Friday! Head on over to the Desert Muse Blog and cast your vote in round one of March Men-ness. Of course, I’m pimping my pirate man!! So please vote!! At the end of the tournament, one commenter will win an Amazon gift card.

In less than two weeks, I’ll be at the Tucson Festival of Books. I’ll be part of a booth with a bunch of Arizona romance authors! If you’re in Tucson March 15 or 16, stop by Booth 107.

I’m coming clean in admitting Valentine’s Day was never my favorite, but, now that I have a kid, I enjoy buying lots of chocolate :), and of course, writing romance. So in celebration of chocolate and romance, here’s the Love Struck Valentine Day blog hop.

Grand Prize is a Kindle Paperwhite loaded up with tons of books being provided by the authors listed below including my urban fantasy book The Necromancer’s Seduction.

But that’s not all. For stopping by my blog today and leaving a comment, I’ll offer one lucky winner a copy of my werewolf short story booklet The Werewolf’s Devotion and this  lovely zombie Valentines Day card. Winners will be announced on the 15th along with the grand prize winner!

Please visit J.A. Garland’s blog for pictures of the books being offered and to enter the giveaway and a list of participating authors!! J.A. Garland books.

Here are the list of books offered with the Grand Prize!

J.A. Garland Books: INSTINCT, Dysus Dreamer
Celia Breslin: Haven
Pippa Jay: Gethyon
Mimi Sebastian: The Necromancer’s Seduction
Cecilia Dominic: The Mountain’s Shadow
Jude Johnson: Save the Last Dance Trilogy
Isabella Norse: Assassin’s Heart
Dani Harper: First Bite, Storm Warrior
Rita Bay: The Aegis, Into the Lyons Den
Allison Knight: Lynbrook’s Lady, Betrayed Bride
Joyce Proell: A Deadly Truth
Holly Hunt: The Devil’s Wife, Scale & Feather
Ceci Giltenan: Highland Solution
Ute Carbone: To the Wind, Sweet Lenora
Cassiel Knight: Blood on the Moon, Key of Solomon
Audra Middleton: Hitchhiker
Morgan Wyatt: Dangerous Curves, Escaping West 
Angela Kay Austin: Rumer
Liz Crowe: Floor Time, Sweat Equity, Closing Costs
January Bain: Forever Man, Forever Woman, Forever Clan
Susan Frances: The King Maker
Linda Rettstatt: In The Spirit, A Falling Star
Graeme Brown: Donating e-book only: The Pact
Dani Collins: The Healer

Christina Cole: Donating e-book only: Not the Marrying Kind
Kelly Martin: The Afterlife of Lizzie Monroe
Pauline Creeden: Sanctuary & First Impression

What started on a whim, out of a love for the pirating age, has finally materialized in my first self publishing venture. I’m excited to debut Devil’s Island so am offering the ebook for $0.99 today only. Check it out here!

The book is on tour with Tasty Book Tours and they’ve done a great job. I have a tour wide giveaway that includes a print copy, $10 Amazon card, and swag which includes an awesome coffee mug!! I can’t ever get these rafflecopter codes to work in my blog post, but here’s a link to the tasty site where you can enter: Rafflecopter on Tasy Tours.

One of the fun things about writing this book was working out the details of sailing, how boats moved with or against the wind, and the pirate speak, but also the characters. In introducing Captain Wilder’s African crew member, Salley, I used a tea drinking ceremony I learned and loved to participate in when I was in the Peace Corps in the Ivory Coast. Here’s a brief excerpt of that scene, which describes the how the tea is brewed and what it all means:

“Have you drunk our tea before?” Salley asked, his English spoken with a melodious lilt.

“No.”

“Ah, you are in for a treat.” He widened his smile, seeming genuinely pleased to share his tea ritual. “The English with their weak, sad tea cannot appreciate this—” he tapped the pot— “brewed from raw green leaves cultivated in the Eastern lands.”

She leaned over and inhaled the aroma wafting from the pot—a bitter but earthy scent, offset by a spicy-sweet aroma she couldn’t identify.

“You smell the mint?” he asked.

“Is that it? Yes, it smells very good.”

When the boiling tea burst forth from the lid, Salley repeated the pouring procedure until foam accumulated in the small glasses. He gave a satisfied click and filled each glass halfway, passing one to her. Unaccustomed to drinking tea in this manner, she watched as Salley sipped, making an exaggerated slurping sound. She followed his example, finding the small sips the best method of imbibing the bitter, hot tea.

“The first cup is bitter, but necessary, like family,” he said, adding water and sugar to the leaves in the pot to start another round. “We reuse the same leaves each time. The next cup, less bitter, more tasteful, a good friend.”

“You said the tea is composed of three cups.”

“Yes, the third cup is the sweetest, like a woman.” He laughed.

“Why do they call you ‘Salleyman’?”

“Because these scoundrels have not earned the right to speak my real name,” he said loudly, with an exaggerated rise in tone.

A few curses followed his loud statement.

“I don’t know why they picked ‘Salleyman,’ though. I’m not from North Africa or from Sale. They just can’t pronounce my real name.”

“And what’s that?”

He leaned forward. “Diakite Ibrahim,” he whispered.

She smiled. “I like that name.”

He bent closer. “Then you, my fiery goddess, may call me Ibrahim.”

The pot boiled over again and he began anew, pouring until he’d gathered sufficient foam in each cup. The second brew had mellowed the bitterness and she found herself enjoying the ritual immensely. He brewed the third round and shared stories and descriptions of his homeland.

****

I learned how to make the tea, but haven’t brewed it in a while. It’s just not the same done over a gas flame. But I brought my small tea pot back with me pictured here with its lone, surviving glass.

I also have a picture on my Pinterest site, showing an Ivorian friend making the tea.

I hope you enjoy Devil’s Island as much as I enjoyed writing it. It’s the first book in a series. For more info, you can visit www.searoverspassion.com

It’s all about the chicken…or the egg? Who knows? I mentioned in the first Front Yard post my reasons for calling this the front yard, because I often have great conversations with my neighbors in our front yard, often after corralling their chicken. So in honor of said chicken, I developed the following Front Yard graphic for use with the blog.

Lots of fun.

So I had my first telephone meeting with the new Editorial Director of ImaJinn, my new editor, Brenda Chin. It was very cool speaking to someone with her background and experience. I’m still giddy. I’m excited to work with her and with Belle Books. And a little scared 🙂 We’ll be working hard on the next two books, re-releasing The Necromancer’s Seduction with the release of The Necromancer’s Betrayal, which should come out in May of this year, followed by Book Three, The Necromancer’s Redemption, in September!!! That’s exciting. Ok. Deep breaths 🙂 Brenda has some very exciting plans for ImaJinn and I’m thrilled to be a part of it!

Devil’s Island, my self-publishing foray into pirate historical romance is releasing Feb. 3. I’m launching the book with a blog tour via Tasty Books Tours!! Also, click here to enter my Goodreads Giveaway!

So now on to the random stuff.

So finale of American Horror Story Coven was satisfying if not sort of anti-climactic. I wish the entire season had been more focused like the last two episodes. I mean, what was the point of Patty Lupone’s character and her son? Why did Nan really have to die? I’m not buying she had to die in place of the baby because the baby ended up with the ghost butler. And what is the fate of the baby, anyway?? It scares me. No author could get away with the writing on this show. Okay, enough of the rant.

I’m glad Cordelia became the supreme, but what was half the season about anyway? (Oh, I guess I’m ranting again.) The best part of this show is the superb acting. Jessica Lange, Angela Bassett, and Francis Conroy as Myrtle…oh Myrtle is my hero. Some of her best lines:

Nan: How did your hair grow back so quick?
Myrtle: Oh, little bird, I’ve been buying in bulk from North Korea for years!

Myrtle: Mothballs and history. It’s a cocktail I swoon for.

Myrtle: Can you imagine those poor Salem witches, traveling all the way down here in covered wagons without a proper charcuterie platter or a bidet? Absolutely savage!

Myrtle to Zoe: It’s just like Halston when he sold his brand to JCPenney. You’ve forsaken your destiny.

Next season is supposed to be set in the 1950s around the time of the McCarthy era, nuclear age, and the Rosenberg espionage stuff. A departure from the previous seasons and intriguing.

Bitten! Wow. I’d heard they were making a tv show of the Kelley Armstrong series and was surprised to one day come across it. Three episodes in and I’m liking it overall. I don’t like some of the casting, in particular Jeremy. Clay is growing on me. It doesn’t hurt he has such lovely arms and pecs 🙂 I’m warming to Elena. It’s been a while since I read the book, but I don’t remember feeling so annoyed with Elena and her bitchiness to Clay, and they spend waaay too much time on Phillip and her Toronto life. I don’t care about Phillip and his conversations with his mom, or double dinner dates. Other than that, am excited for it. I really hope they bring in some of the other Women of the Otherworld, like Jamie!!! (the necromancer, of course) Next season?

Music forms an important part of my psyche. In college, my friends and I formed a short-lived punk band. We called ourselves Nutty Buddy…LOL. I still have some old Nutty Buddy recordings. Maybe one day after copious amounts of wine, I’ll share those recordings. But I write with music and certain songs shape my scenes. So I thought to share some songs I come across as part of the Front Yard. This song comes from Young Galaxy, which was featured in the last Bitten episode ( not this song in particular, but the band). Their music is entrancing. Enjoy!

I hope your new year has gotten off to a wonderful, exciting start. I am absolutely looking forward to 2014. While 2013 had some very monumental moments, it was also fraught with the passing of many wonderful people and some weird health issues for me so here’s to a healthy 2014!! Things are moving forward with my necromancer books at Belle Books/ImaJinn so that’s exciting 🙂 and they have set up a new website: ImaJinn Books. However, this post is about an entirely different project.

To start off 2014, I’m providing a sneak peak at the cover and back of my pirate historical, Devil’s Island, set to release February 3, designed by the talented Kim Killion! I’m nervous about this book – writing in a different genre and self publishing it. But, as with everything else, I’m diving in, and have this lovely cover to launch this new venture.

Devil’s Island is the first in a planned series called the Sea Rover’s Passion. (Click on the Sea Rovers link to learn more about this series and what inspired it.) Book Two is swirling around in my head and it will feature Christopher Taylor, who you meet in Devil’s Island. I didn’t know book two would feature him, but before I got the idea for the plot of book two, he started talking to me. I’m getting more and more excited about his story and his heroine, who is also talking now. She will be quite different than Sabine, but formidable in her own right. (Now I have to finish book three in the Necromancer Series without going nuts and I’m good 🙂 Sigh.) I have a book tour to kick things off for Devil’s Island with Tasty Book Tours. So until then!!

I’m pleased to be sharing in Victoria’s release day for The Zoastra Affair and we have an excerpt!

Blurb:

A hundred years from now, Earth has trading partners with alien beings, mostly humanoid. However, going into space brought forth an unknown enemy who attacks Earth at will. The Zoastra is part of the Earthseekers, an organization originally designed to go into space. Its new mission is to find Earth’s enemies.

Ariel is stuck on a Victorian planet and steals Grace’s body and life to get off the planet. Grace must get her body back before Ariel bonds with Grace’s husband, Peter. Then there is Cross, the man on a mission to find those who killed his family. Ariel is attracted to Cross, but she’s stolen someone’s life.

Amazon Link

Excerpt:

Twenty Second Century

Sheraton Home World

I’m going to have to steal someone else’s body to get out of here.

“Ariel, are you listening?”

Ariel Transcender stared dumbfounded at the mother superior of her prison, a/k/a Aulnale School for Orphans. “Yes, mistress.”

She had no idea what happened, though she pasted a fake simpering smile of appreciation on her face. Ms. Rochelle walked away. Continue reading →

Yes! Winners! I decided to randomly select two persons who commented on either my blog or Facebook to receive the Werewolf’s Devotion booklet. Aaaaand…they are Michelle and Beth, who both commented on my blog 🙂 I will be e-mailing you both with details. Congrats and thanks to all who stopped by! Special thanks to Cami and Tiffany for the spotlights and everyone else who helped spread the word.

I hope everyone had a fun Halloween. I had a blast trick or treating with my son. So wonderful to have a kid and an excuse to trick or treat 🙂 Today is actually All Souls Day, tomorrow is Dia de los Muertos, and in commemoration, I’m reblogging an old post about honoring the dead:

Let’s talk about the dead. Of course, and especially if you live in the Southwest, Day of the Dead is a familiar tradition, a Mexican Holiday going back hundreds of years to an Aztec Festival dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl. Here are more:

In China on April 4 is Tomb Sweeping Day or the Qingming Festival. Families honor their ancestors by visiting their tombs and leaving offerings of food. People also burn paper replicas of items that can be used in the afterlife, such as clothing, money, and cars. And now, it was inevitable, people are burning paper replicas of iPads. A must have in the afterlife.

Near and dear to my necromancer’s heart in my second book is the tradition in Haiti: voodoo traditions are mixed with Roman Catholic ones to honor the dead. People play loud drums and music in all-night celebrations at cemeteries to waken Baron Samedi, the Loa of the dead, and his mischievous offspring, the Gede.

So have a safe holiday and remember beloved friends and family who have passed. And from the blog ancentralmedecine. org, some ways to honor your ancestors, the best being fulfill your soul’s purpose as an ethical and loving person.