Thursday, November 29, 2012

I've got COVER ART!!!


So here's my series, in all its magnificient glory. LOL... yeah, I'm sorta in love with these covers, seriously. Anyway, these are for my Genesis Trilogy, I'm halfway through Forbidden now and in the next few days I'll be starting to post lots of teasers and excerpts from this book, because I'm sorta in love with my couple.

What do ya'll think???

 
 
If that doesn't scream sexy YA, I'm not sure what does. :D Gotta give a massive shout out to Croco for her awesome work! I seriously think my cover artists rock people, just sayin'. ;)

And now here's a quick teaser from my favorite sentence yesterday:


Cain drew up straight and when he did he was so close Flint felt the heat of his body wash against her own. She sucked in a sharp breath and then nearly swooned when his hands rested casually against her hips. He was staring at her intensely and she couldn’t have looked away even if her life depended on it.
 
Happy reading!
~Marie

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Forbidden teaser

I got a new cover, the second one in the series done. I won't show it yet, not until the third one is complete, however... I will share a quick teaser of my favorite line for the day:


But he didn’t kiss her, he was running his nose along the top of her head and she could swear she felt his body trembling.

“You always smell so good,” he murmured.

Sigh... I'm seriously loving Cain. :D

Happy reading,
~Marie

PS... Hook's Pan is already in the works. *g* Right now this book is looking much more like a full length novel. Which is surprising considering all the others were novellas (with the exception of Wolf, which was a short category length novel). So that should be fun, a great way to end the series with a bang. I'm loving this though, lots of mermaids, pirates, and a certain pesky fairy godmother!

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Jinni's Wish NOW AVAILABLE

So it's been uploaded everywhere, however, it's only showing up on the B&N website. Hopeful that it will be made available everywhere else at some point today.

I cannot believe that the series is practically over, went by in a blur. Hook's story will be the final book and it's almost kind of sad. Like saying goodbye to a friend. I love crazy Danika and have been having some crazy thoughts lately. Thoughts like maybe after a hiatus, I may just return to Kingdom. There's still a lot more baddies out there to write about. Of course, I'm also working on my Genesis Trilogy. Forbidden is coming along nicely, I'm already at 40k words, roughly the length of Gerard's story. This series will be full length however, so I will probably round this thing out at 75-80k, maybe even higher if I can't keep those plot bunnies from multiplying out of control. :p

I've also come up with the titles for my second and third book in the series. Reckless and Possessed. I'll be commissioning cover art for the last two probably sometime today, so things are moving along nicely. Looking forward to 2013 and all the new books I'll have to release.

Also, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter. I like to give out cool little gifts to my suscribers, a way for me to say "thank you". :)

Happy reading!
~Marie

Saturday, November 24, 2012

SSS Jinni's Wish

Well, I'll be releasing this book in the next few days hopefully, so here is my final SSS for Jinni. Hope you enjoy!


“You were a genie once. If you could have had one wish, what would it have been?”

“That’s easy,” he twirled a length of her hair around his finger, “you.”

“Mush,” she sighed, “I’m mush.”

Jinni glanced at her bedroom alarm clock. “We do have two hours before your brother returns.”

“Hmm…” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Whatever should we do?”

He glanced at the bed. “I can think of a few things.”


Happy reading!
~Marie :)

And the winner is....

Thanks to everyone for such a successful HOP! :D It was so much fun learning that I'm not nearly in the minority when it comes to Black Friday as I'd thought.

So without further ado:

BLHMistress, (you've been chosen as a  contestant on the price is right)

*giggle* I've always wanted to do that. :D

Seriously though, to everyone else if you haven't already sign up for my newsletter. I've got some amazing things in the wings. A 3 days of Christmas I've got coming up which will feature one amazing prize each day, but only for those of you who're part of my  newsletter.

To everyone who didn't win, this was really a blast. Hope to see you around soon.

@-BLH
I'll be contacting you off loop!

Happy reading,
~Marie

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Black Friday Blog Hop

 
 
While the rest of the US is out handling the crowds, fighting for their holiday gifts, some of us like to stay in, shop online, or just ignore Black Friday all to together. This year, join us in our second annual Black Friday Blog Hop! It's a ONE DAY hop where we're giving away prizes, talking about books we love, and most likely eating left over turkey. :-)

The hop is November 23rd and is ONE DAY only.

And while we do that, we are EACH doing a giveaway. Yep. There will be over 200 giveaways on each blog hosted by that Author or Blogger.

But that's not all....

We have THREE grand prizes. You as a reader can go to EACH blog and comment with your email address and be entered to win. Yep, you can enter over 200 times!

Now what are those prizes?

1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet
2nd Grand Prize: A $75 Amazon or B&N Gift Card
3rd Grand Prize: A Swag Pack that contains paperbacks, ebooks, 50+ bookmarks, cover flats, magnets, pens, coffee cozies, and more! (Sorry guys, no International Shipping on this one)
 
 

I love Black Friday, love the deals, love the savings. Hate the crowds, which is why I've only braved it three times in my life! LOL... but since you all are joining me here today, I'll give you one extra deal, sign up for my  newsletter, or if you have already let me know that, and comment with what your best score was on Black Friday. Mine was an HD flat screen TV at best buy four years ago. Completely obsolete now, but back then... oh yeah, I was the envy of my block! *grin*

So my prize is simple, whichever one of my books you'd like for free. Since Hatter is currently free everywhere, you'll actually be getting two books. Below are the blurbs for each:

Her Mad Hatter: (Alice in Wonderland)

Alice is all grown up. Running the Mad Hatter's Cupcakery and Tea Shoppe is a delicious job, until fate--and a fairy godmother with a weakness for bad boys--throws her a curveball. Now, Alice is the newest resident of Wonderland, where the Mad Hatter fuels her fantasies and thrills her body with his dark touch.

The Mad Hatter may have a voice and a body made for sex, but he takes no lovers. Ever. But a determined fairy godmother has forced Alice into Wonderland--and his arms. Now, as desire and madness converge, the Hatter must decide if he will fight the fairy godmother's mating--or fight for Alice.

Gerard's Beauty: (Beauty and the Beast)

A not so classic retelling of Beauty and the Beast, as seen through the eyes of the villain...

Betty Hart has had it with men. Jilted in love, her life now consists of shelving books by day, watching too much Anime by night, and occasionally dressing up like a superhero on the weekends with her fellow ‘Bleeding Heart’ nerds. Men are not welcome and very much unwanted. Especially the sexy Frenchman who saunters into her library reeking of alcohol and looking like he went one too many rounds in the ring.

Gerard Caron is in trouble. Again. Caught with his pants down (literally) he’s forced to seek asylum on Earth while his fairy godmother tries to keep Prince Charming from going all ‘Off with his head’. Maybe, messing around with the King’s daughter hadn’t been such a great idea after all, not that Gerard knew the silly redhead was a princess. But his fairy godmother knows the only way to save his life is to finally pair Gerard with his perfect mate, whether he’s willing or not.

From the moment Gerard lays eyes on the nerdy librarian he knows he must have her, but Betty is unlike any woman he’s ever known. He thought Betty would come as willingly to his bed as every other woman before her, but she is a woman who demands respect and even… horror of all horrors… love. Is it possible for a self-proclaimed Casanova to change his ways?
Red and Her Wolf: (Little Red Riding Hood)

Long ago there lived a beautiful child. Her name was Violet. Fair of skin, with blonde hair and large blue eyes. Born of wild magic, she was a woman with a child’s heart. Innocent and lovely, but not at all what she seemed--you see Violet went by another name: The Heartsong.

She was the child of fairy magic, the physical manifestation of all fae kinds unbridled power. Cosseted and pampered, she grew up in isolation, never knowing who she really was, or why there were those who’d seek to harm her.

Ewan of the Blackfoot Clan is a wolf with a problem. He’s been sent to kill the Heartsong, but the moment he lays eyes on the blonde beauty he knows he’ll defy the evil fae he works for to claim Violet as his own.

This is the tale of Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf, as it really happened...

The Witching Hour: Grim Reaper Saga (Urban Fantasy Romance)

Because sometimes death isn't the end...

After not only being run over, but watching her husband die in the same hit and run, Eve Philips thought she would never love again. Years pass and her sisters worry that she'll become an old crone like so many other witches. They've made it their personal mission to help her find her next true love. But Eve wants none of that, she throws herself into her potions shop--Witches Brew--determined work, and not a lover, will fix the void in her heart.

Until the day she sees him. Cian, gorgeous and mysterious, she's frightened by the desires he brings out in her. A passion that rivals even the love she'd felt for her husband.

But Cian is not what he seems. He's fae. More than that, he's the grim reaper of legend and his mission means her death. She shouldn't have seen him. His kind moves in stealth, but the moment her golden eyes meets his he knows his world will never be the same. He'll defy his orders and his Queen to keep her. But will Eve want what he offers when she discovers the truth? That he was the one who harvested her husband's soul...
Or if none of those float your boat, how about an advanced copy of Jinni's Wish!! (Arabian Nights)

A long, long time ago there lived a man. A Jinni, who had one wish. To know love. But the woman he thought he knew betrayed him and the love he thought they shared. Tortured for his crimes, he was cast out of Kingdom, stripped of all his powers, left to langour in pain and solitude, until eventually he becomes nothing but a ghost...

Paz Lopez is an artist with a dream. To buy a ridiculously large penthouse in the swankiest section of Chicago. But there's just one hitch, she has no man to share her dream with. A fateful visit to a carnival and Madam Pandora's tent sends Paz on a mission to find the love of her life before it's too late.

But the Madam forgot to tell Paz one very important detail... to meet him, Paz will have to die first.

Happy reading,
~Marie

Monday, November 19, 2012

Southern Style Blue Velvet with Vanilla Bean cream cheese frosting

So much talk of cupcakes, I gave in and made some. Hard to tell in the lighting, but these were blue velvet with a vanilla bean cream cheese frosting. Num, num...

Rare for me, as I'm someone who rarely indulges in sweets. But boy were they good, and the chocolate covered cherry on top was divine. Seriously, so good. Now I'm gonna have to walk 20 miles this week to burn it off. LOL!


Update on Jinni's Wish

Well, it seems as though I might actually finish this before next month! Jinni is out with it's final round of edits, which I'll hopefully receive back some time this week and then I'll send it to my formatter!!! *Squee*

I've also finished writing the first chapter of Hook's Pan, which will be included in the sneak peek. Wow, can't believe I'm nearly done with this series. :D

Looking forward to what comes next, like most of you know I have my Genesis Trilogy waiting in the wings, a Death Series (both books are prominently tied to one another. Genesis is YA and Death Adult Urban Fantasy... but feature many of the same characters, so that's gonna be fun and something I'll likely be releasing simultaneously.)

In the meantime, I've written the blurb for Jinni and here it is for those of you curious what the book is about. :)

A long, long time ago there lived a man. A Jinni, who had one wish. To know love. But the woman he thought he knew betrayed him and the love he thought they shared. Tortured for his crimes, he was cast out of Kingdom, stripped of all his powers, left to langour in pain and solitude, until eventually he becomes nothing but a ghost...

Paz Lopez is an artist with a dream. To buy a ridiculously large penthouse in the swankiest section of Chicago. But there's just one hitch, she has no man to share her dream with. A fateful visit to a carnival and Madam Pandora's tent sends Paz on a mission to find the love of her life before it's too late.

But the Madam forgot to tell Paz one very important detail... to meet him, Paz will have to die first.

(Pandora, the protagonist in the Death series, makes her first appearance in this book... she's also the Aunt of Cain, who's the hero in Forbidden... she's quite important to my world... if you haven't already noticed...lol)

Happy reading,
~Marie

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Jinni and Paz SSS Jinni's Wish

It's been a while since I've done a SSS. So here ya go, a tiny snippet of Jinni's Wish, due out soon! ;)


Paz knelt by his side, gripping his shoulders. “Jinni? Honey?”

Her eyes were wide and frantic as he gazed into them. Refusing to give into the pain, refusing to let her see just how much it was hurting. Cold sweat swept up and down his body, breaking out on his skin, causing his scalp to tingle with fire and pain.

“Listen to me, Paz,” he gritted out. “You have to return. Now.”

Their heavenly bed began to dissolve back into the stardust that had created it.

 She shook her head, even as they began falling like a comet back to Earth. “No.”

This scene was so *sob* tough to write. Poor Jinni.

Happy reading!
~Marie :)

Friday, November 16, 2012

Stefan and Elaina... *sniff sniff*

Yes, I'll admit it, I'm a total vampire diaries junkie. Or as I like to call it in this house, V.D. fan. ;) Because for me it's just as insidious as a nasty case of V.D. (Not that I'd know or anything) But seriously, it's this annoying show that irritates and annoys me, and yet... I cannot escape my girlie crush of it.

Sigh... and yes, I'm completely on Team Stefan. Not that I don't love me some Damon, but Stefan has always respected Elaina's decisions. Whether he agreed with them or not, he was man enough to let her have her own mind on things. Sometimes it blew up in their faces, like for instance Elaina dying and becoming a vampire. *cough cough* But, hey... I'd still prefer my man letting me make up my own mind about things, then have him tell me how it's gonna be. DAMON.

Now, Damon is a total hottie and I'll even admit (reluctantly) that I kinda like that he's got a thing for her, their chemistry is hot. BUT, Elaina fought the entire last season to get her Stefan back from the brink. And why was Stefan there??? To keep her safe in the first place, his life for hers.

I do not like when you give me a couple to care for, only to then change the dynamics all around and put her in someone else's arms. I mean, how would you feel if by the end of Pride and Prejudice Elizabeth told Mr. Darcy, "Yeah, chum... I've sorta got a thing for Ol' Bingsley there. Good knowing you, pip pip and all 'at."

NO. I don't think so. Don't get me emotionally invested in two characters only to then trade off for another one. Now I wouldn't care so much if Stefan weren't so madly in love with her. Ugh... I hate TV shows, which is why that's pretty much the only one I watch with any sort of regularity. Mainly because those boys sure are nice to look at, but whateves... the point is, I'm distraught today.

So when I started working on Forbidden, I made Cain so much of a jerk that it dawned on me... I totally need to lay off the tele right before working on my own books. Makes me angsty, and trust me, you wouldn't like me when I'm angsty.

Happy reading,
~Marie

Think I'll go drown my sorrows with a cupcake. *sniff sniff*

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Cain from Forbidden

Oh my gosh, I'm digging my hero. He's seriously bad and all screwed up, but he's even worse when he's falling love. Le sigh...

So because I wrote 5k and I'm thrilled with how well this book is going, a small snippet:


Glancing outside, he saw her. She was leaning her head on Alyssa’s shoulders, while hers shook. Clenching his jaw against the tight flare in his chest, he headed to English, wishing like hell he could redo the morning.

Sigh... sigh... sigh....

Let's just say though, you're gonna hate him, then you're gonna love him. ;) He's great.

Happy reading,
~Marie

Cupcakes and Books... is there anything better??

That is a question a gal wrote me yesterday. I had the great fortunate of reading an email from a reader yesterday, who also happens to own her own cupcakery. Which is all sorts of awesome, as I've always kicked that idea around myself.

But then she tells me she actually created the Mad Hatter's Delight!! *SQUEE* How awesome right? That's too cool. A patron butter cream frosting on a vanilla bean cake. Oh *drool* Seriously, that sounds divine. I then asked her, if she'd be so kind, to take a couple of pics of the cakes so that I could post them on my website.

And yeah, they look better than I even imagined. Yummy....



If you'd like to try these inspired creations then here's her facebook link: http://www.facebook.com/chickys.cupcakery#!/chickys.cupcakery

Her name is Danelle Nixon and she lives in Woodward, OK. Check 'em out and tell me if they taste as delicious as they look. ;)

Now I think I'll be making cupcakes this weekend! Ginger, lemon, honey cakes.... sounds good, right? :D

Happy reading,
Marie

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Sometimes you just know...

When an idea is flowing and your characters are giving back to you, oh wow, I love days like that. I went on a walk this morning and nailed the entire lake scene for Forbidden. Cain (my hero) is a serious bad a**, which of course the heroine (Flint) finds both intriguing and irritating as all H-E-double hockey sticks. (Yes, I swore like a little girl...lol) But I'm trying to maintain a clean site here peeps. ;)

Anywho, this book is so much fun to write. And while it's a departure from Kingdom, I don't think it will be any less interesting because of it. It deals with a curse, a mortal, and a guy who knows he should definitely stay away.

Really the cover says it all. And just a little snippet by my hero because he's all sorts of hotness, a tease. Set up: Hero is thrashing an Aswanga to within an inch of its life, just as he's really getting into it, suddenly the Aswanga (and if you're curious look them up, real mythological creature *wink*) tells him something that makes him explode...


“We’ve seen a girl. Red hair. Brown eyes.” It moved its head like a charmed cobra, lecherous grin tipping the corners of her fanged mouth. “Our soothsayer says she is the one.”

The blood in his veins turned to ice.

“Is she? Will she bring about your doom?”

Cain’s hands slowly slid up the creature’s body, coming to rest against the peeling cheeks. “I have no weakness,” he hissed and then with a surge of strength, torqued the neck until the bones cracked and it slumped lifeless to his feet.


Hmmm.... and in case you're wondering, my hero is most definitely NOT human. ;)


Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Thank you all for hopping!

This was a successful hop and I'm happy to have met all of you. :D Loved reading the different responses and my winner has been chosen! Again, you'll be winning a paperback copy of my Kingdom Series Collection, first three books (Her Mad Hatter, Gerard's Beauty, and Red and Her Wolf) along with a couple of fun recipies included at the end of each book. I'll be contacting my winner through my newsletter!

To the rest of you, hope you all win someething great from our grand prize, but if not, hope you found some new authors you love. Also, mini-update about Jinni's Wish, it's now DONE! Woot. Yay, finished it a few nights ago. I'm currently in the editing stage and hopeful I can get this puppy out there by the end of the month/beginning of next.

I'm also working on finishing my Forbidden Trilogy, it's about a girl, a carnival, and a hot gothed out guy who's so much more than what he seems.

The tagline for the book is:

His kiss was her doom...

So you decide what that's about, hint though: this is not a vampire book. ;)

Happy reading! ~Marie

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Forbidden: The Genesis Trilogy

Okay, cutting into this bloghop for a moment to show off some AWESOME new cover art I just got for my upcoming YA paranormal. Forbidden: The Genesis Trilogy... I love!

Friday, November 9, 2012

Autumn Harvest Blog Hop Time!



Autumn! Oh man, my favorite time of year. And no, I don't just say that because this blog hop deals with it. I love the turning of the leaves, the apple harvest, picking out that perfect pumpkin. Going hunting for my own turkey.

Well... okay, so I've never technically done it out in the grassy plains, but any cook will tell you, hunting for that perfect bird in the grocery store is just about the next hardest thing. Seriously, Fall always makes me think about new possibilities. That crisp scent in the air, winter so close on its heels, but staved off for a brief, yet glorious, few months when a sweater and a heavy pair of jeans are all you'll need to enjoy those last few romps through the woods before winter's heavy hand bars the way. (And boy was that some purple prose!! LOL... what can I say, I'm a romantic when it comes to this time of year)

One of my favorite memories involving Autumn was when I was a little girl and my father used to rake the leaves in our front  yard. (Do people even do that anymore??? I haven't seen a rake in years, in case you're as clueless as my boys (because who needs rakes in a place that never drops leaves?) it's a little doohicky with metal prongs at the tip that drags the leaves all into one neat pile in your yard so that you can then scoop it all up into a mulch bag and toss it later) But in my yard, those leaves never went straight into the bags. Nope, those leaves were my personal playground for a few wonderful hours. Jumping in and out, getting itchy and scratchy, and not caring one whit because my cheeks were rosy, my nose was chilly, and life was good.

Course the rashes at the end of the night were never fun. ;) But, Autumn is my favorite time of year. Apart from Christmas, all my favorite holidays happen in it. Which is probably why so many of my books are set in that ephemeral period. 3 short months to cram a story into, but for me, the 3 most magical ones.

So tell me, what makes you most happy about Autumn? The candied apples? Cozy sweaters? Almost too chill breeze at night?

What about reading? Do you think it's a good subject to read? Tell us your favorite Autumn stories! Well, we authors are ready to share our favorite Autumn stories and why we love snuggling in the cold. *wink* Starting on Friday and ending on Oct 22nd, over 200 Authors and Bloggers will share their favorite things about those sexy men we know and love.

And while we do that, we are EACH doing a giveaway. Yep. There will be over 200 giveaways on each blog hosted by that Author or Blogger.

But that's not all....

We have THREE grand prizes. You as a reader can go to EACH blog and comment with your email address and be entered to win. Yep, you can enter over 200 times!

Now what are those prizes?

1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet
2nd Grand Prize: A $50 Amazon or B&N Gift Card
3rd Grand Prize: A Swag Pack that contains 10+ paperbacks, ebooks, 50+ bookmarks, cover flats, magnets, pens, coffee cozies, and more!


I will personally be giving away one free autographed copy of my Kingdom Series Collection! Now, this is a paperbook, but it's a proof version. Which means, you can't sell it back to a bookstore, but you can swap it around to as many friends as you'd like! Included in this are the first 3 books of my Kingdom Series (Her Mad Hatter, Gerard's Beauty, and Red and Her Wolf), along with the books I've included never before seen deleted scenes, and one of Alice Hu's specialty cupcakes: The Red Queen's Revenge.

In order to keep cost low on this project I went with an 11x8 inch book, meaning... it's about the size of a standard high school text book. LOL... but, on the upside the print is nice and bold, so it's easy on the eyes. Plus, once you finish reading it, you could totally turn the cover into a poster! :p See, I think of all things. :D The book is not yet on sale anywhere, so this is a special prize. :) It should be for sale through Amazon however, sometime next week.

All I ask in return is that you say a quick hello and sign up for my newsletter if you haven't already! :D Easy peasy.

So happy reading all! *Or gobble gobble (as Uncle Tom would say)*

~Marie