Monday Excerpt: Shadow State

Shadow StateOriginally from The Wild Rose Press anthology Taming of the Wolf, Shadow State is now available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and All Romance eBooks. A free sample is available for download from Smashwords.

Fighting to prevent the Nazi’s from gaining a wehrwölfe army, Christoph and Elsa tread a serpentine path between an ambitious party man and their primal need for each other.

Hidden for centuries in the German countryside, the Arminius Clan has amassed power, wealth, and respect. All that changes when the Nazis come to power. Christoph von Berangar, Alpha, makes his way to Berlin to claim his mate. But then one of his wölfes is captured, and experimented on by the Nazis.

Elsa von Skyler, leader of one of the Arminius Packs, is forced to experiment on the captured wölfe. Along with her father, an esteemed doctor at the Charité Hospital, they do this only to facilitate the wölfe’s escape. Together, she and Christoph form a plan to rescue their fellow wölfe, but when things go awry, will Elsa survive? Or will Christoph’s fervor to protect his mate compromise them all?

Excerpt:

Dinner was barely a half hour off, and Christoph hadn’t seen Elsa since she’d told him of Erik. After putting the fate of their captured member into his hands, she’d waited for his response.

He had no answer for her, not until he learned from Gerard what Strasser believed. Though he wanted to speak with her of personal matters, he’d needed to get the business of the Clan out of the way first. She’d left him to see to the other guests, without his answer.

 Now, he set out to find Elsa in the large townhouse. It was an eclectic mix of old and new, but the art deco suited her well. The unique style matched her personality. Efficient, sleek, sensual.

Following her scent into the library, he stumbled upon a far corner she’d clearly marked as hers. Lancet Medical Journal lay open on the window seat, with several more journals in various languages stacked in a corner. He sat by the window, letting the late afternoon sun warm him.

A fresh whiff of her reached him a heartbeat before the clatter of her rushed footsteps. Standing, he moved into one of the shadowed archways. Elsa scanned the shelves nearest her window, oblivious to his presence. Christoph took the opportunity to study her.

The sunlight glinted off her golden hair, neatly coiffed despite her rush. Her hands were delicate as they skimmed over the spines of her books, taking one from the shelves and stepping to the side, she skimmed it. He knew from her letters, and the diplomas lining the walls, that she was adept in her field of biochemistry. Her skirt accented her curved figure, and he wondered how she’d look with the material bunch around her hips as he took her.

Stealing out of the shadows, he stepped behind her with a growl. She startled, dropped the book and tried to turn, but he held her arms at her sides, trapping her between him and the diploma-lined wall. His lips tasted the side of her neck, the smooth, fragrant skin there. The feel of her body against his told him everything he needed to know.

My woman.

“We are creatures of instinct, are we not?” he asked in a low rumble. “Mine are very clear.”

Her heart pounded, he could feel it jump where his fingers brushed the sensitive underside of her wrists. Her scent intensified, an added undercurrent of muskiness, and he knew she was as aroused as he.

Her head turned, but she didn’t struggle. She leaned further into him, pressing her arse against his throbbing erection.

“I wondered what your instincts would tell you,” she whispered. “You were inscrutable this afternoon.”

“That was not the moment for us.”

“Have you decided this is our moment?” she asked.

He pulled away just enough to see the eyebrow raised in amused question. But he could also see how her blue eyes darkened, could feel her breath coming in gasps. Could smell the change in her scent.

Trailing his lips along the back of her neck, he breathed her in. Another growl escaped him, louder and stronger, establishing his dominance over her. When Elsa growled back, his cock hardened further.

Yes, mine.

Thursday Progress

Been so busy, phew!
Updating Goodreads profile
Blogging
Gathering guest bloggers (interested? Send me an email)
Twitter...find I'm recently addicted to Twitter, granted that ebbs and flows but recently...addiction
Writing...posted Shadow State for $0.99 on Amazon and B&N:

Fighting to prevent the Nazi’s from gaining a wehrwölfe army, Christoph and Elsa tread a serpentine path between an ambitious party man and their primal need for each other.

Hidden for centuries in the German countryside, the Arminius Clan has amassed power, wealth, and respect. All that changes when the Nazis come to power. Christoph von Berangar, Alpha, makes his way to Berlin to claim his mate. But then one of his wölfes is captured, and experimented on by the Nazis.

Elsa von Skyler, leader of one of the Arminius Packs, is forced to experiment on the captured wölfe. Along with her father, an esteemed doctor at the Charité Hospital, they do this only to facilitate the wölfe’s escape. Together, she and Christoph form a plan to rescue their fellow wölfe, but when things go awry, will Elsa survive? Or will Christoph’s fervor to protect his mate compromise them all?

Excerpt Monday: Shadow State

Excerpt from Chapter 2:

Shadow State, now available from All Romance eBooks and Smashwords for only 99¢. Should be up on Amazon and B&N this week. And with a nifty new cover, too. How do you like it?

“Christoph is due this afternoon,” Gerard said while they walked along the corridor towards the hospital’s main exit. “If you wish to still consult him.”

“If an opportunity arises,” she whispered back, “you need to take it. I’d prefer to discuss this directly with him, as well, but we may not have such luxury.”

Since Scientific Inquiries brought Erik in, she’d considered various avenues of escape for the wounded wölfe. After two days of torture at the hands of so-called scientists interested merely in discovering his secrets, she understood how much of a blessing it might be to end his life.

Images that would never leave her mind now overwhelmed it. Electricity, starvation, beatings with rods and fists, they tried it all. They took so much blood it was a miracle he remained conscious. They bound him to a metal chair and didn’t let him sleep. Bright lights blazed day and night, and the same song played incessantly, meant to drive him insane.

Elsa smashed all her Chopin recordings.

No longer recognizable as a human, the poor man hadn’t allowed the change to his wölfe, either.

She was partly the reason for that, she and Gerard. Erik wasn’t stupid; even through his delirium he knew what his change would cost the Clan. Seeing them with the other scientists confirmed his worse fears.

The Nazis knew of their species.

This morning, when she took another vial of blood, he’d begged her to kill him. With four other scientists and two SS interrogators watching, all she could do was murmur that they would get him out.

Erik had laughed, a harsh, broken sound that made her skin crawl and the hair on the back of her neck stand straight.

“I’ve lost my mate,” he’d said low enough for only her, with her enhanced wölfe senses, to hear. “I’ve endangered us all by changing before witnesses. I’m bound like a rabid beast. Tested like the anomaly they think I am. Kill me.”

Now, Karl Strasser, Head of the Department of Scientific Inquiries—Special Interests Division, wanted the results of Erik’s blood work. Gerard was on his way to meet with Strasser. Initially, Elsa wanted to see Erik again, but didn’t wish to draw the suspicion of her colleagues. Instead, she decided to go home to await Christoph’s arrival. She didn’t envy her father.

Christoph.

Their relationship confused her. Well, no, she knew what she felt for him. A new tone snaked through his letters, one she knew wasn’t present when her father handled the Pack’s correspondence.

Elsa stopped midstride and shuddered at the very thought.

Finally meeting Christoph had her stomach aflutter, and she wiped damp hands on her skirt. No, she knew how she felt for the Alpha. Whether the feelings in his letters would transfer when they met face-to-face, she didn’t know. Instinct permeated her being, a powerful thing.

But is it enough?

“Insufferable man,” Gerard continued. “Pompous ass who thinks he’s a scientist. At least he’s more interested in Erik than those children you helped.”

“Greta told me this morning he’s brought in more SS,” Elsa whispered. “Now that they’re the de facto army, you must be careful.”

“I won’t tell him what I really think,” her father promised. “But I reserve the right to do so.”

Elsa chuckled, and squeezed his hand. “Don’t be long.”

He looked down at her for several moments, eyes glinting. “I shall be the very soul of scientific savvy.”

“It’s not your scientific savvy I’m worried about,” she kissed his cheek in farewell. “It’s your temper.”

With another light chuckle, she proceeded down the hallway, tracking Gerard’s scent until he moved deep into the office wing.

Shadow State and self-publishing

I've blogged about this before, the rights reversed stories I have. In the one, I want to add at least 5,000 more words to flesh out the main characters. The plot stands solid, and the romantic arc is just fine. It's the characters. Took  me 3/4 of the story to realize why I didn't like it as much as I remember liking it 3 years ago when I first wrote it. Not much character development. Going to work on that!

But Sunday I received the converted version to Shadow State. I sent it out to a company that does this because after spending less than 30 seconds just reading the formatting requirements I realized the inherent value of paying for this service. They were wonderful, very communicative and easy to work with.

What's that saying about paying a professional? Yeah, this was just such a case.

So now it's published on Smashwords and within the next 2 weeks will be on Amazon, B&N, Apple, Kobo, Sony, All Romance eBooks, Diesel and Scrollmotion, the last two I've never heard of but seem to be rather popular.

All in all, it's really exciting to see my book up for sale like this.

And don't forget Tuesday August 8, Sonya Clark is joining me here to talk about her release, Mojo Queen.

Thursday Progress: rights reverted

The rights for my 2 stories with The Wild Rose Press have been reverted back to me. I'm pleased to have them, don't get me wrong, but I'm also sorry that two great anthologies are no longer in print as such. As a business decision, it's right for the company, but it's still sad.

Northern Roses & Southern Belles finaled in the EPIC awards this year. And while Taming of the Wolf didn't do as well award wise, it's still a great anthology.

So I'm taking my stories, In the Shadows (South Carolina 1861) and Shadow State (Germany 1933) and reformating them for self-publishing. I've downloaded the how-to and this is gonna take some time! Only because of my lack of knowledge when it comes to this types of converting and the fact that I really don't have the time anyway. I did manage to make some awesome new covers!

Hopefully within the next month all will be up and available.

Bitten by Books reveiws

This weekend I received 4 reviews from Bitten by Books. Three for my Druids series, Murder & Magick, Sex & Subterfuge, and Desert & Destiny, and one for Shadow State, my 1934 German werewolf story.


Shadow State first, because my wehrwölfes hold a special place in my heart. 5 Tombstones: My only complaint is that the story was so short; the people and surrounding periphery were intriguing, and I would have loved to get more of it all. I hope Ms. Roman has more of these stories in the works as I’m bound to gobble them up as well. Be prepared to devote all your time to completing this one - it was hard to put down!


Now onto my Druids series. Jennifer reviewed the first 3 so far. Here's what she has to say:

Murder & Magick 4.5 Tombstones
Love and responsibility battle in this beautiful, historical tale of suspense. This was well-written, and the characters are extremely well-developed; the author does a wonderful job of creating strong leads that are still capable of showing emotion for one another.







Sex & Subterfuge 3.5 Tombstones


Now I admit, this isn't my strongest story, but I'm still pleased with her review:
Overall, though, this isn’t a bad continuation of the series. I will definitely continue reading, and hope that the third book goes back to the intensity and quality of the first.








Desert & Destiny 4.5 Tombstones
These books just keep getting and better with each installment. It’s wonderful how the author continues to build upon the characters and situations from book to book, and the romance develops so naturally. Especially when considered how the foundations were purely physical, Ms. Roman does an excellent job of developing the passion into true romance.






About Temptations & Treachery she says: I look forward to reading the fourth in the series!

Winners!

We have 2 winners, one for my guest spot on Susan's blog, and one for her guest spot here.

The winner of Sweet Redemption and the deliciously troubled Jonathan is Mary Ricksen! Please contact Susan for your PDF of the story.

The winner of Shadow State, indeed the entire Taming of the Wolf anthology is Skye! Please send me your email!

Taming of the Wolf, now available!

Today, my short story, Shadow State, is released in the Taming of the Wolf anthology from The Wild Rose Press. I'm over at Black Rose, but here's the blog I posted there:

Ancient runes, occult legends and dark gods bring to mind the supernatural, paranormal tales we've heard all our lives but how often does it bring to mind...Nazis?

However, the Nazis and Hitler particularly were fascinated by all things occult. Many people do not realize that most of the Nazi symbolism comes from ancient runic markings. The Nazis were obsessed with all things occult or Druid in origin; in fact Hitler based many of his most controversial policies on ancient occult teachings or theories.

For instance: he believed the Aryan race was descended from the Nordic gods which in turn was a race saved after the lost continent of Atlantis' residents took refuge in the Scandinavian countries. Hitler firmly believed that the Aryan race lost their innate supernatural powers (such as telepathy, superior strength, etc.) because of interbreeding with lesser races. This belief was the main reason behind his ethnic cleansing and eugenics policies.

It was shocking how rich the Nazi world and mythos was for the setting of a paranormal story. They were into absolutely everything and their views were skewed toward the belief of the supernatural, they believed themselves to be supernatural actually.

The Indiana Jones movies are not far off the mark as to the fervent pursuit the Nazi's engaged in when hunting religious artifacts, lost legends and the like. It is well documented that they went on a crusade for the Holy Grail and The Spear of Destiny. In fact, it is theorized that Hitler started WWII in order to acquire The Spear of Destiny.

In my short story, Shadow State, I took these facts and used them to create my fictitious world where wehrwölfes or wölfes lived hidden in German society until one fateful day when a group of SS officers capture a man after he changed into his wölfe form.

The story then follows Christoph, the clan leader and Elsa, a defacto pack leader, through their journey to rescue the captured wölfe and explore the feelings they have for each other. Strasser, the SS flunky, is single-minded in his intent to learn their secrets and to create more wölfes.

EXCERPT:

“Based on what you’ve told me regarding the subject’s reaction to the dogs you introduced, I can only assume he was raised around other rabid beasts. Tell me, Karl,” he reverted to the familiar now that the interview was over. “Where did you find the…man?”

With an uncharacteristic huff, Strasser leaned back in the chair. “We picked him up in Neukölln after he attacked a mob. The details are unclear, but I understand it took four men to bring him in.” He sat up and added, “Four men, even though the beast had taken two gunshot wounds.”

“Hmm,” Gerard said to cover his disgust at Erik’s treatment. “Neukölln, I would have said in one of the outer provinces.”

“I want you to set up a test,” Strasser stood. “I’m going to have a subject brought in from the prisons. If the beast bites him, we can create more of these unusual creatures.”

“You believe the legends of the wehrwölfe?” Gerard asked.

Strasser offered a smile that made him sick. “There’s one way to find out.”

Got Wolf?

In less than a month my short story, Shadow State, will be released in The Wild Rose Press's Got Wolf? anthology, Taming of the Wolf. I'm pretty excited about it, it's been a long time coming. The call went out for submissions for the contest in like February 2008, the deadline was August 2008, and the winners announced October 31, 2008. I remember that date specifically because it's Halloween. ;)

It was November 1, and I realized the announcement time had passed and I hadn't heard anything, so I frantically scoured TWRP site (nothing) and then the Internet. Found the announcement on Dayana Knight's blog. I'd won first place! OK, I admit, I skimmed the names, didn't see mine, looked again, STILL didn't see mine, and realized I hadn't won until I took a second to actually read the names. Oh, huh...I WON!

After all that, and working with the great editors over at the Black Rose line, it was a long time before the anthology was ready. Or I thought so, lol, but I'm sure probably not. And now the authors are gearing up for our marketing launch. We're all pretty excited. OK, really excited, Shadow State is a favorite story.

I'll be on the Black Rose's Blog introducing myself on Wednesday afternoon, be sure to stop by for a bit on how I researched my werewolf story!

Kiss of Scandal now available from Ravenous in e-book and from The Home Shopping Network in print!

Behind, behind, behind!

I'm more organized than this, but the last week or so I feel very unorganized. I'm all spreadsheets, calendars, calendar reminders, color codes, you name it. Lately, I don't know what's going on, but none of that has happened.

I wanted to have a sort of scavenger hunt contest for my Druids series but never implemented it. My new plan for that is October, to coincide with my new release from The Wild Rose Press, Shadow State. (Werewolves, 1934 Germany, Got Wolf? anthology)

I'm also going to do something for Kiss of Scandal, but haven't refined what yet. Maybe not a scavenger hunt, possible a web hunt. I'll have to think more on that. Maybe something easier. :)

Edits, edits, edits

I've just (like 5 minutes ago) completed edits for Shadow State, my Wild Rose Press werewolf short story. I do love this story. :) Something about it, I can't explain what, but I have to admit, it's a favorite.

I'm now off to try and finish up a short story for Ravenous involving immortals: gods and goddesses.

Calm before the storm

Now that many of my contracts with Ravenous are fulfilled, I'm going to take a break and rest. For maybe a week. It's more a mental break than a physical one, but one that's needed.


I have several ideas percolating for new stories. Some for Ravenous, some for Wild Rose, some I'd love to see with a big print publisher in a 100k print run with movie rights...OK I might be getting ahead of myself there :)


I plan on finishing the story before sending it out: I like to have that lull where I don't need to feel rushed or pressured. I want to take the time to expand the story if I need to, or if I suddenly have THE coolest idea ever to add in for a plot. I want to have the time to do all that and not be pressured by a deadline.

My first idea is for the American Rose Line of Wild Rose. I'm still a little sketchy on details but am thinking rough and tumble politics of post-Revolution America. Nothing says American Politics like fights on the congress floor.

Need to plot that out but good before I start and to do that, research is needed. I'm currently reading The Whiskey Rebellion: George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and the Frontier Rebels Who Challenged America's Newfound Sovereignty which isn't exactly what I want to write about but it's utterly fascinating. I have NO sympathy for either side. Self serving hypocrites the lot of them.

Then I have a half finished story I want to finish up for a Ravenous Anthology on gods and goddesses. I've run into a slight problem with that one: Length. It was supposed to be 10,000 words or less. My plot alone now seems closer to 40K words. That doesn't include writing the rest of it! It might not work, but I'm going to try it and see if it's feasible. I'll see how it goes.

Last, I have a contemporary addition to my Shadow State story from the Black Rose line of Wild Rose. It's the here-and-now of my German werewolf story. I have the vaguest of ideas for that one, and need to take an entire weekend to really break it. I don't want to do cliche but on the other hand, there are only so many things I CAN do.

But first, my week-long break. And who knows? Sleep might actually be a part of it. :) Wolverine definitely will be! As will Star Trek next week.

Dark Desire of the Druids Series:
Murder & Magick
Sex & Subterfuge
Desert & Destiny
Temptations & Treachery coming soon...

Shadow State

My Wild Rose Press Got Wolf? short story winner is now officially being published in October 2009 to coincide with Black Rose month at TWRP. I just set in the first round of edits last week and remembered why I loved the story so much. Werewolves, 1934 Germany, Hitler on the rise, panic in the streets. I love it all.



But until then, I'll continue working on my Druids series. Murder & Magick, Sex & Subterfuge, Desert & Destiny, and Book 4. Which isn't named yet...gotta work on that!

Scars (3rd in the Wicked Seduction series) and the short story

I have recently discovered I love writing short stories. Until August, when I sent in In the Shadows my Civil War Anthology submission to Wild Rose Press, I would have told you my shortest story was 75,000 words. Until August, my shortest story was actually 22,500 words (my beloved wolfie story now with an actual title, Shadow State contracted with Wild Rose Press).


Now? Thanks to Ravenous' 2500-6250 word count limit on their short stories (they call it a Ravenous Rendezvous...whatever) I'm in love with the short story. No, in no way does this mean I don't want to do longer stories, I love those too - there's much more to say in them, you can have more conflict, more angst. More sex. But in the short story, it's almost a race against the bad guy (word limit) to reach the ending first.

It's a poor explanation but I can't explain it any better. You have plot, sex, beginning-middle-end, and conflict. Lots and lots of conflict. It's fun, what can I say.

So today I'm working on my 1918 Rendezvous, Scars. A returning English WWI vet goes to the local pharmacy to buy the ointment needed for the scars he received on the battlefields of Flanders. What's the beautiful pharmacist to do but seduce the poor man?

And yes. I did my research. There were female pharmacists as far back at the 1860s in England. Not a lot, but they were there and voicing their opinions. I'll look for the link if anyone's interested.