Adriana Kraft

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Blog Tour: A Case of Madness by Yvonne Knop @yvonne_ponk #ContemporaryGayRomance @gaybookpromo

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BLOG TOUR

Book Title: A Case of Madness (Or the Curious Appearance of Holmes in the Nighttime)

Author: Yvonne Knop

Publisher: Improbable Press

Cover Artist: Ksenia Spizhevaya

Release Date: March 20, 2023

Genres: Adult Contemporary M/M Rom-Com

Tropes: Opposites attract, Emotional scars, Grumpy/sunshine

Themes: Coming out, friendship, mental illness, love

Heat Rating: 2 flames

Length: 82 000 words/272 pages

It is a standalone book and does not end on a cliffhanger.

Goodreads

 

Buy Links

Publisher | Amazon US | Amazon UK

 

A world-weary Sherlock Holmes scholar loses his job and his sanity when the great detective materializes in his flat to help solve a mystery that involves a handsome male stranger. What ensues is a thrilling adventure in literature, London, and love.

 

Blurb

Andrew Thomas just got sacked. He’s permanently drunk. He’s got cancer. Is inescapably gay. Was hit by a bus. And he’s fallen in love with a stranger whose life he saved.

As a newly-unemployed Sherlock Holmes scholar, Andrew knows only Holmes can help him untangle the madness his life has become, but Holmes isn’t real. Except he absolutely appeared in Andrew’s house, told him he’s in love with a man he just met…and then in a fit of pique Andrew sent him away.

Sure Holmes is probably a hallucination or a specter or a ghost, but now Andrew desperately needs his help. So to find the answer to his case and the man of his dreams, Andrew takes to chasing a fictional character through London with his very own Watson.

Excerpt

While strolling amid the students and scholars rushing into the University of London, I ignored the urge to check my pocket watch.

If there was ever a day to dawdle, it was today. The first day of summer that actually felt like the season it claimed to be. And the day of my personal disaster.

It wasn’t a ‘this train will split at the next station and you just sat down with your meal deal’ disaster, but it was equally inconvenient. After decades of laboring in academia, I was about to become involuntarily unemployed. Apart from that – and this might be even more important – I was also going to die.

To delay the confrontation a bit longer, I looked for a shaded place to smoke and then took long, luxurious drags on my cigarette. A cough struggled to tear itself free from my chest, but I suppressed it. Not now. Focus.

Few people knew my name or my publications. But some such people existed – people who were as fascinated by a very specific man as I was, and who seemed to value my works more than I did. The man I wrote about lived in Baker Street, and he was partly to blame for my situation. Though I liked to think of myself as a charmingly anachronistic gentleman, I increasingly felt I was just a dafter in a fine suit who lurked around public buildings. Instead of engaging in modern life, I was immersed in the world of Sherlock Holmes and all things Victorian, with the natural effect of many acquaintances leaving or going extinct. It wasn’t that I didn’t like the company of others; it was that I struggled in the company of others. And they struggled in the company of me.

You see, the fact that I knew my dearest detective had appeared on-screen in over two hundred and twenty adaptations did not give me much hope I would find out what people did for fun. But what of fun? What about achievement? Holmes is the most filmed novel character of all time – among humans, at least; Dracula has been filmed even more often. This connection filled me with joy, and I believed it could be combined in a curious way. Dracula Holmes: he investigates at night because he’s not just a detective, no – he’s also a vampire. Greedy for blood and knowledge.

I finished my cigarette and stepped from the shadows only to immediately collide with a young man in the most colorful trainers I’d ever seen. In a split-second knockout victory, he fell to the ground covered in the flyers he had been holding in his hand just seconds before.

I bent down immediately to help him. “I’m so sorry,” I said, quickly picking up his flyers from the pavement. At least those which hadn’t fallen into the grey puddle right next to us.

“It’s okay,” he said, and he looked at me. His blue eyes seemed friendly though his gaze was intense.

I quickly looked down again. To my surprise, the flyers weren’t gig announcements or takeaway adverts. In fact, they were promoting something very dear to my heart. “I like theater,” I said, handing him back a few of the flyers. “I thought theater was dead for young people.”

He smiled. “Most young people get run over by perfect strangers.

That’s why so few make it to the stage. Anyway…I’m still alive.”

That he was. Alive, handsome, and holding a slim stack of remaining flyers. Slightly crumpled.

“I’m far from perfect,” I remarked, thinking of the trouble I had caused him.

 

About the Author

Yvonne is a bi and nonbinary writer who dedicates their free time to extending the secret Gay Agenda – in part through their debut novel A Case of Madness.

Although born and raised in the north of Germany, Yvonne’s passion for Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Who, their sassy humor, and aversion to talking on public transport made them suspiciously British from early on.

As a natural matter of cause and effect, Yvonne moved to London in 2014 and started to write (a novel for the drawer). No word was written until 2017 when the sudden question of ‘What if I could talk to Sherlock Holmes?’ came up to them.

Conducting PhD research in the world’s most extensive Sherlock Holmes collection, located in Minneapolis, USA, was a great help for answering that question. The result was not a PhD, but their debut novel A Case of Madness, originally written in German and in a bold move translated by the author themselves when nobody in Germany understood a word they were saying.

 

 

Author Links

Blog/Website | Instagram | Twitter

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Release Blitz! Sweet as Pie, by Beth Bolden @beth_bolden #GayRomance #SmallTown #Giveaway

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RELEASE BLITZ

Book Title: Sweet as Pie

Author and Publisher: Beth Bolden

Cover Artist: Morningstar Ashley Designs

Release Date: April 13, 2023

Genre: Contemporary MM romance

Tropes: Grumpy/sunshine, opposites attract, small town

Themes: Family responsibilities, necessary change, unexpected love

Heat Rating: 4 flames

Length: 80 000 words

It is a standalone story.

Goodreads

 

Buy Links – Kindle Unlimited

Universal Link | Amazon US | Amazon UK

 

 

Blurb

Luca Moretti is grumpy—and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

Wrangling six—Italian—siblings and the family’s restaurants would make anyone cranky. But when his mother requests that he save his aunt’s struggling Italian deli in charming, picturesque Indigo Bay, he has no idea that he’s about to overdose on sweetness.

Luca expected his aunt’s stubbornness—she’s a Moretti, isn’t she?—and his cousin’s resistance to actual work, but the last thing he expected is the absolute ball of sunshine known as Oliver Billings.

Oliver loves Indigo Bay. Loves owning his small artisan bakery, Sweetie Pie’s. Helps nice old ladies cross the street. Even volunteers for the local Sweethearts Festival.

Sweet isn’t really Luca’s style, or so he thinks. But when he discovers Oliver can be a little spicy too, his prickly exterior begins to crumble like a well-baked crust.

If Luca isn’t careful, he’s going to develop a taste for sweets—and a particular baker’s pie.

And one or two servings will never be enough.

 

Excerpt

“Ah, they sent the fixer out.” Oliver sounded amused again. “I can see it. You’re definitely more of a fixer than a baker.”

Luca shrugged. “I run my family’s four restaurants. They do not typically need fixing.” Don’t be arrogant, don’t be arrogant. “But Nonna’s Deli here, it is . . .an investment of ours. Not directly under my control. So I’m not here to order changes but to . . .suggest them. Nicely.”

“Which is how they’ve managed to underperform all these years,” Oliver said with another of those smirks. They shouldn’t have been so frustratingly attractive. But Luca felt them deep down, stirring him up in a way he hadn’t expected.

Oliver was definitely a very attractive package, one he’d love to unwrap.

Would he be as sweet as promised? Or a little salty too? Maybe even a bit spicy?

“You could say that,” Luca said. “Part of the proposed changes are aligning the menu more directly with our other restaurants. And that includes fresh bread, daily. Nonna’s here doesn’t have the staff, the resources, or the equipment to do this, but you do.”

“I do,” Oliver conceded. “My schedule’s already pretty packed, but I suppose I could fit you in. French bread? Sourdough bread? Focaccia? Rolls? Loaves? How many dozen per day?”

Luca liked every part of Oliver he’d seen so far. He was charming and sweet and undeniably adorable. Then there was how goddamned sexy he was when he got down to business.

“I’m not sure yet,” Luca said. “In fact, they may not need any at all. Giana and Enzo have my proposed changes, but they are not required to accept all of them—or any of them, actually.”

“You must hate that, not being able to actually impose your control over them.” Oliver said it casually, like a true control-freak business owner, like he understood.

How did Oliver know how much he hated it? Was it that obvious? Was it written all over his face that he’d love nothing more than to march down the street and tell Giana and Enzo exactly what to do?

“Yes,” Luca admitted.

“Nonna’s isn’t just an Italian affectation, is it? Was there actually a Nonna?” Oliver asked.

“My grandmother.”

“Ah, well, there you go.” Oliver leaned back, grinning. Luca wanted to chase him, but he stayed on his side of the table, with what he thought was pretty admirable restraint.

“So why does Enzo dislike you so much?” Luca asked.

“That’s a long story. And I’ve got to tend to these rolls. If they overproof . . .” Oliver shrugged. “I’m a perfectionist, what can I say?”

“If he supposedly turns against you every chance he gets, what’s he going to say,” Luca said, deploying the most persuasive smile in his arsenal, “when he finds out I want to hire you to bake our bread? I need the insider info. Need to be able to convince him it’s a good idea.”

“It’s not going to help you, and you’re not going to like it,” Oliver said. “Though, you sorta look like there’s plenty of things you don’t like.”

But I like you. “You’re not wrong.” It was hard to admit it, but there it was. He was particular, okay? Particular and more than a little arrogant about his particularity.

Maybe it was good Oliver knew that now, even if all they ever had was a date and a night—though even that was still up in the air.

“We dated,” Oliver said. His watch beeped, and he stood, just as he’d left Luca speechless for another long moment. “Well,” he amended, with a cute little shrug. “It was one date. But still. He wanted to continue. I did not. And that’s the story.”

“That wasn’t a very long story,” Luca managed, and was he trailing after Oliver in his own bakery like a lost puppy looking for his owner? Yes, he was, a little.

 

About the Author

A lifelong Pacific Northwester, Beth Bolden has just recently moved to North Carolina with her supportive husband. Beth still believes in Keeping Portland Weird, and intends to be just as weird in Raleigh.

Beth has been writing practically since she learned the alphabet. Unfortunately, her first foray into novel writing, titled Big Bear with Sparkly Earrings, wasn’t a bestseller, but hope springs eternal. She has published over forty novels and novellas.

 

Author Links

Blog/Website | Facebook | Twitter | BookBub

Instagram | Newsletter Sign-up

 

Giveaway

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a $20 Amazon gift card.

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Release Blitz! Over Exposed, by Alexa Piper @prowlingpiper #Giveaway #Romance #LGBTQ #Thriller #ActionAdventure

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Title: Overexposed

Series: Vampire Tales 2

Author: Alexa Piper

Publisher: Changeling Press LLC

Release Date: April 14 2023

Heat Level: 4 – Lots of Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 119 pages

Genre: Romance, Thriller/Suspense, Action Adventure, Dark Fantasy, Paranormal, Bisexual/Pansexual/Multisexual, Gay, Sorcery & Witchcraft

Add to Goodreads

Synopsis

After the events that drew them together, Ethan and Auris have grown into their feelings for one another. On their quest to discover other supernatural beings, Ethan will have to do some healing after the violence he experienced, and Auris, in order to help the man he loves do so, will share his past with Ethan.

While their relationship deepens, the pair finds something in Prague that they had hoped for but not expected: traces of another vampire. But that discovery brings with it a greater threat and more things between light and shadow they will have to deal with.

Content warning: Overexposed contains brief mention of self-harm and suicide.

Excerpt

All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2023 Alexa Piper

Auris had not planned a direct flight to Prague. A precaution against any pursuing priests, he’d said. We had landed in Dresden. I’d been in that unhappy state of surviving a transatlantic flight, but since it had been just barely night still, Auris had made sure to get me to the front of the line for my rapid test before his eyes turned daylight silver.

And now, there was a city waking to cold November air, and we were leaving the roofs and tall buildings behind to cross the border into the Czech Republic.

The hum and rattle of the train finally pulling out of the station was a relief after the flight, dry air, and my ears popping, and I appreciated that we had a compartment to ourselves. First class, of course, and we were both masked, Auris because it was now fully daytime and he couldn’t control minds as easily, me because I didn’t have a vampiric immune system.

Auris had left the window seat to me and sat on my right instead of across from me. “You know, Ethan, it harms my self-confidence, this preference of yours to gaze at the outside when you have a perfectly dressed vampire right next to you,” he had told me with exaggerated drama.

“This was… all really easy,” I said after a while. I was watching a bank of fog cling to bony tree branches against the backdrop of a milky pale sky.

Auris put a hand on my knee, squeezed lightly. “I told you it would be. A lesser man might take your surprise as a blow to his confidence. Another blow to his confidence.”

I turned and looked at him, his daylight-silvered eyes and faerie prince features a different sight than the wintry landscape outside. “You mean a lesser vampire. And with the pandemic, I just thought getting a flight would be harder. I thought you’d have to use your vampire entrancement thing to get some Gen Z influencers to give us their tickets. The private plane simply threw me. Also, you’re pretty. I look at you. I’m doing it now.” I pointed at my eyes.

“It helped that you had your passport on you,” he said. “Especially since modern technology is ever encroaching on travel, especially with so many travel restrictions still in place. You should try to sleep a little. You look tired after the flight. I’ll let you look at me to excess once we arrive in Prague.”

I sighed. “Just jetlag. How long until we get there?”

“A little bit over two hours.”

“And is there, I mean, are we crossing another border? And it’s daytime? Is that going to be a problem?”

He smiled at me, folded up the armrest that separated our seats, hooked his arm around me, and then drew me close to him. “It won’t be. We’re in Europe. There’s a very good chance no one will even want to see our passports. You can rest your eyes for a little while, my sweet.”

I sighed and relaxed into him, but I couldn’t quite let go of the day. “Where are we staying? Once we get to Prague, I mean?”

“I own a building in the Old Town, and I keep an apartment in it ready for personal use.”

I smiled, his black suit soft against my cheek. “Of course you do.”

Auris ran a finger through my hair. “I hope you’ll like it. It’s been a while since I visited. You’ll definitely like the Old Town. There are no abandoned places in that city, but I can find you lonely places and places that aren’t lonely but beautiful. The age of the city might lure you better than even I could.”

I craned my neck so I could look up at him. “You really thought about that, huh?”

“Of course.” Something passed over his face, but he smoothed his expression out quickly. But I’d seen it.

“What?” I asked.

His eyes narrowed on me. I wondered whether people could read him or whether his vampire don’t-notice-me magic made that difficult. Then I wondered whether he was just unguarded around me or whether I truly had a knack for interpreting his features, and if the latter, was that because of this love prophecy I still couldn’t bring myself to fully believe in?

“Little worries, Ethan.”

“Tell me?”

“I took you away. From home, your family, your life. And I care about you greatly, so I worry about whether you’ll thank me for that, down the line. Leaving a life behind like you did, that isn’t a small thing.”

I didn’t respond. Auris hadn’t been fishing for a response, for absolution, he’d just been frank with me.

Instead, I moved until I was comfortable but also able to see some of the landscape outside the window, my back against Auris’s chest, and his slowly beating heart echoing along my ribs and spine.

In my apartment, I kept several collages. Photos of my dad and Ben, his now fiancé, photos of my mom. I had my friends and my life on there, in no order that made sense to anyone but me. In a kitchen cabinet, there was a mug I loved. It had sat on my desk next to me for uncounted hours while I worked. It was black on the outside with white yellow cat eyes and whiskers, white on the inside. It had been so well used that the glaze was beginning to show spiderweb cracks now.

As I sat there in the first-class seat next to the vampire I’d saved from certain death, I slowly, slowly realized that these things were… if not gone, then not the steady mooring that they had been. I was not going back to that apartment or to my studio with the exposed brick and threadbare carpet anytime soon. Likely never. The things that had surrounded me — some of them to my chagrin during lockdown — were gone from my future now. There was a slice of blue cutting through the shroud-gray morning sky. I felt like a kite released to the wind.

Purchase

Changeling Press LLC | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes

Meet the Author

Alexa (she/her) has a lot of characters living in her head and wanting their stories told. Many of these people get snarky and won’t stop complaining if Alexa is too slow writing them, which means that for this author, sleep is a luxury. Consequently, Alexa is a coffee addict, but she is sure she has it under control (six cups of coffee are normal in a morning, right? Right!?)

Website | Facebook | Twitter |Instagram

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Blog Guest: Coyote’s Vow, by Christina Lynn Lambert #ParanormalRomance #ShifterRomance #SteamyRomanceNovels #RomanticSuspense #EnemiesToLovers

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When a deranged doctor has disturbing plans for shifters and psy,
can Trevor and Kylie stop him, or will they be silenced forever?

Book INFO

Book: Coyote’s Vow (Stranger Creatures book 4)
Author: Christina Lynn Lambert
ASIN: B0BZT58GXZ
Publisher: Decadent Publishing, LLC
Release Date: March 28, 2023

BLURB

Kylie Claremont wants answers. She was the victim of a brutal experiment that caused her to develop telekinetic abilities. The position she’s offered as a liaison between Shifters United and the Psy Guild will give her the chance to find the elusive research company that disappeared after experimenting on her and bring them to justice. The only thing standing in her way is an arrogant coyote shifter who is convinced that Kylie is a threat to shifters and shouldn’t be allowed to be a part of Shifters United. She never expected to fall for the gruff, mistrusting man.

Coyote shifter Trevor Ryland will never trust the psy. Still, he knows the time has come to strengthen the tentative alliance between shifters and psy. He fully intends to ignore his attraction to the beautiful psy liaison, but he’d never forgive himself if something happened to her. His plan to protect Kylie from afar is wrecked when they’re forced to work together. She could be his mate but Trevor can’t let that happen. The struggle to deny his need for to the one woman with the power to destroy him gets harder every day.

Trevor and Kylie uncover a web of greed and deceit during their search for the travelling research group. They’ll have to work fast and fight hard to stop the CEO’s latest plans or psy and shifters everywhere will suffer.

Excerpt (R rated):

When Kylie looked up at him, his resolve to keep his distance from her shattered to the ground and dissolved into dust. He growled and pulled her against his chest. Her kiss sent his mind spinning. Her mouth against his wasn’t enough. He needed more. He needed everything from her but he’d have to limit himself to one night. One time. She wasn’t a shifter so she wouldn’t recognize him as being a possible mate. She would never have to know.

She took him by the hand and led him to the bedroom. In a flurry of kisses, they hit the bed. He unbuttoned her silky red shirt and kissed the smooth skin at the pulse point of her neck. His fangs itched to give her a bite but he refused. He nipped at her throat and licked and nibbled his way down further. When he got to the space below her belly button, she let out a little moan. He looked up and met her gaze.

Her eyes were bright and the scent of her desire filled the air. He breathed deep, trying to get some control over himself but still, his fangs descended to their full length. He knew his irises had become the dark, deep green of Coyote. She didn’t look scared though. She must have heard some things about the intensity of shifters when they were turned on.

He tossed her lacy purple bra to the ground but teased her by kissing her belly, then the side of her breast, even her cheek, until she guided his head back to her breasts. He ran his tongue over her beaded nipple then gave it a gentle bite. Her breathy “yes, please!” nearly drove him wild. She grabbed the back of his head and held him in place so he could give her nipples proper attention. He liked that she knew what she wanted from him.

What if it didn’t matter that he was a shifter and she was psy? He needed so much more from her than one night. She pulled off his shirt and lightly ran her nails down his back. He groaned in anticipation. When she undid the top button of his jeans, he could barely think straight. He needed to get back in control of the situation. Fast.

He placed his hands over hers, stopping her from going further. He shook his head. “You first.”

Purchase Links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BZT58GXZ
Barnes and Noble: Coyote’s Vow by Christina Lynn Lambert | eBook | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)
Google Books: Coyote’s Vow by Christina Lynn Lambert – Books on Google Play
Kobo Books: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/coyote-s-vow
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1370196

Author Bio:

Before I had the wild idea to write a book, I worked in a few different fields. I was in sales for a while, and after I finished college, I worked as a case manager. When my children were little, I was a personal trainer and running coach. During the evenings, when I was supposed to be studying for another fitness training certification, I started writing a story. Finally, I gave in and acknowledged that writing is what I’m meant to do. I love creating imperfect but determined characters who find the courage to love and the strength to survive in a world where there are no guarantees. My stories include a fair amount of sarcasm, suspense, steam, and violence. When I’m not writing, I enjoy spending time outside and finding ways to avoid cooking. I live in beautiful Virginia with my husband, two teenagers, a sweet, hairy monster of a dog, and two devious cats.

Author Social Media Links:

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Christina-Lynn-Lambert/e/B01MCYK0K7

BookBub:  https://www.bookbub.com/authors/christina-lynn-lambert

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christinalynnlambert

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15900423.Christina_Lynn_Lambert

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christinalynnlambert

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chris4lamb

WordPress: https://christinalynnlambertwordpress.com

 

 

On Tour: VICES/VIRTUES, by Beatrice De Soprantu @desoprontu #Women’s Fiction

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Women’s Fiction

Date Published: July 14, 2019

 

photo add-to-goodreads-button_zpsc7b3c634.png

 

“Simultaneously compelling, intriguing, and effortlessly entertaining read. De Soprontu imparts views on themes of poverty,  race, identity, strength, and deliverance, all tightly bound within this intricate psychological opera.” KIRKUS REVIEWS

“VICES/VIRTUES is a beautifully written, strikingly moving, look at
the interacting lives and diverse backgrounds of women in an unconventional
profession” Indie Reader

 

Cristela had a childhood shrouded in secrets. Ashamed of their
circumstances, her mother told lies and encouraged her daughter to do the same. As Cristela grew, she unraveled the lies, but found that deception is a hard habit to break. Now, as an adult, Cristela creates a secret alter ego as the dominatrix Mistress Clara.

By day, Cristela is a good-girl poster child. By night, Mistress Clara masters the hidden erotic realm of an S&M dungeon. With her knack for duplicity things should work smoothly except for one complication – friendship. The quirky array of fellow dominatrices at the dungeon are nothing like the stereotypes she expected. Divided between her affection for the girls at the dungeon and her desire to keep her fetish activities secret, Cristela fears her two worlds are colliding. Can Cristela break her history of deceit? In a world of vices and virtues, salvation isn’t something you find, it’s a path you make. 

EXCERPT

Some of the Fugacious Femmes elicited a similar response. Paris, for example, she didn’t stay long but during the time she worked at the dungeon, she was hated and she knew it. I always imagined she must have had some tragic backstory that forced her to break the rules and incur the ire of everyone. In my mind she had been transformed into Fantine, the sympathetic prostitute from “Les Miserables.” I felt miles superior. Drug and calamity free, in my mind I floated above the others who were mired in misfortune. It was a fantasy I managed to maintain for a long time, until that night when I finally understood the truth. I wasn’t floating; I had fallen. I had created a secret life at the dungeon just so I could be ashamed of it. As a child, Griselda had burdened me with shameful secrets, but as an adult, I had done this to myself. The worst part was I hadn’t even been aware of it.

 

About the Author

Beatrice De Soprontu began writing at the age of four, when she scribbled on the walls with a crayon. Now an adult, she mostly scribbles on her home computer surrounded by her noisy children and their less noisy father. Born and raised in New York City, (which includes: Queens, Bronx, Brooklyn, maybe even Staten Island – a.k.a. the real New York and not the tourist trap that is Manhattan), she enthusiastically travels the world on a budget whenever she gets the chance.

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

 

Purchase Links

Amazon kindle version of  Vices/Virtues

Amazon paperback version of Vices/Virtues

Barnes & Noble epub version of Vices/Virtues

 

RABT Book Tours & PR

Blog Guest Daryl Devoré ~ Meet Ewen, hero of A Voice in the Air

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Let’s chat about Ewen, Cadi’s love interest in the medieval fantasy romance – A Voice in the Air.

He’s a good-hearted lad, unhappy with his future as an assistant to his father – the village baker. A life of watching bread bake was not what he dreamed of.

He longed for adventure – fighting dragons, saving damsels, and drinking ale in the local pub with the knights.

Hoping to live his dream, he follows his liege to fight the trolls. The horror of the battle shattered his dreams. Captured and thrown into a deep dark cave, he awaits a hideous death. He thinks of Cadi – the beautiful barmaid who smiled at him when she served him an ale.

He wonders if she thinks about him as he does her. He often hid beneath the bridge and listened to her sing. He wanted to tell her that he liked her, but a squire has nothing to offer.

After nearly – accidentally – killing himself – he is rather accident prone- he is overjoyed to find Cadi, but horrified to learn she – a mere lass – was sent to rescue him.

When given the option to return home with Cadi or continue on with the knights – of course – he goes with the knights. Hs been given a new sword and horse – of course he must go off and face his destiny.

Shortly he realizes his mistake. He abandoned the lass who has his heart.

He turns back to find her and escort her safely home.

And that’s where the chaos begins. He is tricked by a witch, fooled by a beautiful vixen, imprisoned by a tree, nearly freezes to death and… is condemned to death.

Can Ewen outgrow his youthful foibles, save the day and declare his love to Cadi or is he forever condemned to be just a bumbling lad named Ewen?

Little excerpt

He felt the tremble of the ground as the darkness seemed to deepen. A loud grunt filled the cave with the lone word, “Fud.” It was the troll’s attempt to tell him his daily meal had arrived.

Sweeping up a handful of stones, he limped forward through the darkness to the place where the bread was tossed. A feeble bit of light made shapes just visible. Not seeing anything scurry about, he grabbed his meal, then edged back into the darkness.

As he ripped chunks off the loaf, Ewen let his mind wander. It always returned to one topic — Cadi. Did she know he loved her? He wanted to be near her. Being a squire to a knight kept him busy, and often as not, eventide found him asleep on a pile of hay in the stable.

On one joyous day, as he returned from an errand along the path over the river’s bridge, he heard her voice long before he found her hidden beneath the arch near the water. He’d almost jumped down to speak with her, but something inside warned him she wished to be alone. Was it the way she stood? Or her hood covering her face? Or simply because he was too… nervous… unsure? He’d stilled his urge to interrupt her and sat on the low stone edge of the bridge to listen.

Her voice filled him with a sense of peace. He relaxed so much he almost fell back off the bridge.

Blurb and Links

Leading an army of faeries and pixies into battle against mountain trolls was not what Cadi expected when she accepted the task of rescuing Ewen – the son of the Overseer of the Faeries.

Squire Ewen followed his liege into battle with a head full of romantic notions of knights, heroics, and damsels in distress. Being captured by a troll, thrown into a cave, and awaiting a hideous death was not how he had foreseen his adventure to play out.

Can Ewen stay out of trouble long enough for Cadi to rescue him? Will Cadi overcome her doubts and fears and bring her beloved Ewen home to Plucks Ridge?

Or will the petty evilness of The Scorned One defeat all and destroy the magickal realm?

If you love action, humour, quirky characters, and romance, then Daryl Devoré’s latest medieval fantasy romance – A Voice in the Air – is a must read.

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