just clouded by the drugs. He sighed, wetting a washcloth, getting it steamy, looking for a big bath towel that was clean-- oh, a robe. Good deal.

“What are you up to, man? Where’s G?” That came from Spencer. The smary little manager dude on the other side of the door. Creepy fucker.

“Dub? Are you there? Don’t let him in.” Danny’s voice floated back to him, too, and that was just sad, that he didn’t trust his manager.

“I’m right here.” Boone came out to the balcony thing again, smiling as he held out the robe. He got Danny all cuddled up in it before easing him back down to wipe his face. “I want to see you, huh? No more make-up.”

“No one wants to see me. Just this. This is what they pay for.”

“Well, I didn’t pay a cover at the door, Danby.” He held Danny’s chin and wiped the rest of the make-up off. “There you are.”

God, the man looked tired, scared, bruised and skinny. The smile that he got, though, that was real enough, that was his friend. Someone who was so glad to see him that it ached. He hadn’t had a plan when he walked in, but he had one now.

He could no more help the words that came out of his mouth than he could stop the sun from coming up. “Let’s get out of here.”

“What?” The word was surprised, but he got a nod immediately, Danny agreeing right off the bat.

“Let’s just go. My finals are over; we could get a cabin up in the mountains.” It was crazy, but it was right.

“Just... now?” Danny blinked at him, the little traces of mascara making him look like a raccoon.

“Yeah. We’ll stop at a Wal-Mart, get boots and coats and shit.” Yes, now. He could just take Danny away.

“Okay.” Danny nodded again, jaw set like he’d made a tough decision.

Okay. Yes. Fuck. Good. Boone felt a ball of tension settle in his belly. They’d have to get out past all the sleazy...

“Is there a back way out of the suite? Like that the service folks use?”

“There’s a hallway that Spence takes me to when a group of fans gets in. It’s just back behind the closet.”

“Let’s go.” He reached down and pulled Danny up, supporting him with one shoulder. Danny swayed but stayed upright, clinging to him like a limpet.

They were getting the hell out of Dodge.

Now.

Needing To is available here :D

BA Tortuga

http://www.batortuga.com

Because sometimes fistfights are foreplay.

Making a shark

2011-12-14T19:25:00.000-08:00

Hey, peeps!

I'm making a crochet shark! Well, BA Tortuga made the shark, and I am assembling. It's adorable, even if it is a predator.

I have to admit, I'm all about the predator sometimes. I love werewolves for the hunting instincts, for the biting and the dominating. I love vampires for the same reasons. Warlocks? Come on, these are predators, too...

Amadeo, in my latest book from Changeling Press, is a predator, too, in his own way. He's a psychic who has always used his powers for mischief, but who's trying to go straight, at least in his work life.

In his personal life, there's Jon. That makes it hard to go straight...

You can find Cirque Caprice: Ringmaster here

Have a peek at the cover!

Thanks for checking in y'all!

XXOO

Julia

www.juliatalbot.com

A Little Humor and Snark in Erotica Writing

2011-12-13T04:00:00.000-08:00

Greetings! BL here, another muse from Author Sharita Lira.

Today I wanted to add a post about writing with humor and snark. Now, even in something as serious as romance and erotica writing, there’s nothing wrong with making your characters a little funny. It might be a one liner, a full riddle, or joke, or even the way you portray them in the story.

Well, me, the snarky gal in the Triad of muses make my name stand out that way. Between the 3 of us, I’m usually the one that has that snarky, smart ass mofo that annoys some and endears others. It really depends on the storyline and how they speak to me. Want examples? Okay I’ll give you two.

In my first novella, My Lieutenant, my interracial mm romance, my character Nathan Ellerby fits that bill. Smart ass, funny, isn’t opposed to using the dirty words in all his conversations even the ones with himself. Nathan is the female version of me with some of the things he says. What makes it even better is that he’s a gay man that harbors serious issues about control in his relationships. He pairs up with a man who is used to it and the whole story revolves around him giving up the reins. Does he do it for love? You must read it to find out.

In my latest mm erotica romance, Something Fresh Served Hot, my character Jimmy LaCosta and his opposite Alex Seidling are both snarky smart asses with quick tongues. Here’s two strong minded men trying to match wits and at the same time, overcome their own personal feelings about relationships. It’s got plenty of one-liners, a lot from Alex who sets Jimmy straight on a lot of things. Read to find out.

See? Those are some serious relationship subjects with some humor and there’s more to come from this snarky wicked gal. Just stay tuned to find out.

http://blakraynebooks.blogspot.com, posts with Rawiya at Erotic Diaries and a feature with fellow Rebel Cassandre Dayne called the Wicked Women Wednesdays.

For more information, please visit, http://www.thelitriad.com and to ask any questions, email srlmort71@gmail.com

. Links

The Literary Triad - http://www.thelitriad.com/#!

The Literary Triad on FB - https://www.facebook.com/TheLiteraryTriad
Michael Mandrake - http://tabooindeed.blogspot.com

BLMorticia – http://blrawiyaerotica.blogspot.com/

Twitter - http://twitter.com/#!/rawiyamikembl

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSharitaLira
Kindlegraph - http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/rawiyamikembl

My Lieutenant Blurb:

Official Blurb: Nathan Ellerby's apartment has been ransacked by his ex who didn't like the fact Nathan dumped him. Trouncing through the debris uttering a string of obscenities, Nathan's shocked to see Lieutenant Bryant Duncan at his door claiming he's already caught the offender. Sensing an instant connection, when Nathan finds out Bryant's divorced and he's straddling the fence between being gay or bisexual, Nathan finds himself in a quandary.

Although the Lieutenant does everything in his power to prove to Nathan he's worthy, Nathan is afraid to lower his defenses which leaves both men wondering if Nathan will allow love into his life even through his doubts.

Buylinks Amazon ARe Bookstrand

To read an excerpt click here

Booktrailer

* * * *

Something Fresh Served Hot from Something New on the Menu Series Book One Blurb

A gay contemporary comedy which features a Chicago homophobe by the name of Jimmy LaCosta who works at a diner called the Greasy Spoon on the Northside of Chicago near Boys Town. While working, Jimmy meets the incoming manager, Alex Seidling, a young British man who his present boss is hiring to take his place as he retires.

After the initial meeting in which Jimmy feels uncomfortable with Alex's stares, Jimmy cultivates a friendship with Alex which develops into something totally different than he himself expects. This shocks him and he tries to fight it but because of his growing feelings he decides to pursue it despite all of what he has been taught.

Will he do what his body wants? Will Alex accept his advances even though he will soon become Jimmy’s boss?

Click here to read an excerpt

Buylinks - Amazon ARe Smashwords

Booktrailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9txKw20-Ws&feature=player_embedded

The Appeal of Vampires - Michael Mandrake

2011-12-12T04:00:00.000-08:00

The Appeal of Vampires

Greetings fans!

I’m Michael Mandrake, an author representing XOXO publishing and today I’m writing an article about vampires. Why is it that we love a good vampire story?

Could it be the attraction to how they look? The fact they’re immortal and live just on the blood of humans? Maybe it’s something about how they kill to survive? Whatever it is, vampires will always be lauded as some of the most entertaining paranormal creatures in fiction and movies.

Now, I’m old school so Twilight is not one of my favorites. Some of the things that exist in that movie aren’t befitting a typical vamp. The type I love are more of the Bram Stoker or Anne Rice Variety.

One of my favorites remains to this day, Louis and Lestat in Interview with A Vampire. Since I’ve read all of the books, I looked for the similarities between the book and the film and when I saw it years ago as when I see it today, it’s one of the closest adaptations from movie to film there is.

Louis portrayed by Brad Pitt, Lestat by Tom Cruise, “chile” and maker respectively, a couple who I rooted for throughout the movie. Of course, everyone might not have been looking for the homoerotic cues in the film but there were several something this gay male muse could appreciate. However, the lure of this story is the beauty of the characters, how they became almost unstoppable, their youth maintained when they feasted on other mortals to sustain themselves. I loved the story and how it continued with Louis developing a father like relationship with the child and Lestat getting jealous.

So many great things about the film but I won’t go into any more but I believe Anne Rice’s books and the films that came later have made vampire culture strong within today’s society. Look at what’s out now; Vampire Diaries, True Blood, and Twilight all taking cues from Interview and creating their own stories. Like them or not they all hold a certain appeal, meaning vampire tales will always be popular.

So, what is the appeal? Many things but rest assured, a vampire story will always be welcomed in entertainment no matter how good or bad, something that will never get old or grow stale.

I’m in for the ride. Are you?

Amazon

XOXO

The Power of Muse and Inspriration: An M/M paranormal tale about love and sacrifice.

Blurb: No such thing as vampires!

William Chatterley is an up and coming author looking for a partner after many dead end dates. Finally, he believes he’s found a suitable mate in Andrew and they see one another.

The vampire Jude is weak from being without love in his life. When he sees the author, he desires him right away but his companion is a stumbling block.

How will he get passed it and when he does, will the mortal want to be his partner? What will he choose? Will Jude convince him to become his eternal lover?

PG Excerpt

“Yes, yes, come to me my child!” Jude lay his head against a dead tree. He sensed two virile young men he might like to enjoy for a double entree. Since he couldn’t have love why not fill up his belly with young blood for nourishment. He waved his long fingers and opened his eyes, gazing around the open field till he caught sight of the two he’d seen in his mind’s eye.

As always the faces were skewed when he looked deep within to see his prey but now that they’d come into view, he noticed one he didn’t want to destroy.

“Wha…I…” At a loss of words was Jude, gawking at the handsome man running away from another. “My, I’ve never seen in all my years a more gorgeous sight.” That moment the old immortal felt his muscles strengthen and his face tightening. A new feeling of love and inspiration came over him.

A mortal, so lovely and beautiful, the desire to live started to return.

Read the first full chapter here

BIO: Michael Mandrake is a BRIT!

A 39 year old Brummie who loves to write tales of love and romance between two men that aren't afraid to show their sexuality. At least that's what this 39 year old mom from the US thinks he is. They talk on a regular basis, Sharita and her muse.

Now for the truth, Sharita, who also writes under Rawiya and BLMorticia is a happily married mom of 2 who loves everything about British culture and hopes to visit someday.

Michael M is her most successful pseudonym. To date, he is the only muse with 2 sole author books, 2 more coming into 2012. He is contracted through XOXO pblishing, Sizzler Editions, No Boundaries Publishing, and does shorts through STARbooks Press.

Michael shares Sharita's love for writing tales where the characters aren't perfect, they cross into new territory and resolve their struggles through communication and mind blowing sex.

At the moment, Mandrake’s books are only small steps into what’s to come. Look for longer works from Sharita and the muse, Michael very soon.

Links

Sharita L aka Michael M/Rawiya/BLMorticia

The Literary Triad - http://www.thelitriad.com/#!
Michael Mandrake - http://tabooindeed.blogspot.com

Rawiya - http://rawiyaerotica.wordpress.com

BLMorticia - http://blrawiyaerotica.blogspot.com

Twitter - http://twitter.com/#!/rawiyamikembl

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSharitaLira

NIGHT TRAIN TO VENICE - How Carolina's Current Work In Progress Began

2011-12-10T00:49:00.000-08:00

I wanted to write a vampire. Like warm honey, the idea floated in the back of my mind without ever reaching my keyboard. Some day, I promised myself, I would write a vampire.

Over a year later, I agreed to write a novella for THAT'S AMORE!, an AmberPax™ collection of stories related in some way to Italy.

A story about what, I wondered? Cleaning out a cupboard containing old vinyls, I saw the song title Night Train. Suddenly, there was the title to my story.

NIGHT TRAIN TO NAPLES was a catchy alliteration, but was there one? Yes! There is a night train--from Rome to Naples. So, who would be riding on it and why?

I could almost taste that warm honey of a thought I'd had almost two years earlier--cloaked in darkness, a vampire would be riding that train. Seven hundred years as one of the undead had tamed the blond, emerald-eyed Greek, turned when he was an arrogant, wild young man sewing his oats. Alexandros Nicolaides was now a New Orleans diamond courier seeking a new account from the prince of the Southern Italy vampires for his American boss.

And he was being followed.

When I was writing my first novel, a romantic suspense, an author in my critique group asked, "Who hates your heroine?"

Those words echoed in my thoughts for the Naples piece. Who hated my gorgeous, powerful Greek vampire enough to kill him and Dante, his human Italian lover? Giacomo, that's who--a jealous discarded lover whom Alex had now humiliated professionally in front of his peers.

The story ends with Giacomo in the wind. It wasn't a conscious decision by me, it was just the way my characters' story evolved. Dante has agreed to give up his job in Italy and join Alexandros in his home in New Orleans. Now the story must move there.

NIGHT TRAIN TO NEW ORLEANS

Research revealed you have to fly from London to New Orleans, and all flights arrive in daylight. To bring Dante to Alex in the evening, I had to create a storm forcing his plane to reroute to Baton Rouge--because that's where I found an international airport and a night train to New Orleans.

For some reason, a Prussian vampire, turned in his early forties, is Alex's co-courier in "Nawlins." Don't ask me where he came from because I have no idea. He's more level headed and draws less attention than the elegant Alexandros. As this story ends, the problem of Giacomo has been settled, but I wasn't ready to let go of these characters, and readers were asking for more.

With other writing commitments to Amber Quill Press completed, I've begun the third novella in this series. The three will appear together in paperback when this next story is released digitally in Spring 2012...

NIGHT TRAIN TO VENICE

You might have guessed that I love history. New Orleans may be the most fabulous historic city in the United States. Venice is one of the most unique cities in the world. Its origins date to the sixth century CE. Built in a lagoon off the Adriatic Sea, it's a treasure trove of architecture and art. It conjures up pictures of palazzi, Mardi Gras, and of colorful hatted gondoliers pushing tourists through narrow canals in black gondolas trimmed in gold. Visitors must either walk or take watercraft to move about the city. Cars aren't allowed. It also has dark byways where crimes can take place--perfect setting for a suspense.

I knew it could be reached by train. But the crucial question was: Is there a night train? You guessed it--one runs from Rome to Venice. Yay!

Renowned mystery writer Agatha Christie was once marooned on this train in a blizzard. Later, she used it in one of her Hercule Poirot novels. The train was originally built in 1883, and I thought it had been destroyed. But right now my characters are ready to disembark the historic and refurbished Simplon-Orient-Express at the Venice station and step out into their latest adventure, which I think, at this point, may go something like this:

"Diamonds may be a girl’s best friend, but for a courier the next delivery may invite death. Someone is robbing and killing couriers of precious gems and metals.

To secure Dante Rocco’s safety when he leaves New Orleans on a major delivery and return pick up, the CEO of Global Diamond Couriers assigns the two staff immortals as his bodyguards—Alexandros Nicolaides, Dante’s lover, and their middle-aged friend, Malcolm Müller. When they board the night train, Malcolm is welcomed by Nick, a hot, younger man assigned as his steward. Nick seems to know a lot about the trio, and when he leaves the train at the same stop they do, Malcolm is tempted to engage in a whirlwind affair with him. But is Nick who he claims to be... After all, someone is killing couriers of precious gems and metals.

NIGHT TRAIN TO NAPLES - Buy Online Now
http://www.amberallure.com/NightTrainToNaples.html

The hot, urgent desire of an immortal for his human lover - the vengeful vampire who wants to kill them - and the world of precious stones.

NIGHT TRAIN TO NEW ORLEANS - Buy Online Now
http://www.amberallure.com/NightTrainNewOrleans.html

Danger and passion heat up the reunion of Dante with Alexandros, his vampire lover.

COMING NEXT SPRING FROM AMBER ALLURE - NIGHT TRAIN TO VENICE

Carolina Valdez
http://www.carolinavaldez.com

Watching the National Finals Rodeo

2011-12-08T08:32:00.000-08:00

Hey, y’all!

Been watching the National Finals Rodeo on TV the last week. Usually they bury it on some secondary sports channel, and I see maybe five minutes of actual coverage. This year it’s on a major country music channel, and I get two hours a night!

I love rodeo. Y’all know that. Usually I wax poetic about bullriders and bullfighters, but with the finals rodeo, I have so much more to love on. Bareback bronc riders are the craziest men in rodeo. Ask any bullrider and they’ll tell you. Broncs are way less predictable than bulls, and whiplash is the name of the game.

The ropers always make me think of my daddy. He always says a real cowboy does the timed events, that it takes way more skill to rope than it does to hang on for eight seconds. I love my roughstock events to a frazzle, but I have to admit there’s something about how fast the really good ropers can throw a loop that amazes me. And there's the butts in the saddles. Uhn.

We can’t forget about the ladies, either. Those barrel racers have a thing for speed, and there’s a lady in the top fifteen right now who’s over 60. How damned cool is that? You go lady!

Of course, when it comes right down to it, the bullriding is my favorite. I love the way bullriders stand. I love the way bullfighters take the hit when the bull gets too close to that cowboy. I even love how wicked smart the bulls are.

What does all this mean? Inspiration! I believe wholeheartedly that inspiration is like a glass. You have to fill it up to be able to sip out of it, and watching rodeo helps mine go from half-empty to overflowing!

Long live cowboys.

BA Tortuga

http://www.batortuga.com

Because sometimes fistfights are foreplay!

Happy Holidays

2011-12-06T22:28:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to take a few moments to wish everyone a happy holidays. I hope you have a great and joyous month. And remember, don't forget to sing!

THJIS TIME FOR KEEPS

2011-12-06T20:45:00.000-08:00

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE AND ALL THE BEST FOR 2012

This Time For Keeps
by Christiane France
http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/ThisTimeForKeeps.html
This a paranormal erotic romance about Josh and Pete who were always breaking up and getting back together. The last time it happened, they swore their ten-year affair was over for good. Although Pete moved out, and Josh took a job overseas, Josh figured it was simply a matter of waiting to see who would give in first--the same routine they’d gone through a dozen times before. Except Pete didn’t call, and when Josh tried to contact Pete, it turned out both of Pete’s numbers had been disconnected. He tried telling himself Pete didn’t love him any more, that Pete had found someone new and moved on. But ten years is a long time--too long to just dismiss like it was nothing. If Pete no longer loves him, then Josh needs to hear that from Pete in person. Determined to find out the reason for Pete’s silence, Josh returns home to the mind-numbing news that Pete is dead--he was killed two months earlier when he tried to stop thieves from stealing his car. But during his shock and grief, Josh also comes to the realization that death doesn't always break the bond between two lovers destined to be together forever...

Christiane

Excerpt:

A couple of weeks before Christmas, Josh filled a mug with hot apple cider and stretched out in front of a cozy fire of pine logs and scented wood chips to enjoy the new thriller he’d just purchased that afternoon. He’d barely got settled on the sofa when he felt a blast of icy air invade the room. The house was well insulated, the doors and windows all tightly closed, and the drapes drawn to shut out the winter storm that was picking up strength as it roared across the lake. But Josh knew at once what had caused the sudden chill, and it wasn’t the weather.
“Where you been?” he inquired with a smile. “I haven’t seen you in days.”
“Hiding out under the blankets. This house is so damn cold, I’m freezing my ass off.”
“I didn’t know ghosts could feel the difference between hot and cold.”
“Now you do. Do you mind if I wrap myself up in this rug?”
Josh’s smile increased as he watched one end of the sheepskin rug in front of the fireplace lift up, apparently all by itself, and roll itself into a cylinder shape. “If it’ll help, go ahead. But can you make yourself visible, please? I’m not sure I want to watch a rolled-up rug cavorting around the room all by itself.”
“It would not be by itself, and please note I do not cavort,” Pete informed him haughtily. “Anyway, the drapes are all closed. No one would see me.”
“It’s not you I’m worried about. It’s the thought of that rug doing the light fandango all by itself.” Josh gave a long, exaggerated sigh. “I’m liable to burst into peals of hysterical, uncontrollable laughter and injure myself.”
“That’s not even slightly funny.”
“I think it is.”
“Well, it’s not.” There was a slight hesitation, then Pete said, “Wanna cuddle instead?”
Josh felt a breath whisper across his face as unseen hands began to stroke and touch him just about everywhere. Fingers plucked at his clothing and danced over his belly and between his outstretched legs, and he immediately began to harden and grow while red-hot need built within him.
Living with a ghost was weird and strange and a whole lot of other stuff that took quite a bit of getting used to. Especially the way Pete walked through walls and closed doors as if they weren’t even there. But, since he couldn’t have the live Pete back, this was way better than nothing at all. Anyway, he liked this version, a lot. The new Pete was still the same great guy and fantastic lover he’d always been, just less moody and argumentative, and a lot more relaxed and entertaining.
“I’m not cuddling if I can’t see you. It’s no fun trying to make out with the invisible man.”
“Close your eyes.”
Josh did as he was told.
“Okay. Now open them.”
Again, Josh did as instructed. But the moment he saw Pete encased in the sheepskin rug with his head sticking out one end and his feet the other, he started to shake with laughter. “You…you…”
Pete narrowed his eyes and glared at him. “You find something amusing about terminal frostbite?”
“You’ve already been terminated, so I’m not worried about that,” Josh replied, doing his best to get his laughter under control. “It’s just…you…you look exactly like one of those new chicken wraps they’ve started serving at Cristoffe’s. All you need is a few shreds of lettuce in your hair and around your toes.”
“And a carrot stick through my nose?”
“Sure, why not?”
Pete dropped the rug and joined Josh on the sofa. After a couple of seconds, he muttered, “This isn’t working. I’m still freezing cold.”
“Wanna stop wriggling around so I can read my book?”
Before Josh knew what was happening, the book flew out of his hands and landed on the floor several feet away.
“You can’t read and make love.”
“That’s what we’re doing?”
“You got a better idea to warm me up?”
Once again, Josh closed his eyes, giving himself up to the moment and the scent of cedarwood shower soap as the magic of Pete’s mouth and hands took over.
“Love you, man,” Pete murmured as his tongue traced the outer edge of Josh’s ear. “But there isn’t enough room on this sofa, and that sheepskin rug is not only one helluva lot warmer, it’s closer to the fire.”
“The floor’s hard,” Josh argued, determined to stay where he was.
“Maybe so, but it’s still better. You’ll see,” Pete insisted, as he pushed Josh off the sofa and down on to the rug, then wrapped his arms around him from behind. “I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling warmer already.”
“I was warm enough where I was.”
“That so? Well, I’m gonna make you one whole helluva lot warmer. In fact, I want you hot,” Pete said with a chuckle as he eased Josh’s track pants down over his hips and began to caress his shaft. “I want to make you so damn hot and needy, your teeth’ll start to ache, and you’ll be begging me to fuck you silly.”

www.chrisgrover.ca

M/M Cover Love From Leigh Ellwood

2011-12-05T09:28:00.001-08:00

Hello, all. I'm happy to present some cover love for my upcoming release with All Romance eBooks. Odd is part of their Perfect Strangers series.

Greg Hargrove has a ticket to the hottest party in town: Drew Bradley's annual Odd Ball. Dressed for the theme as one half of a popular sitcom duo, Greg doesn't expect to meet his match and engage in a secret night of passion while the festivities rage on. When handsome Rick Wade falls on his radar, however, Greg decides to partake of more explicit party favors. Is Rick more than a one-night stand, though, or can Greg look forward to many passion-filled reruns?

Odd is coming in February, timed with ARe's Valentine's promotions. I plan to embark on a blog tour to promote the work, where I'll be giving away prizes at every stop. Hope you enjoy it!

Gay or Straight?

2011-12-02T07:30:00.000-08:00

Does an author have to be gay to write gay romance and straight to write straight romance?

The answer to this question is bound to be subjective. Though love and romance are universal, everyone has their own feelings and preferences regarding them.

My Reader Half:

Personally, I love to read and write all kinds of romance. In fiction and in life I like to look into a person's eyes before looking at any other part of them. In life, their personality and emotions attract me and in fiction they allow me to identify with a character or not. Their sex and gender make no difference.

I don't believe authors must experience what they write about, as long as they're able to understand their characters and make me care about their situation. When I choose a story to read, I'm most influenced by the blurb and excerpt, not so much the author bio. Actually the author bio is usually something I read after I finish a story I love and decide I'd like to know more about the person who wrote it and their other works.

My Writer Half:

As a writer I believe I am influenced by my personal preferences. Some characters are easier to write about than others because their personality traits are similar to my own. Others take more work because I need to step back and think about how they feel and how they should react to situations rather than how I would react or want them to react.

When I write, characters' sex and gender might make a difference. That depends on what the plotline is and whether or not they're handling specific issues with family, friends, work, etcetera. Similar to life (as I've found it) sex and gender issues don't consume every moment. Since my stories usually involve romance, friendship, arguments, trust and physical pleasure affect all my characters.

Your Views:

I know straight readers who enjoy GLBT romance fiction and GLBT readers who enjoy straight romance fiction.

Readers and writers, how do you feel? Do you think straight authors should stick to straight romance and GLBT to GLBT?

Visit Kate Hill online at http://www.kate-hill.com

Festive Mood

2011-12-01T06:26:00.001-08:00

I’ve been sleeping with the radio playing. They have started playing Christmas Songs. There is so many and I love hearing it. Every morning I wake signing the songs and in a festive mood. The holiday is fast approaching and I haven’t bought any of my gifts yet. But I will. So what is some of your favorite Christmas Songs.

Talia Carmichael
http://taliacarmichael.com/
Fill Your Cravings

Blog: http://taliacarmichael.com/blog
Newsletter:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/taliacarmichael

Buy Sparks here

Christmas Decorations up!

2011-11-30T15:43:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all!

BA Tortuga got our Christmas up outside today! Who has a lighted, animated bullriding Santa in the yard? Hoo yeah.

Chez Talbot/Tortuga is a festive place at Christmas. We have a forest of mini trees to put up inside. The mom Talbot tree with its fish ornaments and flannel garland, the cowboy tree with the tin star on top and the boot ornaments, the pink foil tree with the blue lights...

I know it's not the things that make Christmas special, but we've sure made some fun memories with the silliness!

What's your favorite holiday decoration (any holiday!)

Comment, and enter for a chance to win my Thatcher brother spin off story, Christmas Fire (m/m contemporary novela)

http://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=78_92&products_id=2596

XXOO

Julia Talbot
www.juliatalbot.com

Surrendered Victory by KC Kendricks

2011-11-21T06:34:00.000-08:00

I arrived home from the boring day job on Friday and found a new contract in the mailbox. Having been published for a while now, you'd think getting a new contract in the mail could be a "ho hum" moment. Not so. Sure, it's a moment of victory, and satisfaction. It's a validation of the weeks of hard work spent writing the story. It's an exciting "feel good" moment, but it comes with a lot of responsibility.

For those of you reading this who aspire to one day be published, I cannot emphasis strongly enough that the first responsibility of that contract is to yourself. Read it. Ask questions if you don't understand a clause. If anything in the contract strikes you as suspect, say so. There is little worse for the published author than to have her/his work trapped by contract with an unethical publisher. Having your work with the wrong publisher is a far worse thing than being unpublished for another few months while a fair and ethical publisher reads your submission.

So read the contract. Check around and see where your favorite authors have tons of books available. There's a reason they stay with the same publisher and it's called honesty. You owe it to yourself to take the step of signing a contract seriously.

And now for the fun stuff :) Since "first" seems to be my theme today, here's an excerpt from the very first KC Kendricks [link] release, Surrendered Victory [link].

* * * * * * * * * *

Surrendered Victory
2008 Amber Heat Wave Winner
Now available at Amber Allure
Purchase link [roll mouse over] http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/SurrenderedVictory.html

Dalton makes Reed tingle in all the right places. Now Reed’s ready to answer the question that’s haunted his every failed relationship. Is he really gay?

Reed walked into Dalton’s life and everything changed. This time, Dalton won’t hide the fact he’s gay from anyone, even his son.

Together they surrender all to each other and claim the ultimate victory - love.

EXCERPT

Dalton spoke so softly in my ear, his voice low and rough, that I marveled I heard him above the pounding of my heart.

“Trust me, Reed. Tonight is for simple things. I want to fuck you in the worst kind of way, but maybe not tonight. You set the pace. Just relax and enjoy. Okay?”

I nodded, relieved and yet disappointed. I wanted to fuck him, too, and in my ignorance wondered how much of a problem that posed for him since he wanted me. His hands slid around my waist, down across my hips to grip the inside of my thighs.

Arousal shrieked through me. As I pressed firmly back to him, his hands held me to his pelvis, his cock pressed firmly into the cleft of my ass. Something gave way within me. I’d let him fuck me. I wanted him. I rocked into him, and he grabbed me. I tried to turn, to shove him to the bed. His balance was too good. He didn’t budge.

“Slow down,” he urged me breathlessly.

I couldn’t.

I bucked wildly against him, but his strength at least equaled mine. His arms tightened like bands of steel around me, holding me, forcing me to be still. I couldn’t breathe. Sweat trickled down my chest. I hung on the verge, riding the knife-edge of impending orgasm. I fought my way back to sanity, struggling to hold on to his words, “Slow down.”

I longed for so much more than a quick fuck, a fast easing of the need demanding release now. I’d be cheating myself, and him, if I didn’t get a grip on myself. The red haze lifted from my mind.

Damn, but my balls ached.

I laughed, sort of, as I relaxed into him. He eased his hold on me, and I sensed his relief that I’d come back from the edge of insanity--so he could send me there again.

Dalton unzipped my pants, let them fall, and wrapped his long fingers around my shaft, his grip firm. He stroked me, rolling the tight skin all the way over the glans. I’d waited my entire life for the touch of another man. I soared.

“I’m cut, too, if you’re curious. Is this all you want?” Dalton purred in my ear.

Curious was too mild a word when I wanted to strip him naked and give all eight inches of him a very clinical examination. Other than my own I’d not seen an adult male cock fully erect, except in photographs and that didn’t quite do it for me. I was intensely curious.

I shook my head. It most certainly was not all I wanted. His slow strokes had me ready to beg, and I would have if I’d known what I wanted most, besides everything.

The arm he held me with dropped away and he fumbled with his zipper. I laughed breathlessly as he teased my ass while pulling down the tab. His pants joined mine on the floor. His stiff cock pressed into the dark crevice of my ass where his fingers had just teased. I tensed, unsure if he planned to fuck me standing here, or just tease me until I passed out from lack of orgasm. He released me, leaving me bereft of his heat, even though I was drenched in sweat.

He smacked my ass with some force. I yelped in surprise and rounded on him, ready to show him if he wanted to play rough, he’d better take it as good as he gave it because I could give it. He grabbed me by the scruff of my neck and took my mouth. My protest at being struck evaporated. I plastered my body to his, dug my fingernails into his ass cheeks ass and boldly teased him as he had me. Dalton dropped to his knees in front of me and took me in his mouth.

SURRENDERED VICTORY
Purchase link: http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/SurrenderedVictory.html
2008 Amber Heat Wave Winner
ISBN 978-1-60272-283-5

KC Kendricks
Link to website: http://www.kckendricks.com/
Link to blog: http://www.kckendricks.blogspot.com/
Link to mailing list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/betweenthekeys

New Release! Ahora (m/m/f paranormal)

2011-11-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

Hey, y’all!

I have a lot of fun stuff to do in the next few weeks: shop for Thanksgiving, get Christmas together for the nieces and nephews, and get my Christmas cards going.

I also have a bunch of deadlines looming, somehow, but that’s a pretty darned good thing to have to worry on, right? I love being busy and writing is a joy.

I have a new ménage story out in Torquere Press’ Spice it Up line that I want to talk about before I can mark anything else off my to-do list! It’s called Ahora, and it’s based on ghost pepper, as the spice. I like the chiles, being from Central Texas.

Ahora is about Vicki, a werewolf who gets fed up with her messy, infuriating boys, Jordan and Shaw, and heads out into the desert for some time away. Turns out she gets more of that than she bargains for when she has a terrible motorcycle crash. Shaw and Jordan not only have to find her, they have to convince her she is who she is…

Here’s a book trailer for Ahora! http://youtu.be/ObJKqsPAdzw

And here’s a wee bit of the story for y’all to check out!

"Help the homeless?" She held out her bucket again.

"I'd rather take you to lunch." This guy stepped up to her, all wide shoulders and curly hair. He wore shades, and he made the hair rise on the back of her neck.

"I... I'm working." She could smell him, dark and spicy and somehow so... familiar. Her nose twitched.

"I can give you a twenty for your bucket. Come on. We'll go somewhere with lots of people if you're worried." His teeth flashed in a grin that was somehow as sexy as it was predatory.

"A twenty?" She looked at Brenda, who shook her head.

"You worth more than that, Jenny, even if you just suck him off."

"Hey, I'm buying lunch, too. I'm not asking for anything else." He held his hands up, but there was a definite growl going on there.

"You stay where folks see you, girl. You don't fuck him for less than two hundred."

She didn't know. "I'm not... I don't." Her stomach snarled; she was so hungry.

The guy took off his sunglasses, his eyes dark brown, pretty as all hell. "I'm not going to ask you to have sex with me. Lunch."

"Lunch. Twenty dollars, right?" She could sleep in the shelter tonight for sure.

"Yep. Come on." They guy gave Brenda a look and led the way. "Do you really sleep with strangers?"

"No. No. Not even for money." The thought made her growl, made her skin ache.

"Good." There was bone-deep satisfaction in his voice, and a hint of something that made her want to bite the air. Possessiveness, maybe.

She let it go because she could smell the sandwiches at the little shop he was headed toward, the strip mall dingy but not scary.

He was tall -- taller than her, even, which was a little odd -- and had a huge mass of curly dark hair. There was another man -- just as tall, with hair the color of honey -- leaning against a wall, staring.

Staring at her.

She found herself staring back, something like a rumble rising in her chest. She wanted him to look away first.

Their eyes locked and she stopped moving, almost stopped breathing.

"You okay?" the first guy asked, stopping to put a hand on her arm.

She looked up at him, blinked. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm cool."

She'd scared herself a little bit. The heat of his hand on her arm anchored her, though, made her nipples harden. God, she was pathetic.

"Ham or roast beef?"

"Roast beef. Please." Someone stuffed a couple of bills in her can. "Thank you."

She would swear she heard a growl, but there weren't any stray dogs or anything nearby. They went inside and settled in and the guy went to order at the counter.

She could feel eyes on her, but she was clean -- she'd showered in the communal baths, and her clothes were clean. She didn't smell bad.

Once the guy came back and sat down, all she could look at was him. He'd pushed his glasses up and she could see his eyes.

"What...what do you want? I told the truth. I'm not a prostitute."

"That's a good thing. What's your name?"

"Jenny. What's yours?"

He frowned, his brows drawing down, but his voice remained easy. "Tony."

"Tony." She sighed, the sound comfortable and right, somehow. "What did you get to eat?"

"I got you a roast beef sandwich, an order of chicken fingers and curly fries." He grinned, then, the frown clearing right up. "I got pastrami on rye, cheese fries, and a big piece of carrot cake."

Her head tilted. "But you don't like..."

Wait.

"Sorry."

His smile got wider. "No, I got that to go. For a friend."

***

You can find Ahora here!

Thanks for reading, y’all. Happy Thanksgiving!

DIVINITY

2011-11-16T03:58:00.001-08:00

My latest release, Divinity, is one I'm rather fond of. I don't normally write vampires or paranormal anything, but Martin demanded I let everyone know how much he despises those damned orange suckers. I got more than I imagined when I sat down to write it but I'm glad I did!

Here's a little about it and an excerpt follows:

ISBN: 978-1-937551-06-3

eBook release: Nov 14 2011

eBook formats: pdf, mobi, html, epub

Word count: 12,100

Page count: 40

Heat Wave: 4 - On-screen, mildly explicit love scenes

Erotic Frequency: 3 - Moderate

Blurb:

Martin Hayes has found the perfect job for a 200-year-old vampire. As the late-shift security guard for Spire Industries, he works and hunts by night and sleeps by day, hidden away in the unused cellar. Life is all so easy—nights bleeding away, weeks and months passing . . . until a new janitor disturbs the peace. Martin finds himself consumed by memories (or are they?) of red hair, freckled skin, and a man he knows but doesn't know.
Dylan Mesmer isn’t just a hot, freckled, red-haired janitor. He’s altogether too composed around Martin and never surprised by Martin’s supernatural abilities. In fact, he seems to have a few of his own. And why does he keep feeding Martin orange lollipops?
A healthy vampire has no use for candy, yet Martin cannot resist the lure. It seems he’s being baited, but to what end? And what about those visions that assail him whenever he thinks of Dylan? Their story is centuries old, but this time around, Dylan’s playing for nothing less than immortality. Eternal life—and eternal love, after a sort—is within his reach, but can he convince Martin to change his ways and commit? They may never find their way beyond the anger and the lies, but there's no denying the draw between them, and that's very much worth fighting for—even among themselves.

Excerpt:

“Do it.”
Martin came to, prick hard, fangs elongated, brain fogged, hands splayed across the ass of the man bent over the desk before him.
The man smacked the desk and pled from over the uniform shirt scrunched to his shoulders, “Don’t stop. Just do it!”
Mesmer? Backing away in a daze, Martin regained the present and registered the man as Spire Industry’s latest night janitor—a fiery carrot-top who’d stolen Martin’s attention from the moment he’d walked through Spire’s doors and into Martin’s realm.
Though tucked away in a long-abandoned corner of the basement by day, Martin took his duties as Spire’s security guard by night seriously. So why was he in this third-floor office, taking the new night janitor over a desk?
Fuck, if the man hadn’t felt and looked so damned good beneath him, down to the freckled skin Martin had had under his palms . . . It was all Martin had thought of, night and day, since setting eyes on Dylan Mesmer and the shock of carrot-orange hair that poked out in all directions from under his work cap.
Groaning, he pulled his pants up and over his painfully hard cock. What in all hells is wrong with me? Buckled his belt. All on one drawn-out exhalation.
Mesmer made a weak attempt to stand, smacking the desk again. “Damn it.”
“I don’t know what came over me . . .” And he didn’t. He would’ve used any other janitor as a light snack, lured him to the basement and satiated his more base desires weeks ago. Exhibiting control enough to do so seemed impossible around Mesmer. Lately, Martin had found himself in one compromising position after another.
“I’m not sure—” Martin met a disappointed scowl as Mesmer turned and leaned against the desk. “Look, this isn’t happening. We shouldn’t do it here, anyway. I must be out of my mind.” He had no intention of losing a job that fit his vampiric lifestyle as perfectly as working night security for Spire Industry did. Where else could he pass as human while having his meals delivered on a regular basis?
Naked from the waist down and in an obvious state of arousal, Mesmer crossed his arms with an exasperated sigh. He finally broke his glare to fix his own uniform. “It is what it is,” he said, tucking in his work shirt. “Here.” He tossed Martin a sucker.
Orange. Another sucker? Like the last two times he’d blanked out and came to seconds from driving both cock and fang into the smartass. Did the man carry a bottomless bag of delicious candy in his pocket to taunt Martin? Delicious? He held back a gag. Why the fuck had he accepted the suckers in the first place, and worse yet, why’d he eaten them? And with haste? And he’d enjoyed them!
Blood coursing through Mesmer’s body drew Martin to the here and now. What would the drawbacks be if for once he actually went through with it? Stuck the man, took his fill, like he’d done to countless others. If he didn’t hesitate, didn’t hold back or change his mind. A shudder raced over him. When had he become so fickle?
He watched Mesmer dress, wondering how this man had knocked him so far off-kilter. Normally, he’d have had the guy for a little stick, a little prick, and have deposited him back into his world, neat and tidy. But he’d been stalking Mesmer since the night the man had started at Spire . . . not to mention the repeated attempts to satisfy the man’s by-now predictable pleas for attention. Martin scoffed internally. He didn’t want to think about the strange places his mind disappeared to each time he saw Mesmer . . . or the rooms or offices he’d come back to his senses in, with Mesmer beneath him, wondering how he’d gotten there. How did this man get Martin to lose all sense of space and time?
Mind half in the past, half in the now, he adjusted his fly, eyeing Mesmer doing the same, then unwrapped the sucker and stuck it in his mouth. “What’s with you and always giving me orange candy, anyway?”
Mesmer snorted, kneeling to re-tie one of his work boots. “If you don’t want it, give it back.”
He held out his hand as he stood.
Martin gave it three seconds’ thought, his mind and body warring over whether to keep the candy or not. Giving it back would end the senseless questions, end this lack of control. Yet, no matter the logic in his thoughts, he couldn’t will his hand to remove the sucker from his mouth.
Not this time.

Buy Link: http://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/divinity

Velvet Glove Universe

2011-11-15T13:12:00.000-08:00

One of the great things about setting a BDSM club in another universe is that you don't need to worry about things like condoms. You can have nuskin for cuts, rapid healing, magic lube, and all manner of neat scenarios.

If you could invent any sex toy you wanted -- what would it be?

Rock, btw, maintains that if you have lovers like Rig and Dick, you don't need any sex toys. He understands not everyone is as lucky as he is, though ;)

My Velvet Glove books that were on Turn of the Screw and are currently available in the Velvet Glove print volumes will be coming out in ebook over the next months. The first one -- Connor's Journey, is coming out December 28 from Torquere Press.

I've also got a book coming out from Amber Allure next week -- Office Hours. It's about an English professor and a science TA who quite literally run into each other on the green and spanky fun ensues. They have plenty of fun with just some rope and judicious use of hands...

Happy Thanksgiving!
Sean Michael
www.seanmichaelwrites.com

NEW RELEASE! - ALL OR NOTHING AT ALL - futuristic gay erotic romance

2011-11-12T21:56:00.000-08:00

Copyright © 2011 Carolina Valdez
Cover Art © 2011 Trace Edward Zaber
ISBN-13:978-1-601124-204-1
After the release of my gay erotic romance, TIE 'EM UP, HOLD 'EM DOWN, and its sequel, HANGIN' WITH MY WINDOW MAN, I read a contemporary m/f romantic suspense involving a man convicted of stealing diamonds. He'd had a partner who was killed, and the diamonds were never found. After his release from prison, he fathered a little girl.

This author also writes a futuristic series under a pseudonym, and what intrigued me was stumbling on a sequel to the original story which was set fifty years after the theft. The daughter is all grown up now, and when her troublesome father pops back into her life the hunt for the diamonds begins again.

When I stumbled on those two stories, I thought it would be fun to write a story set in the future featuring descendants of my firefighters in TIE 'EM UP and HANGIN'. I could see the opening scene clearly, but it was two years before the thrust came to develop the idea. The INTO THE FUTURE AMBERPAX™ needed one more author to write a story for it.

And today it's here, although with a fresh opening scene.

THE STORY

Duty robbed them of their last night together. A deadly fireball struck Earth’s New L.A. in the late afternoon, and instead of an evening of dinner and passion with his lover, Battalion Chief David Garrison reported for duty and led his elite firewarrior squadron to fight the raging flames engulfing historic LA. At first light the next morning, duty sent David’s lover, Dillon Rapner, a special agent, off-world undercover to ferret out the source of the incendiary bombs destroying Old Town.

During his search, Dillon was captured and enslaved for several years on another planet. Only thoughts of returning to David, the man he would love forever, kept him alive and determined to escape. Never in his wildest imaginings did he expect that when he returned to Earth he’d find another man in David’s bed—but he did. His dreams shattered, can he pull his life together again?

A SALACIOUS EXCERPT

...As Dillon talked, he reached for the bottom of his shirt and pulled it over his head and off.

Even as weary as he was, David’s groin tightened at the sight of that familiar, well-muscled chest, the heat and touch of which he knew. He stopped chewing.

“Tomorrow we’ll start work. It’s possible we can make some sales here.” Their cover was as salesmen, but in code the words conveyed the message that they’d search for the source of the phosphorus and other rare elements used in the fireballs as well as for a launching station.

David knew finding these things would be a dead giveaway this planet was the bomb source. In response to diplomatic inquiries, Oragone’s Supreme Authority had denied the attacks originated there, and even the Intergalactic Council couldn’t budge them on this, but the launches continued. The fact was, unless the fireballs were shot from some undetected space vehicle, their planet was in the right trajectory and orbit to have launched them.

“Find the sons of a gun, man,” David said. As a warrior, he wanted to stop having to kill the havoc created by the incendiaries. It was unbelievable to him that their enemies didn’t seem to know they were firing on a basically dead part of the city. The more terrifying part was wondering what would happen if they ever figured that out.

As Dillon talked, his gold and amber eyes seemed to bore into David’s as he unbuckled the belt on his trousers and slid the zipper down with deliberate slowness.

David almost choked on the food in his mouth as he heard its casual whisper and watched it reveal black boxer briefs, which should be as sleek as Dillon’s sports car, but right now housed a large bulge straining their front. Dillon discarded the dark slacks and briefs, then turned and leaned over to fold his slacks and lay them on the bed. The smooth roundness of a butt that was at once firm and yet not so hard it didn’t have a sexy give when squeezed, hid the bunghole at the base of the crevice between its globes. His balls swung loose and low between thighs David knew weren’t as large as his own, but were still hard and powerful. Waves of sensation rushed through him as images of the unbridled sex they’d planned for that last night flashed like a kaleidoscope in his head.

The camera’s lens zoomed in close as Dillon turned. “I’ll show you mine, if you’ll show me yours.”

A dick already at half-mast emerged from a tight bush of tawny curls. Dillon continued to speak, his voice hoarse with sensuality, his words explicit and erotic.

David hadn’t expected interplanetary sex. All thoughts of food fled. He stopped listening to the words that followed, letting their cadence lure him as Dillon’s hand closed around his dick and played with it. Fascinated, hardly daring to breathe, David watched Dillon tug it out and in, out and in, thrusting his hips at David as fine threads spun from a wet cock, its veins so distended the foreskin slipped back and the enlarging tip of his penis turned purplish.

David’s breathing quickened to match the sound of Dillon’s. The dick cradled in the caressing fingers was in full cock mode as he played with the crown and smeared the creamy pre-cum over it, as if to lube it for penetration. He pointed the head directly at David and thrust his hips at him.

“Bear in mind what you see is only half-size,” Dillon said.

David’s laugh at Dillon’s humor ended in a groan. His aroused cock threatened to stain, even as it strained to break free of his workout pants. He stood, stepped away from the bar and thrust pants and briefs to his ankles. The air hit, washing his hard, hot, hungry length with coolness. He wanted to switch the camera on so Dillon could see this big, hungry cock, but he’d been fighting hell in Old Town when the transmission came in. It was prerecorded, not live.

“You’re killing me,” he said through gritted teeth. “So close and yet so far, far away.”

Buy online now
http://www.amberallure.com/AllOrNothing.html

Carolina Valdez
http://www.carolinavaldez

http://www.amberallure.com/TieEmUp.html
http://www.amberallure.com/HanginWindowMan.html

Twitter Tips for Readers

2011-11-08T21:23:00.000-08:00

Official Twitter Mascot
(okay, so he's here because I like his buns.
So sue me. ;p)

You have a Twitter account, and you know the basics. You can reply, retweet messages, include a link, and you know how to mention tweeps (Twitter peeps). So what else is there? Here are ten simple things you can do to have fun on Twitter.

Keep in mind that Twitter is a source. Use it as a tool to find new friends, learn new tricks, and in doing so, gain new followers, and keep up with celebrities.
On your Twitter home page, click the @yourname link to see a list of mentions and followers. Send out a "Welcome new followers" message and list your new tweeps. Be sure to include the @ symbol with their handles, so others can find them. People love to be mentioned.
Follow others, and involve them in your tweets. Did someone post a pic of a new puppy? Share it with others and congratulate them. We all love to be noticed.
Retweet your friends' events and share their good news. What goes around comes around.
When you read an article you find interesting, copy the URL and paste it into Twitter to share with tweeps. Be a resource. I love easy recipes, and share the links on Twitter. Found a sale? Follow the company on Twitter, and you might even get a coupon as thanks.
Speaking of thanks... thank people for retweeting your tweets. To do this, highlight the message, copy it, then click reply, and paste it into the blank message. In front write "Thanks for the RT". If you're short on space, you can put TY 4 RT. This sends out your message again, and both mentions and thanks the other person. And yes, this is appropriate to do. You can also reply, and just say Thanks for the RT.
For every one thing you say about yourself, find ten things to say about others. If you do this consistently, when you post info about yourself or your family, your tweeps will retweet it.
Use #hashtags that others are using. Click them, and they'll conduct an immediate search for everywhere the tag is being used, showing you some useful information. If you like to read, here are some helpful ones: #reviews #authors #ebooks, #books #kindle - you get the idea! Think about crafts you enjoy doing, and try hashtags involving them.
On the right side of your home page, you'll see Trending Topics. Click a few of these and read for a bit. Retweet ones that amuse or touch you. You might find someone to follow, and if you retweet a comment, you might end up with a follower or two.
Click the Who To Follow link, and check out new people. One of Twitter's best features is it lets you meet and follow people you'd have never met otherwise.

Surrender Love

The best tip I can give you about Twitter is to have fun with it. If you share things you enjoy, chances are your tweeps will enjoy reading them. You don't have to be a writer to use Twitter. Be a reader who tweets. =^_^=

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kayelle Allen's motto is "romance lives forever." She enjoys hiking, movies, reading, and SciFi conventions. A multipublished, award winning author with character-driven, plot-heavy SciFi Romances, her worldbuilding skills include alien languages and 10k years of future history. Kayelle is known for unstoppable heroes, uncompromising love, unforgettable passion. Find Kayelle Allen at these fine bookstores: Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Fictionwise, or wherever books are sold online.

A WHOLE LOT OF LOVIN'

2011-11-07T06:17:00.000-08:00

A Whole Lot Of Lovin'
by Christiane France
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-940-8 (Paperback)
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/WholeLotLovin.html
AVAILABLE OCTOBER, 2011!
A chance encounter between former lovers, a sexy masked stranger, and a burning need to toss aside tradition results in a whole lot of lovin' for three passionate couples.
Previously available only in electronic format, these sizzling stories of Gay Erotic Romance have now been combined for a paperback edition! Included are the tales...
• Chance Encounter
In high school and through their first year of college, Jase Thoman and Matt Lester were best friends and lovers. But then Matt’s family moved across country, Matt transferred to another school, and the pair eventually drifted apart.
Now, ten years later, they meet again by chance. Jase is a private investigator, desperate to find his kid brother, Donny, who has mysteriously disappeared after last being seen at a local gay bar. Matt is an undercover police officer brought in on the case by the local police department in the hope he can succeed where they have so far failed.
Matt is the only man Jase has ever really loved, but ten years is a long time. They’re not the same people they once were, and when Matt tries to pick up where they left off, Jase takes a step back. Can Matt help Jase solve the mystery of his brother’s whereabouts, while also convincing him to give their relationship a fresh start?
• Love Matters
Cain Carpenter has it all—looks, money, a beautiful home, and a successful business. What he doesn’t have is someone to share it all with, someone he loves and who loves him in return. He’s tried all the usual avenues for meeting people, including a dating agency, and he’s about given up. But then he accepts an invitation to a singles masquerade party and meets a masked man who sends his thoughts and senses reeling with excitement. The stranger invites Cain to dance, and from the instant they touch, Cain truly believes, at long last, that this is the special man he’s been waiting for.
Yet the rules of the masquerade include no removal of masks and no exchange of names. If you can’t somehow figure out the identity of the person who sparked your interest, you lose. And Cain doesn’t want to lose, but without the man’s name and no idea what he looks like, he feels hopeless.
Will Cain be able to track down the alluring stranger in order to determine if they’re truly destined for a future?
• Crossing The Line
Rather than embarrass his wealthy family by admitting he’s gay, Alexander Derkeston solved the problem by publicly conforming to their upright, uptight lifestyle as set forth by the first Derekston back in the late 1800’s, and inventing a second, shadowy life on the side.
Even after his parents are killed in a traffic accident and the pretence is no longer necessary, Alexander still continues to follow family tradition and keep his private life private. Then the family chauffeur retires, and Wil Forrest is hired in his place.
Wil is young, hot, sexy, almost certainly gay, and Alexander wants him. Desperately! But Wil is an employee, and when he suggests the two of them go clubbing together, Alexander is horrified. Old Abner Derekston had two rules the family has always lived by...one, never cross the line by getting overly familiar with the help, not if you want to maintain their respect, and two, if you want something, go for it.
Is there a way Alexander can have his cake and eat it, too?
Cool mysteries and hot romance - http://www.chrisgrover.ca
Latest Release: MISSING, PRESUMED DEAD - http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure
http://www.myspace.com/185513895 http://twitter.com/chrisgrover2 www.facebook.com/people/Chris-Grover1479706280

Thankfulness Is The Same, No Matter What Solar System You're In

2011-11-04T19:05:00.000-07:00

One of the things I like about writing science fiction is that the worlds and the places are so different from my own. I can only imagine what life would be like in a multi-level, multi-species space station. And while the worlds and the governments might be different, the people are most likely the same. They're concerned about loving, and living, and taking care of themselves and those they care about. I think no matter how different we may all be, at the core, we're all the same.

I don't have any releases scheduled--been a bit too busy for writing--, so I wanted to take a moment and revisit my past releases, AN UNDERCOVER FLING (available from Changeling Press), and SINGING UP THE SUN (also available from Changeling Press).

In An Undercover Fling, Garst is darn thankful that Trell was willing to listen and give him another chance. These two officers of the law often ended up on the wrong sides of their respective cases, and when Garst returned to the station, he knew he'd have to convince Trell not only of his sincerity, but also of his feelings. So he's really thankful Trell listened.

In Singing Up The Sun, Dougaln is thankful he took a walk in the reclamation gardens that Winter Solstice night. He's thankful that Reynau was willing to accept a scarred, wounded soldier, and Reynau is thankful that he could find someone who could accept his people's traditions and his own desires.

I think these days, we can easily relate to these people, and what they are thankful for. This season, when we're looking at joy and thankfulness, it feels good, I think, to see a little of ourselves reflected in the stars.

Rednecks in Vegas

2011-11-03T08:37:00.000-07:00

Howdy, y'all!

Man, I tell you what. It's been a week and a half. ;-)

Julia and I went to Vegas for the bullriding finals. You have to love a life that includes Wrangler butts, that's for sure. I went to the Legends Meet and Greet and managed not to burst into tears (well, except once, and that was for my hero and I have to be forgiven).

Vegas is a huge playground and such a place for inspiration. I spent a goodly amount of time in the lobbies/casinos just watching and getting ideas for books in the future.

We also spent an enormous amount of time being idiots. For example, if you were in Vegas last week and heard two Texans in Crystals discuss for an hour how on earth that crystal chandelier/wallhanging got cleaned? That was us.

Or the pink haired ladies two-stepping in the MGM Grand while singing Rodeo? Us.

The long discussion about whether Strawberry Shortcake would wear those shoes? Us.

The bet whether our waitress was a pole dancer on the side and the biggest tippers when she rode the mechanical bull (proving that I was right, thank you)? Yeah. Us.

The instigators in the popcorn food fight? The ones who asked the lion trainers about werelions? The creators of the 'how far will the IBM conventioners go from the host hotel' game? The ones that spent three hours testing whether certain halls in the Mandalay Bay echoed if you whistle? The people who chatted with the cab driver for 1/2 hour in traffic about how the taxi industry works and how he'd gotten into a fight at the airport that morning? So us.

:D

Then, when we got home, we were on baby-watch. Our oldest niece had her first baby, four weeks earlier than expected (with a birthdate of 11-1-11, how cool is that?). So, yes. Busy.

Happy.

Happy November, y'all!

BA Tortuga

http://www.batortuga.com
Because sometimes fistfights are foreplay.

When in Rome

2011-11-02T11:48:00.000-07:00

When in Rome, the last story in my Rough, Tough and Tumble series, was released this week. The series focuses on three shapeshifters from the future who are forced to participate in a time travel experiment. In previous stories, they fought outlaws in the old west and battled vampires in Romania. Now in the final story they've traveled to ancient Rome. If they survive, they have the promise of a new life, unless the scientists who arranged for the experiment refuse to hold up their end of the bargain.

I hope you enjoy this excerpt from When in Rome.

Thank you!
Kate

Rough, Tough and Tumble 3: When in Rome
by Kate Hill
Format(s): Ebook
Heat Level: Erotic
Pairing(s): M/M/F
Genre/Themes: Shapeshifter
Length: Novella
Publisher: Changeling Press
Cover Art: Zuri
ISBN: 978-1-60521-491-7
Release Date: 10/20/2011
Purchase Link:
http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1701

Blurb:

Shapeshifters Zandra, Sefu and Tiago find themselves in ancient Rome where a gladiator and his lover are desperate to escape the brutal games and her cruel husband.

The trio's lust burns hotter than ever, stoked by the knowledge that this time they might not return to their world. Using their powers, they must impersonate Roman nobles to deceive a twisted emperor and save a gladiator from death in the arena while coming to terms with their love for each other.

Excerpt:

The next day before the games, Sefu-Rullus stood among other gladiators in a dim corridor leading to the arena. His heart beat faster than usual and his senses were in overdrive. One thing he enjoyed about fighting was the pre-match buzz, the rush of energy and the feeling that he was going to win or die trying. Strange that he'd never minded risking his life in the arena, but when he'd accidentally killed an opponent, the guilt had been almost unbearable.

He couldn't think about it now. Very soon he'd enter the arena. The animal fights were scheduled first.

"Rullus," called a deep voice from behind him. One of the guards motioned for him. Sefu-Rullus obeyed and the guard continued, "Your master wants a word with you. Through there." The guard pointed toward a small, dark alcove.

Warily, Sefu approached and found Tiago-Aquilinus waiting there.

"What's wrong?" Sefu asked. "Is Zandra all right?"

"We're fine. It's you we're worried about. Listen to me, last night the emperor said that because I didn't punish you when he sent you to my villa, he was going to take care of it for me. He's planning something terrible in the arena. I know it."

Sefu's brow furrowed and his senses sharpened even more. "Like what?"

"He wouldn't say, but Zandra said a woman she'd spoken to mentioned a specially trained lion. Listen to me." Tiago gripped Sefu's shoulders hard and stared deeply into his eyes. "I know you and your sense of honor, but today be smart. Do whatever it takes to survive out there, even if you have to shift shape in front of the entire crowd."

A faint smile tugged at Sefu's lips. "You really do care about me, don't you?"

"When I said I love you, I meant it. Don't jeopardize your life, Sefu, because if you start going down in that fucking arena, I'll jump in with you and I know Zandra will too. We left our time together and we'll return together or not at all. Understand?"

"Yeah." Sefu clasped the back of Tiago's head and kissed him hard. Tiago opened his mouth to Sefu's tongue and for a long moment they explored each other as if for the first time, their emotions were that strong.

When the kiss broke, Tiago said, "I need to go. The emperor and Zandra are waiting for me to join them to watch the games. Be safe, Sefu, and be smart."

Sefu nodded, kissed Tiago again and left the alcove to prepare for his fight.

Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Tiago-Aquilinus leave.

The same guard who had called to him moments ago approached, flanked by four others.

"Time for you to go," said the guard.

"I need to get my armor and weapons."

The guard shook his head and despite his stern expression, a look of compassion flickered through his steel gray eyes. "Not for you. Emperor's orders. You're to face the lion with your bare hands alone."

When it all comes together

2011-11-01T06:16:00.000-07:00

For the last few months I’ve been working on getting Sparks , my upcoming release from Dreamspinner Press ready for publication. I have fun seeing all the parts come together.

1.) The various editing stages you work on to get your book to make it shine.
2.) Seeing the cover for the first time is a thrilling feeling. Seeing your words put into an image is powerful. Getting the completed cover is great.
3.) Then getting the day - the release date for your book. You get a happy yet nervous feeling.
4.) The release of the book. Yay celebration of seeing you book available to the public. For this book the journey is finished.

I’m waiting for the release of my book. In 22 days Sparks releases on cyber shelves. Working on all the parts I can’t wait to see the finished journey for when it all comes together.

Talia Carmichael
http://taliacarmichael.com/
Fill Your Cravings

Blog: http://taliacarmichael.com/blog
Newsletter:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/taliacarmichael

Buy Sparks here on November 23, 2011

A hot new M/M/M/M by Mercedes Black

2011-10-30T05:15:00.000-07:00

Another book in the series COLLEGE: THE GAY DAYS has just been released and is hot enough to melt the screen on your e-reader! A little about the book:

BUY THIS BOOK NOW AT ALL ROMANCE EBOOKS

RAINBOW DELIGHT BY MERCEDES BLACK PRICE $2.99

The underground frat house known as the Rainbow brotherhood holds secret sex parties.

The members are handpicked from the brightest and most promising gay students. They have to be willing to do anything and everything to get in the exclusive club and prove their worth and if they become members they are guaranteed success in life from their connections.

Blake is a journalist for the student newspaper and he is surprised when he gets an exclusive invitation the rainbow party which is for the hopeful candidates. He doesn’t want to be in the group. Frat houses are for the popular kids not nerds like him. Blake is only showing up because he is hoping to do an exposé on the secretive brotherhood and share all their dirty little secrets with the world.

What he doesn’t expect is to be exposed himself or to find his acts of submission at the Sex party so rewarding.

********************************************************************************************

SNEAK PEAK:

“Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of them?” Eric asked.

“No, I can’t say I have.” Blake shrugged his shoulders as if it didn’t matter but that intense look in Eric’s eyes made him wonder if it did.

Eric’s jaw muscle twitched. It looked like it mattered to Eric a lot.

“The Rainbow Brotherhood is very secretive. Not many people do know what they are or where they meet. Heck, most the gay community has heard some kind of rumor about it, but I don’t think anyone knows what happens at those ceremonies who is not a member. Everyone who was ever a member has had big success in their life. It’s like getting a guaranteed ticket to the fast track.”

“If it’s so secretive, how do you know about it?”

“Last year, I got to talk privately with that Senator who spoke at the Liberty House Charity Dinner. It wasn’t like he knew I was working for the paper, but when he had a little too much to drink he started talking about the Rainbow House and how they helped him to get where he is today.”

“Okay.” Blake thought for a moment. Something about what Eric was telling him didn’t add up. “So a Senator was on the ranks. Big deal. Who cares?”

“You don’t understand how big this is, Blake. You have to do something brilliant to get the attention of the Rainbow House and if you get in, you can go anywhere when you graduate and do anything you want to. They have connections everywhere.” Eric’s eyes flashed a brilliant emerald green.

Blake was hit with a sudden brainstorm. How could something this big last so long in the underground where no one in the general public understood what the secret brotherhood was all about? It puzzled him and yet He gave Eric a bright smile. “I could go t this meeting and write an article about them for our paper.”

“You just got an exclusive invitation to the Rainbow Brotherhood. Is that what you want to do with it? Expose all their secrets?”

“Sure.” But the last thing Blake was feeling was sure under Eric’s intense scrutiny. It didn’t feel wrong to expose their secrets, but what did he really know about the Rainbow Brotherhood at all?

“They don’t officially exist.” Eric said lamely.

“I know.” Blake didn’t feel so hopeful this was going to be successful and after Eric shot down his other ideas he wasn’t sure Eric really liked this one either. “What do you think they are hiding with all the secrecy? Wouldn’t you like to know? Don’t you think every student has the right to know what goes on at these ceremonies?”

“I don’t know, Blake.” Eric shook his head and Blake could hear a slow drag in his voice like he was wavering on the fence post.

“Come on. I’ve wanted to do an article that has some meaning to it and this could be it. Just let me try, please?” Blake asked.

“Well, if you’re going to do this you’d need to get names, places, all the stuff that they do in their ceremonies that they have kept secret all these years.” Blake let his eyes slip down to watch Eric’s chest slowly rise and fall. There was no emotion on Eric’s face to give away what he was thinking. “If you could get pictures it would be even better.”

“I can do that.” Blake said eagerly. He had a small digital camera he could keep hidden.

“It could be dangerous, Blake.” Eric was dead serious, his voice solemn.

Blake swallowed back that bad feeling rising from the pit of his stomach.

“If you are found out, I won’t be there to help you and I am not sure I could. The brotherhood has kept their existence a secret for years. I don’t expect any of them to step up and just give you an interview or be happy if you tell the world all about them.”

“I know.” Blake nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll have to look and act the part, being another hopeful frat boy. I can do this if you’ll let me write the article.”

“You really want to do this?”

“If they didn’t have anything to hide it wouldn’t be a great big secret would it?”

Eric seemed to be considering it before making a reply. His right hand rubbed his chin thoughtfully. ”Okay. If that’s what you want. You write it up and I’ll print it.”

Blake felt elated. He was bubbling up inside and before he knew it, he hugged Eric close to him. Eric went stiff and he knew the other man must have felt awkward. Just as quickly he released him and took a step back.

Eric cleared his throat and pretended to be disinterested in the hug that just took place but Blake knew he wanted the story as bad as he did.

“Thank you.”Blake said, feeling slightly embarrassed about the physical contact.

“Don’t thank me yet, and when you are questioning if this was what you wanted to do, just try and remember I didn’t throw you into the fire. You jumped in all by yourself.”
***************************************************************************************************

I certainly hope you enjoyed that excerpt and if you did, feel free to support my writing by buying the full story at one of the following epublishers:

AVAILABLE NOW AT AMAZON FOR YOUR KINDLE

AVAILABLE NOW AT BARNES AND NOBLE FOR YOUR NOOK

AVAILABLE NOW AT ALL ROMANCE EBOOKS

AVAILABLE NOW AT 1 PLACE FOR ROMANCE

AVAILABLE NOW AT SMASHWORDS

KC Kendricks - Double Deuce (An Amethyst Cove Mystery)

2011-10-25T16:54:00.000-07:00

It's often said writing is a solitary pursuit, and it holds true for me. After the day job, after the family responsibilities, after the daily chores, my passion awaits me. I live for the moment, every day, when I step into my office and become KC Kendricks. [link here] This is how I unwind and express the creative side of my nature. It's not easy pulling pure thought from the air and converting it into something cohesive on the page, but I love doing it.

A few months ago, Christiane France and I were at a chat together, and we started to talk about the possibility of creating a series. The more we corresponded, the more the idea appealed to me. We created the setting - Amethsyt Cove. From there, we decided we'd each develop a character who lives in Amethyst Cove and write his story. The characters became partners in a private investigations firm. From that point, it still becomes The Solitary Pursuit. The character Chris created is Greg, and my guy is Ian. Ian Coulter. [link here]

Ideas abound. I orginally thought I could give Ian three stories, but as with many of my projects, the more I see into Ian's world, the broader it becomes. I'll have to keep a tight rein on project list and not allow Ian to hijack it.

Without further ramblings, here's a bit about Ian Coulter and the first KC Kendricks [link here] book in the Amethsyt Cove series. I hope you'll enjoy it.

* * * * * * *

DOUBLE DEUCE
Contemporary gay romance mystery
available now at Amber Allure
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/DoubleDeuce.html

Free spirited Ian Coulter works hard and plays harder. An ex-cop turned private investigator, Ian enjoys meeting new men and making new friends. A night out ends up with one man on the floor at his feet, and another asking for his help. Big trouble’s brewing in little Amethyst Cove, and Ian’s a step behind. He’s quick to see Rick Mohr is the man holding the flare at the end a long, dark tunnel.

Undercover agent Rick Mohr walks a fine line, serving two masters. Insider trading, counterfeit printing plates, and a blown-up yacht have Rick stuck between two Federal agencies, one of which has been compromised. Rick has to discover the mole before it’s too late. When Ian Coulter walks into his life, Rick grabs the chance to salvage his assignment with both hands.

It doesn’t take Ian and Rick long to discover joining forces, and sharing resources, has definite perks - ones not found in any departmental manual.

INTRO:

“And yet, here you sit across from me.”

“For one thing, this is the first time I’ve actually gotten a look at you. No one ever said you were so…” He paused and blinked at me.

I helped him out. “Hot?”

Rick grinned. “The very word I was searching for.”

“You’re full of shit, Rick Mohr. What do you really want?”

“I’ve heard you like to have fun—safe fun. Was I misinformed?”

And they called me a slut. Rick had me beat for moving in on a guy fast. “I love to have ‘fun—safe fun,’ but I don’t know you. I haven’t seen you around at any of the local haunts.”

“Well, you know how it is. Boy meets boy. Boy falls in love. Boy gets dumped after eleven years and has to work hard to get back into the swing of things.”

I tapped the wide silver band he wore on his left ring finger. “Hmm. I’ve heard of that. Some weird word that starts with an ‘R.’”

“Relationship?”

I snapped my fingers. “That’s the one! Can’t say as I have any first-hand experience with it.”

Rick sighed. “I actually liked it, although I thought it would have a longer shelf-life.”

I sipped the lemony drink I’d had such a craving for. That craving, and another stronger one, was about to land me in trouble, I just knew it.

“I’ll tell you something, Rick. I don’t like men who cheat on their partners.”

His level gaze met mine. “I don’t have a partner. I have an ex-partner.”

“Why not take off the ring?”

“Truth? I’m not quite ready to have guys hitting on me. Maybe you can help me get over the hump.”

Years of cruising men, of reading their body language and looking into lots of pretty eyes gave me a good read on him. He wasn’t being honest with me about something, but it had nothing to do with the ring, the ex-partner, or the fact he liked to have control of the situation. The little voice inside, the one that never steered me wrong when it was time to cut and run, was silent, and I wanted to learn more about him.

The bottom line was we both wanted to get laid, no strings attached. I could do that for him. Call me Dr. Love or whatever. He wanted over the hump, and I was more than happy to help him out with that.

“So, Rick, why don’t we finish our drinks, then blow this joint and go find a more private place?”

EXCERPT

The intensity of Rick’s gaze slammed into me.

“What if I told you I could give you something concrete?”

Cold sweat broke out under my arms and across my back. I shivered and sucked in a deep breath. “This isn’t the place to discuss business, Mr. Mohr.”

Comprehension flickered in his pretty eyes. He reached across the table and covered my hands with his. My skin prickled with a new awareness of him. I had the sudden urge to give him about eight inches of concrete, regardless of how bad an idea it had become.

“You’re right, of course.” I got another shock as he raised my knuckles to his lips. “How about a little stroll on the beach? We can kick off our shoes and roll up our pant legs and get our feet wet. Get comfortable with each other. Whataya say?”

A walk outside was better than a hook-up inside. For all I knew, he worked for Earl Fox and had on a wire. This could be a set-up. That’s how paranoid I was about Foxy. I pulled away from the warmth of his touch and kept my voice pitched to where only Rick could hear me.

“We’ll take my car. I’ll bring you back later. And I want you to put your cell phone in your car and leave it.”

“I understand your caution, but it’s unnecessary.”

“I’ll be the judge of that, thank you.” I set my hat back on my head, slid off the bench seat, and held my hand out to him. He took it and uncurled his long, lean body out of the booth. I had to look up at him, and I’m no little fellow at five-eleven and one hundred seventy-nine pounds of carefully crafted muscle.

His arms came around me and I realized just how big a man he really was. His lips brushed my ear as he whispered to me, “I’m going to enjoy this.”
Before I could think, much less ask him what the fuck he was talking about, his mouth covered mine. I opened my lips to protest, and his tongue slipped past my poor defenses. Little stars danced behind my closed eyes. My arms slid around his neck.

Familiar heat coiled low in my belly when his tongue danced over mine. My balls tingled as my over-eager cock hardened, swelling relentlessly to an aching fullness. I inhaled, and, under the warm, spicy scent of his cologne, breathed in the rich, earthy tang of an aroused male.

Rick’s big hand cupped my left ass cheek and pressed me tightly to his pelvis. The hard ridge of his dick met mine and I hazed on the rush of testosterone flooding into my blood. I needed to sink my root deep in this man and hear him beg for more.

What was left of my sanity shouted I was in big trouble when his lips trailed fire along my jaw line and down my neck. I ignored it and cupped his balls in front of all witnesses, covering his bulging zipper with my palm. At least eight inches.

His big hands stroked up my back, then down my sides. I leaned over into the booth and grabbed my drink with shaking hands.

What the fuck had I just allowed to happen?

DOUBLE DEUCE
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-185-3
Contemporary gay romance mystery
available now at Amber Allure
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/DoubleDeuce.html

KC Kendricks
[roll mouse over the following lines for links]
website at: http://www.kckendricks.com/
blog: http://www.kckendricks.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks
mailing list at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/betweenthekeys
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1989106.K_C_Kendricks
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Kc-Kendricks/1439574042
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/kckendricks

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

2011-10-21T04:26:00.000-07:00

Whatta ya mean it's October? This year has flown by in a dizzying blur. The temperatures have dropped to a fabulous chill. Just cold enough to want an extra blanket on the bed but not so frigid the morning air takes your breath away. The leaves are turning yellow, gold and red. And the holiday season approaches.

Holiday? Christmas shopping? Oh, crap. How'd that happen?

I don't have a lot of people on my Christmas list. Momma and the siblings agreed a long time ago to only buy for the little kids. Helps keep the bill to something less than bankruptcy inducing. But at what point are the "little" kids no longer little. Should my twenty-one year old niece come off Santa's list?

Nah... She's still little to me. The last few years I've given her money. Even the younger ones--sixteen, eleven and seven--find shopping an enjoyable experience. Not a trait they inherited from Auntie Shayla. I hate shopping. So Christmas was taken care of in a trip to the ATM. Works all around. *cackle*

This year, Sister (the mother of the 21yo), suggested we split the cost of a Kindle Fire for Niece. I thought that was a brilliant idea. Niece loves to read. Her only computer right now is an old laptop of mine that we fondly refer to as the "boat anchor". All she uses it for is surfing the web, playing on Facebook. Things she could do on the Fire. The Fire is almost pocket sized. Easy to carry. Movies, TV, music. All things she'd enjoy.

Brilliant idea. I put one on order.

Wednesday, I receive a frantic text from Sister. "CANCEL THE KINDLE! SHE JUST SAW ONE ON TV AND WENT ON A RANT ABOUT WHAT'S THE POINT. SHE DOES NOT LIKE." The capitalization was Sister's.

Okay. I was in a meeting with the EDJ Boss and our accounting firm but I flipped over to Amazon and canceled the pre-order. On the way home, I called Sister.

I ran through the list of things Niece could do on the Fire. Sister repeated them to Niece. She hadn't quite thought through the idea and was leaning toward a cancellation of the cancellation. Then I said the magic phrase. "Oh, and the next time she bugs me for new books, it could be on her Kindle within a few minutes."

So I re-pre-ordered the Kindle Fire. *cackle*

So maybe I'll get the nerve to send her a copy of GIRLS WHO BITE, the Cleis anthology I'm in with a plethora of amazing writers. Not sure if I'm ready to accept Niece is old enough to read erotica. *cackle*

Check out GIRLS WHO BITE, Lesbian Vampire Erotica, online or in a bookstore near you!

For bad girls looking for love . . . fangs are more than an accessory.

These are no Twilight tales — the stories in Girls Who Bite are varied, unexpected, and soul-scorching. Best-selling romance writer Delilah Devlin and her contributors investigate vampire myths from around the world, and add fresh girl-on-girl blood to the pantheon of the paranormal.

Take a walk on the wild side with some of the hottest erotic romance authors out there. In "La Caida," a Mexican "salt-eater" saves a fallen angel and redeems her own soul. In "Bloody Wicked," a powerful witch's spell to lure a lover turns her into a vampire's love slave. Through a "Pet Door," a shapeshifting vampire meets the dominatrix of her dreams. South African "Impundulu" sweeps you back to a vampire's primeval beginnings. With a list of contributors that include Adele Dubois, Christine d'Abo, Paisley Smith, Myla Jackson, Shayla Kersten, and Vivi Anna, Devlin delivers a dark and sexy read you can sink your teeth into!

So, sit astride the dome of St. Peter's Basilica, sail with modern-day pirates, watch a meteor fall to earth, and taste the powdery wings of a Monarch butterfly. Not things you'd expect in a vampire tale? Then sip O-positive from a femoral artery while tugging at the silky strands of your lover's hair. Eternally delicious.

New Book Out! Pinyon (m/m, werewolves)

2011-10-20T13:44:00.000-07:00

Hey, y'all! I'm tickled to share that I have a fun, new m/m werewolf story out with Torquere Press today, inspired by this summer's trip to Colorado with my partner, Julia Talbot.

Blurb

When Stirling finds a lost wolf out in the woods of Southern Colorado, the last thing he expects to discover is old pack outcast Tanner. Tanner was the werewolf who never learned to shift, but it looks like he’s figured things out. Except that news reporters are all over the area, looking for a story in Tanner’s old hometown, and Stirling has a wolf pack to protect. Can he juggle his duties with his dawning need for Tanner?

Sample

The woods were too damned quiet. Normally Stirling would hear magpies and jays, chipmunks and squirrels. Today there was hardly a rustle of leaves, which meant someone was in the forest who didn’t really belong.

Lots of folks used the national forest land all the time for recreation or hunting or whatever. The animals got used to that and went about their business. The silence told Stirling that someone was either in trouble, or was doing something they really weren’t supposed to be doing. He checked his radio to make sure it was off, not wanting to alert anyone to his presence. Then he scented the wind, letting his second, and stronger, set of senses take over.

The scent that hit his nose was odd, familiar and not for the half-second he actually smelled it. He frowned. Weird.

Stirling headed west, following the scent, hand on his weapon.

He thought he heard a soft growl as he headed near a copse of pines, but the sound disappeared as he stopped. Still, he stopped and tilted his head, letting his good right ear do the hearing. His left had been perforated once, thanks to a bad fall while he was rock climbing. It had never been the same.

The growl sounded again, the noise heading to his left.

Stirling moved slowly, choosing his steps carefully. He didn’t want to break a stick or send a rock rolling.

He sniffed again, this time the wind brought him a definite scent. A wolf. A male.

Raising a brow, Stirling moved into the shadow of a big pine. The wolf was coming his way, and the wind wouldn’t betray Stirling’s presence, so he just settled in to wait.

The skinny creature came out into the sun, nostrils flaring, fur matted and rough.

Jesus. Stirling could count every rib, could see every frickin’ bone. Where the hell had this guy come from? They were having a good year for water and small game.

The wolf lifted his face toward the sun, chest heaving like bellows.

There was something there, something about the way the animal smelled, something about those weird, too-golden eyes. They were familiar. All of it was familiar, somehow, but this wasn’t one of the current pack. Stirling knew all of them, as far ranging as they were.

It surprised the hell out of him when the wolf just settled, sat right there in the middle of the clearing. That was crazy. Weak, starving, the fool thing needed to find cover. Stirling pulled a gun, but not his service revolver. He got his tranq out instead.

Buy Pinyon here. :D

BA Tortuga

Timeless Desire Tour: IMMORTAL by Bryl R. Tyne

2011-10-19T08:11:00.000-07:00

Once in a while, you just have to write a story that's fun, knowing it'll be as fun to write as to read. Though my Timeless Desire piece is full of lust, betrayal, and longing, it's also filled with action, deceit, and the power of redemption. IMMORTAL comes out on Halloween at Noble Romance Publishing. Watch for other Timeless Desire stories and our blog tour in November to win some wonderful gifts (a Kindle and a marvelous toy package from SexToys.co.uk) and free books and swag!

Here's a little about IMMORTAL:

Found abandoned as a child andtaken in by the Nevsky clan, the man Ivis now feels the call of the water, thesea, but the Nevsky, one of the most influential vampire bloodlinesin Russia, aren't about to let Ivis go. As Ivis's powers grow stronger—powers unknownto him—Sefton's instructed to detain Ivis at all costs to tilt in his clan'sfavor the balance of power in an endless struggle between the Bogdanov watergods and Nevsky vampires. Sefton's left with a choice: power or love. Which isthe greater desire?

excerpt (unedited):

At the edge of the great forest,wild fields stretched to the south and to the east, ending as they tapered intoa great sea. Though I could see only long grasses to the horizon, rumor spokeof such a place, the place where the Nevsky hunters had found me as a child of fourseasons, with not a stitch of clothing or clan to lay claim. Few from thenearby village had dared venture out that far since, and those who had a willto try had never returned. I dreamt of returning there someday. Though to what,or to whom, or precisely where, I had yet to learn.

"Again, I fear I am losingyou, Ivis." Sefton's breaths cut cold and hard across the damp skinbetween my shoulders.

I placed my lips to the back ofhis hand and kissed him. "Unfortunately, glimpses of my past remain withme to this day, as they should. I can no more forget them than the sight of myown face in the water."

But no matter how often Iuttered those words, in truth, my past reached no farther than the tip of mynose, for how was it possible a child, no taller than waist high, shouldremember such places or events . . . or names? It was vain for me to try, buteven now, as a young man, I continued to do so. More so, the closer Sefton drewto me for the power, though I knew not this power he claimed to seek . .. but his seeking me out for yet another romp in the forests happened moreoften than not of late.

"When I am with you, I amalive as never before." Sefton tugged me against his chest, as he had doneeach night and many a carefree afternoon for as far back as I could recall."Though I am troubled, not understanding how each time could be betterthan the last, yet it always is," he said and kissed the top of my head,then my shoulder; his hips pressed firmly to my backside. "Ivis? Promiseme. Promise to never leave my side."

His words were as a thick plumeof smoke, suffocating, no matter how quickly I made to maneuver through them. Iremoved his less than reassuring arm and pulled myself up to stand. The rockyground outside our grassy circle of body-warmed foliage stung the soles of myfeet. "To this day, I know not my family name, for the lady's sake."I leaned, one hand clinging and toying with a low-hanging branch. "Until Iknow who I may be, I cannot make such promises. You know that I would die foryou if I could."

I turned to find theever-present doubt his gaze increasingly held.

"I love you, Sefton Nevsky,like no other. Is knowing that not enough for you?"

For the briefest of seconds, hiseyes flashed the color of fresh-spilled blood, and I looked away. He shot tohis feet and with a firm grip, carried my face nose to nose with his own in amove that left me panting with fright. But I did not retreat, nor show the fearhe'd instigated and likely craved. Instead, I met his sternness with my own."You are neither my keeper nor my brother."

"I am a Nevsky and you—abastard son found amongst the reeds. Do not push me, lower than low." Hepounded his chest with a knuckled fist. "You will not defy my wishes."

Against my knotted gut, Istepped around him and retrieved my tunic and breeches. Oxen more stubborn, Ihad never witnessed in my supposed twenty-some years—I kept that knowledgeloosely, too, for I had as much recollection of my true age as I had of the dayI was born. I dressed despite Sefton's stance and his curses to the contrary.Slipping my tunic over my head, I added my favorite counter to his morefrequent stubborn outbursts, "Your proclaimed 'two years' makes you nowiser than I, though, with each passing day, you do resemble more and more adonkey's behind."

His reaction came swift and sureas he backed me against the nearest ash tree; Sefton tightened his grasp on mytunic with a shove surely meant to meld his fist to my chest. My still-nakedbuttocks encountered brittle bark. His gaze remained locked with mine."One day"—he wiped the spittle from his bottom lip—"one day Iwill make you know how infuriating a man you can be, Ivis Bogdanov."

Sefton's mouth covered mine,leaving me forgotten moments better used for breathing, but I could no moredeny his needs for all the talk in the forest. He pulled away, breathless."Curse our lives," he said, grimacing in obvious disgust. "WereI not born the ass that I am—were you . . . had we met under differentcircumstances—"

"But we have not, Sefton.That is the hand the Fates have dealt us."

Sefton pulled me into his arms."Do not do this. No good can come from your curiosity. Are you so unhappythat I cannot expect you to share this life we have?"

"Life?" I wrenchedfree. "Life? I roam your fathers' countryside by day and your castle bynight as if in search of something, though I know not what."

The look Sefton bore frustratedme further.

"You do not understand. Iam a man. Do you not see that I have no need to be by your side both day andnight? Can you not see your constant concern is smothering? I turn a corner;you are there. I close my eyes only to open them to your face. Is it I you donot trust, or is it yourself?"

Sefton's steely eyes flared todeep crimson, and he stood a hair's breadth before me in a blink of an eye."Rue the day I found you in the marshes bordering the easternfields." His nostrils flared as he turned away. "I need you besideme, or you would not remain . . . . You are no one special. No one would haveyou but I; no man is as accoutered as I to keep a—a man, such asyourself."

Heat pooled in my chest, and achill, the likes of which I had never encountered, consumed my shaking limbs."A burden you claim, then I fear a burden I shall become."

"Do not speak the words,Bogdanov"—he bore his fangs in anger, a rarity in my presence—"orbear my wrath!"

In a move unseen, he was uponme, the sting of his bite upon my flesh, and I hardened instantly, despite mystruggle. "Damn you, son of Nevsky."

But my words came as a fleetingbreath, for my body could not mask my will, and I pressed into his touch, hisbite . . . his embrace, wanting him near with the same ferocity I wanted himaway from me, the same longing I had felt the first time we coupled. And hereciprocated, penetrating my flesh deeper as he rolled his hips, revealing hisdesire, even as he assuaged his anger with the blood drawn from my shoulder.

"Damn you."

He pulled away, withdrawing hisfangs. His gaze, obscured by a haze of lust, met mine, and it was my blood thattrickled from his lips as he said, "Too late."

His expression told of hispain—decades, centuries, an eternity—for how long, I had no knowledge. So muchhad passed between us, years of growing—more, I'd grown from boy to man; Seftonhad remained as youthful and handsome as he ever was—uneasiness swallowed mewhole with one look into his eyes. In spite of his protests to the contrary, Icould never be what he desired. It hurt to love him as I did, but it hurt moreto know not who I was, where I had come from, to whom I might belong.

"You belong with me,Ivis," he said, wiping the blood from his chin.

"Get out of my head."

"Your own thoughts betrayyou, for freely they gave themselves to me. I had no need to pry my wayin."

"You are an insatiable andarrogant man."

"I'm no more a man thanyou—" He stopped abruptly and turned his back to me.

"What is this you onceagain allude to?" He removed himself from my reach. No man could keepone such as me . . . . Had he not meant riches, for I had wants, and Seftonseemed always to have need to fulfill each and every one of them? Before mynext breath, Sefton was dressed.

"Son of Nevsky, what areyou hiding from—?" But before I could finish my question, he was gone. Andhence, so was I.

Follow the Timeless Desire November Blog Tour HERE
Or Like us on our Facebook page to stay on top of the contests

Be sure to check out all the other Timeless Desire stories by awesome writers: KevaD, Brita Addams, J.S. Wayne, Sarah Ballance, Lucy Felthouse, H.C. Brown, and Jess Anastasi

Halloween!

2011-10-18T10:02:00.000-07:00

It'll be Halloween in a couple of weeks. It's my favorite holiday. This year I did a Halloween story set at the Hammer Club. I had contemplated doing one set in the Velvet Glove world, but that takes place on a planet far far away, so they don't exactly have Halloween, you know?

Which got me to thinking. What kind of Halloweenish holiday would they have in other worlds? Would it focus on the dead? On the costumes? On the giving out of candy? What would it celebrate?

In the end, I wound up going with the Hammer Club and our earthly, North American Halloween. But who knows what next year will bring?

Lion Tamer, a Hammer story

Single Hammer Club Top Christopher is dressed up for the club's Halloween party as a lion tamer, complete with whip. He's an expert with the whip; he just needs to find someone special to use it on. Will newcomer and sexy kitty Travis be just what he's looking for?

Buy link.

GREAT BUYS - CHANCES TO WIN FREE BOOKS/NOOK

2011-10-16T13:18:00.001-07:00

FROM NOW THROUGH OCTOBER 31 YOU'LL SEE THE ABOVE HEADER AT

http://www.allromanceebooks.com

All Romance eBooks and OmniLit offer a 25% rebate on every book purchased from AMBER QUILL PRESS, this month's Featured Publisher.

At ARe, go to the Search option in the upper right hand corner, click Author and then type in your favorite author's name. Examples: Author Carolina Valdez or Author KC Kendricks or Author Christiane France or whomever. All the books for the author in your search will pop up, and you'll see you get the rebate on every book.

The rebate is in eBucks, available to purchase even more books from ARe or OmniLit.

THEN, FOR CHANCES TO WIN PRIZES AND A NOOK, IT'S TIME FOR

Participating authors for this special event have donated books, other prizes, and even contributed to a Nook eBook Reader you have a chance to win. SPOOKAPALOOZA runs on Eastern Standard Time and goes from :01 a.m. 10/28 until midnight 10/31. You can read excerpts, sign up to win something, and check in with authors to ask questions or make comments on their posts. I think I can speak for every author when I tell you we love chatting with readers.

See you there! It'll be fun!

CAROLINA VALDEZ

http://www.carolinavaldez.com

Torso Thursday. :D

2011-10-13T08:24:00.000-07:00

Happy inspiration to all of you! :D :D :D

BA

http://www.batortuga.com

Why I don't write crocodile shifters

2011-10-12T10:44:00.000-07:00

Hey, y'all!

Julia Talbot writes shifters, but not crocodile shifters.

(don't you love it when people refer to themselves in 3rd person? My partner, BA Tortuga, hates it. So I do it every chance I get)

Why do I not write crocodiles, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. Crocodiles have a thing for me, and I find that intensely creepy.

I know, I know, it seems hard to believe, but after years of experimental crocodile visitation, I know it to be true. There was the albino croc at shark reef in Mandalay Bay in Vegas. It literally followed me for twenty minutes, as it was in the big tank that you look at for half the exhibit. Three hundred people in there, and he literally followed me and only me. Even the handlers remarked on it. As in, "Whoa, I've never seen him do that."

There was the croc at the Georgia Aquarium who came up to the glass and put one giant foot on it and commenced to have a staring contest with me. He won.

Over the years I have had some 10-15 encounters thusly, leading BA to tell me that crocs must be my totem animal.

Personally, I think I must look like a wildebeest or something.

The whole obsession has led to quite a collection of crocodile memorabilia from not so well-meaning family and friends. I have a cd holder, a knitting needle case and a wooden crocodile from Nassau who opens up to show a giant penis inside.

So, I avoid croc shifters. Not to mention there's that whole sex organs inside the body instead of easily within reach...

Now, wolves are way less complicated. Far more social. Less likely to death roll.

I write a lot of werewolves.

If you'd like to read one and help out a great charity, check out Coming Out Wolf, only 1.99 at Torquere Books and Rainbow Ebooks.

Way hotter than crocodiles.

XXOO

Julia

MISSING, PRESUMED DEAD

2011-10-09T21:35:00.000-07:00

If you like ex-cops, p.i's, California, mysteries, and are looking for a new series, you may enjoy my latest release:

Missing, Presumed Dead
(An Amethyst Cove Mystery)
by Christiane France
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-182-2 (Electronic)
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/MissingPresumedDead.html

Private investigator and ex-cop, Greg Stewartson, is on his way to bed when his Hollywood-producer brother, Vance, shows up on his doorstep. With him is the handsome, sexy, and blond Tim Fensham, the brother of Vance's latest girlfriend, movie star Petra Lianne. Vance says Petra went missing more than a month ago after last being seen in Amethyst Cove. He has new information, but the police refuse to follow it up. They’ve closed the case, declaring the actress "Missing, Presumed Dead."
But Vance and Tim don’t believe Petra is dead and ask Greg to take the case. After Greg agrees, Tim stays to help him find Petra, while Vance returns to L.A.
Greg doesn’t want or need help, and wishes Tim would leave, too. He’s attracted to the man and figures the feeling may be mutual, but he doesn’t mix business with pleasure and he doesn’t need the distraction of Tim staying in his house. He also doesn’t like the way Tim keeps trying to interfere in the investigation, or the unexpected moves Tim puts on him during a power failure.
Still, Greg can’t tell Tim to take his case elsewhere for fear of upsetting Vance, but he does tell Tim to back off. The trouble is, Tim is not a very good listener...
Excerpt:

...While Tim went outside to fetch his overnight bag, I collected the used mugs and empty beer cans, put them on the tray and took the tray out to the kitchen.
When he returned, I locked the back door, but didn’t bother resetting the alarm. If he decided to go back outside for whatever reason, I didn’t want the damn thing going off and waking me up. “If you want to come with me, I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping. There’s an extra blanket in the closet if you’re cold, and there are soap and towels in the ensuite. If you need anything else, I’m in the room across from you.”
We’d made it halfway down the hall leading to the bedrooms when the lights went off, yet again. Tim cannoned into my back, almost knocking me over.
“Sorry about that. I hate the dark.” He gave a shaky laugh. “Always have. Scares the living crap out of me. Makes me jumpy as hell. Clumsy, too.”
Oh, yeah? I’ve seen more than a few clever moves over the years, but when it came to making the best of an opportunity, this guy was beyond good. Believable, almost.
He cuddled closer, presumably to prove his point, then wrapped his arms around my body, and I felt his hot breath tickling my neck. “I hope you don’t mind me hanging onto you like this.”
Mind? Why should I mind? The power’s never off for more than a minute, two at the very most, so I had no reason to worry about things getting out of hand. “It’s okay. You’ll be fine.”
Whether I would be fine was a whole different story. His heat, his scent, the way his hard cock was pressing against my crack was such a turn-on, I figured I might as well enjoy the thrill while it lasted. All I had to do was relax…one, two, three, four. Any second now there would be light. Five, six, seven, eight, nine… By the time I got to ten, my imagination had taken off and I didn’t care if the damn lights never ever came on again.
He was nibbling my ears and stroking my dick, and it didn’t take genius mentality to know where things were headed. But what the hell? Maybe he really was afraid of the dark rather than an opportunist, and if something we both wanted kept his mind off his fears where was the harm?
Just when things started to get really hot, the lights flashed on and off a couple of times, then came back on to stay.
He relaxed his hold and gave another shaky laugh. “Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to get quite so carried away. I guess what they say about fear being a powerful aphrodisiac is true.”
Oh, sure! The guy is edging in on forty and this is the first time he’s discovered the connection? I don’t think so. I may live in a small town, but he has to know us small-towners are not that naive. “You think?”
“Not really, no.” He visibly relaxed and treated to me to a soft, sexy chuckle that raised everything on my body, including my hopes, as he reached out and stroked a finger down my cheek. “You could have pushed me away.”
“True. I could also have screamed rape. Problem is living out here with my nearest neighbor working nights, I doubt anyone would have heard.”
“Would you have wanted them to hear?”
“Not particularly.” I smiled. This was California, and tall, good-looking, blond-haired, surfer-dudes are a dime a dozen. But there was nothing stereotypical about Tim. For one thing, he was much older than your average surfer dude, and while most surfers are just good looks and muscles, this guy had all that plus charisma to spare. His blond, sun-streaked hair looked natural, and his deep blue eyes were a turn-on all by themselves.
“You sure about that?”
“About as sure as I can be.”
The wanting was there on both sides. It was so damn obvious what was about to happen, and I needed to put a stop to it, now. This was where I was supposed to force a laugh, shuffle my feet to cover any embarrassment, and get back to showing Tim to his room. Except I knew I couldn’t do any of that. My rule of not mixing business with pleasure was about to get broken, and there was nothing I could do about it. At least, nothing I wanted to do...
Cool mysteries and hot romance - http://www.chrisgrover.ca
Latest Release: MISSING, PRESUMED DEAD - http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure
Coming soon: AND THE CAT CAME BACK
http://www.myspace.com/185513895 http://twitter.com/chrisgrover2
www.facebook.com/people/Chris-Grover/1479706280

Shifting Streams: Climbing the Ladder (m/m/f paranormal)

2011-10-06T09:15:00.000-07:00

Here I am, writing the B in GLBT. ;-)

Just had a new release yesterday -- Shifting Streams Series, Book One: Climbing the Ladder. I had an absolute ball writing this one (and am hip-deep in book two). As y'all know, werewolves are one of my favorite things, as are reunited lovers. This book gave me the chance to write both. :D

Blurb:

Mesa has a lot on his plate since he became his pack’s Alpha. With another clan on the brink of self-destruction, he knows he has too much to take care of to go running off, but he also knows what he needs to do in order to run his pack, and that’s go get his mate.

Kody left Mesa years ago, knowing they could never be together the way Kody really wanted. Making a life for himself seemed like the best idea, and when he found Samantha, he knew he’d found the woman he wanted to marry. Kody never forgot Mesa, but it still comes as a shock when the big, growly man shows up on his Los Angeles doorstep.

Between Sammy’s rage at what she sees as Kody’s betrayal, pack politics hitting the boiling point and the amazing chemistry between the three of them, Kody, Mesa and Samantha have their work cut out for them. Can they climb the ladder to love?

***

Excerpt:

Potatoes. Tomatoes. Carrots. Celery. Onions. London broil.

God, the stew smelled good.

He’d made four loaves of bread—enough for the week’s lunches, plus three dinners, and one loaf for Sammy to take to the office for the potluck.

Now, apple crisp or a coconut cream pie? They both sounded good, and Sammy loved the coconut, but the apples were in season now. So yummy. And the cinnamon would make the house smell so good.

So good.

Cinnamon made Sammy snuggly.

There was something very nice about snuggly Sammy. Hot. Spicy, like the cinnamon.

Kody growled happily, peeling the apples and indulging in a little fantasy about Sammy’s hands.

Kody loved Sammy’s hands.

He got three apples peeled and was working on number four when something intruded on his fantasy, a scent that had his nose quivering. It was familiar…

His nose twitched and he put the apple down, whining deep in his throat, following his nose. Yes. Familiar, but different. Full of strength. Weird. Fascinating.

He headed toward the back door.

The scent got stronger, and he identified it as male, musky, almost addictive.

Kody pushed the hair out of his face, moved the curtain from the back door. The door popped open, all but knocking him down. It wasn’t Sammy. Not at all.

“Hey, Kody. ‘Bout time I tracked you down.”

He was dreaming.

Dreaming.

Not awake.

Sound asleep.

Not here.

He was chasing the moon.

Kody reached down, pinched his arm. Hard.

“Still here.” His oldest friend and first love, Mesa McMullen, was standing right there. Huge and beautiful and dark and strong. Male. Fierce. Grinning at him like a monkey.

Mesa.

His Mesa.

“You’re in Los Angeles.”

“I am.” Mesa smiled, the expression pure wolf. “So are you.”

“Uh-huh.” His nostrils flared. “You smell different.”

Even after three years, he remembered exactly how good Mesa smelled.

“I passed, baby. My trials.” He could see Mesa’s hands flex, as if to keep from reaching for him. Or maybe preparing to.

“Mesa…” Oh. Oh, lord and lady. His Alpha. “I’m so proud.”

“Good. Come home with me.”

“Oh.” He whined softly, his body going immediately, painfully hard and he took a step forward, wanting his mate more than almost anything. Almost. “I… But there’s Sammy.”

“Sammy. Who the fuck is Sammy?” Mesa’s growl vibrated all the way down Kody’s spine, as if someone had hit a tuning fork against his bones.

He held up his hand with the wedding ring. He hadn’t believed Mesa would come for him, had thought, when the moon led him down out of the mountains, that he would never be Clan again.

He could almost hear Grandma Minnie’s laughter in his soul.

“You—” Mesa blinked. “You’d never marry a man.”

He chirruped softly, head tilting. “Why would I marry a man?”

Mesa was his mate. When they bonded—if they bonded—it would be for life.

“So, Sammy is a girl?” Mesa was starting to smile, a look Kody knew well. It was sex and need and pride and pleasure, all at once.

Kody nodded. “Of course. My wife. She’s beautiful. Fierce.”

“We’ll have to bring her with us.”

“Oh.” He stepped forward, vibrating. Those words were his most hoped for wish, spoken aloud. “Yes. Yes, Mesa. Please.”

Mesa closed the rest of the gap between them, hand behind Kody’s head to pull him up for a kiss.

Broad and fierce, Mesa felt like heaven against him, growling, mouth hovering right above his lips. Kody sobbed in anticipation, hands spreading over Mesa’s chest.

“Need you, baby. Waited so long.” Mesa kissed him, just like Kody wanted.

Everything inside him howled. Mate. His Mate. His Alpha. His Mesa.

They rubbed together, Mesa’s leg sliding between his and lifting. Ached. It ached so good. “Mate…”

Those big hands closed on his ass, squeezing, and his cock jumped, his need tripling, quadrupling.

His fingers tangled in Mesa’s thick, black hair, holding them together. Mesa was going to devour him, just eat him alive. He’d missed this, the flavor of his best friend, for years.

Now he could have it. He could have all he wanted.

He heard a soft sound, then “Kody? Kody, what the hell?”

Oh.

Oops.

Mesa lifted his head, teeth bared in a growl. “Who is this?”

“My wife.”

***

Buy Climbing the Ladder at Resplendence Publishing :D

Y'all have a good one!

BA Tortuga

www.batortuga.com

Because sometimes fistfights are foreplay. :D

Troubled Lovers

2011-10-05T15:43:00.000-07:00

I will admit to having a soft spot for lovers who come together, then part for whatever reason, and then figure out that they were wrong and get back together again. The redemption and understanding shown by both characters in such a scenario transcends pairings, genres, or in the case of my latest M/M release, An Undercover Fling, galaxies.

Garst left Trell three years ago after a mission gone wrong. Garst couldn't tell the truth--that he hadn't been on the wrong side of the law--because he'd been ordered to move on. His departure left Trell thinking that Garst had succumbed to the very criminals they were bound to stop. That wasn't the truth, and when Garst shows up on Trell's station again, he has to prove that he isn't what he appears to be, because he's been true to Trell, and to their profession, all along.

I found myself drawn to the character of Trell; he spoke to my muse first. I understood where he came from, and what he yearned for. But I also understood Garst, and once he began speaking to me...well, the story basically wrote itself.

If you love reunions, then I hope you pick up my short novella. And if you have a favorite book about parted lovers reunited, then I hope you'll tell me about it here. Thanks for having me at the The Rainbow Studio blog today!

Movies Galore

2011-10-03T07:31:00.001-07:00

I’ve been enjoying some movies that I haven’t seen in a long time. This past week I watched all 4 of the Lethal Weapon movies. They had me laughing and the action was great. It’s been years since I saw them. I still did remember some of the little parts of the movie I liked the most. Like Joe Pesci and his “I’m Leo Getz, and whatever you want, Leo gets.” line. As well as his colorful cursing all the time. He is such an interesting character. Memorable.

I have a few other movies that I haven’t seen in a long time that I loved. I will be checking them out also.

What interesting movies have you seen lately?

Talia Carmichael
http://taliacarmichael.com/
Fill Your Cravings

Blog: http://taliacarmichael.com/blog
Newsletter:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/taliacarmichael

Buy Ralston's Way here

Just Like Cats and Dogs (m/m, paranormal)

2011-09-29T07:36:00.000-07:00

Howdy, y’all!

Cats and dogs living together is chaos, yeah? It sure seems like it at my mother’s house, where eleven dogs and four cats share a three acre lot. Let me tell you, that is a study in animal kingdom behavior. A visit there always gives me werewolfy thoughts, because lord, that’s some pack politics right there.

Did I mention that my mom has a pair of giant, shaggy mutts names Edward and Jacob?

So, when I get home, I write. That (and an unfortunate incident involving our old pitbull, a grumpy cat, a bush, and a walk) was what inspired Just Like Cats and Dogs, my latest m/m novel. (And my first m/m novel in damned near a year.)

Werekitty Sam and werewolf Gus just took over my brain for months, telling me first how they didn’t like each other a bit and then, boom, how they were all up in each other’s business.

I’m so proud of this book, y’all! It’s got hotness, but it’s got a good story about pack politics and shifter issues and just downright star-crossed lovers, too.

You should see what author Jane Davitt says about it in her review! She was kind enough to do the advance review copy look at it and ignore any errors in the proof. (g) Here’s a bit of what she says:

Sam doesn't fit in anywhere and as the story unfolds we see how precarious his life is because his own kind, the cats, see him as tainted by the wolves, and to the pack he grew up with, he's the enemy, barely tolerated. The lines are drawn; the city is run by the cats, the wolves like the countryside. 'West Side Story' is referenced in the book and this story does have 'Romeo and Juliet' overtones, the classic forbidden love story taken to a whole new level.

How awesome is that?

Here’s the official blurb:

If there’s one thing Sam knows for sure it’s that you can never go home again. As a feline shifter who grew up in a family of wolves, he’s used to being a freak. He stays in the city and tries to get his family to visit him, but when a loved one passes away, Sam has to go back to the New Mexico desert for a last goodbye.

Gus only comes back to the pack at gathering time, once in a blue moon. He’s usually a wanderer, but he’s with the pack when Sam comes home. Gus and Sam have never gotten along, but this time around Gus is surprised by the attraction he feels for this new, slinky version of his high school nemesis.

Sam and Gus may not be able to resist each other, but finding time to be together and overcome their differences might be too much for them, especially when danger lurks just around the corner, and all around the world. Can cats and dogs live to learn together, or are Gus and Sam destined to fail?

Thanks for looking, y’all! You can find Just Like Cats and Dogs here, and on Amazon and All Romance Ebooks.

Happy Fall!

2011-09-28T07:00:00.000-07:00

Fall is my very favorite time of the year.

Yeah, yeah, where I live in Texas it doesn’t get to be fall until November, at the earliest, at least temperature-wise. But I do like the fall clothes on the racks and the apples that come in from where it gets cold and the new TV seasons.

I also love Halloween.

Is this is a surprise? I write werewolves and vampires, I collect bats, I’ve gone to about a gazillion parties in corsets, and this is what my desk looks like all the time.

I’ve been working on a Halloween Sip, or short story, for Torquere lately, and it was tough what to choose what to do. I’ve done zombies, warlocks and demons, but this year, thanks to a recent panel where vampires were declared passé, I decided to write vamps.

Hot, bitey, yummy, kinda rough and ready vamps. Uhn. I do love me some of that.

Look for it in late October from Torquere Press.

Right now my newest release is (gasp) not a paranormal. It’s a short about spanking and bdsm called Pushing Limits. Check it out here! and at All Romance Ebooks

Happy fall!

XXOO

Julia

www.juliatalbot.com- home of the (not-so) ordinary hero

Charity Short -- The Best Damn Thing (m/m/m)

2011-09-22T11:34:00.000-07:00

Hey, y’all!

I’m kinda dithering today, trying to decide what to write about. Thursdays are my day off, so I try to get all my blog posts done ahead of time, but last night there was new Criminal Minds. And my favorite character with a beard. And I sorta got stupid. ;-)

So, today I want to bounce about my Charity Sip for the Torquere Press Getting Better Sip Blitz.

Every year the authors at Torquere pick a charity to write stories for, and we donate our royalties to the chosen cause. This year 33 of us wrote for the It Gets Better project, which I love for its message. I should know. I'm living proof. I spent some time thinking on this one -- did I want to go sad (*cackles* Y'all know I don't write much angst)? Did I want to let Coke tell more of his story (yes, but that become WHOA long -- look for it in 2012)? Did I want to bring MJ and Sonny out of the closet (pun intended)?

Jim stepped up and informed me that, Hello, he was a stud, and Hi, my turn. So, okay. His turn. Story.

It’s weird, sometimes, how that works. I started out with these two boys who just refused to get together until I added a third (did I mention it’s m/m/m?) and let one of them be a big old growly Top. Once that got through my thick head, the story flew by and my editor said oh that was hot and I just grinned and patted the boys…

You can find The Best Damn Thing here: http://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=79_111&products_id=3350 and on Rainbow Ebooks, who’s agreed to sponsor the Sip Blitz this year. *tosses confetti on them*

Here’s a wee bite of the story. Thanks for hanging out with me, y’all

BA Tortuga

***

"Yeah, but..." Dale's eyes were squinty -- Jim could tell, even with the sunshades on. "You defending that little fuck?" Dale snarled.

Jim arched an eyebrow, set his Coke down nice and easy. Lunch was about over, so all he had left was his drink. "Just stating facts. Y'all 'bout ready to get back to work, or we gonna tie it up?" He wasn't opposed to either option, but he wanted to know the deal.

"Don't be a fuck, Jim. You want to fight or something?" Dale's Coke went down a little harder than his.

He twisted his lips. He'd fight if he had to. He didn't back down from assholes like Dale.

A huge, solid hand landed on his shoulder, and he knew it was Walker, the foreman. The boss stared at everyone, especially Jim and Cooter. "You asshats got issues?"

Listening to that voice made him shiver a little, deep inside. "Not me," Jim said, shaking his head. His cheek brushed the side of Walker's hand.

"Just seeing if old Jim here was a fudge packer like that little queer coming out of the coffee shop."

The hand on his shoulder didn't move. "Is Mr. Marten causing y'all problems?"

"What?" Dale looked like he was fixin' to swallow his tongue.

"Collin! You causing my boys problems?" The boss' voice rang out and Collin Marten stopped, looked over from across the way.

"Walker? Why on earth would I do that?" Collin took a step closer, and Cooter spit on the ground again.

"I'm going back to work; fucking fags."

"Watch your mouth, Cooter, or you can get your shit and go. I don't put up with that kind of crap on my crew, and you know it."

"I ain't working for a queer. You queer, Walker?"

Well, shit.

Jim stood there, his teeth in his mouth, trying to figure out what the fuck to do, to say before the shit hit the fan. He'd been subcontracting for Walker for five long years, and he'd never seen the man back down from a fight, never seen the man lose one, either. He'd never pondered Walker's sexuality too hard, either.

That way lay madness.

http://www.batortuga.com

Because sometimes fistfights are foreplay. ;-)

Getting Better Charity Sip Blitz

2011-09-20T11:06:00.000-07:00

It's my pleasure to take part in Torquere Press' Charity Sip Blitz again this year.

In 2008, Torquere Press' fantastic authors decided to support a charity with an annual short story collection called our Charity Sip blitz. In the past three years, we've donated more than $13,000.00 to charitable organizations that support GLBT causes.

For 2011, Torquere's authors have chosen the theme "Getting Better" in honor of the It Gets Better project, which helps LGBT youth understand that life as an openly queer adult is not only possible, but happening for millions of people, worldwide. More than thirty authors have written short fiction pieces and have agreed to donate all proceeds of the sales of these stories to this year's charitable organization. Torquere Press Inc. will match the authors' donations completely.

This year, we're also pleased to announce that our distribution partner, Rainbow eBooks, has agreed to be the title sponsor of our Sip collection, and will be our sole distributor outside of the Torquere Books website. Please support our sponsor by visiting them at www.rainbowebooks.com

Special thanks to J. Rocci for all of the enthusiasm and hard work on the Getting Better project.

Torquere Press and our authors truly believe we can make a difference by donating to organizations that promote awareness and equality. If you'd like to help, please support the Charity Sip Blitz and enjoy some great romance today!http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Also available at www.rainbowebooks.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My story is Old Ghosts, a Jarheads story.

When Rig's past shows up to haunt him, his marines, Rock and Dick know just what he needs. Their night out might end sooner than expected, but Rig likes it better when they stay ihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifn. Featuring the Bestselling Jarheads characters.

You can find it here.

There's 33 great stories to choose from.

A first review for Highway Nights by KC Kendricks

2011-09-14T10:26:00.000-07:00

This morning contained an “eek!” moment. I realized it was my day to blog here at The Romance Studio. Today. Like I didn’t have two planning meetings to attend, grocery shopping to do, and a website workshop to attend. My life is never boring and this is a good thing.

When I checked my email I promptly discovered the universe had worked it out for me. I had something to blog about besides my dog. (He’s a very spoiled black Lab, by the way.) My latest release, Highway Nights, has already been reviewed - by The Romance Studio! How’s that for serendipity? I think it’s pretty good, especially since it was a solid 4-Heart review. Reviewer Beverly says:

… I liked the realistic feel to this story. It's an honest portrayal of hard working men making their way in life, just like men we know in our own lives. When love catches them unaware, their reaction to it is the crux of the story…. The sex scenes are good and steamy, these two really like each other. An unforeseen occurrence adds to the drama and kicks it up a notch. Highway Nights is a nicely paced story with a satisfying ending. I liked it a lot.

Thank you, Beverly! I hope you’ll read more KC Kendricks books in the future.

Here’s a bit about Highways Nights. (And sorry about the formatting - it seems to have a mind of its own.)

HIGHWAY NIGHTS
Erotic contemporary gay romance
Now available at Amber Allure
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/HighwayNights.html

Garrett Webb has a five-point plan for starting his own business. To keep it on track, he takes a second job and settles into the evening delivery run between Owensville and Mt. Franklin. The solitude of being on the road clears his head and enables him to chart a better future for himself. When a foggy night sends him to the safety of The Downshift Diner and its owner, Oliver Sanderson, that future takes an unforeseen turn.

Oliver Sanderson enjoys a quiet life along the lonely stretch of highway that’s home to his diner. The road brings all manner of interesting souls to his door. When Garrett Webb steps out of the fog seeking shelter, his openness and honesty draws Oliver’s interest. He’s ready to take the next step, but needs to be cautious. Trouble is coming to the diner, and Oliver wants Garrett clear of it.

Good intentions can’t hold out against their budding attraction. Garrett makes the diner a regular stop during his nightly run, and the men get better acquainted. But Garrett’s past isn’t done with him. In a single heart-stopping moment, Garrett is forced to a decision that risks Oliver’s life – one that could forever end their highway nights.

INTRO:

Oliver settled in the booth and stared across the table. “You gonna tell me why you’re really here?”

“I told you. Food and conversation.”

The young man didn’t bat an eye. Oliver had a good sense about men, and it said Garrett was interested in a lot more than talk. He saw no point in calling the fellow on it, not yet. It could be Garrett didn’t consciously realize what he wanted. Life handed you moments like that, and Oliver had had his fair share of them. But if the lad wanted talk, he’d be glad to get the ball rolling.

“All right, then. I’ll be nosey and start our chat. So why are you working two jobs? A young fellow like you should be out clubbing every night.”

“My five-point plan suffered a setback. I’m working to recoup some losses.”

“Boyfriend?”

Garrett sighed. “Not any longer.”

And, no doubt, the ex-boyfriend was reason the five-point plan had been derailed. It usually was. Oliver could say he’d been there and done that, too, but he’d wait to see if Garrett asked first. He didn’t, so Oliver tried another topic.

“Nice jeans.”

“Thanks. I got a great deal on them. Twenty bucks at a yard sale.”

Yard sale? No wonder Garrett dressed like a prince. Oliver could, too, if he had the patience to treasure hunt, because that’s what a yard sale really was.

“Good looking, hard working and frugal. You don’t find that combination every day.”

Garrett sipped his cola, his blue gaze fastened on Oliver’s. “That’s me. Do you like the back pockets of my pants?”

“Ah, a flaw. Vanity.” Oliver leaned back, unable to refrain from grinning at Garrett.

“I noticed. I’ll say it since your ego appears to need it.” He leaned forward and kept his voice down. “Nice ass.”

HIGHWAY NIGHTS
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-169-3
Erotic contemporary gay romance
Now available at Amber Allure
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/HighwayNights.html

KC Kendricks
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2011-09-11T17:51:00.001-07:00

Sand, Sea And Sizzle
by Christiane France
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-943-9 (Paperback)
AVAILABLE SEPTEMBER 20, 2011!
From best-selling author Christiane France come three tales of passion and mystery, romance and secrets.
Previously available only in electronic format, these sizzling stories of Gay Erotic Romance have now been combined for a paperback edition! Included are the tales...
• On Days Like These
When burned-out mystery writer Mark Salvatore asks to borrow the old family home near Genoa, Italy, for some much needed R&R, he envisions a blissful summer enjoying the warm sun, hanging out with the villagers, eating homemade Italian food, and drinking the local wine. Instead, Mark arrives to find the house has been trashed, and there’s a naked man asleep in the bedroom. And just hours earlier, Mark heard news of a bank robbery where the thieves got away with the loot.
Immediately, Mark’s creative processes go into high gear when it comes to the sexy stranger, Tony Wheeler. What if the man is using an alias? What if he’s one of the thieves, hiding out in the hills until the heat is off? And what will Mark do when his fierce attraction to the mystery man starts to get the best of him?
• The Club At Cool Harbor
A year ago, all private investigator Gabe Muller needed to complete his perfect life was the perfect man. Then he met fellow P.I., Raz Reynolds, the man of his dreams. The attraction was mutual, and they made a date for dinner at Raz’s house. When Gabe arrived, he found Raz on the patio having sex with another man. Although literally caught with his pants down, Raz tried to explain that things weren’t at all the way they looked, but Gabe wasn’t buying it. Hurt and disillusioned, he cut off all contact with Raz.
Now, the security firm for which Gabe works is hired by the owner of a new all gay males’ resort at Cool Harbor to stop the leak of highly sensitive, personal information about members’ leisure-time activities. Posing as a waiter, Gabe arrives to investigate and immediately runs into Raz, also there undercover. Although Gabe is working for the owner and Raz for one of the club members, their goal is the same. For this reason, Gabe suggests they temporarily put personal differences aside and share information.
For Raz, it’s the perfect opportunity to try to convince Gabe what he thought he saw a year earlier wasn’t at all what it seemed. When Gabe learns the truth, will he believe Raz, forgive him, and give the man another chance?
• Once Upon A Secret
The last thing Luke Fiorelli wants to do, being a member of a close-knit immigrant family living in the Italian neighborhood of a small town, is embarrass or upset them by openly declaring his sexuality. Moving to the big city isn’t an option for a variety of reasons. So, by convincing himself that his father would kill him if he ever found out about Luke’s sexuality, and satisfying his needs with the occasional weekend trip out of town, Luke has never had a problem keeping that part of his life a deep, dark secret.
That is, until he meets handsome and openly gay Travis Barrington III. The attraction between the two men is strong and instantaneous, and suddenly Luke is scrambling to invent even more excuses to keep his secret.
Travis, however, knows all about secrets and the harm they can do, but can he convince Luke to accept that and step out into the light?
Genres: Gay / Anthology / Collection / Contemporary / The Arts / Mystery / Detective / Exhibitionism / Public Places
Heat Level: 3
Length: Paperback (69k Words / TBD paperback pages)

www.chrisgrover.ca

Frank, the Bathroom Lizard

2011-09-08T07:13:00.000-07:00

I live in Texas.

Texas is, fortunately or no, home to a lot of lizards.

Big lizards. Little lizards. Gigantic lizards.

Me? I live with Frank the Bathroom Lizard. No, really.

Three months Frank and I have cohabitated. He lives in the wall next to my toilet. He eats the random ant that finds its way into my house. He's little and orange and has huge black buggy eyes. And tiger stripes.

And he runs, really really fast.

Every evening, whenever I have need to go into the bathroom, the basset hounds and I start the Bathroom Lizard dance. I turn the lights on. I bang the wall. I announce, loudly, that I'm coming and that I cannot pee if a lizard is looking at me.

Usually Frank runs.

About once every three days Frank is brave and doesn't run. This means a couple of things -- first, screaming like a big chicken. Second, hounddog attack. My bassets love the taste of lizard (tastes like chicken). The screaming seems to bother Frank not at all.

The bassets.

Well, let's just say that lizards' tails fall off when they're frightened.

And fallen lizard tails wiggle.

And when wiggly fallen lizard tails get caught in hound dog teeth, they howl.

And Mom screams.

Which makes the lizard tail infested hounds come to see Mom to help her with her problem.

Yeah.

So, there's this stubby-tailed orange lizard living in my bathroom next to the new package of doggy toothpaste.

And I yet somehow manage to use the bathroom with my feet perched on the trashcan, just in case. You see, I met Frank's huge enforcer friend yesterday in the backyard. I named him Gozer.

BA Tortuga

http://www.batortuga.com - because sometimes fistfights are foreplay

Hypnomonkeys and Purple Tentacled Aliens

2011-09-05T09:15:00.000-07:00

Ironically enough, in my mind, Lanx Station, the setting for Singing Up The Sun and An Undercover Fling, circles one of the Gilese planets, which is where they recently found an earth-like planet. So who knows? Maybe the guys in my imagination are out there somewhere, living their lives circling a distant sun.

It's the imagination that makes science fiction so much fun to write, and to read. Among the creatures passing through Trell's line in customs were a hypnomonkey and aliens with purple tentacles. I'm not sure what a hypnomonkey is, but I'm guessing it's powers are something like an adorable puppy or kitten. It's easy to watch one for hours and not be able to look away or move. :)

The great thing about science fiction is the ability to worldbuild a place beyond my wildest imagination. I'm not sure what those purple-tentacled aliens were doing there, but I bet they'll show up in another story.

However it doesn't matter how crazy the aliens are or how far out in space the station is, in the end, it all comes down to made-on-Earth, happily ever after, love. Trell and Garst have been coworkers and lovers for a long time. Sure, Trell might not have forgiven Garst for some of the tricks he'd pulled. And maybe Trell hasn't forgotten the hot nights he spent with Garst several years ago. So when Garst shows up on his station, Trell knows he's in for trouble -- in and out of the bedroom.

An Undercover Fling by Adera Orfanelli
M/M sf erotic romance short story
On sale now from Changeling Press!

Garst knew he'd have problems taking an assignment on Trell's station, but he has no other choice. Besides, three years ago a bust went down, leaving him flying off and Trell with too many questions. This time it'll be different. First, he'll have to convince Trell that he didn't mean to leave him hanging three years ago and that he wants to continue their relationship. Oh yeah, and convince Trell that what he's doing now isn't really illegal.

Love, Sex & Song

2011-09-02T10:12:00.000-07:00

“Love you like a love song, baby” – Selena Gomez

Often, I hear music in my head. But, I know that I’m not the only one.

Many authors listen to music while writing, and some songs – more than others – tend to inspire that creativity.

"Sex University: All-Girls Academy"
by Louisa Bacio

While writing the short story “The Wait” in the Rekindled Fire: An Anthology of Reunited Lovers, I listened to Nine Inch Nails, and the rapid drum beats of “The Only Time.” The song represented a period of time within my life, fueled by a mixed tape a former lover gave me.

His disappearance in real life turned into the plot for “The Wait.” What would keep a person away from their lover?

With my contemporary f/f Sex University: All-Girls Academy, one particular scene craved some sexy instrumental inspiration. Throughout the novel, while a budding relationship grows between two main characters, Maggie and Savannah, there’s a third, an instructor – Antoinella – who hovers.

When the three meet up afterhours for some private lessons, the extended mix of “Drive” by Melissa Ferrick plays. Here’s a teaser of that scene:

Savannah’s heart pounded in her chest, and her mouth began to water as she watched Antoinella grind her hips in unison to the beat. The exotic woman lifted her arms above her head, and her silky fuchsia shirt lifted up ever so slightly to reveal a light brown belly.

“I want,” Savannah started and then stopped, unsure of how to express herself and her desires.

“It’s an extended mix, hon, six and a half minutes of pure bliss,” Antoinella teased, “but you gotta learn how to ask for what you want.”

Fluidly, the Italian woman brought her hands down to the bottom of her blouse and pulled it up and over her head in one graceful motion. Beneath, her overflowing palm-sized breasts peeked out from a purple lace bra. She ran her fingers over the tips, squeezing her nipples. One hand dropped even lower, pushing past the boundaries of her skirt and delving within. (Sex University: All-Girls Academy)

While Antoinella says that she’s only interested in the fleeting physicality of a relationship, something tells me that truly she desires more. An art instructor from Italy, Antoinella becomes one of those secondary characters who develops into more than a side figure.

Maybe I’ll have to do some more listening and see what gets whispered into my ear. Or, then again, wait for her soundtrack.

Sex University: All-Girls Academy is available via Ravenous Romance, Amazon, and All-Romance E-books.

So tell me, do you have a favorite new soundtrack to life? A classic that you rely upon? (OMG, and while I was getting dressed before posting this blog, why did “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry suddenly start playing somewhere in my house? It wasn’t my cell phone … Creepy.) Leave a comment and you can be entered to win a copy of the first novel, Sex University: Physical Education, which contains m/m, m/f and f/f, in either an electronic copy of a paperback via mail.

By Louisa Bacio

Drop in for a visit:

http://louisabacio.blogspot.com/