Category: M/M Paranormal Fiction

Love Wolf Shifters? A.F. Henley is Here Talking Wolf, en Garde (Wolf #2) (guest post, special teaser and giveaway)

Wolf en Garde Front Cover

Wolf, en Garde (Wolf #2) by A.F. Henley
Less Than Three Press
Release Date May 17

Cover Artist: Raphael (website https://boysininkandcolour.com/ )

Pre Purchase/Buy Link/Read a Full Excerpt Here

 

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is thrilled to have A.F.Henley here to talk about the sequel to Wolf.  Welcome, A.F., tell  us more about Wolf, en Garde and what we can expect from this amazing series.

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So, here we are again! I’m crazy excited to be joining you here on Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words to introduce (or, in some cases reintroduce) the characters and places of my newest release, Wolf en Garde. For those who joined me months ago with the Wolf, WY tour: welcome back; I’ve missed you! For those who are meeting the friends and villains of Wolf for the first time—hello, it’s great to meet you!

I’ve said it before, but I’ve never been a series writer. When I wrote “The End” I meant it. I left the characters with their HEA or HFN, and that was that: farewell, amen, good luck. However, with Wolf, WY there was an entire story brewing underneath the romance of Randy and Vaughn. I could see it trying to bubble up through the rest of the words and it intrigued me to no end. Had it been just a case of, “Okay, but what happened to Lyle? Or Isaac or Hannah?” I probably wouldn’t have bothered. Not because I didn’t care, but simply because there are a million stories in the naked city (or however that goes) and my head always seems to be swimming with them. Wolf had something it wanted to say to me, to you, and it wasn’t about to let me stop.

And here with are… with Lyle’s story, and the next “chapter” of the Wolf series.

I’d like to take you on a bit of a journey with this blog tour; give you a chance to meet the new characters and to shake hands with the ones you already know, explain the settings and the locations, and hopefully pique your interest in the “what comes next” of the Wolf series with some tiny teasers from the novel. But I won’t ask you to hop on board without a thank you for showing up. Follow through to the end of the post to learn how you could win your very own signed, print copy of Wolf en Garde, a sterling silver (nickel and lead-free) Howling Wolf Bangle, and a $20 gift certificate to the Less Than Three Press book market. After all, your time is valuable, and I can’t thank you enough for being here.

But first, the teaser. And what better way to start than with our main character: Lyle O’Connell. When we met Lyle, he was a young man going through the kind of change that we’ve all experienced but with a whole heck of a lot of extra… uh… fun?… thrown in for good measure. Let’s hope it made him a better man…

Tiny Teaser: Introducing – Lyle O’Connell

For all the times Lyle had ever included the words “teeming with” in a thought or statement—which, when he considered it, were actually few and far between—none had been as accurate as his thought that the airport was teeming with people. From the smallest shrieking infant to the tallest ear-budded man, from the casual vacationer in their comfy travel clothes to the business people in their suits and skirts, every shape, size and ethnicity was represented. It was the largest, loudest, most chaotic group of people that Lyle had ever been part of in his life. And it was fucking amazing.

He’d felt the buzz of the terminal before he’d been halfway across the jet bridge that brought him from the small plane that had carried him, his father, his siblings, and Randy, his father’s—partner, Lyle thought, and instantly diminished the word to friend—from the airport in Casper to their current stop in Denver. They wouldn’t be there for long, a mere hour before they’d step back onto a (hopefully) much bigger plane and finish their journey up to D.C., and Lyle intended to enjoy every single second of it. The smells were intense and copious: hormones heavy with fear, anxiety, grief, and excitement; fast food, restaurant food, alcohol; cologne over sweat and perfume over fabric softeners. If he could have done it without consequence, Lyle would have forced himself into a shift right then and there. The thought of experiencing all those scents with a nose more educated than the one he wore at that moment was almost too seductive.

His father wasn’t doing quite so well, which meant that, through proximity alone, neither was Randy. That fact was more amusing than it probably should have been, though Lyle was doing his best not to let his amusement show. His father, Vaughn, wouldn’t be impressed in the least if Lyle made those feelings obvious. Respect and subservience to the normal majority of their world was not just expected, it was insisted upon—to the point that when Lyle had wandered a little too deep into instinctual territory over dominating those around him, Lyle had been shipped off and brainwashed by the fucking committee until he’d sworn up and down that he was wrong and was going to live within their rules. It had been a bullshit season for Lyle, that winter and early spring he’d spent in the clutches of the GDBCG (the Genetics Development and Biological Connectivity Group, who worked for the Committee with respect to research and rehabilitation), and Lyle had no intention of ending back there. Besides, the next time it might not just be a few months of parroting back rules and expectations. Next time, they just might decide Lyle wasn’t worth the effort and put a bullet in his head. They could do it, too. Without anybody ever lifting an eyebrow over what had happened.

Wolf, en Garde Excerpt
© AF Henley, 2016

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Blurb

Wolf, en Garde

Three years ago Lyle made a mistake that cost him his freedom, and almost his life. Now, sick to death of watching his father love the man that Lyle wanted, Lyle accepts an offer to leave Wolf, WY behind and see what life in Washington, D.C. can do for him instead.

When Lyle comes across a seductive, attractive stranger with a fascinating yet terrifying view of humanity, he’s more than intrigued. It doesn’t take Lyle long to realize that Arius isn’t just playing games, though, and when Lyle runs across a secret in Arius’ lair he has no choice but to flee, even knowing his actions will enrage Arius.

On the run, with only a psychic’s second sight and his own instinct to help him, Lyle has nowhere to go but home. The only question is, will they have him when he shows up.

Genre: Gay, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Notes: Wolf, WY contains some explicit and violent content
Book 2 in the Wolf series

Purchasing Link above – save 15% by preordering your copy today! Discount available until May 17th

 

The Giveaway

On behalf of the tour, please join the giveaway by taking part in the Rafflecopter below. The prize consists of a sterling silver (nickel and lead-free) Howling Wolf charm bangle, a $20 Gift Certificate to the Less Than Three Press book market (free books!), and a signed, print copy of Wolf, WY.

For all the terms and conditions, please check out the t’s and c’s posted on the Rafflecopter.

** Please note that this giveaway is being offered tour-wide and there will be one winner awarded for the entire event.

Wolf en Garde Giveaway

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As always, my heartfelt thanks to Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words for having me today. It is an honour and a pleasure to be back and I can’t stress enough that authors like myself could never pull it off without sites like yours.

And a huge thanks to you, my friends, for reading and joining me. Best of luck with the giveaway and I hope you enjoyed the post!

Until next time,

AF Henley ❤

AF Henley_Avatar cropped

About the Author

Henley was born with a full-blown passion for run-on sentences, a zealous indulgence in all words descriptive, and the endearing tendency to overuse punctuation. Since the early years Henley has been an enthusiastic writer, from the first few I-love-my-dog stories to the current leap into erotica.

A self-professed Google genius, Henley lives for the hours spent digging through the Internet for ‘research purposes’ which, more often than not, lead seven thousand miles away from first intentions but bring Henley to new discoveries and ideas that, once seeded, tend to flourish.

Henley has been proudly publishing with Less Than Three Press since 2012.

For more information, please stop by for a visit at afhenley.com.

A Paul B Review: A New Alpha in Town (Hardwood Shifters #1) by A.J. Marcus

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

A New Alpha In TownTanner Groff has been on a mission since his wolf shifter pack was killed by hunters last year.  The former alpha, now lone wolf, has been crossing the country trying to find other shifters to warn them of the danger and prevent another slaughter like the one his pack experienced.  But lately, being a lone wolf has been trying on him.  Tanner wants to feel like he belongs somewhere, as wolves as social creatures.  He hopes to run into another wolf shifter pack or at least a group of shifters willing to let him stick around for a while.  Sensing a storm coming, Tanner decides to stop for a snack before going forward in front of the storm.  While there he scents another shifter at the truck stop.  He decides to follow the van that this shifter gets into.

Van Saunders is a bear shifter from a hidden community of shifters in Colorado.  He and his friend Parker are delivering merchandise that members of his community have made to be sold to the human world.  Knowing that a storm is coming, Van wants to get home for the first snow celebration that happens every year.  Having made a pit stop, Van is eager to get back on the road.  However, an accident further up the freeway and the approaching bad weather force the pair to exit and stop at another truck stop further up the road.  Uneasy with all the humans there, Van decides to take the back roads back home despite the bad weather.  As he gets ready to get into the van, he sees Parker struggling with another man.

Tanner, who had wiped out on his motorcycle, arrives at this truck stop thanks to the kindness of a fellow biker driving in a truck.  Noticing that he found the shifter’s van that he lost due to his accident, Tanner is relieved.  Then he sees the gorgeous bear shifter struggling with a man who appears to be trying to abduct him.  Not seeing Van’s partner anywhere, Tanner shifts to his wolf form and kills the would-be kidnapper.  Now Tanner and Van must work together to find Parker before he is either killed or is tortured for information on the shifter community.  They must also deal with the growing attraction that is building between them and not let it distract them from their mission.

This first book in A J Marcus’s new Hardwood Shifter series strikes all the usual chords when it comes to shifter novels.  You have shifters trying to remain hidden from society while trying to become more modern in their ways.  You have the evil hunters who want to kill all shifters.  And you have mates who fall for each other at almost first site.  The community of Hardwood Valley is somewhat unique in that it features a collection of different shifters that have been living together for over 200 years.  When you throw in the mages that protect the village you have a something that is not seen in most books.  The real treat of the book is Van’s friend Parker.  His shifted form is unusual and his personality fits his animal form.

The cover art by Latrisha Waters fits the book well.  Tanner in his leather jacket along with Van in his bear form are in front of a snowy Colorado mountain.

Sales Links:  Extasy Books | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 82 pages
Published April 15th 2016 by eXtasy
ISBN139781487406950
Edition LanguageEnglish

Series:  Hardwood Shifters

A New Alpha in Town (Hardwood Shifters #1)

The Sexy Sirius Wolves Series is Back in The Dilemma by Victoria Sue (exclusive excerpt and giveaway)

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The Dilemma (Sirius’s Wolves #5) by Victoria Sue
 Release Date: April 7, 2016

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Dark Hollows Press
Cover Artist: 3 rusted spoons

Blurb

Marcus has just become the only human ever to be Alpha of a werewolf pack and thwarted the plans of Anubis to destroy the goddess Sirius’ creation – the werewolves.

Now, Anubis has decided to focus his efforts instead on Marcus and his new pack, to try and destroy the pack from within. In order to do this, Anubis seeks the one thing Marcus wants above all else and when he finds it, will use that to get him to walk away from his lovers and the pack.

Unaware of the evil god’s plans, Marcus works together with Kellan and Ricoh, not only trying to help Nate recover from the vicious torture he has undergone at the hands of the terrorist group, The Winter Circle, but to also come to terms with leading a pack of over two thousand wolves.

Marcus soon will be faced with a dilemma, but will he give everything up for his mates and the pack or will the temptation Anubis offers him be too much for one human to refuse? Will Marcus put his wolves before himself or will he be tricked into leaving them behind forever?

 

Pages or Words: 50,000 words
Series should be read in order.
 Categories: Fiction, M/M Romance, Ménage/Poly, Wolf Shifters

Exclusive Excerpt

Marcus rubbed his right knee. It had started throbbing an hour ago, and was now hurting like a bitch. He’d been sitting down in one place for too long. He wanted to get back upstairs so Kellan could work his magic on it. He’d caught the concerned glance Ricoh had just thrown at him, and willed himself to stay still.

Blaze was drawing the meeting to a close, and they’d gotten loads of work done. He now had thirty gammas with Jed firmly in charge of them all. Blaze had again indicated that they would assume that financial responsibility also. Marcus bristled a little at that, but until he actually knew if Jefferson had any money, there were more important things to worry about…like what were they going to do with the only prisoner locked up downstairs.

Hunter. Marcus had been expecting the question to come up for the last thirty minutes and had wished Ricoh wasn’t there.

Blaze looked at Ricoh. “Something happened two days ago. I decided not to tell you at the time.”

Marcus’ heart beat hard.

“The gammas caught Hunter trying to kill himself.”

Ricoh paled.

“How is that even possible?” Marcus asked quietly. He tightened his grip on Ricoh’s hand. Werewolves were hard wired to protect themselves by shifting. Even he knew that.

“He partially shifted and used his claws to slit his wrists. He passed out and his body immediately shifted as he lost consciousness.”

Ricoh seemed to shrink a little into himself. Marcus glanced down at Ricoh, and instinctively pulled him close. He wasn’t dumb enough to assume that Ricoh would have recovered from being betrayed by Hunter, or being convinced the wolf was his mate for years.

“How is he doing now?” Marcus asked.

Jed answered shortly. “I’m sorry, but I wish he’d succeeded.” Marcus looked up at the older man. Jed looked furious. “He deceived us all. Just look what he did to Nate.”

“He didn’t actually physically touch Nate,” Conner said.

“But he knew about it,” Jed’s voice rose. “He stood by and allowed it to happen. I trusted that man. We all did. Any of his gammas would have given their lives for him as our Alpha.” Marcus watched in silence as Jed struggled to calm down. The enormity of what had happened was finally sinking in. Hunter hadn’t just hurt Nate and Ricoh, who had both managed in barely a week to plant themselves firmly in Marcus’ heart; he had hurt his wolves, his family. They had trusted their Alpha to look after them, and he had let them down in a spectacularly cruel way.

Marcus turned to Ricoh and looked at the worried blue eyes that were blinking up at him. Marcus turned his seat and took Ricoh’s other hand. “You have choices. You can go and see him. You can see him on your own or any one of us could come with you, including me. I can go and see him for you and find out what he wants, or you can simply tell him to get lost. You never have to think of him again.”

Ricoh swallowed. “Will you come with me?”

“I think we’ll take Jed as well.” Marcus glanced at Jed and the man nodded his head sharply.

“Good then.” Blaze stood up. “Might I suggest you see him in a few hours? I know you’ll need to see how Nate is and bring Kellan up to speed with what’s been decided.”

Marcus shot Blaze a grateful glance. Everyone filed out.

“Marcus?” Blaze hesitated.

Marcus turned to Ricoh. “Do you want to organize some food for us to take upstairs?”

Ricoh squeezed Marcus’ hand then headed towards Lilly.

“I just wanted to say I’m very grateful,” Blaze said slowly.

Marcus looked in astonishment at the big guy. “I think running my mouth off might have just cost you a lot of money.”

Blaze waved an impatient hand. “I don’t mean the school, or the housing, both of which are long overdue. I mean the way you spoke to May.”

Marcus screwed his eyes up in confusion.

“I have never said thank you,” Blaze added.

“For what I said to May?”

Blaze chuckled. “I know it’s been nearly a week, but because of Nate we have never had a chance to talk about what happened.” Blaze paused.

“You were willing to die for our wolves.”

Marcus turned at the other voice. He hadn’t realized Darric was still in the room. All his focus had been on Blaze.

“You’re human,” Darric continued. “Stating the obvious, but there aren’t many wolves who would have stepped up and done what you did. We owe you our thanks and our loyalty.’

“And I don’t want you to think I’m taking over, either,” Blaze added.

Marcus put a hand up to stall him. “I’m completely out of my depth and everyone knows it.”

“No, you’re wrong,” Blaze said firmly. “You had May eating out of your hand.”

“By promising her something I had no right to,” Marcus interrupted.

“By being an Alpha and reminding us that packs are about family,” Blaze replied. He put a hand on Marcus’ shoulder. “Your pack made the right decision.”

 

 

Buy the book:  Amazon

 

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Meet the author:

Victoria Sue has loved books for as long as she can remember. Books were always what pocket money went on and what usually Father Christmas brought. When she ran out of her kids’ adventure stories, she would go raid her mom’s. By the age of eight she was devouring classics like Little Women, and fell in love with love stories.

She especially loves writing gay romance because as far as she’s concerned the only thing better than one hot guy, is two of them.

Where to find the author:
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/victoriasueauthor/

Twitter: @vickysuewrites

 


Tour Dates & Stops:

11-Apr: BFD Book Blog, Bonkers About Books, My Fiction Nook, Outrageous Heroes, Jessie G. Books

12-Apr: MM Good Book Reviews, Hearts on Fire, Alpha Book Club, Full Moon Dreaming, Love Bytes

13-Apr: Oh My Shelves, Happily Ever Chapter, Mikky’s World of Books, Joyfully Jay, The Blogger Girls

14-Apr: Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Book Lovers 4Ever, Inked Rainbow Reads, Velvet Panic,

A.M. Leibowitz, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

15-Apr: Bayou Book Junkie, Unquietly Me, Caraway Carter, Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Molly Lolly

Final

Giveaway

Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: eBook from Victoria Sue’s backlist.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.
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Love The Supernatural? Sean Kerr is Talking Writing, the Supernatural and His Latest Release, Dead Camp (interview,excerpt and giveaway)

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Dead Camp (Dead Camp #1) by Sean Kerr
 Release Date: January 1, 2016

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Extasy Books
Cover Artist: Latrisha Waters

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is so happy to have author Sean Kerr here today to share his thoughts on writing, the supernatural and his latest release, Dead Camp.  Welcome, Sean.

✍✍✍

  • Why do you write?

I love to create stories and characters, it’s a fantastic escape from every- day living. I love to take an idea and start developing a story and characters around it, and I love to see where it takes me! If I am lucky enough that an audience likes it and reads it, then that really is the ultimate thrill!

  • When did you decide to become a writer?

It was not a conscious decision. I have written since I was a child, and I am now 46! But when I decided to write Dead Camp, when the idea became so powerful and would not let me sleep, I decided that I would do everything in my power to get a publisher and get the work into as good a situation as possible. And it worked! Extasy books have been fabulous.

  • What genre are your books?

Supernatural, paranormal, horror, gay, a general sprinkling of erotica, conspiracy, history. Have I left anything out?

  • What draws you to this genre?

I have always loved supernatural/paranormal books, LOVED Twilight, LOVED the True Blood books, and that sent me off wanting to do my own spin on that genre. Plus I have always wanted to write a Vampire story, but one that changed the conventions, and hopefully does something a bit different with the genre.

  • What made you decide to sit down and actually start something?

I had an idea and it would not let me sleep. The idea grew and grew and I knew it would take a number of books to see it through, so I had to write it. I started Dead Camp to see where it would lead me, and now I know exactly where it is going and how the very last page of the series will look. I’m so excited about it that it stops me from sleeping because I keep seeing bits of it in my head. It’s an obsession, as is writing in general I think.

  • Do you write full-time or part-time?

Part time. I have an Interior Design business in Cardiff called Home Zone Design, with my fabulous business partner Jayne, so that takes up all my working days sadly. If I could walk away from that and write all day I would, but sadly we cannot afford to hire anyone so that isn’t going to happen lol!

  • Do you have a special time to write or how is your day structured?

I try to do a couple of hours a night and I try to do as much as I can on days off. However, my debut novel Dead Camp has just gone live on extasy books and Amazon and all my time has been spent doing social media stuff and trying to get the book out there, so I have been a bit lack of late!

  • How do you think you’ve evolved creatively?

Not sure about that. I do think my writing has improved dramatically over this process, my editors at extasy have been fantastic! I’ve always had a pretty active imagination, and this series is pushing that to the limits and I love it. The one thing that does happen when you write it that the more you do it, the better you become, and the more ideas you have!

  • What have you written?

Dead Camp is my first published work. I have written loads over the years, lots of bad stuff, lots of screen plays. I have a file full of half-finished things and ideas that I am looking forward to getting back to once the Dead Camp series is finished. While to go there yet though lol.

  • Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer just seeing where an idea takes you?

I start from a rough outline, and before I start writing I always know where I need each character to go and where the story needs to go. Dead Camp is going to be a big series, possibly 6 books, and I know exactly where each one will be, start, end, and how each one affects the next, and I know exactly how it ends.

  • How do you market your books?

Facebook, twitter, Goodreads, yahoo groups. That is my main thrust at the moment and believe me it all takes a lot of doing. How effective it is I don’t know yet, I am a very small fish in a very, very large sea.

  • Is there any marketing technique you used that had an immediate impact on your sales figures?

Facebook. As soon as I announced the publication of the book, people were buying it. Also, because I am lucky enough to have a fantastic publisher in extasy books, they also sell it from their website, and they have a huge following, so hopefully at some point that will kick in.

  • What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

Never give up. Keep writing, even if it’s bad, because you will improve. If you have an idea, go with it. Don’t get sidetracked either, as I am now lol. You have to write all the time, to develop your style and your skills. Never take ‘NO’ as the final answer. I was refused by every agent in the Readers & Writers Handbook, but just when I thought there was no point in going on, I approached six publishers directly and within three weeks I had three offers.

Sadly, no-one is going to do it for you, so you have to do it for yourself!

  • Give us an insight into your main character. What does he do that is so special?

Eli is so arrogant and so self-assured, that you can’t help but love him. It’s not so much what he does that is special, it’s the horror he has been through. He has been through so much that you would think it could not get any worse. But as Dead Camp begins, it does get worse, and his history unfolds through the books to the point where you really need something good to happen to him. He thinks his arrogance and his sexy attitude can get him through it all, but he discovers that nothing is further from the truth.

  • Where do your ideas come from?

The strangest of places. Dead Camp came to me while watching a World War two film. Documentaries on the Discovery channel also fuel my imagination. Also, there are a couple of future books I would like to write inspired by some terrible nightmare I had as a child that have always stayed with me.

  • What is the hardest thing about writing?

Getting the time to write!

  • What was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?

Finding someone to take it seriously and publish it. Agents didn’t want to know. Three publishers did straight away.

  • Who is your favorite character in your book and why?

Eli, because he is so naughty and I would love to be him!

  • Who is your least favorite character and why?

Melek. He is so bad that you can’t help but love him. Not all evil is as dark as you think.

  • What is your next project?

Dead Camp book two out so I am trying to get the third one written as we speak!

  • Who is your favorite fictional character and why?

Count Dracula. I have read that book so many times I can almost recite it! He is not strictly evil, and I think in the end he just wants to be loved. That feels as relevant today as it did when it was first written.

  • What one person from history would you like to meet and why?

Judy Garland. I’m gay, need I say more?

  • If there was one thing you could do to change the world, what would it be?

End poverty.

  • Who is your favorite author?

Charlaine Harris

  • What is one thing you hate about being a writer?

That I have to work in a shop in order to survive instead of writing all day lol.

    Thank you, Sean!  That was outstanding.  Now I can’t wait to read your story.  More about Dead Camp below….

RC

Blurb

Eli is an ancient vampire with an ego the size of a planet and a sex drive to match, but his tumultuous past left him broken, so he hides from humanity and cowers from love, left to endure the crushing guilt that haunts his every waking moment. Even his best friend Malachi, a ghost who is hopelessly in love with Eli, remains unaware of all that transpired in London. Malachi can never know the truth.

When the Angel Daniyyel pays an unwelcome visit, Eli must face his secrets, secrets that he has tried so long to hide. To make matters worse, a chance encounter with the most beautiful man he has ever seen shatters his beloved isolation, pushing him into the world of the living once more. Something about this strange man seems so familiar, but Eli can’t even remember who he was before he became a vampire, never mind explain the unwanted emotions the enigmatic stranger ignites in his dead heart. So Eli has a choice—return to the world that ruined him, or continue his self-imposed exile with no hope of salvation.

 

Pages or Words: 87,422 words, 260 pages

Categories: Dark Themes, Erotica, Fiction, Gay Fiction, Historical, Horror, M/M Romance, Mystery, Paranormal, Romance, Vampires/Demons, Thriller

Excerpt:

Three prisoners had died in my block that night, two elderly and one young man not old enough to grow pubes. It sickened me. Never, in all my years, had I witnessed such a callous waste of human life. And then to see my fellow prisoners undressing the dead, striping their cold stiff bodies before my unbelieving eyes horrified me even more, and I clung onto Jakob’s broken body for dear life. All around me the clunk of bodies against wood and concrete. My eyes tried not to see and my ears tried not to hear.

A cold clammy hand gently caressed my arm and I nearly shot off my shelf in shock. I didn’t scream. I refused to scream.

“My friend, I’m sorry, my friend, but you must undress him. The rubbish men will be here soon and you must strip him of all clothing before they take him. Please, you must do this for him—they will be less kind than you. Do you understand?”

“Why? Why must we do this?”

“His clothes are of value, my friend. They will be re-used for the next intake.”

“And what of his body, what will become of Jakob?”

“You don’t want to know, my friend.” His whispered words made every hair on my body stand on end. A sound outside caused him to return to his unsavoury task with renewed urgency. “Quickly, they are here.”

What followed felt like a dream. I had undressed many a man under many circumstances, but that was a first. Already poor Jakob stiffened, and it pained me to hear and feel his bones crack as I gently prised his pale thin body from the clothes. I whispered my apologies into his unhearing ears and I hated my eyes for glancing across his pale dead flesh.

I had to free them, all of them. That place, that death camp, it had to end.

I lifted his dead naked body into my arms. Emotion, so alien to me, invaded the shrivelled blackness that was my soul, and I knew my eyes betrayed my grief. Emotions made you weak. Emotions made you vulnerable, emotions hurt. And I was hurting. The passing of that human, that mortal man I had known for less than a day, had brought back that affliction from which I had been running from for so very long.

I had only opened my heart to the world again but for the briefest of moments. And already I felt pain.

Gideon hurt me. He made me feel unloved, unwanted, he made me feel ugly. How I would crave for his touch, how desperate I was for his love, to feel the thrill of his fingers upon my bare flesh, to feel his attraction to me, to feel wanted. But all he ever did was refuse me. Every time I tried to touch him, he turned me away. He was not in the mood, he told me to come back later.

Come back later.

But later never came.

I carried that pale body into the grey wet misery of morning. The sun was trying desperately to penetrate the thick layers of brooding clouds that clung stubbornly over the camp, but the sun was losing. Rain dripped incessantly from the skies, melting the remaining snow into a muddy slush. Grey skies, grey ground, grey people. The camp drained the colour out of everything. Welwelsburg was like me, a vampire, sucking the life out of everything it encountered, sucking away hope and dignity, leaving nothing but pale grey husks clinging to the brink of existence.

Two men stood next to a large flatbed trolley. Dead, naked bodies lay crumpled in a pile on top of the trolley, legs and arms sticking out at all angles like some grotesque starfish. I saw children amongst the corpses.

Pale white flickering figures surrounded the trolley. Insubstantial wisps of lives spent before their time. The rubbish men looked at me expectantly but I could not move for the sight of those spectral beings and I clutched Jakob’s dead body tightly to my chest, unwilling to relinquish my charge. If I put him on that trolley then he would be dead, another lump of cold meat on the pile. He deserved more than that.

The ghostly figures turned to look at me, each one knowing me, seeing me, seeing me see them. And they smiled at me. Cold shivering prickles erupted across my skin as their eyes took me in and they were such kind eyes, such trusting eyes. A figure pushed its way between them, its shadowy form brushing gently against the others as it came to stand before me.

Buy the book

Extasy books  | Amazon UK  | Amazon US  | Barnes & Noble Nook | Kobo

 

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Meet the author:

I think that as I approach that milestone that is fifty, I must be one of the oldest gamers on the face of this earth. Many a day you will find me lashed to my PS4 enjoying a good session of Skyrim. Who doesn’t love a good session of Skyrim?
I love writing—I have done it since I was a child when I would happily write about the latest episode of Doctor Who (Tom Baker in those days) in my schoolbooks. Growing up and becoming a business owner with my friend Jayne left little time to pursue my dream of publication, but of late the desire and the compulsion to put words onto paper have once again dominated my life so that now, my laptop has become surgically fused to my fingertips.
There is something desperately satisfying about telling a story. My fascination with History, Religion and Conspiracy theories have, in this instance, gone hand-in-hand with my love of all things vampire, fantasy, sci-fi and horror. I drove my parents nuts when I was young because that was all I would read about in books, all I would watch on television, but they have held me in good stead, and long may my obsession with the subjects continue, at least, that is, until the day they put me in my own wooden box. And imagination is such a wonderful thing. I once had a rather vivid dream about David Tennant and the Tardis console, but I could not possibly go into details about that here. Let’s just say that my polarity was well and truly reversed.
Dead Camp is just the beginning. I have to check my knickers every day at the thought that this book is now in the public domain. My first book, and I hope the first of many. And to those out there who love to write, who love to transport us to new worlds, or old worlds with a twisted perspective, I say to you keep going. I never thought I would ever see my work available to download, and thanks to eXtasy Books, the dream that I always thought unobtainable has finally come true. So thank you all at eXtasy, I am one happy homosexual thanks to you, and thank you the reader for taking the time to read this strange tale and allowing Eli and the incomparable Malachi into your lives.
And now I really need Skyrim.

Where to find the author:

 


Tour Dates & Stops:

29-Mar: Full Moon Dreaming, Velvet Panic, BFD Book Blog

5-Apr: Rednecks and Romance, Jessie G. Books, Hearts on Fire, The Dark Arts

12-Apr: Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

19-Apr: Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Inked Rainbow Reads, Emotion In Motion, Book Lovers 4Ever

26-Apr: Bonkers About Books, Divine Magazine, Nephy Hart, The Hat Party

3-May: My Fiction Nook, MM Book Escape, Bayou Book Junkie

10-May: Dawn’s Reading Nook, Cathy Brockman Romances, Unquietly Me

17-May: Kirsty Loves Books, The Novel Approach

24-May: Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Havan Fellows

31-May: MM Good Book Reviews, Making It Happen, Love Bytes

7-Jun: Happily Ever Chapter, Alpha Book Club

14-Jun: Molly Lolly, A.M. Leibowitz, Outrageous Heroes

Final

Giveaway

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A Stella Review: Ravel: A Ripples in the Status Quo Story by R. Phoenix

RATING  4,5 out of 5 stars


RAvelFor the past few years, Reese has hidden away in his home, refusing to venture out where he might have to face what reminds him of all that he’s lost. When Ashton, a human thief, breaks into his home one night, he doesn’t have a choice but to face the harsh truths of the world he’s turned his back on. He knows he supports the society monsters of myth and lore built upon the backs of humans through his silence, but the new leaders don’t tolerate sympathizers.

If a werewolf can’t act against the status quo without facing severe consequences, a human with Ashton’s cunning and experience circumventing supernatural predators certainly can’t risk drawing their attention. Their chance encounter leaves them both shaken and questioning whether they are living life as they were intended—or if surviving is really living at all.

I’m always curious about new authors and I read some great things about this series so I wanted to give it a try and soon jumped at the change to have it.

I have to say I was pleasurably surprised by this book, the story between Reese and Ash was engaging and well done. I was caught by the blurb but the MCs took my attention from the start and I cheered on them till the end.

Reese is a werewolf, he has an outstanding account with the past;  although their first meeting isn’t the greatest, with Ash sneaking in Reese’s home to steal from him,  Reese decides to help the young human, trusting him and his good faith. Living in the slums with his sick  best friend Leo is not easy and safe but in some ways Ash has never totally lost the hope for more, for some pale shine of good to find. Then at first sight, something switches on with Reese, a deep connection hard to ignore. Will they be able to trust each other and try to be happy in a world so dark?

This is a story about needs. About finding a salvation and maybe love in a world that left the human kind with nothing to live for. That was the first element that intrigued me, the choice of the author to create a world ruled by shifters, surely a different approach to the paranormal genre where shifters  are usually in the closet or at best, outcast by humans. This difference was really welcomed.

I liked the pace of the writing, a good tempo never boring. And the dialogues, more banters actually, between the two MCs were great, funny and most of all gave the story a brightness so needed in a world so sad.

Just a note I want to make, I was waiting till the end for a little more to happen, some action, some evil characters to come out. Save a disagreement/misunderstanding between Ash and Reese, the story flew pretty easily and it was okay because I enjoyed very much but I was waiting, for no reason, for that little more and when I didn’t get it, I was just a tiny disappointed.

If you are looking for a quick story and you are fan of paranormal genre, I feel to recommend Ravel. I think the author did really great and I am looking forward the other books in this new series. I’m sure I’m going to discover more characters to love. Although Ravel is the second book, in my opinion it works pretty well as standalone. But if you like to read the series in order, you can get the first book, Bought, for free on Amazon and Are.

I like the cover art cause it’s different and simple, and the black is very fitting.

Sales Links:  Smashwords | ARe | Amazon

BOOK DETAILS

ebook, Revised/2nd, 74 pages
Published April 1st 2016 by R. Phoenix (first published December 23rd 2015)
Original Title Ravel: A Ripples in the Status Quo Story
ASIN B01DBAV324
Edition Language English

About the series

The Ripples in the Status Quo works are set within a world where supernatural beings seized control from humans and relegated them to the bottom of the food chain. Used for food, entertainment, and worse, nothing protects them from the hands of those who claim them as slaves. But not everyone adheres to the status quo the world at large has accepted…

Please note that the RISQ world has little place for humanity–and the author’s idea of romance may not match yours. As such, there are no guarantees of happily ever afters, and content may be offensive to some readers.

The suggested reading order is below, though these works can be read as standalones.

1. Bought. [Dark Erotica]
2. Ravel. [Romance]
3. Recoil. [Dark Erotic Romance]
4. Owned. [Dark Erotic Romance. Follows events in Bought and Recoil.]

In Our Audiobook Spotlight: Determined Mate ( Holland Brothers #2) by Toni Griffin and Narrator Dominic M. McCartney (giveaway)

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AudioBook Determined Mate ( Holland Brothers  #2) by Toni Griffin
Narrator: Dominic M. McCartney

Release Date: Mid-April

Goodreads Link

Publisher: Mischief Corner Books
Cover Artist: Meredith Russell

Blurb:

Jason Matthew’s is a broken man. He’s lived through hell and barely come out the other side. All he can think about is getting to his best friend, Brian, after that he has no idea. Jason’s scared out of his mind when he’s met by not only Brian but two large men as well, he does the only thing he can think to do. He tries to run. One of the men, though, turns out to be his mate. A mate he is in no condition to have or want, a mate that won’t allow him to flee.

Alex Holland is forced to stand by and watch as Jason is taken to the safest place they know, too scared to be around him. He knows something bad has happened to Jason and he’s going to need every ounce of his Alpha control to give his mate the time he needs to heal and start living again.

 

 

Audiobook Time: Approximately 5 hours
Series should be read in order for maximum enjoyment
Categories: Fantasy, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Paranormal, Wolf Shifters

 

Buy the book

Audible  | Amazon  | iTunes

 

 

Meet the author:

Toni Griffin lives in Darwin, the smallest of Australia’s capital cities. Born and raised in the state she’s a Territorian through and through. Growing up Toni hated english with a passion (as her editors can probably attest to) and found her strength lies with numbers.

Now, though, she loves escaping to the worlds she creates and hopes to continue to do so for many years to come. She’s a single mother of one and works full time. When she’s not writing you can just about guarantee that she will be reading one of the many MM authors she loves.

Feel free to drop her a line at info@tonigriffin.net anytime.

Where to find the author:

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Tour Dates & Stops:

11-Apr

The Novel Approach, Three Books Over The Rainbow, Velvet Panic, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words,

Bayou Book Junkie, Book Lovers 4Ever

12-Apr

Love Bytes, Nic Starr, Inked Rainbow Reads, A.M. Leibowitz

13-Apr

Happily Ever Chapter, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, MM Good Book Reviews, Alpha Book Club

14-Apr

BFD Book Blog, Mikky’s World of Books, Open Skye Book Reviews, Full Moon Dreaming

15-Apr

Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Havan Fellows, Outrageous Heroes, Kirsty Loves Books,

All I Want and More Books, Up All Night, Read All Day

Final

Giveaway

Enter to win.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Link and prize provided by the author and Pride Promotions.
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