Halloween Is Coming! What Are You Reading?

With Halloween a mere three weeks away, I find myself absorbed in the season. Living in New England, it's easy to be touched emotionally by skeleton trees, long shadows, and the scent of dying vegetation in the air. I'm a reader and writer of fantasy and paranormal stories, so I'm as likely to read a ghost story on Valentine's Day as Halloween, but in October, I do think I get an extra kick out of the creepy themes and characters. This October, will you be picking up some romances about ghosts or witches or anything spooky? I have a list going!

Some new and old releases on my October TBR:

Ghosts of Kingston Cottage by Libby Bishop, coming October 28

She believes in ghosts.

Medium and paranormal investigator Arabella Pierce is sent with her crew to Kingston Cottage, a haunted Maine seafarer’s cottage on an isolated island, but for this investigation, her boss has stuck them with skeptical reporter Lucas Brown. Though he’s hot as they come, Arabella can’t trust a man whose sole job is to discredit her and the work she does. Not after what happened with the last few skeptics...

He believes in evidence.

But Lucas isn’t as skeptical as he seems—he wants the truth, no matter what that is. When the ghosts appear, he and Arabella must work together—in tight quarters—to convince the resident ghosts to move on before a storm strands the entire crew on the island. If Arabella can put aside her prejudices, she and Lucas just might have a shot at a lifetime.

Ghost at Work by Carolyn Hart

Bailey Ruth Raeburn has always been great at solving mysteries. Why should a little thing like her death change anything? In fact, being dead gives her more of an opportunity to be on top of events. Bailey Ruth is delighted that her unique position as a ghost makes it possible for her to lend a helping hand, sometimes seen and sometimes not. And if anybody needs a little help, it's Kathleen, the pastor's wife. There's a dead man on her porch, and once the body is discovered, the pastor is sure to become a suspect.

Uncharitable people might call it meddling, but Bailey Ruth knows Kathleen needs her help! As a member of Heaven's Department of Good Intentions, Bailey Ruth goes back to earth to extricate Kathleen from a dire situation. If Bailey Ruth has to bend a few rules to help Kathleen save her family, Wiggins, her fussbudget supervisor, will make sure it all turns out right in the end.

Eternity by Maggie Shayne

Three hundred years ago, Raven St. James was accused of witchcraft... Only one man tried to free her from the hangman's noose--Duncan, the town minister, who died trying to save her. Three hundred years later, the accused witch still lives and longs for her love... At last, after centuries of loneliness, Raven has found her precious Duncan. But as he awakens to the passion of his past life, so too does the evil that tore them apart. Now Raven and Duncan must prove their love for all eternity...

Haunted Chemistry by Lindsey Loucks

When bookish college co-ed Alexis heads to the laundry room in her new apartment, she runs into Ian Reese, the chem lab partner she crushed on all last semester. And the guy who stood her up on their first date. But she’s down for an awkward reunion, and no better place than her creepy laundry room.

Ian has every intention of making amends, but just when Alexis begins to trust him again, a new threat calls more than their future together into question. A ghost from the apartment’s past is hellbent on revenge, and if he wants to get his girl, he’ll have to get the ghost first.

~~~

Now, I'm not going to read Ghosts of the Falls because I already have--dozens of times. ;-) But here's another ghost romance to consider if you're searching for a Happy Ever After and a haunting:

Ghosts of the Falls by Sarah Gilman, coming October 28

Determined to prove she’s fit for the family business, exorcist Jade Clarence knows the assignment waiting in Maine is her last chance. Born into a family of exorcists, Jade’s unorthodox ideas have gotten her into trouble in the past...and cost the life of a client.

After haunting a Maine state park for more than a century, Dutch Hutchinson will do whatever it takes to bring an end to his unfulfilling existence. When an act of arson brings a beautiful exorcist to town, Dutch takes corporeal form in order to spend his last hours in her company.

Jade quickly uncovers Dutch’s true identity and finds herself falling for the man behind the spirit. But when Jade’s legacy threatens their future, they will have to overcome the greatest of odds—life and death.

Amazon

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Conference Bound!

WOOT! I'm conference bound. I'm headed to Ohio as we speak for Ellora's Cave ROMANTICON. I love this conference. The last time I was at it as 2011 and it was my first time there. I've only ever been to RWA and that was in 2008. I was nervous, I didn't really know anyone and I'm a bit shy. But it was an amazing time and I met so many friends. And the book signing was overwhelming. When I first sold to Ellora's Cave in 2007 I drove to Taylor Michigan to do my first ever book signing, it was great, but I wasn't prepared for the onslaught at Romanticon in 2011. This year I'm more prepared! I can't wait to see all my friends again, make new friends and have a good time. And if you're in the Canton, Ohio area the book signing is free and open to the public on Sunday.

Something Wicked This Way Comes: Bad Witch Rising #newrelease

In many ways, Chance's journey from first draft to first release was a challenging one. One full draft of the book was lost to a hard drive failure and another to a computer virus. Four times I rewrote the book from scratch, but each rewriting made the book stronger.

In late 2008, a publisher finally took a chance on the book and it was released as Prime Evil. A little over a year later, the second book was released--Seismic Evil. I'd written the third book and contracted it, but before we could really press forward, the publisher closed.

To say I was heartbroken to have to pull down the Chance books is an understatement. In the meanwhile, I'd contracted my first Marines, released the first Fevered Hearts and embarked on what I would call my second genesis as a writer. But I never forgot Chance or what she meant to me.

Fortunately, I had readers who were as enthusiastic about her as I was. In late 2012, I resubmitted all three books--the two previously published and the unpublished third book to a new publisher. Champagne Group took a chance on them and one by one, we've edited them, tightened them up and added to the stories and re-released them with new titles beginning with Earth Witches Aren't Easy in January of 2013.

Plan Witch from Out of Town released in May and today, I am over the moon to bring to you Bad Witch Rising--this third book is the culmination of Chance's adventures in the first two and was a thrill for me to write. That I wrote it nearly three years ago and haven't been able to share it with you has been hard, but I think you will find it ultimately worth it.

So take a moment, and head to Virginia with Chance, Jaime, Sydney, Callanport, Jack, and Romeo--discover magic, mystery, suspense and friendship.

Chance Monroe's long-awaited and highly anticipated third adventure!

All Romance eBooks | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookstrand | Champagne Book Group

Some evils will not stay buried...

An ancient evil is hunting her best friend...

Evil exists. It lives. It breathes. It hunts. And it has a body count.

A dangerous secret haunts her dearest ally…

War changes people. Life changes them. Sometimes, they become something else entirely.

An internal investigation threatens her lover…

Life is about the choices made, the decisions reached, and the actions taken. What Jack did to protect her could cost them everything.

Betrayal lurks around every corner…

When one of their own turns on them, this earth witch will dig deep to become the rock holding them together—and the hammer to split the darkness. For Chance Monroe, this will be a long summer…

Uncharted Territory

Uncharted and Uncharted 2 have been pretty popular in my house lately. These games may not seem, on the surface, like "paranormal romance", but they absolutely qualify. 

The main character, Drake, is a treasure hunter running off on various adventures that inevitably surprise him with some sort of paranormal edge. In the first game, Drake meets a journalist, Elena, who accompanies him on his adventure. They connect, a romance blossoms, but then the game ends. Elena reappears in the second game, but there are more challenges to reigniting their relationship than just the time spent apart.

All the key components of a romance are there -- the initial attraction, the challenges that threaten to keep them apart, the happy-for-now ending -- and it sucks me in every time I start up the game system…just like a good book.

Do you have a favorite non-book paranormal romance to recommend?

Writing Through the Pain

This month I’m filling in for my friend Allison Pang for her regular weekly spot on Word Whores because she’s recovering from surgery she’s hoping will correct her chronic pain issues. Having watched my late husband battle with chronic pain, I do not envy anyone in this position. Yet somehow she’s managed to write a terrific Urban Fantasy series while raising two kids, in addition to holding down a day job.

Ironically, while filling in for her, I’ve somehow managed to pinch a nerve in my neck, resulting in some intense pain that travels a lovely nerve down my arm to my fingers. The first night I was treated to this delight, I woke up the middle of the night unable to move in any direction without excruciating pain. I ended up rolling onto my head and sleeping almost upside down. Yesterday I managed to get some relief with hot baths, a heating pad, and lot of aspirin. But today I woke up with numb fingers.

Luckily I have health care through the day job, so they’ve confirmed my diagnosis of a pinched nerve and prescribed a whole slew of fun medications. One of my many quirks (that I like to think contribute to my creativity as a writer) is that I have medication phobia. (To be fair, I’ve gone into anaphylactic shock before from taking a new med, so it’s entirely reasonable from my way of thinking.) So now I’m staring at a nightstand full of bottles that will probably make me feel much better and thinking about all the work I have to get done—a galley proof for the first book in my new series with Samhain, Demons of Elysium, is due to my editor tomorrow, and I’m supposed to be well into the third book in the series, but have done nothing but write three pages and then delete three pages repeatedly for the past week because my smexy demons won’t stop having smexy sex, and I'm moderating three panels next week for Coyote Con—and wondering whether it’s worth conquering my fear of taking a new medication to get some relief when it’s likely to knock me out and leave me completely incapable of getting my work done. Particularly when the day job will rear its ugly head in the morning.

My default response seems to be: write through the pain. As Westley (as the Dread Pirate Roberts) says to Buttercup in the The Princess Bride, “Life is pain, highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.”

But I have to say, I have renewed admiration for my friend Allison. Because pain sucks. And I’m grateful that mine is very likely a transitory condition. The only way I’ve ever been able to get through anything unpleasant (like the 26 hours of back labor I had when I gave birth to my son via natural childbirth) is knowing that nothing lasts forever. This is also one of the reasons I write books. Because the good things are transitory, too, so I like to make sure I always have more of them in the offing. And books are right at the top of my definition of Very Good Things. Pain, on the other hand, tops that other list, of Very Bad Things. It sucks. And it can suck it.

Celebrating Diversity

This is my first post here and I’m thrilled to be part of this group. We’re all romantics—just a little weird. No, wait. We’re not weird, our stories are. Oops, not weird exactly. Different. Yes, that’s a better word. We think beyond the ordinary, beyond the “normal”—whatever normal is.

We are a diverse group. We write about space adventures, were-folks (so many different combinations of shape shifters), vampires, elves, dragons. The list is endless. The stories within each subgroup are as diverse as the writers themselves.

I write space adventures—from twins separated before birth (yes, you read that

correctly) then switching places in the Switched series to adventures on the frontier of space, the Outer Rim. My love of space began with Alan Shepard’s first flight beyond our atmosphere. I remember watching the television transfixed by the launches of each flight. And the day Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon, holy cow. Each liftoff was scary and exciting at the same time. Men, and later women, venturing into the unknown. How thrilling was that! News reporters, anxious to fill time, gave statistics while scientists explained how the rockets worked and what the flights would be like. But they didn't go into what these first explorers were feeling. That was left to imagination.

Then the public’s interest waned. Another space flight? Ho, hum. Not for me. My imagination—always a little weird—took off on more adventures. Then Star Wars hit the movie screens. OMG, if I hadn’t been hooked before, I was then. What an adventure. But when the first Star Trek movie came out, I was so bummed. I’d loved the original series, but that movie was almost excruciating to watch. Sooo sloooow. The producers made up for it with The Wrath of Khan. That was more like it. A fast moving adventure, filled with danger and enough humor to make things interesting. J.J. Abrams’ revival of the franchise has brought back the adventure and humor of the original series. I can’t wait to see what he does with Star Wars.

Science fiction movies have changed over the years, just as movie goers have changed. So too sf books. There are purists who insist on sticking with the roots of the classics. Just as there’s an audience for classic sf, science fiction romance appeals to a different audience. Each of us who write sfr take our characters in different directions. Our "science" goes from light (mine) to more complicated and heavy with detail. Each appeals to different readers at different times. Sometimes I enjoy reading heavily-ladened science fiction. Other times I'm in the mood for something lighter.  Celebrating our differences, enjoying the diversity of writing allows so many more readers to discover the possibilities.

While my most recent book is a romantic suspense, I haven’t given up my love of space adventures. I’m currently writing the second book in the Outer Rim series about strong women on the frontier of space. Adventure and romance. What a combination.

Diane Burton combines her love of mystery, adventure, science fiction and romance into writing science fiction romance. Besides the Switched series, she is the author of The Pilot, a series about strong women on the frontier of space. One Red Shoe is her first romantic suspense. She is also a contributor to the anthology How I Met My Husband. Diane and her husband live in Michigan. They have two children and two grandchildren.

           For more info and excerpts from her books, visit Diane’s website: http://www.dianeburton.com

Connect with Diane Burton online

Blog:  http://dianeburton.blogspot.com/

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/dmburton72

Facebook:  http://facebook.com/dianeburtonauthor

Goodreads: Diane Burton Author

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/dmburton72/

Devilishly Short Story

The Devil’s Reprieve

 

The full moon shed little light through thick, gnarled branches still full of leaves. Goosebumps pimpled her arms, her nose twitched at the familiar scent wafting on the breeze. Petal stepped closer to the cave’s dark, gaping entrance and took another draft of air filling her lungs with the delicious odor.

She moved through the mouth of the cave mindful not to make even the slightest sound. Petal drew only tiny puffs of air through open lips, just enough to breathe, not enough to alert what hid in the dank cavern. The scent grew stronger and her nostrils almost pinched shut cutting off what little air she sucked in. Careful, quiet steps took her deeper and deeper down a rutted tunnel until a sharp sound of scraping metal jerked her to a halt. Did it hear her? Too late now.

Hugging her small body close to the wall, she took a few more steps toward the faint light shimmering further down the passageway until spine-chilling laughter caused Petal to squeal. Something evil lived in the dark hole and it would catch her now. Loud, heavy steps thundered in her direction, the earthen floor shuddered beneath her tiny feet with each heavy footfall in her direction. Petal’s heart thumped, almost banged through her rib cage. She gulped air as her body trembled uncontrollably.

A shadow bearing horns grew larger with each step closer to where Petal was plastered to the craggy wall unable to budge an inch.

“I waited for you.” The beast loomed over her. “Come in.”

Sweat glistened on the perfectly muscled back Petal followed into a brightly lit room filled with the spicy smell that initially attracted her to the cave. Déjà vu.

Her mouth watered even as she murmured, “I can’t stay.”

“You’ll always come back.” White teeth glinted through hard, sensuous lips.

Fear melted away as it did each time she entered this place, each time she saw him. Petal turned toward a huge fire where blazing embers danced up the chimney. The cauldron’s furiously bubbling ingredients caused the cast iron pot to slowly move from side-to-side occasionally grinding against the heavy stone lining the fireplace. The concoction boiled over sending showers of sparks upward. It was him, his essence that roiled over the flames.

Would the intoxicating odor ever lure another into his dark lair as it had her?

His hand caressed her cheek. “Tonight is yours.” Red eyes engulfed her. “Just like last time.” The tips of his fingers blazed a path down her neck, stopping to rest above her heart. His mouth curved into a crooked smile. “And exactly like the next time…I’ll be here waiting.”

 

Hope you enjoyed this quick read. I couldn’t resist dragging the devil out to play and giving him a short reprieve before Halloween.

Growl and roar-it’s okay to let the beast out.-J. Hali Steele

Do you believe in magic?

I’m no magician.  For a short time when my twins were little I could pretend I was.  Able to pull off amazing feats such as looking with the eyes in the back of my head (spoiler: look for reflection off of television screen or microwave) or opening the mom-mobile with a wave of my hand (spoiler: automatic sliding doors) so that I’d turn to them and their little mouths would be in two tiny double “o” ‘s in total awe of these amazing feats…but alas, at the ripe old age of twelve I no longer know anything considered magical in their eyes.

I can’t pull off the most basic magic trick because I have the worst poker face and can’t tell a lie while looking someone in the eye…but, I believe in magic.  Be it the extravagant shows that leave you guessing how they made that disappear to the mysterious beauty of a rainbow or just wondering how in the world a fax is possible.  It’s the little things that make the ordinary world just a little bit extraordinary.

 

The Guineas in their costumes

When I write I have to sprinkle in just a little magic.  I’ve tried to keep it out but before I know it the heroine is doing something that hey you never know, could just be real, but it really doesn’t jive in most people’s definition of the normal world. I love seeing that part of the world.  Seems that many people do, that’s why this month young and old alike will be  having fun dressing up as something they’re not, or might wish to be, but most will be looking at the world with a little more acceptance and maybe…just might…let in a little magic.  

Want a quick read to get into the spirit? Here’s a blurb for That Magic Moment:

Can love cross the boundaries mortals have erected to reject all that cannot be explained?

As the last witch in the Turner line, Celeste doesn’t know if she’s finally found true love or if her grandma cast a love spell to continue the Turner line. Dane Johns is a man not easily forgotten, but that’s exactly what Celeste plans to do. Because he has one big flaw. He’s a mortal.

Dane Johns doesn’t know it but he’s under a spell, and Celeste Turner is the cure. Mysteriously healing his injury while captivating his heart, Dane is enchanted. Although once he discovers Celeste’s secret he must decide if he’s charmed enough to not only accept love into his life, but the world of magic.

New Contributor Virginia Nelson Checking In!

I am so thrilled to be a part of Paranormal Romantics and this fantastic group of authors!

Since this is my first time writing anything for this blog, I thought it would be appropriate if I introduced myself to you.

Hi, I’m Virginia, but you can call me V; all my friends do. Virginia is so formal and when someone yells out my name, I often picture my mother screaming at me when she was upset at something I had done, which I might add, was quite often. Needless to say I was a tad on the bratty side… Still am in many ways. Guess that is because I see life as an adventure – one that must be experienced. And what an adventurous life I have led.

  

In my short sixty years, I’ve lived and worked in a dozen countries. Did I mention I also like to travel? (Maybe, I inherited some gypsy blood from someone down the line that I don’t know about. lol) Anyway, I’ve never been one to just sit and let time pass me by. Guess that is why I’m on my third full-time career.

As a young adult I went to nursing school. After several years of tending the sick and dying, I went back to school, got my teaching credentials in ancient civilizations (history) and started traveling the world. When I decided to retire from teaching, I grew very restless, so I decided to write out the many stories which had accumulated in my head just to give me something to do (and to make the voices I was hearing shut up). It gave me something to do alright, but the voices are still there and so I continue to write.

For five years I’ve been combining my two greatest loves, Native American lore and ancient Egyptian mythology in a series entitled Sekhmet’s Guardians. It’s an unusual combination, I know, but its working and I haven’t had any complaints to date. For good measure, I’ve also thrown in some European and other world mythologies just to keep things interesting. The series will span into eleven big books, all over five hundred pages. The books are very recognizable as each cover is done in purple, (my favorite color) and somewhere you will see a golden ankh buried within scenery. Each individual title also starts with the word Eternal. 

 I’m also putting together a collection of urban fantasies featuring the Greek Gods. After Cupid returns to Mt. Olympus with his less than perfect wife, Penelope, the Gods of Olympus have grown board and restless. They return to Earth in modern times, hoping to find their own happiness in the form of human females. This set of novellas is perfect for the reader who likes short, funny, sexy stories. 

My spare time is divided between my personal life, serving on two RWA chapter boards, judging numerous yearly writing contests, and attending and lecturing the many reader-writer events I attend each year which satisfies my travel urges. My next write-up for this blog will highlight several of those events.

Thank you for allowing me to take up your time while sharing a little bit of me with you. I look forward to our next encounter on the 3^rd of next month.  

Always, V.

Veronica Scott sez: You can find all of Virginia's links on our  Authors page but here's her website: http://www.authorvsnelson.com/

October! Time for Spooky Stuff! #PNR

Happy October!

How lucky am I that the first month I blog here on Paranormal Romantics is the month known for lots of ghostly activity? While I love werewolves, vampires, shifters, and all sorts of other worldly beings, ghosts are definitely my “thing.” I’m intrigued by haunted locations like Gettysburg, Fort McHenry (here in my hometown of Baltimore), and pretty much any place that harbors spirits. Antique stores are one of my favorite places to visit because I can almost feel an invisible presence.

Why do we find ghosts so interesting? I’m not sure about you, but for me, it started when I was very young. My favorite shows as a kid were “Casper the Friendly Ghost” and “Scooby-Doo.” Those ghosts scared me! As I grew older, “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir” became my favorite show (well, along with “The Brady Bunch).

But are you noticing a trend here? These are all lighthearted ghosts. Not the scare-you-so-bad-you-can’t-sleep at-night sort of spirits in movies. I can’t watch those. I don’t even like when people tell me the plot of some of these scary movies. Even THAT scares me. LOL.

That’s why, when I write ghost stories, the ghosts are pretty tame. In fact, my most recently released paranormal, ALTERED FREQUENCY, features a matchmaking ghost Her name is Betty McAllister, but as I wrote her, I was picturing Betty White. You can imagine how much fun that was!

How about you? Do you like your ghosts scary, friendly, or otherwise? I’d love to hear your preference and why. And if you’re a ghost lover too, did you watch any shows that “hooked” you? Hope you have a wonderful and ghostly October!

Connect with Joya:
Facebook  Twitter  Goodreads 
Author Amazon Page  Barnes and Noble Author Page

Read Joya's latest ghost stories:

Available at Decadent Publishing, Barnes and Noble (Nook),
and Amazon 

Available at Decadent Publishing, Barnes and Noble (Nook) and Amazon