The HEA Cafe

I guess it’s my turn to post about our January release from Tor Romance. HOWLING MOON is a really exciting release for Cie and I because, although it’s the fourth book in our Sazi shapeshifter series to hit the shelf, it’s the VERY FIRST book we ever wrote together! Yay! It began the entire Sazi reality, and we used the rules we created in this book to make all the others. Here’s the blurb from the back:

He’s a wolf…She’s a jaguar…

Raphael is a former agent of the shapeshifter secret police, forced into retirement after a very public scandal. Now, he’s assigned to help the victim of a hideous crime—a woman who has been attacked by a serial killer and accidentally turned into a were-jaguar.

Worse yet, Catherine turns out to be Raphael’s fated mate. But the serial killer is still on her trail, and perhaps even worse, Raphael’s pack wants her dead.

Caught between destiny and duty…

Raphael must make his choice—and in doing so, risk losing his pack—in this tale of obsession, revenge, lust, pack politics and true love.

It’s a really cool blurb, but it doesn’t explain a lot about the story, so that’s what I’ll do here.   Jack Simpson is a U.S. Senator and a very, VERY ancient shapeshifter. Until he met Raphael, he was a pretty good guy. He had his dark moments, but mostly he was the head of the police agency of the Sazi, called Wolven. Unfortunately for Raphael, Jack was magically mated to a woman named Fiona Monier, a were-cougar, who had just joined the agency. Raphael didn’t know about the mating. Also unfortunately for Raphael, Fiona turned out to be mated to him, not Jack. Their rather torrid affair destroyed not only Raphael’s existing relationship (with Fiona’s SISTER) but also Fiona’s relationship with Jack. Discovering them together drove Jack very much insane. Now, Sazi matings are rather harsh. A mated male CANNOT harm his mate. The only way Jack could punish Fiona for her affair was to TRY to kill Raphael, which failed . . . and then to begin to kill substitutes who looked like Fiona.

Poor Catherine happens to look like Fiona.

But the story doesn’t end there, because wolves and great cats normally don’t mix in the Sazi world. Raphael is a very notable exception. Except Raphael is both the BREEDING male of the Boulder pack, and the second in command. Getting mated to a cat is going to mess things up for his pack big time. And they’re not happy about it. So what to do? Raphael’s too strong to take down. It’s why he’s the Second. But what if they get rid of the girl?? Seems a simple thing, but Catherine Turner isn’t such a simple woman.

So, there you have a bit more about the book and I’ll leave my shameless promotion with a few links. One is to an excerpt from the book (actually the first chapter) and the other is to the reviews it’s gotten, which are STELLAR!

Howling Moon Excerpt

Howling Moon Reviews

Hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it!

Hi everyone! Here’s my shameless self-promotion for my upcoming Ellora’s Cave ebook, “Antonia’s Bargain” which is due out on January 10th. It’s Regency-set erotic romance. Here’s the blurb:

Since the suicide of his first wife, Lord Gideon Harcourt has avoided sexual encounters with women in favor of less emotionally draining liaisons with men. When he unmasks ‘Anthony’ Maxwell and finds he is, in fact, Antonia, he is still sexually intrigued enough to want to bed her.

A reluctant heiress, Antonia knows she has to marry but she intends to do it on her own terms–her wealth in return for a husband-free bed. Gideon offers to help her infiltrate the world of the ton dressed as a man so she can see her potential suitors in their natural habitat. In return, she agrees to allow him to teach her every trick in his sexual repertoire as long as he doesn’t take her virginity.

Her fear of marriage and pregnancy is a puzzling barrier that Gideon, despite his exceptional skills, finds difficult to penetrate. As they become more scandalously intimate, he has to decide whether to help Antonia face her fears or walk away from the only woman he believes he could ever love.

You can buy this book at: http://www.ellorascave.com

We at RWAOnline and and here at the HEA Cafe would like to wish all our readers a fabulous 2007.  May you find personal happiness and success in all your endeavors.

To kick off 2007, a few of our author members will be promoting their January Releases, so check back often to see what they have to say.  Don’t be afraid to ask those burning questions either.

~Blog Diva