Paranormal Romantics: Touched by Midnight

Tuesday, June 25, 2024

Time to Kill - MIDNIGHT SURRENDER - $0.99 SAL*E! by Nancy Gideon

The best thing about having a sizable backlist is the fun of revisiting titles when they go on sale – especially when that task pulls you into a world that you adore. My MIDNIGHT vampire romance series was my first venture into the dark paranormal world I loved (and still love!) to read. MIDNIGHT SURRENDER is the third book of three contracted back in the early ‘90s when WooWoo books were the new “thing” in the publishing industry. For me, it had become a “thing” back in the mid-60s when DARK SHADOWS appeared in often out of focus black and white on our living room console TV. I’d run home from school to get lost in the drama of tragic vampire Barnabas Collins yearning to become human so he could be with the woman he loved. Sigh . . . So, when I met with my new agent in New York and he asked if I’d consider writing paranormal romance, I had no qualms about promising a three-book series . . . even without a storyline.

Then I “met” Louis Radman, whose mysterious malady brought him to Arabella Howland’s father in Regency London to find a cure for his (cough cough) blood disease in MIDNIGHT KISS. Little did I know that these characters would compel me to write five more titles for ImaJinn Books, the publisher who brought the first three back to life. MIDNIGHT SURRENDER was the final book of the original trio, taking our tragic hero into a new century to find a surprisingly independent new love. But a dark past is hard to escape. And therein lies the shadowy twists of love and madness that newspaper editor Cassie Alexander struggles to escape while pursuing a story that could save her father’s publishing legacy.

Have a taste of MIDNIGHT SURRENDER . . . now on SALE!

Midnight Surrender (Touched by Midnight - Book 3)

Published: October 1, 2015

Length: 236 Pages

Hunt or be hunted . . . A centuries old obsession stalks a noble family fighting to hide their dark secret from an ever-changing world. Sink your teeth into Nancy Gideon's Touched by Midnight series.

A Reckless Quest . . .

A savage killer stalks the dark streets of turn-of-the-century New York. To keep her father’s newspaper afloat, publisher Cassie Alexander chases the story. But what she catches is a madman’s attention.

A Dark Deception . . .

When her reclusive neighbor Louis Radcliffe rescues her from an attack, Cassie finds her vow of independence shaken by the strong attraction between them. It’s an attraction Louis denies, even as the invalid grandmother he cares for pushes to bring them together—for reasons that will break both their hearts.

An Inevitable Sacrifice . . . .

Determined to hide his secrets from her, Louis soon becomes the cornerstone of Cassie’s investigation. He can’t allow her stubbornness to place her life—and his immortal soul—in danger. But as much as he tries to keep her safe in his arms, it soon becomes evident that Cassie’s become a target. And Louis has no choice but to find out if their love is strong enough to withstand the truth . . . .

“Gripping! Readers are pulled into a whirlwind while surrendering their souls!”— Gothic Journal

“Darkly sensual and suspenseful Midnight Surrender is nothing short of special! Lovers of vampire romances take notice!”—The Literary Times

“Gideon mesmerizes with this chilling tale. You’ll read it and read it again. Superb!”— Rendezvous

The Excerpt

With a movement that managed to appear both languid and too fast to follow, Gerard was stretched out on the bed beside her, his words a husky rumble. “Say you have decided to have me over Gino and make me the happiest of men.”
Arabella laughed at the absurdity of his plea. “What would you do with an old woman?”
His jewel-like eyes dazzled. “Time means nothing to me, cara. I see you as I saw you on your wedding day.” And, as he lifted her hand to his lips, that hand that bore Louis’s ring was no longer withered with age or tracked by spidery blue veins, but fair and full and soft; a young woman’s hand. Arabella drew a startled breath as he vowed, “You are still beautiful to me.”
She put her other hand to her face and felt the taut skin of a twenty-year-old instead of roughened parchment. “What trickery is this?” She pulled away, upset and confused, then remembered with whom she was dealing. “You wrap lies in the illusion of truth. That’s what Louis told me.”
A soft chuckle. “Louis . . . I cannot think of him by that name. They are not all lies, pretty Bella. I can make this illusion last a lifetime. Can he do the same?”
“You can make me ‘believe’ I’m young again.”
“A minor point of interpretation.”
“I think not.”

Oh, I’ve got shivers! And I’ve got MORE news . . . MIDNIGHT TEMPTATION, the preceding book in the series, will be on sale next month from July 16 to 31, so if you want to read them in order – at a great price! – you can save MIDNIGHT SURRENDER (if you can wait!) to read afterwards. And in this hideous heat that’s pressing down on us in the Midwest, that sounds like a fabulous alternative to going anywhere beyond the expectant turn of a page.

Happy Reading . . . and stay cooool!

♚♚♚♚♚

Nancy Gideon on the Web

Monday, March 25, 2024

Sink Your Teeth into Midnight Redeemer on SALE - $0.99! by Nancy Gideon

I’m doing double duty over this holiday-filled (and a full moon!!) end of the month by posting on both my Weekend Writing Warriors and Paranormal Romantics blogs with the same Woo Hoo for Woo Woo post for my vampire romance MIDNIGHT REDEEMER, now on SALE for only $0.99 (!) through the end of the month.

I love smart men and women playing dangerous cat and mouse games. But which one is playing which role in this sixth book of my Touched of Midnight series? Scientist Stacy Kimball is looking for a cure for the blood disease that will eventually kill her, as it did her mother. Mysterious philanthropist Louis Redman could provide her funding . . . and the answer to immortality. All she needs is a sample of his rare blood type. What Stacy doesn’t know is they share the same driving interest. He wants her blood, too. Here’s a peek at MIDNIGHT REDEEMER.

Midnight Redeemer (Touched by Midnight Series - Book 6)

Published: May 3, 2011

Length: 196 Pages

Hunt or be hunted . . . A centuries-old obsession stalks a noble family fighting to hide their dark secret from an ever-changing world. Sink your teeth into Nancy Gideon's Touched by Midnight series.

Will his dream . . .

Centuries-old vampire Louis Redman is desperate to believe an inquisitive researcher's claim that she's close to finding a cure for his age-old curse. Determined to become human again, he must trust the lovely geneticist who has pushed her way into his guarded life . . . and heart . . . not to betray him to the government agency that wants to uncover his secrets for their own purposes.

. . . be the death of her?

Scientist Stacy Kimball discovers potential fame and the answer to immortality in a murder victim's blood sample. But as she gets closer to the truth, danger stalks her from the shadows. Who wants to silence her from making the breakthrough of a lifetime? Is it the agency that funds her work? The killer who's terrorizing Seattle's night scene?

Or the mysterious Louis Redman, whose kisses seduce her beyond caring . . . ?

"A rare treat . . . this exciting thriller will keep you up all night as Ms. Gideon weaves her spell." — Romantic Times

"Nancy Gideon is one of the best supernatural writers on the market today!" — Midwest Book Review/BookWire

The Excerpt

Almost six centuries . . .
The life of Florentine noble, Luigio Rodmini—a life that instead of ending after an expected number of years, continued with new names in new cities. In the early 1800’s he surfaced in London, wedding Arabella Howland, the daughter of an acclaimed physician. He was then Louis Radman. As his surname changed to Radouix and his residence to France, Arabella bore him a daughter, Nicole. As Louis Radcliffe, he appeared in New York near the Turn-of-the-Century, living with his grandmother, Bella, who was his most likely wheelchair-bound and aged wife. After her death, he married Cassandra Alexander, heiress to a newspaper empire. They disappeared in Europe, their businesses handled by proxy. His daughter, Nicole wed a French expatriate and lived with their daughter, Fredrica, on the island of Martinique. Then, more silence as the family seemed to vanish, from print, at least, until wealthy eccentric, Louis Redman set himself up in Seattle.
How could Rodmini and Redman be one in the same?
How could they not be given all the evidence before her?

How, indeed?

I loved writing this book because it’s got a bit of everything I like to read: A paranormal love story, a Who-Done-It mystery with Frankenscience ethics, sneaky government ops, and a return of characters and complications I adored from previous books (You don’t have to have read them to appreciate them here) along with an unexpected extra – a new hero by the name of Frank Cobb. I couldn’t wait to give him his own story. And then there’s that almost otherworldly nighttime world in a setting that’s almost another character—Seattle—the dreamy site of my first romance writers’ conference waaaay way back. All this for only $0.99 through the end of the month!

After this fantastic sale, I’m back to updating (not rewriting!) the books in my By Moonlight series that I’ve gotten the rights back to. Talk about walking in two very different worlds. Vampires or Shapeshifters – which is your favorite?

I plan to spend the rest of this quixotic sunny-to-cold-to-who-knows-what of an early spring weekend visiting your excerpts before the cats start yowling for their second trip into the great outdoors (need a few more degrees and a little less snow, but try telling them that!).

♚♚♚♚♚

Nancy Gideon on the Web

Sunday, June 25, 2023

Sink Your Teeth Into A Midnight Temptation You Can’t Resist!! by Nancy Gideon

MIDNIGHT TEMPTATION was something new and exciting for me – the chance to expand into what would soon become one of the industry’s most successful mass market areas – paranormal romance. It combined a feisty coming of age heroine running from a dark family secret to lose herself in the decadent freedom and upheaval of pre-Revolution Paris, an honorable noble casting off his privilege to follow a subversive cause, and my favorite of all my dark heroes – a vampire too deliciously dangerous to resist. Now I HAVE to interrupt other plans and reread their story! But first today’s 2-for-1 post for both Weekend Writing Warriors and Paranormal Romantics each with their own different excerpt . . .

Midnight Temptation (Touched by Midnight Series - Book 2)

Published: August 14, 2015

Length: 256 Pages

The Excerpt

Lying beside him, longing for his closeness as much as she feared it, Nicole remained awake until the early dawn, listening to the sounds of her companions’ slumber and the night music of the city beyond. She found it difficult to sleep, her system attuned to those dark hours where energy pulsed in the Paris streets. The cool breeze beckoned to instincts she didn’t understand. She lay next to Marchand, watching over him, not daring to touch him, her desire for him growing as severe as the constant hunger threading through her veins.

What had begun to attract her appetite was not served upon a plate. It throbbed, a rich and forbidden temptation, through those around her.

As she lay there, remembering the taste of Marchand’s blood, that secret contemplation horrified and fascinated. She could feel his heart beating even though they weren’t touching, could hear it sending those rivers of delight through his body with every soft thrum. The taste . . . ambrosia, whetting a desire like none she’d known.

The desire for more.

Writing Book 2 in my “Touched by Midnight” series was an unexpected pleasure. Selling Book 1-MIDNIGHT KISS had come as a delightful surprise after my first big writers’ conferences in New York and meeting with my publisher . . . because it came with a contract from Zebra/Pinnacle for THREE books in the historical market (there wasn’t a PNR line back then, just Horror). This was the kickoff for something brand new to me – and the industry. I’d written Regencies, Contemporaries, Historicals, and Western romances but this was different – these would be released under MY name. These were books with a different kind of BITE!

Take a walk on the dark side with the continuing characters of the “Touched by Midnight” world as their stories thread through decades of danger and dark desires.

♚♚♚♚♚

Nancy Gideon on the Web

Thursday, May 25, 2023

A Knight’s Paranormal Tale by Nancy Gideon

My two favorite vacays were to Las Vegas – a glittery fantasyland where time and belief is suspended. While staying at the medieval-themed Excalibur the first time, it was easy to pretend you’d slipped back into the past (nothing says medieval like eating chicken with your fingers!), into a world of gallantry and honor where brave knights participated in tournaments and carried the colors of their fair ladies. Just the kick I needed to develop the last book in my paranormal romance contract with BelleBooks, MIDNIGHT CRUSDADER, the final book in my vampire romance series, “Touched by Midnight.” Nothing says romance like a lovelorn noble who damns himself in order to follow his love through centuries to save her and, hopefully, break his curse. Now a detective on leave in the City That Never Sleeps to find and reclaim the future he was denied, Gabriel must do more than rescue his fair Naomi – he has to get her to remember him. As a new Peruvian temple rises on the Strip, the evil it houses stirs to life, becoming not only a threat to the star-crossed pair but to humanity, itself. Enjoy a taste . . .

Midnight Crusader (Touched by Midnight Series - Book 9)

Published: May 4, 2011

Length: 228 Pages

A love without end . . .
Having given up his mortal life to search for his lost love through the centuries, vampire Gabriel McGraw begins his final crusade to free her from an enemy’s grip against the glittery backdrop of Las Vegas. But is she the same woman he loved and lost or an equally dangerous foe who could betray all that he believes in?

Naomi Bright’s memories go back no farther than her arrival in Sin City. Does her hidden past conceal madness or a truth too terrible to be believed? Compulsion draws her toward a medieval fantasy world, and obsession to a man she instinctively knows but can’t remember.

Will finding the answers release her from her prison of fear? Or will it ensure that she loses everything - her life, her love . . . her soul?

“ . . . another enthralling and soul-stirring vampire romance.” —BookReview.com

The Excerpt

He sank back into the shadows, watching her confusion as she scanned the sidewalks for him. He stayed out of sight with an anguished purpose. He hadn’t meant to reveal himself to her, not so soon, not so spontaneously without planning the result.
But he had, and he had his answer.
He passed his hand across his eyes, covering the tender torment that came with beholding her image. The sound that escaped him was half strangled sob, half moan of longing.
She didn’t know him.
No recognition sparked her gaze. No awareness leapt at the sound of his name.
He meant nothing to her.
(. . . and a bit more . . .)
How could that be when she was the very breath in his body, the very reason for his heart to continue beating in its unnatural rhythm somewhere between heaven and hell?
The scent of her lingered. The perfume she wore had passed from her tender skin to his hand, and he inhaled deeply until intoxicated by fragrant memory. Violets. Her favorite. The delicate bouquet had teased him through centuries, quickening his hopes, his desires, his dreams.
She was here. And she would be his at last.
And he would never, ever let her go again.

I’ve just gotten back from a wonderful weekend filled with friends and fiction at a writers’ retreat in Grand Haven, Michigan. It reminded me of how much I need my writing time (even though I spent the weekend editing a romantic suspense that I started at LAST year’s write in!). It was a small group this year, just seven of us all working on vastly different projects but the energy was palpable. I came home with a completed revision and, unfortunately, a miserable cold. Worth it!

Now, to get back to work at my own desk . . .

♚♚♚♚♚

Nancy Gideon on the Web

Monday, April 25, 2022

Getting Back to the Inspiration Well . . . of Ideas by Nancy Gideon

I don’t know about you, but isolation has sucked . . . the inspiration out of me. For over a year, my creative mind has lain fallow, completely barren of ideas. The closed lid of my laptop has gathered dust on my work desk while I used my big screen monitor across the office to binge watch on Amazon and Netflix, play card, and post silly memes on FB. Fulfilling the obligations of the two social media blogs I participate in was the closest I came to creative thought. I just couldn’t muster the energy or enthusiasm to . . . write. I’m 45K into a romantic suspense so it’s NOT like I had nothing to work on. Just no interest in walking those five steps from one keyboard to the other . . . because I had nothing to say.

Oh come on! When does a writer have NOTHING to say?! Perhaps I just had nothing to excite my imagination. Bring in one of my critique partners and her also-a-writer sister who arrived unexpectedly to creatively ‘kidnap’ me.

Those who know me know I am the least spontaneous human in existence. Yet when my two visitors took me to lunch then suggested a trip to Chicago for a writing weekend, I shocked all three of us by saying “Let’s go!” Whose voice was that? Surely not that of one who never goes to the store without three lists. And yet I was packed within fifteen minutes, and with computer in hand, out the door, stunning no one as much as myself.

How to describe that weekend? A (masked) breath of personal and creative freedom from the weight of day-to-day sameness! We had our laptops fired up, our creativity firing on all cylinders, and . . . words, sentences, paragraphs, then pages appeared. We didn’t just write on our own projects. We worked on each other’s plot problems, talked PR, set up a book launch, and . . . we shopped. Hey, it was the Mall in Chicago! So – many – strange people! And so much fun.

And once I’d broken free, I couldn’t remain a prisoner. A weekend writers’ Retreat hosted on a lake by my local Romance Writers of America chapter. And now, two weeks of plotting nirvana at the home of one of my critique partners (along with Amazon and Netflix. We’re not savages! Inspiration has to come from somewhere!). That neglected W-I-P won’t know what hit it!

Moral of the story . . . inspiration needs to be fed. If not by personal contact, then by new experiences (Try one of those freebie 7-day cable trials! Bingeing 6 seasons of OUTLANDER over a weekend had that fire blazing!) If you’re leery of personal contact, take a walk outside! Stand on your porch (now that it doesn’t have 8” of snow and ice on it here in MI!) and breathe deep! Take an online writing craft workshop. Journal. Do writing sprints. Push that flabby mind until it cries “Uncle!”

And once you’ve dipped into that cool, refreshing well of inspiration . . . let the words flow!

And if you’re looking for something to spark ideas, try reading outside your comfortable literary carrel. Might I suggest sinking your teeth into something . . . paranormal . . .So happens I have just the thing, and on SALE, too! A weary vampire tricked into taking a human bride to keep his secret safe in Turn-of-the-Century New Orleans? For only $0.99 . . .?

Published: May 3, 2011

Length: 230 Pages

Well, I’ve got packing to do and a W-I-P simmering on the back burner. And hopefully warm sun and a porch rocking chair waiting for my arrival.

(FYI, when I was searching for “well” graphics, most of them had that creepy girl from The Ring crawling out of it. Ewwww! That’s not the place I go for inspiration . . .)

Happy Writing!!

♚♚♚♚♚

Nancy Gideon on the Web

Saturday, August 25, 2018

Help! My Series Has Been Hijacked by My Villain! by Nancy Gideon

He’s gorgeous, he’s suave, he’s snarky, he’s Italian, and oh, so sexy . . . and, he’s the villain! What’s an author to do when the bad guy is getting all the prime real estate scenes? It wasn’t planned that way but there it is. Every time he gets page time, no other character exists.

It all started in the first book of my Touched by Midnight vampire romance series. The hero was doing fine on his own until two old friends show up at his wedding, an icy, deadly blonde and . . . him. Gerardo Pascale. Dark, droll, and dangerous to this author’s pitter-pattering heart, the more I tried to vilify him, painting him as petulant, vengeful, and treacherous—a slave to the vicious vampire who made him, then turned him against his best friend, the more intrigued I became. Even after a final attempt at revenge against the friend he blames for his misery ends badly, Gerardo redeems himself on the last page, giving the reader, and me, hope that he become hero material.

Book 2, MIDNIGHT TEMPTATION. He’s baaaack! Sleek and sinister but with a heart unable to harden when it comes to the daughter of his friend and the woman he admires, Gerardo schools young Nicole on the ways of their kindin post-Revolution France, trying to seduce her away from her beloved with the mysteries he confides. And he steals the show. I don’t want to give toooo much away because MIDNIGHT TEMPTATION is on sale through the end of the month for only $.99! If you haven’t read the series, take chance and get to know this deadly charmer.

Preview Book

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Her compelled gaze settled far back into the shadows, upon the figure of a man in stark silhouette. He jerked as if with some shock of recognition, then took one gliding step forward to the edge of lamplight.

Reflection played an eerie game upon his face, highlighting skin so fair it seemed translucent and hollows so sharp and deep they were like caverns. A face so startling, so unnaturally beautiful she came close to stumbling in her study. Beneath an arch of black brows, eyes of an icy, luminous blue entranced her. Even as she jerked her head away, she caught the impression of his smile, serene and sinister all at once.

Nicole had never seen the Devil, but on this night, she was sure he walked abroad. She was just as certain that he followed, safely back amongst the shadows. She could feel him, an essence so powerful it frightened her. The moment she crossed the bridge, the sensations faded, and she knew he was gone. But the fear lingered, lending a quickness to her heartbeats and an anxious panic to her mind.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Gerard appears again in Book 3,then finally in Book 4, MIDNIGHT ENCHANTMENT, he gets tragic hero standing. So, as I presumed all along, there was a good(ish) guy inside just waiting for the chance, if not to see the light of day, then at least find the love of the right woman.

What is it with villains? Does anyone else suffer this affliction? What makes them so . . . yummy? Their ultimate bad boy status? Their need for redemption? Their living on the edge devil-may-carelessness? Their unavailability? Or the wounds behind their darkness that we want to heal? Who are your favorite redemption-worthy villains?

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Nancy Gideon on the Web

Follow @NancyGideon

Thursday, May 25, 2017

Tools of the Trade by Nancy Gideon

I've always loved this picture of the early 19th Century vampire hunting kit. A nice, tidy assortment of all-business paraphernalia needed to get the job done that, I realized in an epiphany, hasn't gone out of style from my first vampire romance MIDNIGHT KISS, in Regency era England, to the last, MIDNIGHT CRUSADER, set in glittery Las Vegas. Now that's a guy who knew how to pack for the long haul!

Today, I'd have gone for a nice Gucci carry on to stash my stuff, paired with matching shoes, depending on the event. Or the warded trunk of a badass black '67 Impala driven by a Winchester.

Whoops, wrong badass . . .

The tools of the trade are pretty much standard for taking out your ordinary vampire, werewolf, demon, etc. : Bible, holy water, cross and rosary, fire, stake with hammer to drive the point home, and silver - either sharp and pointy and/or bullet version, with pungent garnish optional, whether in an old Carpathian village or on the streets of New York City. You gotta love tradition with staying power. With the passage of time, the tools may be newer, shinier, NIV vs King James, or carry a warranty from Sears, but they all maintain the century's old attributes for killing the unnatural dead (again). But that doesn’t mean you can’t update a classic for your paranormal hunter. Take a tip from VanHelsing's rapid fire crossbow, Abraham Lincoln-Vampire Hunter's acrobatics or Blade's iridescent UV grenades. Nothing is more fun than upgrading the traditional to delight your audience. Or surprising them when the expected cure (or kill) all proves nothing but a myth. What do you mean that only works in the movies?

Don't mock the classics. When in doubt, go for basic black . . . and blue (like those knuckle dusters inscribed with Enochian symbols) but don’t be afraid to include a few flashy accessories (take that from a gal who LOVES her accessories!). The tried and true spiced with your own magical take on what gets your hero and heroine though the night alive can make a believer out of the most cynical reader and have them returning, over and over, just like Dracula remakes.

Sink your teeth into these tasty tributes to the undead where it doesn’t hurt (much) to think outside the box.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo Books | Google

What are some unique ways you’ve seen (or written) for disposing of preternatural pests?

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Nancy Gideon on the Web