2024 COVERS

2024 covers

Welcome to the Dark Side!

We are writers mainly from Australia and New Zealand who write speculative fiction with romantic elements. Be it fantasy, paranormal, dark urban fantasy, futuristic and everything in between.

Wednesday 31 July 2013

A Bite Of...


Hello, and welcome to our fortnightly "A Bite Of..."
Today, I'd like welcome the talented Christina Phillips with a bite of her book Bloodlust Denied.





Can you, in less than five words describe your book Bloodlust Denied?
Vampire duke meets Maiden of Death

What inspired you to write it?
I first got the idea for this book four years ago, when I read a submissions call from Ellora’s Cave for stories connected to music. I instantly had this vision of a dark haired seductress dancing to the haunting strains of a single violin in a London back alley. I’d also always wanted to write a Regency romance and the two ideas melded when the hero entered the scene. However, he was no ordinary duke. He turned out to be a two thousand year old vampire who had long ago forsaken his honor and conscience. As it turned out I never did submit to EC four years ago as I missed the deadline due to other commitments, but the story always remained in the back of my mind. Eventually I revisited it last year, gave it a good edit and it was picked up by Ellora’s Cave J
...and here's the snippet!

This is the scene where the hero Alexius first sees Morana.
The refined garden square of St James faded into the distance, and the dank underbelly of London rolled over him like a fetid corpse. Whores called out to him, reached for him, their already dead eyes following him. But tonight they weren’t enough. Their polluted, weary blood offended his senses and revulsion skittered along his spine at the thought of slaking his hunger with any but the one he sought.
He turned into another dark alley, the stink of decay and despair wrapping around him in an unwelcome caress of death. But threaded through every beat of this misbegotten city her scent throbbed, rich, vibrant. Closer.
So close he could taste the sweetness, savor the texture, feel the thick luscious fluid as it pumped down his throat. Lust stirred deep in his groin, thickening his shaft and the haunting melody of a single violin scarcely penetrated the heavy thud of desire that pounded through his temples.
And then he saw her, captured in the flickering light of a single lantern. Long black hair cascaded down her back and slender arms arched above her head as her lithe body undulated to the exquisite strains of the violin.
She appeared oblivious to her captivated audience, and Alexius ignored the dozen or so drunken men gathered around her. They were of no consequence. This woman was his, and he intended to have her.
The intricate crescendo sank into his brain, pounding in tandem with escalating lust. The woman spun faster, heedless of the broken cobblestones, heedless of his deadly intent. Focused only on her own pleasure in the music, in the movement, in the sensuous cocoon she wove.
With dramatic flourish, the shadowy musician ended the solo, the final note echoing through the dark alley like the call from a lover long since forgotten. Yet still Alexius couldn’t move toward her, as if he was still enchanted by the magic eroticism of her dance.
She flung back her head, her wild hair framing her face, and looked directly at him. His heart, no longer a slumbering organ, slammed against his ribs, pulses escalating.
He hadn’t felt so alive in millennia.
If you like the sound of this you can find Christina, and buy the book at the links below!
Thank you for sharing, Christina!
Website | Ellora’s Cave |   Amazon |  ARe |  Amazon UK |

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Tuesday 30 July 2013

Good News Day!

Welcome to this week's good news...






GIVEAWAYS

Last days to enter this fabulous giveaway running at Rosemary's Romance Books, folks!

All readers have to do is order a book (or books) from these stores in the designated giveaway month - either in person or online. You'll earn one entry per purchase in the Giveaway. The prize winner will be drawn at the end of the month and the Aussie Author Giveaway box of goodies will be posted to you.

NB. Due to postage costs, entry is restricted to Australian readers.

Next month the third box of giveaway-fun will be with Galaxy Books (Sydney) over August 2013.

Participating authors: Bec McMaster, Christina Ashcroft, Erica Hayes, Keri Arthur, Kylie Griffin, Kylie Scott, M.J.Scott, Rowena Cory Daniells, Shona Husk.




BOOK COVERS & RELEASE DATES

Exhale by Dakota Harrison is out today with Samhain Publishing.

Takeshi is finishing up a brutal double shift in the ER when a familiar—and bloody—face erases all thought of heading home. The broken body of the woman fighting for her life belongs to Gabby, his best friend’s mother. A woman he's loved since he turned nineteen, when he foolishly declared his love for her.
She’s not dying today. Not on his watch. And not with a promise left unfulfilled.
Gabby has never forgotten the taste of the kiss Taka gave her under the mistletoe all those years ago. Or the silly promise that surely by now he’s forgotten. She’s wrong. Taka remembers. And she melts as he uses every trick in his highly trained surgeon’s hands to heal her—and rekindle the heat between them.
But there’s a secret lurking in Gabby’s past. And when it follows her all the way to Seattle, it threatens to drag the one man she loves into the nightmare she thought she’d left behind.



Apple iBookstore NZL/AUS have nominated Maree Anderson’s recently released YA book Liminal as one of their Best Books of August!
“Each month we take the hassle out of finding a great read and highlight the best new titles for your reading pleasure. Enjoy the latest thriller from Daniel Silva, The English Girl, or discover a new breakout author with Maree Anderson’s Liminal. Tap or click on each title to check out our Editors’ Notes.”
Here’s what iBookstore’s editors had to say about Liminal:
“Self-published Kiwi author Maree Anderson has already established a loyal following with her Crystal Warriors series. In this novel, she embarks on a new storyline featuring Wren, a sassy 16-year-old who finds she’s starting to disappear from her life–literally! She teams up with mysterious bad boy Kade and learns a thing or two about living between worlds. This is great young-adult fun for fans of paranormal fiction.”
To find out more about Liminal, please visit www.liminalbook.com or www.mareeanderson.com/books/liminal


The Lies We Tell by Elizabeth Dunk is out August 1st, 2013 with Escape Publishing.

Ten years ago, Todd Lansing stood over his father’s grave, his heart thumping out curses on Sia Collins for causing his death. When he returns to Oberon and sees Sia again, his heart thumps with a different emotion, one he fights with all the anger he still feels.
Sia didn’t commit the break-in that ended up killing Mr Lansing, but to admit that would send her father to jail. She has rebuilt her life in the small town, atoned for her accused crime, and carved out a niche using her talent with paint to reach out to the community, raise funds, and support her family.
When Todd finds out the truth, he can’t understand why Sia won’t speak out and clear her name, and it threatens to tear them apart. With her relationship with Todd on the line, will Sia choose loyalty or love?




REVIEWS

Fresh Fiction has reviewed My Lady Quicksilver by Bec McMaster.
"McMaster has a particular talent with words. She weaves such detailed and intricate scenes that it seems almost impossible not to feel immerged in her world. Such rich, lush backgrounds and multi-faceted characters make her stand out amongst a sea of talented writers. Plot twists here and there only add that shock factor and don't forget the epic romances that she is able to create!"
Full review here.




Cloaked in Fur by T.F.Walsh received a 5 star review from Moonrise Book Blog.
"There were so many aspects of this book that I enjoyed, it’s hard to know where to start! It’s well written, perfectly paced, and filled with enchanting characters."
Full review here.










Galactic Flame by Mel Tshco received a 4.5 stars from Long and Short Reviews. 
"I haven’t read the rest of the books in the series but I easily immersed myself in the story and found myself reading late into the night. I couldn’t put it down, so I can easily say that it can be read as a standalone.
The story line was unique and fun. I highly recommend this story for science fiction romance lovers, it’s a sexy romp on a great red planet that I would love to be visit."

Full review here.






Kirkus Reviews has reviewed Amanda Ashby's Demonosity.
“With her usual wit and humor, Ashby (Fairy Bad Day, 2011) takes on the question of how to make the right decision. No one ever said growing up was easy. For 16-year-old Cassidy Carter-Lewis, things are pretty complicated. Her dad’s just home from knee surgery, her mom’s just moved back in (but is usually at work), her faithless ex-boyfriend is hassling her, and now she’s being pressured to try out for a part in the school play, which is totally not her scene. So when she finds out that she’s supposed to be the guardian of the Black Rose (whatever that is) and has to learn sword fighting and start killing demons, it’s all a bit much. On top of all that, she’s being taught military technique by a medieval spirit and wooed by the more-than-handsome new guy at school. With so much going on in her life, how is she supposed to actually stop and think for even a minute about how to answer the call of the Black Rose, especially when her father’s life starts to slip away due to a demon spell. No one can make the decision for her—it’s up to her to decide what’s really right and what’s really wrong. With interesting characters and a fresh plot, this absorbing read addresses everything from peer pressure to intelligent guy pals to self-reliance, with just enough paranormal activity to maintain an edge. The message never overwhelms the fun in this frothy paranormal romp.”



OTHER

Darksiders Erica Hayes, Bec McMaster, Efthalia Pegios and Kylie Griffin attended the Romance Writers of America conference in Atlanta, Georgia last week. And what a week it was - workshops, networking, books signings, panels and meeting other authors!

Atlanta at night

L to R: Efthalia Pegios, Chris Taylor, Joanne Lockyer, Erica Hayes, Bec McMaster, Kylie Griffin

Sourcebooks signing with Bec McMaster

Literacy Autographing session with Erica Hayes
Kylie Griffin at the Literacy Autographing - the event raised $56000 for local charities

Thursday 25 July 2013

Magic Thursday - what is in a name?

Nicole Murphy

At the moment, I'm revising and re-writing my science fiction romance. I love this story - I should, I've been writing it for nearly 30 years!

Soon it will be ready to send out to my beta readers. By the end of August, maybe mid September, it will be ready to start submitting.

Which brings me to the part I hate most of this entire process - coming up with the title.

I sooooo suck at titles. Honestly, it's horrendous. Maybe one third of my titles get used as is? The rest get changed. I almost want to send my subs in with the note "yeah, I know the title sucks, but you can change it, I don't mind and honestly, the book is good..."

My upcoming release 'The Lies We Tell' went into the publisher called 'Painted Together'. Neither the editor nor marketing liked it, and so the discussion began. What to call it? We came up with an idea (damn I wish I'd saved the emails - can't remember what it was) but marketing didn't like it, so we tried again.

At least it didn't take as long as the books in the Dream of Asarlai trilogy. Honestly, it took months and I was about to throw my hands in the air and tell HarperCollins to call them whatever they wanted when the publisher and I finally came up with 'Secret Ones' (originally Love in Control), 'Power Unbound' (originally Freedom to Be) and 'Rogue Gadda' (originally Chance and Reward).

See? Complete suckage.

So here's my plea to you all - PLEASE HELP ME COME UP WITH THE TITLE FOR THIS BOOK!

Here's the synopsis:

Cassandra Wiltmore would do anything to keep the Rican Balcite Mining Company profitable, both for her family and for the people of Rica, who she will one day rule. When a consortium tries to convince the Planetarium that the RBMC shouldn't hold the license to mine balcite any more, Cassandra is determined to find out who they are and stop them.

But everything she does seems to backfire. Her attempts to find out who is in the consortium results in her obsessed wannabe lover convincing the entire planet they are to be married. Her confrontation with the man she believes at the root of her problems leaves her lover Kernan Radaton first in a coma then unable to remember her.

Then just when she finds out the truth and realises she can save herself from a horrid marriage as well as the family business, she is kidnapped. With time ticking away, she needs to get out and have the truth revealed in four days, or she'll be forced to marry and will have to leave her home, not allowed to return until she brings a new heir.

With ingenuity, Cassandra is freed and arrives just in time to witness the destruction of her fiance and her salvation. She thinks all will go back to normal, except the Prince of Rica has plans for her. The only good thing to look forward to is that Kernan has regained his memory, forgives her the part she played in his injury and is ready to help her led her new life, so she gets a happily ever after - just not the one she really wanted.

***

What would you call my science fiction romance? Tell me your suggestion and you'll go in the draw to win my new book, The Lies We Tell. Not to mention the one I like the best will become the official title of the book, and you'll be acknowledged in the text.


Tuesday 23 July 2013

Good News Day!

Welcome to this week's good news...






BOOK COVERS & RELEASE DATES

Peta Crake's Revelry will be released on 14th August, 2013 through Destiny Romance.


Shifter Revelry Bell is on the run. Pursued by both her pack and the Enforcers of the Preternatural Council, there are few places to hide. When her cash starts dwindling, Revelry picks up work in the small town of Ridgewood, USA. Trouble is, Ridgewood is home to a large shifter community and staying hidden isn't easy. Particularly with the sexy Connor Blythe home on leave and watching Revelry's every move. 

Connor is everything Revelry is trying to avoid. A fellow wolf, he is also an Enforcer, and very suspicious of the new girl in town. But when danger and violence rock Ridgewood to its core, Revelry must decide if she can trust him, even if it means losing her freedom – or possibly even her life.






Lisa Swallow's debut release, Soul Ties, will be out with Limitless Publishing next week!



Ava didn’t expect to find terrible secrets about the fate of the souls she takes.

Or fall in love…

Soul-hunter Ava has retrieved hundreds of souls from demons, but has never been assigned the dangerous mission for a Nephilim soul. She must hunt down Keir since she needs his Nephilim soul to trade for her freedom.

When she arrives on campus and meets Keir, she also meets a strange girl, Dahlia, who has an inexplicable hold on him. Unexpectedly Ava discovers Keir holds secrets that are more valuable than his Nephilim soul – secrets she could trade for the life she wants.



When she uncovers the true fate of the souls she takes back to her superiors, Ava’s world is turned upside down. She finds herself in the middle of a war where the lines between good and evil are blurred and she only has two choices… Betray Keir and live or join his battle and risk going to Hell.



C.T. Green's The SERA Files, Volume 1 will be out September 2013.



The stories are listed below: 

 #1 RECOVERING GABRIEL

Angels are trouble. But a Fairy Godmother is The Law.

Callie Burns works for SERA, the Supernatural Entity Recovery Agency, aka the Scary Fairies. As a Fairy Godmother, it's Callie's job to grant wishes and deport supernatural creatures back to their plane of existence. Now she's got an angel in her sights... Gabriel's a gorgeous, sexy distraction to Callie doing her duty. But she has a reputation to maintain and no smoking hot angel is going to mess that up. Gabriel is determined he's not going anywhere and he'll try everything he can to convince Callie he belongs on Earth. But she's equally determined to get the job done before the angel kills everything in sight - even if that means fulfilling Gabriel's deepest fantasy.

#2 HANDLING MERCURY

Vampires go for the throat. But a Fairy Godmother aims lower...

Elizabeth and Mercury both work for SERA, the Supernatural Entity Recovery Agency. Despite the fact Elizabeth's a Fairy Godmother and Mercury's a vampire, they make a deadly duo when it comes to deporting supernatural beings. But Mercury and Elizabeth's perfect partnership changes the night a wish is granted.

Now Elizabeth can’t think of Mercury without remembering how sexy the vampire is under his cool demeanour and designer clothes. And Mercury can't forget the taste of Elizabeth's blood nor the desire to have her in every other way as well. Can their partnership survive and will they find a way to grant their very own wishes?


#3 FINDING NAVARRE

A lone wolf is about to find out old dogs can learn new tricks.

Navarre is a werewolf and the Director of SERA. It’s his job to oversee the agents who deport supernatural beings from Earth. He loves his work and his vaunted reputation for remaining calm under pressure. But all that is about to change. Tor is also a werewolf and SERA’s newest agent. He’s out to catch not only the bad guy, but his elusive boss as well. It’s love at first sight for Tor, but Navarre doesn’t seem willing to take another chance on a relationship. When a mission goes bad and suddenly it’s Tor’s life on the line, Navarre must overcome his fears if he’s going to experience true love before it’s too late.

#4 TASTING ABSINTHE

Two’s company, will three prove too much of a crowd?

Absinthe is a Fairy Godmother with SERA and Bryce is her irresistible partner. Absinthe is all about getting to know Bryce away from the job, but he comes with one big problem. His best friend Grey is a werewolf and Absinthe does not do wolves. Bryce is in love with Absinthe. Problem is, he’s also in love with Grey. It will take something extraordinary to bring Grey and Absinthe together. Tracking a cold-blooded killer may just be the start of a beautiful romance. Will Bryce’s stubborn wolf and prejudiced fairy overcome their differences enough to not only stay alive, but form a bond strong enough to last a lifetime?

#5 CHASING SIN

A good SERA agent knows there’s only one Sin that matters.

As an agent and ‘evaluator’ for SERA, Jane is sent in to re-educate their only male Fairy Godmother before he does something even the Scary Fairies can’t ignore.

Sin’s sick of being the brunt of jokes and the latest pin-up after a nude picture scandal. He’s also indecently fascinated with his new ‘minder’, Jane. When a wish shows Sin a very different side to Jane, he’s desperate to find out more. On the hunt for a supernatural with a dangerous new toy and evil plans, Jane and Sin find out how well they work as a team. But can he get the prim and proper agent to loosen up enough to love a naughty fairy while she tries her very best to reform Sin?




Maree Anderson's book Liminal is out today!



Now you see me, now you don’t!

My name’s Wren, and I’m a liminal who can phase in and out of the real world.

Sounds like an awesome trick, right? Yeah. Like everything that’s supposed to be cool, it’s complicated. I’ve got two warring factions who’d kill to get a piece of me. Someone’s blocked my energy flows so if I phase I’ll get stuck in a ghostlike plane called Between. And to top it all off, I’m totally crushing on my only ally, mysterious bad boy, Kade. Sad thing is he’s keeping secrets from me, just like everyone else. My life’s spinning out of control. I don’t know who to trust anymore. And what I find lurking Between is the biggest shock of all.


Buy link - iBookstore


~~~
See you next week for some more good news...



Saturday 20 July 2013

Enchanted Orb - Cheryse Durrant on Unleashing the demon within…


Cover art by Ran Valerhon
Art by Ran Valerhon
This week we're lucky to have a visit from paranormal romance author
Cheryse Durrant. With her first book, and the first book in her Heart Hunters trilogy newly launched in e-book form, and soon to appear in paperback, please welcome Cheryse as she tells us how she went about



Unleashing the demon within...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A child’s fingers curled around the outside rim of a partially-open coffin… my courageous Heart Hunters heroine Shahkara evolved from this single, spooky image after it flashed through my mind more than five years ago. Those tiny, lifeless fingers didn’t belong to my Shahkara, but their discovery forced her to unearth and expose a horrifying cover-up.

That moment of inspiration, that Enchanted Orb, led to ideas and questions that had to be answered before my pen could hit the page. My ‘barest of bones’ puzzle included:
  • Why were children going missing – and why was the child corpse found with its chest ripped out?
  • What was the secret that forced Shahkara to fear herself even more than the evil Taloners devastating her homelands?

As I jiggled away at the broken images and half-baked cookies scattered inside my mind, I discovered the answer: My Taloner demons fed off human hearts. That’s why they plagued Shahkara’s homelands, and why an insidious Taloner had infiltrated the castle – to slay humans for his own hungry desires. My Heart Hunters were born.

Cover art by Ran Valerhon
Of course, I still didn’t know how my demons killed their prey, but that secret lay in my subconscious. Why did I name them Taloners? They had to have… talons. These super-strong, super-sharp claws, concealed between their knuckles, enabled them to rip out a heart with a single snatch.

My first Heart Hunters exploration was a short story chronicling Shahkara’s discovery of a demon lurking within her royal castle. The twist: my Shah was hiding her half-Taloner bloodline (and its associated cravings) in order to protect her subjects.

Once I ended my original short, I kept wondering: What happens next? How will Shahkara destroy the blood-thirsty Coven? How will she cope with the spiralling heart hunger that rides her blood? That’s how my novel, The Blood She Betrayed, about to be published by Clan Destine Press, was born.

Again, the answers to my questions hounded me for yet more solutions:
  • What if Shahkara discovered there was an ancient artefact, a death lantern, which could destroy all those heart-devouring Taloners in a single blast?
  • What if that artefact was hidden on earth and she was forced to travel through a portal to find it?
  •  How would a royal princess from medieval Gorias cope with the bizarre, technological minefield of Brisbane, 2013?

I upped the ante by strengthening Shakara’s motivations – she lives with the guilt of ripping out her fiance’s heart the night before they were wed. Now she’s an exiled princess desperate to find the lantern that will, by saving her people, salve her condemned conscience.

Art by Ran Valerhon
All Shahkara needed now was a little more conflict – and some love. An image of geeky billionaire Max McCalden flashed through my head. He’s the first boy-man she connects with when she arrives on Earth (um, she catches him after he falls from a balcony).

Max becomes the one person she can trust, but his friendship and tantalising heartbeats become a temptation she struggles to control. The more she relies on him, the harder it is to deny her heartlust – and one human heart in particular!

Although my novel, The Blood She Betrayed, and my Heart Hunter series, started with one thought-provoking image that flashed through my mind many years ago, it has been the piecing together of image upon image, question upon question, concept upon concept, that has created the rich tapestry of my Heart Hunters world that I now invite you to enter.

Email me at cheryse (at) quietdawn (dot) org and I’ll add you to my mailing list to be part of The Blood She Betrayed promotional giveaways when my paperback is launched next month. Until then, may the Enchanted Orb be with you, filling your life with magic, and ideas, every day.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bio:  Cheryse Durrant grew up on an Australian cattle property where she invented stories about scrub faeries and imaginary superheroes. She wrote her first prose on her aunt's bedroom wall at the age of five but it did not attract literary acclaim. She worked as a journalist for 15 years before trading her soul for fiction. The Blood She Betrayed, is her first Urban Fantasy novel, and is described by Vampire Diaries creator LJ Smith as ingenious and unique. A caffeine and Twitter addict, Cheryse shares her love of writing and all things spec fic at:

@cherysedurrant  (Twitter)
 

Wednesday 17 July 2013

A Bite Of....An Anthology of Battle

This fortnight it is my pleasure to welcome C. M. Simpson with a snippet of her novel An Anthology of Battle.


Can you, in less than five words describe your book?
Poems, short stories, war’s aftermath

What inspired you to write it?
An Anthology of Battle is a collection of short stories and poetry set around the theme of war. Each piece was inspired by a different element or set of elements including:
·                 The challenge to try a different form of writing or poetry (War’s End, A Window on Salukia, A Vignette for Rashkah);
·                 A dream scene that I wanted to explore further in words (Jacob’s Vision);
·                 A televised news report (Keeping the Peace);
·                 A picture (A Vignette for Rashkah);
·                 A television documentary (A Vignette for Rashkah);
·                 The idea of combining elements from a setting—Ancient Egypt—with a genre—science  fiction (Jalaya);
·                 A poetry workshop (Death at War’s End).

C. M. Simpson had difficulty choosing an excerpt.

"Of all these pieces, I have two that haunt me, so I am torn when it comes to an excerpt. Both are science fiction tales and both have elements of romance woven through them, but the one that holds precedence, by a whisker, is Jalaya. This excerpt is taken from the point in the story where the hero and his daughter return to town and re-unite with the heroine, only to be parted by duty once more":

And here it is;

“What did she mean when she said she could not reach me in time?” Michelle asked.

“It was my fault,” Michael answered. “You were sleeping over at Nela’s house. Your mother hadn’t wanted you to go, but I said you’d done nothing wrong and shouldn’t be punished. She couldn’t argue with that, so you went. You weren’t home when the time came to leave. I’m sorry.”

Michelle grimaced.

“I remember. At the time, I thought you were the best of fathers, and she was the worst mother in the world. It’s you I should have been mad at, not her!”

“Don’t be. I’m mad enough at me for the two of us,” Michael said. “Now come, Defender, let’s get the discs up and see if we can bring our people home. We need to clear those raiders off the ridge.”

As he spoke, rifle fire sounded from just beyond the outskirts of the town. They ran for the stairs. To their surprise, Caroline was still in the hotel. She had opened both crates and laid the remaining discs and sandrunners in two orderly rows. Glancing up as they burst through the door, she stood, dusting her hands against the wedding gown’s tattered folds.

“I did not want to leave without saying goodbye,” she said.

Michael just stared at her.

“Why are you wearing white?” was all he could think to say.

“Because I love you and our wedding is long overdue. And tonight is special. I don’t want to wear just anything.”

“But, what if…”

Caroline laid a finger on his lips.

“I know it’s ten years old, and I know it’s no longer white, but it’s the best thing I have, the one thing that reminds me most strongly of you. And enough to remind my father of our pledge, before he kills you, when we get to the other side.”

Michael just stared at her.

“You surely don’t think you’re the only one to feel mad about me staying behind, are you? Father is going to want answers, and our son…” She stopped, tears glistening in her eyes.

Another staccato burst of gunfire came to them.

Caroline laid her hands on Michael’s forearms, and squeezed gently.

“It will take an hour and the raiders are close. I have to go now.”

Michael had no more words. His fear of losing her was a tangible thing, a night-beast waiting to pounce, a raider’s bullet seeking her in the dark, a sand eater’s retaliation. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight.

“I’ll wait for you at the Lower Docks,” she said, and before he could protest, she had slipped out of his embrace and hurried to the hotel entrance. To his surprise, she drew back from the door, just before a blaze of light illuminated the threshold. When it was gone, she slipped out into the night, leaving Michael staring after her in awe.

More gunfire had Michael on the hotel porch before he knew what he was doing. He came to his senses and ducked low into the street, relaxing only when he saw the familiar white blur of Caroline’s figure hurrying towards the river.

“She’s okay,” he said, returning to Michelle.

His daughter just nodded, her face pale, her eyes showing desolation.

“What’s wrong?”

“She didn’t say goodbye,” his daughter whispered. “She just left me again.”

Thank you so much for sharing :)
 
C. M. Simpson has a number of other anthologies available.
 
AnAnthologyofThoseWhoWalkAmongUsCover2CreateSpaceAmazonSmashwords.JPG                                   AnAnthologyofDragonsCover2AmazonSmashwords.JPG                                    AnAnthologyofWorldsCover2SmashwordsAmazon.JPG
If you would like to read more, check out these links;  

 

Tuesday 16 July 2013

Good News Day!

Welcome to this week's good news...




SALES

Nicola E. Sheridan's
The Warlord's Lady has been accepted by Escape. Release date TBA.

Viveka Portman's second book The Wicked Confessions of Lady Cecelia Stanton has also been accepted by Escape. Release date TBA.




BOOK COVERS & RELEASE DATES

Maree Anderson's book Liminal is now available for pre-order from iBookstores world-wide! It's due for release 23rd July, 2013.

Now you see me, now you don’t!
My name’s Wren, and I’m a liminal who can phase in and out of the real world.
Sounds like an awesome trick, right? Yeah. Like everything that’s supposed to be cool, it’s complicated. I’ve got two warring factions who’d kill to get a piece of me. Someone’s blocked my energy flows so if I phase I’ll get stuck in a ghostlike plane called Between. And to top it all off, I’m totally crushing on my only ally, mysterious bad boy, Kade. Sad thing is he’s keeping secrets from me, just like everyone else. My life’s spinning out of control. I don’t know who to trust anymore. And what I find lurking Between is the biggest shock of all.



Imogene Nix features with her short story in an anthology called Edible Delights (Vol.#2), out with Secret Cravings Publishing July 17th, 2013 (tomorrow).

Deanna has one love. The Scheherazade Chocolate Factory. When it’s bought out by an off world consortium, they send someone to inspect their purchase.
JD Ruan is their expert investigator. But JD has a secret. He’s a demon. And not just any kind of demon – a Pleasure Demon.

Secrets, abilities and hidden truths will find their way… especially when chocolate is involved.



REVIEWS


RT Book Reviews gave 4 stars to Colonist's Wife, Kylie Scott's futuristic romance novella out now with Ellora's Cave.
"This novella moves the mail-order bride concept to outer space. The men are still dirty and starved for women, the frontier is still harsh and the women who volunteer are still unsure of their new homes. The sexual tension between the protagonists is out of this world, but the plot arc moves a little too quickly. More of the story between these two would most definitely be welcome." 








The Australian Romance Readers Association had M.J.Scott's Iron Kin as their Featured Book last week.
"What an incredible world MJ Scott has created. I can believe in it, picture it. The politics of it are deep and well implemented. I also felt emotionally attached to these characters and their plight. Their world is so fragile, and trying to live full and meaningful lives under such conditions, surrounded by races that, well, hunger for them, makes for a story full of conflict.
For all those who enjoy paranormal, I would recommend this series highly."
Full review here.



The great reviews keep coming for Kylie Scott and her latest release. Fiction Vixen gave Lick a B+ rating.
"Lick is ... a fun book with great characters, a rocker storyline, good angst and plenty of sexy times.  The rest of the members of the band are just begging for a story so I hope we get them.  I would strongly recommend this book to anyone looking for a something sexy and heart warming."
Full review here.

And this B rating is from Dear Author.
"Lick, the first in the novels pertaining to the band Stage Dive, was an engrossing, sexy, and emotional read. Bring on the rest of the band."
Full review here.




OTHER

Imogene Nix has her first UK outing...an interview with Female First, an online magazine, featuring her novel The Blood Bride.














Inkerman and Blunt are having a book launch for the Australian Love Anthology. And Lilliana Rose will be there reading out her poem, Farmers' Wife Valentine. The book launch will be held at the South Australian Writers' Centre, Rundle Mall Adelaide on 6th September, starting at 6.30pm.



Thursday 11 July 2013

Magic Thursday: Time for a change


This is different from your normal Magic Thursday posts. It's not about a writing topic or even about a book of any one of our members, but it IS about the DarkSide DownUnder.


We started the blog 31st October back in 2010. It has expanded and grown over that time as we've added pages to the blog.

I told you the story behind our logo back in May. To continue on from this, come 1st August, we will have a new website where all our current blog pages such as Upcoming Releases, DarkSider bios, Agents, Book Trailers etc, will move to.

With over 70+ DarkSiders, it was time for a change.


The only thing that is not moving is our blog, which will stay right here - on the same Darksider station.


We hope you'll like the new look - the blog will also change the look but this may take a little while as August is also conference month and I may not get around to it. The blog does have a little hint with the background, but I thought I'd give you a little peak into how the new website will look:





Roll on 1st August. Come by here and tell us what you think of it!



Saturday 6 July 2013

Darklight On... Sandra Harris

Today's Darklight On is Sandra Harris. Welcome, Sandra!



How did you come to write speculative fiction? What attracted you to the genre?

Something about the ‘paranormal’, the different, has always attracted me. One of my fondest memories is sitting with my dad watching the early Doctor Who series. Our favourite was Tom Baker—and of course everybody loved K9. In my teens I loved reading The Black Stallion and Elyne Mitchell’s The Silver Brumby series, then onto the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Later I discovered Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series (that’s a laugh a minute) and I love the quirky nature of Douglas Adams’ works, especially the Dirk Gently books.



Please tell us a little about your road to publication.

I have been very lucky in my road to publication . . . and it started with rejection. The first RWA conference I attended was the 2010 at Coogee. I pitched to an editor and was asked for a full. I sent that in and although two editors looked at the work and said they liked my voice they did not think the work suitable for their publishing house. My lucky break. Since then I’ve had the chance to improve the story, to lift it from what it was to something immeasurably better.





Your debut release is Alien, Mine. Can you tell us a little about it?

Alien, Mine was released on June 19 this year. A science fiction romance, it follows the story of a modern day, independent Earth woman caught in conflict on the far side of the Galaxy. She faces the challenges of staying alive and out of the clutches of some truly nefarious aliens, and conquering cross-cultural/species mysteries to be with the warrior she falls in love with.



Are you a plotter? Pantser? Or somewhere in-between?

I started authorial life as an out-and-out panster. Now I’ve morphed into an in-between girl—I think of myself as a plotster. I tell my characters they have certain goals to attain and then let them have at it. More often than not they take me in a totally different direction to what I imagined. Pesky little beggers. J




Do you have a favourite of your characters?

Absolutely not! All characters are loved equally, but some might be loved more equally than others. J (Sorry, George)




What are you currently working on?

Another sci-fi romance, though not related to Alien, Mine. This one is set on Earth in the near future.




What is your favourite part of the writing process?

I get an absolute kick out of writing something that springs off the page, something that brings out in the reader whatever emotion the hero/ine is experiencing.




What can we expect from Sandra Harris in the future?

More sci-fi romance. The WIP I’m currently working on is the first in a loosely connected series of three books, two set on near-future Earth, one on a planet a few hundred light years away.




Who are your favourite authors?

Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams and Anne McCaffrey.




What are you currently reading?

The Art of Romance Writing by Valerie Parv.




Do you have a favourite spec fiction movie or TV series?

Nope, no favourites, but I’m a big fan of Star Trek, especially the OS. More recently Firefly and Eureka. I like the kick-butt heroines in Aliens and AVP, loved Galaxy Quest. I could go on and on.




Do you have advice for emerging writers?

Keep writing. Learn how your writing process works and accept it. If it’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that each author commits to their craft differently. Don’t be scared to give up, I’ve done it tons of times. I think the longest period was thirty minutes and, of course, I’ve always returned to it. J I’ve tried doing the ‘must do’ word count, doesn’t work for me. If you procrastinate, train yourself not to. And if you’re intent on making writing a career, treat it like one. If you don’t respect your writing, don’t expect your family and friends to.

~~~
Thanks, Sandra, and congratulations on your first book release.


You can find out more about Sandra at:
Website and blog: www.sandraharrisauthor.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Sandra1Harris
Twitter: @SandraHarris_
Buy Link: http://tinyurl.com/ka4jskr
And for a sneak preview of Alien, Mine...

The Bluthen have one consuming passion: themselves. In their expansion across the galaxy, they will go to any lengths to dominate species they encounter.

Torn from modern day Earth and stranded on the far side of the Galaxy, Sandrea Fairbairn must use every particle of courage she possesses to adjust to her new life and live for tomorrow.

Eugen Mhartak, a general in the Tri-Race Alliance Army, refuses to bow to the merciless Bluthen. Haunted by the loss of far too many innocent lives he has vowed to drive the ruthless invaders from Alliance space.

The strength and valour of Eugen Mhartak attracts Sandrea as no man ever has, but she struggles to read the enigmatic general’s heart. Determined to help him triumph over the Bluthen she uncovers a diabolical plot against the Alliance.

Drawn by the courage and exotic beauty of Sandrea, Mhartak battles to overcome the barriers of cross-cultural differences that separate them and claim her ardent interest. He must conquer his deepest fears to be the man she needs. When his principles are betrayed by his own government and he is faced with the impossible prospect of taking Sandrea’s life in order to save his home planet, Mhartak desperately searches for a way to keep safe both his world and the magnificent woman who has stolen his heart.



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