L🖤VE BITES . . . on SALE! by Nancy Gideon

I get sooooo excited when my backlist paranormal books go on sale! It’s the perfect time to stir up promo vibes for both my lengthy vampire and shapeshifter series. So let’s get this gratuitously out of the way . . .

Midnight Redeemer (Touched by Midnight Series - Book 6)

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Published: May 3, 2011

Length: 196 Pages

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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

✦✦✦

While I adore Max and my “By Moonlight” family, it was those nocturnal naughty boys (and girls) in my “Midnight” series in the late 1990’s that got my PNR career going. It all started at a meeting with my then publisher, Zebra, who was looking for authors interested in tiptoeing into the dark side by writing paranormal romance and wondered if I’d be one of them. WOULD I?!?! I had proposals to them by the time they got home from the conference. Romance with a Bite! Squee!

I grew up delightfully scared by those things that go bump in the night (and I don’t mean tripping over a snoozing pet on the way to the bathroom!). Those were the days of horror classics and DARK SHADOWS, and I embraced their evolution into smarter, darker, and sometimes funnier venues like Twilight Zone/Night Gallery, Journey to the Unknown, and Night Stalker. I’d watch Creature Features through my fingers while huddling on the couch . . . and my mom would wonder why I had such a hard time getting up for school in the morning. I read everything Shelley, Stoker, Poe, Jackson, King, and Koontz (but not Lovecraft – too weird. Brrr!).

Reaping those shivers on the screen and off the page became picturing them in my mind, as my own spooky tales spun from thoughts onto lined paper then to ancient typewriter. Writing about things that terrified me as a child let me own those fears.

Good-bye night light. I’d embraced my inner demons and invited them onto the blank pages in front of me.

Currently, I’m busy reissuing Books 4-8 in my “By Moonlight” shapeshifter series and, wouldn’t you know, reading through them has gotten my storytelling vibes tingling again . . . Perhaps another walk on the dark side is long overdue.

Shapeshifter or Vampire? Which direction do you think I should go?

Does it look like Spring’s begun in your area? Here in Michigan, we just get teases that could lead to a blizzard. One never knows. And now that I don’t have to work outside the home, I don’t have to care! But hurry up budding trees and greening lawns – the cats want to go out on their leashes!!

♚♚♚♚♚

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Halloween Monsters: Werewolves & Shapeshifters

Happy Halloween! October is possibly my favorite month of the year, and Halloween has a great deal to do with that. I thought it would be fun to do a little fact finding about the traditional Halloween monsters (werewolves, vampires, Frankenstein, etc.) and their evolution in folklore and literature.

Since every single one of my series (Fire's Edge, Svatura, Shadowcat Nation, Legendary Consultants) involve shifters or werewolves of some sort, you know I had to dig into the history of those creatures.

As I researched this topic, I found it very interesting that unlike vampires and Frankenstein almost every culture around the world has some type of transformation or shape-shifting mythology (typically with animals indigenous to the area). Many of these mythologies go back to antiquity.

In earlier history, shapeshifters were most commonly deities (gods or goddesses) with the magical ability to transform. In Japan they have Kitsune, a fox shifter who is typically benevolent but often a trickster. Korea and China have similar fox shapeshifter myths. In Africa, deities shift into lions or leopards. In South America they transform into jaguars. Some gods/goddesses in Greek, Roman, Norse, etc. mythology can choose their forms.

Another frequent myth seen for shifters in earlier history is humans who were transformed into something by a god or goddess as a punishment. In Greek mythology, Arachne was transformed into a spider. In Roman myth and Ovid’s Metamorphoses, King Lycaon was changed to a wolf by Jupiter (some attribute this as the beginning of werewolf mythology). But in these cases, the person changed had no power to return back to human. This theme continued in later European folklore. The Frog Prince and Beauty and the Beast both involve transformation into animals as a punishment.


Enter the Middle Ages where the werewolf mythology became prevalent. Most of the people executed for being werewolves in this time period were later found by historians to be serial killers. The werewolf mythology also closely follows witch folklore and persecution. In fact, shifter mythologies were not all that prevalent in North America until brought over by European colonists at the same time as they brought their fear of witches.

Based on what I could find, not a lot seemed to change about shapeshifter folklore for quite some time. Up to the 1940s (and even later) they were truly seen as monsters eliciting terror and revulsion. Early books and movies about werewolves have the happy ending being the death or defeat of the creature.

In my research, I couldn't find a specific trigger for the change in perception of shapeshifters and werewolves as monsters to the view of them today as sympathetic and even heroic. Even books written in the mid- to late-1900s still use a more classic example of shifters. For example, in C.S. Lewiss The Chronicles of Narnia, Eustace is shifted into a dragon but more as a learning moment or punishment, not at will.


I would argue that shapeshifters we see today both in literature and movies, unlike their earlier counterparts, become the hero of most stories in the last 10-20 years by changing these aspects:

• ability to change at will (rather than being trapped in the animal form)
• more reasoned thinking (more human attributes, previous monsters went total animal)
• usually good and are solving the problem (even if the problem stems from them)
• frequently have an entire subculture to support them / live with in peace
• more often than not, shifting/were-hood is not a punishment, but a lifestyle

What a change from the monsters they originally were. Right?

I've found this topic so interesting to research, I'll have to dig more on the psychology behind this phenomenon. My guess is that, like vampires, we've romanticized werewolves and other shapeshifters, giving them more human qualities, behaviors, and values. Dissatisfied by our human frailty, we are intrigued by the thought of what additional power assuming such a form could provide. It makes me wonder what the next 10, 20, even  100 years have in store for these fascinating and ancient creatures.

Building a Sanctuary by Guest Beth Caudill

Building a Sanctuary

            Everyone dreams of a place they can feel safe and protected. A private nook where they can be themselves. Where wishes and dreams are built. A sanctuary.

Merriam Webster defines sanctuary as:

2.         a (1) :  a place of refuge and protection (2) :  a refuge for wildlife where predators are controlled and hunting is illegal

b :  the immunity from law attached to a sanctuary

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sanctuary

            In Tethered, my first Zodiac Shifters novella, I created the town of Willows Haven. A sanctuary for all the magical creatures inhabiting on East Coast which is protected from humans and anyone with intent to harm.

            The town butts against the imaginary Gracelynne Shroud State Park with its large lake. Along the water’s edge, five willow trees along with their guardians provide the power for the protection spell that keeps away those with malicious intent from the town. 

            I adapted this from my own sanctuary. The neighborhood I live in is next to a city park. It’s a great place to walk, let the kids play or take in nature.  I wanted my paranormal characters in Willows Haven to have the same experience. Only on a larger scale, including a bubble of protection that I can’t wrap my kids in.

            Aside from the lake, another attraction of the town will be the Cherries and Berries Diner. I wanted something like the old 1950s diners, but a lot of the interior inspiration came from the Normal Diner which I found in an online search. Situated in one of the downtown buildings, everyone stops by the Cherries and Berries diner at some point for some great food, gossip and pie or cobbler.

            Nothing makes you feel safer than being surrounded by food and friends.

           

Blurb

Evelyn Brooks lives with the freedom only her kind can know—in her human form as a photographer, and in the skies as a falcon. When a stalker drives her from her home, Evelyn discovers a beautiful, wild sanctuary in North Carolina. After a bolt of magic knocks her from the sky, leaving her helpless, she realizes too late that danger invaded her refuge.

Park ranger Lawke Morgan’s day goes from bad to worse when his ex-wife unexpectedly drops off their 13-year-old daughter in the beginning of a dangerous storm. His life takes a turn for the bizarre after he finds an injured Peregrine falcon that transforms into a lovely woman. 

When his daughter is kidnapped by an Aztec priest, one who should have been dead for centuries, Lawke learns that Evelyn holds the key to the priest’s demands. Together they must confront blood sacrifices, defy ancient gods and find a way to trust each other when a young girl’s life hangs in the balance. 

Can a woman used to soaring amongst the clouds embrace love with a man firmly rooted on the ground?

Excerpt

Willows Haven appeared to be a typical small town. There were residential streets intermixed with strip malls and a large shopping area near the highway. Even the downtown section had been revitalized with eateries, businesses, and professional offices. Like the local newspaper.

Several willow trees grew along the edge of a deep lake on the north side of town. They must have been the inspiration for the town name. Although that didn’t explain the businesses use of nature-themed titles. Someone must have an earthly sense of humor.

Lawke escorted Evelyn into the Cherries and Berries Diner. It occupied a large storefront on Main Street. They stood between the checkout counter and a large refrigerated pie case while waiting to be seated. A modest décor consisted of dark wood booths along the street-side windows and near the kitchen a beige countertop was lined with bright silver cushioned stools. The walls held paintings of different types of fruit trees.

“You can sit anywhere. I’ll be with you in a minute,” an older redheaded woman in a mint green uniform told them as she walked by carrying a tray filled with steak, eggs, and waffles.

He slid into the end booth where he could keep an eye on the door and anyone walking around the side, near the restrooms. Evelyn sat across from him and slid him a menu. They offered an eclectic selection of sandwiches, dinner platters, and breakfast entrees. Desserts, mostly pies and cobblers, covered the entire back page.

“What can I get you, sweetie?” the waitress asked, tapping a pen on her pad.

“I’ll try the strawberry French toast.”

Lawke shook his head at Evelyn’s sweet tooth. “I’ll have an omelet with mushrooms, onions, ham, and cheese with a side of fried potatoes.”

“Any coffee?”

Evelyn flipped through the menu. “I’d like a glass of apple juice.”

“I’ll just have sweet tea.”

The waitress nodded. “Be back with your drinks shortly.” She walked away.

Lawke glanced out the window at the empty street. Even for a Sunday, downtown appeared eerily deserted. Except for the bike parked in the lot next to the brick building across the street. Which happened to contain the offices for When the Tree Falls, the local newspaper.

“Why three days?”

He didn’t want to think about having to break the law, but he couldn’t pretend he didn’t understand her question, either. “It’s long enough to observe any patterns in the brothers’ lives while still being short enough that the priest shouldn’t kill Zoe.”

On the counter, a portable TV showed the projected path for the tropical depression. At least the storm was weakening, although they’d still have the potential for flooding.

Buy Links

Amazon US – http://www.amzn.com/B01NH9KZT9/

Barnes and Noble – http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tethered-beth-caudill/1125729374?ean=2940157181444

iBooks – https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/tethered/id1204476545?mt=11

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/tethered-17

Google – https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Beth_Caudill_Tethered_A_Zodiac_Shifters_Book?id=_fYWDgAAQBAJ

Bio

Although Beth grew up in West Virginia, she currently resides in North Carolina with her husband, two sons and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who makes an excellent lap warmer. Blending the analytical and creative sides of her brain, she delights in creating fantasy worlds for others. Catch her online most days except when NCIS and Once Upon a Time air.

Author Website: http://BethCaudill.net/

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