SCORCHED release day! Superheroes! Cool book giveaway!

Happy release day to SCORCHED!

Yes! My new urban fantasy book about superheroes and villains. First in a new series, published by HarperImpulse. And to celebrate, I'm giving away a pack of 4 cool Kindle books about superheroes. You know you want them, right?

First, behold the dark action-y awesomeness that is SCORCHED:

In a world where everyone wears a mask, you can't trust anyone… not even yourself.

Verity Fortune was once Sapphire City’s top crime-fighter, wielding her powers of telekinesis to battle the city’s most despicable villains.

Now, she’s consumed by a single burning desire: revenge. Against those who took away her mask, her memory, and nearly her life.

Having escaped from the asylum they left her to rot in, Verity dons her mask once again and becomes the Seeker, a vigilante warrior for truth.

But when she unwittingly uncovers an evil conspiracy deep within her own family, she’s suddenly on the run, alone and hunted by those she thought were on her side…




I totally love this book. I hope you will too! Go ahead and add it on GoodReads:

Done? Cool. Now for giveaway goodness!

Here are the Kindle books you can win:

The Rise of Renegade X by Chelsea M Campbell

Metawars: the complete series by Kelly Meding

Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines

Black and White by Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge

  Cool, eh? Come and get your Rafflecopter on. Leave a comment and tell us your favorite superhero (or villain!) ~ and get more entries by doing the Rafflecopter thing.

Enjoy!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

More linky giveaway fun...

First: I'm giving away an ebook of REVELATION at Romance Writers of the Apocalypse. Zombies, demons, hot angel warriors. You know you want one. It's open until Friday night.


Now, some more Kindle Fire giveaway goodness!! You know the drill. Here are the latest links in my tour:

Preternatura, wherein we discuss what you'll need in your apocalypse go-bag, should you be sucked into some weird meta-fiction universe where you're the heroine of my book. Hey, don't laugh. It could happen.

Kay Dee Royal's blog, with an interview about how bad-ass my characters are.

Words of Wisdom from the Scarf Princess. With a really smexy excerpt, and an A review! Brilliant! Thanks :)

Also, some more links, though they're not part of the giveaway:

My interview at The Reading Cafe. What am I up to next, writing-wise? Come and see!

My post on How to Build Your Very Own Paranormal Romance Series, at Star-Crossed Romance. Step One: choose your posse of hot supernatural dudes.

Science fiction giveaway part-ay: part the third

The winner of a paperback of GHOST PLANET by Sharon Lynn Fisher is...

Jennifer McAndrews!!

Thanks to everyone for playing... and on to the next round! Don't forget there's a chance at the Grand Poobah Prize!! of a $50 bookstore gift card for everyone who enters.

Today, it's sci-fi romance with a difference.

I can honestly say I've never read anything else like BIRTHRIGHT by Aussie author Valerie Parv. A fantastical tale of futuristic suspense on a tropical island paradise. With aliens, and evil astronauts. You have to try it for yourself!

And I must share the joy of KEIR by Pippa Jay. For the amazing cover, if nothing else. And a sweetly done, poignant romance/adventure between a man who needs sanctuary and a woman on a quest... but for what?

Sounds cool, eh? You can click on the cover pics to find out more about these most excellent books. The authors sure would appreciate your love.

Would you like to win a copy of these two fab e-books? As well as go in the draw for the Grand Poobah Prize!! of a $50 bookstore gift card?

Just leave a comment by Wednesday night (that's tomorrow!), and answer me this: if you were stranded on an alien planet, and you could take one person with you, who would it be?

Interview and giveaway stuff

Today, I'm riding on the Galaxy Express! Get the lowdown on my new book DRAGONFLY -- Heather Massey has done me a fab interview. Check it out!

Also, don't forget my sci-fi giveaway part-ay: only a few hours left to win GHOST PLANET by Sharon Lynn Fisher! and a chance to win a $50 bookstore gift card -- just comment on Saturday's post here. 

And, if you're into gift cards: I'm giving away a $20 bookstore card at Dark Faerie Tales. Come and learn how to make your very own Evil Empire. What would you put in your eeeevil! lair? What kind of minions would you enslave?

Science fiction giveaway part-ay: part two

Welcome, weekend blog readers, to part two of Erica's sci-fi giveaway! I'm celebrating the release of my first ever sci-fi novel, DRAGONFLY. Remember: everyone who participates is in the running for the Grand Poobah Prize!! of a $50 bookstore gift card.

Last time, we had some smokin' hot erotic sci-fi prizes. Today it's the turn of sci-fi romance.

Carrie, my secret agent heroine in DRAGONFLY, has a few problems with romance. She's the kind of girl who always chooses the wrong guy. When she was just a rookie agent, she fell in love with her mentor at the spy agency, a glamorous agent named Malachite. Pity he turned out to be a pathological liar.

Then, she lost her heart to another fellow agent, who got himself murdered by terrorists on her watch. Since then she's been alone... and now she's finally got the chance for revenge against the rebels who murdered her fiance. All she has to do is keep her head...

Boy, do we torture our heroines :) it's a wonder there's any romance left in them! If you like you can download the first few chapters of DRAGONFLY (for free!) on Kindle.



Anyhoo, on with the giveway! And what better sci-fi romance prize than this fab recent release by Sharon Lynn Fisher, GHOST PLANET. Isn't the cover cool and spooky?

I'm only halfway through GHOST PLANET, but I recommend it. It's got a melancholy, soulful kind of futuristic atmosphere, but with plenty of action to keep you busy. And a ghostly, reincarnated, kind of poltergeist heroine. It's hard to describe. You'll have to read it!

Want one? Of course you do. For a chance to win a paperback of GHOST PLANET, just leave a comment and answer this question: if you were a ghost, who would you haunt?

Bonus entry if you follow this blog, via Blogger or Networked Blogs -- just let me know in the comments. Please leave your email addy, too. This giveaway ends Monday night. And don't forget, you'll be in the running for the Grand Poobah Prize!! of a $50 bookstore gift card at the end of the giveaway part-ay next week.

After which, I'll stop yelling 'Grand Poobah!'. I promise.

Why we love dark romance, and a little story about Diamond...

Angela at Dark Faerie Tales is hosting a really cool event called Fantastic Fables, where authors put their characters into fairy tales and see what evil shenanigans ensues. Bwahaha...

Want to see what happens when a wise-ass pink glassfairy gets the job as fairy godmother to Cinderella? Of course you do. So come join the fun and check out my little story here. As well as many other tales by some wonderful authors, and loads of prizes.




Also, I'm guest blogging today at the Qwillery, talking about why dark romance is so hot. And yeah, giving away a book. Please come visit! Thanks so much to Sally for inviting me.

Giveaway winner, and stuff

Thanks everyone for hitting my blog and Twitter and Facebook with so many lovely 'yay!' messages on my release day -- you guys rock!

Without further ado, the lucky randomly-chosen giveaway winner from Tuesday's post is...

Jenn/Seduced By Books!!

Congrats, Jenn -- if you see this, drop me an email and I'll arrange for your prize. Thanks to all for entering.

A quick linky: here's an interview with me on the blog of the fabulous Rowena Cory Daniells, author of KING ROLEN'S KIN. She's doing a series of interviews of female fantasy writers, and kindly invited me to take part.  So come and chat about gender differences in fantasy writers, and get a behind-the-scenes look at how I created the Shadowfae Chronicles, here. I believe there's also a free book up for grabs.

And in a little while, I'll be at Dark Faerie Tales as part of their fabulous Fantastic Fables blog event, where authors take their characters and put them into a fairy tale. Giggle... I'll post the link when it's up.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date with The Cape and a block of Cadbury chocolate.

It's Blood Cursed day!!

After spending the last umpteen weeks seeking an answer to the important question is it possible to lurk at your own blog? (A: yes. Yes, it is.) I've resurfaced, to give a quick hurrah! for release day for BLOOD CURSED! Yay!

Enter the fierce, fantastical world of the Shadowfae, where blood is a drug, magic is a crime, and love is the most dangerous weapon of all...

To a vampire, nothing is sweeter than bloodfairy essence -- and Ember is the most sought-after fairy on the underworld circuit. Selling her blood to the highest bidder -- and robbing her clients in the process -- Ember has unwittingly become a target of dark and dangerous forces. Her enemies are everywhere. And if she hopes to survive, she needs protection...

Diamond is a glassfairy who, for better or worse, knows his way around the vampire underworld. Smooth as silk and tougher than trolls, Diamond is Ember’s only chance to keep her magical blood inside her body, where it belongs. But he also poses a threat to Ember, a strange kind of danger she’s never experienced before: She’s falling in love with him...

Sweet! This one got a 4-star review from RT Reviews, which is always nice :) You can read the first chapter online at my website, and there's an extended excerpt up at Heroes and Heartbreakers (you need to log in to read that one). Also a nice review at Among the Muses. Thanks!

I'll be traipsing around the internet talking about it over the next week or two, doing some giveaways of backlist and the like, so keep an eye out, and I'll post the links here when they happen. You can also follow me on Twitter for -- let's face it -- more frequent updates.

But right now, I'm feeling generous. Leave me a comment on this post -- yup, that's right here -- before midnight on 3 August (US west coast time) if you'd like to win -- I'll pick a couple of random commenters to win your choice of one of my books. One of my only giveaways for BLOOD CURSED -- because, y'know, I want y'all to buy it :) -- so get in while it lasts...

Glimmerglass giveaway winner

Hope you're all having a lovely Christmas Eve!

Now, for last week's Friday Fancies winner.

The winner (randomly selected) of GLIMMERGLASS by Jenna Black is...

Siobhan from Love Fantasy Sci-Fi Novels!!

Congrats! And thanks to everyone for playing. Siobhan, if you see this, drop me an email at ez at ericahayes dot net and we'll arrange your prize.

Off to set a trap for that fat bloke in the red coat...

i'm interviewed at smexy books!

Does this mean I'm famous? Yes, yes, I believe it does... 

I'm interviewed by the lovely Tori at Smexy Books today, talking about the Shadowfae series, snake shifters and what else I've been working on, among other things. Come by and have a chat, and leave a comment for a chance to win POISON KISSED.





Yo can also check out Tori's 4-star review of POISON KISSED, wherein she says:

"Fast paced and smoothly written with plenty of action, danger and internal conflict, Hayes writes an addicting dark and erotic urban fantasy that appeals to the darker side of our nature. The part of us that we like to keep hidden and safely under wraps. I will definitely be reading the next one in this series."

 

Awesome! Thanks, Tori!

In other news... I'm home from vacation. This means I have to get back to work. What am I working on, you ask? Bit of this, bit of that. Maybe more Shadowfae. Maybe something else. When I find out, you'll be the first to know...

who's your favourite bad guy?

First, on the topic of good guys: I saw the Pope today. Cool! I'm not even in his club, but it was still cool. Check out his Benedictness in the Pope-mobile in St Peter's Square at my Facebook page.

Moving right along... I'm guest posting at Dirty Sexy Books today, where the lovely Rebecca has kindly given POISON KISSED a four-star review. She says:

'...it's dark, sexy and dirty, and it's also fearless. Her stories go places that many writers fear to tread, and I appreciate the wicked eroticism that she injects into every scene."
 

Awesome! My work here is done :) you can read the rest of Rebecca's review here.

Of course, I'm giving away a free copy - come by and tell me which bad guy (or girl) you'd love to see get their own book or movie for a chance to win.

guesting at fiction vixen

 I'm a guest with the fabulous Fiction Vixen today, talking about what I love in urban fantasy and the cliches we'd love to put to rest. And giving away a free book, of course. Come check it out!

UF vs PR -- what's your fancy?

 I'm guest posting at SciFiGuy today (Tuesday), talking about the difference between romantic UF and paranormal romance -- which do you prefer? Who are some of your favourite couples? Come over to SciFiGuy and tell me, and have the chance to win a copy of POISON KISSED.

Also a reminder abut my fantasy/romance book giveaway, ending this Saturday. I'm giving away books by Ilona Andrews, Jennifer Estep, Merrie Destefano, J.K. Beck and moi. Check it out on yesterday's post here.

fantasy book pack giveaway!

 
To celebrate my release week, I'm giving away a book pack of some awesome fantasy and romance books that released this week too. Here's what I've got:

AFTERLIFE by Merrie Destefano
VENOM by Jennifer Estep
WHEN PLEASURE RULES by J.K. Beck
BAYOU MOON by Ilona Andrews
POISON KISSED by Erica Hayes (that's me!)

That's a whole pile of really cool books, and they can all be yours!!!

If you live where the Book Depository ships, you can enter. So leave a comment here, telling me what you've done out of the following (one entry for reach):

- Friended me on Facebook (that's the Like button at the top of the page, folks)
- Followed me on Twitter (I'm @ericahayes)
- Tweeted this contest (you can RT my tweet if you like)
- mentioned this contest on your blog/sidebar (include the link so I can gloat!)
- any burning questions you want to ask me, about books or anything at all.

If you really hate FB and you don't have a FB identity, tweet me @ericahayes with an anti-FB rant, and I'll include you in the contest too :)

Contest is open until... oh, let's say, next Saturday 9 October, midnight EST. Winner chosen at random.

Let the fun begin :)

P.S. I'm on the internet sporadically at the moment, like once a day maximum. So don't be offended if I don't reply immediately. But I will reply :)

guest posting and giveaway madness

In case I screw myself over with no internet for a day again... yeah, book release week is a great time to be in the dark ages. I so recommend it. Uh...

My Bitten by Books event is still open, until 29 Sep midnight Chicago time. Come chat with me (slow time, but I will reply) about what kind of UF heroine you'd like to be, and the chance to win some Amazon gift certificate goodness! 

Wednesday's post is at the Romance Writers of Australia blog; I'm talking about overwriting, what it is and how to fix it, and doing a book giveaway for Aussie readers.

And on Thursday, I'll be at Sidhe Vicious, talking about banshees and why they're cool.

So come share the joy! And when I next pass a McDonalds (is there no other wi-fi in this strange place called Europe??) I'll come meet you :D

blog tour and giveaway goodness

 POISON KISSED hits shelves (thud!) in three days. Cool! So I'm doing a bit of a blog tour. I'll keep you updated.

Tomorrow (Sunday) I'm guesting with the fabulous Deadline Dames!! I'm talking about the coffee shop, and why I write there when I'm such a stickler for order and silence. Giving away a free book. Yu know how it is. Drop by and leave a comment! Make me feel wanted.

And on Tuesday, I'm throwing a release day party at Bitten By Books.

I'm chatting about the book and other stuff, and giving away some Amazon gift certificates as prizes.

You can RSVP and get extra entries here: http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=30904

I'll drop by to chat, but I'm on vacation without internet (right now I'm sitting in Macdonalds on some French country town) so it might take me a little while to make a reply.

the paragraph from hell

Why is it that certain paragraphs just don't want to be written?

I can get stuck for days on one sentence. Usually for me, it's an action that just doesn't want to happen. For instance in my WIP I have the heroine watching a woman she's stalking finally make a trip to the ladies room, like Heroine has been waiting for her to do for half an hour.

Great! Off you go, Heroine. Follow. Time's a-wasting. If you don't go in there and roll that chick for the Ooky Artifact of What-the-hell-we're-doing-here, Bad Things will ensue.

But d'ya think she'd move? Nope.

For some reason, I just couldn't (or wouldn't) type "I slid my empty glass onto the table and followed." Or anything remotely resembling such.

Does this happen to anyone else out there?

I mean, I've fixed her now. Wrote the whole scene last night. Ladies room mayhem ahoy. But this stalled me for half a day.*

And you know what? I bet there's something wrong with it. I bet when revision time comes, I'll be picking at that scene. My subconscious -- and those who've met me know I'm the last person to call on woo-woo psychic explanations for my own idiocy -- my subconscious knows there's something up with that scenario, and spat the dummy of progress right out of the cot.

Well, good on you, subconscious. You are obviously cleverer and far more insightful than I. How about you shut the hell up and let me write? :)

Anyway. In other news, the blog stumble continues. Behold some juicy interviews, at EllzReads and Kylie Griffin's blog, and there's a free book up for grabs at each.

Also, if you're lucky enough to be Canadian, SHADOWGLASS is already shipping from amazon.ca, even though official release isn't until Tuesday. You guys are on the ball! No such early love from amazon.com so far as I know...

*This is not my record, btw. I once stalled on a novel manuscript  for six months because a character wouldn't walk down a flight of stairs. True.

and the ARC winner is...

...selected by the marvel of random numbers...

@intensewhisper !!!

Congrats! Drop me an email at {ez at ericahayes dot net} or DM me with your addy and I'll get the book out to you.

Thanks so much to everyone for dropping by. Stick around, as I'll be doing some more groovy book giveaways next week.

shadowglass goodness, and an e-book

Celebrating? Me? Why, yes. I'm glad you asked.

One: my baby Shadowfae is now an e-book. Yay! All good things come to those who wait. Check it out. There are links in the sidebar to the left. And remember, some e-stores offer loyalty programs or promotional discounts, so I humbly suggest you shop around. Nuff said :)

Two: it's just twenty-eight days until the release of my new book, Shadowglass.

So to celebrate I'm gonna give away an ARC. Right here, right now. Well, in a second. Once I've shown you the goodness. Bear with me.



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 eke out a meager living 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 its 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 his determination to save Ice…


RT Reviews shower my baby with four (count 'em! four!) stars and say this:

"Take an unbelievably sexy fae heroine who thinks she's a geek and a blue metalfae, and you have one steamy urban fantasy in the latest Shadowfae Chronicle. The unique characters have few morals and are totally engaging, and a colorful alternate world in contemporary Melbourne is the perfect spot for the magical, fast-paced plot."

And I'm stoked to get a starred review from Publisher's Weekly, including this:

"This engaging sequel to 2009’s Shadowfae weaves rich sensual imagery and dark eroticism into a breathless thriller plot."

Lastly, check out, if you please, my brand new trailer:

Like it? Awesome! Show your friends. Wanna win an ARC? Thought so.

Here's what ya gotta do. Any, many or all of: Leave me a comment. Follow me on Twitter. Post my trailer on your blog. RT me. Friend me on LJ. Join my newsletter. All the usual stuff, right? Just make sure you identify yourself in the comments somehow so I can contact you.

And on... let's see, today's Wednesday... on Friday, I'll pick one lucky winner for the ARC. Open worldwide. 'Cause, y'know. Wouldn't wanna leave anyone out.

Next week, I'll have excerpts. There's one in the back of Shadowfae (which is now an e-book. Did I mention that?) but I think you deserve more. Soon. So long as you're good girls and boys...

six shady days of christmas

...and we all know that Christmas means summer, right? Not snowdrifts or holly or yule logs, whatever they are. I'm talking the beach, barbecues, prawn cocktails, sunburn and the cricket on TV the next morning.

Time to give away some hawt books for free. Just because that's the kind of generous soul I am. So welcome one and all to:

Each day up until Christmas (starting today, that's Sunday for all you weekend blogreaders), I'm giving away a signed copy of SHADOWFAE to one lucky person who drops by.

And (yes! but wait, there's more) on the last day, the winner will also receive my very first SHADOWGLASS ARC! Be the first person in the WORLD to read my smokin' hot March 2010 release... well, except for my agent. And my editor. And my cat (he loved it, of course). And possibly a pile of reviewers... But you can be the first REAL person to read it. You know what I mean.

Look at them. They're gorgeous. You know you want them. Even just to look at the pretty covers.

And you know the drill. One of more of the following, folks:

1) Tweet the contest (or RT my tweet) and leave a comment here to let me know
2) Mention the contest on your blog -- take the palm tree pic if you like -- and leave the link in a comment here
3) Read my free short story, Hellcursed, on my website. Like it? Blog or tweet about it, and leave a note here.
4) Friend me on LJ (right here!)
5) Follow me on Twitter (I'm @ericahayes)
6) Subscribe to my (mercifully infrequent) newsletter here
7) Any other cool social networking thingy you can come up with and tell me about.

The more you do, the more entries you get. Each day I'll pick a random winner, and remove their name from the draw. The rest will stay in, ie. your entries don't expire. So don't be afraid to repeat yourself :) and the sooner you get the word out, the more chances your Internetz Friendz will get to win :)

Contest open worldwide (yeah, that includes the US. Especially the US. Wouldn't want to neglect all y'all).

Non-LJ-ers: please leave your name in your comment, and a Blogger address, email or Twitter where I can ping you if you win.