Aycliff's Vow: A Hellfire Club Erotique Excerpt

Now that Aycliff's Vow is out, The Escape: A Hellfire Club Erotique is free! Yes, I said FREE! So if you haven't read any of the Hellfire Club Erotique series, start with The Escape.

There is a weird caveat to that however. I can't make it free on B&N or Amazon. To make it free on Amazon, I'd have to make The Escape exclusive to Amazon for 90 days then have only 5 days for making it free. I want it free for longer than that. So on B&N and Amazon it's 99¢, the cheapest they'd let me.

On All Romance and Smashwords, it's free. All you need for Smashwords is this coupon: ND35N

Aycliff's Vow: A Hellfire Club Erotique

Excerpt from Chapter 1:

He heard rustling behind him and knew Henrietta helped herself to a glass of whisky. He didn’t begrudge her this, but didn’t acknowledge her either.

“There comes a time when you have to move beyond what was,” she said from next to him, “and seek a new future.”

“I have no future without her,” he said flatly.

“You had agreed to Olivia Reynard,” Henrietta reminded him. “Allow me to find another suitable companion for you.”

His hands tightened into fists behind his back and he tried not to remember that moment of weakness and depression when he had accepted his father’s pronouncement. Even then, Callum knew his acceptance, made in a haze of alcohol and misery, had been a mistake. But he’d been lonely and at the end of his rope—every lead he’d tracked down had hit a wall. Elizabeth had truly disappeared.

“That was my father’s doing,” he snapped. “Before his death. I’ve no interest in anyone else save Elizabeth.”

“Elizabeth may no longer be a choice for you,” Henrietta said quietly.

Furious at her words, Callum turned and stalked the few paces separating them. “I’ll find her if it means tearing this country to shreds,” he vowed. “Even if I have to dismantle your club brick by brick.”

Real fear flashed in her eyes and Henrietta took a step back. She quickly regained control of herself and raised her glass in salute to him. Satisfied he’d made his point, Callum stepped back and returned to staring blindly out the window.

“What of Dervin?” he asked.

“I’m told,” Henrietta said, “Caleb Dervin has attempted passage to France. However, I believe that to be an elaborate ruse.” She paused and sipped her drink, but Callum knew better than to suppose that move to be a stalling tactic. “In fact, I think him either in London or nearby. He has far too many business concerns,” she added with a touch of irony, “not to be readily on hand in London.”

Pleased with this turn of events, Callum nodded. If Dervin was indeed nearby, he’d find him far faster than if the bastard was in France.

“Keep what spies you have well paid,” he told her, turning to meet her steely grey gaze. “And make sure I’m informed the moment he surfaces.”

“Dervin isn’t like Garrow,” Henrietta warned and finished her drink. “He won’t be trapped without inflicting what pain he can.”

“The only pain to be inflicted,” Callum promised and saw Henrietta understood him perfectly, “will be Dervin’s when the rope snaps his neck.”

All Romance
Amazon
Barnes and Noble

Memorial Day and Weekly Goals 21

Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because
flowers would be in bloom all over the country.



This is from the Military.com site where it talks of Decoration Day (a term I rarely hear used anymore) now known as Memorial Day. Whether you know someone in the armed services, whether you're in the US or not, remember those who fought and died, and are still fighting for, for the freedoms we enjoy.








My goals for this first (semi-official) start to summer:

• Work on and rename 4th in Hellfire Club Erotique series, a m/m story with all the love and angst I can possibly put in.


• Work a bit on streamlining the blog. Seems to be a tad crowded.


• And for those following my alter-ego's blog tour, here's the link for this week's stop for Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire

Friday Recipe: BBQ

It's that weekend. The commerical (if not traditional) start to the summer holidays (here in the USA at least). It's also a weekend of BBQ. Delicious grilled food of all sorts that melts in your mouth (assuming the person in charge of the grill remembered they were and didn't wander off).

I've previously posted a to-die-for Amazing Whisky Grilled Baby Back Ribs as well as grilled veggies. I thought about the Grilled Bacon Jalapeno Wraps, but decided on chicken. Why? Because it's underrated. Everyone wants to try new, chicken is old, boring, blah.

Granted, I haven't tried this recipe, it's on my do-make list for this upcoming weekend, but look at the ingredients-nothing blah or boring there! I'd like to thank Ray for this recipe--my only drawback is the marinating time, but I suppose overnight is better than starting at 6AM!

Ray's Chicken
Prep Time:15 Min
Cook Time:15 Min
Ready In:8 Hrs 30 Min
Original Recipe Yield 6 servings

Ingredients
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 lime, juiced
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup sherry
2 tablespoons ground mustard
2 teaspoons honey
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons lemon pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Directions
In a large glass bowl, stir together the vinegar, oil, soy sauce, lime juice, lemon juice, sherry, mustard, and honey. Mix in the garlic, brown sugar, lemon pepper, oregano, rosemary, and salt.

Place the chicken in the mixture. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat the grill for high heat.

Lightly oil the grill grate. Discard marinade, and place chicken on the grill. Cook 6 to 8 minutes per side, until juices run clear.

Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 337 Total Fat: 16.2g Cholesterol: 67mg

What's happening today

Today I'm a guest over at Cassandra Carr's talking about my Hellfire Club series.

I hope to have Aycliff's Vow up by next week or the week after, and I hope to finish The (tentatively titled) Moor by the end of the month. May is flying by! So that may be finished in June.

Guest: Lila Munro

My Little Garden of Patience…
Good morning! Thank you, Kristabel, for hosting me today. I’m really looking forward to interacting with your audience, so feel free to leave me plenty of comments, not only so we can chat a bit, but because there will be a giveaway at the end of my tour. J

When Kristabel first told me I could have free reign over here and would in fact like to see something off-writing, I was very excited indeed. It’s not often we writers get to talk about ourselves so candidly and aren’t asked to describe our characters, or writing style, or plotting mechanism, or our inspiration for the story. And while I am going off the writing topic and am going to talk about me and one of my passions, it will eventually tie into my writing on some subtle level. It seems it’s a bit harder to weave off the writing than I had thought it would be and I’ve discovered in trying to do just that, most things I do have some bearing or link to my writing. I think I figured out why, too. Writing defines me. It’s not all encompassing of me, it’s not all I am, but somehow everything I do touches it.

Long ago and far away I was a little girl. And that little girl had a grandmother than had an enormous garden. Every summer she stayed with her grandmother while her mother worked and part of her day’s activities involved digging in the dirt in this garden with her grandmother. She would poke holes for her grandmother to drop seeds in, wiggle her toes in the freshly churned earth, and come inside at the end of the day feeling like she’d accomplished something and quite dirty.

It wasn’t until I grew up I realized how much more that experience meant to me and how it shaped me as a person. It taught me the cycle of life and to respect it, how to nurture something aside from my own wants, and it taught me patience. That time with my grandmother also taught me a little something about stress management…who knew? How at age six could I have conceived of stress let alone the need to manage it? The answer is, I couldn’t, but I do now.

Recently I was on a family vacation, visiting all the relatives back home. I have an eleven year old niece and a five year old nephew there both of whom can be quite impatient. One day when they were particularly antsy I told them, “Go to your little garden and pick some patience?” Both stopped dead in their tracks and stared at their auntie like she’d sprouted a second head. I went on to tell them they each have a little garden inside them where virtues grow and if they would fertilize it, patience would sprout there and whenever they felt the need they could go pick some. Now, I’m quite sure neither of them fully grasped this concept, but I think on some level they did. It was that or I gave them too much to ponder for the raucous stopped and they both found something else to do besides play WWF all over the front room. J

It’s the same for adults. We have a little garden from which we find all the tools we need to survive day to day, but we have to cultivate it and fertilize it in order for it to produce. I myself was having a hard time with my little garden for a while and from years of never decompressing came the dreaded dragon high blood pressure. My doctor informed me if I did not replant my little garden of goodness, the results would be less than pleasant. I took her warning to heed and examined my life and the choices I’d made and one thing became strikingly clear. I stopped digging in the dirt.

The exact moment it happened I can’t be sure, but it had. I remember when I married my first husband, my garden was my refuge. A place I could go to escape our less than happy circumstances. Our marriage didn’t last very long and when I moved into my own place, a garden was the last thing on my list of necessities. Food, shelter, and electricity came first. Then I found myself married again, to a Marine, and my travelling days started. Our first tour of duty as a family was to Okinawa, Japan where we lived on the ninth floor of an apartment building. While I had a balcony, it didn’t hold much and a few flowers was the best I managed there. And when we moved, someone else inherited them. It seems customs doesn’t take kindly to dragging plants aboard planes. J

Over the course of the next three years, I moved five times. I moved from Okinawa to Suffolk, Virginia to Elizabeth City, North Carolina where I lived in two houses, to Missouri and back to North Carolina, this time Camp Lejeune. Trust me, there was no time or space for digging in the dirt. Once we settled in at Lejeune I started to feel comfortable. Too comfortable, truth be told, and thought I might just get to stay in one house a while.

Okay, I was lying to myself. I had a flower bed full of color and a few veggies in pots on my back porch when remodeling began in my housing area and I was forced to move yet again to another base house down the street. I tended my flower beds there, thinking maybe we might get to stay a while. I had a eucalyptus tree and hydrangeas and veggies and lilies…and orders came…again. This time we moved north a couple of hours. Could this be the tour where we stayed a while? I was skeptical at best and only put out a few begonias and a hummingbird feeder. Good thing, because 24 months later I was back at Lejeune. That was almost three years ago.

For the first two years I refused to plant anything. I was tired and disgruntled. After a while without tending my garden, my stress level increased and while I’m sure my eating and exercise habits have more to do with my blood pressure issues than not having a flower one in the yard, I began to put two and two together.

Digging in that dirt was a release valve for me. In tending those gardens I had nurtured my internal garden. After a year of stress management therapy and medications and tests, I decided this year I would resurrect my green thumb. My therapist says you can judge a person’s peace of mind by the condition of their greenery. I can happily say, my plants are alive and healthy, blossoming and growing…they seem happy. So am I. And when the going gets rough in the writing world, you can best believe you can find me in my raised garden bed digging in the dirt…

Thanks again for having me over, today!
~~Lila Munro

Assumed Master
by Lila Munro

BLURB:

We may be born to the lifestyle,

Julie Stevens and Dante Larson always knew their tastes were a bit more eccentric than those of the average person, but acknowledgement of their chosen paths came at different times. While their lives have run parallel for the last twenty years, destiny always came knocking at the wrong time. Julie was a closeted edge player and before Dante could pull her free of her fears, Mason came along and dragged her kicking and screaming from her self-inflicted darkness, leaving Dante wanting. Although Dante’s been in love with Julie since the day he first laid eyes on her, he's happily married to Blake. But the tides are turning.

But Lady Fate dictates how it should be lived…

Still mourning the death of the only Master she’s ever known, Julie finds herself forced to live with the one man she’s been terrified of for years, Dante. While she has to admit something between them feels right, just as many things feel very, very wrong, starting with the fact he’s married to her gay best friend. Before she even has time to sort out her current predicament, another man catches Julie's attention. But after losing her mother, her sister, and her husband, can Julie come to grips with the fact that Keegan McKettrick jumps out of perfectly good helicopters for a living, rescue diving for the Coast Guard? And where exactly does that leave Dante, who knows for sure he needs a woman to complete his unconventional marriage? Quite frankly, he's tired of waiting.

Excerpt:

“What is it?” Julie whispered, her heart pounding.

Drake cleared his throat again, took a staggered breath, and began to read.

“My dearest, angel. I’ve asked Drake to read this to you as I knew it would be a very hard thing for anyone to do. Dante and Blake are with you at my request as these instructions involve them as well. I’m so sorry I left you alone. You know I’d never do anything to hurt you, but karma and fate had a different plan and I was powerless to stop it. But I’m not powerless to play a part in your future. When you gave yourself to me, you willingly gave me the power to make your decisions for you, although I only did so in cases where what was best for you was against what you thought was right. It never happened often as I never wanted you to lose yourself or your voice. You were always so pleasing to me in that way. I’ll never forget your confusion as to why some subs would purposely displease their Master. It made me so proud to know I had a rare gem in you, a sub that would give so freely and willingly of herself. Angel, what I’m about to do will go against all your instincts, but make no mistake. This is one of the rare times I’m setting my foot down and doing what I know is best for you regardless what you might think.”

Drake stopped and wiped the sweat off his brow, glancing at the three of them.

About the Author:

Lila Munro currently resides on the coast of North Carolina with her husband and their two four-legged kids. She’s a military wife with an empty nest and takes much of her inspiration for her heroes from the marines she’s lived around for the past fifteen years. Coining the term realmantica, she strives to produce quality romance in a realistic setting.

Her genre of choice is contemporary romance that spans everything from the sensual to BDSM and ménage. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading everything she can get her hands on, trips to the museum and aquarium, taking field research trips, and soaking up the sun on the nearby beaches. Her works include The Executive Officer’s Wife, Bound By Trust, Destiny’s Fire, Salvation, Three for Keeps, the Force Recon series, the Slower Lower series, and the Identity series.

She’s a member in good standing of RWA and Passionate Ink. Currently she’s working on sequels to several series to be released throughout 2012. And has a brand new line scheduled for winter 2012-13.

Ms. Munro loves to hear from her readers and can be contacted via her website http://realmanticmoments.blogspot.com/ or through Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Lila_Munro You can also contact her via email at lilasromance@gmail.com

Friday Recipe: Lemon Cupcake with Blackberry Buttercream

Totally stole the picture from the All Recipes site too because the cupcakes look so delicious I needed to share! And boy did they taste delicious, too! Now that fruit season is upon us, most of my recipes will include fresh fruits and veggies. I'll show you pictures of my backyard garden when there are some worth taking.

(Left picture is theirs, right picture is my last cupcake before it disappeared. Didn't grab the camera in time to take pretty pictures of all the cup cakes!)

Prep Time:30 Min
Cook Time:20 Min
Ready In:1 Hr 20 Min

Ingredients for cupcake:
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter (I use unsalted but it really doesn't matter)
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I use unbleached)
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup low-fat milk
1 lemon, juice and zest

Ingredients for icing:

1 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup seedless blackberry jam (I didn't have jam, so I used fresh blackberries in stead. Man, they were delicious!)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.

Cream sugar and 1/2 cup butter in the bowl of a stand mixer until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, and mix 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract into mixture with the second egg.

Beat in flour and baking powder until thoroughly combined; beat in milk, lemon juice, and lemon zest to make a smooth batter.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake in the preheated oven until cupcake edges are slightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool cupcakes completely.

Beat 1 cup butter with 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and salt until smooth and creamy. Beat in confectioners' sugar, 1 cup at a time, to make a creamy frosting. Beat in blackberry jam. Spread frosting on cooled cupcakes.

Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 272 Total Fat: 12.1g Cholesterol: 48mg

Steve Geoffreys new release

Prepare yourself for an erotic roller-coaster of a read from the very first chapter in the novel Cornish Cream by Steve Geoffreys. In the story a lottery winning couple, Jeff and Sarah Stevenson rent a cottage in Cornwall, England for their first anniversary and to act out their own top ten sex fantasies on each other. But, when they arrive back home in London after their debauched week away a nasty surprise drops through their letterbox. The owner of the cottage, Lord Smedley has sent them a rather large bill that will rock their perfect world if they don't pay up. It opens a can of worms and during the drama that ensues, surprises and revelations surface that bring on a final twist.

Available from:
Amazon UK
Amazon
All Romance

Excerpt:
Jeff’s thumbs teased at the cork of the bottle of Tattinger Champagne. Sarah sat at the dining table with her fingers in her ears. The cork popped and narrowly missed the crystal chandelier, bounced off the high ceiling of their Georgian townhouse, and landed near to one of their original Tiffany table lamps. Sarah squealed in delight as the millions of bubbles ejaculated over the bottle’s neck and down Jeff’s hands.

‘Happy anniversary darling.’ Grinned Jeff as he filled two Champagne flutes and placed the bottle back into the solid silver ice bucket.

‘Yes, our first anniversary. What present have you got for me? You do know that it has got to be paper for a first anniversary present don’t you?’ Sarah asked as Jeff handed her the glass.

‘It is paper yes, but you will need to down that glass and remain sitting down when I give it to you.’ Jeff smirked one of his knowing smiles. Sarah frowned her usual way that she did when he said something to confuse, bewilder, or intrigue her.

‘Oh my god, it’s not a divorce petition for me to sign is it? Just because you won all that money, you want to trade me in for a much younger model don’t you?’ She asked before gulping down half the glass. Jeff laughed loudly.

‘Don’t be ridiculous. I would not trade you in for all the money in the world. You’re one in a million.’

‘One in eight million eight hundred thousand four hundred and sixty nine pounds don’t you mean?’ Sarah added.

‘Not forgetting the fifty seven pence let alone the interest that is accruing on a daily basis!’ Jeff chipped in. Sarah emptied her glass and Jeff went to top it up again.

‘Trying to get me drunk and take advantage of me are you?’ Jeff just winked and poured away.

‘Anyway, I have just emptied my glass so where is my present?’ She asked with a hiccup.

Jeff opened a drawer on the dining table where the solid silver cutlery was kept and handed a gift wrapped parcel to Sarah. She took it and felt it in a mock curiosity.

‘Mmmh let me guess, is it a book. Is it that new romance novel I mentioned a couple of weeks ago?’

‘Why don’t you open it and find out.’ Jeff told her as he topped her glass up then his own. Sarah opened it to reveal an expensive leather bound journal.

‘The first page is, well,… compelling reading.’ Jeff nodded reassuringly before taking a copious sip of Champagne. Sarah opened the cover and her eyes widened, closely followed by her jaw dropping.

‘Jeff’s top ten fantasies that he would like to do with Sarah!’ She blurted out on reading the first line at the top of the page. Jeff grinned widely as he watched her slowly read down the list and blush.

‘Phew, hot stuff! Not sure about numbers five seven and nine though. Think that I would have to be feeling very naughty to do those, or very drunk. Or maybe both very drunk and very naughty. There is one thing about your list that baffles me somewhat though?’ Sarah shrugged.

‘Oh really, so what is that then?’ Jeff enquired, rubbing his jaw line.

‘I am curious as to why you have not listed a threesome with me and another woman on your fantasy list?’ Pondered Sarah, eyes narrowing in an attempt to psyche Jeff out.

‘That would be because I know how much you hate the thought of having sex with another woman as much as you hate the thought of me having sex with another man. And besides, the threesome thing may well be most men’s top fantasy, but most men cannot even satisfy one woman, so what the hell kind of chance of fulfillment is he going to have with two women?’ Jeff stated in the manner of a philosopher.

Sarah’s face cheeks were almost crimson with a mixture of the alcohol and the arousal that the fantasy list had conjured up in her mind. But it was burning brightest from the secrets that she was currently keeping from him.

‘Since you so put it that way, yes. I can see why you left that one off your list.’ Sarah fanned her face with her hands in the manner of a TV reality star that assumed they were some sort of A-list celebrity diva.

‘So, where is your present for me then? Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten our anniversary?’
‘It’s hidden upstairs actually, I’ve not had time to wrap it yet.’ Sarah told him as she stood up from the table.

‘Sounds intriguing. Are you going to go and get it for me now then? Jeff enquired with raised eyebrows.

‘Yes, wait there. Top your glass up.’ Sarah told him as she sauntered off to the stairs, her hips swaying in an overtly seductive way. Jeff watched her walk away knowing that Sarah knew he would be staring at her sexy bum.

‘Stop staring at my bum and don’t get any ideas about following me upstairs, you will spoil the surprise.’ Sarah said half over her shoulder.

‘I can’t wait for our week away in that cottage in Cornwall.’ Jeff enthused.

‘So that you can do your naughty fantasy list?’ Sarah asked as she turned to go upstairs.

‘The views are breathtaking down there, but so is your bum when you walk.’ Remarked Jeff.
‘Flattery might get you everywhere. I’ll call you up when your present is wrapped and ready.’ Sarah sexily winked as she ascended the stairs.

Jeff had a feeling that she was going to treat him to one of the fantasies off his list. Then doubt set in at the possibility of that unless she was a mind reader or had found the journal that Jeff had stashed in the wine cellar days earlier.

Wednesday Regency: Brighton Pavilion

Also called the Royal Pavilion, the Prince Regent had the same man who designed Carlton House renovate (enlarge) the structure. What did the existing building look like? Who knows, Brighton was a crumbling fishing town only then starting to rebuild its image as a seaside retreat for the rich and famous. The area wasn't important until George took an interest in it (to take in the waters) and spent a fortune turning it into a gorgeous architectural structure.

Don't believe me? Here's the wiki excerpt with comments in bold.

In 1787 the designer of Carlton House, Henry Holland, was employed to enlarge the existing building, which became one wing (only the one) of the Marine Pavilion, flanking a central rotunda, which contained only three main rooms, a breakfast room, dining room and library, (I like how the paragraph reads contained only 3 main rooms, a breakfast room, dining room, & library. I mean come on! He has a library what more is there?) fitted out in Holland's French-influenced neoclassical style, with decorative paintings by Biagio Rebecca. In 1801-02 the Pavilion was enlarged with a new dining room and conservatory, to designs of Peter Frederick Robinson, in Holland's office. The Prince also purchased land surrounding the property, on which a grand riding school and stables were built in an Indian
style in 1803-08, to designs by William Porden that dwarfed the Marine Pavilion,
in providing stabling for sixty horses.

To be fair, the place is bloody gorgeous! And admission isn't so expensive that spending a few hours there to enjoy the excellent design and beautiful gardens seems worth it. If I ever get to England, this is on my list of places to see.

First 2 pictures are from the wiki article: Royal Pavilion at night and "The richly decorated Banqueting Room at the Royal Pavilion, from John Nash's Views of the Royal Pavilion (1826)"; the 3rd picture is from : Brighton Royal Pavilion and Museums Home

Weekly Goal 20

I'm writing the fourth in my Hellfire Club Erotique series now, a m/m story that centers on a Turkish merchant and an Englishman in way over his head with the bad guys who want to rule the world...or at least the English portion of it.

Still working on a title for that, The Moor is derogatory but nothing I think of seems to fit. The Foreigner? Cheesy. The Lover? Ugh. Any suggestions?

• Finish untitled m/m Hellfire story


• Title the story!


• Spread the word about my alter-ego K. Reed and her post-apocalyptic Regency romance Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire.

Friday Recipe: Dessert Crepes

I looked through the Mother's Day recipe suggestions on All Recipes, given that it's Mother's Day in America on Sunday, and really, really wanted to make the Overnight Blueberry French Toast but I don't really like French Toast (too soggy) and the overnight idea turned me off. Unless it's marinating meat (meat, dish, dump marinate in, BBQ), anything that needs 10 hours (or overnight) to make isn't something I'm going to do. But if you decide to make it, please let me know how it turned out!

Crepes on the other hand, I'm all over! Especially given the ready 20 minutes incentive! (Okay, I admit...it took me about 40. I got distracted!)

Prep Time:10 Min
Cook Time:10 Min
Ready In:20 Min

Ingredients
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/3 cups milk (I use organic because that's what I have in the house)
2 tablespoons butter, melted (I use unsalted)
1 cup all-purpose flour (I use unbleached)
2 tablespoons white sugar (I use unbleached/raw)
1/2 teaspoon salt (I skip this, there's enough salt in my regular diet to compensate and it didn't affect taste)

Directions
In large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, melted butter, flour sugar and salt until smooth.
Heat a medium-sized skillet or crepe pan over medium heat. Grease pan with a small amount of butter or oil applied with a brush or paper towel. Using a serving spoon or small ladle, spoon about 3 tablespoons crepe batter into hot pan, tilting the pan so that bottom surface is evenly coated. Cook over medium heat, 1 to 2 minutes on a side, or until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 164 Total Fat: 7.7g Cholesterol: 125mg

Blogging and making it thru the week

I don't know why I want the weeks to end...the sooner they end, the sooner the next one begins, thereby creating a vicious cycle of fast weeks, faster months, and flying by years. I mean really, May already? It's insane! But boy was this a long week.

However, on a brighter note, with the release of my mainstream (mainstream-ish) Regency release yesterday, I am excited to say that next week will begin a month long blog tour for Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire.

Running from May 14-June 8, I'm at 20 stops with randomly drawn prize winners. What can you win? What else would you win during a post-apocalyptic Regency book tour? A post-apocalyptic survival basket of course! Complete with tea, a shawl for those chilly nights, a bracelet, and other things one might need for the aftermath of a plague-hit society.

Chapter One Excerpt Buy links: All Romance Amazon Barnes and Noble Print

Here's a list of all the stops:

May 14: Christine Young

May 15: Live To Read ~ Krystal

May 16: Books Reviewed by Bunny

May 17: Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer

May 18: Ramblings From This Chick

May 21: Queen of all She Reads

May 22: Immortality and Beyond

May 23: Writers and Authors

May 24: Books Are Magic

May 25: Megan Johns Invites

May 28: Novel Reflections

May 29: Reading Reality

May 30: A Case of Reading Insomnia

May 31: Lisa Haselton's Reviews and Interviews

June 1: The Life (and lies) of an inanimate flying object

June 4: Reader Girls

June 5: Words of Wisdom from The Scarf Princess

June 6: Oodles of Books

June 7: Dawn's Reading Nook

June 8: Adventure Into Romance

Wednesday Regency: Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire

I've posted about this before, my mainstream alter-ego, K. Reed. Yesterday, I'm thrilled to say, happened to be the release of my (her) first novel! Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire is the first in a series of post-apocalyptic romances based in the Regency Era.

I know, a post-apocalyptic Regency? But that's exactly why I chose to write about it! Because it hasn't been done and there's an inherent edge to a post-apocalyptic world that I thought worked well in a Regency Romance.

The once glittering ballrooms of Regency England now lay desolate. A plague has ravaged the countryside. The government has fallen. What vestiges of order remained have been consumed by the endless funeral pyres.

Grayson, once the Baron of Harwich, sought only to protect his people. Rescuing a half-dead woman was not among his plans. But something about her pulled at him. Perhaps it was her beauty, still evident beneath the pallor of loss. Perhaps it was the recently fired rifle at her side. Or maybe he simply tired of death. All he knew was that the plague had taken too much already. He couldn’t let it take her as well.

Lady Juliette Adair had been ready to die with her brother. She didn't expect to be shown mercy in a world that had no room for mercy. When Grayson saved her she questioned his motives but soon found herself intrigued by him, drawn to him.

Societal rules were a thing of the past, dead along with the ton. Juliette had no manner by which to measure her growing closeness to Grayson any longer. But when she discovers he may not be the man she thought she knew more is at stake than just her heart. The secrets she carries could make a king or destroy one.

Excerpt
Buy links:
All Romance
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Print

Starting next week I'll be blog touring for Dark Inheritance. Make sure you stop by for awesome prizes!

Weekly Goal 19

This week I plan a subtle entrance into Pintrest, s far behind the fact of the fad, I'm not sure it's worth mentioning. But there, I mentioned it anyway.

This week I also plan to add to my blog, spruce up the pages, tweak the sidebars, and see how it all turns out.

And finally, this week my alter-ego has a new release out, Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire--post-apocalyptic Regency romance. Lots to do over on that end! But read chapter one here.

Friday Recipe:Chocolate Mousse

Made this for a (chohcolate) cake: Cake, mousse, cake, with a chocolate ganache. Yes. It was chocolate overload but it was delicious!

Prep Time:20 Min
Ready In:20 Min

Ingredients
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon water
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon sugar
Whipped cream

Directions
In a small heavy saucepan, melt chocolate chips with water over low heat; stir until smooth. Stir a small amount of hot chocolate mixture into egg yolk; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla.

Cool, stirring several times.

In a mixing bowl, beat whipping cream until it begins to thicken. Add sugar; beat until soft peaks form. Fold in cooled chocolate mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Garnish with whipped cream if desired.

Josephine Myles's Handle with Care

Handle with Care by Josephine Myles

Blurb:
The best things in life aren’t free…they’re freely given.

Ben Lethbridge doesn’t have many vices left. After raising his little sister to adulthood, he wasted no time making up for the youth he lost to responsible parenting. Two years of partying it up—and ignoring his diabetes—has left him tethered to a home dialysis regimen.

He can do his job from his flat, fortunately, but most of his favourite things are forbidden. Except for DVD porn…and fantasizing over Ollie, the gorgeous, purple-haired skateboarder who delivers it.

Their banter is the highlight of Ben’s lonely day, but his illness-ravaged body is the cruel reality that prevents him from believing they’ll do anything more than flirt. Not to mention the age gap. Still, Ben figures there’s no harm in sprucing himself up a bit.

Then one day, a package accidentally splits open, revealing Ben’s dirty little secret…and an unexpected connection that leaves him wondering if he’s been reading Ollie wrong all this time. There’s only one way to find out: risk showing Ollie every last scar. And hope “far from perfect” is good enough for a chance at love.

Warning: Contains superhero porn comics and a cute, accident-prone delivery guy with colour-changing hair. Readers may experience coffee cravings, an unexpected liking for bad mullets, and the urge to wrap Ollie up and take him home.

Buy links:
Kindle US Kindle UK Samhain

Excerpt:
“Hey there,” Ollie said when I opened the door, that million-watt grin lighting up his face again.

“Like the hair. Got another one of these for you.”

“Thanks.” I tried to kick-start my mouth into saying something interesting, but it refused to cooperate and decided it wanted to dry out instead. I suppose it was slightly less embarrassing than drooling over him. In an effort not to stare, I forced my gaze away and fixed it on the front garden next door. There was only a low, brick wall separating my spartan, gravel driveway with Mrs. Felpersham’s garden, but it was like another world over there. She’d crammed it full of blowsy pink flowers, a wooden wishing well and more garden gnomes than you could shake a stick at. Those gnomes always gave me the heebie-jeebies, but at least there were plenty to keep my eyes occupied at times like this.

“Oh, sweet! I’ve got that exact same T-shirt! ’Course, mine’s a bit smaller.” Ollie started bouncing up and down on his heels, and I wanted to lick him all over, he looked so appealing. At that thought, despite being full of dialysate, I felt my cock starting to stir. It’s a good thing I was in the XXX-Large version of the Wolverine shirt. Still, I leant forward a little just to make sure nothing showed.

My mind got stuck on the idea of how much I wanted to see him in that T-shirt and then out of it. I started to worry that I was going to blurt it out by accident, so I kept my mouth firmly shut. I must have looked like a right stuck-up twat. Didn’t seem to bother Ollie, though.

“I should bring some of those comics round for you to read. It would be good to have someone to chat about them with. Most of my other friends think I’m nuts, you know?”

What? Other friends? Did that mean he considered me a friend? We’d only known each other for a few weeks. I realised I needed to speak, and fast, if I wasn’t to make a terrible impression and get struck off that friends list.

“Yeah, uh, great. I mean, I’d like that, if you don’t mind lending your stuff to a stranger.” Great. Now I’d called myself a stranger when he was trying to be friendly.

“Nah, it’s cool. I know where you live, after all.” He gave me another huge grin that made his cheeks dimple. It really wasn’t fair. No one should be allowed to be that cute.

About the Author:
English through and through, Josephine Myles is addicted to tea and busy cultivating a reputation for eccentricity. She writes gay erotica and romance, but finds the erotica keeps cuddling up to the romance, and the romance keeps corrupting the erotica. Jo blames her rebellious muse but he never listens to her anyway, no matter how much she threatens him with a big stick. She’s beginning to suspect he enjoys it.

Josephine MylesJo’s website: http://josephinemyles.com/
Email: josephine_myles@yahoo.co.uk
Blog: http://josephinemyles.com/blog/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/josephine.myles
Twitter: @JosephineMyles