Whenever I read a lot of books by the same author, I find myself bracing for that one book that I won’t like. This will be book #4 that I’ve read from Rosanna Leo, and I’m happy to announce that this is NOT that kind of book. Night Lover was a gloriously sexy, well-written, heartfelt book that knew how to tug at my heartstrings and make me laugh.
It was my first experience reading about an incubus, which is strange, given all the paranormal stuff I enjoy, and I’m really enjoyed it. Going forward, my paranormal creatures list has definitely expanded. Leo’s incubus was sexy and alluring without the rape-y overtones that I feel the creature could drift toward (given what they are known for, anyway).
Renata was a really interesting lead for me. I’ve been plotting an aspiring opera singer character, and given Leo’s background, I was really excited to read about a character in the music profession who wasn’t a rock star. It was a really interesting shift in dynamics, so A++ for uniqueness. In fact, all of the characters were unique and well-developed, and I thought the curse factor was different and new. I think that’s a great way to describe this book: different and new. Hurray for breaking boundaries and barriers and all that jazz.
My only slight negative were the religious overtones toward the end, and I don’t think that hinders the book. Faith was described as basically anything, not necessarily religiously focused, but it just wasn’t up my alley. I think it will work for others, especially those who are connected to their own spirituality.
All in all, Night Lover was a fun, interesting, and dynamic read. I’d recommend it for all paranormal romance lovers who are ready for something a little different.
Check it out on Goodreads for more reviews and purchase links!
Only twenty-eight short days until The Fool is released on Smashwords and its premium distributors. It’ll be for free until January 18th, and then it will be available for $0.99. I’d like to take the next few weeks to give out ARCs of the 19k novella for anyone who is interested in reading and providing advanced reviews. Advanced reviews help encourage readers to take a chance on a new author and give you a chance to read a piece before everyone else!
Such exclusive. Much secret. Wow.
The Fool is the prologue to the Games We Play serial, the first book of which will be available in 2016. It takes place over the course of one night, and is intended for mature (18+) readers only. Of course, full paranormal romance because that’s my thang.
If you are interested in requesting an ARC and will be able to either post an advanced review or a review the week of the first release (December 28th), please contact me! I’d love to have you!
You can currently find The Fool on Goodreads. It is also available for pre-order on Amazon for the January 18th release date.
Please note that if you agree to accept an ARC version of The Fool, you will not distribute it elsewhere or post any extensive spoilers (without warnings).
Excerpt #1:
“You look bored.”
The observation came two hours into the night, just as Delia reached the bottom of her first drink. She’d abandoned socializing for a bit, preferring to watch the interactions between couples and groups and individuals from a safe distance off to side. Scowling, she turned on her heel to stare down the idiot who made the comment, only to find her glare losing some of its venom when she spotted him. Lounging against the wall, the man was dressed simply in a black dress shirt rolled to his elbows and a pair of pressed black trousers. He might have looked like the hotel staff had it not been for the expensive watch and the gold and purple mask. Little bells jingled with the slightest movement, and she realized he’d chosen a jester’s mask for the evening.
Who voluntarily decides to be the fool at a masquerade ball?
At least she wasn’t the only one who missed the boat on the whole “formal” shtick.
Delia raised an eyebrow at him. “Excuse me?”
His overwhelming handsomeness didn’t excuse rudeness. Delia wasn’t bored. She was working. Like a serious vampire hunter who…was sick of watching idiots get progressively drunk. And mildly frustrated that she couldn’t tell vamp from human with all the pomp and circumstance.
Pushing himself off the wall, the stranger strolled toward her, oozing casual and collected like it was his job. She tried not to let her stare linger on the sharp cut of his jawline or the tousled effect of his dark hair—or the broadness of his shoulders and the taut muscularity of his arms. Tall but not excessively wide. Physically fit without being off-putting.
“I apologize,” he offered, a hand on his chest as he bowed a little. “You look beautiful, fair creature. Fairest of all the fair creatures this night—”
“Oh my god, okay,” Delia said with a slight groan, rolling her eyes as he straightened up. His smirk did not go unnoticed. “I’d rather be bored than whatever that was.”
His mask covered almost all of his face, stopping just above his lips. The dull gold hue of the part covering his face made his eyes stand out: bright blue, almost unnervingly so. Delia’s first thought was that they were the eyes of a vamp, and her defences shot up immediately.
“What’s your name, fair creature?” He held out his hand for her to shake, and Delia quickly tucked her clutch under her arm.
“Delia,” she said as she slipped her hand into his larger one, surprised at its warmth. Vamps were cold—frigid and dead. Diseased, some said. He was definitely human, but unfamiliar to her, even with the mask—not one of the local elites, that was for sure. “And yourself?”
“What is the purpose of wearing masks if we expose ourselves, Delia?” His grip tightened.
She yanked her hand away when she realized she’d been played. Lips pressed together irritably, she turned and refocused on the masquerade guests.
Moments later, a presence hovered dangerously close, well inside her personal bubble, and she flinched when he tucked her hair behind her shoulder.
“But you can call me the Fool if you wish.”
Excerpt #2:
Music drifted languidly from speakers around the dance hall, and couples whirling around the floor barely missed a beat, moving this way and that, too wrapped up in themselves to notice when the songs changed. It was a more appealing sight than the one she was used to seeing on a dance floor: Kain and his boys grinding up on drunk girls, their sense of rhythm all but absent. Most here were intoxicated, but the costumes gave a degree of modesty, and no one, as far as she could see, was mashing pelvises.
She’d had a few conversations since leaving the bathroom, but the women flying solo were more interested in finding someone to spend the evening with, while most of the men fed her the same dull lines over and over again: Why was she alone? Where was her drink? Did she know her eyes sparkled like emeralds?
Vomit.
Delia had just barely escaped the last guy—his breath rank with alcohol—who kept guffawing in her face whenever he cracked a joke. So there she stood, hovering on the outskirts of the dance floor, unsure of her place.
Arms wrapped around herself, she watched a nearby couple as they danced. They were both young and slim, effortlessly gliding around like they’d done it a hundred times before. Maybe they had.
She blinked quickly, bringing herself out of her daze, and tightened her grip on her clutch as the jingling of bells grew louder. The Fool had found her again.
Throughout the night she’d spied that ridiculous gold and purple mask at a safe distance out of the corner of her eye. Sometimes she actually turned and looked, only to find him chatting with one or two other people.
“Delia,” he said, dipping his head cordially as he stood beside her.
She pursed her lips, noting the barely-there gap between their bodies.
“Fool.”
She returned her gaze to the dancing couple. So elegant—hypnotic, even.
“Did you find who you were looking for?”
It took her a second to process the question, and she glanced his way curiously.
“What?”
“Earlier,” the Fool continued with a nod in the direction of the garden. “You ran after someone. Did you find them?”
“No.” Delia squared her shoulders and let out a small sigh. “Just a look-alike. I don’t think the person I want to see will show tonight.”
“Pity.” The Fool sniffed, his gaze wandering the dancing couples. “Fortunate for me, however.”
She almost laughed. “Why?”
“Because now I can enjoy the pleasure of your company… uninterrupted.”
Delia forced away the incredulous look that flashed across her face, her lips threatening to turn upward in a smile, and finally faced him.
The Fool, however, continued to study the dancers, ignoring her narrowed stare.
“Does this usually work on girls?”
“What?” he asked innocently, sparing her a quick glance, a few of his bells jingling.
“This faux-formal crap you’re spouting.” She cocked her head to the side as she waited for a response.
Slowly, a smile spread across his face, lips pulling back to reveal a set of perfectly straight, perfectly white teeth. “I don’t know. Does it?”
“No,” she replied quickly, turning toward the dance floor again just before their eyes could meet. “It doesn’t.”
“Shame. And here I was thinking I’d been doing so well.”
“That’s presumptuous of you,” Delia remarked, her head tilting to one side again, mimicking the slow way the man dipped his female partner. Her fair blonde tresses tickled the floor, and they grinned at one another. Despite herself, Delia suddenly found herself grinning too.
“Hmm…”
Her skin prickled at the deep rumbly quality of his voice, but she was determined not to react to it.
“… Perhaps I can remedy that.”
She almost told him it was unlikely, all the while feeling a little guilty for her rudeness. After all, he had scared off that psychotic Donovan vamp earlier. Even if he didn’t realize it, she actually owed him. However, before she could get another word in, the Fool snapped at a passing waitress, and the woman hurried toward them with a tray of drinks in hand.
“You seem to have lost the one I brought you earlier,” the Fool noted as he handed her a glass, which Delia took almost begrudgingly. He then looked to the waitress and gently touched her arm as he said, “And if you can manage, perhaps a red wine for myself?”
“Of course, sir.” The woman gave a small nod before hurrying away, moving with more purpose than any of the servers Delia had seen all night. She raised an eyebrow at the Fool again; he wasn’t a vamp power-player, but he had to be someone important in the human world.
He caught her studying him, and then flashed a charming smile as Delia pretended to be admiring his bells.
“Champagne gives me a headache,” he told her, as if that explained the drink request.
Delia shrugged. “Sucks to be you.” The new glass of bubbly liquid, tinged with a rose-gold hue, slid down smoothly, but she vowed that this would be the last of the night. “I love champagne.”
“I know.” He then reached up and brushed his fingertip over her cheek. Delia flinched back, nostrils flaring in alarm. Even after his arm fell back by his side, she felt the warmth of his touch on her skin. “You get a little blush every time you drink it. Quite endearing.”
“Well, that’s some extra-close attention you’ve been paying to me,” she forced out, her breath catching at the intensity of his stare. She cleared her throat as she stepped back, flustered. Genuinely flustered. Because a hot guy in a stupid mask was doting on her, and Delia wasn’t accustomed to men doting on her. The guys in her history weren’t exactly the doting type.
But then again, there really was only one reason a man would dote on her…
Her blush darkened at the thought.
Toasting him with her champagne glass, she took another few steps back, alarmed that he followed slowly.
“Thanks for the drink… again,” she told him. Then, without another word, Delia turned on the spot and cut across the dance floor, not stopping until there was some distance between her and the Fool.
For a short time, she tried to distract herself with the sea of dancers, the swirl of fabric and the flash of masks slowly blending into one living, breathing organism.
Through the fleeting gaps between couples, she saw him. The Fool. Watching her from across the room, he stood quite still amidst all the twirling and whirling, through the swishes of fabric, his glass of red wine in hand. She wasn’t sure why she decided to stay there, directly across from him. Maybe it was the fact that after a night in sultry, but painful, heels, her feet finally decided enough was enough. Time to stay in one place for a while.
Delia chose to ignore the fact that every time she did try to move, her feet were like heavy stones, keeping her in place, in the Fool’s line of sight.
Interested? Contact me literally anywhere to receive your ARC!
Well, November is drawing to a close. I can’t believe December is just a day away — where has the year gone?! I won’t lament it forever, because I’m sure hundreds of other bloggers are saying the same thing. All I can say is: It’s been real, November.
I set out to make the month about appreciating my fellow authors, and I wanted to do that by hosting interviews. I hoped to make my questions a little unique and different, and I was super excited to start my new WordPress off with a bang. When I initially put out my Google form, I thought maybe two people would sign up, and they’d probably be people I knew.
Well, that wasn’t the case. I’ve had so many amazing authors sign up with me, many who have books that I’m beyond interested in. Thank you, everyone. It warmed my heart having all of you here.
But the month isn’t over! One final interview awaits us, and this time New Adult Kelly Cain takes the stage to chat with me a little more about her upcoming release.
Which, I might add, already has a 4-star review on Goodreads, and has a cover reveal coming up SOON. Be prepared, lovelies.
Take it away, Kelly!
Tell me a little about your upcoming release. Sure. Altered is my debut novel and will be released January 26, 2016, by Penner Publishing. It’s a New Adult fiction title about a woman, Liv, who is devastated by a breakup with her fiancé. Her classmate, Nicholas, is a bit of an enigma – he’s an eighteen-year-old law school student who keeps his past closely guarded. After he saves Liv more than once, she is determined to unravel the mystery who is Nicholas. Although usually shy and withdrawn, Nicholas blossoms with Liv’s friendship and soon wants more. Liv is guarded too, not with her past, but with her heart.
What are your biggest fears about this release? Two year ago, I had no notion I wanted to be a writer. Then this idea came to me and kept poking me until I put it on paper. It evolved into something far different than my initial interpretation of this idea because as a lot of writers will tell you, the characters took over their story and made it into what they wanted it to be. My biggest fear is not that people will not like it (although that’s a pretty hefty fear), but that people won’t see it to make that judgment.
Do you see some of yourself in your main character? What traits have passed from you to them? There’s no doubt that there are pieces of me in my main character and in the others as well. Like Liv, once upon a time I was in law school. Liv is making the choices that I didn’t make and she’s becoming successful where I failed. Nicholas, is ultra-organized, punctual, and task-oriented, traits I pride myself on. He probably takes it to a different level though.
What are you most excited about with this upcoming release? Being a first-time author, I’m most excited about seeing my words on the printed page and having them made available for others to read.
What has been the biggest struggle marketing your upcoming release? Or, if you haven’t started, what do you think you might struggle with? I haven’t received my cover yet (any day now) so the actual marketing hasn’t really begun. But I can see that my challenge will be “pimping” myself. Blowing my own horn has never been a strong suit of mine and it’s necessary to get the novel in front of people (see Q2 above).
Here’s a spot to pimp one of your writer friends… GO! (Or to gush about a recent fave read)
I have several Penner Publishing (@pennerpub) author friends now and I’ve been able to read their novels. All of these books have been amazing, so to pick just one was difficult. I landed on Ditch Flowers by Amanda Linsmeier (@amandalinsmeier) mostly because it’s not a story I personally would ever pick up. I’m more into New Adult or Historical Fiction, and this is Women’s Fiction. It a story about Julia, who has had a rough time conceiving. She and her husband move to his hometown and she begins working at a daycare where she sees a little boy who looks suspiciously like her husband. I loved following her path as she decides what to do. The book is so well written and so interesting that I ended up giving it 5 starts. But again, I don’t think you can go wrong with any of the Penner titles.
Altered
Drawing on the author’s own experience studying law, the novel follows Liv, a young woman in her a first semester of law school. When her fiancé abruptly breaks things off, Liv is heart-broken.
Enter Nicholas, a classmate who is so withdrawn that he is an enigma to everyone around him. Nicholas is unusually young and unusually quiet, and keeps his past a tightly guarded secret.
While Liv is still reeling from her break up, Nicholas begins appearing in her life and coming to her rescue. Intrigued and grateful to this quiet young man, Liv becomes determined to unravel the mystery of who Nicholas is.
Kelly is a new adult and contemporary romance novelist. After many years of being entrenched in business and data analysis, she began writing last year and discovered it to be her passion. She loves reading most genres, but historical fiction and new adult are her favorites. She has two adult daughters and lives in a suburb of Houston, Texas.
With November coming to a close, I still have a couple more lovely authors to feature on my blog. Today, I’m thrilled to announce that historical fiction author C.H. Armstrong will be joining me to chat about her upcoming release. Just reading her answers here has made me super interested to devour the book, and I hope you feel the same!
Also, please join me in fangirling over her BEAUTIFUL COVER ART. #obsessed
Please give a warm welcome to C.H. Armstrong!
Any advice for new writers?
Only the sage advice that was given to me countless times, all of which I ignored until I finally sat down to write: Just write. Write whatever comes out of your head. Don’t worry about how it sounds or how it reads — that can be fixed in the editing stage. But you have to start somewhere, so just sit down and write whatever your heart leads you to write. Some of it you’ll keep and some if you won’t, but you’ll be surprised what you end up with when you finally step away from the keyboard.
What are your thoughts on e-books vs. “traditional” print, both as a reader and a writer?
First of all, I won’t lie: I love traditional books. Like a lot of people, I love the feel of them in my hands and the way they smell. BUT, I also love e-books and have transitioned over to doing the majority of my reading on e-books. The reason is because it’s just so easy. I can adjust the font size when I don’t have my glasses on, I can carry with me thousands of titles in under a pound, and I can even read in the dark. And even better than all of that is that when I find a title I want to read, I can have it in my hands in about fifteen seconds. So the answer is that I love both, but these days I’m loving e-books just a bit more.
Tell me a little about your upcoming release.
The Edge of Nowhere is a work of historical fiction inspired by my own family’s experiences during the 1930s Oklahoma Dust Bowl and The Great Depression. My grandmother married a man much older than herself, and then was left a widow at 28 with twelve children (five of whom were her stepchildren). Everybody was poor in those days and times were hard, and she had it harder than most. So the story centers around asking the central question of “what would a woman alone and with no resources do to provide for and protect her children?” Similar to my grandmother, the main character is widowed at 28 with nine children and she makes some (arguably) reprehensible choices in the name of providing for her children. This book is very personal to me because it helped me to understand the things my own grandmother may have endured, and many of the major elements are based upon family anecdotes. The Edge of Nowhere is due out in paperback and e-book formats on January 19th.
Do you see some of yourself in your main character? What traits have passed from you to them?
Oh gosh, yes! And probably the biggest reason why is because the main character is loosely based upon my own grandmother. She was a strong and assertive woman — aggressive, even, if the situation required it — and she refused to back down from even the worst adversity. In many ways I take pride in the fact that I see a lot of my grandmother in myself. In fact, I’d argue that most of my grandmother’s children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren have inherited this genetic predisposition to refuse to accept defeat and we’re all very proud of it. So yes – like the main character, I’m definitely a strong and independent woman who values family above everything else. Like her, there just isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for my children; and I’ve not encountered a situation yet where I easily accepted defeat.
What are you most excited about with this upcoming release?
Oh gosh, everything! Obviously I’m excited because it’s my first release; but, I’m also excited — and a whole lot nervous — to see what my friends and family back in Oklahoma think of it. I’m an Oklahoma native transplanted in Minnesota, but I’m an Okie at heart and consider Oklahoma to be “home.” The book is set in my hometown of El Reno, OK (which is where my family was during the 1930s), and I’m both anxious and excited to get feedback from my hometown and the surrounding communities. I’m headed back there in April, and I sincerely hope they’ll be kind to me. 🙂
Here’s a spot to pimp one of your writer friends… GO! (Or to gush about a recent fave read)
I love this! I get to gush about my favorite author(s)! I have so many but, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that Cathy Lamb is probably my favorite author. She just “gets” people and relationships. I’ve read everything she’s written, and she never fails to make me laugh, then cry, then laugh through ugly tears. She has a true gift. I think my favorite books of hers are Julia’s Chocolates, Such a Pretty Face, and The Last Time I Was Me. See — I tried, but I just couldn’t choose one title!
The year is 1992 and Victoria Hastings Harrison Greene—reviled matriarch of a sprawling family—is dying.
After surviving the Oklahoma Dust Bowl and the Great Depression, Victoria refuses to leave this earth before revealing the secrets she’s carried for decades.
Once the child of a loving family during peaceful times, a shocking death shattered her life. Victoria came face to face with the harshness of the world. As the warm days of childhood receded to distant memory, Victoria learns to survive.
No matter what it takes.
To keep her family alive in an Oklahoma blighted by dust storms and poverty, Victoria makes choices—harsh ones, desperate ones. Ones that eventually made her into the woman her grandchildren fear and whisper about. Ones that kept them all alive. Hers is a tale of tragedy, love, murder, and above all, the conviction to never stop fighting.
C.H. (Cathie) Armstrong is an Oklahoma native transplanted in Minnesota for the last twenty-three years. A 1992 graduate of the University of Oklahoma, she is a rabid Oklahoma Sooners football fan and can be found most Saturdays from September through December glued to the television or computer watching her alma mater play some good-old fashioned Oklahoma football. Cathie is a prolific reader of most genres and is happiest when curled up between the pages of a great read. The Edge of Nowhere is her first published novel.
Let me first start off by saying I loved how this book was written. I thought it was absolutely beautifully crafted by the author. It was dark and grungy and dangerous. Physical descriptions were wonderful. I fell in love with the writing style from page one, and because of that, I will absolutely be reading more of the author’s work.
But will I continue with this series? I’m not sure if I was just loving this book so much that I missed key details, but where the hell did that ending come from? Up until the syringe appeared, I had literally no idea that the main character was feeling the way she did, and everything just sort of… spiraled from there. I was left sort of feeling thrown and confused and a little annoyed? I don’t know. The book was so exceptional in its storytelling up to that point, and then it was like getting hit with a truck. Everything just happened so fast, so much info to take in at once, and it just… didn’t work for me.
Also “Grimaldi” makes me think of the Princess Diaries. I know it’s a legit family name, but I was half wondering if it was a joke at first.
Also, can we talk about a virgin getting totally pounded during her first time, while still having a knife wound healing? … No. Alex herself was hit and miss for me. I loved her darkness and her danger, but I was kind of sick of “girly girls” being knocked on. Apparently once you have sex, you become a woman and should therefore love shopping for dresses and shoes, and I just… yeah, it frustrated me. Why do we have to crap on other women just to be the strong loner type heroine who can kill a man with her pinky?
So. I’m left with mixed emotions at the end of this one. A+++ writing, but the ending felt like such a punch to the gut, and not necessarily in a good way, that I’ll need time to digest it.
Check out Unmasked on Goodreads for more reviews and purchase links!
December 28th, 2015 marks the release day of The Fool, a paranormal romance prologue to the Games We Play serial. From December 28th to January 28th, The Fool will be free on Smashwords and its premium retailers. After, the novella will be on sale for $0.99 on all major ebook distributors.
To celebrate the release, I have a release day/ARC tour planned with Book Enthusiast Promotions. I’ve worked with them before for pretty much every book tour/review tour/whatever, and I’m always thrilled with the results.
If you are a book blogger, or would just like to snag an ARC copy and take part in the fun, you can sign up here. I will be promoting and sharing reviews throughout the day, and will do my best to send traffic to your blog as a thank you for participating.
If you are interested strictly in an ARC, but don’t want to adhere to the deadlines that go along with the tour, keep an eye on my blog for more details.
Because ARCs will be ready to go NEXT WEEK. And I’d love to share one with you.
One night can change everything.
That’s what they always say, and for now, vampire hunter Delia hopes it’s true. After years of mediocre performances, she’s still nothing more than a grunt in her hunter league, stuck on surveillance duty and low-level vamp busts.
So, when her informant drops an amazing lead in her lap, she jumps at the opportunity to take down the region’s rumored vampire leader at an invite-only masquerade ball. Clad in a mask and an uncomfortable dress, Delia throws herself into the fray—only to realize she’s woefully unprepared for the night that awaits her.
Also… Some ridiculously attractive guy dressed as the Fool keeps distracting her.
One night. One job. One man. One chance to change her life.
Liz Meldon - Romance Author 