Winners

Sorry everyone, I know I’m running behind with posting the winners for both the B. Jane Lawson giveaway and the Michelle Hauf giveaway. My bad. So without further delay, the two winners from the B. Jane Lawson giveaway are: #9, Denise Z and #4, Jen M!! Congrats! You will each receive a digital copy of B. Jane’s book, To The Cliffside. The winner of the copy of Michelle Hauf’s – A Vampire For Christmas is: #17, Krystal Larson! Congrats to you as well. 🙂

The winners will have 7 days to email me for details about how to collect your books. If I haven’t heard back from someone within 7 days, a new winner will be chosen from the qualifying entries.

Thank you to both of the authors for spending time with us here at SVR and for supplying the giveaway copies! Also, a huge thanks to all my wonderful blog readers/followers for continuing to come by and leave great comments on all my posts. I love you guys!  

Jessica Sorensen Giveaway Winner

I know you’re all dying to find out who won the copies of Jessica Sorensen’s The Fallen Star and The Underworld, so I won’t torture you and make you wait, lol..  Random.org gave me #9, so the winner is Melissa Perea!!! 😀 Congrats! Please email me for details.

As always, many thanks to both Jessica Sorensen for coming by and for the giveaway copies of her books, and to all the wonderful readers & followers who commented. If I haven’t heard back from the winner in 7 days, a new winner will be chosen from the eligible entries.

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I’m still pretty much down & out with this never-ending flu. 😦 I have a few reviews and a guest blog lined up for tomorrow and next week, so bear with my lolly-gagging about because I am just slogging through my flu infested life right now.

Nichole Chase – Guest Blog & Giveaway

 

Today I’m happy to have debut YA Urban Fantasy author, Nichole Chase here with us at SVR to celebrate the release of her book Mortal Obligation! This is the first book in the Dark Betrayal Trilogy and I’ve just started reading it so look for a review soon. Nichole’s written up a great post about where she finds her inspiration. I don’t know about you guys, but I always find it fascinating to know an authors’ thought process when it comes to writing. So grab a coffee or tea and get comfy so you can read Nichole’s guest blog and make sure you stick around for the giveaway at the end of the post! 🙂

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Hi! First and foremost, I would like to thank Judi for inviting me to her blog today! I love meeting new readers and bloggers. My name is Nichole Chase, and I am the author of Mortal Obligation, Book One of The Dark Betrayal Trilogy. Mortal Obligation is a YA urban fantasy set in Savannah,Ga.

Since publishing, I have been asked hundreds of questions,but the one that I hear the most often is, “What inspired you?” or “Where do you get your ideas from?” The honest truth, is that Mortal Obligation began with a stray thought and my over active imagination.

I believe Nora Roberts once said that there is a story in everything; that is exactly how my mind works. One random image or normal scenario can snowball into a story idea. The mailman carrying a package wrapped in hot pink duct tape? Maybe it’s a gift from a little girl to her divorced father. He now lives a few states away and is at work, so the mailman left the package with her father’s new neighbor, the attractive woman that keeps odd hours. What will she think of the package wrapped in hot pick duct tape? Will she think it’s adorable? Will they have a “cute meet” that leads to something else? Or will it be a little darker? When she brings the package over, is she attacked by a creature but saved by the father who hears the commotion on his porch? Now I have to know why she has been attacked, what attacked her, and how she is going to deal with her unsuspecting knight in shining armor.

This is exactly how Mortal Obligation was born. I had the mental image of a girl walking through one of the lush squares that litter the downtown area. She was looking over her shoulder and right away I knew that something was following her. It was obvious from her expression that she knew she was going to have to do something about it. I was hooked at that point. I had to know what was following her and how she was going to save herself. And boy, have I not been disappointed! I spent a lot of time meshing the images in my head with the research I did on the different mythologies of the world. I took a lot of pains to try and include little details that would ring true for people, but keeping them fresh and new. The Dark Betrayal Trilogy was born from a single, random thought, but encompasses all of the things that I would want in a book. Since I love all things paranormal and urban fantasy, it was only natural that my book would fall into those categories.

I love the characters that developed with this story. They are fun, spunky, and so very brave. I also have to admit to having a teensy tiny crush on a couple of the guys, but I ‘ll let you guys figure out which ones I am referring to. Right now I’m working on book 2, Mortal Defiance, and thoroughly loving the chance to spend more time with my characters. I will be wrapping up this book in the next few weeks and then it’s off to my editor, Anne. It will be available in early December, and I can’t wait for everyone to read what happens to Ree and the gang.

Thanks again, Judi, for allowing me to take over your blog for a little while. I hope everyone enjoyed learning a little about my creative process.

Nichole Chase

Nichole’s Blog & Nichole’s Website

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Thanks so much Nichole! It was great to hear about your inspiration and thought process, as well as a pleasure to have you here. 🙂

Giveaway Details:

Nichole Chase has been gracious enough to supply two digital copies of her book, Mortal Obligation for a couple of my lucky readers! Contest is open to Everyone. I believe that Nichole will be popping by to respond to comments or questions as she’s able, so feel free to ask her questions as well.

Question: Do you ever people watch at the mall or some public place and wonder what kind of life those people lead? Or do you make up fantastical stories in your mind about people you see?

For one entry: Please leave a comment with the answer to the question.  (+1 entry)

For extra entries:

I’m going to streamline this, so for each follow on twitter, facebook, goodreads or subscription to my blog, you can add an extra entry but be sure to let me know in your comment along with your username at each of them.

If you tweet about this contest, post it on facebook or post about it in your blog, for each link you provide, you get an extra entry.

• Contest is open to Everyone and will run through October 18th until 11:59pm. The winners will be posted here on October 19th.
• Please leave your email addy in your comment for me to contact you if you’ve won, but please post it like wilmaflinstone(at)boomshakalaka(dot)com so you don’t get any spam. If I haven’t heard back from the winner in 7 days, a new winner will be drawn from the eligible comments. Winners will be chosen on www.random.org  by a random number generator. Good Luck everyone!

Please leave your links in one comment if possible. Thanks!

Deborah Court – Winners

Just a quick post to announce the winners of  the digital copy of Deborah Court’s Bound To The Prince along with the MP3 of Jezebel’s Bound To You, the soundtrack for the book’s trailer! www.Random.org gave me 18, 11 & 21, so a huge Congrats to:

 Proserpine, Audrey De Souza & Credorosax!! 🙂

If all the winners could email me at sidhevicious(at)gmail(dot)com we can work out the details of your prize. If I haven’t heard back from one or more winners in 3 days, new names will be drawn from eligible entrants.

A huge thank you again to Deborah Court for spending some time with us here at SVR and for providing the prizes in the giveaway.

Jessica Sorensen – Guest Blog & Giveaway

   

Today we are happy to have debut YA author Jessica Sorensen here with us at SVR to celebrate the release of her second book in The Fallen Star series, The Underworld! She’s written up a great scene between some of the main characters in the series which had me laughing. This is a good way to get to know some of the characters and have a taste of Jessica’s writing.

Jessica has generously offered up print copies of both The Fallen Star and The Underworld to one lucky commenter! Giveaway details will be at the end of the post. Let’s give Jessica a warm welcome!  🙂

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Being in a jail cell sucks. Especially when you’re locked in one with a very annoying faerie/Foreseer, an overly emotional witch, a Keeper/vampire who just recently discovered his thirst for blood, and a Keeper who can make your skin heat in ways you didn’t even know were possible.

“What are we going to do?” Aislin whined with tears streaming down her cheeks. “This can’t be happening.”

Alex rolled his eyes. “Aislin quit crying.”

She wiped her tears away. “I can’t. I mean, this is so bad—us being locked up in here.” She pointed at Alex and me. “And you two—you can’t be this close to one another.”

She was probably right. Alex and I were sharing a bench with one another. Plus, it was awfully electric in here. That was when I realized Alex’s hand was on top of mine. We both pulled away.

“It smells like feet in here,” Laylen suddenly said, looking over at Nicholas.”Really, really bad.”

Nicholas gave Laylen a dirty look. “It’s not my feet.”

I laughed. “Yeah, his feet probably smell like flowers.” Everyone looked at me and I furrowed my eyebrows. “Sorry, I have no idea where that came from…Well, actually I do. It’s because he smells like flowers.” I was being rude—I knew that, but I didn’t know why.

“It’s so hot in here.” Aislin fanned her hand in front of her face. “And Laylen looks really hot today.”

Awkward silence filled the air.

“Oh my God,” Aislin said. “I don’t know why I said that.”

“You said it because he does look hot today,” I told her and then felt my face heat.

Laylen looked back and forth between Aislin and me. “As much as I love the fact that both of you think I look hot, I think there might be something wrong.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure it’s my feet that smell,” Alex said with his nose scrunched up.

Aislin and I gave Alex a grossed out look and Laylen shook his head and said, “Too much information, dude.”

“If this is what you guys sit around and talk about all day,” Nicholas said, “then I’m a little bit relieved I’m evil and don’t have to listen to it.”

“This is not what we talk about all day,” I informed him. “Mostly we just lie to each other about our feelings…well, that’s me and Alex. Laylen and I actually have very nice talks.” I slapped my hand over my mouth. Why did I say that out loud?

Alex looked both confused and hurt, and then suddenly, he was jumping to his feet. “Hold on a second.” He climbed up on the bench and peeked through a vent on the wall. “Crap.” He turned to us. “There’s a truth tank in there. The room is being ventilated with truth gas.”

“Great!” Aislin cried, nervously twirling her hair around her finger. “Now Laylen’s going to know I still have feelings for him.” Her green eyes widened and she looked down at the floor.

“We already knew that.” Alex gave me an angry look. “But what we didn’t know is that Laylen and Gemma have feelings for each other. At least, that’s what I think.”

“It’s true,” Laylen said, and then his eyebrows dipped down.

Alex looked at me, waiting for me to respond.

I tried to keep my mouth shut, but apparently, the truth gas was stronger. “Sometimes I think I do…I mean, have feelings for Laylen…But I have a lot of feelings for you too, and it’s all really confusing.” I wanted to shrink myself into a little ball and hide. This was so bad.

“You know, when I was little, I wanted to be a ballerina,” Nicholas said.

Okay, so maybe mine wasn’t that bad.

“A boy ballerina,” Nicholas clarified as everyone stared at him.

Alex cocked an eyebrow. “So you wanted to wear a tutu.”

Nicholas crossed his arms and looked over at the wall. “No, I just wanted to dance.”

“That’s great, Nicholas.” Alex gave Laylen an “okay” look.

“Boy’s can be ballerinas, Alex,” Aislin said. “I mean, when you were little, you begged me to teach you how to tap dance.”

“I liked the noise the shoes made,” Alex gritted through his teeth.

Laylen held back a smile. “Was that the only reason?”

Alex shot him an angry look.  “No, I—”

“How about we all just stop talking,” Aislin interrupted, “before something really bad slips out of one of our mouths.”

“Like the fact that you once kissed Nicholas,” Alex said, and Aislin glared at him. “That one was for the tap dance remark.”

“You kissed Nicholas?” Laylen’s bright blue eyes widened with shock. “When?”

“Don’t worry,” Nicholas told him. “It wasn’t when you two were dating or anything.” He paused. “And it wasn’t that great of a kiss…not like when I kissed Gemma.”

I shook my head. “That’s great, except I hated our kiss.” Before I could stop myself I added, “the only person I want to kiss is Alex…well, and sometimes I think about kissing Laylen.”

It got really quiet.

“Awkward,” Nicholas muttered.

“Yeah, I think about kissing you too,” Laylen mumbled with a perplexed look on his face.

“And sometimes I think about punching you,” Alex snapped, stepping toward Laylen.

“Same here,” Laylen bit back.

“Please make it stop,” Aislin wailed, looking up at the ceiling.

“Yes, please do,” I agreed, looking up at the ceiling too, wondering who she was talking to.

Suddenly there was a loud buzz, and then the cell door swung open.

“Times up,” a guard said.

Thank God.

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Thanks Jessica! That was awesome, lol. If you’ve already read the first book, then you know just how great this scene was. 😀

Giveaway Details:

Jessica Sorensen has been gracious enough to supply one print copy of each of her books The Fallen Star & The Underworld! That’s right, one winner will receive both of her books! Contest is open to Everyone. I believe that Jessica will be popping by to respond to comments or questions as she’s able, so feel free to ask her questions as well.

Question: Have you ever had a really awkward moment with someone you were really attracted to? Fess up and give us some details!

For one entry: Please leave a comment with the answer to the question.  (+1 entry)

For extra entries:

I’m going to streamline this, so for each follow on twitter, facebook, goodreads or subscription to my blog, you can add an extra entry but be sure to let me know in your comment along with your username at each of them.

If you tweet about this contest, post it on facebook or post about it in your blog, for each link you provide, you get an extra entry.

• Contest is open to Everyone and will run through October 12th until 11:59pm. The winners will be posted here on October 13th.
• Please leave your email addy in your comment for me to contact you if you’ve won, but please post it like wilmaflinstone(at)boomshakalaka(dot)com so you don’t get any spam. If I haven’t heard back from the winner in 7 days, a new winner will be drawn from the eligible comments. Winners will be chosen on www.random.org  by a random number generator. Good Luck everyone!

Please leave your links in one comment if possible. And yes I know I should get that Rafflecopter everyone’s using, lol.  Thanks!

 

 

Emma Raveling – Guest Post & Giveaway

We’re excited to have YA Paranormal author Emma Raveling here with us at SVR today to celebrate the release of the first book in the Ondine Quartet – Whirl.  She’s written up a fun guest blog of her interviewing the main character in Whirl, Kendra! So read on to learn a bit more about this book that definitely caught my attention and there’s a giveaway at the end of the post too! Let’s all give Emma a warm welcome. 🙂

Book Blurb: 

“Seventeen-year-old Kendra Irisavie is an ondine, a water elemental caught in the middle of an ancient war with the Aquidae, immortal dark demons who will stop at nothing to destroy the fragile balance of the Elemental world.

Fierce and independent, Kendra has always played by her own rules. Gifted with the powerful magic of Virtue and trained to be a deadly fighter, she has spent her life breaking hearts and getting into trouble.

When her life explodes one violent night in a northern California city, a dark stranger appears, promising answers to her mysterious past. Alone and with no one to trust, she must now navigate through a dangerous new world, face the temptations of a forbidden romance, and remain true to her duty and destiny.

All while the Aquidae continue to hunt her down, in the hopes of eliminating her forever…

An edgy urban fantasy/paranormal romance, Whirl is recommended for older teens and mature readers due to strong language and mild sexual situations.”

Welcome to SVR Emma!

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 Hi everyone. First, I want to thank Judi for having me on her blog. Today I’ll be interviewing Kendra, the main character of Whirl and the entire
Ondine Quartet series.

Emma: Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions, Kendra.

Kendra: Sure.

Emma: Tell us a little about yourself.

Kendra: Not much to tell. I’m a seventeen-year-old Ondine living in
California.

Emma: And what exactly is an ondine?

Kendra: An Ondine is a water elemental. Unlike our dessondine ancestors
(creepy immortal creatures that live underwater *shudders*), we’re
mortal because of our part-human blood and we live on land.

Emma: What’s the best part of being an ondine?

Kendra: Probably my Virtue, which is the magic of Empath. I have to admit,
it’s very useful.

Emma: Really? What do you use it for?

Kendra: Things like playing poker at a club or figuring out how guys think.
And, of course, knowing what a teacher is feeling makes it easy to come up with
creative ways of getting out of class.

Emma: You use other people’s emotions to gain information?

Kendra: *shrugs* Sure. I mean it’s the cornerstone of my tactical
training with my mom. Gather as much intel as you can so you have every single
option available to you. How can you plan effectively if you don’t have enough
info?

Emma: Don’t you mean scheme rather than plan? After all, you do get a
certain look on your face when…

Kendra: *rolls eyes* I do not have a look.

Emma: Um, actually in the book there were several moments where…

Kendra: Yeah, well. Just because you’re the writer doesn’t mean you know
everything about me.

Emma: I see. You’re very confident.

Kendra: *gives dangerous smile*

Emma: You also seem rather private. Do you allow others to get close to you?

Kendra: *long pause* Emotions are only useful for gathering
information. Having friends or forming relationships and attachments
creates…unnecessary complications. My mother taught me that.

Emma: Your mother, Naida Irisavie, trained you your entire life. Anything you
can share with us about that?

Kendra: She raised me to be a fighter. Being Rogue, we live among humans
outside of ondine communities. Those nasty Aquidae demons are crawling
everywhere – gotta be ready for an attack at any moment.

Emma: Besides pursuing your martial arts training, what kind of things do
you enjoy doing?

Kendra: I love prowling the city at night. It’s a whole other feeling, you
know? It feels like…I’m free. Alone and going to clubs – I really enjoy dancing
and working off restless energy with the guys I meet there.

Emma: Doesn’t your mother object to you running around alone at night? I
mean, with all the Aquidae out there…

Kendra: What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.

Emma: So you sneak around at night…

Kendra: *glares*

Emma: Oh, excuse me. I meant, wow. You are a shadowy warrior, a ninja
who stealthily makes the night her own.

Ninja Kendra

 Kendra: *sniffs* That’s better.

Emma: And now for the random portion – please answer as quickly as you can:

⁃
Favorite clothing accessory: My dagger, given to me by my mother on my thirteenth birthday.

⁃
Chocolate or vanilla: Neither. Not big on the sweet stuff.

⁃
Red, pink, black, blue, or purple: Sky blue

⁃
Most important value to you: Strength

⁃
Your worst nightmare: Being caged or locked up

⁃
Your greatest desire: To take out as many Aquidae as I can.

Emma: Thanks for taking the time to stop by.

Kendra: Anytime.

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Thanks so much Emma & Kendra! 🙂

Giveaway Details:

Emma Raveling has been gracious enough to supply a digital copy of her ebook Whirl to one of my readers! Contest is open to Everyone. I believe that Emma will be popping in to respond to comments or questions as she’s able, so feel free to ask her questions as well.

Question: We all know that Vampires, Weres, Demons & Angels have been some of the most popular paranormal characters out there and an Ondine is a relatively unknown supernatural being. What other supernatural or paranormal beings would you like to see more of in either books, TV or movies that aren’t one of the more popular ones? 

For one entry: Please leave a comment with the answer to the question.  (+1 entry)

For extra entries:

I’m going to streamline this, so for each follow on twitter, facebook, goodreads or subscription to my blog, you can add an extra entry but be sure to let me know in your comment along with your username at each of them.

If you tweet about this contest, put up on facebook or post about it in your blog, for each link you provide, you get an extra entry.

• Contest is open to Everyone and will run through October 5thth until 11:59pm. The winners will be posted here on October 6th.
• Please leave your email addy in your comment for me to contact you if you’ve won, but please post it like wilmaflinstone(at)boomshakalaka(dot)com so you don’t get any spam. If I haven’t heard back from the winner in 7 days, a new winner will be drawn from the eligible comments. Winners will be chosen by a random number generator. Good Luck everyone!

Please leave your links in one comment if possible. And yes I know I should get that Rafflecopter everyone’s using, lol.  Thanks!

 

SVR – Updates & News

First, we have a winner from the Kait Nolan – Red giveaway. The www.random.org pulled #22, so a big Congrats to mdchristie!! 🙂 Please email me at sidhevicious(at)gmail(dot)com to find out the details to receive your e-book & digital download of the CD. A huge “Thanks” again to Kait Nolan for supplying the giveaway prizes and for spending some time with us here at SVR.

I’m throwing it out there into the interwebs again – I’m still looking for another reviewer, so if you have an eReader and want to get some reviewing experience because you love to share your awesome reads and thoughts about them with others, then please contact me for more information! If you know someone who’s been thinking about it, then give them a nudge and send them my way! *Grins*

Our reviewer Tori is currently recuperating from being a bit down and out right now, so let’s all send her get well soon wishes and lots of virtual balloons & hugs!

I’m keeping this short and sweet because I have another great Guest Blog & Giveaway to post today.

Deborah Court – Guest Blog & Giveaway

Today on SVR we’re happy to have paranormal romance/erotica author Deborah Court joining us for a guest blog & giveaway! She’s here to celebrate her new release, Bound To The Prince, which I am really looking forward to reading ASAP. Hello smexy times with a hot Eleven Prince! 😀 Deborah’s written up a great guest post about why she’s a fan of the pointy-eared Fae and has included a super steamy excerpt to give you all a taste of her book.

(As a responsible book blogger/adult, I will give fair warning that this book is in the Erotica category, so if you’re under 18, you should “Look away les innocents, look away!”)

There’s also a giveaway at the end of the post, so read on adult book connoisseurs!

Elven Warriors and Damsels in Distress – The World of “Bound to the Prince”

Dear readers, my name is Deborah Court, and I am delighted to be a guest writer on Judi’s wonderful blog today.

I write Paranormal Romances. The really steamy sort. With elven warriors of deadly beauty, capable of making a woman die from sheer pleasure.

Intrigued? Oh yes. Admit it. Who hasn’t secretly dreamed of being in the arms of one of those magically gifted, pointy-eared immortals? They are graceful and supernaturally strong, their movements so perfectly balanced that you wouldn’t want to meet them in battle. Elves are beautiful and irresistible. You want to braid their long, silken hair, let it slide through your fingers.

And you definitely want to know how they’ll use their magic when they make love to you on a bed of golden leaves. Ahem. Sorry, I got carried away.

Ever since I first read The Lord of the Rings at age thirteen, I was hooked on elves. Those beautiful, immortal creatures fascinated me right from the start, and I fell instantly in love with Legolas the first time I saw Orlando Bloom in his elven costume, climbing a mountain in an early preview trailer of the first LOTR movie. Legolas totally kicked *ss. Remember him counting the orcs he killed in a brotherly competition with dwarf Gimli, and how he slid down the giant oliphant’s trunk? He was very different from those ethereal elves in long, flowing robes that glided along the halls of Rivendell.

Elfquest, a graphic novel by Wendy and Richard Pini, strongly influenced my imagination, as well. Years later, the elven fever struck me again when I saw the movie Hellboy 2 which featured an elven villain, Nuada, fascinatingly portrayed by Luke Goss. Still I longed for a darkly romantic kind of elf. I wanted him to be seductive, masculine and dangerous, but also clever and cunning. Finally I felt inspired to create my
own elven hero, Elathan. This was the moment I started to write Bound to the Prince, and the story began to develop a life of its own.

Fallen from grace, elven warrior prince Elathan is living in exile, separated from his own people. He despises humans; yet he has chosen to live among them, hidden in underground caves. When he beholds a compelling mortal woman on a London bridge one night, he abducts her and takes her to his lair, commanding her to be his slave of pleasure.

Igraine Chandler, a nurse from New Jersey, might not be everyone’s idea of a perfect romantic heroine. Recently dumped by her faithless fiancé, she’s heartbroken and bereft of all her hopes and dreams. At the start of the story, we find her questioning whether her life holds any meaning. But she soon finds herself in a world beyond her wildest dreams, fighting at the side of an elven prince, as she tries to help him reclaim his throne. But can she survive a night of untamed passion in the arms of a Fae?

Whatever happens, this night will change her forever and she’ll find herself craving far more than carnal pleasure. Igraine will need to be prepared to die for the immortal love of a prince.

Read an excerpt of Bound to the Prince below. For more excerpts and fun stuff, head over to my homepage
(http://www.deborahcourt.com). You can also visit my blog (http://deborahcourt.blogspot.com), Goodreads site (http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5136834.Deborah_Court) and follow me on Twitter (http://twitter.com/#!/Deborah_Court_) or Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100002593778901). You might also like to watch the book trailer
here: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2aNbLYUI8w)

Bound to the Prince is available at Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Bound-to-the-Prince-ebook/dp/B005GA9C6M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1315465467&sr=8-1), Smashwords (http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/82526), Barnes & Noble (http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1105160239?ean=2940011477959&itm=1&usri=deborah%2bcourt) and iTunes (http://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/bound-to-the-prince/id460280664?mt=11).

Yours truly,
Deborah

* * * * *

(I’m going to jump in here and just give fair warning that this excerpt is on the “smexy-steamier” side, so if you’re under 18, consider yourself warned) – Sidhe

Excerpt from “Bound to the Prince”)

© 2011 Deborah Court

Elathan stood at the edge of the lake, waiting for Igraine to serve him. “What do you want me to do, my Lord?” she asked, still avoiding looking at his private parts.

“Don’t you filthy humans even know how to wash?” he hissed impatiently. He gestured to the ornate table. “These vials contain soaps and oils. Use them to bathe my body, slave.” The prince stepped under the waterfall, rinsing off part of the mud, but it stuck to his skin and hair. Igraine sniffed at some of the bottles, inhaling their wonderful, unknown scents. Some of them were fresh, others musky, but clearly intended for use on the gorgeous body of the male who was showering right in front of her, naked. Water droplets glistened on his skin, running down from his chest to his flat, rippling stomach and still further down, gathering at … “Why do I feel like I’m in midst of a Cool Water commercial now?” she nervously murmured, wincing when the elf threw her a glance that clearly declared her a lunatic.

Sighing, Igraine took a small green bottle containing a soapy liquid and followed the prince. Elathan stepped out of his natural shower without even looking at her. Closing his eyes, he turned his broad back to Igraine, with the unspoken order to wash him. She poured some of the aromatic soap into the palm of her hand. The mud was diluted by the water, but it still ran in dark streams over the elf’s body, down over his hips and his muscular backside, dripping over his thighs. It collected in a puddle at his feet.

Igraine’s hands trembled when she reached out to touch him. “May I …?” she said softly. “What are you waiting for?” Elathan replied. Despite the harsh words, his voice was low and hoarse. She couldn’t see the expression of his face from behind, but she noticed his rigid posture. His contempt for her was obvious.

Taking a deep breath, she fought back her tears and started with his dirty hair, lathering it with the luxurious soap. Black, muddy water ran through her fingers and down her arms. When she had worked the soap into the whole silken length, she reached up to massage his scalp. Elathan stiffened before tilting his head back so she could reach him more easily. After she had washed all the mud out of his hair, she reached out to touch his shoulders, covering his pale skin with the soap.

Elathan stiffened even more, looking like a statue of stone now. Her hands wandered to the sides of his neck to wash the dirt away, then moved down over his shoulders, rubbing him in circles. His skin was smooth and soft as velvet over his rock-hard muscles. She longed to touch him, ferociously. No man had ever affected her so much. Just being close to him made her a weak creature, driven by the most primitive desire to mate.

Now that he couldn’t see her shamelessly staring at him, she was safe to admire his muscular back. It was built like an artist’s masterpiece. The scars marring his alabaster skin only enhanced his beauty. Without them, the sight would be too perfect for human eyes to endure. They were old, faint scars, diagonally crisscrossing all over his back. Igraine suddenly realized that the prince had been whipped, even if it had obviously happened long ago. Tears stinging in her eyes, she lightly traced the scars with her fingers while she washed his back. Although she didn’t dare, she longed to touch those reminders of his torment with her lips, kissing the ancient pain away.

Continuing with his waist, she found some very nasty grime there, sticking to the prince’s skin. As she rubbed his sides to get them clean, Elathan seemed to wince. She paused, but when he said nothing, she rubbed some more. He winced again, apparently trying to escape her touch. At first she stared at his back, baffled for a moment. Maybe he didn’t like her to touch him anymore. But then she understood.

The merciless, battle-hardened elven prince was ticklish.

Amazed by her discovery, she pondered about tickling him some more, but decided against it. She should not tempt her fate too much. Instead she reached around his waist and began to wash his wide chest, feeling his strong heartbeat and the heat of his skin. He was so tall that she had to press her body against his back to reach him with her arms. Moving down, she soaped his flat stomach, feeling the tense muscles under her fingertips. Elathan seemed to breathe more heavily now. For a moment, she asked herself what would happen if she dared to go even deeper, washing him … there. When she had finished and withdrew her arms, she glanced down at his butt. Heavens, this was too good to be true – so smooth, perfectly rounded and tight. She wondered if he would allow her to wash him there, too.

Suddenly a mischievous grin spread across her face. Well, even if he would kill her afterwards, this princely backside would be worth it. Now your ass is mine, Your Royal Highness, she thought. She just couldn’t help it. Then her hands touched his muscular buttocks, lathering the soap in small circles over the skin. Maybe being an elven prince’s slave wasn’t going to be so bad, after all. When Elathan moaned ever so softly, she couldn’t hold herself back anymore. A small giggle escaped her lips.

Strong hands grabbed her upper arms. Igraine was whirled around until she stared directly into Elathan’s furious face, his golden eyes burning with anger. Before she could move or utter a sound, he picked her up like a weightless doll and threw her into the lake.

All of this happened so quickly that she didn’t even have time to hold her breath. She sank into the dark water and struggled for a moment in panic. Then she managed to reach the surface and came up, coughing and gasping for air. Bewildered, she was still wondering what had happened when Elathan was suddenly in there with her, wading through the lake and quickly rinsing off the soap from his hair and body. His
pitiless grin let her know that he found her distress entertaining.

“You!” she shouted angrily, shoving against his chest with both hands. The fact that his eyes widened with surprise gave her a certain amount of satisfaction, but not enough. “Prince or not, who the hell do you think you are? First you abduct and enslave me, threatening to kill me if I don’t obey your every wish and whim. You hate humans, and still you don’t bother to kill me. Instead, you seem to enjoy your little game of humiliating me. Why don’t you finally get it over with, elf? You incredibly arrogant, insufferable…”

He grabbed her wrists and bent her arms behind her back with a swift movement. Simultaneously, he silenced her with a hard, passionate kiss.

* * * * *

Thanks Deborah! Whew, it got warm in here, lol. 😀

 Giveaway Details:

Deborah Court has been gracious enough to supply 3 digital copies of her ebook Bound To The Prince & Each winner also gets an mp3 of the book soundtrack song,  “Bound to You” by Jezebel along with the book! That’s right, there will be three winners. Contest is open to Everyone.  I believe that Deborah will be popping by to respond to comments or questions as she’s able, so feel free to ask her questions as well.

Question: What was the first supernatural creature that you saw on TV or in a film that got you thinking about what it would be like to “hook up” with a being like that? (C’mon, you know you’ve thought about it, lol). 

For one entry: Please leave a comment with the answer to the question.  (+1 entry)

For extra entries:

I’m going to streamline this, so for each follow on twitter, facebook, goodreads or subscription to my blog, you can add an extra entry but be sure to let me know in your comment along with your username at each of them.

If you tweet about this contest, put up on facebook or post about it in your blog, for each link you provide, you get an extra entry.

• Contest is open to Everyone and will run through September 29th until 11:59pm. The winners will be posted here on September 30th.
• Please leave your email addy in your comment for me to contact you if you’ve won, but please post it like wilmaflinstone(at)boomshakalaka(dot)com so you don’t get any spam. If I haven’t heard back from the winner in 7 days, a new winner will be drawn from the eligible comments. Winners will be chosen by a random number generator. Good Luck everyone!

Please leave your links in one comment if possible. And yes I know I should get that Rafflecopter everyone’s using, lol.  Thanks!

 

 

Kait Nolan – Guest Blog & Giveaway

We’re excited to have Paranormal Romance author, Kait Nolan, here with us at SVR today! She’s celebrating the release of her new YA novel, Red, (which I loved! See my review here). She’s written up a fascinating & funny post on What Constitutes A Fairy Tale. I know that I definitely enjoyed reading it and I’m thinking that you, yes, all you awesome readers out there, will love it too!

Kait’s generously offered up an ebook copy of Red and a MP3 digital download of  End Of Silence by the band, Red!! The cd was one of Kait’s inspirations while writing the novel. One lucky commenter will win both the ebook and the MP3 download. Details for the giveaway will follow Kait’s Guest Blog. 🙂

“Welcome to my lair Kait, you may proceed…”

What makes a fairy tale?

 If you ask the average person, “What makes a fairy tale?” you’re likely to get a flurry of answers involving Once upon a time, damsels in distress, noble princes, magic, and happily ever after.  Certainly this is the formula of tale most of us grew up with for bedtime stories.  But I can think of quite a few fairy tales that don’t fit that description, so it seems like the essential qualities of fairy tales must be something more.

It’s a simple question that ought to have a simple answer.  A quick Google search will tell you otherwise.  Opinions vary widely as to what constitutes a fairy tale vs. a folk tale or a fable.  For my purposes, I’m not interested in making that clear a distinction.  At the root, all of these story types evolved from oral tradition.  Which is why, so often, such stories begin with A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…oh wait, no, that’s not how it goes.  But you know what I mean.  This kind of phrasing sets the mood for the tale and automatically establishes a set of expectations in the reader/watcher/listener.

It’s gonna happen in some time and place removed from our own. There’s a universality to fairy tales.  They’re told in such a way that, even if they’ve taken on regional color with the telling, they could be heard almost anywhere in the world and it would be the same story.  It’s not attached to a real place or time—that’s a characteristic of legends, which is outside the scope of our discussion.

It’s gonna have a Good Guy. Well, most stories do, obviously.  This is our hero, who may be anybody from a prince to a humble farmer.  He may be kind and innocent.  He may be clever.  Or he may go through the story helped by others.  Or maybe he’s not that nice at all and has to learn a lesson over the course of the story. Beast anyone?

Good Guy’s gonna encounter a problem. Said problem might be an actual Bad Guy or it might be situational.  But either way Good Guy has to find a solution to the problem.  It’s important to note that this might not actually be a happy ending.  In the original Hans Christian Andersen version of The Little Mermaid, the prince actually marries somebody else, and if the Little Mermaid wants her voice back, she’s supposed to murder the prince and his new bride.  Yeah, I like the version with Scuttle and Flounder better too. (Side note: She doesn’t do it.)

There’s probably gonna be some kind of magic or enchantment. This seems to be one of the big divides between fairy tales and folk stories.  In folk stories, the hero typically has to rely on his wits.  In fairy tales, magic is kind of a must.  The Little Mermaid makes a bargain with the Sea Witch to get legs.  The spoiled prince is so awful to the hag woman that she turns him into the beast he behaves like.  The beanstalk grows from magic beans.

The story is probably gonna convey some sort of prohibition or consequences for breaking some prohibition. Sleeping Beauty isn’t supposed to touch the spindle on that spinning wheel (which, in the original story, is symbolic of, ahem, something else) or she’ll die (…not in death, but just in sleep, the fateful prophecy will keep…).  As safe sex campaigns go, I’m not sure how effective that one was.  Red Riding Hood (in the familiar version rather than the one I use in my YA paranormal Red) was warned not to talk to strangers.  Her talking to strangers got her grandmother eaten.  And in that version, Grandma doesn’t make it, and the wolf winds up boiled in oil.

The story is probably gonna convey a universal truth. This is one of the biggies, for me.  This is why fairy tales, folk tales, and the like actually last.  They have become archetypal to human culture, and variations of the same stories can be heard all over the world because they spark something in our imaginations and hearts, such that we’re still telling stories that originated hundreds of years ago.  And that, in its own way, is some very powerful magic.

Bio:

Kait Nolan is stuck in an office all day, sometimes juggling all three of her jobs at once with the skill of a trained bear—sometimes with a similar temperament. After hours, she uses her powers for good, creating escapist fiction. The work of this Mississippi native is packed with action, romance, and the kinds of imaginative paranormal creatures you’d want to sweep you off your feet…or eat your boss.  When she’s not working or writing, she’s in her kitchen, heading up a revolution to Retake Homemade from her cooking blog, Pots and Plots.

You can catch up with her at her blog, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

Her debut YA paranormal, Red, is currently available from Smashwords, Amazon, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Barnes and Noble, and All Romance EBooks.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————–

 

Thanks so much Kait. It was a blast having you here with us. 😀

Giveaway Details:

Kait Nolan has been gracious enough to supply a digital copy of her novel Red & a digital MP3 download of the band Red’s CD, End Of Silence to giveaway to one of my readers! Contest is open to Everyone. Kait’s more than likely off globe-trotting in one of her upcoming novels right now, or she could just be at the evil day job, but I believe that she’ll be popping by to respond to comments or questions as she’s able, so feel free to ask her questions as well.

Question: What do you find fascinating about fairy tales? Do you have a chilhood favorite? If you could write a really well written rewrite of one of those fairy tales, which one would you pick?  

For one entry: Please leave a comment with the answer to one or all of the questions.  (+1 entry)

For extra entries:

• Subscribe to my blog, Sidhe Vicious Reviews, through the links at the top right hand side of the blog, and let me know in your comment. Be sure you verify your subscription through the email you’ll receive or it won’t count. (+1 entry)
• If you’re already subscribed, you’ll receive two extra entries, but be sure to let me know in the comments if you’re an old follower. (+2 entries)
• Post a link to this contest on your Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace, GoodReads, LibraryThing, or on your blog and send me the link either in the comments or by email and you’ll get an extra entry for each place you add a link to. ( + 1 entry each for  however many links you’ve done)
• Follow me on Twitter, Add me as a friend on FaceBook, GoodReads, MySpace, Chapters Community or LibraryThing. Tell me your user name in the comments. (+ 1 entry each for however many places you’ve followed/friended me)
• Follow Kait Nolan on Twitter  ( +1 entry )
• Contest is open to Everyone and will run through September 20th until 11:59pm. The winners will be posted here on September 21st.
• Please leave your email addy in your comment for me to contact you if you’ve won, but please post it like wilmaflinstone(at)boomshakalaka(dot)com so you don’t get any spam. If I haven’t heard back from the winner in 7 days, a new winner will be drawn from the eligible comments. Winners will be chosen by a random number generator. Good Luck everyone!

Please leave your links in one comment if possible. And yes I know I should get that Rafflecopter everyone’s using, lol.  Thanks!

Winners – JK Beck & Jennifer Rardin

Congratulations!!

I have a couple of winners to post today, first, for the copy of JK Beck’s When Pleasure Rules courtesy of the lovely lady herself and second, for a copy of one of Jennifer Rardin’s Jaz Parks books. I was really impressed with all your answers to both questions!

I am blown away by JK Beck’s new series and encourage you all to try to get your hands on a copy of either When Blood Calls or When Pleasure Rules, which are both out now. If you can’t get out to buy a copy right away, then harass your local library to bring some in for you to borrow. 🙂

I’m still a bit in shock over Jennifer Rardin’s passing, so sad. I saw a comment on Twitter last week that bothered me a bit, but I won’t get into it here. Suffice it to say that if I had a bunch of money, I would send a copy of any one of Jen’s books to everyone who commented. That’s how much I love the Jaz Parks series! Unfortunately, I can’t afford to do so, but I wanted to honor her memory by sharing my love of her awesome books and getting the word out about this great series. I hope you all find a way to read the series, so you can enjoy the legacy that Jen left with her writing.

So, on to the winner of When Pleasure Rules by JK Beck. Random.org picked #42, so SiNn whose email begins with “mortalsinn…” Congrats!!

Next up is the winner of a copy of one of Jen Rardin’s Jaz Parks books. Random.org picked #11, so Tynga whose email begins with “Tyngauf….” Congrats!! Tynga chose book 2, Another One Bites The Dust.

I will be emailing both the winners and they have 5 days to get back to me with their snail mail info so we can send your books out. If I don’t hear back from the winners, a new name will be drawn out of the eligible entrants. I will be shipping the Jennifer Rardin book out via The Book Depository.

Thank you again to everyone who entered. I love you guys! 😀 There are currently two contests still on the go here at SVR. Erica Hayes is giving away a copy of Poison Kissed to a commenter and Moira Rogers is giving away a digital copy of A Safe Harbor, so be sure to go and leave a comment to be entered.