poison kissed

...because I just can't restrain myself any longer.

Shadowfae Chronicles Book #3
28 September 2010

 

Beyond the veil of magic, a fairy otherworld pulses with glamour and dark beauty... It's a place where passions run deep and dark -- and death is just one kiss away...

Mina is a banshee whose greatest power lies in her siren song. She's beholden to her boss Joey, a snake-shifter who once saved her life and now employs her as a gang enforcer. She refuses to upset the fragile balance between them by admitting that she longs for him, that his embrace is the only thing she craves more than revenge for her mother's death...

When Mina learns that Joey may have been involved in her mother's murder, fury threatens to spill out of her, note by vicious note. She and Joey have always trusted each other to stay alive, but now she's not sure what to believe. The evidence stacked against him -- or the one man who haunts her dreams and burns in her blood...

Is she not awesome? Here's what I had to say in my newsletter:

Mina and Joey are two of my favourite characters from SHADOWGLASS, and when the time came to write book #3 they just wouldn't go away! And that cover looks so much like Mina as I see her.

But aren't Mina and Joey the bad guys? you might ask. Well, yeah. In SHADOWGLASS, they are.

Why write a book about the villains? Hell, why not? And the Shadowfae Chronicles is the perfect place to do it, because to some extent, everyone's bad. But no one really thinks they're the villain in this gang war, and I thought it'd be awesome to read a story from the other side. In POISON KISSED you'll meet the DiLuca clan, demons and hungry vampires and murderous fairies and all. I love this book. It's my favourite so far in the series. Mina and Joey have a... tense relationship. And yes, Kane is in it :)

 

Yes, it's a new look. Different but complementary to the others. And those of you with sharp measuring eyes may have noticed that it's a different shape, too. The fabulousness of mass market paperback is upon us! It says so, right here on Amazon. So it'll be cheaper! It'll fit in your bag! It'll fit on the shelf next to your other books! And hey, it's pink. Who wouldn't want one?


P.S. A lot of e-books are being repriced (upwards) from April 1 under the new agency model for big NY publishers. If you're sitting on some e-book buying money, this weekend might be a good time to spend it. Just saying.

fairies on the Kindle

 Yay! SHADOWGLASS is available for Kindle. Right here.

This makes me happy :)

more bloggy goodness

This week, I'm at Fang-tastic Books talking about fairies and new slants on traditional paranormal critters.

I'm also at Tynga's Reviews, talking about... well, me. And my book. Sometimes, you just gotta do that.

Of course, I'm doing giveaways at both of those wonderful blogs. Soon, the whole world will own SHADOWGLASS. Bwahahaha...

I'm also at Bitten by Books today and tomorrow, giving away some book money and SHADOWFAE e-books. So git along there and comment!

And tomorrow, I'll be at SciFiGuy.

everywhere? why, yes, I am

Time for a quick recap on blog tour goodness, Because, y'know, if no one knows you're on a blog tour, then what's the point? 

Come check out these awesome book blogs. I tend to give away free books at these things. I'm an author, books are what I've got to give.

I'm a guest at Sara's Urban Fantasy Blog, talking about where my ideas come from. And no, it's not the supermarket.

Wanna know why you should read my book? Check out my post at Sidhe Vicious. 

I'm also at All Things Urban Fantasy, about how you explain 'urban fantasy' to people who've (gasp!) never heard of it.

And today I'm at Literary Escapism, exploring that standard author wackiness called 'my characters talk to me'. Do they? Well... sorta.

Awesomesauce? Definitely.

Oh, and while I'm talking awesome, you have to check out the book lottery at Ann Aguirre's blog. She's got oodles of free signed books to give away, one each day for the rest of the month, to celebrate the upcoming release of her book HELL FIRE.

and the winner is...

Okay, it's time for the winner of all those awesome downunder books. Thanks to everyone for coming along and joining in. You are all awesome.

I have to admit, you guys crack me up. How am I supposed to choose a winner from that lot? You're all crazy book obsessives. You all deserve to win oodles of books. If I had fifty copies I'd give you all a set.

But alas, I have to choose one. Life's unfair like that. So, by a secret combination of wind direction, blood pressure, the price of fish in Beijing and asking my cat what he thought, the winner is...

breeziesbooks!!!

Congrats! I'll ping you on Twitter too in case you don't see this.

Thanks so much to everyone for playing. It's really nice to see so many people interested in new authors.

(For those who missed out, I'm also currently doing some giveaways (of my own book, that is!) at EllzReads, Sara's UF blog and Sidhe Vicious.)

spreading the goodness, or how awesome book bloggers are

Today, I'm at Sara's Urban Fantasy blog, talking about where ideas come from. And giving away the obligatory book. Of course!

And tomorrow (Friday), I'm dropping by Sidhe Vicious. On Monday, I'll be at All Things Urban Fantasy. 

Book bloggers are awesome, see. I've had nothing but support from everyone I've contacted or been reviewed by. I even got an email the other day from someone who wanted to apologise in advance because they were about to do a post saying they didn't like my book.

Can you imagine that? A reader, apologising to me for not liking my story! I was touched. And of course I wrote back to say: you are awesome, post whatever you like.

You guys don't owe me anything. You are all helping me promote my books, and you're doing it for free. For an author like me who lives in Australia, internet coverage is vital. I couldn't do this without you.

I just wanted to say that. Seems that recently, some authors are giving the impression they think readers owe them a living. Uh, nope.

Oh, and remember, there's only a day or so to go in my fabulous Aussie (and New Zealand, of course, Nalini!) book giveaway. Leave a comment on the original post for a chance to win books by Nalini, Keri, Tracey, Denise and me.

the great aussie fantasy giveaway!

It's huge. It's happening. It's here...

Behold!!

The Great Aussie Fantasy giveaway!

I'm giving away these four wonderful books by some fabulous downunder authors. Click on the cover images to find out more about them. Plus, of course, a book of mine. It's called SHADOWGLASS. And why, look, it comes out today! Thanks for asking. I'm very pleased.

Five hot fantasy books, all yours. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment saying why you want them. I'm cool and casual like that.

Why am I feeling so mighty generous? Well, I'm glad you asked. I may have mentioned it. It's because...

SHADOWGLASS is released today!

A seductive magic mirror lies hidden deep in a demon’s lair, with a simple warning: don’t stare at the glass…

Ice is a thief and a scammer — a troubled fairy trying her best to survive in the squalid underworld of the Shadowfae. When she spends a hot night with a demon lord, she discovers a powerful magic mirror in his lair — and pilfers it, knowing it’s the key to escaping her bleak life as a two-bit con artist. But Ice soon discovers that the mirror's power comes with a price… madness, which is slowly overtaking her.

Indigo oozes darkness, danger and tempting sensuality. He’s been sent to destroy Ice and bring the mirror back to its rightful owner. A mission that, if he fails, will cost him his life. But when he meets Ice, he faces an even greater challenge: an insatiable sexual hunger that neither of them can deny, and dark passions that threaten to claim them both forever. The trouble is, the longer he stays within the mirror’s reach, the greater its hold on his sanity—and the stronger his determination to save Ice...

You can read Chapter One or view the trailer at my website. Buy links are in the sidebar. Hope you enjoy it!


Anyway, don't forget to leave a comment to enter the giveaway. Tell me why you should win all these books. Are you a Riley Jenson fan? In lurve with Nalini's Raphael? Adore Denise's scorching hawt fantasy heroes? Wanna try some vampire hunting action from Tracey O'hara? Or do you just like free books from new-to-you authors? Impress me with your wit. I'm easy :)

I'll be picking a winner when I get up on Saturday morning, which is late Friday afternoon in the US. So make sure you include an email or a Twitter name or something where I can get hold of you, especially if you're not an LJ-er.

two is better than one...?

Okay, then. Deep breath. Tomorrow is the day my second book drops.

(That's it in the sidebar, in case you're wondering. Big fat yellow book with a sexy girl on the front. Go buy it, if you care to. It's got fairies and magic mirrors and all manner of shenanigans. Hope you enjoy it!)

Anyway. Tomorrow is Book 2 Day. And... well, I kinda don't know how I should feel about that.

I mean, yeah, I'm excited. Don't get me wrong. It will never cease to be awesome to have my books on the shelves. And hey, now I can say 'my books' instead of  'my book'. And it's a relief, too, because now I can finally talk about all that cool plot stuff I handed in 12 months ago with someone who knows what I'm on about. Assuming someone reads it, of course :)

But it also means I'm officially no longer a 'debut author', with all the uncertainty and wonder that goes with that label. That means that people will always compare this book to the first one, for good or ill. It means that (hopefully!) I have a following, however small or scattered, and they expect things from me. And that's where the doubts creep in. Ooh, will they like it as much as the first one? Is it as dark? As sexy? As intriguing? Will they like my characters?

Blah, blah, all those usual author nerves. A billion people in China don't care. And the fact is, SHADOWGLASS turned out exactly how I wanted. It's not going to please everyone, because nothing ever pleases everyone. But all the elements that made SHADOWFAE what it was are there aplenty in SHADOWGLASS: it's dark, sexy, romantic, scary, magical.

SHADOWGLASS is the book I wanted it to be. And all I can do now is hope you enjoy it.

Oh, and I suppose I could run a contest. Y'know, to celebrate and all? Sigh. Mutter. Okay, then.

But giving away just my own books (see, there, I said 'books', not 'book'!) is jaded. Been there, done that, got the postal receipts.

So as well, I'm gonna give away some fabulous books by some other, even more fabulous Aussie fantasy/romance authors. RIght here on my little ol' blog.

I've got Keri Arthur. I've got Tracey O'hara. I've got Denise Rossetti. Oh, and I've got some Kiwi named Nalini Singh. You may have heard of her. She's not strictly an Aussie, but we'll claim her. We claim all the good ones. Especially when the rotten buggers beat us at cricket.

Yes, it's the Great Aussie Fantasy contest!!

Yes, that's right. Tomorrow, one lucky visitor will win a pile of awesome books from south of the equator. So tell your friends. Come back tomorrow.

Aussie fantasy. It's here. It's hot. You know you want some.