This Week At The Tiki Hut - Tim Smith

This week on our Tiki Hut Blog, we welcome author Tim Smith as he celebrates the release of NEVER LOOK BACK, his second Nick Seven Thriller published with eXtasy Books.

Tim Smith is an award-winning author of numerous books, ranging from thrillers to contemporary erotic romance. He is also a freelance photographer and when he isn’t pursuing these two passions, he works in the human services field as a case manager for adults with disabilities.

WEBSITE

I’m pleased to be back at the Tiki Hut this week to celebrate the release of my new romantic spy thriller from eXtasy Books, Never Look Back. This is the second in the Nick Seven series I began last year with Memories Die Last but like all my series titles, it stands alone.  

“Nick Seven and Felicia Hagens left the CIA to carve out an idyllic anonymous life in The Florida Keys. The last thing they wanted was to be used by their former employer as pawns in America’s war on terror. Nick and Felicia navigate a complex maze of intrigue and double-crosses while dealing with a rogue agent from their past who has a score to settle. When Felicia becomes part of the scheme the stakes get higher and more personal. Can Nick keep her out of harm’s way or will he finally be outwitted? Will Felicia stay with him or return to Barbados?” 

People have asked me about these characters and why I chose the setting I did. When I conceived the series I needed a place for these former spies to hang out, somewhere colorful where anything could happen but nothing that had been overused. I had recently visited The Florida Keys and asked myself a question – “If I were a former CIA spook who wanted to hide in plain sight, where would I go? Key Largo.” For plot purposes its ideal – Miami is to the north, and Key West is a couple of hours south.  A lot of action can take place on that hundred-mile stretch of islands. 

Nick isn’t your typical spy guy action hero like you see on TV or in the movies. He isn’t married to his job like Gibbs on NCIS and he doesn’t ache to get back into the espionage game like Michael Weston on Burn Notice. Nor does he feel an unflagging loyalty to Queen and country like James Bond. Nick had enough and wants to stay the hell out of the game. Unfortunately his former employers have different ideas. 

Every good adventure has a sexy tough leading lady for the hero to bounce ideas and one-liners off of and Nick has Felicia, the Barbadian beauty he was once partnered with. He teasingly calls her “the toughest broad this side of the West Indies” but it’s no joke. She can kick ass with the best of them and the heat they generate between the sheets could melt the polar ice cap.   

If you’re in the mood for an adventure with a topical theme, colorful setting and two intriguing characters, then check out Never Look Back. If you get a sudden thirst for a Pina Colada or a desire to book your next vacation in The Keys, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

NEVER LOOK BACK by Tim Smith

A former CIA spook and his lover are pulled into a deadly masquerade by a rogue agent from their past. Who will win?

Nick Seven and Felicia Hagens left the CIA to carve out an idyllic anonymous life in The Florida Keys. The last thing they wanted was to be used by their former employer as pawns in America’s war on terror.

Nick and Felicia navigate a complex maze of intrigue and double-crosses while dealing with a rogue agent from their past who has a score to settle. When Felicia becomes part of the scheme the stakes get higher and more personal.

Can Nick keep her out of harm’s way or will he finally be outwitted? Will Felicia stay with him or return to Barbados?

BUY THE eBOOK   ***   BUY IN KINDLE   ***   READ THE EXCERPT

WIN - Leave Tim a question this week at the Tiki Hut and your name goes in the hat for an ebook copy of his sexy romantic comedy, THE SWEET DISTRACTION.  Please leave your email address so he can contact you if you are this week's winner - Good Luck!

This Week At The Tiki Hut - Tim Smith

This week on our Tiki Hut Blog, we welcome author Tim Smith as he celebrates the release of LIDO KEY, his second Vic Fallon Mystery published with eXtasy Books.

Tim Smith is an award-winning author of numerous books, ranging from thrillers to contemporary erotic romance. He is also a freelance photographer and when he isn’t pursuing these two passions, he works in the human services field as a case manager for adults with disabilities.

WEBSITE

I’m pleased to announce the release of my new romantic mystery, Lido Key, from eXtasy Books. This is the second in the Vic Fallon series I started a year ago with The Bundle, but it isn’t a sequel or follow-up. This is a stand alone entry in the series, and it evokes the pulp fiction style of Chandler, Spillane and Westlake. All of the elements are here – tough romantic hero, sexy heroine who’s hard as brass on the outside but soft in the middle, vivid atmosphere, a supporting cast of shady characters and liberal doses of hot sex.

Vic Fallon had worked on some strange cases since he left the police force to become a Private Investigator, but when a former lover asks him to look into a bizarre blackmail demand, it’s one for his memoirs. Vic hadn’t spoken to Ariel Weston since his last trip to Siesta Key, Florida three years earlier. The end of their affair wasn’t amicable, and Vic swore that the next time he saw Ariel he’d drown her with the nearest Pina Colada. When Ariel gets caught up in a potentially embarrassing sex scandal, she appeals to him for help. Vic reluctantly agrees but finds himself in a real quandary when he realizes they still have feelings for each other.

The case pulls Vic out of his northern Ohio comfort zone to the Sunshine State, where he crosses paths with a corrupt local cop, a famous writer with a taste for booze and women, and a sleazy strip club owner who knows more than he’s letting on. Throw in one very cute Latina who develops a crush on him, and the puzzle gets more complex. Can Vic solve Ariel’s problem before the blackmailer ruins her life? Will Ariel succeed in convincing Vic to give their failed relationship another chance?

To prepare for this I watched a lot of film noir crime capers from the forties and fifties. Quirky characters, moody atmosphere and witty dialogue laden with double entendres are part of the charm and I wanted to recreate that in a modern setting. Be warned, though that this book contains explicit sex.

If you’re in the mood for a blast from the past with a contemporary twist, pour yourself a glass of Scotch, prop your feet on the desk, tip back your fedora and enjoy Lido Key. It’s the stuff dreams are made of.

“Lido Key” is available at www.extasybooks.com. More information about Tim Smith’s other books can be found at his website, www.timsmithauthor.com.

LIDO KEY by Tim Smith

A Vic Fallon Mystery

She’s a young trophy widow involved in a bizarre sex scandal. He’s her former lover, a busted cop turned Private Investigator. Consider the possibilities.

Vic Fallon has worked on some strange cases since he left the Police force to become a Private Investigator, but when a former lover asks him to look into a bizarre blackmail demand, it’s one for his memoirs. Vic hasn’t seen Ariel Weston since his last trip to Siesta Key, Florida, three years earlier. The end of their affair wasn’t amicable, and Vic swore that the next time he saw Ariel he’d drown her with the nearest Piña Colada. When Ariel gets caught up in a potentially embarrassing sex scandal, she appeals to him for help. Vic reluctantly agrees but finds himself in a real quandary when he realizes they still have feelings for each other.

The case pulls Vic out of his northern Ohio comfort zone to the Sunshine State, where he crosses paths with a corrupt local cop, a famous writer with a taste for booze and women, and a sleazy strip club owner who knows more than he’s letting on. Throw in one very cute Latina who develops a crush on him and the puzzle becomes more complex.

Can Vic solve Ariel’s problem before the blackmailer ruins her life? Will Ariel convince Vic to give their failed relationship another chance?

BUY THE eBOOK ***  READ THE EXCERPT

WIN - Leave Tim a question or comment this week at the Tiki Hut and your name goes in the hat for a copy of his erotic romance ANYWHERE THE HEART GOES.  Please leave your email address so we can contact you if you are this week's winner.

Rose Anderson's Tiki Hut Winner

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to visit with Rose Anderson and talk about her new book HERMES ONLINE.  Congrats to booklover0226!  Your name was drawn as our winner!  Look for an email from Rose with a copy of her book attached - enjoy!

This Week At The Tiki Hut - Rose Anderson

Rose Anderson - Love waits in unexpected places

Have you ever fallen so deeply in love with the characters in a romance novel that thoughts of them linger long after the last page is turned? Have you ever been so completely immersed in a love scene that you'd swear you've just been kissed or more?

Meet Rose Anderson's strong, confident heroines and be seduced by compelling heroes you'll wish were there beside you. Come see how their lives intertwine and through their stories discover love profound. From her current novels HERMES ONLINE and DREAMSCAPE, to the passionate stories that follow, this new author will sweep you away on a sensual tide of memorable story-telling.

WEBSITE *** TWITTER *** GOOGLE+

I thought I’d talk about my first novel as March 16th marks my one year anniversary as a published author. (What a trip!) Hermes online from the get-go was designed to open doors. Many years ago in the days before e-publishing, there was a point where I thought I’d never manage to get published. Though I’d sent out dozens of manuscripts, most queries went dead. Actually, I’d received few rejection letters by comparison…mostly I just heard crickets chirping! And so I gave up until one week in 2010 where all roads led me to try again, and I’m glad I did. :)

A few weeks ago Hermes Online was given the CataNetwork Reviewer’s Choice Award for 2011. I was told the reviewers felt it one of the best they’d read and reviewed that year. I’ve been through a wide range of emotion with this book, and that was the topper! Without further ado, I’d like to introduce Hermes Online followed by one of my favorite excerpts. I hope you all enjoy:

Imagine if you will a story begun in the halls of Mount Olympus long before this modern tale was conceived. It was a time when the god Hermes flew on his winged sandals and carried messages from the gods to the mortals below. And between that time and this, couriers became postmen and handwritten letters became bytes. It is said the gods still speak to those who listen…

Setting the stage for Hermes Online ~

Have you ever known someone who thoroughly compliments you? You share likes and dislikes, views and outlooks, and a soul connection unlike anything you've ever experienced before. It takes your breath, quickens your pulse and consumes your every thought. When you make love for the first time, it's as if every cell in your body confirms this is your twin flame. Now imagine the timing is horribly off. In my first novel, Hermes Online, Vivienne joyfully discovers such a love amid the ancient ruins of Greece - a love so complete and soul satisfying but one that just isn't meant to be.

As surely as seasons change, life moves on. Grieving the love she found and lost beside the impossible blue waters of the Mediterranean, Vivienne eventually takes another chance at happiness but unfortunately her next relationship turns out to be one of betrayal. Her faithless boyfriend intentionally administers a low blow to deflect the attention off of him and on to her - if she weren't so dull in bed he wouldn't have had to look elsewhere. Not being one to deliberately hurt someone herself, his unaccountable words become a yoke of self-doubt that spills over into every aspect of Vivienne's life. Hungering for a good word, on a whim she enters a short story written during happier times, to an adult literature site and makes a connection with a compelling man known only as S. The two soon embark upon the world of anonymous Internet communication where their suggestive emails lead her to try erotic chat, where cybersex leads to Skype, and C2C sends both into the arms of a love they'd believed lost forever.

Excerpt: The Kiss

I closed the Word document and absently twirled my hair, lost in thought. There was so much of me in there, even the decorations in Jonathan's house said much about me. The fact that Lily looks identical to me was rather Freudian too, come to think. I laughed out loud at the thought. It's funny how our subconscious mind tells us what's what sometimes. The subconscious mind intuits what the conscious mind misses at first glance. Yes, the phone sex story was a whim, and who would have thought six years later, it would help me find my way back to myself? I wished in that moment my pen pal stood right here so I could say thank you. I'd thank him for lighting the match that eventually relit the candle of my self-confidence. I'd kiss him for real.

I pressed my fingers to my lips, imagining this curious and compelling green-eyed, chestnut-haired, large-handed, well-endowed man kissing me. And unbelievably, my panties got soaking wet. I flexed my fingers and crafted a scene from the sizzling phantom fire playing over my lips.

Having experienced amazing kisses in my life added just enough realism to the blend of movie kisses. I told the screen, "So, you want a kiss, eh? Then what will you think of this?"

S,
There is so much more to kissing for the first time than meets the eye. The would-be lovers laugh and smile and delight in each other's company. They talk, getting to know each other, trying to find the choicest morsels of their life and personality to share. They might hold hands for hours as they wander here and there. And when they sit side by side, perhaps on a bench at a museum, they'll look in feigned interest at the passersby, glance again and again at the exhibit, but not really seeing it. First, one will turn inward, the movement slight, barely noticeable. And then with no clear knowledge of doing so, the one will magically mirror the other. Their knees may touch, and one set of clasped hands might rest innocently upon a knee. And then a noise, a temporary distraction, might take their attention for a second, and both heads will turn to the sound, inadvertently closer now than before. When one turns back, their faces will be mere inches apart. Their eyes, green and gray, will hold each other's gazes, darting from one sparkling pupil to the other. They might unfocus to drink in the entire face for a second, perhaps lingering on the person's smile before meeting the gaze once more, a gaze noticeably warmer than a moment ago.

One face may turn a little, and in mirrored image, the other follows, only slightly tipped in the opposite direction. And the eyes ask the silent question as two thoughts become superimposed -- May I kiss you? Will you kiss me? The answer is subtle, missed by nearly everyone passing by, everyone save the smiling elder couple holding gnarled hands and assisted by their canes. Perhaps they, too, once shared a kiss sitting there, or plan to again later. But locked in their own world, they don't notice the elder pair walk by.

They are aware now only of each other, aware of little things, the flush on her cheeks, the gleam in his eye, the color of her moist lips, the imperceptible flare of his nostrils as he subconsciously reminds his body to breathe. They touch now. The kiss is at first soft, the lips asking permission for the firmness they crave. Another kiss grants this and another and another as faces turn to fit around chins and cheeks and noses. And then loose and pliable, those lips part now to make way for tentative tongues. These too begin their searching, gently at first then becoming bolder as they instinctively react to the warmth of each other's mouths and thrust as hands cup cheeks and arms wind around shoulders, drawing each other ever inward into the private space that shuts the waking world out and lets the dream begin.
V

Little did I realize when I began this kissing scene that I would abandon the amalgamated movie kisses. I stopped and read those words, my words, my kiss. That kiss had been real, as had the love behind it. My eyes filled with tears, but I sent it on. Feeling alone, I rose from my chair and walked away.

***

The next morning there were dozens of legitimate emails waiting for me amid the pile of crap I normally got each day. It wasn't like me to leave my email program running all night, so it was sort of a surprise to see so many at once. It was Saturday. I had nowhere to go and had only the usual weekend tasks to see to before Monday came rolling around again. Sometime in the mid-afternoon after my groceries were put away and a week's worth of lunches had been made, I sat down at my computer and took a moment to clear the spam and download another spam chaser with a tighter net for catching those intrusive things. I answered a few emails from friends and saved his for last.

V,
That was extraordinary. I could see your gray eyes, see them dart from one to the other of my own as our faces drew close. That was perfection, dearest V. I could almost feel you upon my lips. And now to kiss you in return, a second kiss…

Feeling breathless, we rose hand in hand from our bench and walked mere blocks away to my apartment. Once inside the door, our eyes locked again, our faces drawing closer, closer. Your lips are parted, your lovely breasts rise and fall, your body waits. My hand rises to brush your autumn-colored hair back from your face. Our kiss from before still lingers, but we need so much more from each other now. And we take it. Just how, I will leave to you.
S

Somehow this stranger, this S... Ssss. I rolled the single syllable over my tongue like the end of a snake's hiss. This sensual conjurer from the shadows was an alliteration. I saw the poetry of him, and every word began with S, a shadowed, sexy, sensual stranger, S.

I had no clear true picture of him, so once more my mind, armed as it was with a small basket of his self-descriptive words, extrapolated. He was a beautiful male of course, with his fern-green eyes, his swarthy skin, and his shining chestnut hair. The image my mind created surprised me, and in self-preservation, I shook my embellishment aside.

He had only said green eyes, dark skin, and chestnut hair. No, my mind replied, see him clearly...shining brown, fern green, swarthy…no, I amended. Not swarthy...more...more...sun-kissed, bronzed. I thought on this a while. Though I initially wished it otherwise, in the end I could find nothing wrong with the enhanced image my mind was compelled to assemble from the recesses of memory. My smile widened as I gave myself permission to live this dream. And with my dream view filling in the blanks of the mysterious S, my fingers found the keys.

S,
You stand with your back to the door, facing me. Your large hand brushes my hair back yet lingers upon my cheek once the deed is done. It slowly moves past my ear to the back of my head and gently and purposefully pulls my face closer. Your eyes lock to my lips and mine to yours, both pairs soft, moist, beckoning. They meet again, less tentative, more sure of the yearning behind them. Soft but a moment before, the fingers on the hand at the back of my head curl into my red-gold hair in a grip that clearly says this kiss will continue. And it does.

And when the lips have had their fill for now, they leave to burn a scorching swath down my neck and back along my jaw, accentuated by the stubble of your beard. We realize clothing is a hindrance. Panting, we pull apart, eyes speaking at once, "Please make love to me. If I don't have you, I'll burn alive." I nod breathlessly. The small acquiescent gesture fires your blood. You grab me hard and pull me roughly against you, your mouth slanting over mine, your tongue conquering any reserve I might have.
V

I pressed my fingertips to my lips. I hadn't been kissed, but my brain had, and the brain told me it was real enough by the tingling I actually felt there.

***

My blog: Calliope's Writing Tablet
My books are just about everywhere: Amazon_RoseAnderson  and
Siren-Bookstrand_RoseAnderson  
My book trailers: MusesWritingTablet
Yes I tweet, let's be friends! @roseanderson_ (notice the _ at the end)
Find me here too: Google+ Circles

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WIN - Leave Rose a question or comment this week here at the Tiki Hut and your name goes in the hat for a FREE PDF copy of her first book - HERMES ONLINE! Please leave your email address, so we can contact you if you are today's winner - Good Luck!

This Week At The Tiki Hut - Ryder Islington

This week at the Tiki Hut, we welcome mystery and suspense author Ryder Islington as she pops in during her blog tour! The full list of Ryder's blog tour stops can be found at LL Publications and Ryder's Blog.

A graduate of the University of California and former officer for a large sheriff’s department, RYDER ISLINGTON is now retired and doing what she loves: reading, writing, and gardening. She lives in Louisiana with her family, including a very large English Chocolate Lab, a very small Chinese pug, and a houseful of demanding cats. She can be contacted at RyderIslington@yahoo.com or visit her blog at http://ryderislington.wordpress.com/.


Writing Mystery and Crime

Mystery and crime are not mutually exclusive, but they are very different beasts. Mystery is all about keeping the truth from the reader until the right time while giving them plenty of truth, along with a few red herrings. I love a good mystery. The best advice I ever got regarding mystery was to make the truth of the matter so plain that the reader would be saying, “Naw, it can’t be that easy.” To do that, you have to make sure there is a logical explanation for why it can’t possibly be that easy. Supplying just enough information, and creating characters the readers trust and believe in, can really divert the truth. As readers, we want the good guys to win, the bad guys to suffer, and the truth to be our own truth.

Writing crime is all about making the reader understand what really happened to the victim, and the truth behind the criminal’s motivations. First, you have to understand the nature of the crime. Kidnapping may be defined differently in one state than in another, so you have to do your homework regarding the definition and elements of the crime you’ll be writing about. If you have characters who work in law enforcement, you have to learn some of the codes they use, which again, vary from state to state.

Then there is the victim. Who is she? Why was she there? Why was she chosen? What was she thinking? What did she go through? How many times does she get close to getting away? Does she even try, or is she too afraid to move?

And finally, the criminal. Is the kidnapper the father of the victim? Or a boyfriend? Or a crazed maniac looking for fast cash? Is he big enough to overpower the victim? Or did he have to compensate with a weapon? Is he a coward at heart? Was he once a good guy that had terrible things happen, things he couldn’t cope with? Is he smart enough to plan the crime, or does he have someone else pulling his strings?

I personally like to write about the psychology of the victim and criminal. I like to get into their heads and make the reader feel some compassion for the bad guy, and some negative feelings about the victim.

And then you have to decide about the gore factor. If you’re writing a cozy, the crime is over with and the scene scrubbed. But I like the gritty stuff, so when a young boy sticks a hunting knife into the gut of a pervert, I want the reader to feel the knife going in, the blood running over his fist. And when the boy smiles and says, “Ooo, warm. Velvety,” I want the reader’s face to scrunch up as if she’d just bitten into a dill pickle.

While revising Ultimate Justice, A Trey Fontaine Mystery, I kept returning to the gory scenes, upping the ante, spilling the guts, and then going to the psychological response to the gore, trying to make it disgusting but at the same time, believable. This is the stuff of real life. This is what officers all over the country face regularly. It’s not all tickets, and hauling drunks in to sleep it off. Every day there are murders, kidnappings, rapes and other violent crimes occurring. I’m hoping that reading my book will give you a glimpse into what can shape people into psychopaths, and how ‘normal’ the bad guy can seem.

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ULTIMATE JUSTICE by Ryder Islington

A Trey Fontaine Mystery

Special Agent Trey Fontaine has his hands full as he tries to juggle three different sets of cases in his hometown. While healing from a bullet wound, and on limited duty, he is charged with helping find out what's happening to young women who are disappearing without a trace. But that's just the beginning. Someone is beating and raping women in town, women who are related to his godfather, Detective Russell Coleman. And then the bodies of men start showing up, eviscerated. Are the crimes related? Or are has the town become a haven for all sorts of criminals?

Wile, Rocky, and Drew, three children from a violent home, take matters into their own hands and soon the small town of Raven Bayou, Louisiana is brimming with dead bodies. But the only victims are those whose background proves them to be deserving of such justice.

Can Special Agent Trey Fontaine stop the violence? Or will he only figure out the truth after someone he loves is dead?

BUY THE BOOK *** BUY THE eBOOK *** BUY IN KINDLE *** BUY IN NOOK *** READ THE EXCERPT

This Week At The Tiki Hut - Sam Cheever

This week's guest at the AuthorIsland Tiki Hut is Sam Cheever and she stops in to talk about what she's looking forward to in 2012.

Sam writes fast paced fantasy and romantic fiction with feisty characters who deal with life's little challenges in unique and often hilarious ways. As a reader Sam is very impatient. She quickly loses interest if a story doesn't have a good pace and snappy dialogue. Sam's inability to focus in a backwash of human angst and subtleties works out well for her readers, since she writes the way she likes to read.

In her real life, Sam lives on a hobby farm in Indiana with 10 dogs, 4 horses, 2 barn cats, 2 daughters, and one husband. Not necessarily in that order.

Find out how you can get free goodies and many even your name in one of her books by joining her Fan Club!

WEBSITE *** BLOG *** MYSPACE *** FACEBOOK *** TWITTER

Best of 2011? Not a chance!

Nothing makes me change stations faster on a radio or TV than those hated words, “And now for a look back over the year…”. I’m one of those people who hates repetition and rehashing things. I thrive on change, and once I’ve set off in a new direction, I rarely look back.

I never reread books, rarely see a movie more than one time, and can’t stand eating the same thing over and over again. Unlike my husband, who could eat the same thing three meals a day for a month before even starting to get tired of it. LOL. My oldest daughter reads her favorite books several times and watches movies and fave TV shows multiple times. And my youngest daughter HATES change. I mean…she gets heart palpitations if something changes.

So am I odd? Well…of course I’m odd. #:0) But, I mean, is my resistance to looking backward at all the key events and accomplishments of the previous year unique? Maybe, I don’t know. I’d love to hear from some of you. Are any of you the same way?

Don’t get me wrong, I love history and I think it’s vitally important. Despite the fact that every generation believes it’s smarter than and different from every generation that came before, the human race has stayed basically the same since its inception. Which means, though the clothes and music might change, we basically live through the same things and are capable of making the mistakes over and over again throughout history. If we don’t know what the earlier versions of us screwed up, we can’t avoid making the same mistakes. So knowing our history is very important. That’s not what I’m talking about. I’m referring to the human animal’s love of rehashing recent history.

My motto is, if I can still remember it clearly, I don’t want to go over it again. Yawn. And trust me, with my memory, the list of things I remember clearly is short. LOL!

So you won’t get a list of key 2011 events from me. But I will give you my list for the year coming up. Looking forward is a much more exciting proposition than rehashing where I’ve already been. Mind, this isn’t a list of resolutions, consider it my personal plan for the year. So what’s on my list for 2012?

World Peace…okay, just kidding…world peace would be GREAT but it’s just a tad unrealistic. Besides, I’m so NOT doing the swimsuit competition. Hehehe

Here’s the real list:

• Launching a totally new and exciting genre/theme under a new alias. Nope, not gonna spill the beans just yet. #:0)

• Writing/publishing 5 to 6 full length books and several shorter works.

• Finally losing those last, pesky pounds. Not a resolution, just a lifestyle change.

• Weaning myself completely off Corporate America so I can focus full time on my writing.

• Becoming more self sufficient, growing some of my own food, learning to can the food I grow, and finding ways to do with less.

• Reaching out to help others who are struggling.

• Taking the time to enjoy my family, my critters, and my life.

• And, kind of tied to the last one, forcing myself to relax about the writing enough to enjoy the successes and not focus on the sour points.

There you have it. I’m looking forward…not back. Isn’t that much more fun?

Have a great 2012, everybody! I know I plan to.

Sam

WIN - p.s. Send me your own “Plan for 2012” at samcheever at samcheever dot com, and I’ll drop your name into my gardening hat for a chance to win the book of your choice from my backlist. I’ll pick the winner on January 9th. Good luck!


My next release is a sexy Cupid story in Musa Publishing’s Love Notes Anthology, January 27th!

Cupid Only Rings Twice – Fantasy, IR/MC, Romance

Rori Foster overhears the Neanderthals at the bank where she works betting on one man’s ability to seduce her with a love note. She schemes to embarrass them at their own game, but she won’t stand a chance against a Love Demon’s spell. Lucky for her she has Cupid Damios Persis on her side. Damios is willing to go undercover, Super Cupid to save her from her office mates’ scheming.

But what happens when he starts to fall for her himself? Will he write her a love note of his own?

Stay tuned!

Tim Smith's Tiki Hut Winner

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to visit with Tim last week as he talked about his new release MEMORIES DIE LAST and congrats to Mary S - your name was drawn as our winner!  Be on the lookout for an email from Tim with your prize!

This Week At The Tiki Hut - Tim Smith

This week on our Tiki Hut Blog, we welcome author Tim Smith as he celebrates the release of MEMORIES DIE LAST, his first Nick Seven Story published with eXtasy Books.


Tim Smith is an award-winning author of numerous books, ranging from thrillers to contemporary erotic romance. He is also a freelance photographer and when he isn’t pursuing these two passions, he works in the human services field as a case manager for adults with disabilities.
WEBSITE

Memories Die Last is actually a re-boot of my first published novel that came out nine years ago in print, but with numerous changes. All I saved was the title, the characters and the basic plot. Everything else was rewritten to build up the romance between the lead characters. I’m pleased to be able to offer it in e-book format for the first time.

I enjoyed the challenge of rewriting and updating this story for the romance market. It isn’t often you get the chance to do a makeover and it was fun. I especially enjoyed developing the relationship between the two lead characters. In the first version there were sparks and sex, but this time I got to do it right and fully develop the attraction between Nick and Felicia. I was also able to fine tune the intrigue and thriller aspects, as well as updating the story to reflect current themes.

The opportunity came about as a result of the stars being correctly aligned. This book and my second one were both up for contract renewal with my former publisher, but I wasn’t keen on the idea of re-signing. By this time I had developed a niche with Extasy Books in the contemporary romance genre, and my e-books were outselling my print books. I made an inquiry with my Editor in Chief, and she was eager to have this series in their catalog.

As they say, it’s all about being in the right place at the right time.

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MEMORIES DIE LAST by Tim Smith

A Nick Seven Book

A former CIA spook, the woman he always wanted but couldn’t have, and a nemesis from their past all come together in an explosive mix of intrigue and espionage.

What happens when your life is turned inside out by something from your past that won’t leave you alone? Former CIA operative Nick Seven finds out when his peaceful life in The Florida Keys is disrupted by the appearance of an old nemesis he thought was buried alongside the painful memory of a personal tragedy.

Nick reluctantly gets back into the spy game to settle an old score and is pleasantly surprised to find himself paired with beautiful Felicia Hagens, a former co-worker from Barbados. Together they uncover a complex maze of intrigue, espionage and high-level government corruption. The assignment gets more complicated when they realize they have unrequited feelings for each other.

Can Nick finally hit the elusive target and reclaim his personal corner of paradise? Will Felicia return to Barbados or stay with the rugged former spy she’s always had a secret thing for?

BUY THE eBOOK ***  READ THE EXCERPT

WIN - Leave Tim a question this week at the Tiki Hut and your name goes in the hat for a ebook copy of his erotic romance, MISTLETOE AND PALM TREES. Please leave your email address so we can contact you if you are today's winner - Good Luck!

This Week's Special Guest Marie Treanor

This week at the AuthorIsland Tiki Hut, Marie Treanor's is stopping by to talk about her release BLOOD ETERNAL, book three in her Awakened By Blood Series and how hard it was to end her trilogy.

Marie was born and bred in Scotland, but for some years moved around the UK working and studying. Now she's back home and happily married with three young children. Having grown bored with city life, her family lives in a picturesque village by the sea where, instead of working for a living, Marie is lucky enough to be able to enjoy herself writing stories of romance and fantasy.

She draws the inspiration for her books mainly from the people around her and from Scotland's rich history and culture - with, of course, large helpings of fun and imagination!

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Awakened by Blood… How can it end?
By Marie Treanor

For some time now, I’ve found these words echoing around in my head. More recently, as the release date of Blood Eternal has come and gone, it’s been in the sense of, “How can I bear to leave this world and these people?” Because obviously, after two years and three novels, the main characters of the Awakened by Blood trilogy are almost like family to me!

But the question was bothering me long before that. Obviously, I want readers to be intrigued enough to wonder how it will all end. However, as I began to think out the details of the final book, I found myself scratching my head and thinking, “How can it end?” As in how can I make the ending work? How can I resolve all these impossible situations? Because I already knew the ending I’d originally planned just wasn’t going to happen. Elizabeth and Saloman wouldn’t allow it.

In case you’ve no idea what I’m rambling about – and who could blame you? – I’d better begin at the beginning, and explain that Awakened by Blood is a trilogy of vampire romances/urban fantasy novels featuring a powerful, sexy, enigmatic hero - the vampire Saloman - and his strange love affair with Elizabeth Silk, the young academic who accidentally awakens him from a death-like sleep that’s held him captive for three hundred years.

Blood on Silk opened the trilogy last September, followed by Blood Sin in April this year; and the finale of the series, Blood Eternal, released on 4th October.

As enemies, allies and lovers, Elizabeth and Saloman have fought their way across Eastern Europe, Scotland, New York, and other exotic locations, trying to resolve their turbulent passions while facing down the threats to the world of both vampires and rogue humans. And now, just as the secret of their relationship is out, the secret of vampire existence is also erupting, and Saloman has to confront his painful past in order to save Elizabeth and ensure his future.

However, I deliberately set Saloman and Elizabeth up to oppose each other. Saloman needs to kill Elizabeth in order to gain the mystical strength of his Awakener, which will help him take his revenge on his betrayers and rule the world. Elizabeth needs to kill Saloman to stop him from ruling the world, and from doing all the dreadful things vampires do in the process.

Elizabeth is a little shy, a little introverted and naive, when she first encounters Saloman, but she has to grow very fast into her role as unofficial hunter, just to stay alive when all the vampires in the world want to kill her. Plus, she has to deal with the mind-boggling notion that Saloman, who makes no secret of his attraction to her, sees nothing wrong in making love to her one night and killing her in the morning. In fact, he believes that in giving her a little happiness first, he’s being kind. Saloman just isn’t human.

In addition, Elizabeth’s a good person, and recognizes her duty. So even when she falls in love with Saloman – after all he is fascinating and incredibly sexy - she still knows she has to kill him. Only, of course, she can’t. And as it turns out Saloman’s obsession with her sees him finding ways around his need for her death.

By the beginning of Blood Eternal, this unlikely couple is in a recognized relationship, however troubled, and things are spiraling out of control. Saloman’s rule is having unforeseen effects on both vampires and humans. The vampire hunters who’d become Elizabeth’s closest friends no longer trust her, now that she’s sleeping with the enemy. And of course, Elizabeth and Saloman haven’t really resolved their differences. Saloman is still hell-bent on ruling the world, although he may have adjusted his tactics, and Elizabeth is equally determined not to let him.

Elizabeth has always known she’d never accept immortality, even from Saloman. But now, troubled by prophecy, destiny, mysterious illness and acute temptation, Elizabeth re-examines her options, with and without Saloman. Events force both of them to choose sides and make difficult decisions.

And yet I couldn’t let either of them just give in! It isn’t in Elizabeth’s nature to roll over and follow Saloman blindly, just because she loves him. And would the mighty Saloman really give up his dream of world domination just to please a human woman?

I discovered I’d written myself into a bit of a corner with these characters. Because no matter how strong their feelings for each other, if one of them doesn’t give way, where the hell is the “happy ever after”? In parting and new loves? In “true death” for both of them? As the forces stack up against them, this becomes a genuine possibility.

So how did I fight my way through this morass of tragic impossibilities and find the ending to Blood Eternal?

I didn’t. Elizabeth and Saloman did it for me J. I let them fight it out on paper, with themselves and each other and their friends and enemies, and Blood Eternal is how it ends. For the time being, at least J

But I would love to know your opinion. Can you understand a strong hero or heroine who “gives in” for the sake of love? (I mean, of course, on more important issues than whose turn it is to wash the dishes!). Is it justified, or would it annoy you? Let me know!

***

WIN - Tell Marie your opinion on her topic this week and your name goes in the hat for an autographed copy of one of the books in her Awakened by Blood Trilogy. Please leave your email address so we can contact you if you are this week's winner - Good Luck!

This Week's Special Guest Jacquelyn Frank

Today on our AuthorIsland Tiki Hut, we welcome Jacquelyn Frank as she celebrates the release of ADAM, the sixth book in her bestselling Nightwalkers Series and tells us a bit about the series and her new book.

A native New Yorker, currently living in North Carolina, Jacquelyn Frank loves animals, specifically cats, to a point of insanity. She loves her boys like she would honest to goodness children.

Jacquelyn Frank is the New York Times bestselling author of Seduce Me in Dreams, the Nightwalkers series (Jacob, Gideon, Elijah, Damien, and Noah), the Shadowdwellers novels (Ecstasy, Rapture, and Pleasure), and the Gatherers novels (Hunting Julian and Stealing Katherine). She lives in North Carolina and has been writing romantic fiction ever since she picked up her first teen romance at age thirteen.

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Hey all! Guess what happens this week? Yeah, okay, so you don’t have to guess. ADAM RELEASES!! WOOT!!!! ADAM!! Book six in the Nightwalkers series, comes out on October 25th! YAY! Okay, so I am a little overexcited. What can I say? These past few months have been incredibly hard on me, so I am taking my excitement where I can get it. And here is definitely where I get it…

Oh don’t tell me you haven’t heard about ADAM! The next installment in the NIGHTWALKERS series? Come on people, get with it! You’ve been dying for this release for almost three years! Look, I’m not teasing this time! I have the cover to prove it. ☺

Ain’t he purty? I love his chesticles. They are my favorite. ☺

But in case you’re a newbie and haven’t read my work here is a little insight into my Nightwalker world…

There have always been people who live on the fringes of society, but what if there were entire species living on the fringe of human existence? We tell the tales of vampires and other things that go bump in the night, but imagine if there were entire cultures living alternate lives and life cycles to day-worshiping humans. This is part of the premise of my Nightwalkers series. Demons, Vampires, Lycanthropes and more, each its own race, its own society, living outside of human discovery. (For the most part. Apparently we’ve crossed paths enough to create our monstrous perceptions of them.) The series starts with the Demon race and slowly blossoms out into others, both known and unknown. They are complex cultures with histories they champion and histories they regret just as we do. When their existence begins to bleed into ours, it makes for some very intriguing discoveries about how very similar we all can be at our core…and how sometimes fate has plans for us we have absolutely no control over…wouldn’t you agree? So with that being said I hope you enjoy this small taste of what’s to come when fate decides she’s in the mood to play ☺

WARNING: YOU MIGHT GET WET!!

He changed form in the blink of an eye, morphing from man to a deluge of water that dashed against her face and body. But unlike normal water he did not cascade off of her and fall to the ground. Instead, he flowed over her supple body, slowly washing over and around her, covering her inch by inch. He felt the smoothness of her skin beneath his touch, the weight of her breasts…tasted the hard points of her nipples.

She gasped in shock when he first hit her, but that shock quickly changed to something deeper and far sultrier. The sound that erupted from her as he flowed over her was nothing short of purest sin. He took satisfaction in it.

And even as he covered the most intimate inches of her skin with his exploration, he knew he was going too far. It had gone too far the moment he had sat in the brush to stare at her as she bathed. But this, what he was doing now, it was a whole other level of perversion, and as glorious as she felt, he knew he was stepping way over the line.

Did you enjoy that? Now rush out and buy the book!

I’d like to take this opportunity to give you all cyber hugs, answer a few questions and say thank you SO much for your devotion to this series. That has allowed it to be translated into over half a dozen foreign languages including German, Thai, Portuguese an now the entire set is available in audio format by Tantor Media! (The fabulous Xe Sands does our gang of men and their ladies proud!) Anyway, I have wondrous things planned for you and this world in the future. Follow my on my website, Facebook, Twitter and blog and I’ll keep you up to date on me, my books, my life, my peeves, my cats, my kid…basically all the floatsam of my life. Oh, and on Facebook we have a neat roleplaying page you ought to join called Jacquelyn Frank’s Nightwalker World official role-play page. You get to watch actors play your favorite NIGHTWALKER characters, get to oogle the Hump Day Hunks on Wednesdays and a variety of other things as well. Oh, and the person who plays Ruth (cough) is sick and twisted and does a FABULOUS job, if I do say so myself. Hehehe. So…on to all the juicy details my avid and diehard readers have been waiting patiently to know…

*Yes, I do have plans for Tristan from the Shadowdwellers to get his HEA eventually. What form and time this takes shape in is a grey area at present, but there is an intention.

*Yes, I do have plans for the next installment in the Nightwalkers universe, and it is going to be spectacular! And as soon as it’s in writing you all will be the first to know because I will be shouting it from the mountaintops ☺

*My original intent when I finished Drink of Me was for it to be a stand-alone title. However, after massive amounts of fan mail begging me to continue, I have decided to give the idea some careful consideration.

If you haven’t heard of me or tried me before, I hope you will. A good place to start is either Book One of the Nightwalkers series, JACOB, or
my stand alone title DRINK OF ME! I hope you pick up ADAM. It definitely stands on its own even if you have not read the first. (But I, personally, am a stickler for reading things in their correct order)

Here is a sample of JACOB on audio, ENJOY!

Listen here: http://www.tantor.com/mp3/B0318_JacobNightwalkers.mp3

Also don’t forget SUPERNATURAL, an anthology that gives my devoted readers a long-awaited insight into what exactly transpires between Kane and Corrine that very first Samhain night. Remember, Corrine was near death that night, and Demon instincts don’t make leeway for fragility in a mate. (Especially since Demon mates are not usually fragile humans!) So what’s a Demon obsessed with mating to do? Check it out and see, In Stores Now!!

Thank you so much for having me, It’s been a blast!

Hugs & Kitties,
Jacki Frank

Jacquelyn lives in the Western North Carolina mountain area around Asheville with her ten male cats (no, that isn’t a typo) and about ten thousand voices in her head. Rather than take heavy meds to chase them away, (the voices, not the cats) she indulges them and brings their stories to life. She’s lived in many places and worked many jobs, which she says makes her ‘colorful, not inconstant.’ She is always rescuing one stray or another, be they animal or human, and thinks the invention of electronic reading devices could only be improved if they could just manage to make them smell like ink and paper. A self-admitted techno-geek, she loves all kinds of gadgetry.

She believes every romance should have a happily ever after.

You can often find her on Facebook. Join her fan page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jacquelyn-Frank/371620872548  or visit her website at http://www.jacquelynfrank.com/ . There you will find a blog, notices of upcoming book releases and personal appearances, an FAQ (frequently asked questions), and ways to follow her on Twitter. Email her personally at jackifrankwrites@gmail.com or snail-mail her at P.O. Box 2164 Skyland, NC 28776.

WIN - Leave Jacquelyn a comment this week at the Tiki Hut and your name goes in the hat for a Jacquelyn Frank Prize Package!  Please leave your email address so we can contact you if you are this week's winner!

This Week's Special Guest Nina Pierce

This week at the AuthorIsland Tiki Hut, we welcome author Nina Pierce to talk about romance novels and her new book DECEIVE HER WITH DESIRE.

Award-winning erotic romance author, Nina Pierce, grew up in a house full of readers. So becoming enamored with books was only natural. She discovered romance stories in her early teens, falling hopelessly in love with knights in shining armor and the damsels who saved them.

Eventually, reading about alpha males and the journey to find their happy-ever-after endings wasn’t enough. She needed to pen her own stories of fated loves and soul mates. Nina’s discovered the passionate side of romance with her sexy stories. For her, it’s all about the sweet scent of seduction mixed with the heartwarming aroma of romance.

Nina resides in the northeast with her high school sweetheart and soul mate of twenty-seven years, their three grown children and several very spoiled cats who consider her “staff”.

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A Romance by Any Other Name
Nina Pierce

Like so many writers, I’ve read lots and lots and lots and lots of books. I read titles in a variety of genres from science fiction to historical, medical thrillers to mysteries, but I always come back to my all time favorite—romance. The wonderful thing about today’s romance is that it comes in all subgenres.

I’ve been finding blogs and twitter posts recently from readers who were incensed that the paranormal or urban fantasy book they were reading was classified as a romance. They were disgusted that the world was too well developed to be a romance, appalled the plot was too deep for romance or that the characters were too multi-dimensional to be romance. And I just want to scream. What the heck are they thinking about romance stories?

I’m a well educated woman. I’m neither lonely nor bored (though I’d happily suffer through a night of boredom *g*). I’m happily married to a wonderful man who fulfills my every need, often and on a regular basis. LOL! The point is, I don’t read romance to fill a missing void, I read romance because I enjoy it. *gasp* Yep, let me repeat that, romance stories offer me every subgenre I enjoy and I seek them out at the bookstore.

Of course this doesn’t surprise readers of romance. I’m not telling you anything you didn’t already know. I guess it’s just some of the general public out there that are very confused. I’ve heard people accuse romance writers of trying to disguise the true genre of their book through clever blurbs that boast rich characters and twisting plotlines. Yeah, whatever. We lovers of romance know that our reading tastes are based on good writing, solid stories and a love of the happy-ever-after, not a desire to fulfill an otherwise solitary existence. (Though a hunky hero or two never ruined my love of the romance genre. *wink*)

*** So tell me, what’s your favorite subgenre of romance? Anyone commenting will be eligible to win an ebook of “Blind Her With Bliss”, the first book in the Tilling Passions series and a set of romance trading cards. ***

Nina’s most recent romance release, “Deceive Her With Desire” is available for Kindle lovers (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0057XV0F4) Nook Lovers (http://tinyurl.com/6a8fqvy) and in all other digital formats at Smashwords (http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/68862)

BLURB:

A woman determined to protect her heart…

Landscaping in Delmont, Maine hasn’t been DEIRDRE TILLING’s only passion. Up until two months ago, it had included a live-in lover. Jilted for the third time in as many years, Deirdre’s decided to give up on love. With her feet firmly planted on the path of one night stands, she finds herself heating up the sheets with a dark haired stranger she met at her new employer’s party. But one night with the man who is both sexy as hell and compassionate, may not be enough.

An agent hell bent on proving himself…

DEA agent, AYDEN SCOTT, has a lot to prove after a disastrous drug bust in Miami three years earlier that left a member of his team dead. Working undercover as lead investigator, he’s determined to bring down an elusive drug cartel smuggling heroin into central Maine. He’ll use any means necessary to complete his objective, including sleeping with the suspected drug Lord’s landscaper, Deirdre. He just hadn’t expected the feisty redhead to be so much more than long legs and dangerous curves.

One night neither of them can forget…

Deirdre and Ayden both thought one sexually explosive romp in the sack would be the end of their relationship. But Deirdre’s arrest for heroin possession and her father’s near-fatal heart attack prompts Ayden to confess his true identity. When Deirdre is kidnapped by the drug cartel and used as a pawn, Ayden is forced to choose between his heart and his mission. The question is…who will survive his decision?

EXCERPT:
The sun glistening off the windshield of the Jag had finally burned off the early morning fog.

“Turn here. The farmhouse is only a couple more miles.” Deirdre’s voice was weak.

“Do you need me to call anyone? Rachel? Mark?” Ayden asked.

“No, I talked with Rach when she was at the hospital. She’s going to call Shawn and let him know about my dad. There are a couple of small jobs I put off, but Rachel will go there with Mark and crew.” A small laugh escaped. “Of course in the middle of all that, the witch forgot to mention she’d told my sister about the drug mess.”

Ayden reached over and squeezed her leg. “You’re pretty lucky to have such a supportive family.” She looked so small, so defenseless, huddled in the leather seat. He didn’t know how to make this better. Ayden had lost his family so long ago he didn’t know the kind of strength that came from sharing grief. He knew for certain, after her tearful confession to Julie and Meghan about the arrest, Deirdre had nothing to do with Jameson’s drug operation. She’d told him the truth.

He owed her the same. But how much worse could the timing be?

After Sunday, after they busted Jameson, he’d tell Deirdre everything, all the sordid details of his life. He just didn’t know if the reality would send her running in the opposite direction.

That would be his luck.

He’d started this relationship looking for a distraction, but Deirdre had quickly become so much more than a casual affair. He’d felt her defenses fall away last night with her clothes. She’d given all of herself to him and allowed him into her family. He looked over at the woman who’d tied his emotions in knots and worried about her reaction to his confession.

Her mother had pulled him aside while Deirdre was sitting with her father. Men hadn’t treated her daughter well, and Alice hoped Ayden’s intentions were honorable. He hoped like hell they were too. He hadn’t had time to sort that one out yet.

But if the night had proven anything to Ayden, it’s that he wanted what the Tillings had. Actually, he wanted Deirdre, the rest of the package was just icing.

The familiar burn of doubt heated his gut and he absently reached for the antacids in the glove box.

“You all right?” Deirdre asked.

“Too much vending machine coffee and not enough sleep.” He popped a couple of tablets. Yeah, not even close to the truth. The fact was, when the Jameson deal went down, there was no way he was going to be able to walk away from the sexy redhead who’d crawled into his bed and wrapped herself around his heart.

But he also knew, after the emotional turmoil of the past twelve hours, Deirdre sure as hell wasn’t ready to hear that confession.

Ayden pulled the Jag into the dooryard of the farmhouse. There weren’t any neighbors visible in either direction, cars either. It occurred to him Deirdre’s welfare had taken priority over his undercover work. Not a smart move on his part. Not when Jameson seemed to be breathing down his neck. He hadn’t really been on the top of his game over the last few hours.

There was nothing he could do about it now.

Deirdre reached for the door handle, too tired to open it, her hand fell back to her lap. “I need a shower,” she mumbled.

“What you need, Deirdre, is some food and rest. You barely ate anything at the diner. Meghan promised to call if there was any change. You don’t need to be back at the hospital until this afternoon. You guys have a pretty good system going there. Rotating shifts with your mom.” Lifting her hand, Ayden rubbed it against his lips. “I don’t have any pressing business meetings today. Everything I need to do can be done by phone. Let me take care of you.”

“I’d like that.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WIN - Leave Nina a comment or question this week at the AuthorIsland Tiki Hut and your name goes in the hat for a digital copy of her book BLIND HER WITH BLISS, the first book in the Tilling Passions series and a set of romance trading cards (for shipment to US or Canada only). Please leave your email address so we can contact you if you are this week's winner - Good Luck!

This Week's Special Guest Marie Treanor

This week at the AuthorIsland Tiki Hut, Marie Treanor's is stopping by to talk about the setting of her upcoming release BLOOD ETERNAL, book three in her Awakened By Blood Series.

Marie was born and bred in Scotland, but for some years moved around the UK working and studying. Now she's back home and happily married with three young children.  Having grown bored with city life, her family lives in a picturesque village by the sea where, instead of working for a living, Marie is lucky enough to be able to enjoy herself writing stories of romance and fantasy.

She draws the inspiration for her books mainly from the people around her and from Scotland's rich history and culture - with, of course, large helpings of fun and imagination!

WEBSITE *** MYSPACE *** NEWSLETTER *** FACEBOOK *** BLOG

Blood Eternal – Where it all Happens

By Marie Treanor

When choosing the settings for my books, I always find it easiest to follow the old adage, “write what you know”. And although I haven’t visited every single place I’ve ever written about (some of them are made-up for a start!), I do like to have at least a vague knowledge of the country concerned.

Not that I want to fill my books with long descriptions that could double as accurate travel guides! But whether my characters are in a village I invented or in a well-known city inhabited by millions, I do like to be able to convey some kind of genuine atmosphere, a general feel of the place.

This is true in particular of my Awakened by Blood vampire romance novels, which are set in Romania, Hungary, Scotland, the United States and, most recently, Turkey. Apart from New York – where I confess I’ve never set foot and had to depend for my “feel” on film, television and internet research! – I’ve at least visited all those countries. And co-incidentally, I’m not long back from Turkey, where much of the first half of Blood Eternal takes place.

It wasn’t my first visit. My family and I have spent several holidays there over the last five years, staying in the same mountain village, and we love the country and the people. It really is a kind of gateway between east and west, a mix of both familiar and unfamiliar cultures to a western European like myself. I love to lie in bed there listening to the dawn call to prayer and the cacophony of animal noises that greets the sun in a traditional Turkish village. The slower pace of life and the air of peace; the friendliness and kindness of the people – many of whom have very little but want to share what they have; the colour and variety of the markets and the insistence of the traders; the beauty of the mountain scenery and the Mediterranean coast, all make it a magical place for me. And the perfect setting in which to awaken an insane Ancient vampire and chase him as he rampages through the countryside.

Of course, it’s terribly romantic as well! I was happy to fit in a few trysts for Elizabeth and Saloman among this scenery - between vampire hunting and angst, of course!

The house in which Elizabeth and the hunters stay is based on one we lived in several times. So is the village. And the town of Fethiye, where Elizabeth and her friend Mihaela, have their heart-to-heart, is a real, thriving market town. Much of the older town was destroyed by an earthquake in the last century, but here are the ancient tombs carved into the hillside, as visited by Elizabeth and Mihaela in the story, and this is the view they might have had from the harbour-front café where they had lunch.

It’s good to have real places to envision as your characters move through them. I really hope that in the books, I’ve conveyed the charm and generosity of the people as well as the beauty of their country.

How important to you is a genuine setting for a book? Or does it not matter at all, so long as the story grabs your attention? If you have any favourite settings, I’d love to hear about them!

BLOOD ETERNAL: an Awakened by Blood novel by Marie Treanor

Secrets don't disappear after seduction...

Elizabeth Silk is struggling to reconcile her passion for the vampire overlord Saloman and her allegiance to the vampire hunters. When a shocking vampire revolt calls Saloman away from her, she refuses to follow him.

To make matters worse, Saloman's beloved cousin Luk has been
found and awakened by one of his greatest enemies. Frenzied
with bloodlust, Luk embarks on a killing spree and prepares to
expose Saloman's biggest vulnerability: Elizabeth.

But under Saloman's regime, vampires have become less concerned with secrecy, no longer willing to hide their power. Rumors are swirling about attacks on humans. After Saloman joins forces with the vampire hunters to consolidate his power, Elizabeth begins to understand her role in the inevitable collision of the two worlds. She could bring resolution between vampires and humans - if she can manage to stay alive long enough to play both sides.

BUY THE BOOK *** BUY IN KINDLE *** READ THE EXCERPT

WIN - Leave Marie a question this week at the Tiki Hut and your name goes in the hat for an autographed copy of one of her Awakened by Blood books! Please leave your email address so we can contact you if you are this week's winner!

*** Btw - don't forget to check out the Kindle Marie has up for grabs over on the contest page of AuthorIsland.com!!