Update: Marilyn’s winner is…Sue Brandes! Congrats, Sue!!

It’s such a thrill to get to be part of Cynthia’s Halloween Blog Party today! Thanks so much for letting me join in ;). Because I’m a guest, I wanted to bring along a treat for the party’s host (*waving to Cynthia*) and all her friends…so I brought the drinks! Let me explain why I chose these…

In my new October book, Friday Mornings at Nine, three friends get together weekly for coffee and conversation. They discuss their marriages, their jobs, their lives — just like a lot of suburban moms do. But, one fall morning, after one of the women admits to getting emails from her college ex-boyfriend, they also begin to wonder if they married the right man…which leads to much drama, some humor and a lot of relationship complications.

One of the story’s major turning points takes place at an adults-only Halloween party. (Because, hey, what better backdrop is there for games of romantic pretense, right?) There are costumes, of course. Spooky music. And snacks. Because there’s a fairy-tale theme running throughout the story, too, I had a lot of fun getting to name the foods served at the party: Three Bloody Pigs in a Blanket, Jack and the Bean-Dip, Golden Goose Deviled Eggs and, of course, Poisoned Appletinis!

So, I’m here to raise my glass to all of you Halloween revelers today and share my version (and a couple of variations) of the recipe with you, just in case you’d like to make it for your grown-up friends in the real world while the costumed kidlets are chomping on their candy!

Poisoned Appletini (Marilyn’s pink version):
2 parts vodka
1 part apple schnapps
1 part Cointreau
1 part apple cider
Directions: rim a chilled martini glass with apple-flavored sugar rimmer; mix all the other ingredients with ice; shake and strain into the glass; garnish with a slice of apple.

You can also make it GREEN by substituting the 1 part Cointreau above for 1 part Midori melon liqueur and the 1 part apple cider above with a good squeeze of lime juice.

OR you can go a completely different way with it and make Caramel Appletinis using only 2 parts Bacardi Big Apple Rum and 2 parts butterscotch schnapps and an apple slice garnish.

Sound good? I hope so. What are some of your favorite Halloween snacks? Are you a candy person? (I’ll confess to an Almond Joy addiction.) Popcorn balls? Hot stews or warm cinnamon ciders? Anything with pumpkin? I’d love to hear your faves and will give away one copy of Friday Mornings at Nine (after midnight EST tonight!) to a commenter on today’s post.

Thanks, again, for having me visit, Cynthia, and wishing you all a fabulously frightening Halloweeeeeen!!
~Marilyn

Update: Arianna’s winner is…Cassandra! Congrats!

Firstly, I’d love to thank Cynthia for allowing me to be a guest on her blog today.

I remember when I set out to write my first erotic romance. I really wanted to write the dark compelling tale of a woman who finds out that she is actually a faerie princess. I had a plan. I had a plot. Darn it, I had good story. My muse, although, must have misheard me. Instead of dark she heard “snark” and that’s when I realized that I’d never be able to write a dark fantasy or paranormal.

Then again, I should have known. Horror movies always scared me. Whether it’s Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, or even Ghostface, the result is always the same. I get scared as HECK. Don’t even get me started on The Exorcist and the 360 Linda Blair puts her head through. To a kid the tender age of ten, it can be frightening. I really don’t see the enjoyment of covering or closing your eyes through an entire movie. And even to this day I have problems watching scary movies.

Scary Movie on the other hand? Well I can watch that over and over. I love comedy. I love to laugh. Parodies have helped me discover that I have a real knack for humor. My recent trip to the theater brought me to see Vampires Suck. Okay, as far as parodies go, it wasn’t the greatest, but it did give me enough chuckles to satisfy my love of humor.

So, I’m quite happy with my hard of hearing muse and whatever corniness she decides to send my way. And thanks to her, I’ve found the perfect mix—A dash of snark with a splash of dark.

Here’s the blurb for that “Snark Fantasy” erotic romance:

A fairytale, but not the kind your mother used to read you!

Rhiannon Kinsley’s life goes from boring to downright crazy when a freak lightning bolt strikes her laptop. To make matters even more bizarre, strange words and symbols flash across the computer screen and she hears a mysterious voice. Time to call the men in white coats! Then Cerne Silverwing, an intriguingly sexy man, appears. He insists she’s a faerie princess whose fate will determine his own. What a crock! Now she knows who really needs those white coats.

With the Dark Faerie forces threatening his kingdom, Cerne kidnaps Rhiannon and brings her to Fey, a land where magic knows no bounds. He’s performing a duty to save his kingdom and nothing more—a duty that will bring him his wings and the strengthened magic that comes with them. If he doesn’t unite with the princess as her consort, those wings will never grow. But this princess grew up in the land of laptops and instant messages, and she’s convinced they’re both crazy. Despite their differences, the two are thrust together to defeat the whip-wielding Dark Faerie Queen before she takes over the kingdom. Passion and peril aside, will Rhiannon and Cerne discover their true destiny?

See what I mean? I definitely can’t write dark. And that’s the way I like it.

You can purchase Wings of Desire, my first published novel at Eternal Press or at Amazon (in Kindle or print formats). And in 2011, a ton more snark will be available in Spring, 2011 when Beauty School Demon (Written under my other penname, Sidney Ayers) will be available from Sourcebooks. You can read more about it here.

Update: Rebecca’s winner is…Lynn Rush! Congrats, Lynn!

First I’d like to thank Cynthia for letting me play on her blog today! My name is Rebecca Zanetti and I write dark paranormals for Kensington Brava. My debut book, FATED, will be out February 22, 2011.

I love the month of October.  The time when goblins walk among us and the veil slips between reality and the supernatural.  And, well, it’s a time for pumpkins.  Carving them.  Eating the seeds.  Decorating.  Who doesn’t love decorating?  Plus, you have the perfect excusing for toting around those miniature candy bars–in you purse, in your desk, in the car…  It’s October!

This is the best month to write a good paranormal, as far as I’m concerned.  There’s something about writing a bad guy during the month of October. The mist creeps higher off the ground, the clouds hang lower and well…nature crackles. At least where I live. Take the misty picture with the cold looking bench.  Can’t you just see the villian wandering the rough path, thinking about doing evil?

I love a well written bad guy.  But he has to be SO bad you don’t want to root for him. In October, it’s easier to create him. The bad guys in FATED are called Kurjans—pasty faced devils who hate the sun and like to kill. Of course the sexy good guys love the sun and are determined to end the Kurjans. For good.

There’s something about the moon in October.  It’s more mysterious.  Maybe preparing for Halloween like the rest of us.  But if you’re a writer and you want inspiration, look up.  Then imagine who else is looking up.  Probably a bad guy out hunting prey.  Or maybe a goblin or two out looking for treats.  Or possibly a lonely writer trying to create the ultimate bad guy.

November will be here soon.  The mystery of October will disappear until next year while snow blankets the ground.  (At least where I live.)  But for now, the mist is scary and the moon is veiled.  Something howls late at night.  And the bad guys roam.

So, here are a couple of questions:  What makes the ultimate bad guy?  Or, what do you like about October?  I’ll randomly draw the name of one commenter and send a signed coverflat of FATED right away – and then an ARC when I get them.  (I should be receiving ARCs soon, and will send one right out.)  BTW – this will be the first ARC I send out!  🙂

Thanks for reading today!

Rebecca Zanetti has taken her experiences as a lawyer, college professor, Senate Aide, art curator and cocktail waitress, wrapped it all up, and decided to write about vampires and fate.  It all fits together.  Somehow.  Please visit her at: http://www.rebeccazanetti.com/ for more information.

Update:  The blog winner is Lisa Freeman! Congrats, Lisa!

What is it about dark edgy men that we love so?  Is it the fact that we like a little roughness around the edges?  A bit of friction to make things interesting?

I think women like a challenge and what better challenge is there than a bad boy?  A man with dark secrets and a past that may be questionable.

In my latest book, His Darkest Embrace, my hero Jagger is such a man.  He’s a jaguar warrior and carries with him the sins of his past.  He’s dark, edgy and passionate.  It will take one hell of a woman to break through the barriers he’s erected around his heart and soul.

A solitary hunter with no regard for the human world, Jagger Castille is a shifter living on the edge. It will take the woman who calls him enemy to give him a reason to live.

Jagger is a creature of the night—Skye Knightly soars in the sun. Natural adversaries, they have been joined by destiny in a mission entrusted to Skye’s family centuries ago: Nothing less than the salvation of the Earth.

Wounded and bitter, Jagger sought escape in the solitude of the jungle, driven by a need to disappear forever… until a mysterious shifter who calls to his soul and feeds a yearning long forgotten, pulls him from his dark path. A courageous warrior, Skye’s passion is equal to Jagger’s own—but can she trust a man on the edge? A man whose secrets are as devastating as her own?

Each is the other’s sole hope for survival. But a dark and twisted truth is leading them toward the ultimate sacrifice for a love they may never live to claim.

Watch the video trailer here!  His Darkest Embrace or read the first 4 chapters online HERE

Tell me what it is you like about bad boys…and I’ll give one random commentator a copy of my latest book in the jaguar warriors trilogy, His Darkest Embrace.

Update: The winner of the Deadly Heat ARC and the Deadly Lies ARC is…Natasha A! Congrats, Natasha!

I interrupt this monster bash talk to bring you…ARCs.  I know, I know–my Halloween blog party has been about paranormal creatures so far. Ahem. I’m switching things up just a wee bit today. You see, I have two ARCs that I want to give to one commenter.

I have an ARC of DEADLY HEAT:

And I have an ARC of DEADLY LIES:

DEADLY HEAT is the second book in my romantic suspense series, and DEADLY LIES is the third.  Want to win them both?  I’ll pick one commenter to get both books…just tell me the name of the scariest book you’ve ever read–or the scariest movie you’ve ever seen.

See…simple!! Have a fabulous weekend!