30 June 2014

Q & A with JJ Lore -New Planet Alpha Release - Forbidden

Welcome, J.J. Lore, to Written Butterfly!  Planet Alpha is a series near and dear to my heart because of my own wonderful experience of my own PA book so I'm thrilled to have her visit with me today!  I must say...that is one sexy cover!



Q) How did you dream up the dynamics of this new Planet Alpha book?

A) One of the premises of the Planet Alpha universe is that Alphans are proud warriors, so I followed that logic to wondering what would happen to men who’d been wounded and were no longer fit to serve in active duty. They’d probably be denied a lot of the privileges of rank, but still wish to serve their comrades. That’s where the characters of Deklan and Leontus originated; they are too scared to fight but work at a remote military hospital attending to injured Alpha warriors. That’s where they encounter Aura, a human woman who’s been kidnapped and hurt by Xyrans. They offer to care for her until she’s well enough to travel back to Earth, and in the interim, discover she’s their perfect match.


Q) Do you have any habits that get you in the writing frame of mind? 

A)All I need to get in the writing frame of mind is to be in a quiet house with a cup of hot tea in hand, but being a stay-at-home mom of a seven year old boy, quiet is rarely a component of my day!


Q) What are your upcoming projects?   

A)I’m about a third of the way through my next Planet Alpha manuscript, and have another sci-fi erotic romance in the daydreaming phase. I’m also polishing a sweeter sci-fi romance that will be published under another pen name. I love to write and have so many ideas. Someday I’ll have enough time to get them all down.




Forbidden
By J. J. Lore

Blurb:
Working to heal wounded Alphan warriors is the new duty of bondmates Leo and Deklan. Although recovered from severe injuries received on the field of battle, they are no longer fit to fight. Their orderly, all-male existence is turned upside down when an injured human female becomes their new responsibility.

Aura Tremain wakes up in an alien hospital, healing from a beating delivered by the scaly Xyrans who’d kidnapped her. Upon her discharge, two handsome Alphan men offer her refuge until she’s well enough to travel.

Even though Leo and Deklan know they will never be permitted to bond with Aura as their souls demand, they can’t ignore the desire she stirs in them. Her time with them is short, but so intense. Will the intimacies they share be strong enough to withstand the expectation that bondmates are for battle-worthy warriors? Can their passion bind the three of them forever?

Excerpt:



It was strange to wake up in a bed with an alien male, no, two alien males, she amended. She glanced over to see Leo was still asleep, sprawled on his belly, his head cradled on his bent arm. Lots of thick muscles under gleaming skin on display. They both looked so strong.
She turned her head back to Deklan and jumped with surprise to find him watching her with half-closed, sleepy eyes.
“Sleep well?” he whispered.
She nodded. Deklan’s eyes crinkled at the corners. He inhaled and stretched his arms over his head with a sigh, inadvertently dislodging the sheet even further down his body. He was wearing dark pants so there wasn’t much more she could see, not that she should be looking any further. She couldn’t quite take her eyes off him, though. As he lowered his arms, the one closest to her nudged along her shoulder and coasted down her arm, his large hand finally coming to rest next to hers.  He edged closer and watched her for a moment. She could feel the heat of his body.
“Do I look very different?”
“Different than what?” Aura whispered back, unwilling to disturb Leo when he’d been so kind to her.
“A human male. I’ve never seen one in the flesh nor seen a human female until the ship landed.”
“You look different. Bigger, stronger. Your skin is…” She trailed off, not quite sure how to put her newfound affinity for gold.
“Is what?” Deklan rubbed his hand along his chest, bumping over swells of muscle, disturbing the fine black hairs tapering down his abdomen. His voice was rough, and the timbre of it vibrated some previously unknown part of her ear.
“It’s beautiful.” Her honest assessment resulted in a disbelieving smile from the Alphan lounging next to her.
“It serves its purpose. I’d never call it beautiful, especially compared to yours.” Deklan glanced at her face, then her shoulders and arms exposed by the borrowed tank she’d worn to sleep. She knew she was blushing since her face was so hot. In an effort to compose herself, she looked over at Leo to find he was still deeply asleep, unmoving from when she’d last seen him.
A large hand sliding along her arm brought her attention back to Deklan to find he’d edged closer and turned so he was curving against her now. Maybe he was just affectionate in the morning, maybe—
The sudden press of a hard cock against her hip made her shiver. At least, she assumed the hard, warm shaft she could feel through her thin clothing was a cock. Deklan was alien, so perhaps his equipment was different. Although why he’d be aroused in proximity to her was a mystery. Perhaps he was similar to a man and this was just the usual morning reaction.
“Your skin is so smooth and soft,” he murmured as he ran his fingertips along her hip, then her belly, cloth bunching up under his fingers, exposing some skin at her waist. The slight parting of fabric made her shiver, made warmth spike into heat along her nerves. “Not frightened?”
“No,” she whispered, caught up in the intensity of his gaze, the sheer sensual pleasure of having someone touch her.


Buy Links:



J. J. Lore bio and social media:

J. J. Lore needs three things; strong, black coffee, time to write, and…well…you can guess the third. When she isn’t inventing fantastical tales filled with passionate people, she’s shaking sriracha on whatever she’s eating or reading about the Justinian plague. For updates on her erotic romance releases, visit her at http://www.jjlore.com/ She’s also on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/J-J-Lore/1393971707546734  and twitter @JJLore1

27 June 2014

Welcome Jessica Coulter Smith!



 Hello, Jessica!  Thank you so much for visiting Written Butterfly!  I absolutely adore your cover for "Witch Way to Love"! 


When Breena McCall goes to find her wayward wand, the last thing she expects to find is the man destined to be hers. Instant attraction only goes so far, especially when her chosen one acts like someone pissed in his kibble.

Wolf Shifter Cade Milcom doesn’t understand the sudden urge to bend the witch over and take her every way imaginable. She’s sassy, sarcastic, and gets on his nerves from the beginning. And yet, he finds himself answering the distress call when she gets herself into trouble.

An accidental mating and a demon bent on blackmail make for an interesting few days, but it’s nothing Breena can’t handle. Maybe.


How did Witch Way to Love come about?
                   
Believe it or not, it started from a flash fiction challenge. Well, the general idea behind the opening scene did anyway. I’ve actually wanted to write a sassy witch for a while and Breena just sort of blossomed in my head overnight. I started the story about a year ago, but all of the pieces wouldn’t come together. I’d get an idea, but I would run into a dead end and have to start over. Then one night, it sort of came to me in a moment of clarity. I sat down and started writing, writing like a woman possessed – and perhaps I was. Four days later, it was finished.

EXCERPT

Lightning skittered across the sky, the brilliant flashes lighting up everything around her. Thunder boomed overhead, shaking the earth beneath her feet. The high-powered winds whipped her long, red hair around her head and made her fight for purchase on the pavement. It was a bad night out, for witches and mortals alike. If only she hadn’t lost her damn wand! What was a witch without her wand? Damn near mortal, that’s what. The heavens were going to open up at any moment and she would be drenched. Taking a witch’s wand was as good as stealing her powers. No, she didn’t need the wand to create magick, but if it wasn’t in her possession, her powers sort of…fizzled and died out.
Her high-heeled sandals were a poor choice of footwear at the moment, as she tottered down the sidewalk, following the beacon of light in the distance. She’d cast a locator spell in hopes of finding her wayward wand. She wasn’t certain if it had been appropriated by someone, or had merely wandered off, kind of like her broom had done the month before. Anyone who thought a wand was an inanimate object was a fool. It had a life force of its own. Otherwise, it would just be a piece of wood with pretty carvings.
The beam of light shooting into the sky started to flicker, and she worried it would sputter out completely. She could tell it was in the area the residents of Mayfair Heights called “the jungle.” Only shape-shifters lived in that part of town. Despite the ominous clouds in the sky, she knew there was a full moon tonight. She just had to hope whoever had taken the wand, or the lucky person her wand had chosen as its guardian, was in residence. It would be just her luck that the furball would be out on a run, even if the weather did leave a lot to be desired.
With the wind buffeting her small body, she felt like she was fighting an uphill battle, and wondered if she’d ever reach her destination. If her powers weren’t on the fritz, she could just translocate to wherever she needed to go. But, of course, on the worst night they’d had in months, she was stuck traveling on foot. She couldn’t even use her broom until she was at full power again. The damn thing refused to work. She completely blamed the tree sprite, the one who had gifted her with the branch used to carve the broom handle. It had obviously imbued some of its stubbornness into her broom.
Breena rounded another corner and sighed in relief. The home she sought was half a block away and lit up like the fourth of July, thanks to her little spell. She thanked the goddess that it had worked so well, or at all, for that matter. She couldn’t imagine having to find her wand the old-fashioned way, or having to hire someone else to cast the spell for her. How embarrassing! It was bad enough that things like this kept happening to her, but if the spell-casters guild caught wind of it, they’d pull her license to practice for sure.
As she neared the home, she took in the little details, like the gargoyles standing guard at the edges of the roof. She had no doubt they were the real thing and gave them a little wave. The red door stood out in stark contrast against the gray and black home, beckoning her closer. She stepped under the portico just as the rain began to beat down, a deluge really, and she thanked the goddess she hadn’t been standing out in the open just then.
She lifted her fist and knocked on the door, listening for any sounds of life within. No answer. She banged again, this time a little harder. The light from her spell spluttered and blinked out, leaving her standing in the dark. The fact that there were no lights on in the home, nor on the porch, told her that her query was probably out running wild, but she refused to give up.
Breena’s tiny fist pounded on the door for the third time. Grumbling under her breath, she gave the wood a good, hard kick, wincing as her toes met the unforgiving surface. She had just turned, and was about to leave, when the door flew open.
“Do you have any idea what time it is?” growled a deep voice, a voice that zinged through her and made all of her lady parts take notice.
She spun around with a snappy retort on the tip of her tongue, but it died the moment she was faced with six-foot-six of yummy goodness. A button-down shirt hung open, leaving his scrumptious muscular chest in full view. Her gaze dipped down over six pack abs and she licked her lips, wanting to run her tongue over each and every inch of him.
“I’m, uh, looking for my wand,” she stuttered lamely, her brain having been fried by his hotness.
He smirked. “Oh, I have a wand for you all right, but I don’t think it’s the one you came looking for.”

Buy Links

20 June 2014

Executive Assistant Anthology Release Giveaway!



Unleash your naughty side with Evernight’s Executive Assistant anthology…

These sizzling hot stories dare to explore the taboo world of office romance. From X-rated job interviews, controlling Doms, to the unprofessional use of office furniture—these twelves stories have it all.

Our bestselling authors are determined to make you squirm. You may never see the office the same way again!

Authors:
Doris O’Connor, Leteisha Newton, S.J. Maylee
Michelle Graham, Allyson Young, Lila Shaw Elodie Parkes, Chacelyn Pierce, Jean Maxwell
Beth D. Carter, Jezebel Jorge Michelle Rhys


Manlove Edition
 
Unleash your naughty side with Evernight’s Executive Assistant: Manlove Edition anthology…

These sizzling hot stories dare to explore the taboo world of office romance. From X-rated job interviews, controlling Doms, to the unprofessional use of office furniture—these seven stories have it all.

Our bestselling authors are determined to make you squirm. You may never see the office the same way again!

Authors:
Cat Blaine, JC Holly, Xondra Day
Nicola Cameron, Noelle Keaton
Pelaam, Nikka Michaels

Where to Buy:
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My story for the Executive Assistant Anthology is a nod to one of my favorite Harlequin Presents authors, Penny Jordan, who sadly passed away in 2011.  My teenage years was full of reading my mother's naughty romance books and she had a bookshelf full of Harlequins.  I loved the covers of the dashing men and beautiful women and knew that one day I wanted my name on the cover of books.

Back in the 80's, romance novels were a lot different than they are today.  Office romance wasn't that taboo.  There weren't sexual harassment plot lines, just dashing, brooding boss heroes and their over worked efficient secretaries.  I go back and read them and think about how much modern day offices would've made those secretaries lives easier.  No more carbon copy typewriters, or Dictaphones.  Well, maybe they still use Dictaphones somewhere, who knows?  Us modern day writers have to think of plot lines differently because of all the technology.  Back then, the heroine could get into trouble because she didn't have a cell phone to save her.  

Penny Jordan wrote amazing stories.  Her heroes were often times crass and they drank way too much, but wove such wonderful fantasies that even now, thirty years later, her fans still possess her books and reread them often.  In that sense, a writer will never die.  Her words will live forever.

"Suddenly" was written with her inspiration in mind.  

Blurb:


Dalton McCoy has lusted after his assistant, Bellah, for a long time.  One Friday night, Bellah is about to ask him for something but chickens out.  Wondering if she feels the same about him, he goes after her, only to save her from being assaulted in the parking garage.



Shaken, Bellah goes home with her boss, Dalton, not wanting to be alone.  Lust temporarily breaks down the barriers between them but he’s her boss.  What happens if he doesn’t feel the same as she?  Then again, what if he does?

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Be sure to visit the next on the tour tomorrow!

Jean Maxwell:  http://thejeanjournal.com/
Kastil Eavenshade:  http://kastil.wordpress.com/kastil-eavenshade-2/



Giveaway: $10 Evernight Gift Card







 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

02 June 2014

Planet Alpha - Proposition - Behind the Scenes

Blurb:

Geoffrey DeWinter and his wife Keirah live on a dying Earth. The only refuge is an alien world that needs human women as mates, only Keirah refuses to leave her husband to save herself. Geoff decides to bring them to an auction house that takes married couples, accepting that he will have to share her with another.

Their shuttle is attacked by Xyran raiders looking for women and it's Keirah who defends them. When Captain Krig sees Keirah looking like an angel come to life, he wants her. The Alphan warrior wants her enough to accept her husband, thinking he will deal with Geoff in some way or another. But when a vengeful Xyran comes after Keirah they have to take refuge on a wilderness moon, forcing them to work together to survive. Is their love for Keirah enough to turn them into a family?

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This book is a little different than the other two in the series.  I had a blast writing this, injecting a little bit of humor into the horrible situation.  Geoff is somewhat of a classic movie buff, but for him the classics are movies like "Saw".  I had to write him in a way that didn't come off whiny but he's a human stuck in a bad situation with having to share the woman he loves.  I hope, if at all possible, he's likeable and relatable.

I actually had to read the first two books in the series to write the epilogue and the bondmate ceremony.  There is a little twist at the end, something that Krig does to cement his commitment to both Geoff and Keirah, that I was adamant about.  

And the heroine, Keirah, had to be someone that an Alphan warrior would fall for.  So she's tough yet sweet.  Bold yet shy.  And loves her scent.

The Signature Song for this story was "Lost in the Echoes" by Linkin Park.

Where to Buy:
http://www.amazon.com/Proposition-Planet-Alpha-Beth-Carter-ebook/dp/B00KNL65I2/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_imgnr_1

http://www.evernightpublishing.com/proposition-by-beth-d-carter/

 https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-proposition-1523689-340.html


Excerpt:

He was big and muscular, and the moment their eyes met something zinged through her body. His horns sat high on his forehead and curled back toward his skull, the tips disappearing into his thick black hair. His blaster was held in his hand but down by his side, and she saw his golden eyes widen slightly as they took in her protective stance. The Alphan man looked first at her and then at the dead Xyran male at her feet.

“You killed him?” he asked in English, his words lightly accented. Goose bumps dusted across her skin as his deep, sensual voice washed over her.

Keirah lifted her chin. “I’d kill any man who meant to hurt me. Or Geoff.”

Again, the Alphan glanced around, lingering a moment on Geoff and the other unconscious men before looking at the women behind her.

“You must have taken him by surprise.”

“He said don’t hesitate. So I didn’t.”

“Have you ever killed a Xyran before?”

“No.” In fact, it almost made her feel sick how easy it was, but she wouldn’t show that weakness in front of him.

He nodded. “What are you doing on this ship?”

“It’s an auction ship,” she said. “There are some buyers willing to pay for a husband and wife.”

One of his eyebrows went up. He pointed to Geoff. “That’s your husband?”

“It is.”

His brow furrowed. “My name is Captain Krig. Commander Jorg sent out a distress call as soon as the Xyrans attacked, and we were on patrol, which is why we got here so quickly. You can put the blaster down now.”

She took a deep breath and slowly lowered the weapon.

“What is your name?”

“Keirah,” she said. “Keirah DeWinter.”

“You’re a loyal woman, aren’t you, Keirah DeWinter?”

Her eyes narrowed. He almost made that sound like it was a bad trait. At that moment, several more Alphan men walked up behind him, and Captain Krig conversed with them in his own language. She’d never had a reason to learn it, so she didn’t know what he was saying, but the next moment they were coming in the room and helping the unconscious men, including Geoff.

“Where are you taking him?” she demanded.

“The men will be taken to the medical bay on my ship,” he told her. “I would like for you to follow me.”

Did she have to? She wanted to follow Geoff. But the look on his face told her that he hadn’t requested her presence. He demanded it.

She tried to push down some primal instinct that warned her this man would change her world forever.