Update:  The winner is…Booklover1335. Congrats!

I can’t believe it–our month of demon fun is almost at an end.  Where has the time gone?

But, before the fun’s over, I’ve got another great guest author for you…Annette McCleave is here to talk demons with us.  🙂  Annette’s debut book, DRAWN INTO DARKNESS (Signet Eclipse), will be on bookstore shelves September 1.   This is another book that is on my To-Be-Read list.  A great plot, one with new twists I’ve never seen before.  Hurry up, September 1st!

But, you don’t have to wait until September 1st to read DRAWN INTO DARKNESS. Well, one person won’t have to wait anyway–because Annette will give away an ARC to a commenter. Very, very cool.

Welcome, Annette!

***

Thanks for reading! You can discover more about Drawn into Darkness on my website at www.annettemccleave.com, including the book trailer. I’m also on Facebook and Twitter. Thank you, Cynthia, for including me in this fabulous month of demon madness. I’ve had a blast reading all the posts and I’m looking forward to your release tomorrow!

In the Soul Gatherer series, demons are definitely the bad guys. They come from hell and they’re bent on all sorts of nasty, destructive behavior. Some are mindless and wreak havoc just for fun, while others are smarter and stronger and more interested in corrupting the good. Are they sexy? Well, some are and some aren’t.

The demon in Drawn into Darkness hides behind a guise of blond, curly hair and green eyes. Drusus has old school manners that include bowing to ladies and rarely raising his voice. He’s earnest and charming, at least on the surface. But his demonic purpose is to draw people into a spiral of dark thoughts that eventually leads to suicide—preferably one that involves taking other people along for the final ride. Right now, he’s busy swaying the daughter of my heroine. Yup. Nasty.

My hero, Lachlan, is serving time as a warrior for Death. He gathers the souls of the dead and delivers them to heaven or hell, depending on how they lived their lives. To him, demons are a pain in the ass. They don’t play by the rules and regularly try to steal souls that don’t belong to them. Which usually involves ambushing Soul Gatherers.

Lachlan is undefeated in dispatching demon thieves—until he meets this particular bad, with whom he shares some ancient history. Let’s just say he’s not too pleased with how their first skirmish goes:

***

A dustbowl of swirling red miasma rose up from the damp pavement, encircling the two of them as they dueled. Spinning madly, the crimson tornado lifted higher and higher, until it obliterated every star in the night sky. Then white-hot fireballs began to rain down on Lachlan.

His shield charm took a heavy beating. In a disquietingly short time, the hellish fury pitted the protection spell to rice paper density. But Lachlan had little time to spare for repairs.

He was battling an expert swordsman.

Had he been the same rough soldier Drusus had manipulated all those years ago, his defeat would have been quick and brutal. The demon held nothing back, hitting his blade with powerful, bone-rattling blows, the kind of blows one avoids in practice sessions for fear of irreparably damaging a blade.

Fortunately, though, Lachlan was no longer a backward Scottish knight who only hacked and thrust. With the help of Italian and Spanish masters, at whose feet he had studied for a hundred years after his death, he’d honed his talents to a lethal edge. Talents that now served him well.

He cut and thrust with smooth, almost effortless technique. He broke through the demon’s defenses twice, slicing through the leather jacket and biting deep into flesh. His new sword glowed green with the taste of demon blood.

But victory eluded him.

The sword was not enough. Not only did his opponent’s wounds heal with incredible speed, allowing Drusus to continue fighting without respite, but moments after Lachlan scored his second successful slice, the beleaguered shield charm collapsed, leaving him dreadfully barren of protection. He swiftly called forth another, but it was whisked away before it was fully formed, with no more exertion than a horse swatting a fly.

The swirling red vapor dissolved, carried away in wisps on the night breeze. Drusus paused, staring curiously at Lachlan’s heaving chest and sweat-drenched brow.

“You Gatherers are little better than humans,” he observed, sounding disappointed. “This is hardly the challenging duel I’d hoped it would be.”

Lachlan responded by whipping a restraining spell at him, roping the demon in thick white cords and pinning his arms to his sides.

Drusus broke the binds with a single in-drawn breath. “Very rudimentary stuff, that. There’s a much better spell in the Book of Gnills. Where’s the Linen?”

As the tattered remnants of the binds fell away, the gap in the demon’s leather jacket widened, and Lachlan caught a glimpse of a faint golden glow about his neck—the reliquary. A bitter dose of failure poured into his throat, choking him. Drusus could crush him, right here and right now, if that was his desire. Not without a fight, of course, but slowly, inevitably, courtesy of the indefatigable power the bastard borrowed from Satan. And when he fell, the souls of his family would be cast into hell, never to be recovered.

No. He could not let them down. Not again. He drew deep on his powers and straightened to his full height.

“Fuck you.”

***

My demons have a touch of religion attached to them, being from hell and all. Do you like your paranormal stories to have a familiar motif or mythology behind them? Or do you prefer new worlds created entirely by the author? A blend? Comment and you could win an ARC!

Update:  The winner of RAVENOUS is…Ilona! Congrats, Ilona!

Today’s guest author is Sharon Ashwood, and Sharon has one fabulous excerpt to share with us! After reading that preview, oh, I want to read more!

And guess what? Sharon is going to give away a copy of RAVENOUS to one lucky commenter. Very cool.

Welcome!

One kiss is all it takes to lose your soul.

With the right kind of demon, you don’t want to stop there. Mac learned that one a bit too late.

Conall Macmillan—Mac–is a cop who first appears in RAVENOUS, book one of The Dark Forgotten series. He meets Geneva, a gorgeous blonde villainess who gives him a bad case of demon cooties. As the demon infects him, he becomes his own worst nightmare. He turns against the heroine who tries to save him, attempts to gobble up her soul, and generally carries on in a damnably sexy but disreputable way.

Poor, poor Mac. Such a come-down for a heroic detective. He gets booted off the good guy’s team and everything and all he wanted to do was kiss the girl and save the day. Sometimes authors are just plain mean.

The upside is that Mac gets a book of his own called SCORCHED, on the shelves December 1/09. It’s kind of a fairy tale, complete with a sorcerer, goblins, and a damsel in distress. So what if the hero is an ex-cop demon and the damsel is a bit non-standard. Mac never does learn to avoid those Babes of Doom:

***

Constance was definitely more temptation than he could handle. He bent and pressed his lips to hers, perhaps to taste her puzzling smile, perhaps to kiss it away. Or maybe just to prove his expertise.

She inhaled, a quick, light gasp ended by his capture of her mouth. Her lips were

cool and soft, returning his kiss with surprised hesitation. That perfume he had smelled earlier, something flowery and old-fashioned, wafted up from her silken skin. He felt the tentative brush of her fingers in his hair, light as a moth’s wings. Finally, her hand settled on his cheek, a girlish, uncertain touch so gentle that it tickled.

She was no practiced flirt, and he’d just called her bluff.

At a twinge from his conscience, he drew back. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean …”

She used both hands to pull his head down, bringing his mouth back to hers.

Okay. Mac wasn’t about to argue. Heat surged through him, thick and electric. He drew his hand up her spine, over her ribs, up the side of her breast. Constance flinched, as if he’d touched a bruise, but then murmured in pleasure, rising onto her toes. Her body brushed against his. Oh, yeah. Unexpected, but oh, yeah.

He felt the tip of her tongue meet his, a shy inquiry. Constance tasted as sweet and wild as blackberries still hot from the sun. He could savor her soul, sad and pure, like her smile.

He already ached in his body, but that taste of her spirit made him ache in his heart. He caught the salty tang of loneliness. That’s just not right. Was there no one to look after he? A tiny creature like Constance shouldn’t be out wandering the halls of the Castle by herself. She was so small, he could nearly span her waist with his hands. The fabric of her dress felt rough, too coarse for such tiny perfection. And there was far, far too much clothing for satisfactory
exploration.

Okay, whoa, buddy. In five seconds flat, you’ve gone from sneaking a kiss to planning to get naked with someone you’ve just met. Get a grip.

Heedless, Mac’s fingers slid beneath the flimsy fabric of her scarf, finding soft, cool skin and the gently rounded tops of her breasts. He kept his touch feather light and was rewarded with a delicate shiver. Tracing his thumb over her collarbone, he caressed the satin flesh of her shoulder. Nice.

He deepened the kiss, but kept his beast tightly leashed. Whoever this girl was, she wasn’t ready for his demon side. Hell, most of the time, neither was he.

So sweet.

Yeah, okay, Macmillan, what’s with the hearts and flowers? This isn’t you.

Something was not right.

No shit, Sherlock. Nothing’s been right for over a year. Was it the soul-sucking demon shtick or the eternal prison of darkness that tipped you off? As for the girl …

Mac winced, suddenly going very still. Women. There’s always something.

Yeah, Constance was sweet. The teeth, however, were a surprise.

Gently, he pulled away. Her eyes were closed, her lips flushed and slightly parted to reveal tiny, perfect fangs. A vampire. But an innocent one that sent off none of the usual vampiric vibes. There was only one way that happened.

Constance had never tasted blood.

Pheromones. That answered why she had fascinated him so completely, sent him head over heels in less time than it took your average speed date.

But it raised still another interesting question.

A really good one.

Am I meant to be her first kiss or her first kill?

***

I have to say that demons are the most fun creatures to write ever. For one thing, there are few preconceived ideas about what, exactly, they’re supposed to be like. The sky—or the depths of the underworld—are uncharted limits. I could take a guy who’d lost everything—his job, his friends, his humanity—and find a completely unique way of giving him back his life. So he’s a demon. That doesn’t make him a lost cause. Just a little, um, challenging …

What do you with a guy who’s so hot, he leaves you scorched?

Before I get to the Saturday Snippet installment, I just wanted to make a quick announcement.  🙂  I’ve got a booksigning in Gulf Shores, Alabama, today, at Books-A-Million.  I’ll be signing from 2 until 5 at the Books-A-Million located at 3800 Gulf Shores Parkway in Gulf Shores, AL  36542. If you’re in the area, come on by!

Now, on to the snippet.

Today’s snippet must focus on food.  Now…my dilemma–how to mix food and demons.  A bit of a challenge, but, I found an excerpt that I think will work. The excerpt (below) is from MIDNIGHT’S MASTER and the would-be food? Well, that would be my heroine, Holly. In this scene, she HAS stumbled right into the path of a vampire, and when a vampire gets hungry, there’s only one thing he wants.

***

“I-I’m looking for Niol.”  Coming in alone probably hadn’t been the best idea, but she’d had little choice.  Hell, the house looked like a freaking cover shot for Southern Times—it shouldn’t have been a cover for a blood bath.

“Haven’t seen him,” the vampire said, his gaze sliding over her.  “Shame on him, for leaving you all alone at such a good party…”  Then he smiled.

Uh, oh.  She knew that smile. Vamp or human, she recognized a predatory glance.

“Why don’t we go someplace quiet…” He took her hand, brought it to his lips and kissed her palm.  “To talk.”

Right. What, was “talk” some kind of euphemism for sucking her blood? “I don’t think I’m up for talking with you.” The whole blood thing—not her style.

She was too much of a fainter—and her weak stomach sure wouldn’t let her indulge—that was one of the reasons she’d nearly slammed onto the floor in the ME’s office.

His hold on her wrist tightened and the smile dimmed a bit. “Then let’s just—”

“Take your damn hand off her, Carter.”

Holly didn’t wait for the vampire to free her, she yanked her hand away from him and spun to face Niol.

Alive.

Safe.

She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so happy to see someone.

So she kissed him.

Holly threw her arms around him neck, yanked his head down, and crushed her mouth against his.

His lips met hers with a voracious hunger.  Mouth, tongue.  Taking, driving her wild and just feeding the desire that burned right below the surface.

***

Want to read more excerpts? Check out these participating authors:

Lauren Dane
McKenna Jeffries
Michelle M Pillow
Moira Rogers
Sylvia Day
TJ Michaels
Taige Crenshaw
Vivian Arend
Victoria Janssen
Marissa Scott
Maura Anderson
Shelley Munro
Jody Wallace
Eliza Gayle
Kelly Maher
Lacey Savage
Mark Henry
Shelli Stevens

Update:  Thanks for all the comments!!  Kate’s winners are…Beth and Elaine G! Congrats, ladies!

Our demon time is starting to wind to an end.  Just a few more days of fun…but that’s okay.  We can make the most of our time!

Today’s guest author is Kate Austin. Welcome, Kate! I’m so glad that you could us today. I’m eager to learn more about your books! 🙂

The Demon Next Door

I’ve just finished my first ever demon book and sent it off to my publisher, Cobblestone Press. Now I just have to wait and see if they enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it. If they do, it’s likely to be available in October.

Ali used to be the lord of all the demons and was as mean and nasty as a demon could be, when a little accident changed everything. Now he’s stuck living in a whole different world and doing something no demon has ever done—falling in love with the woman next door.

Ali’s surprised to find that being a human isn’t anywhere near as easy as it looked to his demon self. He has to look after his house and garden, not to mention making sure that Maryalice doesn’t get into trouble—or at least not any more than she’s already in.

Maryalice’s past is returning to haunt her. Her disastrous prom date has returned, after 20 years, to finish what he started. All she can hope for is that Ali, her sweet and shy neighbor, can muster up some nastiness to help her deal with her past.

My biggest challenge with the book was figuring out a way to turn Ali from an evil demon into a relatively good human being. My partner and I had gone away to the Sunshine Coast while I was thinking about this—and yes, it’s almost always sunny, which is odd seeing as it’s not more than 30 miles from Vancouver, where it’s almost always raining—and one afternoon we sat in a lovely waterfront pub and talked about it over a series of drinks. Yep, sometimes alcohol does help in the brainstorming process. He came up with an idea that I loved to solve this problem and Ali and his brother demons were born. This is the view from the pub—you can see why it was so inspiring.

I’ve also been working on a series of short stories for Cobblestone. They’re included in the line called The Pleasure Club and the first one, The Nymph, is available at the beginning of August.

Professor Geoffrey Jones, noted Marlowe scholar, knows everything about pleasuring a nymph but nothing about real women. So he asks The Pleasure Club to find him a nymph so he can test his fantasy skills before he takes them out into the real world. Calliope has wanted Geoffrey for years and when The Pleasure Club comes to the university looking for an expert in nymphs, they end up in her office. She’s going to do whatever it takes to make sure that Professor Geoffrey Jones never forgets their night together.

The second story, The Nun, should be (fingers crossed) available at the beginning of September. No demons in either of these stories, though I think the next Pleasure Club I write will include a demon. In fact, that’s what I’m going to call it. The Demon.

What else am I working on? As always, way too many things, but I’m doing revisions on the first book in The Losers Club series. That book will go out to agents in the next couple of weeks. I’m preparing to act as bookdoctor at the Pacific Northwest Writers Conference. I’m working on four stories to send to Spice Briefs—my first Brief, Dreamer, is available at eharlequin.com. Eleven other writers and I are working on short stories (I’m one of the editors) for our second annual e-anthology (you can still download the first one, The Twelve Days of Christmas, from my website). This year’s is set on New Year’s Eve and so far is tentatively called First Night.

Thanks, Cynthia, I really enjoyed being here and thanks for letting me tell you all about Ali. I’m looking forward to writing about all his brothers—have they got a surprise coming to them!

I’m going to give away a couple of signed copies of one of my books with a little added surprise included. The only book I can’t send you is Summer Fever because even I don’t have a copy! Go to my website – www.kateaustin.ca – and check out the books page. When you blog about this great month of demons, just mention which book you’d like me to send you. The winners will get picked by Cynthia at the end of the day.

Enjoy those demons!

Kate

Kate writes women’s fiction, magic realism, paranormal and erotica. She writes short fiction, poetry and novels. She’s had dozens of stories and poems published over the years, and her eighth book Seeing Is Believing—about a woman who sees death in photographs—was published in October 2007 and her novella Dreamer is online now from Spice Briefs. She has published nine books since 2005 and has had two stories (and possibly one novella) accepted for publication from Cobblestone Press. Kate blames her mother and her two grandmothers for her reading and writing obsession—all of them were avid readers, and they passed the books and the obsession on to her. You can contact her at her website at www.kateaustin.ca.

Update:  The winner of Angie’s contest is…Tina B!  Congrats, Tina!  Thanks for all the comments!

Today’s guest author is the mega (fabulously!) talented author Angie Fox.  Angie exploded onto the paranormal scene with THE ACCIDENTAL DEMON SLAYER, and now she’s got me hooked on her stories. If you’re looking for a hilarious read, well, Angie is your woman! And did I mention that she’s a New York Times best-selling author?  Oh, yes, she is! Welcome, Angie!

Hi, my name is Angie Fox and I write the Accidental Demon Slayer series. It’s about a preschool teacher turned demon slayer who has to run off with her grandmother’s gang of geriatric biker witches. It happens every day, right?

The series has been a blast to write and I think I’ve had some of the most fun coming up with demons. Yes, they are scary. Yes, they are out to take over the world. But they have to have their own personalities and problems too.

In The Accidental Demon Slayer, Vlad the demon has been imprisoned by my heroine’s ancestor, who was one of the greatest demon slayers. But has he spent his time in the fifth level of hell just moping? No-sir-e-bob. Vlad is a bit of a mad scientist. He’s coming up with ways to beat demon slayer technology.

And then there are the sex-on-the-brain succubi in The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers. They’re out to conquer the world, one man at a time. Problem is, no one seems to take sexy creatures seriously. The magical bureaucracy has ignored the succubi problem in Las Vegas. After all, they’ve added a certain “what happens in Vegas…” charm. But demons, left to their own devices, will get out of hand.

You can read more here:
The Accidental Demon Slayer
The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers

Tell us about the most interesting demon you’ve read about/seen in a movie and you’re entered to win a copy of one of my books (winner’s choice) or if you already have the Accidental Demon Slayer series, you can have a Kiss My Asphalt t-shirt like the biker witches wear in the books.