New release: Perfect Misfits, plus Kindle Freebie

Today we are being well and truly spoilt! Romance author, Lawna Mackie, is sharing with us a fabulous excerpt from her new release, Perfect Misfits. Also, scroll down for the link to her novel, Quinn's Christmas Wish, which is free on Amazon. Aren't we a lucky bunch?

Ryder, commander of the Levarian legion of gargoyles, has a problem. He keeps dreaming on duty…and falling…neither of which gargoyles ever do. Every dream is of the same woman, and every time, it brings on red-hot, searing pain in the crescent-shaped scar on his palm. Driven to find the woman and the reason for his bizarre dreams, he lets himself fall…
…right through to a place he never knew existed…to the woman of his dreams.

Labeled a misfit, Tempest was snatched away as a child and imprisoned in the hidden realm of Misfit Mountain. Locked up by Fedor, the ruler of the kingdom, who intends to take her as his bride, she has no choice but to brave the dangerous snow and ice of the Mountain to escape. Despairing, faced with the impossible choices of Fedor or death, love is the last thing on her mind, until Ryder snatches her from the air and into a whole new realm of feeling.


Can Ryder find the key to freeing her and save them both?

PERFECT MISFITS ~ Excerpt

“Please,” Tempest begged shivering beneath the fresh blanket of snow. “I’d rather die.”

She’d managed to escape…again, wishing this would be the last time. How she prayed the swirling snow devils would suck her up and away from this horrid hellhole of a world. Death would be welcome, if it kept her from going back to that place…back to him.

She’d been on the run for hours, wearing nothing more than a thin black cloak and an old pair of large, well-worn leather shoes she’d managed to steal from the guard. The knee-deep snow made her efforts to get away seem impossible. Countless times, she fell, only to push herself back up to her feet and plunge forward. As futile as the situation appeared, Tempest refused to give up. No longer could she feel her feet and hands; they’d gone numb long ago.

If only I could rest for a few minutes.

No! Her mind screamed in retaliation. If you stop, they will find you.

Her breath came in gulps; her lungs were on fire demanding more oxygen and a reprieve from the bitter cold air. The blinding snow went on forever. She had no idea which direction she headed, but hoped it led far away from her captors.

She lifted her arm, trying to shield her snow-bitten eyes from the brutal onslaught of the blizzard, but couldn’t see anything except for the deceiving flat white drifts. Her pace slowed, one step at a time; she was disoriented, tired, and hungry.

With her next step, her stomach fell out from underneath her. She screamed in terror as she fell through the air to an unknown fate. In a poof, she landed, buried in a soft tomb of snow.

The wind had been knocked from her lungs. She opened her mouth, gasping like a fish out of water. Finally, with a gulp, her airways filled with snow-mixed air. Coughing, she sputtered, unable to move. She uttered another weak plea for help, knowing know one would hear her. In the silence, her eyelids fluttered closed, and she drifted into the welcoming arms of darkness.

***

Vigorous scratching, dull and muffled, aroused Tempest from her slumber.

Am I dreaming? Oh gods, are the Vemlers trying to get in?

Relentless and deadly, the filthy, vile creatures could claw their way through anything in search of a meal. She fought them off on a regular basis. Alone in her cell, she was a sitting duck, with only a stick as her means of protection.

She tried to lift her head, but ended up with another mouthful of snow. As she gulped for air, the memory of her escape came flooding back.

No, this wasn’t supposed to happen.

It was worse than a dream. They must have found her, and she remained buried under the snow with no way to flee.

The scratching continued in the snow above, bringing her demise closer by the second. She refused to go down without a fight, and she’d end her life before Fedor ever laid his grotesque hands on her again. In all probability, his touch would kill her anyway.

She held her breath, trying to cease her shivers, knowing she must lie perfectly still and wait…wait for the exact moment before they broke through the small barrier of snow that encased her frigid body—a body that could not and would not freeze to death.

She braced her hands down at her sides, readying to push straight up.

Please let the snow beneath me hold my weight.

Her thigh muscles ached with tension as she contemplated the thought of moving.

Count to three.

They’d expect her to be in a slumber.

One…

Her feet and calves tightened ready for action.

Two…

Her fists clenched into tight balls, prepared to strike. Her stomach rolled, threatening to hurl, but she knew it was empty, and had been for some time.

This is it. Three!

Tempest unleashed whatever strength she had left in her tired, battered body, bursting through the thin barrier of snow.

Two paws hit her square in the chest, and a pair of large glowing red eyes met her stare. Startled and off balance, Tempest stumbled backward. Her feet slid out from underneath her.

Rogue had found her, not the Vemlers or Fedor. She slid downward on her stomach, her arms desperately grasping at anything to stop her fall.

“Rogue!”

The beast pounced through the snow down the hill after her, trying to grasp a piece of her with his large fangs.

It was too late; her body flew through the air. She reached out and snagged a tree branch, to swing in the forsaken snowstorm at the mercy of a small twig protruding from a tiny ledge. Looking down into a vast crevasse with no bottom in sight, she thought maybe she’d get what she wished for, after all.

“No, I take it back, I don’t want to die. Creators, help me, please. Why do you hate me so?” Tempest squeaked, looking up into the sky, which continued to dump endless amounts of snow. Her hands, next to frozen, would not support her weight for long.

Above, Rogue perched on the small ledge preparing to jump after her. “Rogue, no! Stay!” she desperately commanded. A single tear rolled down her cheek, symbolizing her desperation and fear. The crazy beast would die with her; she knew that. If she fell, he would jump after her.

Rogue howled a mournful cry. His large grey-and-tan-spotted body crouched low. Tempest knew he was angry; his pointed ears lay flat against his large square head. She felt his frustration through his piercing red eyes. She swallowed a shriek as her hands slipped slightly.

Rogue moved even closer to the edge, causing chunks of snow to fall in her direction. “Rogue, listen to me. Don’t do this. You don’t need to end your life because of me.” Even as those words tumbled out of her mouth, Tempest knew the poor beast had no life worth living on the miserable mountain. They were both misfits not suitable to live with the regular folk on Levare. And there was no way to escape this miserable rock covered with ice and snow.

Tempest closed her eyes, wishing she had the power or ability to remove them from this horrid situation. It was impossible, of course, because she had no gifts—only misfortune. Poor Rogue also shared in the bad luck. He was a Gargdog, half gargoyle and half dog. His problem was his wings. A spell gone wrong, they were barely large enough for a pixie to fly with—useless wings on a grand creature. That’s what misfits were—rejects from Levare, banished from the world as though they never existed.

Her body trembled with the last bit of strength oozing from her limbs.

“Rogue goes with Tempest! I will not stay here without you,” the Gargdog growled in the form of words. 

She smiled up at him, proud of his speech. “I see you’ve been practicing since they separated us.” It was her attempt to lighten the mood.

“I’m sorry, Rogue,” Tempest squeaked as she slipped another half-finger length.

“Rogue loves Tempest. Not want Tempest to die without him.” Rogue hung his head. She felt his sadness.

“Rogue, I don’t have much strength left,” Tempest said weakly. “I’m not afraid of death. You know I could never be Fedor’s bride. His touch would kill me, anyway. This way is better. I won’t feel a thing,” she lied, trying to sound brave.

“We will go together. Neither will I live under his control any longer.”

Her arms now shook uncontrollably. Her hands had no feeling, but her brain forced the signal to her fingers to grasp as tightly as she could. She closed her eyes and said a quick, silent prayer for all the other misfits who suffered like her and Rogue.

We’ve endured so much pain in our lives. Please, Creators, let us have a painless death. With her silent prayers complete, Tempest opened her eyes, looked up, and whispered, “I love you, Rogue,” and let go.

Perfect misfits is available on Amazon now

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A word or two from the lovely Lawna!

I have always believed in fairy tales and when I got tired of the old ones I made up my own. Each story would have a hero and heroine, but they were anything but typical.

I devoured my first romance novel when I was a teenager. I couldn’t read them fast enough. Years later I stumbled across my first paranormal romance…an injustice would be done if I tried to explain my joy when I found this genre of romance. My passion was finally in print.

Now, with the help of my bizarre dreams and crazy imagination, I have started to write and intend to share my stories with you. I hope you’ll love them as much as I do.

I am truly blessed. My husband and my animals are my inspiration. We live on a small acreage in Didsbury, Alberta, with our most beloved companions, Dozer, Daisy, Mandarin and Peppers.

Happy reading everyone, I would love to hear from you. www.lawnamackie.ca

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And if that excerpt wasn't enough, Lawna is truly spoiling us as her novel, Quinn's Christmas Wish, is available for free on Amazon today!

Kindle Freebie! The Angel's Assassin

Hi all! Just a quick post to let you know that The Angel's Assassin is free on Amazon for the next two days - so grab a copy while you can. I'm pleased to say that it has been very well received so far so if you've enjoyed my previous books, I'm sure you'll like this one. I must admit I loved writing it! Enjoy!

Get your free copy here.

Guest Post: The Tale of Findo Gask

Thanks to Huw Thomas for my featured guest post today. Huw talks about the joys of writing about thieves in his book, The Tale of Findo Gask, which is free on Amazon until the 21st October.
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There are many reasons to be a writer but one of the most basic, for me at least, is the sheer fun involved.

Creation is pleasure. Our chance to play god in a world of our own making and choosing.

If you’re a fantasy writer then it can literally be a whole world to invent - geography, culture, history, science etc. But even if you set your stories in the here and now then there’s still a lot of choices to make… and fun to have.

For my novel The Tale Of Findo Gask all I started out with was a name - taken from a road sign in southern Scotland.

I knew that Findo Gask was going to be an interesting character from the outset. The name sounded slightly Dickensian and definitely not conventional. He was clearly an outsider.

I quickly realised that Findo was a thief and that was where the fun began. I started to hatch all kinds of schemes and escapades that a young thief might get involved in - from raiding the local corner shop to stealing a tiara off an opera diva’s head!

It’s probably true that there’s a little bit of me in most of my main characters and that’s certainly the case with Findo. In many ways he’s an innocent, a bit naïve, a loner but also with a rebellious streak. Some might say bloody-minded.

As my ideas for the book began to coalesce, I thought more about why Findo was an outsider and - more importantly - whether his actions as a thief might be defensible.

The theme that developed started from a single question: do the majority of people obey the law because of their morals or because they’re scared of getting caught?

From that, I wondered whether we should really expect others to conform to our rules if they don’t have a stake in society.

You see: Findo is born into poverty. His mother is a drug addict; he doesn’t go to school and has about the most unpromising upbringing I could imagine. He’s never had any of the benefits most of us take for granted.

And so, in his eyes - those of a young boy growing up without no conventional moral framework - stealing is just a case of taking what he needs from a world that isn’t giving anything out for free.

But that’s the underlying theme of the book. Findo doesn’t stop to analyse what he’s doing: he’s too busy keeping his head down and trying to avoid the police, security guards and various rival criminal gangs.

As a young boy I had a tendency to get into places where I wasn’t supposed to be. Findo gave me an excuse to expand on some of those childhood escapades and take them to a whole different level.

The Tale Of Findo Gask follows his life from birth to late teens. A lot of thieving goes on but also a bit of heroism, a splash of romance - and a dash of social comment. It was a joy to write and I think Findo is still probably the character I’ve most enjoyed releasing onto the page. (I didn’t invent him - he does exist somewhere.)

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For anyone’s interested in reading about Findo’s adventures, the Kindle version is free on Amazon until Sunday 21st October.

Findo Gask is a thief: born in a ditch, raised in a slum and educated by the underworld.
As an unregistered child with no official identity, Findo learns early on how to keep his head down, slip in and out of places unobserved - and run from trouble: perfect talents for a thief.

To begin with, Findo steals to survive but - as he gets older and his exploits more audacious - theft becomes a form of self-expression, a way of asserting his identity and shouting out his name to a world that doesn’t seem to care.

‘The Tale Of Findo Gask’ is a story about a boy who has no identity but a burning desire to prove himself; someone who does what others would love to do if they had no morals… or weren’t frightened of getting caught.

Free download!

Those of you that have messaged or emailed me will know how much I love to get feedback!

As a little thank you to those of you that have reviewed my books on Amazon I am now offering a free Kindle download of the latest in the One Knight series, Black Knight.

This is not available on Amazon and is entirely exclusive to my readers. If you've left me a review then please drop me an email with the link to you review to: contact@samanthaholt.org.uk or use the contact page on my website. I look forward to hearing from you!

Lady Katherine yearns for excitement and danger, something far removed from her life as a lady. So when she discovers a dark intruder in her chambers will she take the opportunity to discover where her  lust for danger could lead or will she reject her one chance for excitement and maybe more...?