Judith Sterling: #NewRelease - THE SPEAR ALIGHT

 I'm welcoming Judith Sterling today on the occasion of the release of her new book, THE SPEAR ALIGHT, book four in the Guardians of Erin series. Make sure you enter Judith's giveaway of a $20 Amazon gift card. Welcome Judith!

 

The Spear Alight

The Guardians of Erin Book Four

by Judith Sterling

Genre: YA Fantasy, Paranormal 

Ashling Donoghue has almost lost hope of finding her missing parents. As her faith wanes, her love for two men waxes, rending her heart and causing friction in the Breasal household. The time has come to make a choice, to create a future untarnished by doubt. But how can she embrace the light when lured by the soft seduction of shadow? 

At last, her brother Conall channels the Spear of Illumination. He's a natural shapeshifter, and he sees through illusions in both the material world and the Otherworld…not a moment too soon. An ancient evil has surfaced, and it threatens all worlds.

Only the Donoghues can save Ireland. They must face their greatest fears and act as one to fulfill their destinies as guardians of Erin.

All aspiration toward sleep left me. I needed company. Now.

Lorcan.

Bad idea. Far worse than waking up my sister. But he wouldn’t judge. In fact, he’d probably be glad to see me. Me, Ashling Donoghue, pariah and maven of mistakes. I’d made a million of them. What was one more?

I imagined the interior of Lorcan’s tent at Dun Aengus on Inishmore. Then I flexed my will and was there, surrounded by rich colors, sumptuous fabrics, and perforated hanging lanterns. The intricately patterned Persian carpet felt soft and soothing to my bare feet.

Was he in bed? There was one safe way to find out. “Lorcan? Are you here?”

“Ashling?” His silken voice, warm and rousing, flowed from the bedroom and washed over me.

“Yes. It’s me.”

A heartbeat later, he appeared between the drawn, red curtains that separated his bed from the main section of the tent. He wore a black velvet dressing gown and an expression of mingled surprise and pleasure. With relaxed strides, he closed the gap between us. “You’re the last person I expected to see tonight.” His heated gaze roamed over me.

Too late, I realized I was wearing a thin, white night shirt that refused to cover anything below my upper thighs. I grabbed the hem on both sides and pulled downward…in vain. “I never planned to come.”

“Why did you?” His shoulder-length black hair looked as luxurious as his robe. I stifled the urge to touch both.

“I needed a friend.”

“Haven’t we traveled beyond the bounds of friendship?”

My stomach trembled at the memory of our passionate kiss. Stop it! I huffed. “That never should’ve happened.”

“But it did, because it had to.” His ice blue eyes held my gaze. “You belong to me. We belong to each other.”

“Aengus would disagree.”

“If he were here, but he isn’t.” He reached for my left hand and turned it over. Gently, he caressed my palm with the pad of his thumb.

“You have an answer for everything, don’t you?” My palm tingled.

“You are the answer. Nothing and no one else.”

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The Sword Unsheathed

Guardians of Erin, Book Three

Ashling Donoghue is no closer to finding her parents than she was the night they disappeared. But hope returns as her brother Kian channels the Sword of Light, revealing past-life secrets and truths long suppressed.

The more she learns, the greater she fears the darkness that drowns the Netherworld also drives her. Is Aengus her true love, or is it Lorcan? Does her future wait in shadow or the light?

One point is clear: the threads of her past-self are woven inextricably into the tapestry of her soul. An impossible choice looms before her, and all the while, evil is poised to strike.

**Only .99 cents!!**

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The Stone Awakened

Guardians of Erin, Book Two

Since moving to Ireland, Ashling Donoghue has tackled one challenge after another. Now the mystery of her parents' disappearance seems unsolvable. Are they dead or only missing? No one—not even the godlike Breasals—has a clue. Hope and fear war inside her, but she's determined to find answers and stay strong for her siblings. Even as she hones newfound powers, her banshee-in-training sister Deirdre needs her support.

Ashling could use a little help herself. She's struggling to navigate her first romance, and while Aengus Breasal stirs her body, mind, and soul, his nemesis Lorcan does too. Both men harbor secrets about her past life as Caer. One has ties to Aoife, the scheming wind demon whose influence is on the rise.

As the Stone of Destiny awakens, so does the conflict within.

**Only .99 cents!!**

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The Cauldron Stirred

Guardians of Erin, Book One

Ashling Donoghue never dreamed moving to Ireland would rock her perception of reality and plunge her into a mystery that brings legend to life.

At seventeen, she’s never had a boyfriend, but she feels an immediate connection to Aengus Breasal, the son of the wealthy Irishman who’s invited her family to stay at his Killarney estate. For the first time in her life, a guy she likes seems attracted to her.

But Aengus is secretive, with good reason. He and his family are the Tuatha Dé Danann, ageless, mythical guardians adept at shifting between this reality and the magical dimension known as the Otherworld. Evil forces from that world threaten the Breasals, the Donoghues, and all of Ireland. Ashling must open her heart, face her fears, and embrace a destiny greater than she could ever have imagined.

**Only .99 cents!!**

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Judith Sterling is an award-winning author whose love of history and passion for the paranormal infuse everything she writes. Whether penning medieval romance (The Novels of Ravenwood) or young adult paranormal fantasy (the Guardians of Erin series), her favorite themes include true love, destiny, time travel, healing, redemption, and finding the hidden magic which exists all around us. She loves to share that magic with readers and whisk them far away from their troubles, particularly to locations in the British Isles.

Her nonfiction books, written under Judith Marshall, have been translated into multiple languages. She has an MA in linguistics and a BA in history, with a minor in British Studies. Born in that sauna called Florida, she craved cooler climes, and once the travel bug bit, she lived in England, Scotland, Sweden, Wisconsin, Virginia, and on the island of Nantucket. She currently lives in Salem, Massachusetts with her husband and their identical twin sons.

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#NewRelease and #Giveaway from Dariel Raye

 Dariel Raye is my guest today with a look at a brand new release! GATEWAY 1 is book one in the new Gateway trilogy from Dariel. If you love paranormal romance and urban fantasy, you're going to love Gateway 1. Welcome Dariel!

 

Gateway 1

The Gateway Trilogy Book 1

by Dariel Raye

Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy

Every predator has a weakness.

When an ancient being, the last of his kind, meets a fiery woman sought by evil, neither one of them is prepared for the consequences.

Gateway is a shape-shifting demon hunter who finds, protects, and prepares the Chosen - human females with the ability to redeem or destroy demons. For centuries, he has followed the rules…

Establish connection
Complete genetic imprint
No personal attachments…

Until he meets his newest charge – curvy, fiery, headstrong, and angry with the world. Following the rules while fending-off demons is going to take everything he has and then some.

*Please Note - "Gateway" contains explicit love scenes, profanity, and violence. Must be 18+ Part of this story was previously published in the "A Darker Shade of Evil" anthology under the title, "The Devil Upstairs."

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Honestly, I just didn’t care about the symbols anymore.  I even stopped worrying about the fact that no one else no seemed to see them besides me. After a few more minutes in his arms, I wasn’t thinking about much of anything besides Gateway and the way he felt against me. I had come here to lose myself and that’s exactly what I planned to do…all night in fact, if the opportunity presented itself.

I slid my arms over his shoulders and clasped my fingers behind his neck. His hands were heavenly, applying just the right amount of pressure in just the right places as he moved me effortlessly and skillfully on the dance floor. Our bodies melding together, those dark eyes boring into me until my gaze shifted from sheer intimidation. This was one hunk of man I was holding, but something was definitely...different about him. 

Taking a deep breath, I swallowed and gazed into those dark eyes. That rugged face could have been plucked right out of my most frequent fantasy. With so many questions, I still wasn’t sure exactly what to ask next, but I decided to move forward with the obvious, “You say you own the place, but I haven’t seen you here before.” I watched him intently again, hoping for more information this time. 

Gateway just smiled, a maddening curve of his perfectly shaped, delectably full lips. 

Well, it wasn’t really a question, I told myself, excusing his lack of response. 

“I haven’t owned the club for long, but I have seen you before. What brings you here tonight?” 

Yeah, now that was a real question, only it was coming from him.

“Let’s just say I needed an escape, Mr. Gateway.”

“Just Gateway.”

“Katrina. My friends call me Kat.” It had finally dawned on me to introduce myself.

“I know. Nice to meet you, Kat. I’m sure we’ll be fast friends very soon.”

I stopped moving and everyone else seemed to disappear, leaving the two of us in a premature yet intimate embrace. “How do you know my name already?” I didn’t bother to balk at his arrogance since he would have had to be blind to miss the fact that I was almost drooling over him. In fact, I was seriously tempted to do something else I had never done before. 

His smile evaporated, eyes smoldering.

 I could have sworn I saw fire in those depths.

He gave me the strangest answer, “I have my ways, but I only use them when I’m in need.” 

Before I could start trying to wrap my mind around that, Gateway tilted his head to the side, tiny lines between his brows as he leaned forward and kissed the top of my ear. 

A thrill went through me and I nearly lost it on the dance floor. My ears had always been extremely sensitive— erogenous zones for sure. I shivered, his gesture zinging straight to my core like firecrackers bursting into the black, wide-open sky. 

The resident butterflies were set in motion, all aflutter and I didn’t even have the presence of mind to wonder how the hell he knew about my ears. Same way he knew about my name, maybe?

As if the tender, unexpected kiss wasn’t enough, he whispered to me, “Can you honestly be so unaware of your power?”

 I was so busy swooning over his warm breath tickling the fine, microscopic hair follicles in my “fuck me now” earlobes that I nearly missed what he said...nearly. 

 “Power?” What power? I couldn’t even keep a job.

Five Questions for Dariel Raye

1. If you were not an author, what kind of work would you do and why?

I would sing opera or compose soundtracks for movies. My bachelor’s degree is in piano and vocal performance, and I considered relocating to pursue a career in music.

2. What are your favorite books?

“The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexander Dumas, “Parable of the Sower” by Octavia Butler, “My Soul to Keep” by Tananarive Due, and Jacqueline Carey’s “Kushiel Series.” The list goes on.

3. What are some of your favorite television/streaming series?

“Grimm,” “Orphan Black,” “The Blacklist,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Wheel of Time,” “Snowpiercer,” “The Walking Dead,” “Britannia,” “Travelers,” “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “The Passage,” “Second Chance,” and a few more with names I can’t remember right now.

4. Who are some of your favorite characters from books, television, and movies? What do they have in common?

Charles Morse in “The Edge,” Will Graham in “Hannibal,” Nick Burkhardt in “Grimm,” Dexter Morgan in “Dexter,” Reddington in “Blacklist,” Four in “Divergent,” in no particular order. The main characteristic they share is intelligence. They also have fighting spirit and they are all multi-faceted.

5. What advice would you give aspiring authors?

Read voraciously in multiple genres. Notice what you like and dislike about characters and plots, then start writing one scene at a time. I also suggest completing at least 2 books before releasing anything, and giving away excerpts to help develop an audience as you build your social platform.

Dariel Raye is an animal lover, animal rights activist, musician, and USA Today bestselling, award-winning author of powerful paranormal romance and dark urban fantasy with IR/MC (Interracial/Multi-cultural) alpha male heroes to die for, and strong heroines with hearts worth winning. She fell in love with books and started reciting stories at the age of 3. A counseling psychologist, classically trained vocalist, and pianist, she plays over 11 musical instruments, and naturally incorporates behavioral psychology into her characters. Her stories tell of shifters, vamps, angels, demons, and fey (the Vodouin variety). She is also a mom, art tinkerer, and Netflix and Amazon Prime paranormal TV series binger.

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Blog Tour: A Shiver of Shadows by Hunter J. Skye

 I'm thrilled to be today's stop on Hunter J. Skye's blog tour. I'm also excited to read more about the characters in the series. So many hot men, so little time! Make sure to enter Hunter's giveaway at the end of the post. Best of luck with the series, Hunter!

 

A Shiver of Shadows

The Hell Gate Series Book 2

by Hunter J. Skye

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance 

You'd think stopping Armageddon would buy a girl a bit of R&R with her freshly resurrected boyfriend. But things go south again when celebrity soul wrangler, Melisande Blythe, is abducted and dragged to Europe.
There's more to the darkness hiding in the reclusive, mountaintop country of Andorra than just garden variety evil. There's something dangerously wrong with her beautiful immortal hosts too.
Gifted with flesh again by the Grace of God, three-hundred-year-old former ghost, Colonel William Grayford, will move heaven and earth to find his beloved. But Europe's most wicked monsters stand in his way. Something more painful than death awaits Mel, if Grayford can't find her in time.
The world's been living on fifteen thousand years of borrowed time and it's just run out.

“We won’t make it in time, so I need you to do exactly as I say,” she clutched me by my arms then shoved me into a small convenience store that blazed white with artificial lighting. She dragged me down a narrow aisle, passed products with unfamiliar labels, towards a dead-faced man in a turban. His mottled eyes followed us as the woman pushed passed his small counter.

“Santuario,” she whispered to the man and he nodded stoically. Then she turned to me.

“Don’t stop. Don’t look around. Just keep moving.”

“What?” I asked as her hand closed over mine once more.

We hurtled down a dark slender hall to an ancient rat chewed wooden door with symbols painted on it in a dark, drooling liquid. Something about that viscous fluid made my skin crawl. The dingy walls pressed close and suddenly the hallway felt as though it was swallowing me whole.

“Wait.” My voice wavered. “Just wait a second.” Something big hovered on the other side of that door. Something I wasn’t ready for. It peeled away my thoughts. It knew I was coming.

“This is a mistake.” Not a bad tattoo kind of mistake. This was the kind of mistake that would burn through my being. It would hollow me out. I’d already rebuilt myself once. I couldn’t go through that kind of stripping again. “Whatever’s in there…it isn’t for me to see.”

“Then close your eyes.” She yanked the door open and pulled me through.

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A Glimmer of Ghosts

The Hell Gate Series Book 1

One night of filming in the wrong cemetery changes everything for a celebrity ghost-hunter with a half dead brain. When Melisande Blythe discovers that a secret society of wraiths wants her killed or worse, Mel will have to do the one thing she promised she would never do… trust a ghost.

But does the corporeal spirit of her dreams really want her heart or does he want her newfound ability to enslave souls? With Hell on the horizon, Mel is running out of time. She has to stop the fiery invasion or face the darkness warring in her soul.

**Only .99 cents Oct 15-29!!**

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Easy Peasy Ectoplasm Squeezy

They say write what you know and as a paranormal investigator, I know ghosts. I also know what it’s like to suffer from a massive sleep disorder, so writing about a sexy four-man paranormal investigation team led by a hot mess, narcoleptic, female ghost hunter was easy peasy ectoplasm squeezy. Allow me to introduce the team:

Melisande Blythe – Art gallery co-op manager by day, celebrity Youtube ghost hunter by night. Hates to cook. Loves her wayfaring cat. Is desperately lonely and wants a boyfriend but is convinced she’s too broken to be loved. Has developed a way to hunt ghosts while in the hypnagogic state of stage one sleep. Tries to own her weirdness while hiding the truth she knows in the deepest part of her soul – her power is evil, which means she might be too.

Josh Grimes – The brains behind Ghost Towne Investigations. Cargo-yard worker by day, by night, he keeps the paranormal investigations on track by ensuring that everything is done by the book except for Mel’s contribution. He is almost sure her ability is legitimate, but he secretly worries that she might be crazy. If she is, he doesn’t care because for him it was love at first site. Now, if he could just find the courage to tell her.

Seth Carrigan – tech god and lady magnet. Being slightly height-challenged hasn’t left any blank spaces on his dance card. His natural charisma, high energy, and long strawberry blonde hair keep them coming back…and forward, and up, and down. His adventurous personality and mind for invention sets their team at the forefront of the paranormal investigation world. He’s one step away from catching a full body apparition…and she might just catch him back.

Gabe Montrose – the strong man with bulging muscles and other equally *cough* bulky parts. A quiet, intellectual, Gabe doesn’t boast about his vast knowledge. Most see him as the golden-eyed, mahogany-skinned model ready to walk onto a gladiator-themed photoshoot at any moment. Or a vacant-minded fitness freak with a well-used gym membership. He feels no need to prove himself. He’s been Seth’s best friend since elementary school and follows him anywhere. He’s not so secretly terrified of ghosts, but where Seth goes Gabe follows. Bros before—well—everything.

Matt Grimes – Josh’s older brother by a year and a half and second in command. With the same wavy, dark blond hair and Viking features. They are practically identical in every way. Funny how Matt feels second to Josh most of the time. They live together, work together, and investigate together. There’s never any time for Matt to just be alone and contemplate what he wants out of life. A confrontation is brewing between the brothers and it won’t take much to light that powder keg.

Toss in a handful of demented ghosts, a pinch of frisky fae, a skosh of exhibitionist vampires, a smattering of curse-dripping, mummified thieves, and one super pissed off ghoul and it’s a proper love story. A Shiver of Shadows is the sizzling second book in The Hell Gate Series and semi stand-alone. Don’t miss a minute of Mel’s rocky, but rewarding road to Colonel William Grayford, the three-hundred-year-old corporeal spirit of her dreams in book one, A Glimmer of Ghosts.

Paranormal romance and urban fantasy author, Hunter J. Skye, was born with a rare nightmare disorder, and raised in a haunted Victorian home. Those two factors predestined her to write ghost stories. A Glimmer of Ghosts, the dark and steamy start to The Hell Gate Series won 5 RWA awards. Book 2, A Shiver of Shadows, released in May, 2021. Look for book 3: A Rapture of Wraiths, Spring 2022.

One thing about the story:

Many of the spirits appearing in A Glimmer of Ghosts are based on actual ghost stories from the Olde Towne district of Portsmouth, Virginia. Once a year, these stories are told on the city’s annual Halloween Ghost Walk. These apparitions are well known to the residents of Olde Towne, Portsmouth and the city considers them ambassadors of a sort. One such ghost, Colonel William Crawford, founded the town three hundred years ago and is the inspiration for Grayford- Melisande’s haunting lover.

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Trevann Rogers loves her Secondary Characters

I'd like to welcome Trevann Rogers to Journeys with Jana today. I love great secondary characters and Trevann has a very interesting S.C. in Consuela. Who doesn't love a drag queen/nanny/Norwegian forest dweller? Please welcome Trevann Rogers.

I often fall in love with so-called secondary characters. Not only do they add depth to the story, but also they offer a window into some element of the protagonist or his situation that the reader wouldn’t otherwise have access to. And sometimes, they steal the show. In my book, HOUSE OF THE RISING SON, one such character is Consuela who, by the way, would take great exception to being referred to as  “secondary”.

Consuela is Huldra, a Norwegian or Scandinavian forest dweller.  She presents as a beautiful woman, but if you see her naked from behind you learn she has a hollow back and a tail. Her people are very seductive, and the females use their wiles to seduce men into marrying them and giving them children. Or they may kidnap human children. Some sources reveal that Hulderfolk have a particular affinity for music.

Her rich heritage makes Consuela perfect for Cheyenne, the hero of the story.  He’s an incubus rocker who has two children. She helps him out by babysitting for him while he works. She’s at once their Mary Poppins and their guardian/protector. She’s Cheyenne’s truth-teller and his only true friend.

But that’s not all she is. Consuela is biologically Huldu—a male. She’s a drag queen (self-identified), with a sassy mouth and a fierce right hook.  She’ll kick your ass if you hurt Cheyenne’s kids. She steals every scene she’s in.

Readers seem to be drawn to Consuela. Perhaps some because she’s hilarious, (“I know a delivery boy who’ll come in 30 minutes or less.”), or because she loves the kids so deeply. I cherish Consuela for both of those reasons, and because of her devotion to Cheyenne in spite of Cheyenne’s secretive, mistrusting nature. She recognizes that he needs her and that they share two common bonds: Their love for his children, and the wish to be more than they are.

House of the Rising Son
Living After Midnight, Book 1
Author: Trevann Rogers
Genre: Urban Fantasy Romance

Cheyenne is a half-human incubus whose star is on the rise in the Unakite City rock scene. His father, the leader of the supernatural races, would prefer he keep a “low profile”, but screw that. Cheyenne has as much music in his veins as royal incubi blood.

Alexander's future is all set—finish law school, join the family firm, and marry someone who'd be good for business. Not that he has a say in any of it. He's barely met the woman his father expects him to marry.

As Cheyenne's musical career takes off, his carefully constructed life begins to unravel, exacerbated by an ex-lover who can't let go, a crotchety barkeeper with a dirty mind and a pure heart, a drag queen who moonlights as a nanny, and Alexander—who's not sure if he's falling for the incubus or the rocker.

Cheyenne denies who he is, while Alexander hides what he wants. Together, they learn that getting what they truly want means being who they truly are.

Warning: Contains hot were-tiger sex, a Thanksgiving celebration that makes the Inquisition look like a tea party, and an incubus who'll rock your world.
~~
Excerpt:

While waiting for their drinks, Alexander studied the deep grooves carved into the table, trying to ignore the friction of Cheyenne’s thigh rubbing against his as the musician tapped a heel to the thump of the DJ’s music. Once the drinks arrived, Alexander downed half the bottle before he realized Cheyenne’s large green eyes were staring at him.

“So where’s your girl, Prudhomme? I mean, Prune Danish. No, wait...”

“Prudish. Shit, Prudence,” Alexander sputtered.

Cheyenne’s eyes sparkled. “No, you got it right the first time. Where is she?”

He shrugged. “Home, I guess.”

Cheyenne cocked his head. “Oh, really?” He put his hand on Alexander’s leg. “What’s up? You can tell me.”

“It’s not working out.” Alexander dragged his teeth over his lower lip. “It’s my fault.” He couldn’t keep his attraction to Cheyenne out of his voice. “I don’t know what’s happening to me.”

Cheyenne put his thumb to his lip and paused. “It’s like the drink.”

Alexander tilted his head, not sure he heard correctly. “The drink?”

“Yeah, that nasty ass bourbon. I bet your father drinks it. Your uncles. All your friends. Everybody, right?”

He didn’t answer, but waited for Cheyenne to continue.

“It was just expected that you’d drink it too. So you did.” His hand moved up Alexander’s thigh. “But now, maybe it’s okay to drink what you like. A different brand, a better vintage. Because you want it. Because it tastes better.” Cheyenne licked his lips. “Because it feels right.”

Alexander cleared his throat and brushed his lap, pushing Cheyenne’s hand away. “I can’t.”

“If you change your mind, let me know.”

“You don’t understand. It’s not that easy. My whole life will change.”

“It already has.”
~~
You can find HOUSE OF THE RISING SON AT:
Samhain Publishing, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.

About Trevann
Trevann Rogers writes urban fantasy and LGBT paranormal romances. Her stories incorporate an unquenchable addiction to music and her love for vampires, Weres, incubi and rock stars. Like these elusive creatures, Trevann learned long ago that sometimes being yourself means Living After Midnight.

Find Trevann at:
www.trevannrogers.com
www.facebook.com/trevannr
www.twitter.com/trevannrogers