Hi and welcome to your Wednesday fix of Shapeshifter Seductions! This week, I am reviewing "Captive Moon" by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp, book three of "Tales of the Sazi" series. It is currently available but hard to find in book stores, so you’ll need to order it on-line.
Antoine Monier is Rex. The huge cougar isn't just an alpha, he's the alpha cat of the Sazi. He's the representative for the cats on the Sazi High Council, one of the most powerful seers of the Sazi, and a world class entertainer, to boot.
While touring Germany with his troupe of real cats and Sazi employees, someone steals a 2-year-old tiger. When the Stuttgart Police find the bodies of dozens of big cats slaughtered for their internal organs, they call Antoine to come identify the body of his missing tiger. While Antoine does find his cat's body, he also found the scent of a Sazi. And she isn't among the dead!
Antoine finds out the police did, indeed, find a live female tiger. After a battle of wills and a bit of magical persuasion, he convinces the authorities that the report of his loosing a male tiger was inaccurate and that he'd lost a female. Antoine gets her out of protective custody before she is forced by her waining magic to reveal her human form. All saved right? Wrong.
Tahira isn't Sazi at all- she's a Caspian tiger from the Hayalet Kabile, a clan of shape shifters who’d refused to join the other clans when they formed the Sazi. Just talking to the Sazi can be grounds for being accused of treason. She’d been captured in Turkey while trying to find her brother. Little did she know, the mastermind who’d hired the black market animal traders hadn’t been after her brother Rabi, they’d been after her!
Tahira is a power well, a type of shifter so rare they are thought to be myth. And the evil snake shifter who is after her has pinned his plans to bring about the end of the world on finding Tahira and using her powers to bring to life an evil scourge. It will take a huge leap of faith from the sheltered tigress and the unlikely team work from Antoine and Ahmad to stop this evil plot.
In this installment, we again meet Ahmad, the extremely unpleasant councilman for the snakes as well as his father, Sargon, who is the main antagonist throughout most of the series. We get a better look at were-spiders and what they are capable of. And last but not least, we are introduced to Nasil, who is a catalyst throughout the entire series, but not always a “bad guy.”
I enjoyed this story very much. It is written in a more conventional romance format than the previous two books in the series and doesn’t bog you down with unnecessary detail without explaining it a bit. Also, there is a clear hero and heroine who meet and fall in love while solving a riddle and have a clear happily-ever-after. This installment does move the series story arch along, but it is not yet clear just what that story arch is.
It should be noted, for those who are less comfortable with alternative life styles, there is a bit of S&M themed bed play and a gay couple who feature prominently in this book. They don’t go too in-depth, but it is there.
And to finish off with a little extra:
MSN has a rather amusing gallery of the “hottest” vampires and werewolves. It’s mostly vampires, but there are some very nummy ‘wolves (and wolverines) included.
http://glo.msn.com/relationships/vampires-and-werewolves-hottest-in-history-4521.gallery
Next week, I’ll be reviewing “Howling Moon”, book four of the series. We will meet Raphael, a wolf, and his mate, Catherine, a were-panther who was turned by the infamous Jack. We will also get the back story on Jack, but he won’t sound too forgivable until farther into the series. Have a great rest of the week and a safe holiday weekend!
Until next time,
Rebecca
RebeccaLGillan.com
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Slamming into the wall... and The Intergalactic Chase
Greetings, Shapeshifter lovers, Monday was mind numbingly manic with all the author stuff that got done and had to be done. So, when I finally got to my blog for today... well, crash and smash, I hit the wall.I had been working on a new scene between Corporal Katta and Prince Zio, my starring couple in TANGERINE CARNAL DREAMS. However, this prequel scene is turning out to be richly detailed and much more complex than I originally envisioned. Katta is about to try on some exotic lingerie and Zio is about to catch up with her. He’s been chasing her across the galaxy, the way of his stallion shifter race when they’ve discovered their mate.
Okay, so, I’ll post part of the scene. I’ve got nothing else that’s ready.
~~~
Part One ~
The Intergalactic Chase ~ Corporal Kattalonia and Prince Zio
“Asteroid crapola!” Katta muttered. Impatience sliced through her with a viciousness unusual to her. From her intel-alliance with other intergalactic law agencies she knew Zio, the sky horse, as she thought of him, practically stud-nipped at her butt. Once again.
His private vessel was due to dock shortly. True to his equine race’s mating behavior, he’d chased her to every spaceport, his pursuit annoyingly relentless.
Slinging her lightweight travel bag onto her back, Katta entered the stream of disembarking passengers. Distracted with thoughts about how to escape the stud not-of-her-dreams, she remembered to smile at the star cruiser’s steward as if she was merely enjoying her vacation.
The tiger-shift Huugosox man smiled engagingly in return. His direct gaze suggested he found her more enticing than the women ahead of her, now passing through the ship’s opulent-appearing exit.
Yeah, that’s what she so needed, a sex-clawing tiger instead of a wild-to-mount-her-ass stallion.
Not that she blamed the steward. To make herself appear like a fun-girl tourist, Katta had donned her outrageously pink bodysuit, the one that gleamed like water over her curves and served to sexually stun many alien-race men. Always an advantage when it came to protecting herself from numerous enemies, plus the other vermin-like villains she encountered on her assignments.
Resisting the urge to extend her palm and shoot her flame at will, Katta flattened her hand on her thigh. Star hole hell! She hated being in the midst of crowds. Yet, here she was temporarily trapped. Taking deep breaths of the good-quality atmosphere, she moved with the other passengers along the corridor that led to a three-layered complex. Filled with shopping areas and galactic-cuisine eateries, the accommodations also ranged from simple to extravagant.
Katta’s palm itched nastily, ready to fire. Even though the area was spacious, she instinctively wanted to clear a path so she could flame Zio’s ass. Or his front. Whatever she could flash-quick target.
Once she reached the ultra-enormous sphere that was the spaceport complex, she strode onto the center walkway because it cut straight through like a diameter. Briskly moving, Katta scouted for a strategic place to hang out until she could hop onto the space jet she’d chartered. Not available for another quarter of the day.
By now, her stallion shifter pursuer knew the type of places she favored for food, for entertainment, and for gear. Seeing a large selection of possibilities, she ignored the inviting gaze of a Gracc man and leapt onto one of the stairway gliders. Used to various levels of gravity, her body automatically adjusted, and she landed lightly. In no time, she stepped onto the second level. Spotting a lingerie shop that only allowed women inside, she practically jogged toward the entrance.
“Nova-sex wow!” Katta slowly rotated, gaping at the gorgeously presented displays of exotic and beautiful lingerie. From dreamy ethereal to hardcore I-want-it-rough, each collection had its own setting that was mood perfection.
When she noticed how tightly she clutched the strap of her bag, Katta brought it before her and slipped her hand inside the weapon’s pocket. Her tiny pulse pen could blind most races with one strike.
TO BE CONTINUED... (I hope)
~~~~~~
The Kougar’s news and mews ~
The official e-paperwork has been finished and e-sent for THE TIGER’S MASQUERADE, to be pubbed by MojoCastle Press.
~~~
On July 1st, Thursday, I will be blogging at THE ROMANCE STUDIO blog and at ROMANCE WRITERS BEHAVING BADLY.
~~~~~~
~ HAPPY SUMMER SHAPESHIFTING ~
Savanna Kougar
~ Run on the Wild Side of Romance ~
Author of ~
All Shades of Blue Paradise
Red Lioness Tamed
When a Good Angel Falls ~ In Print
Tangerine Carnal Dreams
Murder by Hair Spray in Gardenia, New Atlantis ~ In Print
Black Cat Beauty
Her Insatiable Dark Heroes ~ In Print
Stallion of Ash and Flame ~ In Print
Branded by the Texans ~ Coming in August 2010 from Siren-BookStrand
~~~~~~
Monday, June 28, 2010
This 'n' That, and Extended Flash
By Pat Cunningham
First, the bad news: Mom died late Sunday night. I got the call at 12:30 AM. She’d taken a bad turn over the last couple of days, so we were pretty much expecting this. She was lucid when the family turned out at the hospital, so she got to see all of us one last time. Even if she’d recovered, it would have meant spending the rest of her life as a partially-paralyzed nursing home resident. Mom was always active and independent; such an existence would have been hell for her. We suspect she recognized this on some level, and may have helped along her own demise. So she’s moved on and we’re left to deal with the paperwork. She got the last laugh on us after all.
I wouldn’t have blogged today, except this was already written and ready to go, so why not have something to enjoy? I’m not going to dedicate it to Mom, because she didn’t get my romance writing any more than she did my SF and fantasy. I’ll dedicate it to Savanna instead, because it was inspired by her tales of her tigress shapeshifter. If she can steal my ideas, I can swipe hers. Fair’s fair.
OCELOT SHAPESHIFTER: DRUG BUST
Somebody’s knocked out the floods outside the Shop’N’Save again, but that’s no problem for me. My eyes see just fine in the dark. Far better than those of the scum we’re hunting tonight, that’s for sure.
They walk right by me, completely unaware. My spotted fur allows me to blend into the dappled shadows and renders me nearly invisible. I doubt if they’d notice me anyway. They’ve got the scent of profit in their noses, and it’s clouded all their other senses. All the better. I bare my fangs and flex my claws.
Off to the right I catch a glimpse of Henri, trying to hide behind a dumpster. His fur gleams like ice in the scant light. It’s meant to conceal stealthy approaches in blizzards and on snowfields. Shadows despise him. Why are you here, foolish lynx, in this urban world of blacks and grays so ill suited to you?
Mike has a better time of it, with his lead-gray coat. His yellow lupine eyes briefly catch the headlights of a passing car before he ducks back into the dark.
The men – three of them and all human, so my nose tells me – approach Calvin, who waits for them beside his car at the edge of the parking lot, under one of the nonworking lights. Cal has the easiest job tonight, the role of buyer. A coyote and therefore a natural actor, he pulls it off with panache. He darts his eyes, fidgets, talks in a nervous whine. The whole time he’s memorizing scents, features, voice cadences, body language. He can ID a perp from a quarter mile off, and he’s never wrong. When Cal testifies in a courtroom, criminals tremble.
Cal’s trembling now, shamming need. The humans elbow each other and snicker. The hairs stiffen down the length of my spine, and my claws come out and stay out.
A skinny man with greasy hair dangles a bag of something that looks like brown flour in front of Cal’s nose. “You want this, doggie? This what you’re after?”
Cal’s tremulous tenor sounds nothing like his normal speaking voice. “I’m here, ain’t I? That pure? No cuts?”
The humans exchange amused glances. “Sure it is,” Greasy Hair says. “Here. Fetch.”
He tosses the bag. Cal, still in character, dives after it, and the humans laugh. By now his nose will have told him if it’s real and how pure it is. His butt does a wriggle that must look like the shakes to a human, but speaks volumes to were eyes. We’re on.
“Where’s the rest of it?” Cal demands. “Six pounds. We had a deal.”
“Settle down, Fido. It’s all here.” Greasy Hair pats the suitcase in the hands of his better-groomed crony.
“I wanna see.”
“What, your sinuses clogged? You can’t smell it with that super shifter nose of yours?” The human with the suitcase makes a face.
“I wanna see,” Cal insists in a whine.
“Give the puppy his biscuit,” Greasy Hair orders. The other shrugs and opens the case. I can’t see inside from my position, but I know first hand the misery it holds. I barely manage to swallow down my growl. I want my claws in these monsters’ flesh and my teeth in their throats for the horror they’ve brought to my people.
“You better have the money,” Greasy Hair says.
“And a bonus.” Cal straightens, all whines and tremors gone. He grins and flashes his badge and his service revolver. “You’re busted, gents.”
Mike and Henri leap out from their hiding places. I note the shift in the humans’ scents from smug to panic with vicious satisfaction. Our laws are not as benevolent as human law enforcement’s, in particular towards the likes of these. They know how little mercy they can expect from us.
The man with the case drops it and immediately raises his hands. The third man, the lookout, looks hard at the wolf and the lynx and falls to his knees on the asphalt, hands laced behind his head. He tilts that head to show throat to Mike. Not as stupid as he looks. Other than being stupid enough to peddle drugs, that is.
Greasy Hair makes a run for it.
I’m on him in a flash. Humans think we smaller cats are less dangerous. They’re wrong. I’m stronger than I look, in both my forms
.
I slam into the back of his legs and knock him to the ground. He gets a glimpse of me and sneers. Thinks I’ll make an easy target. Guess again, puto. A slash of my claws across the back of his hand takes care of the gun he tries to draw. He aims a punch at my face that I easily avoid. Give up, fool. You have no chance.
To cut the fight short, I switch forms. Now he’s got his hands full of a naked woman, and not in a good way. I demonstrate my superior shifter strength by yanking his arms behind his back. My hands serve adequately as temporary cuffs. He swears when he can’t break my grip. “You can’t hold me, shifter bitch. I know my rights.”
“Hardly bitch,” I tell him drily, “and your rights are severely limited here.”
He responds with a kick at my legs. I hop to one side, and suddenly we’re struggling again. Some of these primates never learn.
Nor do shifters, clearly. I’ve almost got Greasy Hair subdued when Henri rushes up and clouts his huge fist against my captive’s chin. The human goes limp in my arms.
“No need to thank me, petit,” Henri says with a smirk. “Shall I help you carry him?”
“Go to hell,” I snarl back. He laughs and answers with something in French that sounds highly suggestive. But then, everything in French sounds suggestive, especially coming from him. Knowing Henri, he’s commenting on my breasts. Again.
“Hey!” Cal yells from across the lot. “You kitties want to stop making eyes at each other and haul that ape over here? I gotta read these assholes their rights.”
First, the bad news: Mom died late Sunday night. I got the call at 12:30 AM. She’d taken a bad turn over the last couple of days, so we were pretty much expecting this. She was lucid when the family turned out at the hospital, so she got to see all of us one last time. Even if she’d recovered, it would have meant spending the rest of her life as a partially-paralyzed nursing home resident. Mom was always active and independent; such an existence would have been hell for her. We suspect she recognized this on some level, and may have helped along her own demise. So she’s moved on and we’re left to deal with the paperwork. She got the last laugh on us after all.
I wouldn’t have blogged today, except this was already written and ready to go, so why not have something to enjoy? I’m not going to dedicate it to Mom, because she didn’t get my romance writing any more than she did my SF and fantasy. I’ll dedicate it to Savanna instead, because it was inspired by her tales of her tigress shapeshifter. If she can steal my ideas, I can swipe hers. Fair’s fair.
OCELOT SHAPESHIFTER: DRUG BUST
Somebody’s knocked out the floods outside the Shop’N’Save again, but that’s no problem for me. My eyes see just fine in the dark. Far better than those of the scum we’re hunting tonight, that’s for sure.
They walk right by me, completely unaware. My spotted fur allows me to blend into the dappled shadows and renders me nearly invisible. I doubt if they’d notice me anyway. They’ve got the scent of profit in their noses, and it’s clouded all their other senses. All the better. I bare my fangs and flex my claws.
Off to the right I catch a glimpse of Henri, trying to hide behind a dumpster. His fur gleams like ice in the scant light. It’s meant to conceal stealthy approaches in blizzards and on snowfields. Shadows despise him. Why are you here, foolish lynx, in this urban world of blacks and grays so ill suited to you?
Mike has a better time of it, with his lead-gray coat. His yellow lupine eyes briefly catch the headlights of a passing car before he ducks back into the dark.
The men – three of them and all human, so my nose tells me – approach Calvin, who waits for them beside his car at the edge of the parking lot, under one of the nonworking lights. Cal has the easiest job tonight, the role of buyer. A coyote and therefore a natural actor, he pulls it off with panache. He darts his eyes, fidgets, talks in a nervous whine. The whole time he’s memorizing scents, features, voice cadences, body language. He can ID a perp from a quarter mile off, and he’s never wrong. When Cal testifies in a courtroom, criminals tremble.
Cal’s trembling now, shamming need. The humans elbow each other and snicker. The hairs stiffen down the length of my spine, and my claws come out and stay out.
A skinny man with greasy hair dangles a bag of something that looks like brown flour in front of Cal’s nose. “You want this, doggie? This what you’re after?”
Cal’s tremulous tenor sounds nothing like his normal speaking voice. “I’m here, ain’t I? That pure? No cuts?”
The humans exchange amused glances. “Sure it is,” Greasy Hair says. “Here. Fetch.”
He tosses the bag. Cal, still in character, dives after it, and the humans laugh. By now his nose will have told him if it’s real and how pure it is. His butt does a wriggle that must look like the shakes to a human, but speaks volumes to were eyes. We’re on.
“Where’s the rest of it?” Cal demands. “Six pounds. We had a deal.”
“Settle down, Fido. It’s all here.” Greasy Hair pats the suitcase in the hands of his better-groomed crony.
“I wanna see.”
“What, your sinuses clogged? You can’t smell it with that super shifter nose of yours?” The human with the suitcase makes a face.
“I wanna see,” Cal insists in a whine.
“Give the puppy his biscuit,” Greasy Hair orders. The other shrugs and opens the case. I can’t see inside from my position, but I know first hand the misery it holds. I barely manage to swallow down my growl. I want my claws in these monsters’ flesh and my teeth in their throats for the horror they’ve brought to my people.
“You better have the money,” Greasy Hair says.
“And a bonus.” Cal straightens, all whines and tremors gone. He grins and flashes his badge and his service revolver. “You’re busted, gents.”
Mike and Henri leap out from their hiding places. I note the shift in the humans’ scents from smug to panic with vicious satisfaction. Our laws are not as benevolent as human law enforcement’s, in particular towards the likes of these. They know how little mercy they can expect from us.
The man with the case drops it and immediately raises his hands. The third man, the lookout, looks hard at the wolf and the lynx and falls to his knees on the asphalt, hands laced behind his head. He tilts that head to show throat to Mike. Not as stupid as he looks. Other than being stupid enough to peddle drugs, that is.
Greasy Hair makes a run for it.
I’m on him in a flash. Humans think we smaller cats are less dangerous. They’re wrong. I’m stronger than I look, in both my forms
.
I slam into the back of his legs and knock him to the ground. He gets a glimpse of me and sneers. Thinks I’ll make an easy target. Guess again, puto. A slash of my claws across the back of his hand takes care of the gun he tries to draw. He aims a punch at my face that I easily avoid. Give up, fool. You have no chance.
To cut the fight short, I switch forms. Now he’s got his hands full of a naked woman, and not in a good way. I demonstrate my superior shifter strength by yanking his arms behind his back. My hands serve adequately as temporary cuffs. He swears when he can’t break my grip. “You can’t hold me, shifter bitch. I know my rights.”
“Hardly bitch,” I tell him drily, “and your rights are severely limited here.”
He responds with a kick at my legs. I hop to one side, and suddenly we’re struggling again. Some of these primates never learn.
Nor do shifters, clearly. I’ve almost got Greasy Hair subdued when Henri rushes up and clouts his huge fist against my captive’s chin. The human goes limp in my arms.
“No need to thank me, petit,” Henri says with a smirk. “Shall I help you carry him?”
“Go to hell,” I snarl back. He laughs and answers with something in French that sounds highly suggestive. But then, everything in French sounds suggestive, especially coming from him. Knowing Henri, he’s commenting on my breasts. Again.
“Hey!” Cal yells from across the lot. “You kitties want to stop making eyes at each other and haul that ape over here? I gotta read these assholes their rights.”
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Red Hot's First Review and A New Contest At My Blog
Hey Everyone! It's summer time and the heat is on! Hope your week went well and you've got time to read a good book. Maybe one by me or my blog mates. Enjoy Red Hot's first review posted below.
Over at my blog, http://solaragordon.wordpress.com, I'm running a scavenger hunt contest for my blog readers and those who got Red Hot already. Each day, for the next two weeks, I'll post either an excerpt from Red Hot or questions about prior blogs or the book for each to answer. One set of questions will be posted for each group daily. To enter, simply post the answer, your name and email, in the comments section for that day. End your comment with BR# if you're ablog reader or BB# if you've purchased and read Red Hot. Each correct answer gains you an entry. At the end, one blog reader will win a free copy of Red Hot and someone who bought the book will receive a free book from my Romantic Times Book Lover's Convention free book stash. Second and third prizes will be free books as well for both groups. I will post a list of available books toward the end of the contest. Good Luck Everyone!
If after reading this review, you want to pick up a copy of Red Hot, here's the link: http://bookstrand.com/red-hot
Have a great weekend!
SOLARA
Posted by The Blackraven Wednesday June 23, 2010 
Over at my blog, http://solaragordon.wordpress.com, I'm running a scavenger hunt contest for my blog readers and those who got Red Hot already. Each day, for the next two weeks, I'll post either an excerpt from Red Hot or questions about prior blogs or the book for each to answer. One set of questions will be posted for each group daily. To enter, simply post the answer, your name and email, in the comments section for that day. End your comment with BR# if you're ablog reader or BB# if you've purchased and read Red Hot. Each correct answer gains you an entry. At the end, one blog reader will win a free copy of Red Hot and someone who bought the book will receive a free book from my Romantic Times Book Lover's Convention free book stash. Second and third prizes will be free books as well for both groups. I will post a list of available books toward the end of the contest. Good Luck Everyone!
If after reading this review, you want to pick up a copy of Red Hot, here's the link: http://bookstrand.com/red-hot
Have a great weekend!
SOLARA
Posted by The Blackraven Wednesday June 23, 2010
Red Hot by Solara Gordon
Publisher: Siren-Bookstrand, Inc.
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance,
Length: 182 pages
Summary:
It isn’t the flames or smoke that worry Fire Chief Brent Stephens. What worries him the most is the heat his libido keeps throwing off every time he gets near Bunny Kater.
Bunny’s sworn off firemen, and intimacy—never mind that she’s worn out a vibrator or two along the way—that is, until she meets Brent. Turning forty, coupled with Brent’s presence, awakens her isolated emotions in ways she isn’t expecting. And he’s younger than she is.
Brent is unsure of his growing interest in Bunny. If his overly zealous male ego calms down, he might be able to understand why Bunny affects him like she does. It would help if he could find his lust control switch and turn it down a few degrees, too. Second chances happen once chance at a time, but Brent isn’t even sure they’re going to get a first one.
A Siren Erotic Romance
Lea’s Review:
I feel that Red Hott is a story about opening the door to second chances in life. The main characters, Bunny and Brent, have each had a difficult marriage, suffered through horrible circumstances in the deaths of relatives and friends and carried around the emotional baggage associated with those events for many years. Both have reached the point where they want more out of life and, while drawn to one another, realize they must move beyond the fear and bad memories from the past before they can truly commit to something new and wonderful. 
I like the character of Brent very much. He is decisive and strong, but willing to be patient and flexible in working out a relationship that will meet Bunny’s needs as well as his own. He has a solid and healthy relationship with his brother and is a caring boss at the fire station. Meanwhile, Bunny seems a bit shallow and indecisive to me. She bounces back and forth from enjoying being sexually bold and dominant to running away and avoiding all contact with Brent for weeks at a time. She is caught in an approach/avoidance mindset that she has a hard time shaking. Kate, Bunny’s daughter, is a delightfully normal teenager, and her insight into the relationship between Bunny and Brent is exactly what one would expect from someone in that age group.
In this book Solara Gordon presents the struggles of two wounded adults making a journey from emotional isolation and being crippled by past experiences toward acceptance, healing and, ultimately, happiness. The journeys is a slow one, two steps forward and one step back, with new obstacles arising at every turn, but the characters are up to the challenge and eventually find their way.
Rated 3 1/2 Ravens by Lea!
Friday, June 25, 2010
Volatile or Passionate...
As I near the end of my wip, thank goodness, I can't help but think about the next book in my jaguar world. Gunner and Tabitha's story. These two jags seem to have a volatile relationship in the making. In my character waiting room they each keep to their own corners and when they do happen to brush up against each other, sparks definitely fly.
What a different experience for me as a writer. Typically, my character couples cuddle and express themselves very happily in my mind, just waiting to tell their stories...unless they have yet to find their other.
Not these two, though, not yet anyway.
So in a moment of lets see what they have to say for themselves, I brought them closer to the surface yesterday, and a poem came to mind. I thought I would share...
Quiet & Beautiful
So close to the ground
I slink and I think
Why is there no one around?
The crickets don't chirp
The birds are a flutter
The bunnies stay silent
But I can still hear her mutter
"He thinks this will change things
To shift and then run
Out go his leathers
Into the hot cooking sun."
So angry, so beautiful
My sweet little miss
Her temper I shall not conquer
With merely a kiss
Yep, these two are going to be interesting to write!
Have a fabulous weekend!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Hi and welcome to your Wednesday fix of Shapeshifter Romance! This week’s blog involved a little internal strife for me. Should I keep reviewing the books in order or should I skip ahead to do book four before book two? Book four, “Howling Moon” , actually takes place at te same time as book two, “Moon’s Web.” Book two makes several references to what’s going on in book four and those references make little sense if read in order. I did decide, though, to review book two, because it is the last ook in this series written in first person. Instead, I will write a spoiler section that will explain where the two books cross paths.
So without further blathering, I present “Moon’s Web” by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp:
The last few months have been a roller coaster for werewolf assassin, Tony, and his human mate, Sue. The both are now “dead” to their former lives after escaping a rogue mob boss who had also been a rogue Sazi. With the help of Tony’s old mob buddy and Sazi cop, Bobby, they are introduced into the world of the Sazi proper.
The are accepted into the Chicago werewolf pack where Tony get’s his first taste of not being the biggest, baddest thing hunting and Sue is forced to stand up for herself. The Chicago pack leader is none other than Nikoli Molotov, of Molotov cocktail infamy. He’s a Russian werewolf mobster with a bad temper and a control streak a mile wide. The first thing Nikoli does when he brings Tony into his pack is lay a pack binding on him so strong it almost kills Tony and makes Sue baby-sit a pack of badly trained werewolf pups.
While Tony and Sue are trying to figure out how to e mates in a pack setting without Tony smothering Sue or Sue driving Tony nuts, they are each dealing with- interesting- tasks that neither can help the other with. Sue is given a job as a book keeper for a pack business and discovers Nikoli has been swindled. How does one tell a foul-tempered werewolf his pack has been steeling from him? And will the pack react badly to having a human whistle-blower in their midst?
Tony, on the other hand, is given a task by Wolven. Seems his old boss Carmine’s werewolf girlfriend has been kidnapped by something preternatural and only Tony can keep him from starting a mob war to get her back. To add insult to injury, literally, Tony has to hunt down this kidnapper while badly injured from being mauled by a kimono dragon, deal with a sever case of pining for his mate thanks to a well meaning but clueless healer, and set up security for the pack headquarters because the Sazi Council has decided to have a meeting there! Why, you ask? To meet Tony, of course. Those flashes of insight he’s been getting means he’s developing hind sight, a rare seer gift. All they need is giant killer spider and a serial killer panther to make the mix explode… which they get.
This book is, in my opinion, better on the second reading. If you can, read the fourth book in the series before reading this one. However, it is still a good read in and of itself. This ook, as I said earlier, is written entirely first person from Tony’s point of view. There is a fresh it of romance where oby and the kimono dragon, Asri, discover they are mates. It is very cleverly done, considering the only insight into the character’s growing love comes from Tony’s developing gift of hind-sight. It adds a nice twist to the plot and a great vehicle to show Tony’s talent develop, but it is not a focal point of the plot, in my opinion. It can’t be- there are maybe 20 pages of the actual romance out of more than 300 pages in this book.
We are also introduced to plot details of the over-all story arch that don’t have any business being in the second book of a series. This book is a good one and it has it’s place in the series, but it really should have been fourth or fifth in reading order, not second. I am going to recommend you read the third and fourth books before reading “Moon’s Web” if you can. But if you do want to read them in order, I offer the following plot spoilers that will make this story make more sense:
*********************************************************************
Begin spoilers:
* Jack the were panther: an ancient shifter originally from South America. He used to be a very important part of Sazi society before his mate chose to marry the Chief Justice, Charles. He then lost his mind and started attacking humans who look like her, eventually killing them after months or years of terrorizing them. This would normally be a death sentence for a Sazi and Wolven wants to kill him badly. He’s insane, though, not stupid. He got himself elected to a high human office and has a file hidden somewhere with the details of Sazi existence and instructions to mail it to the human authorities if he dies from anything but natural causes.
* Lucas Santiago: also an ancient shifter. Lucas was the pack leader of the wolf pack in Boulder. When the head of Wolven is sent on forced leave, he is tapped to fill in for her. With Lucas gone from his pack, the dirty laundry starts to come out about just what his mate, Tatiana, has been doing behind his back. Lucas is an interesting character to follow, perhaps even the “main” character for the whole series, at least to date.
* Were spiders: I won’t go into too much detail other than to say that by book eight, they become very important. They do make appearances in book three but then nothing much again till book seven and eight. Pay attention to them, though. The authors don’t re-disclose details about them once it’s been brought up.
End of spoilers.
**********************************************************************
With that, I will wrap for this week’s review. Next week I will e doing book three, “Captive Moon” where we will learn more about a certain were cougar, Antoine, and his tigress mate, Tahira.
Rebecca
So without further blathering, I present “Moon’s Web” by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp:
The last few months have been a roller coaster for werewolf assassin, Tony, and his human mate, Sue. The both are now “dead” to their former lives after escaping a rogue mob boss who had also been a rogue Sazi. With the help of Tony’s old mob buddy and Sazi cop, Bobby, they are introduced into the world of the Sazi proper.
The are accepted into the Chicago werewolf pack where Tony get’s his first taste of not being the biggest, baddest thing hunting and Sue is forced to stand up for herself. The Chicago pack leader is none other than Nikoli Molotov, of Molotov cocktail infamy. He’s a Russian werewolf mobster with a bad temper and a control streak a mile wide. The first thing Nikoli does when he brings Tony into his pack is lay a pack binding on him so strong it almost kills Tony and makes Sue baby-sit a pack of badly trained werewolf pups.
While Tony and Sue are trying to figure out how to e mates in a pack setting without Tony smothering Sue or Sue driving Tony nuts, they are each dealing with- interesting- tasks that neither can help the other with. Sue is given a job as a book keeper for a pack business and discovers Nikoli has been swindled. How does one tell a foul-tempered werewolf his pack has been steeling from him? And will the pack react badly to having a human whistle-blower in their midst?
Tony, on the other hand, is given a task by Wolven. Seems his old boss Carmine’s werewolf girlfriend has been kidnapped by something preternatural and only Tony can keep him from starting a mob war to get her back. To add insult to injury, literally, Tony has to hunt down this kidnapper while badly injured from being mauled by a kimono dragon, deal with a sever case of pining for his mate thanks to a well meaning but clueless healer, and set up security for the pack headquarters because the Sazi Council has decided to have a meeting there! Why, you ask? To meet Tony, of course. Those flashes of insight he’s been getting means he’s developing hind sight, a rare seer gift. All they need is giant killer spider and a serial killer panther to make the mix explode… which they get.
This book is, in my opinion, better on the second reading. If you can, read the fourth book in the series before reading this one. However, it is still a good read in and of itself. This ook, as I said earlier, is written entirely first person from Tony’s point of view. There is a fresh it of romance where oby and the kimono dragon, Asri, discover they are mates. It is very cleverly done, considering the only insight into the character’s growing love comes from Tony’s developing gift of hind-sight. It adds a nice twist to the plot and a great vehicle to show Tony’s talent develop, but it is not a focal point of the plot, in my opinion. It can’t be- there are maybe 20 pages of the actual romance out of more than 300 pages in this book.
We are also introduced to plot details of the over-all story arch that don’t have any business being in the second book of a series. This book is a good one and it has it’s place in the series, but it really should have been fourth or fifth in reading order, not second. I am going to recommend you read the third and fourth books before reading “Moon’s Web” if you can. But if you do want to read them in order, I offer the following plot spoilers that will make this story make more sense:
*********************************************************************
Begin spoilers:
* Jack the were panther: an ancient shifter originally from South America. He used to be a very important part of Sazi society before his mate chose to marry the Chief Justice, Charles. He then lost his mind and started attacking humans who look like her, eventually killing them after months or years of terrorizing them. This would normally be a death sentence for a Sazi and Wolven wants to kill him badly. He’s insane, though, not stupid. He got himself elected to a high human office and has a file hidden somewhere with the details of Sazi existence and instructions to mail it to the human authorities if he dies from anything but natural causes.
* Lucas Santiago: also an ancient shifter. Lucas was the pack leader of the wolf pack in Boulder. When the head of Wolven is sent on forced leave, he is tapped to fill in for her. With Lucas gone from his pack, the dirty laundry starts to come out about just what his mate, Tatiana, has been doing behind his back. Lucas is an interesting character to follow, perhaps even the “main” character for the whole series, at least to date.
* Were spiders: I won’t go into too much detail other than to say that by book eight, they become very important. They do make appearances in book three but then nothing much again till book seven and eight. Pay attention to them, though. The authors don’t re-disclose details about them once it’s been brought up.
End of spoilers.
**********************************************************************
With that, I will wrap for this week’s review. Next week I will e doing book three, “Captive Moon” where we will learn more about a certain were cougar, Antoine, and his tigress mate, Tahira.
Rebecca
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Summer Solstice Shapeshifting... and other stuff...
Pic from ~ lovepotionperfume.com ~ Anyone tried it? I find the label design alluring.Yep, good ole Sol has hit that magic point in the heavens known as the Summer Solstice, or the longest day of the year on our side of the hemisphere. Kisses to Father Sun! As a kidlet I would always notice Mr. Sun, and in a way I didn’t understand, I would pay homage to the big bright guy. No, I don’t worship a blazing disc. However, the truth is I love the sun. This has been true ever since I can remember.
So far, my first day of summer has been manically busy... but, wowsa, the entire world is manically busy... actually maniacally NUTS! Indeedy, you and I, and the world community are ‘shapeshifting’. The celestial frequencies of Summer Solstice 2010 guarantees a whole lotta ‘shapeshifting’ will be happening. Soon. Including land changes from volcanoes, earthquakes and other natural disasters.
Yep, yowsa! Also, it will only get HOTTER and HEAVIER on the world stage this summer. Plan on doing whatever you can to keep yourself cool while, at the same time, watching your backside. Lots of ‘heavy stuff’ coming down the over-heated pike at this time.
So, how do I keep myself somewhat cool and sane in THESE TIMES? Probably, a silly question, since I’m a writer. But, yes, I write to keep some sense of stability and mental sanity. Okay, yes, I also deliciously escape the realities by penning my stories and flashes. Currently, I am escaping via my edits for BRANDED BY THE TEXANS... and it’s brandin’ time at the ranch... ‘nuf said.
While, so far... I said, so far... and knock on wood... the edits are going swimmingly... just grammar stuff... however, guess what? Even though, my editor is doing a standup exceptional job in some ways, and I really appreciate it!!!... me and the editor disagree in some key ways.
No, I am not adding a whole bunch of ‘thats’. It’s a pace killer. And, it murders the spirit of the story.
No, I am not writing literary fiction THAT must be corrected for every *intentional* grammar mistake I make. I write paranormal erotic romance for a reason... many reasons. I love it. I love the FREEDOM, the ALIVENESS, and I hope readers *EXPERIENCE* the story, not merely read it.
And, yes!!! yes, yes, yes... her breasts lusted... no, my heroine DID NOT lust mentally at that point in the story. I mean, gee, I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve had certain ‘body parts’ lust while, at the same time, *I* as a woman with my own mind, DID NOT lust. Or, to put it another way... just because my breasts may have lusted for his touch, I, personally, did not lust for him, as a guy I wanted between my thighs.
I mean, in my experience of life, my mind and body do not always agree, and may *want* different things. Heck, if I see some man who I find sexy, but he’s acting like a total jerk... no, I have no desire for him, whatsoever... I don’t feel any desire, even, if a particular part of my anatomy is ‘turned on.’
Actually, I’ve never had an editor who seemed concerned about a body part having a lusty feeling. Add to that, I’ve read science-based articles and listened to science researchers, and also metaphysical notables who support my view of the body, as unto itself, at times. In fact, why bother to have the idea of the mind-body connection? Since, this suggests there is something to connect, your mind and your body.
And what about your shapeshifter heroines and heroes... perhaps, the inner wolfess wants to rip someone’s throat out, yet, her human self knows patience, in this instance, is a virtue. The throat-ripping will occur later.
Or, how about your wolf shifter hero? His human mind is saying ~ Back off. This isn’t an enemy you can defeat. However, his wolf is saying ~ Protect your mate at all costs. If he’s any kind of real hero, he’ll obey his wolf and attack. Not only that, he’ll loose the beast and win because of his love for his mate.
It’s my contention, we human beings are complex in nature, and, thus, our relationships are often complicated. Sometimes, we fall in love. Sometimes, we fall in lust. We are many-faceted in our personalities, in who we are in total.
Not only are we the sum of our life experiences, we are body, mind, heart, soul and spirit... to put it simply. Depending on what is happening, the heroine or hero may be mostly in touch with their animal-body self or they may be in touch with their divine connection to spirit... or a balance of both... like I said ‘complex’.
I know I do my best as a writer to describe where my characters are coming from in each scene, their emotions... why they feel as they do, or why they don’t feel, perhaps because of a past broken heart. And, of course, most importantly, I illuminate THEIR HEARTS to the best of my ability by how I write their love story.
So, what’s your viewpoint on all this?
~~~~~~
The Kougar’s news and mews ~
HER INSATIABLE DARK HEROES ~ Spotlight at Dark Diva Reviews ~ hey, KitKats, the review turned out pretty darn good. The Kougar adored how creatively Kathy, the reviewer, expressed herself, and how much detail she included. If you want to check it out, here’s the link ~ ddrreviews.blogspot.com/2010/06/her-insatiable-dark-heroes-by-savanna.html ~
~~~
Yes, and excited shapeshifter roars, some of the official e-paperwork arrived for THE TIGER’S MASQUERADE, to be pubbed by MojoCastle Press.
~~~
Wanna know how my carnal cherub hero, Volcano, in WHEN A GOOD ANGEL FALLS, is angelically ‘seeing’ our summertime?
*** Summer 2010 Forecast by Volcano *** at ~ http://sirenbookstrand.blogspot.com ~ or at my Kougar Kisses blog.
~~~~~~
~ HAPPY SUMMER SHAPESHIFTING ~
Savanna Kougar
~ Run on the Wild Side of Romance ~
Author of ~
All Shades of Blue Paradise
Red Lioness Tamed
When a Good Angel Falls ~ In Print
Tangerine Carnal Dreams
Murder by Hair Spray in Gardenia, New Atlantis ~ In Print
Black Cat Beauty
Her Insatiable Dark Heroes ~ In Print
Stallion of Ash and Flame ~ In Print
Branded by the Texans ~ Coming in August 2010 from Siren-BookStrand
~~~~~~
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Daily Doses
By Pat Cunningham
First, an update: Mom’s still in the hospital and we’re scouting nursing homes. Some days she does better than others. We’re taking it a day at a time. I’ll keep you posted.
And now, delayed from last week, this week’s blog.
Lazy creature that I am, my writing tends to be sporadic. I used to stick notes in my journal saying why I hadn’t written anything that day. Finally it hit me: if I’m going to presume to call myself a writer, I should try to write daily, and not just a list of excuses, either. On July 1, 2006, I vowed I would write something every single day, come hell, high water, jobs, illnesses, and pens running dry in the middle of sentences. I haven’t missed a day since.
What do I write? Whatever occurs to me. Scenes, character descriptions, conversations, vignettes, flash. Entries can run anywhere from a couple of paragraphs to several pages if I get rolling. As long as pen meets paper for more than a sentence, I figure I’m good for the day.
So far it’s paid off. It keeps my writing muscles limber and inspires ideas. What I thought was just a throwaway entry sparked my first vampire novel. I expanded another entry into a story I recently sent to an anthology. (They’re still holding it. Cross all fingers.) I have another beginning I want to expand into a full story. Some may already be stories and just need some tweaking to sell to a flash market. Ten bucks is ten bucks.
How about you guys? Do you feel guilty if you don’t write something daily, or doesn’t it bother you? Does anyone else have a stack of spiral-bound notebooks in their closet, or am I the only loonie? Yes, I write on vacations and holidays. I jotted an entry in my purse notebook while sitting in the emergency room last week so I wouldn’t miss a day. Am I nuts, or devoted? You be the judge.
First, an update: Mom’s still in the hospital and we’re scouting nursing homes. Some days she does better than others. We’re taking it a day at a time. I’ll keep you posted.
And now, delayed from last week, this week’s blog.
Lazy creature that I am, my writing tends to be sporadic. I used to stick notes in my journal saying why I hadn’t written anything that day. Finally it hit me: if I’m going to presume to call myself a writer, I should try to write daily, and not just a list of excuses, either. On July 1, 2006, I vowed I would write something every single day, come hell, high water, jobs, illnesses, and pens running dry in the middle of sentences. I haven’t missed a day since.
What do I write? Whatever occurs to me. Scenes, character descriptions, conversations, vignettes, flash. Entries can run anywhere from a couple of paragraphs to several pages if I get rolling. As long as pen meets paper for more than a sentence, I figure I’m good for the day.
So far it’s paid off. It keeps my writing muscles limber and inspires ideas. What I thought was just a throwaway entry sparked my first vampire novel. I expanded another entry into a story I recently sent to an anthology. (They’re still holding it. Cross all fingers.) I have another beginning I want to expand into a full story. Some may already be stories and just need some tweaking to sell to a flash market. Ten bucks is ten bucks.
How about you guys? Do you feel guilty if you don’t write something daily, or doesn’t it bother you? Does anyone else have a stack of spiral-bound notebooks in their closet, or am I the only loonie? Yes, I write on vacations and holidays. I jotted an entry in my purse notebook while sitting in the emergency room last week so I wouldn’t miss a day. Am I nuts, or devoted? You be the judge.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
A Bit of Poetry
This week RED HOT released! Between my day job and promo, it's been a busy busy week. My lovely granddaughter slipped into the world last Saturday at 5:32am. She and her parents are doing fine. I'm going to visit tomorrow and get to do the grandma thing.
After reading my blog partners's posts for the week, I thought about a story line I began a few years back on a Alpha Vampire Hero who supposed soul mate betrayed him. What kind of changes and shifts would he have made to survive or adapt to the world around him? What animal traits might he possess or use to assist him?
Here's the poem, I wrote as part of the opening prologue as he's journaling on the anniversary of his betrayl and supposed death.
Love's Betrayal
There was a time I would have died for you
I cared for you
Loved you, tended you, nurtured you
Betrayal, uselessness, confoundment,
Is there more or does it end?
Does love ever die? Will the pain ever stop?
Why must you continue to take and take?
They say time heals all wounds and pains
Does the hurt become a welcome balm?
Do I stop feeling wrong?
Now I revile you, hate you, despise you
I will heal, or so I have been told
Life will go on
And so will I again without you
Copyright ©2005 Solara Gordon
Have a great weekend!
SOLARA
Friday, June 18, 2010
What Would You Do?
How about a secret identity? Would you have one, or tell your friends and family all about the new limited time you?
I ask the question, but I have no ready made answer for it myself. There are so many things I would like to do with the power to shapeshift. I'd love to be a bird of prey, flying over the land seeing its beauty from above. Maybe a large cat, roaming the land in quiet, stealthy contemplation. A sea animal to see the depths of the deep blue oceans...
Maybe I could mesh them together and become a dragon, then, I could do each of those things and work on cleaning up the gulf. An oil loving dragon, hmmm, now there's and idea. :)
So tell me, what would you do?
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Matchmaker, Matchmaker...
Rebecca's review yesterday got me thinking about how shapeshifters meet their mates. Now, this is a topic we've covered before but since I write romance, my mind returns to the topic often.
In Protect and Defend, Diarmid and Mikaela meet due to an arranged tour he provides her of the crime scene investigations unit. But before that, I created an online dating/matchmaking service for my shapeshifters. I called it Predator-Match.com and the heroine of my short story Alpha v Alpha is one of the owners.
When I originally came up with the concept of a dating service/matchmaker five years ago, the online dating services were just getting big and I'd never seen Millionaire Matchmaker before. Can I just say, I love Patti Stanger. She's really good at what she does, and even at her rudest, you have to give it to her. She's honest. Brutally honest, sometimes. But she's honest. That's one of the many things I like and respect about her. It's also why I'm hooked on her reality show.
When I revisit her later this year, I think Serena needs to take a few hints from Patti . I'm also looking forward to revisiting the service she provides to her fellow shapeshifters. Predator-match.com looks like a matching service for wild animals but it's anything but... Once a shifter logs in he or she can create a profile and try to meet fellow shifters who live nearby. However, if the shifter wants to pay additional fees, they can arrange for more personalized service. That's where the matchmaking comes in. This is going to be great fun.
So how do your shifters find mates? Would they use a dating service designed for their specific needs or is it all about finding the right smell?
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
A Werewolf assassin finds his mate in a most unusual way...
Hi and welcome to your Wednesday fix of Shapeshifter Seductions! This week I will be reviewing Hunter's Moon by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp. This is the first book in their Tales of the Sazi series and was first released in 2004. It is still commercially available but you'll probably have to order it on-line.
The story opens up with Tony, a mob hitman, meeting a prospective client. This lady looks typical at first glance: nervous, dressed well but comically in a wig and black pant suit in the sweltering heat of a summer afternoon. The catch is, she doesn't want him to knock off some husband or ex-lover. She wants him to kill her!
Tony has rules he lives by; it's what keeps him from getting caught and he's the best of the best at what he does. One of the biggies is never ask questions. The less he knew about the client the safer he was. Despite his rules and a gut feeling this dame was going to end up changing his life forever, when she demands he listen to her story- and offers to pay him for it- he finds himself taking her to his hideout, a posh hotel room in one of the new high class hotels in town.
Sue Quentin was raised whitebread American till she won the lottery to the tune of $260 million. But rather than making her life better, it just gives her abusive, selfish family millions of reasons to treat her worse than ever. She's hit the end of what she can take and wants to end it.
Sue thinks she's got no backbone but Tony suspects otherwise. She's broken but not hopeless and he feels a strange urge to keep this woman close by his side and help her learn how to deal with her spiteful, gready family. Then there's the fact that Tony accidentally let Sue see his wolf.
Not only does she not freak out- she seems to accept his furry side better than he does- Tony is finally able to remember the time he spends as a wolf. In the year since he was accidentally turned when one of the marks he was stalking stalked him back then left him for dead, Tony has no memory what so ever of what he does in wolf form. Not only can Tony now remember his time, Sue seems to be able to feel whatever Tony feels in wolf form!
As Tony and Sue explore this unusual relationship they seem to have found themselves in, Tony is forced to bring Sue into his world while they run from Tony's enemies and Sue's scheming family. Together they escape rival assassins after Tony for prestige and discover the hidden world of the Sazi.
This story is a bit slow for the first fifty pages but then picks up quickly. The action is hot, the passion is hotter and the characters are are easy to identify with. It is written entirely in first person from Tony's perspective. I found this a bit odd for a romance novel at first, but it doesn't take long before it begins to feel very natural.
Tony, for his part, is a complete, irredeemable sociopath. I have read other reviews that didn't like this aspect of his personality, but trust me, if you stick with the series, you will get to see Tony grow as a person. Same with Sue. She comes across as a bit whiny and week in this first installment, but she does heal from the trauma of a horrible, abusive childhood to become the perfect foil for Tony's ruthlessness.
C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp are what I like to think of as detail people. The first story in any given story line tends to be over heavy in details that do, over time, tie into the bigger picture. If the details start becoming a bit much, feel free to gloss over them on first reading; they don't start becoming truly important until the forth book in the series, when we start getting a better look at the whole of Sazi society.
Next week I will be reviewing book two in the series, Moon's Web, where we pick back up with Tony and Sue as they learn to live in a Sazi wolf pack. But fear not! We will get to see more of Tony's old friend, Bobby, when he finds his own mate.
Thanks and best wishes till next week!
Rebecca
The story opens up with Tony, a mob hitman, meeting a prospective client. This lady looks typical at first glance: nervous, dressed well but comically in a wig and black pant suit in the sweltering heat of a summer afternoon. The catch is, she doesn't want him to knock off some husband or ex-lover. She wants him to kill her!
Tony has rules he lives by; it's what keeps him from getting caught and he's the best of the best at what he does. One of the biggies is never ask questions. The less he knew about the client the safer he was. Despite his rules and a gut feeling this dame was going to end up changing his life forever, when she demands he listen to her story- and offers to pay him for it- he finds himself taking her to his hideout, a posh hotel room in one of the new high class hotels in town.
Sue Quentin was raised whitebread American till she won the lottery to the tune of $260 million. But rather than making her life better, it just gives her abusive, selfish family millions of reasons to treat her worse than ever. She's hit the end of what she can take and wants to end it.
Sue thinks she's got no backbone but Tony suspects otherwise. She's broken but not hopeless and he feels a strange urge to keep this woman close by his side and help her learn how to deal with her spiteful, gready family. Then there's the fact that Tony accidentally let Sue see his wolf.
Not only does she not freak out- she seems to accept his furry side better than he does- Tony is finally able to remember the time he spends as a wolf. In the year since he was accidentally turned when one of the marks he was stalking stalked him back then left him for dead, Tony has no memory what so ever of what he does in wolf form. Not only can Tony now remember his time, Sue seems to be able to feel whatever Tony feels in wolf form!
As Tony and Sue explore this unusual relationship they seem to have found themselves in, Tony is forced to bring Sue into his world while they run from Tony's enemies and Sue's scheming family. Together they escape rival assassins after Tony for prestige and discover the hidden world of the Sazi.
This story is a bit slow for the first fifty pages but then picks up quickly. The action is hot, the passion is hotter and the characters are are easy to identify with. It is written entirely in first person from Tony's perspective. I found this a bit odd for a romance novel at first, but it doesn't take long before it begins to feel very natural.
Tony, for his part, is a complete, irredeemable sociopath. I have read other reviews that didn't like this aspect of his personality, but trust me, if you stick with the series, you will get to see Tony grow as a person. Same with Sue. She comes across as a bit whiny and week in this first installment, but she does heal from the trauma of a horrible, abusive childhood to become the perfect foil for Tony's ruthlessness.
C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp are what I like to think of as detail people. The first story in any given story line tends to be over heavy in details that do, over time, tie into the bigger picture. If the details start becoming a bit much, feel free to gloss over them on first reading; they don't start becoming truly important until the forth book in the series, when we start getting a better look at the whole of Sazi society.
Next week I will be reviewing book two in the series, Moon's Web, where we pick back up with Tony and Sue as they learn to live in a Sazi wolf pack. But fear not! We will get to see more of Tony's old friend, Bobby, when he finds his own mate.
Thanks and best wishes till next week!
Rebecca
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Tigress Shapeshifter... slaughtering dreams...
Pic from ~ smartbizconnection.com ~
Tuesday greetings, shapeshifter lovers! Kytaira is back, she’s savagely pissed and she’s out for blood...
~~~ x-rated language and grrrrrring gratuitous violence ~~~
Tigress Shapeshifter... slaughtering dreams...
From where I stand I watch them slaughtering dreams. Silently, I vow to find ‘them’.
I am upon a mile high platform aboard an invisible ship that belongs to the Leffriz... an ancient, galactic-faring race who have three undersea bases on Earth. Given their policy of non-violence, they were more than willing to offer their assistance to me and my black tiger, Zurroc. They know I will exact my brand of justice.
Standing behind me, he draws me closer, his arm firm around my waist. My hand finds its way to his forearm. I hold onto him, my black tiger. I can’t help it. He fiercely insists I respond to his caring passion for me... dare I say his love?
“It is mass murder,” he rumbles near my ear.
For close to an hour we watch the Earth pour out its blood into the Gulf of Mexico. Sheltered from the overpowering fumes, the dangerous ugly odors, we witness the death throes of fish, of turtles. The truth, death claims all aquatic life, both animals and plants. All the while, the ocean shrieks its own dying agony.
I scream inside with the terrible pain of it. I scream at the horrific injustice of this slaughter on a mass scale. I scream as my pain threatens to consume me, twisting like a hurricane through my body. Oh, yes, ‘they’ are planning on more mass murder by using tech-conjured hurricanes.
“I can’t stand it.” I turn, burying my face in his chest. He cups the back of my head with his large hand, his tenderness a comfort. When I lift my head our gazes meet. “I can’t stand to see them slaughtering dreams... all the folks who live here and make a living here, their lives, their hopes and dreams... all those who survived the ravages of Katrina, those who worked to save New Orleans...” I shut up, knowing I’ll start blubbering like a cub with a thorn in her paw if I continue.
Besides, I have a mission.
“Do I intrude?” our Leffriz escort politely asks in his singsong voice.
“No,” Zurroc answers. “Is your transport device ready?”
“Yes. We have checked its readiness three times. Your mate will be safe in her arrival and in her return.”
Moving from Zurroc’s embrace, I draw in a long breath to prepare myself. “I know my destination.”
The Leffriz regards me for a moment, his expression kind. His gaze is piercing, though, despite the color of his eyes, a swirling seafoam blue.
In minutes, I wait inside the transport device. Ignoring my fluttery misgivings about the alien tech that looks like a giant tube of yellowish light, I close my eyes and focus. I summon my power. From my core, I loose my need to kill.
Landing inside a soft flash of light, I crouch and gaze around. I know where I am, a corporate building in Florida, close to that silly mouse’s playground. Talk about a deliciously plump snack. A delightful chase through the crowds with Mickey shrilly yelping for help... pounce! A few well-placed crunches... no more squeaky voice.
On silent feet I saunter toward the boardroom’s double doors. Around me, the low wail of an alarm system starts. Within seconds, killer beams shoot from every direction. Having altered my physiology to slightly out of phase, I remain unaffected and simply push my way past the doors. Heavy, tall and designed to intimidate, they give way easily before my tigress strength.
Three humans stare at me as if I’ve just arrived from the moon, unexpectedly... well, they aren’t quite human beings. Not anymore. They’ve all made those infamous deals with the devil, offering their pitiful souls in exchange for status, wealth and something much larger, an assured position in the new international order.
Two men and one woman, they’re the media’s dream portrait of high-powered executives... that is, except for their youthful ages. But then, they’ve been cloned several times now. Yep, all of them are immaculately dressed, pressed and presented. Of course, they all have personal trainers and a team of grooming specialists.
“I do hope I am interrupting. Am I?” I raise my eyebrow high and brace my legs in a posture of challenge.
“Who are you?” The woman asks with a proper insolent tone.
Standing, she places herself between the two men. They remain seated, one of them perched on the conference table and the other seated in a luxurious leather chair. Their sharp gazes attempt to eat me alive. But then, I’m not surprised because they have dined on human flesh.
I give honey-blonde woman a toothy grin. “Since you might believe the truth, and nothing is being covertly recorded, I’ll tell you.”
The seated man glances to the side at their control panel. No blinkie winkie lights. No digital readout. It’s blank and dead. “What did you do?” he demands.
“Oh my.” I tap my chin with one very long curved nail, coated with a blood-red shade of polish. “Which question do I answer first?” I tilt my head and wait.
Mr. Table-sitting man whips out an advanced tazer model. He aims at my middle and activates it. Just for laughs later, I bend forward and blow a breath as if I’m extinguishing a stubborn candle flame. Simultaneously, I reverse the energy. Dropping the weapon, he shakes his red burning hand.
Nope, not entirely human or he would have keeled over. I smile brightly as I sweep my gaze over their taut faces. “You didn’t answer my question.”
“Who are you?” the woman repeats. Reflexively, she grips her own arm, her nerves showing.
“I am a tigress shapeshifter from a planet-world far, far away. My assignment on Earth is, simply, justice.”
“Justice?” Mr. Chair-sitter eyes me as if he can take me in a fight.
“My intel is that you three have been very, very bad. You know, destroying-the-Gulf bad.”
With a flick of my finger I part two huge panels revealing a screen that takes up the entire wall. Displayed is an up-to-date representation of the destruction and death occurring in the ocean... and, also, on the surrounding land and beaches. Seeing the mass murder count projected, I steel myself against my own emotions.
“Taking bets on the final death numbers?” Their silence, their dagger gazes, confirms more evil doings. “With the piles of dirty bloody money you made dumping BP stock, this must be greedy icing on the oil-soaked cake. Not to mention all the profit to be made with the supposed clean-up.”
Their sneering smiles are meant to taunt me, to let me know I have no power to harm them, so they think. They still believe I can’t halt their demonically inspired slaughter.
“Oh, yeah,” I continue pleasantly enough, flipping my short tresses in a playful manner, “I heard a nasty little rumor. Maybe, you can tell me if it’s true.”
“What is that?” Table-sitter asks, stalling for time. Their cavalry arrives. I hear the copter drones on top of the building as they whir inside and descend through the chutes designed for them, for their attack on an enemy who has breached the boardroom.
“Why...” I draw out the word, “didn’t Haliburton, a known affiliate of BP, just take over Red Adair’s company. You know, he’s the tough-as-nails guy who stopped all those nasty ole oil fires. I think they even made a movie about him.”
Three pairs of eyes narrow and glint at me.
“The endgame is not to stop your gushing hole from hell, is it?” I feel the tigress within me glare at each one of them.
“No, it’s not, bitch interloper.” Chair-sitter rises up, an unholy gleam in his eyes. “Your time here is over,” he intones like robotic man. He doesn’t finish his words. Nor does he touch me with the laser scalpel in his hand.
I have stepped close to him in a blur of speed. Instantly, my forefinger morphs, becoming my tigress claw. With one clean swipe I open up his throat. His blood gushes, spurting into the ocean of air.
“Your turn.” I slice the woman’s throat before she can squeak in terror. Her eyes bulge with fright as her hands fly upwards. Already, her blood spills... spilling so like the blood of Mother Earth.
With a flash-fast whirl I avoid Table-sitter’s skilled defensive strike. His throat splits open from the quicker slash of my claw. He pitches forward and I hear his gurgle as he drowns in his own blood.
Sensing another presence, one I don’t want to tangle with yet, I pause only long enough to watch their blood spew from their throats. I make certain death owns the three of them before I stand on the yellowish circle of light waiting for me.
“Too late,” I say to the four copter drones streaking toward me, their miniature guns blazing laser pulses.
Zurroc opens his arms to me the moment I walk from the transport device. “Poetic justice, my tigress,” he softly growls, as I lean against him and wrap my arms around him.
“Yes, poetic justice.”
~~~~~~~
The Kougar’s news and mews ~
HER INSATIABLE DARK HEROES ~ Spotlight at Dark Diva Reviews
On Thursday, June 17th, my bestselling menage will be spotlighted at Dark Diva Reviews ~ ~ There will be a contest to win a PDF copy.
AND!
The Summer blog tour ~ Hot and Steamy Days and Nights and runs from Friday June 18 through Sunday June 20 ~ Check my Kougar Kisses blog for more details.
~~~~~~
~ HAPPY ALMOST SUMMER SHAPESHIFTING ~
Savanna Kougar
~ Run on the Wild Side of Romance ~
Author of ~
All Shades of Blue Paradise
Red Lioness Tamed
When a Good Angel Falls ~ In Print
Tangerine Carnal Dreams
Murder by Hair Spray in Gardenia, New Atlantis ~ In Print
Black Cat Beauty
Her Insatiable Dark Heroes ~ In Print
Stallion of Ash and Flame ~ In Print
Branded by the Texans ~ Coming in August 2010 from Siren-BookStrand
~~~~~~
Monday, June 14, 2010
Family Emergency
My mother collapsed over the weekend from what appears to be a bleeding stroke. She's in the hospital and the prognosis doesn't look too good at this point. Therefore I won't be blogging this week. We should know more over the next couple of days.
Pat
Pat
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Animals and Native American Totems
While I'm not Native American, their beliefs and views strongly influence my writing and own life choices. I believe everyone has an animal totem or spirit guide that is theirs to call. My main totem is the sea otter. I've loved the ocean and beaches since I was a child. The feminine energy and coquettish charm otters exude fits me perfectly. When I learned that bear and wolf were two more of my guides, it became eerie as my late husband's tribal name was Stalking Wolf and another dear friend's nickname is Wolf. My partner's totem is a grizzly bear.
My mind started clicking on the what if humans could shift into these animals and display their traits and vice versa. I've seen animal pictures that I swear if you looked at them just right, you'd see the human inside. There have been a few humans I've given wide berth too simply because the look in their eyes and their manners said a more animalistic nature lurked just beneath the surface.
What animals are you drawn to? What traits and characteristics do you see in yourself representing them? Share your comments with us.
My new book comes out June 17th at Siren-Bookstrand. The title is Red Hot. Sorry, no shape shifters. You'll find hot sizzling passion, firemen, and second chances at love.
Have a great weekend!
Solara
My mind started clicking on the what if humans could shift into these animals and display their traits and vice versa. I've seen animal pictures that I swear if you looked at them just right, you'd see the human inside. There have been a few humans I've given wide berth too simply because the look in their eyes and their manners said a more animalistic nature lurked just beneath the surface.
What animals are you drawn to? What traits and characteristics do you see in yourself representing them? Share your comments with us.
My new book comes out June 17th at Siren-Bookstrand. The title is Red Hot. Sorry, no shape shifters. You'll find hot sizzling passion, firemen, and second chances at love.
Have a great weekend!
Solara
Friday, June 11, 2010
Welcome To Rebecca and Solara!
First off, welcome to our two new members, Rebecca and Solara! Rebecca's joining us on Wednesday's and Solara on Saturday's. Stop by and help us welcome them to Shapeshifter Seductions. :)
I couldn't help but to end the week with my own letter from camp. Enjoy!
Hello Lover,
How I miss curling up in your warm wolfie arms and sleeping, safe in the knowledge that you love me so. I am, however, so glad you suggested that I work this summer as a counsellor at the Shifter Get-Away Camp. To get the chance to spend time with shapeshifting children will certainly prepare me for someday having our children. ~Can you see me blushing?~
The administrators here were worried that being a human would be a disadvantage for me, but thanks to your recommendations they were willing to give me a chance...
Oops, be right back, duty calls...
Wow, who knew those claws were so sharp in the young...do they file them or something? Anyway, as I was saying, spending the summer here will give me a good...
brb...
Okay, dead animals on the doorstep? Our children had better not even think of engaging in such shenanigans. Now where was I? Oh yes, spending the summer here will give me a good idea of how to care for brood. How many did you say you wanted, six? That sounds...
Shoot, give me another second...
Dead leaves in my hair and dirt under my nails...why must these children choose a wet and rainy night to run through the woods? So, six is it? I'm thinking we should start smaller and work our way too...
Damn....
Are you kidding me? The non-stop howling might just drive me mad. Do they do it because they are in a large group? If so, then all I can commit too is one...
Again?
Dear John, I hope this letter finds you well. I am currently recuperating at my mother's. I am keeping the ring, but you may consider this womb closed.
All my best,
Abigail
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Tales of the Sazi: a shape shifter only series by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp
Hi and welcome to your Wednesday fix of Shapeshifter Romance. This is my very first blog post for you folks so let me introduce myself. My name is Rebecca Murray. I live in Metro Denver and I am an author. I write under the pen name Rebecca L Gillan, not because I don‘t want folks to know my real name but because there is a rather famous journalist with my same name. My first formally published story, Hawk’s Bride, will be released in September. This blog, though, is not about my writing but about those shape shifter romances that keeps us all crying for more!
I am going to start out with long running, though not as well known, shape shifter-only series’ because those are the ones I most love stumbling upon. If you are at all like me, I can devour a new series in a mater of weeks and am tortured by long new release waits, so this type of series helps fill the gap nicely.
My planned format is to start with a series over view for the first blog, review each installment of the series, then if possible, finish up with an author interview. For this series, I will be doing the Sazi series by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp. You will be pleased to know that Cathy has already agreed to the interview, so if you have any questions you’d like me to pose to her, chime in quick so they can make the cut off for the questionnaire I’m putting together.
So without further ado, I present the world of the Sazi!
Tony is a bad boy with a frightening secret: eighteen months ago, while doing a hit for a client, his mark almost killed him instead. Turns out the lady was a werewolf. She attacked him back and left him for dead in the middle of the night in a deserted city park. Tony, though, is no quitter and the dame really should have made sure he was actually dead. Now there’s a mob assassin/werewolf running around and he’s come to the attention of some folks who don’t like that.
The Sazi are an ancient race who have lived side by side with humanity for as long as both races have walked the earth. Once, millennia ago, they were almost wiped out by a mass attack coming from within. Now, they will do anything, even kill their own, to keep their secrets and to keep their families alive, if not necessarily safe and happy. It is strictly forbidden to turn humans, even humans who know their secret. They have a High Council to govern the diverse and dangerous population of shifters and a law organization to ride herd, no pun intended, on those who chafe at being confined. Not everyone is content to keep the status quo, though.
This series opens up as a good stand-alone story that the authors managed to turn into a great series. Through the eyes of Tony, we are introduced to the world of the Sazi from the perspective of a new turn wolf who was never supposed to live. Later installments give us different views of their world, sometimes through the eyes of ancient, powerful seers, sometimes through the eyes on the non-shifting family members- humans born of Sazi blood who were born without the ability to shift.
This is an interesting series as a whole. The first two books are written first person from Tony’s point of view only. Later stories are a blend of first person and third person. You don’t need to read them chronologically, but you might find yourself wanting to so the details in later books make sense. Also, the first few installments seem to be over packed with minuet details, but the important thing to keep in mind is that it can, and usually does, take a few books before the full impact of those details become clear.
There are eight books so far, and word is Adams and Clamp don’t plan to stop there, though they are currently working on another series right now. The good news is, these two ladies can really churn out some quality reading material in about eight to twelve months per installment, so we could see more of the Sazi in as little as a two years.
I am going to start out with long running, though not as well known, shape shifter-only series’ because those are the ones I most love stumbling upon. If you are at all like me, I can devour a new series in a mater of weeks and am tortured by long new release waits, so this type of series helps fill the gap nicely.
My planned format is to start with a series over view for the first blog, review each installment of the series, then if possible, finish up with an author interview. For this series, I will be doing the Sazi series by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp. You will be pleased to know that Cathy has already agreed to the interview, so if you have any questions you’d like me to pose to her, chime in quick so they can make the cut off for the questionnaire I’m putting together.
So without further ado, I present the world of the Sazi!
Tony is a bad boy with a frightening secret: eighteen months ago, while doing a hit for a client, his mark almost killed him instead. Turns out the lady was a werewolf. She attacked him back and left him for dead in the middle of the night in a deserted city park. Tony, though, is no quitter and the dame really should have made sure he was actually dead. Now there’s a mob assassin/werewolf running around and he’s come to the attention of some folks who don’t like that.
The Sazi are an ancient race who have lived side by side with humanity for as long as both races have walked the earth. Once, millennia ago, they were almost wiped out by a mass attack coming from within. Now, they will do anything, even kill their own, to keep their secrets and to keep their families alive, if not necessarily safe and happy. It is strictly forbidden to turn humans, even humans who know their secret. They have a High Council to govern the diverse and dangerous population of shifters and a law organization to ride herd, no pun intended, on those who chafe at being confined. Not everyone is content to keep the status quo, though.
This series opens up as a good stand-alone story that the authors managed to turn into a great series. Through the eyes of Tony, we are introduced to the world of the Sazi from the perspective of a new turn wolf who was never supposed to live. Later installments give us different views of their world, sometimes through the eyes of ancient, powerful seers, sometimes through the eyes on the non-shifting family members- humans born of Sazi blood who were born without the ability to shift.
This is an interesting series as a whole. The first two books are written first person from Tony’s point of view only. Later stories are a blend of first person and third person. You don’t need to read them chronologically, but you might find yourself wanting to so the details in later books make sense. Also, the first few installments seem to be over packed with minuet details, but the important thing to keep in mind is that it can, and usually does, take a few books before the full impact of those details become clear.
There are eight books so far, and word is Adams and Clamp don’t plan to stop there, though they are currently working on another series right now. The good news is, these two ladies can really churn out some quality reading material in about eight to twelve months per installment, so we could see more of the Sazi in as little as a two years.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Bobbie Kat's Letter Home
Pic from ~ bigcatrescue.org ~FIRST, an announcement, shapeshifter lovers ~ Recently two of our founding members have decided for different reasons to no longer blog regularly at ShapeShifter Seductions. One of them is moving on to other authorly projects and the other author has time constraints. We wish them well in any and all of their endeavors. And, they are most welcome to guest blog, anytime.
On the other paw, we have two new members joining us. When that becomes ‘official’, they will introduce themselves and their writing. I have a delicious feeling you are in for some fabulous, shifter-exciting blogs.
~~~~~~
OKAY! Yes, yes, I’m guilty as sin. I’m stealing Pat Cunningham’s blog idea of yesterday. Course, my *shifter’s letter from camp* won’t be in Pat’s humorous league. However, since my mind went blankety-blank and I wasn’t quite up to penning a flash scene for today, I figure why not carry on with this fun summer theme?
~~~
Dear Mommy and Daddy,
See, I remembered to call you that instead of... never mind... well, your secret pet names. It’s raining something awful. Like cats and dogs... teehee. The camp counselors got real snarly over stopping our indoor wrestling matches. We were playing WWF, only pretending to be animals, you know like that other name we call it, the Wild Women Felines.
Okay, the curtains did get shredded. We didn’t mean to, though... honest. But, it was soooo much fun for awhile. Our pillows suffered the most. Stuffing flew like fur when... never mind, again. It was sorta like when we play pigball, instead of football in the Fall. We always have the feline team and the canine team after T-dinner, and we all run around chasing each other. You know, hog wild, and whoever carries the ball has to *change*. Like that, except we kept crashing into the walls. Bouncing off them, really.
I guess, the camp counselors heard the thumps. They came in, human fangs bared, and suggested... er, growled like the canine team does whenever they lose a game. Anyway, here I am writing to you, which is a good thing since I haven’t kept up with, what was that word? We use it for Scrabble. Correspondence, yeah, that’s it.
Hunting up dinner has been the most fun, I think. Nope, none of us complain about the food. Oh, they don’t let us roam too far and the real rabbits are off the menu... something about not enough population to go around... but the dinner bell game is like hide and seek, whoever gets to it first, gets the really prime juicy stuff. Lots of yummy buffalo steak this year.
You should see my coat, I mean my hair. Exra shiny ‘cause they’ve been feeding us coconut oil for nutrition and they say it gets rid of those nasty worm thingie parasites. Remember last year I came home with a case of roundworms.
Oh, thanks for sending that old timey record player and the LPs. Usually, before it’s lights out, I’ve been entertaining my cabin mates with that silly song by that old, dead, funny guy, Jonathan Winters... hello mutha, hello fatha, here I am at Camp Granada... we all giggle till we cry, sometimes. I bet you knew too that using your fingernail like a claw works just as well as the needle... big fat wink!
Oh, oh! Picture me bouncing up and down now. They’re bringing out the paint trays... we’re going to learn how to identify each others ‘hand prints’.
Write to you later.
Love, Your daughter,
Bobbie Kat
~~~~~~~
The Kougar’s news and mews ~
Authors/Aspiring authors, ever thought of taking the big cat leap into Independent Publishing?
Different authors are blogging about their knowledge and experience at Lindsay Townsend’s THE PINK BLOG ~
Independent Publishing - Is it NOW or the Wave of the Future?
Thank you to Lindsay for inviting me to be part of this special week at Lindsay’s Romantics. I’m Rebecca J. Vickery, an Independent Author of romance novels and speculative fiction short stories who turned to self-publishing in October of 2009. I recently jumped head-first into independently publishing romance anthologies by founding Victory Tales Press with the help of Laura Shinn and a wonderful cast of multi-talented authors.
~~~~~~
~ HAPPY ALMOST SUMMER SHAPESHIFTING ~
Savanna Kougar
~ Run on the Wild Side of Romance ~
Author of ~
All Shades of Blue Paradise
Red Lioness Tamed
When a Good Angel Falls ~ In Print
Tangerine Carnal Dreams
Murder by Hair Spray in Gardenia, New Atlantis ~ In Print
Black Cat Beauty
Her Insatiable Dark Heroes ~ In Print
Stallion of Ash and Flame ~ In Print
Branded by the Texans ~ Coming in August 2010 from Siren-BookStrand
~~~~~~
Monday, June 7, 2010
A Shifter's Letter from Camp
By Pat Cunningham
Dear Mom and Dad,
Sorry about the smudgy ink but they won’t let us have computers or cell phones here. They used to, but the coyotes kept hacking into the camp records and stealing PIN numbers and ordering pizzas and stuff so now we have to go techless. Gina, the head counselor, says you’re not supposed to have electronics in the woods anyway, that’s not what camping’s all about. She’s a wolf so figures she’d say that. I miss my Game Boy but Gina says we’ll get all our stuff back at the end of camp.
Except for that, Camp Metamorph is great! We do lots of hiking and hunting and stuff. I can ID six different prey animals by tracks and scent, and we’re learning how to tell a shifter in animal form from a regular animal. Gina yelled at Bob, the instructor, and said he should’ve taught us that part first. Kevin, the tiger in B Cabin, went after a deer that was really one of the other campers and he almost got his face kicked in. Alonzo – he’s one of the foxes – says this same thing happens every year and nobody ever learns. We’re not too upset but the kids at the herbivore camp are all ticked off.
This weekend we had our Camp Olympics with the Meaties vs. the Grassies. The horses get snotty because they always win the races but this year we had a cheetah on our team and he ran rings around them. You should have seen their faces! Of course the otters won the swimming contest. I thought we had the tug-of-war locked in because of all the bears on our team but the grassies had an elephant which is so unfair. I took second in archery. There was an eagle there who’s older than me and he won. He gave me a couple of pointers and told me to keep practicing. I bet I beat him next year.
We also learned a bunch of camp songs from the wolves. The coyotes and the foxes made up new words to the songs that are way better and we sing those when the counselors aren’t around.
I’m going to be sorry to leave here next week but on the other hand I can’t wait to see you and Mom again. Oh, please send more cookies. The raccoons keep getting into our foot lockers.
Your son,
Teddy
And now you know where shifter children learn their woodcraft. How many Girl or Boy Scouts are out there in the woods for more than a merit badge? Watch out for that kid with the yellow eyes …
Dear Mom and Dad,
Sorry about the smudgy ink but they won’t let us have computers or cell phones here. They used to, but the coyotes kept hacking into the camp records and stealing PIN numbers and ordering pizzas and stuff so now we have to go techless. Gina, the head counselor, says you’re not supposed to have electronics in the woods anyway, that’s not what camping’s all about. She’s a wolf so figures she’d say that. I miss my Game Boy but Gina says we’ll get all our stuff back at the end of camp.
Except for that, Camp Metamorph is great! We do lots of hiking and hunting and stuff. I can ID six different prey animals by tracks and scent, and we’re learning how to tell a shifter in animal form from a regular animal. Gina yelled at Bob, the instructor, and said he should’ve taught us that part first. Kevin, the tiger in B Cabin, went after a deer that was really one of the other campers and he almost got his face kicked in. Alonzo – he’s one of the foxes – says this same thing happens every year and nobody ever learns. We’re not too upset but the kids at the herbivore camp are all ticked off.
This weekend we had our Camp Olympics with the Meaties vs. the Grassies. The horses get snotty because they always win the races but this year we had a cheetah on our team and he ran rings around them. You should have seen their faces! Of course the otters won the swimming contest. I thought we had the tug-of-war locked in because of all the bears on our team but the grassies had an elephant which is so unfair. I took second in archery. There was an eagle there who’s older than me and he won. He gave me a couple of pointers and told me to keep practicing. I bet I beat him next year.
We also learned a bunch of camp songs from the wolves. The coyotes and the foxes made up new words to the songs that are way better and we sing those when the counselors aren’t around.
I’m going to be sorry to leave here next week but on the other hand I can’t wait to see you and Mom again. Oh, please send more cookies. The raccoons keep getting into our foot lockers.
Your son,
Teddy
And now you know where shifter children learn their woodcraft. How many Girl or Boy Scouts are out there in the woods for more than a merit badge? Watch out for that kid with the yellow eyes …
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Sunday Snippet
~~Rick hiked up the leathers encasing his thighs and threw a leg over the bike. As he kick-started the beast between his legs, the low growl brought a smirk to his lips. The first time LeAnn rode behind him on the Harley she’d giggled for miles. When he’d asked her what was so funny she shyly looked away and told him she wondered if this is what riding a large cat was like. It was all he could do to keep the hog on the road, his dick in his pants and his heart off his sleeve.~~
Have a fabulous week ahead!
Friday, June 4, 2010
Need A Friday Break?
For whatever reason, I've found that it is virtually impossible for me to think about other things, ~ ie: writing, blogging, promo, what to have for dinner, ~ while I'm working on a Sudoku puzzle. So when things get wild inside my own head, I will whip out one of these babies and proceed to take a few well earned mental moments.
Have fun & Happy Friday, Everyone!
Supplied by Sudoku
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Witchy Powers ~ Fire at will, stun don’t kill.
Oh, yes, shapeshifter lovers, this blog is still for you. It’s just that my heroine, Kandace or Kandy Apple, as she’s known, is a bonafide witch and on her own in this scene from the latest chapter of my WIP.You see, her hellhound shifter heroes, Zol and Zin, have captured and tormented a bad guy. Well, it’s crucial they deliver him directly to Hades. Nothing else will do for the sake of justice and the right flow of fate. So, for the time being Zin and Zol are stuck in the Underworld until Hades sends them to the surface.
Oh, they tried to stop her, their one witch, with a telepathic appeal. But could you wait if your sister’s life was on the line?
~~~~~~
An *unedited* excerpt from my WIP ~ Kandy Apple for Halloween
All too aware of the Quevj’s trap, Kandace concentrated on summoning forth the power she’d been warned not to use, until this confrontation with her race’s enemy. The trick was to loose it at the right instant, and not let her force rise too swiftly.
“Knock, knock,” she called out, “I’m here. Do you want your painting?”
“You couldn’t have brought it here, bitch, as fast as you arrived,” Nigel nastily roared.
“No, but free my sister and I’ll tell you where it is.”
“No matter, alien witch, I’ll have my new friends do their brand of water boarding.”
“Gurgle, gurgle,” Kandace taunted. Kneeling, she touched her palm to the loft floor and suffused it with her force.
“Daughter of Affrony, your destiny awaits. Come forth. You belong to us.”
Not one centimeter of the warehouse had been left untouched by the ring of Over-Voice woman’s words.
Destiny, smestiny, all I want is my sister back.
Hearing the pound of boots at the far end of the loft where the elevator was located, Kandace rose upwards and opened her hand. “Fire at will, stun don’t kill.”
Spheres of blaze-yellow light the size of golf balls flew from her palm and swarmed like bees toward Nigel’s squad of goons.
“What the fuck!” was repeated several times, followed by the loud slumping thud of bodies.
Listening to Nigel shout orders, Kandace raised her arms in invitation to the Source of All. She clasped her hands shaping them into a wand’s point of contact, and whispered, “O fog of doom and gloom, your presence is sought, make this place a shrouded tomb, for those whose evil souls must be caught.”
Tendrils of mist swirled around her. Pale at first, it darkened and thickened in no time.
Clear as if she’d had her crystal ball, Kandace mind-watched the thirteen Quevj sorceresses attempt to counter her impromptu spell casting. To no avail.
The fog spread, sinuous as a clan of giant serpents. Covering everything, it rolled menacingly, a monstrous black specter from the bowels of hell.
Screams of horror ricocheted throughout the warehouse, as did the sound of racing, tromping feet. Those who could, escaped out the doors, deserting Nigel.
“Daughter of Affrony, if you wish the presence of your sister, you will come to us now, and surrender.”
~~~~~~
The Kougar’s news and mews ~
My short story, THE TIGER’S MASQUERADE, has been accepted into the Just Another Paranormal Monday’s Halloween anthology, and will be published by MojoCastle press ~ Cool Orange and Black Jelly Beanies, huh?
If you’d like sneak peak of my cover art for BRANDED BY THE TEXANS, come on by the Title Magic blog ~
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~ HAPPY SHAPESHIFTING FIRST DAY OF JUNE ~
Savanna Kougar ~ Run on the Wild Side of Romance ~ Author of ~
All Shades of Blue Paradise
Red Lioness Tamed
When a Good Angel Falls ~ In Print
Tangerine Carnal Dreams
Murder by Hair Spray in Gardenia, New Atlantis ~ In Print
Black Cat Beauty
Her Insatiable Dark Heroes ~ In Print
Stallion of Ash and Flame ~ In Print
Branded by the Texans ~ Coming in August 2010 from Siren-BookStrand
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