Cover Reveal of KG Stutts's new Sci-Fi series: Winter's Kiss, Amethyst Chronicles.

Today, we have the cover reveal of KG Stutts of Winter's Kiss, Amethyst Chronicles.

On November 21st, book one in a highly anticipated sci-fi novella series, Amethyst Chronicles: Winter's Kiss launches, brought to you by KG Stutts, the author of the Mirror series. 

This is actually a spin-off, taking place over a thousand years after the third in Mirror trilogy, Mirror Reformed (out January 16th).

Blurb:
Amethyst is a secret team of genetically enhanced humans which is Earth’s greatest defensive weapon. Leading the team of super soldiers is Ember Wilson, a tough woman with a huge chip on her shoulder. The team gets their name from the after effect of the Genesis Project which turned their eyes and even their blood purple.

For decades, Earth has been ravaged by unpredictable weather which began to cause crops to fail. Most of the planet’s food sources have deteriorated. Dr. Clayton Rudo has proclaimed he has the means to save the soil. He has created a weather machine to regulate and help replenish. But Ember knew the truth. He didn’t want to save the planet. He wanted to control it. Amethyst destroyed the machine, but was placed in stasis. Two years later, Rudo recreated the device and has frozen Washington, DC and the west coast of the United States.
General Tom Blanchard brought Amethyst out of stasis to work with an elite Air Force team, led by Major Liam Ross. Tensions between Ember and Liam rise as they butt heads. Can they work together before Earth is completely under ice?

Excerpt:

A lab technician carefully brought Ember Wilson out of stasis. Liam stood back as her team surrounded the final pod. Her violet eyes fluttered open and Liam’s hands began to shake. He couldn’t believe how stunning she was.

 "What the hell?" she groaned.

"You'll feel sick to your stomach for a moment, but it will pass," Lewis informed her.

"My head," she muttered, rubbing her temple. 
"What did that empty-headed, bureaucrat ass 
kisser Blanchard to do to me? How long have we been out?"

“Two years,” he replied.

"Wilson, take a second to get your bearings," 
Morris said.

“You’ll feel back to normal in a moment,” Nova added.

She scanned the lab, coming to a stop the moment her eyes locked on the General. Her foot pressed against the back of the pod, her eyes wild with anger.

"You son of a bitch!" she yelled as she used her foot to launch herself in the air.

Nova and Morris caught her before she could reach Blanchard. She kicked and screamed for freedom but the duo wouldn't budge. She jerked against the hold they had on her arms, spitting and cursing.

"I know," Lewis calmly said as he stood in front of her. Her foot was inches from his chin when she kicked. "Hey, it’s okay. I know. But there are more pressing matters at hand than him."

"Rudo?" she asked through gritted teeth.

"You got it."

"You moron!" she shouted, looking over Lewis’ shoulder to Blanchard. "You had the chance to stop it before he could act but you were too much of a coward!"

"I'm sorry--"

"Sorry? Sorry?" Her voice was nearly shrieking. 
"Not yet, but you will be."

"Wilson, Rudo used the weather machine," Nova stated, his face contorted as he strained to keep his hold on her.

"Of course he did! And now we've got to clean up the mess."

"Whatever problems you and I have aren't important right now," Blanchard said.

"You got that right," she snapped. "I'm going to finish what I started and kill Rudo and maybe you'll be lucky not to meet my blaster."

"There's no cause for that," Liam spoke up.

Her purple eyes looked upon the Major for the first time. He instantly regretted interrupting. She stopped struggling against Nova and Morris. A low growl rumbled from deep in her throat as her eyes narrowed. He shifted uncomfortably, fidgeting with the hem of his dress blues. The coldness in her eyes made him shiver.

"Who's the uniform?" She nodded in his direction.

"This is Major Liam Ross," Blanchard introduced. 
"His team will be working with yours on this mission."

"Absolutely not." Ember shook her head as Nova and Morris let go of her arms. "We're all you need."

"President Packer disagrees."

"I don't give a flying monkey's butt what Packer says."

"This is bigger than your raid on Rudo. You need the man power."

“No one else could’ve broken into the compound! We don’t need or want the help.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

"Doesn’t matter.” Ember fumed. “In case you’ve forgotten, we don't work well with others."

"I know. The leader of the Luteus team still isn’t one hundred percent after the skirmish your two teams had."

"It was a training exercise. Besides, if Mark is still healing after all this time, he should spend time in a therapy tank. That's not my problem."

"Regardless of how you feel, this is the situation. Or you can be put back into the stasis chamber."

"Not on your life." Ember's lips twitched.

"Glad we've reached an accord." Blanchard nodded.

Wilson turned to Ross again, sizing him up. He was tall and, judging by the way his Air Force blues molded to him, was very muscular. His brown hair framed his handsome face but didn't touch the collar of his impeccably clean uniform. Soft brown eyes were watching her intensely.

"Can your pretty boy even hold a blaster?" She questioned Blanchard, nodding toward Liam.

"Direct your inquiries toward me." Liam stood up straighter.

Ember raised an eyebrow, looking slightly amused. "Oh, yeah?"

"I'll have you know that I'm the number one ranking sharpshooter in the world," he told her.

"It's cute you think like that. Rankings don't mean shit," she said. "Scores on a piece of paper are useless in the field."

"I assure you, Major Ross and his five squad members are more than capable of the task," the General said.

"Five?" The members of Amethyst began to laugh.

"You need a squad of five?" Ember chuckled. 
"Rookie."

"You only need three on your team?" Liam incredulously asked.

"I only need two, but Nova grew on me."

"Aw, thanks, Wilson.” Nova grinned. “That may be the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

Ember's eyes burned into the Major's as she continued to assess him.

 "All right, pretty boy. Let's see what you and your boys can do," she said. "Collect your squad and meet us in the training center."

Amethyst Chronicles: Winter's Kiss launches on November 21st, but you can pre-order now for $.99. Head over to the author's website at kgstutts.com to find the links for Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

About the Author:

Growing up in Texas and later South Carolina as the youngest in a house full of science-fiction fans, K.G. Stutts had her natural curiosity and imagination nurtured since birth by family movie nights where they would watch Star Wars, Indiana Jones and even timeless Disney favorites.

A prolific writer of sci-fi, romance and mystery, K.G. draws much of her inspiration from those amazing works that gave her an appreciation for telling rich, compelling, character-driven stories for all audiences. She is also a contributor to http://iwassociation.com and http://thewritingnetwork.com and is a proud member of the http://www.sfrcontests.blogspot.co.uk/
She lives in North Carolina with her husband, Brad and works for a customer service call center full time. She's a lover of Star Wars, Star Trek (original, TNG, and Voyager), Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis, Muppets, Garfield, Disney, Indiana Jones and is a big football, wrestling, and hockey fan.

Social Media:

kgstutts.BlogSpot.com
kgstutts.com
Facebook.com/KGStutts
Twitter.com/KGStutts

Liza spotlights Tara Quan's Flirting With Fire

I owe Liza O'Connor a huge thank you for having me over today. My paranormal romantic comedy, Flirting with Fire, was just released by Decadent Publishing. It features a clueless fire mage, his fed-up cat familiar, and Madame Eve’s renowned one-night stand service. On All Hallows’ Eve, this witch and warlock iron out the kinks of an outdated employment contract in a spectacularly fiery fashion (and once you read the blurb, my very odd description will make a lot more sense).

In celebration, I’m giving away a $15 gift card. To enter, leave a comment here, and drop your details in the Rafflecopter widget (at the bottom of this post, assuming the code works, or at my website: TaraQuan.com/FlirtingwithFire)

Flirting with Fire 

(A Witch’s Night Out, 1)

Genre: Paranormal Romantic Comedy, Interracial/Multicultural

Apprentice witch Catalina Gato is prohibited from assuming her human form in front of her new employer without his express permission. Since he doesn’t know he’s a warlock, he can’t give it, leaving her in a familiar’s limbo. To make matters worse, she’s barred from leaving his house, and her attempts to enlighten him of his true nature results in burnt notes, charred walls, and exploding laptops.

On All Hallows’ Eve, she gets one night of freedom. Deciding some no-strings-attached sex might take the edge off the intense attraction she feels for her clueless boss, she signs up for Madame Eve’s service. When she meets her masked mystery date at the Castillo Capital, she realizes she might have gotten much more than she bargained for.

After being gifted a one-night stand from his annoying best friend, attorney Leo Difuoco reluctantly ventures to the Castillo Capital to celebrate Halloween. When he meets his oddly familiar green-eyed date in a Cat Woman costume, flames literally ignite, sparks magically fly, and life as he knows it changes forever.

Her lips pursed, [Cat Woman] stared down at him for a long moment. Then she muttered, “What the hell,” and dropped her very attractive behind onto the opposite seat. “So, this is your idea of an easy place to pick up chicks in costume?”

Not only was the question out of place, it bore an uncanny similarity to something he might have said to his cat. “Well…one in particular, I guess. What’s your name, by the way?”

“Cat.”

She had to be joking. Or she obfuscated on purpose. He decided on the latter. After all, keeping one’s identity hidden made for a great exit strategy. “Mine’s Leo.”

She lifted the leather menu and opened it, blocking his view of her face. “I know.”

Madame Eve must employ a double standard, revealing the identity of men and not women. Another possible theory was Jack had forged the card and kept the woman’s details a secret on purpose. Both explanations seemed plausible. “What else do you know about me?”

She flipped a page. “Everything.”

Talk about unfair. Cat Woman must have received an actual profile, complete with a photo and an option to decline the date. “It might not be all true.”

She tilted the menu forward an inch, revealing the top half of her masked face. “What?”

“The profile you read. Jack has a weird sense of humor. You shouldn’t trust any of it.”

Her eyelids lowered into a slight squint, something the non-human Cat he knew had a habit of doing whenever he forgot to grab his keys. “I don’t follow.”

“It’s obvious you received some basic information about me.” When she shook her head, he waved off the denial. “It’s not a big deal, but I thought I should tell you someone else filled everything out. Since I hadn’t been offered a file on you at all, we should pretend this is a normal date and start over.”

With a shrug and a swift nod, she put the menu down, pulled her gloves off, and reached an arm across the table. The smile she sent him made his stomach do an unsettling flip. “My name is Catalina Gato. I’m a maid, accountant, and shape-shifting witch with a clueless boss and very meddlesome sister.”

What a sense of humor. Considering her costume, cat burglar would have been funnier, but she deserved bonus points for saying it all with a straight face. He took her hand and fought the odd urge to grab her, kiss her silly, and tear her clothes off.

The candle’s flame changed from blue to white. Then the fire shot up in a straight line, six inches high. Another round of nervous clapping followed.

Their palms still touching, he frowned. “Someone here must love Halloween. These special effects are over the top, not to mention dangerous.”

She shook her head and broke contact. Hints of disbelief and resignation laced her bell-like laugh. “Do you think Gomez has recovered enough to send a waiter our way?”

Amazon | B&N | AllRomance | Decadent | GoodReads

Globetrotter, lover of languages, and romance author, Tara Quan has an addiction for crafting tales with a pinch of spice and a smidgen of kink. Inspired by her travels, Tara enjoys tossing her kick-ass heroines and alpha males into exotic contemporary locales, paranormal worlds, and post-apocalyptic futures. Armed with magical powers or conventional weapons, her characters are guaranteed a suspenseful and sensual ride, as well as their own happily ever after. Learn more at www.taraquan.com

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Google+ | Goodreads | Pinterest | Amazon

Don't forget to enter Tara's Rafflecopter for your chance to win $15

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Liza O'Connor interviews the book When Stars Collide by SE Gilchrist

Today, we are interviewing the book When Stars Collide by SE Gilchrist.

Space Rep: Tell me about it while I warm up the transporter. 

Liza: It's the third full-length novel in SE Gilchrist’s bestselling erotic SF series. This book mixes one sexy spy, a soldier looking for salvation and an unlikely mission to save the world.

Space Rep: That does sound good.

 Space Rep: Here's the book...oh that's a beautiful cover!

Liza: Welcome When Stars Collide. Mind if I call you Stars?

Book: But my name is—

Space Rep: Liza can’t type words longer than four letters, so even with the shortened name you are apt to be called ‘Starz’.

Liza: No I won’t. I’ll fix the final letter, whatever it turns out to be.

Stars: Fine, call me Stars, but I’m still calling myself When Stars Collide.

Liza: You sound very destructive. Do things not go well inside you?

Stars: You’ve no idea.

Liza: Well, lay down and tell me about it.

Stars: Reece, contortionist bubble dancer and part-time spy, has one goal – a safe haven and independent life far from the war. 

Liza: Perfectly understandable. I prefer a non-warring environment myself.

Stars: But her plans go awry and her future becomes dangerously uncertain when she is falsely accused of the murders of her friend and a Darkon traitor.

Liza: Oh, I hate it when that happens to me. We need to get a good lawyer.

Stars: Don’t bother. She’s handling it her own way.

Liza: Exactly how?

Stars: Her new list of goals includes payback.

Liza: That sounds like fun! Can I help?

Space Rep: Please say no.

Stars: She wants to do this alone. But in her way is Ulrac, a banished Darkon patroller responsible for incarcerating females for barbaric ‘treatments’ and ‘research’ on the planet Isla.

Liza: Well, from the cheap seats, I would advise her to stay clear of that guy.

Stars: If only she could. He's determined to use the capture of Reece and her intel to win the approval of his father – a hard-line Traditionalist with his own agenda – and help him overthrow the current ruler of Darkos.

Liza: I really think she needs to avoid men with ‘Daddy’ issues. May I write that into the margin of the page where she first meets him?

Stars: No! Besides, it would do no good. The war of the Seven Galaxies has reached a critical stage, and personal plans and goals suddenly hold very little meaning.

Liza: Well, that’s good news!

Stars: Wrong again. It’s the worst of news. The enemy is poised to unleash a terrible weapon and no one stands between him and total domination of all the universes.

No one – except Reece and Ulrac.

Liza: Wow! May I peek between your covers and discover how the story ends.

Stars: After your threat to write in the margin? Absolutely not! You may buy your own copy and scribble to your heart’s content on the margins of your i-Pad.

Space Rep: I found the buy link!

WHEN STARS COLLIDE – BUY LINKS

BUY LINKS:  Amazon US, Amazon AU, Amazon UK, Kobo, GooglePlay, JBHiFi Ebooks, AllRomance,  iBookstore

Learn more about S. E. Gilchrist and her books at: 
website: http://www.segilchrist.com
Twitter - @SEGilchrist1

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SE Gilchrist-Author

Liza: I guess I’ll go to Amazon and peek behind the covers there.

Space Rep: I hope this taught you never to ask if you can write beneath a books covers. Did your parents teach you no manners at all?

Liza: Not a one. Sorry for my bad manners, Stars.

Stars: You are forgiven. May I go home now? There is a war brewing you know.

Liza: Yes, but I’m keeping you for 3 days.

Stars: Why?

Liza: Because you sound like a tremendous book and I don’t want you to be destroyed by whatever weapon they have devised. Speaking of which, is it an antimatter gun?

Stars: I’m saying no more.

Liza: A giant bubble gum gun?  A super big flyswatter? A…

Space Rep: You should go buy SE Gilchrist’s book, When Stars Collide, before they actually do.

The Cairns of Sainctuarie by Hawk MacKinney

Today, we have Hawk MacKinney and his latest book, The Cairns of Sainctuarie.

Peep Rep: I think you mispelled the title...again.

Liza: Well I think you misspelled 'mispelled' and in fact I did not misspell Sainctuarie.

Peep Rep: My bad. Is there a prize to cheer me up? 

Liza: In fact, Hawk is giving away a $25 Gift Card to only lucky person who enters the Rafflecopter.

Peep Rep: That would cheer me up. So what's the book about?

Liza: Great question. Let's check it out.

The Cairns of Sainctuarie: Volume 1, The Bleikovat Event

by Hawk MacKinney

Among the close-kin clans of western rural Malfesian Murians, farming and gelf ranches are long held traditions.  Times are good…full barns, fat gelf calves and large families thrive among the sprawling grain fields and hamlets and the river from which they derive their name—the Feldon.  Word comes with the trade caravans that times are not so good in the regions far to the east of the Feldon River:  tumultuous changes stir among the remote province of Bleikovia.  Old timer Feldovats shrug it off as one more squabble between clans over boundaries or water rights…too distant to affect the Feldovats.

           

The western clans learn too late, however, it is no local squabble.  Outnumbered and unprepared, Feldovats resist a hoard bent on plunder and conquest.  Days of battle along the Feldon River stain the riverbanks in green Murian blood.  In the finals days of exhausted fighting, Judikar Klarvko Celo, leader of the Clan Klarvkon and the Feldovats, is fatally stabbed with the slow-acting sevon poison.  The Judikar’s consort, Etikaa Klarvkaa, becomes Regentkaa, and with Celovat Field Commander Korvo Celo serving as her advisor, she leads the demoralized Feldovat survivors on a gruesome ill-prepared winter trek through high mountain passes of ice and blizzard snow in an attempt to elude the Green Dragon forces of the Bleikovats.

Etkaa’s only son, Klarvko Celo II, helps spirit Feldovat young across a remote mountain exodus to the west toward Eedov Province.          The battered, starving Feldovats reach the Malfesian coast at Eedov City only to be confronted with their implacable enemy determined to destroy the remaining Klarvkon rabble.  Taking passage on crowded lumbering Maalonovion freighters, Feldovats and Malfesian refugees set sail.  On arrival in Maalon City they are welcomed among their Maalon hosts, and settle into a new life.

            

But famine and a pandemic pestilence stir old hates and nurse former ambitions.  The enraged Overseers of Bleikovia move against the Klarvkons, this time bringing bloodshed to Maalonovia.  The exiles from the Feldon must fight once again, but starvation and plague across the Planete Myr make it a different war from the battles along the Feldon…a na’ä blikovat…the Bleikovvat Phenomenon…an event with unexpected consequences and outcomes none could have foreseen.

          

Before the vendetta killing is exhausted, the Regentkaa Klarvkaa and her son are swept onto the Maalon throne, setting the Klarvkon Dynasty and the Murians toward an intergalactic golden age, and a star-flung destiny the once-agrarian Feldovats could never have envisaged.

Etkaa pulled back a canvas siding of the shelter.  Distant dawnlit skies to the west glowed with billows of dull red already sweeping through the far provinces.  She swallowed a sour distaste, knowing her part in the doing of this.  There were no protests.  Their last illusions going up in smoke…taking more than hope in the going.  No longer could these exhausted bloodied fighters hold any hope to throw the Bleikovats back across the river…or return their lives to the ways they had been.  The pale Murian skin of stunned faces washed red by the flames in the west saw the sprawl of war consuming everything.  The dazed faces of the fighters said more than words.

           

One grizzled warrior’s anguish stabbed out, "...our crops burned, gelfs slaughtered…do those orders you hold show how we are to feed what families we may have left?  Better we stayed on our farms.”  Honest feelings spoke from a pained heart confronting the unimaginable.

           

Etkaa said, “We will share what food we have.  Better that than crumbs from a Bleikovat table.”

           

From another Feldovat warrior, “Better we return to our hamlets and fields while we can.”

           

Etkaa said, “Those who would return may find much worse than ashes.”

           

“Yes…ashes…” the Feldovat shouted.  “Burned by your orders.  Not Klarvko’s.”

           

Etkaa fought the wash of sadness.  Left her with nothing to say.  Much of what the warrior said was true.  A harried Korvo said, "There is another troubling matter.  With nothing to relieve their pain, the severely wounded and those poisoned cannot be moved into the mountains."

           

"I do not care what is written in the orders,” someone shouted.  “I will not leave clan kin to the Bleikovats.”

Amazon

Barnes& Noble  

SageWorld Publishing 

This was an unexpected read for me.

This is one of the best World Buildings that I've ever read.

Normally, I don’t like war stories, and from beginning to end this was a story of war, peppered with faint moments of love, brief moments of joy, but mostly, the grueling, never ending senseless death of people as one tribe, rather like the roman army, sweeps across the lands stripping others of food, conscripting the men, and killing those who refused to join.

Despite being out-armed, one tribe fights back And while the conquerors declared them defeated and destroyed, they continued to survive. Impressed by their courage and strength, the remnants of other tribe swear allegiance and fight beside them.

When the leader of the tribe succumbs to poison, his wife shocks everyone, & declares herself regent. She quickly proves herself a worthy leader both in planning battles and intuiting the enemy’s next moves. 

While I often found her disregard for her safety and some of her efforts to be poorly conceived, making me want to yell at her. I did so, because I cared greatly that no harm come to this woman, her warrior love, or her returned son.

The only time where I got a bit antsy was during the financial/economic discussion mid-way in the book. As a financial analyst, I thought it well thought out, I just thought it was more than even I wanted to know. But it was soon over and I was gripped by the story once again.

I received an advanced copy of the book for reviewing and it still had a few misspellings. Hopefully, those were fixed. Nothing to pull me from the story, just an oddity for the otherwise well-written story.

So to wrap up my review: I should have hated this book. Instead I couldn’t put it down. It's world building was par none. It flowed very well and was superbly written. The author clearly did his homework, for everything is laid out in great detail, which would normally bore me with excessive detail, but did so only during the financial discussion.  Other than that I couldn’t stop reading and got teary eyes several times.

Is this book filled with complexity?  Oh yeah.

Did I get mad at the heroine several times? Yes I did.

Did I ever stop liking her? Not for a second. 

Did I like her husband and her fierce protector?  Yes I did, very much.

Did I like the ending? Yes and No. I did like the ending, but I also felt disappointed. Possibly because, unlike the novel which is full of clarity and specific details, for me the end fades softly.

As to Recommendations: If you like constant battles between tribes on a different world with deadly mounts far fiercer than a horse, definitely read this.

If you like strong women heroines in war, you should like this, unless you expect real romance, which you do not get here.

Due to ending and the  financial lesson, I give this a 4.5 stars, which I have to round to 5 because even though I normally don't like war stories, I couldn't but this one down.

That's a lot of stars from someone who shouldn’t have like this book at all. 

I still don’t know how that happened.

Welsh and Scottish Hawk MacKinney grew up in northwest Arkansas, and wrote for his school newspaper. Hawk served over twenty years as a Special Staff Corps Officer with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps, a Naval Academy Blue and Gold Recruiting Officer, a Navy Recruiting Command Liaison Officer, and Commanding Officer of units attached to the U.S. Marine Corps bases at Parris Island, South Carolina and Twentynine Palms, California. Along with his postgraduate degrees, he studied English and Russian history and foreign languages. As a faculty member in major medical and veterinarian universities, he authored professional articles and taught postgraduate courses in the United States and Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem. In addition to his sci-fi series, The Cairns of Sainctuarie, Hawk MacKinney has authored the Craige Ingram Mystery Series and Moccasin Trace, a historical romance nominated for the prestigious Michael Shaara Award for Excellence in Civil War Fiction and the Writers Notes Book Award.

www.hawkmackinney.net

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-m-H8pfoh-A 

And don't forget the $25 gift card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pippa Jay discusses her love of red hair & Hallow's Eve

Today, Pippa Jay is talking about her hair color.

 It will no doubt be fascinating, 

because it's Pippa Jay.

Without further ado, I give you Pippa Jay:

One thing a regular reader of my books might know is that, despite their rarity in the real world (just 2% of the world's population) I have several redheads in my stories. Why?

Well, red hair rocks. I should know. I have red hair myself (though I'm now sadly more blonde than auburn as age bleaches my natural colour away). My three little monsters have red hair. Even hubs (who is not a redhead) has red in his beard when it grows out.

Although I'll admit I haven't always loved it. As a kid I hated it, because like Hal, it got me the attention of pretty much every bully in the school. I was the only girl with red hair. Neither my parents or sister had red hair, all being brunette. Bizarrely, my mum hated the fact that she wasn’t a redhead, being the only brunette in a long line of redhaired women going back as far as she could remember. Yeah, I can appreciate the irony of that. She wished for a redhaired daughter, and she got one. And it took twenty years of old grannies telling me what beautiful hair I had to appreciate it. 

Then my obsession with genetics got me intrigued about it. So here are some facts about red hair.

There is no evolutionary reason for red hair. It serves no useful function. Pale skin allowed our European ancestors to absorb more sunlight in our less tropical climate, but that's it and is as true for blondes and brunettes who have pale skin.

Red haired slaves were the most sought after and expensive in the time of the Roman Empire. They were also highly valued in Egypt, where people would often dye their hair with henna to make it red.

Red dye is the most popular colour hair dye.

And people with red hair and green eyes were thought to be pixies. Or vampires. Or witches. Lots of excuses for bumping us off. But also the reason my character Hal has that colouring.

And rare? Yes. Yet where I live in the UK, we appear to have an unusually high number of redheads in the area. Last year there were six redheads living in my road of 30 houses. Every class at my kids' schools has at least 2 redheads in it, working out at 6.67% instead of the 2%. Both my besties have red hair. So I don't believe the recent claim that redheads could become extinct. Not when about 40% of the world's population carry the gene without even knowing it.

So yes, perhaps there are a lot of redheads in my story. But then, I know a lot in real life too. 

Liza: Oh look, two red heads!

Hallow’s Eve - when love comes home.

Twelve months ago, Hal’s world crashed and burned, taking the love of his life with it. He’s waited all year for that one special night when the souls of the departed come home, hoping his candle will summon back one in particular to heal his broken heart. But the forbidden knowledge he’s learned could call something far worse, and put more than his own soul at risk...

The thud and chink of beer bottles and glasses on the bar announced Dan’s return.

“So?”

Hal shook his head. “Not tonight.”

“Oh, c’mon, man. Just one beer.”

Hal dropped his gaze to the glass he was still drying with a vehemence it didn’t deserve, avoiding his friend’s pleading stare. “Thanks, but I’m not in the mood.”

Dan made an exasperated sound. “Look, I know it’s nearly a year—”

Pain lanced into his chest. “Stop.” He looked up.

A frown creasing his tanned face, Dan glared back, but he shut up.

Hal sucked in a breath. He didn’t want to fight with Dan over this. The guy had stopped Hal’s life completely falling apart after last Halloween. “I know what you’re trying to do,” he murmured, and relief flickered in Dan’s brown eyes. “But I’m not ready to let it go.”

“I’m not saying you should, man. But how about getting back into some social interaction? You can’t spend the rest of your life as a recluse.”

“I won’t.” Hal smiled. Dan had no idea.

“Then come out for a beer.”

“Another time.”

“Tomorrow then. I know you’ve got the Halloween shift off.”

Hal put down the glass he’d abused. “I’m busy.”

“Oh, yeah? Doing what? Trick or treating?” Dan scoffed. “What is it with you and Halloween? You never struck me as religious enough to find it offensive, but you don’t go out and have any fun either. So how come you always take the night off?”

Hal looked around the bar at all the tawdry holiday decorations, and debated how to answer. Maybe Dan thought he was a closet Christian or something. The truth would shock the hell out of him. Especially with what Hal had planned this year. “My...family don’t see it as something to joke about.”

“Oh. Strict Catholic or something?”

“Something like that.” Hal smiled at the thought of his parents taking Holy Communion. But let Dan interpret it any way he liked.

I previously reviewed this book and gave it 5 stars. I'll put it here in small print in case you missed it the first time:

What I love about Pippa Jay’s books is that they

a) have unexpected endings and

b) make you think after the story is done.

Hal, a warlock, has fallen in love with a human, which is forbidden.

The night Hal tells Eve what he is, she panics, leaves in a rush, and dies in an automobile accident.

Now a year later, on Hallow’s Eve, he has the possibility of bringing her back, but not without great risk. A long list of horrors could occur if he tries to bring her back from death, which is why it’s against the rules of the Circle. But his love for Eve makes him push aside all the dangers and try to bring his love back to him.

This is a fabulous Hallow’s Eve story, with romance, magic, true love and a great deal of bravery in an impossible situation. It leaves me to ponder my own ending of their future.

Well written, well-paced, and a delightful treat.

I give it 5 stars

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After spending twelve years working as an Analytical Chemist in a Metals and Minerals laboratory, Pippa Jay is now a stay-at-home mum who writes scifi and the supernatural. Somewhere along the way a touch of romance crept into her work and refused to leave. In between torturing her plethora of characters, she spends the odd free moment playing guitar very badly, punishing herself with freestyle street dance, and studying the Dark Side of the Force. Although happily settled in the historical town of Colchester in the UK with her husband of 21 years and three little monsters, she continues to roam the rest of the Universe in her head.

Pippa Jay is a dedicated member of the Science Fiction Romance Brigade, blogging at Spacefreighters Lounge, Adventures in Scifi, and Romancing the Genres. Her works include a YA science fiction novel—Gethyon—published through BURST (Champagne Books), a scifi romance novella—Tethered—published by Breathless Press, a YA paranormal romance—Restless In Peaceville—published by Lycaon Press, four self-published short stories (Terms & Conditions Apply, The Bones of the Sea, Reboot and Hallow’s Eve), and she’s one of eight authors included in a science fiction romance anthology—Tales from the SFR Brigade. She’s also a double SFR Galaxy Award winner, been a finalist in the Heart of Denver RWA Aspen Gold Contest (3rd place), and the GCC RWA Silken Sands Star Awards (2nd place).

You can stalk her at her website, or at her blog, but without doubt her favorite place to hang around and chat is on Twitter as @pippajaygreen.

You can also find her on Facebook, Pinterest, Google+, and Wattpad


Don't forget Pippa's

Giveaway:

1 Pentagram necklace 

6 jasmine scented glitter tealights, 

open internationally, 1^st-31^st October, 

(no cash or other alternative)

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