Monday, March 31, 2014

Happy Monday !!

Hi folks, hope you had a great weekend !

I'm trying to get on track with posting more regularly. As a family we have
 been busy. Our youngest turned 16 and we had a great party for her.
 Our oldest turned 18 and she didn't want a big party, just dinner with
 family, she will be graduating high school and I'm sure that's where 
the big party for her will kick in.

I hope to share some great authors with you in the up coming months.
 I hope you have been stopping by the past months for the book blitz,
 cover reveals and new release I have been a part of.
 ( some great giveaways too)

If you have any ideas you would like to share for this blog, please send 
me an email bindingaddiction@gmail.com and I will gladly take it into 
consideration.

Thanks and Happy Reading ~ Wendy

Oh how about a TEASER.... stop back on Friday..Release day!





Sunday, March 30, 2014

Review- Darkness Becomes Her by Jamie Rush

















The Offspring, Book 6
Avon Books (May 29, 2012)
ISBN-13: 9780062018854 ♦ ISBN-10: 006201885X
Read an Excerpt | Read the Reviews
 
ORDER PRINT: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | B-A-M | Book Depository | Chapters | IndieBound
ORDER EBOOK: Kindle | Nook | Kobo | iBooks | ARe | Sony | Diesel
They live ordinary lives,but they are extraordinary. They are the Offspring, children of amysterious experiment gone awry—and they are in terrible danger.
Power Junkie: Lachlan McLeod spent wild years astrally projecting himself into other times and places. But he doesn’t get out much anymore—not after the fatal mistake that cost him a precious loved one.
Pixie Fugitive: Jessie isn’t having a bad day. She’s having a bad lifetime. After the terrifying act of supernatural violence that destroyed her family, she’s been on the run for years. But now her ruthless enemy is drawing closer . . . and her own powers have finally awakened.
They’re two people who don’t play well with others. But they’re going to have to learn to, and quickly. Because they’re the only two people in the world who can save each other—and their passion is the only thing that can save the world.



My Review ( keep in mind this is a old review when I first started writing reviews)

I gave this a five star review.



 This was my first book from this author ...and I was hooked right off the bat. I was drawn in by the storyline and there was action around every corner. If you like strong men and even stronger women ,then you will want to follow this series. Paranormal has sky rocketed these last few years and this series is at the top. To get to know Jessie and Lachlan pick up this book and found out for yourself how great this book was. 


 

Find out more about Jamie and her alter ego Tina Wainscott 
Visit her site:Website

Happy Reading!! ~ Wendy 
 

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Blurb Blitz IMMORTAL HUNTER by Kait Ballenger

                                              IMMORTAL HUNTER releases April 1st 2014





"Kait Ballenger is a treasure you don't want to miss!" --New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Gena Showalter
Hunters of the supernatural, the Execution Underground are an elite group tasked with protecting humanity...but at what price?

As an exorcist, David Aronowitz grew up the target of demonic assassins. Now he's a member of the Execution Underground and hellspawn everywhere fear his name. But when a demon slips into the seductive body of the only woman he's ever loved, David must confront the heartbreak of their past to save her.

The piece of her heart AllsĂșn O'Hare gave to David so long ago left her trapped between two worlds: the Fae and the human. And when David comes to her rescue, fate reunites her with her
greatest temptation--and her biggest mistake.

Now, as they're swept together into a wicked game with the demon who controls her, David must decide if saving AllsĂșn's life is worth sacrificing his own--and the future of humanity itself.

Immortal Hunter on Amazon
Immortal Hunter on B&N
Immortal Hunter on Goodreads

Author Bio: Kait Ballenger is a full-time paranormal romance author, wife, professional bellydancer, and graduate student. She lives in Central Florida with her husband, their doggie-daughter Sookie (like Charlainne Harris' character), and two kittens, Elliot and Olivia (like the SVU characters). Kait believes anything is possible, and one day, she hopes people name their pets after her characters, too.

Website
Facebook
Twitter



"Special GIVEAWAY offer! Leave a comment today (the date this blurb was posted) with your email address in order to receive a free chapter sample of IMMORTAL HUNTER before the release date on April 1st!"

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Evanescent by Sara V. Zook & Wendy S. Chartier ~ Blog Tour







Evanescent
(The Sempiternal Series, bk #1)
By Sara V. Zook & Wendy S. Chartier

Blurb:

A moment is all it takes.  Even the strength of a devoted warrior angel is no match to the pull of love … or is it lust? Sarenah isn’t sure.  She needs to see him again.  The brief intensity between them was too powerful.  It eats away at her mind, but why?  The elements of the world seem to be telling her something isn’t right.  There’s a secret no one wants Sarenah to know.  Why can’t she remember things such as becoming an angel?  What happened to her past?  The protection of the light is about to cease, but her heart and mind repeat one word incessantly, one she cannot ignore … Draco.








Available for purchase at 

   


EXCERPT


The dark creature walked over to me, unusually close, the heat from his skin leaping onto mine. He held up his open palm. As if entranced, I placed my hand upon his and our fingers laced together. Suddenly the darkness of his eyes was illuminated with swirls of hypnotic colors circling each other in the very middle where his pupils should be.
I knew I shouldn't be here, shouldn't be touching this sinful creature, but I couldn't stop. His touch was hot with a passion I had never known before, yet so familiar. I was caught in a trap that I never wanted to get out of.

His other hand dug into my hair and jerked my head back, his breath hot on my neck, his eyes peering into mine.

“How many more, ma’am?” a fireman shouted out above the sirens.

The female just stood there in front of the smoldering shelter before her, both hands covering her face, ashen-filled tears falling from the edge of her jaw.

“Ma’am!” the fireman hollered out. “Who else are you missing?”

The wind changed directions. I looked up to see another angel passing by, carrying the breeze along with her. She raised her hand ever so slightly to wave. I nodded at her.
The fireman covered his nostrils with the inside of his arm as the wind carried the sultry smoke toward him.

The female seemed unaffected by the smoke. She just kept staring at that front door, her apprehension more of a focus now as she waited. “Two,” she finally replied.

“Did she say two?” another guy asked.

“Two?” he asked her again to confirm.

Never looking his way, she nodded. “My husband, he went back in for our oldest son.”

“Who are you?” I whispered, my chest heaving up and down from his firm grasp on my hair. My anger flared. I should kill him for putting his hands on me like that, but it felt so good.

He narrowed his eyes at me for a moment before answering, “Draco.”

Draco.

He released me as I stood up straight, facing him. I knew who this strange creature was. I had heard about him on my travels. He was a solider of the dark, with strength witnesses marveled at. Most of the soldiers of the dark were cowards who slithered here and there with little, if any, common sense about their purpose or duty at hand. It was said that this Draco’s loyalty surpassed all others. But there was one other tidbit I had heard that was even more unusual. Those who worked with him, who were on the same side, seemed to like him. It was a concept unheard of for the dark side. Everyone was your enemy and everyone hated each other.

“And you are?” he asked.

If I said my name, he’d know who I was as well, and he’d run away. My intrigue was far too deep to have him disappear just yet.

“It doesn't matter, does it?” I said.

He smirked, a dimple forming in the side of his cheek.


About the Authors

Sara V. Zook is a paranormal/fantasy writer. She is the author of the Strange in Skin Trilogy and Clipped. She lives in Pennsylvania with her 3 small children and husband.

You can find Sara here

            


 Sempiternal Fan Page



After being in the music and literary field for 12 years as an agent, in 2013 Wendy S. Chartier took her passion for books and formed her own publishing company, Planettopia Publishing, LLC.   Wendy resides in the Texas hill country with her husband, David, and their furkids, Azriel and Sophie.

Planettopia FB Page:



Giveaway





Presented By


Monday, March 17, 2014

Happy St.Patricks Day and SEE ME fom Wendy Higgins is here!!

For today only, to honor SEE ME's St. Paddy publication, the ebook is being offered at a discounted price! Here are the links - get it or gift it today, because tomorrow the price won't be quite as "wee." Hehe. Okay, nerves and lack of sleep are making me silly.


Amazon
Nook
Kobo

 iTunes/iBooks - should go live on the 17th

Also, here's the link to buy the Paperback on Amazon (for those who prefer a physical copy). It may take a day or so to show on all of the Amazons. It will take up to six weeks for it to be available on Book Depository (free worldwide shipping). I will announce when it's up on BD. This title will not be automatically shelved in bookstores, although you should be able to ask your local bookshop to order it for you at no extra cost. Email me if you have any questions!

Teaser time, baby!


Something moved by the hen house and I looked up, heart accelerating.

McKale was leaning there with his arms crossed, waiting for me. My body reacted to the sight, heating and buzzing. I got my act together, gathering my things and moving toward him.

“Hey,” I said, feeling shy and self-conscious about the potato-sack apron that covered my shorts and t-shirt. “Is everything okay?”

He stared at me warmly for a minute without replying, and then he ran a hand through his red locks.

“Aye, all is well. I needed to see ye once more before I took to bed.”

“Oh,” I breathed. His voice sounded different. More confident and serious. The heat that began when I saw him now completely took over my body. Unlike when we’d first met, he didn’t try to avert his eyes from me. He was openly drinking me in with an inquisitive newness, unperturbed by my less-than-attractive clothing ensemble in the morning light.
Oh and there is a giveaway, just go here Wendy Higgins Writes to enter!










  Author Bio:
After earning a bachelors in Creative Writing from George Mason University and a masters in Curriculum and Instruction from Radford, Wendy taught high school English until becoming a mommy. Writing Young Adult (YA) storiesgives her the opportunity to delve into the ambiguities of thosepivotal,daunting,and exciting years before adulthood.
She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband, daughter, and son. Sweet Evil is her debut novel.

All the above information was taken from Wendy's site.

Have a great St.Patrick's day!! Happy Reading  ~ Wendy!


Friday, March 14, 2014

Spotlight Tour ~ CRUISIN' FOR A SEAL ~ Sharon Hamilton







Cruisin' For A Seal
(SEAL Brotherhood #5)
By Sharon Hamilton

Blurb: 

Marc Beale and several of his brothers from SEAL Team 3 board a cruise ship to bury a fallen buddy's aches at sea. A risky affair with a beautiful Italian the night before they leave begins to ease his survivor’s guilt.

Sophia Negri, suffering jitters over her engagement, falls for the handsome SEAL and pretends she speaks no English, letting their bodies do the talking. When Marc finds her on the ship and learns Sophia is half American, he is angry at first, but falls for her all over again as they set sail.

Terrorists take over the ship and hold the passengers for ransom, Marc and the other SEALs are the only ones who can stop the plot. Will Marc’s actions be enough to save Sophia or will he have to sacrifice himself to save the woman he loves?



Available for purchase at 

      


Book Trailer





Excerpt

Marc woke with the distinct high-pitched siren of an Italian police or ambulance, the see saw of two notes back and forth that told him he wasn’t in the States. For a brief moment, he thought perhaps he could be back in Afghanistan.
            She was draped warmly across his chest. He opened his eyes to see if she still was as beautiful as he’d remembered her earlier in the day, and found she was watching him already.
            “Wish we could talk, honey. I’d tell you how beautiful you are. I’d tell you that you make me hot all over again just looking at you, and because you don’t understand, I’d tell you that the way you make me feel, well, I’d be embarrassed to tell you this, but I—I haven’t felt this good in weeks.”
            She smiled and touched his lips with her palm, softly silencing him. He ached to be able to talk to her, and knew, from the position of her head and her eyes that demurely looked down to his chest that she did too. He saw more than a little sadness there when she fixated on him again and he found her eyes had watered. It was reflex, he knew, but his did too.
            He glanced away quickly and covered his face with the back of his forearm. She began to trace the frog prints, then the scar on his left side where he’d taken a glancing round. Her small fingers found the line under his left chin where the Afghani soldier had tried to garrote him and had paid for it with his life.
            She kissed all those places, bringing his arm off his face to kiss every frog print one by one as well. When she was finished, neither of them had tears in their eyes. Her strong face in the afternoon sunlight splashing on the stucco walls of her little place would be something he’d remember forever. The mystery woman who turned his life around and who didn’t even know what gift she’d bestowed.
            He watched her well-toned and tanned body cross the room, stopping to open the refrigerator. She pulled out a large bottle of water, put it to her lips and threw her head back taking a long sip. Her profile with her pert nipples on ample breasts rising above her flat tummy, contrasted to her powerful thighs that had hugged him just as surely as her arms had when he made love to her—it was such a perfect picture he nearly gasped.
            She held the bottle up, and yes, he nodded. He wanted some. He didn’t care if she poured the ice water all over his body, he’d stay the course if it meant she’d love him again. She motioned to his mouth and tilted her head back to tell him she wanted to pour the water there. God, yes, he would. He opened his lips and she straddled him, pouring the liquid carefully on his tongue, diverting some of it to her mouth as well. Tiny trickles of water fell down his neck and cheek onto her pillow. The dampness accentuated the perfume that arose from her bedding.
            Her mouth was chilled but still sent a hot shudder through him as she tongued her way inside him. Sharing a water bottle had never been sexier. She drank some and then poured it inside from her mouth to his.
            He sat up and forced the water bottle from her hand, setting it firmly on the floor. He threw her on the bed and pinned her beneath him.
            “Namo?” he demanded.
            She giggled and shook her head.
            “Namo,” he insisted.
            She pointed to her temple as if she’d forgotten.
            “Nah, nah you’re not going to play that game with me. You have a name and I want to know who it is before I fuck you again.”
            “Fuck?” she said with her Italian eyes widening. “Ah, Englise.” She pointed to her temple again.
            “Yea, you understand the word fuck, but not name? Namo, dammit.”
            She laughed, arching those impossibly beautiful breasts into him, her fingers playing with the long strands of her hair. He was getting annoyed she wouldn’t tell him what he obviously wanted. Her eyes flashed as she danced with his heart. As she wrapped his waist with her legs, daring him.
            He knew it was best to keep the woman happy. But it irritated him she was playing with him so obviously. As he plunged in, perhaps too needily he rocked her bed loudly with his thrusts. The windows shook and something fell to the floor, like a picture, and broke. She laughed and he kept pumping her to oblivion. Until she stopped laughing and then ran her palms over his shoulders and upper arms, back up to his face, tracing his lips, as he drew her fingers into his mouth and sucked them.
            He kept up the desperate action of his hips as if he could make them both fly away somewhere, somewhere they could speak together. Somewhere he could tell her what she was making him feel, so he could hear it from her mouth what she felt. It became important, urgent.
            He could already tell when she was going to orgasm. She sucked in air and that long wonderful rolling cry, riddled with the sounds of their flesh slapping against each other filled his heart with music.
            I can take you places, baby. Places you’ve never seen. Give me half a chance and I will worship the ground you walk on, even if it’s only for this glorious afternoon. I want you to smell me in your sheets and call to me and I’ll come to you. Again and again. I’m coming to you, baby.
           
            They’d dressed after a long shower and more play. He knew it was a tiny bit of grief creeping back in. Separation was a problem for him. The cappuccino helped. Their affair ended the same way it began, on the Piazza overlooking the boats with sirens still dotting the early evening air. He smelled like her lemon shower gel, but his insides wore her aura like a warm blanket he would never be rid of.
            As he watched her walk away down the streets, noticing she didn’t turn around to say goodbye, he thought perhaps he saw her hand up to her face, but wasn’t sure. He knew, with the cruise leaving in the morning, and her refusal to give him her name, there was no future there for them. He did have her address. He’d written it in his little notebook. He’d try a bouquet of flowers, maybe a letter. Perhaps they could write, have someone translate. Perhaps the long distance would help them become friends first, though god knew they were well suited for each other in bed. He’d never felt so complete with her.
            He got the book out to find the page, just as she turned the corner and was gone from sight. Opening it to the place where he’d written her address was something she’d written in Italian.
            And underneath her words, she’d written her name,
            Sophia.





Audio Book Teaser:




About the Author

NYT and USA/Today Bestselling Author Sharon Hamilton’s SEAL Brotherhood series have earned her Amazon author rankings of #1 in Romantic Suspense, Military Romance and Contemporary Romance. Her characters follow a sometimes rocky road to redemption through passion and true love. Her Golden Vampires of Tuscany earned her a #1 Amazon author ranking in Gothic Romance.

A lifelong organic vegetable and flower gardener, Sharon and her husband live in the Wine Country of Northern California, where most of her stories take place.


You can find Sharon at

         



Giveaway




Presented by


Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Cover Reveal ~ Sarah Daltry ~ Orange Blossom








 orange_blossom
 Title: Orange Blossom
Author: Sarah Daltry
Cover Design: Shoutlines Design
18+ New Adult Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 4, 2014
"I’ve never understood a year. A year was always a measurement of something bad for me. A year in my father’s prison sentence, a year since my mom’s death, a year left of school before I could get far, far away from here. Now, as I look down the end of my college career, with only a little more than a semester to go, a year seems like something magical. It has been a year since Lily chose me, since she sat with me on the old swing set and made a decision that I was worthy of her. And every minute of the entire year has been better than the last." You already know their stories: Lily, the perfect princess, always living someone else's life. And Jack, the broken boy, who had stopped believing in hope. Somehow, though, they found each other and what was one night blossomed into a love story. Now, a year later, Jack and Lily are dreaming of the future. Despite all of his promises to himself that he would never be indebted to anyone, Jack makes a new promise - this time to Lily - that he will be there for her forever. But when life unravels for them, he starts to pull away, and Lily worries he's out of reach for good. When Jack does the unthinkable, Lily is left destroyed. Is it possible to have a happily ever after? Does love ever really save anyone? Listen to the Playlist or watch the Trailer!   Series Reading Order: Forget Me NotLily of the Valley, and Blue Rose can be read in any order. There is some crossover in scenes between the titles, but each stands alone as one character's story. Star of Bethlehem is a direct continuation from Forget Me Not and Lily of the ValleyOrange Blossom and Ambrosia (releasing June 6, 2014) assume readers have read the other four titles and read as sequels. In essence, the first three are #1, Star of Bethlehem is #1.5, Orange Blossom is #2, and Ambrosia is #3.
 
 FMN 
Title: Forget Me Not (Lily’s Story)
Author: Sarah Daltry
Cover: Shoutlines Design
18+ New Adult contemporary romance
This is a coming of age story, but it isn't always sweet and innocent. If dirty talk, bedroom toys, and threesomes offend you... this is not your book.  "No one tells you when you start school just how homesick you will be, or how hard it will be to start life over with no direction and no friends or family. No one says that becoming your own person is terrifying." I never wanted anything but Derek, my brother's best friend. When I chose a college, it didn't seem to matter that he would be an hour away. We could survive it. After all, we were in love. But almost immediately, things change between us. I blame myself. Maybe I'm just not sure how to be a girlfriend and independent. Life seems to be getting away from me - and then there's Jack, the guy down the hall. He's rude and vulgar and my parents would be shocked by him, yet every single time I see him, I feel like I'm being pulled toward him. It's physical, sure, but there's something in Jack's eyes - and I want to know him. I know I don't always make the right choices, and I'm the only person at fault when everything falls apart. How do I tell Derek, the guy who was supposed to be everything, that I don't feel like fighting for him anymore? And do I run to Jack, when I know his past is way too much for me to handle when I've just turned 19? Finally, where do I end up in all of this? Can I be more than just someone else's idea of what I should be? Buy it Now! Listen to the Playlist or watch the Trailer!
 
LotV 
Title: Lily of the Valley (Jack’s story)
Author: Sarah Daltry
Cover: Shoutlines Design
18+ New Adult contemporary romance
Jack's story isn't pretty. He's suicidal, depressed, and he uses meaningless sex and alcohol to survive. However, the story is about finding light in the darkness, but sometimes the road there isn't always easy to walk. "No one tells you about pain. They tell you that it hurts, that sometimes it's consuming. What they don't tell you is that it's not the pain that can kill you. It's the uncomfortable numbness that follows, the weakness in your body when you realize your lungs may stop taking in air and you just can't exert enough energy to care. It's the way taste and color and smell fade from the world and all you're left with is a sepia print of misery. That's when the shift starts - the movement from passive to active. I fall asleep, hoping that the morning will bring back the pain. At least the pain is a thing." I'm a plague, a cancer. My mom is dead - and my father is in prison for it. I survived high school because college was my way out. I needed to escape, to get away from my family and the people who tortured me, but it hasn't grown any easier. I don't pretend that I'm a good person. I drink far more than I should, and I use my best friend, Alana, because together, we thrive on destroying each other - as well as the parts of us we hate. I don't believe in love, but sex is fun and it also makes me feel something. The morning I see Lily, the beautiful princess who smells inexplicably like strawberries every time I see her, I realize I'm in trouble. I should hate her. I want to hate her, because the alternative terrifies me. However, as she continues to crash into my life (often literally), I can't avoid feeling something that is the one thing I swore I would never feel. I can't fall in love, because people like me don't live in a world where love saves anyone. She just won't go away, though, and I don't know if I can keep running. The voices and the darkness hover over me and they threaten to bring me back to the safety of my hate, but the stupid scent of strawberries lingers on the horizon, as something like hope. Buy it Now! Listen to the Playlist or watch the Trailer! 
 
BR_front 
Title: Blue Rose (Alana’s story)
Author: Sarah Daltry
Cover Design: Shoutlines Design
Warning: This book deals with topics of abuse and may trigger reactions in people who have experienced those things in their own lives. It remains a story about healing, but it's not always an easy journey. "Four. My life has been shaped by four people. Four men, to be more specific. My father, my stepfather, my best friend, and my boyfriend. The first two shaped it in horrible ways, but what I am, who I am, is all because of four men." Over the last twenty years, I've learned how to keep secrets. It doesn't really matter, since everyone already seems to think they know everything about me. So I hide. I avoid confrontation, I treat Xanax like a magic pill that will make it all go away, and I become everything they think I am. A slut. A whore. Nothing but trash. I can only name two guys who have ever made me feel like I was more than that. Jack is my best friend and I've loved him since I met him. Now, though, he's in love... with someone else, and I guess I need to get over him. Somehow. And then there's Dave. The guy I never gave a chance. The guy I used almost as much as people used me, because I wanted to pretend I was someone worth loving. Two years have passed since we last spoke, but I don't know how to stop thinking about him. My new therapist is making me face my past, and she tells me that life inevitably changes without our permission. I believe it, but I know what I am. I hear what she's saying to me, and I want to try again with Dave, to help Jack find joy, to love myself, and to move on. I just wonder if anyone can do that, really. Buy it Now! Listen to the Playlist or watch the Trailer!
 
SoB 
Title: Star of Bethlehem 
Author: Sarah Daltry
Cover: Shoutlines Design
18+ NA contemporary romance
This is a holiday novella-length story that follows Forget Me Not and Lily of the Valley. "With you, Jack, it was the first time I ever felt real. It was the first time anyone looked at me and saw substance. It was the first time I wanted to make someone see me." Jack: New Year's Eve. I've somehow managed to get here, and now I'm wearing a hideous and unreasonably itchy sweater, because I want to impress Lily's family. I want to do anything for this girl who has made me believe in second chances. Lily: The house is beautiful and shining with light, but it feels empty. At least until Jack gets here. I know how desperately he wants this - a family, love, a home. If I can be the person who can give it to him, it's all I need, but I hope I can keep him from seeing how hollow it all really is. Buy it Now! Listen to theplaylist or watch the Trailer


  
 About the Author: Sarah Daltry writes about the regular people who populate our lives. She's written works in various genres - romance, erotica, fantasy, horror. Genre isn't as important as telling a story about people and how their lives unfold. Sarah tends to focus on YA/NA characters but she's been known to shake it up. Most of her stories are about relationships - romantic, familial, friendly - because love and empathy are the foundation of life. It doesn't matter if the story is set in contemporary NY, historical Britain, or a fantasy world in the future - human beings are most interesting in the ways they interact with others. This is the principle behind all of Sarah's stories. Sarah has spent most of her life in school, from her BA and MA in English and writing to teaching both at the high school and college level. She also loves studying art history and really anything because learning is fun. When Sarah isn't writing, she tends to waste a lot of time checking Facebook for pictures of cats, shooting virtual zombies, and simply staring out the window. Sarah has also written Bitter Fruits, an urban fantasy romance, and Backward Compatible, a gamer geek romantic comedy. Author Social Media Links: Website: http://sarahdaltry.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SarahDaltryAuthor Twitter: https://twitter.com/SarahDaltry Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/sarahdaltry/boards/ Tumblr: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/sarahdaltry

Madhuri Blaylock's The Sanctum Blog Tour












 

Book One: The Girl
(The Sanctum)
By Madhuri Blaylock


Blurb:
The Sanctum, an all-powerful governing body founded by ten families, entrusted to maintain the peace amongst Magicals and ensure the ignorance of humans, has been corrupted by greed and savagery for generations, but is all Wyatt Clayworth has ever known.

Dev, the hybrid demon prophesied to bring an end to The Sanctum and destroy the world for Magicals and humans alike, is not what Wyatt expected to find when sent out on his latest mission. Believed to be hunting a killing machine, Wyatt finds little more than a broken girl with haunted eyes and a bit of a death wish. Drawn to one another for reasons they cannot begin to explain to themselves, much less anyone else, Wyatt is determined to protect Dev and help her realize her mission to avenge the deaths of her family at the hands of The Sanctum.

Set against the backdrop of New York City, THE GIRL is described as "outstanding, original, complex, deep and intoxicating", a "well written, unique...fast-paced read" that begins as one girl's simple quest for revenge and evolves into a complicated tale of trust, friendship, honor and love.




Available for purchase at 

   


Excerpt


Without making a sound, Wyatt quickly found the exact place he was seeking. Ducking under some low-hanging tree branches, he ventured into the dark, partially-hidden lair only to be met with a less-than-welcoming blade at his throat. Dev had moved slightly from the hiding place Wyatt left her and although the lower half of her body remained immobile, her arms were functioning just fine, as evidenced by the blade drawing a thin trickle of blood from Wyatt’s neck. One wrong move and she would certainly kill him. 

Wyatt slowly brought his hands up to Dev’s, wrapped his fingers around hers and painstakingly maneuvered the blade away from his neck. Only then did he dare make eye contact with her.

“You didn't really think I was just going to leave you here, did you?” Wyatt asked as he moved to retrieve his blade from Dev. 

She wasn't quite ready to give it up and slashed at Wyatt’s outstretched hand, managing to nick his wrist.

“Crap!” Wyatt sat back on his heels, holding his wrist, and laughed, “fair enough. I deserved that. I should have told you I was coming back, but I couldn't risk Ryker overhearing or suspecting anything. Trust me, if he thought I was coming back for you he would have spent all night watching me like a hawk. So I left you and walked away and it worked. Now get over it and give me back my blade.”

Despite the laughter in his voice, Wyatt wasn't playing. He wanted his blade. Her name was Odara and she had been handed down the Clayworth line since the witnessing of The Code of Ten. She was sharper than any Raven blade and fit his hand like a glove. Many had fought and died at his hand thanks to Odara. She was his protector and he wanted her back where she belonged, safely strapped to his hip.

"Kill me," Dev offered the blade at a price.

Wyatt stood up tall and glared down at Dev, clenching his jaw in irritation. 

"Kill me," Dev challenged him again, taunting him with her smug stare and grim request.

With blinding speed, Wyatt landed on Dev, knocking her to the ground. Before she even realized what was happening, he locked down her arms and liberated his blade from her grasp. Wyatt hovered above Dev, inches from her face, momentarily tempted to slice her throat and end all of this drama. She couldn’t move a muscle. 

"You are in no position to bargain with me," Wyatt angrily whispered, never taking his eyes off of hers. "I am faster and stronger than you. So don’t even think about toying with me like that again.”

Wyatt pushed himself off of her, replaced Odara at his hip and grinned mischievously. “For the record, my blade isn't worth your life. I just want it back. And I asked nicely the first time.”

Dev remained in her prone position, staring up at Wyatt, uncertain of her next move. She didn’t have the strength necessary to pull herself into a seated position and she definitely was not going to ask for help. 

“What?” Wyatt stared down at Dev, knowing she needed help to get up but determined to make her ask for it.

Even in the darkness, Dev could see Wyatt’s eyes sparkling with amusement. He was thoroughly enjoying this little moment between the two of them. His pleasure made her wish she had slit his throat when she had the chance. Rather than requesting his assistance, Dev focused every ounce of her energy on rolling over onto her stomach. If she could do that, she could easily pull herself into a sitting position, Wyatt be damned. She closed her eyes and focused every fiber of her being on the task at hand but nothing happened. Her body failed to react. It didn't even twitch. The body that had so beautifully saved her from certain death at the hands of those Sanctum fools just hours earlier now couldn't even roll over. She shook with frustration, wanting to scream to the heavens in rage, knowing such action was futile and beneath her. So she took a calming breath, opened her eyes and glared at Wyatt.

"Ahhhh, you're back. I was starting to miss your charming scowl," Wyatt bent low and absentmindedly pushed some of Dev’s hair out of her eyes, “was getting worried there for a second."

Dev grabbed his hand in her vice-like grip. She hated him and his snarky comments.

"I realize you don’t like me," Wyatt pulled his hand out of her grasp and gently placed his arms around Dev, helping her to sit, unable to look at her lying helplessly on the ground for another second, "but I'm all you've got so by all means, continue simmering in your hatred for me but do so with the understanding that I'm on your side. 

"All this stabbing and cutting nonsense has got to end. If you want to hurt me, just imagine it, okay? Pretend. Don't actually do it. I heal quickly but it still hurts like hell."

"Now we've got to get out of here fast," Wyatt checked his watch, alarmed at how much time had passed since he jumped out of his window, "and you still can’t walk, which means I’m going to have to pick you up again. Whether you’re okay with it or not.”

He leaned back on his heels and waited, for some reason hoping Dev would respond, all the while knowing she would not. Dev listened with keen interest to every word coming out of Wyatt’s mouth. She most certainly didn’t like him, but she had to respect his determination. He fully intended to get her out of this park and to somewhere safe and against her better judgment, a tiny part of her was relieved. It was the same, small part of her that was fiercely drawn to him, like a sickness almost. And it was the part of her she most wanted to destroy. 

Dev hardened her resolve, focused on her intense hatred for all things Sanctum and shut down. 

For an instant, Wyatt thought he saw a spark in Dev’s eyes and just as quickly, it was gone. At that moment, for reasons unknown to himself, Wyatt resigned himself to a one-sided relationship with her, one completely based upon his will to help her. He stood up and reached for her, praying she didn't have a blade hidden somewhere, knowing that if she did, this time she would definitely kill him. To his surprise, Dev wrapped her arms around his neck and allowed Wyatt to scoop her up and into his arms, but he thought nothing more of it, knowing full well she was merely using him to further her agenda. 

And that was all right.


About the Author

Madhuri Blaylock is a lawyer by day, writer and avid shoe and dress buyer at all other times. She lives in Jersey City, but her heart remains firmly planted in Brooklyn via Snellville, Georgia. Her husband, Henry, is also a lawyer, and only a lawyer because he actually likes being a lawyer (go figure), probably always wanted to be a lawyer and is really, really good at all things lawyerly. He's also pretty hot.

She’s got a big kid, Miss Sydney, and a little kid, the one and only Dash. They're awesome and fierce and supremely cool and able to make her laugh at the strangest things. She would love to add a dog, some chickens, a goat and a burro to this crew. Everyone needs a burro.

Some of her favorites, in no particular order: ice cream, Kill Bill, four-inch heels, Matt Damon, tattoos, Laini Taylor, scotch on the rocks, The Sanctum trilogy, Martha's Vineyard, "The Girl" aka her Mini, Rihanna, Doc Martens, tulips, Coach and Tami, photo booths and dancing like a fool.

One day she plans to grow up. Right now, she’s enjoying the adventure.




You can find Madhuri here

         


Giveaway

e-book of “Book One: The Girl (The Sanctum)”







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