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.

Tuesday 13 August 2019

DarkSider News for August - Part 2!



Welcome!

Winter still lingers down under - perfect weather to curl up with a good story or two...




STOP PRESS...
RWA AWARDS

The Romance Writers of Australia conference was held during the past weekend and the awards night was held on Saturday.

For the prestigious Ruby Award (Romantic Book of the Year) we had three of our DarkSiders as finalists.

For the Speculative Fiction category the finalists were:



with Keri winning the award!




Buy links for Cursed available on Keri's website. 



For the Romantic Suspense category, the finalists were:





In other awards, D.D. Line was awarded the Lynne Wilding Meritorious Service Award, and Dakota Harrison came second in the Emerald Pro.


Congratulations Keri, Leisl, Anna, D.D. and Dakota!
How proud are we here at the DarkSiders!







NEW RELEASES



The Girl Who Became a Goddess by Theresa Fuller was released on 19 May.



A WOMAN MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN THE MAN SHE LOVES AND THE HUMAN RACE. 

The Girl Who Became a Goddess is a tribute to the childhood stories of Theresa Fuller who has experienced multiple cultures and learned to love them all. These are tales passed on from generation to generation, some to delight, some to terrify, all to enlighten. 

A FOOLISH ANIMAL DISCOVERS THAT THE RAINFOREST IS A DANGEROUS PLACE. 

As a girl, a mother, and a teacher, Theresa retells her favorite folktales through the lens of her own life experiences in Singapore, Malaysia and Australia, putting a unique spin on ageless classics. 

A YOUNG BOY IS WILLING TO SACRIFICE EVERYTHING FOR HIS FAMILY. 

The Girl Who Became a Goddess is a love letter to a young girl from the adult she has become. 


Available from:
Amazon US | Amazon Aus | Kobo | B&N |

Booktopia | A&R |




Rogue Retrieval by C.M. Simpson (Book 1.5, Mack 'n' Me Odyssey) was released on 27 February.


I was doing okay, right up until Mack arrived, with Delight and Pritchard in tow. Retrieved for a rescue mission, I was in more trouble than I knew, and, as if that wasn’t enough, Mack had an agenda of his own. Well, of course, he did…


Available from: 




Mercenary Royal: Deadly Sins by Shona Husk  was released on 16 July.


Is it a rescue or a princess-napping?

Nyssa Leofric can't marry the new head of Riel Industries. They trade in illegal weapons and he only wants her for her wealth and family name. When her parents insist, and unable to escape on her own, she arranges arranges her own kidnapping, hiring the mercenaries known as the Dead Suns.

Jessie Tabris believes in two things: getting the money up front and that people lie. He takes the job because Riel owes him credits. But when Nyssa's ransom is paid, he finds himself in a bind. No one should be forced into a life they don’t want. But the Dead Suns are threatening to disavow him and his team if he doesn’t return Nyssa to Riel.

Now they must work together or they could both wind up as part of Riel's next experiment.es.

Mercenary Royal is the first book in a new trilogy, Dead Suns, set in the shared world of Obsidian Rim. You can see all of the authors and stories at the Obsidian Rim website.

Buy links available from Books2Read




Greed by Lana Pecherczyk (Book 2, Deadly Seve) was released on 8 July.



Crime rages in Cardinal City. The fanatical Syndicate’s answer is to be judge, jury and executioner, even if that means destroying half the world to eradicate sin. The only thing standing in their way is a family of fearless vigilantes known as the Deadly Seven.

Griffin Lazarus’s restraint is notorious within his superhero family, the Deadly Seven. His mastery over the sin of Greed is second to none. What they don’t know, is a shameful secret drives his discipline and one slip could mean fatal consequences for anyone close to him. When he’s forced to work with a beautiful, feisty reporter poking around his personal life, his control swiftly unravels. Everything about her throws his beliefs into chaos. She’s arousing, loud and infuriating, and craving her could be his undoing—or his redemption.

Lilo Likeke, an altruistic reporter for the Cardinal Copy, is hunting the story of a lifetime. Who are the Deadly Seven, where did they come from, and why are they here? If she can nail her unicorn story, she’ll finally prove her apple falls far from her corrupt family tree. When her mobster father is kidnapped, and she’s drawn into his web of chaos, she soon learns you can’t outrun your past, but you can choose your family. Trusting the man behind the mask might kill her story, but it also might save her heart.

With the fanatical Syndicate breathing down their necks, none of it could matter if they don’t live to see another day, and Griffin has no intention of losing the woman he covets, even if that means embracing bedlam…

If you like your superhero movies and TV shows, and your paranormal romance band of brothers and fated mate books, then you'll fall head over heels with the tortured heroes and sassy heroines of The Deadly Seven.


Available from: 
Amazon US | Amazon Aus |




Nightworld Academy: Term Two by LJ Swallow  (Book 2, Nightworld Academy) was released on 3 June.



Welcome to the Nightworld Academy, attended by vampires, shifters, and witches. A place filled with harmony and mutual respect between the supernatural races. Sometimes.

I'm the only witch at the academy who can wield a rare magic. But should I trust the man who can teach me to unlock my powers?

The events on Halloween taught me a lesson--I'm not human and the supernatural world lives by different rules. Now I'm back at the academy determined to work hard, develop my magic skills, and save lives.

I met my aunt and she showed me that life as a future-sighted witch has greater challenges than I realised. Especially for me, because we've discovered I've more abilities than anybody expected.

The new guys in my life face problems too. Jamie is using dangerous magic to protect himself. Ash is struggling to control how dangerous he is to others. And Andrei's life is under threat as a result of Halloween. Can Tobias help or will he report us for breaking rules?

The hunters who survived the attack are looking for revenge, and the Dominion are moving closer to the academy. Add in the pressures of working with Katherine and Amelia on the Winter Ball committee, and I'll be lucky to reach the end of term in one piece.

Term Two is the second in this upper YA/NA series of magic academy books. The main characters are eighteen and older, and this is a slow burn RH.

Term One must be read first.

Please Note: As the series is set at a magic school in England, the books are written in British English.

Term One must be read first.


Available from:
Amazon US | Amazon Aus |




Paranormal Academy is a collection that has the story Soulhunter Academy by LJ Swallow and was released on 22 June.



For the evil that reigns, there is only the honest left to fear.

Clarissa was an ordinary nanny until Dr. Jeremy Colvert turned her into a bio-cybernetic freak. Now she’s on the run, and an act of kindness might be her undoing.

When Michael met Clarissa everything in his world changed…again. Since the accident that nearly killed him, he too is a freak—a mixture of cyborg and man. Now they’re hiding from those out to get them, and the aim to shut down Dr. Colvert’s experimentation isn’t exactly going as planned.

Love might have bloomed, but there’ll be no future if they can’t save each other.

Content Warning: this story contains sexual content and violence, but most of all hope.



Available from:
Amazon US | Amazon Aus |



Midnight Academy is a boxset that has the story Blackwood Magic by LJ Swallow and was released on 30 June.



Amelia and Matt discover they share a rare witch spellbond. Will this powerful connection persuade Matt to stop using illegal Blackwood spells, or does the magic already control him?


Available from:
Amazon US | Amazon Aus




Nightworld Academy: Term One by LJ Swallow  (Book 1, Nightworld Academy) is now available in Audio format and was released on 11 July.





Welcome to the Nightworld Academy, attended by vampires, shifters, and witches. A place filled with harmony and mutual respect between the supernatural races. Sometimes. 

I'm told my curse is a gift. A valuable one that could cost me my life.

My visions of the future are weird, but my new school is weirder. All lessons take place in the evening and the majority of students are on an advanced program where they take extra classes late into the night.

I enrolled at the academy because my last school expelled me for punching another student. Nobody believed that I knocked Tyler unconscious to stop somebody else dying. But why would they believe the crazy girl?

I expected to meet other troubled teens here, but the pupils are predictable for an English boarding school. There's Ash, the rugby team captain and the academy’s most popular guy. Then there’s Andrei, the moody guy with a bad attitude who takes pleasure in annoying me. And Jamie who’s studious and friendly but intense.

I thought I had the academy figured out: the mean girl, the quirky friend, the nerd, the emo, and the jock. But on the evening I swear allegiance to my new school house, everything spins out of control and I realize I’m dealing with more.

Much more.

One of us will die, and I know who.

Term One is the first in this new upper YA/NA series of magic academy books. The main characters are eighteen and older and this is a slow burn RH. As the series is set at a school in England, the books are written in British English.

Get this audiobook today to start this gripping new series filled with magic, mystery, and romance from USA Today best-selling author LJ Swallow.

Available from: 




Marked Hearts by LJ Swallow (Book 1, Her Immortal Guardians) was released 28 July.


I’m Rose Walker. I died for ten minutes, and I’m not the girl I was.

I once died for ten minutes, and I survived. My best friend died in the car accident and memories of that night haunt me. After months in recovery, I'm determined to escape from the shadows surrounding my life. I've found a job in the local hospital, a new place to live, and I'm ready to move on with my life.

The new house has a strange atmosphere. My tiny bedroom decorated with nursery rhyme figures is cold, and I'm uneasy about the strange visitors I trip over on the stairs. I've an immediate and intense attraction to my housemate Alek, which also bothers me. He's attractive but arrogant and precisely the type of guy I avoid. So why can't I keep away from him?

Work brings more challenges. I struggle to settle into my new role following my time isolated from the world, and the dizzy spells interfere with my job. A new nurse working in ICU is one of the few who talk to me. I'd love to spend more time with enigmatic and friendly Finn, but the guy has a chilling effect on me I want to avoid.

I’m about to discover that there’s a reason Alek and Finn have entered my life and they have something heart-stopping to tell me. The slow recovery and fogged nightmares aren’t the only changes I need to deal with, and these two men are bad for my health.

Please Note: Marked Hearts was originally published as Touched by the Dark


Available from: 





Non spec-fiction

Take Me Home by Suzanne Gilchrist (Book 1, Bindacreek Creek: A Town Reborn) was released 21 July.


Forgiving the past was too painful until now.

Almost forty, Abby Taylor has built a new life for herself in the small country town of Bindarra Creek. When an old friend convinces her to give two adolescent boys a temporary home, she is torn between a growing love for these orphans and the grief in her past.

After his marriage fell apart, Roman Taylor has focused on his career. An unexpected phone call sends him rushing to Abby’s side where he is drawn into his estranged wife’s new life – a life that could offer a future he thought he’d lost forever.
Will they seize this second chance to have a family of their own? Or will fate once again destroy their dreams?


Welcome to Bindarra Creek – A Town Reborn, a fictional town set on the western slopes of the New England tablelands. Take me Home is the first book in this new group writing venture series. With a community full of quirky characters, the books feature compelling romance, heart-warming family life, drama, and even suspense.




Her Outback Haven by Annie Seaton (Book 3, Second Chance Bay) was released on 26 March.


Dane McDougal purchases land in a remote beach side location of the Gulf to build an upmarket fishing lodge. To his surprise reclusive potter and single mum, Nicole Curtis has a two year lease with the former owner, that Dane wasn't aware of. 

Dane wants her to move out, but Nicole digs her heels in. 

Can Dane convince her otherwise? And more to the point, can he remain immune to the gentle charms of this woman?

Buy links on Annie's website




Undara by Annie Seaton  was released on 22 July.


Within the treacherous caves of Undara, a betrayal will test the bonds of friendship and family. A page-turning new eco-adventure for readers who love Di Morrissey. When entomologist Emlyn Rees arrives at Hidden Valley she wants nothing more than to escape her marriage breakdown by burying herself in the research team's hunt for new species of insects in the depths of the dramatic Undara lava tubes. However, little does she suspect she will be the key to solving a mystery that's more than one hundred years old.

Travis Carlyle is initially resistant to letting some city folks tramp over his cattle station, but soon the researchers' findings and a growing friendship with Emlyn bring opportunities to turn around his struggling farm. With a broken marriage behind him and children to care for, Travis needs to plan for the future and this could be his family's best chance.

But when things start going wrong for the farm and around the dig site, Emlyn and Travis are at a loss to understand why. Are they cursed with bad luck, or is there a more sinister force at play? Are the tall tales of enigmatic stockman Bluey turning true? As the unseen saboteur grows bolder, Emlyn and Travis are caught in a race against time to save the station ... and their lives. 


Buy links on Annie's website.



The Trouble with Paradise by Annie Seaton (Book 1, The Richard Brothers) was released on 20 May.



Professor Melissa McIntyre makes one mistake, but it is a night to remember. The tropical island holiday after her beloved grandfather’s funeral was supposed to be balm for her soul, and not create more worry.

When Dominic Richards moves back to his home town to take up a new job, the last person he expects to discover as his new assistant professor, is the beautiful woman he spent a memorable night with on a tropical island.

Nic doesn't do forever but having Melissa around has him thinking maybe he could.
But Melissa is not one bit interested… or is she?

(Note: this is a revised and expanded edition of Holiday Affair originally published, 2012.) .


Buy links on Annie's website.





PRE-ORDERS

Wrath by Lana Pecherczyk (Book 3, Deadly Seven) is expected for release on 3 September.



Betrayed. Alone. Angry.

After his ex-fiancée savagely slit his throat, the fallen hero Wyatt Lazarus lost his voice, his career and his trust in women. She betrayed him in the vilest of ways, and he failed to see it coming. Now alone and ashamed, the unquenchable influence of his sin fuels his anger. Instead of redeeming sinners—he ends them. Wrath becomes his identity until a brutal mistake throws him into the path of a cheeky yoga instructor in need of a savior.

Misha Minski believes in karma, but after years of suffering blackmail from an old acquaintance, it’s hard to stay strong. Soon her number is up. Rather than spend her last days wallowing in self pity, she’s determined to enjoy one last night of pleasure with her new mysterious protector, but instead, finds something much more—a future.

But when the evil Syndicate join forces with Misha’s psychopathic blackmailer, Wyatt must push through his bitterness and reunite with his heroic family, or the woman who gave him back his voice will be lost to him forever.

Read Excerpt on Lana's blog.


Pre-Order from:



Nightworld Academy: Term Three by LJ Swallow (Book 3, Nightworld Academy) will be released on 15 September.



I’m the only witch at the academy who can wield a rare magic. Should I trust the man who can teach me to unlock my powers?

Term Three is the third book in the Nightworld Academy series. Term One and Term Two must be read first.

Nightworld Academy is an upper YA/NA series of magic academy books set in the UK.


Available from:
Amazon US | Amazon Aus |



Non spec-fiction



Her Outback Paradise by Annie Seaton (Book 4, Second Chance Bay) is expected for release on 26 September.



Matt McDougal looks after the business: takes the bookings, runs the store and looks after the finances… because he gets seasick on the family boats. Nurse Sara Sweeney comes back to her home town because it’s hard to get a doctor in remote areas like Second Chance Bay. Matt and Sara grew up together, and when a new female doctor arrives in town, Sara thinks Matt would be perfect for her broken-hearted friend. But Matt has other ideas...can he convince Sara she is the right woman for him?



Buy links on Annie's website






Congratulations to all our DarkSiders!

Thanks for sharing in our news. Until next time, happy reading!

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