Feb 14 2014

Just A Pawn ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE SFRB Presents

Sorry I didn’t have any Valentine-themed excerpts to give, from my science fiction romance! I didn’t want to jump ahead to the pages where the romance begins to develop and then backtrack.

(The link is here to find this week’s excerpts from novels or WIP written by other Science Fiction Romance Brigade group members. A fun way to sample new books!)

Last week I gave you the opening of the book. This excerpt is a bit later, as Andi has returned from the wedding of the Planetary High Lord’s daughter to her host’s summer home, only to find a squad of Sectors Special Forces soldiers waiting. The officer in charge claims they’ve come to rescue her and need to leave at once. Unconvinced, she argues with Captain Tom Deverane and is speaking as the snippet starts:

“You’re insinuating my hosts have deceived me and deliberately put me in harm’s way? I find that insulting.”

Eyes closed, he pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’re a pawn to them.” Now he reopened his eyes and flung his arms out, hands wide open. “You mean nothing to them. If you’re going to refuse my offer of evacuation, then you’d better be ready to take care of yourself because I guarantee you the Obati won’t.”

“Give me some specifics to back up your claims, captain,” Andi said. “So far I only have your word there’s a problem. No insult intended.”

He nodded. “All right,” he said, his voice crisp. “Fair enough. One of your own Loxton agents was murdered in the southern region, along with all his Shenti guides and workers. The cargo wasn’t even stolen, just left to rot in the haulers. I’m told that was the incident which spooked your boss to close the office and leave the planet.”

“One of the Loxton crew? Who?” As Deputy Agent she knew and worked with all of the Loxton crews. Mentally reviewing who might have been in transit, seeing the faces of men and women who were her friends as well as coworkers, Andi felt a wave of nausea.

“Someone named Kane. I’m sorry to be the one to tell you all this.”

Andi nodded, her mind racing. She swallowed the bile in her throat and said, “When did this happen?”

“Two weeks ago.”

“And no one thought I needed to know? No one saw fit to tell me?” Her voice rose as she got angrier.

The Story:

Andi Markriss hasn’t exactly enjoyed being the houseguest of the planetary high-lord, but her company sent her to represent them at a political wedding. When hotshot Sectors Special Forces Captain Tom Deverane barges in on the night of the biggest social event of the summer, Andi isn’t about to offend her high-ranking host on Deverane’s say-so—no matter how sexy he is, or how much he believes they need to leave now.

Deverane was thinking about how to spend his retirement bonus when HQ assigned him one last mission: rescue a civilian woman stranded on a planet on the verge of civil war. Someone has pulled some serious strings to get her plucked out of the hot zone. Deverane’s never met anyone so hard-headed—or so appealing. Suddenly his mission to protect this one woman has become more than just mere orders.

That mission proves more dangerous than he expected when rebel fighters attack the village and raze it to the ground. Deverane escapes with Andi, and on their hazardous journey through the wilderness, Andi finds herself fighting her uncomfortable attraction to the gallant and courageous captain. But Deverane’s not the type to settle down, and running for one’s life doesn’t leave much time to explore a romance.

Then Andi is captured by the rebel fighters, but Deverane has discovered that Zulaire’s so-called civil war is part of a terrifying alien race’s attempt to subjugate the entire Sector. If he pushes on to the capitol Andi will die. Deverane must decide whether to save the woman he loves, or sacrifice her to save Zulaire.

ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE is a 2014 SFR Galaxy Award Winner…

Available on AMAZON for kindle and as POD paperback Nook Kobo All Romance eBooks and iTunes Smashwords Xin Xii

Feb 7 2014

How Did She Get Talked Into Doing This? ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE SFRB Presents

I’m very pleased and thrilled to announce that Escape From Zulaire is a 2014 SFR Galaxy Award Winner! (Complete info on the awards here.) So I thought I’d do some excerpts from the novel for the next few weeks…

(The link is here to find this week’s excerpts from novels or WIP written by other Science Fiction Romance Brigade group members. A fun way to sample new books!)

Here are the first 200 or so words from the book (story synopsis below the excerpt):

This is the most absurd thing I’ve ever done as Assistant Planetary Agent for Loxton Galactic Trading – standing in as a bridesmaid in a borrowed puce dress because some other girl failed to show up. Andi Markriss sighed, feeling the garment binding too tight across her chest. I didn’t mind representing the company as a guest, but this is way outside the line of duty.

Early afternoon on Zulaire was too warm for an outdoor ceremony but the Planetary High Lord’s spoiled daughter Lysanda didn’t care to be ready any earlier in the day. Her guests’ comfort wasn’t a consideration.

An inch at a time, Andi shifted from her assigned spot into the shade cast by the towering stone pillars. How did I get talked into this? Oh yes, Lysanda wept and her mother made vague threats about her husband reviewing our shipping contracts. As the musicians played, Andi turned, watching Lysanda pace toward the dais in time to the music, smiling for her groom-to-be.

The local priest took a deep breath and launched into a lengthy blessing, invoking the deity and relating the history of the planet’s three Clans – Obati, Shenti and Naranti. Andi chanted along with him, under her breath. Overlords, Second Class and Neutrals, as her boss had told her when she arrived on Zulaire six years ago. Easy to keep them straight that way, he’d said, but don’t ever slip and use the nicknames out loud.

The Story:

Sep 29 2013

Weekend Writing Warriors Save your Breath on Zulaire

We’ve shifted away from Ancient Egypt for a few weeks to my newly released, best selling science fiction romance novel (story blurb below the picture). I’m thinking maybe two more excerpts from this book and then it’ll be time for Ancient Egypt again.

I’m going with an excerpt from a bit further into the book, after the war has broken out and they’re fleeing the burning compound. Andi has been talking with Sergeant Wilson about the events at the house where she’d been staying, how he and a few of his men escaped when the fight started. The sergeant is speaking. Although a little creative editing has occurred today, I’m adhering strictly to the WeWriWa eight sentence rule:

“…We was pretty keyed up. Sure glad you and the captain made it out of the ambush in one piece.”

Andi glanced ahead to where Deverane led the column. If I’d been inside the dance hall when the terrorists attacked, could I have gotten myself out somehow? Would he have been able to rescue me? Having seen the captain in action, she figured he would have found a way, even against dismal odds.

As if the mere mention of his name had conjured him out of the air, Deverane circled back to check on them, saying, “Save your breath, Sergeant, Miss Markriss, we need to make serious time here, not discuss current events.”

I love and appreciate your comments and feedback every week! Go here to find all the other Weekend Writing Warriors and read an amazing variety of terrific excerpts…

And the story blurb:

ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE is available now on AMAZON for kindle and as POD paperback Nook Kobo All Romance eBooks and iTunes Smashwords

Sep 27 2013

Science Fiction Romance Brigade Presents Escape From Zulaire

I’m a proud member of the SFR Brigade so I thought this week I’d take part in the weekly excerpts blog hop. (The link is here to find other excerpts from novels or WIP written by group members.) The rule is 200 words or less, so here goes with 200 words of my Best Selling SFR novel ESCAPE FROM ZULAIRE. This scene is when the bad things begin to happen, as they say…(The story blurb is below the excerpt.)

The lights along the path and beside the benches flickered and went out, plunging them into darkness.

Glancing around, Deverane frowned in the moonlight. He released her, keeping one hand around her wrist and putting the other on the butt of his blaster. “Is that normal?”

“The generators have been known to be troublesome in the summer. Probably nothing.” The moment was gone, the spell she’d been under broken. Am I disappointed? Relieved? Things had been moving way too fast between them for people who had just met. “Fortunately, we still have enough moonlight to see the path.” Andi took a step toward the clubhouse.

He tightened his grip on her wrist, forcing her to stop. “Wait.”

Yelling broke out in the large building on the rise behind them. Glaring, sporadic flashes burst from the general direction of the parking area and from the main wing of the celebration hall itself. Making the forest brighter than day, a sizable explosion obliterated the light of the two moons for a moment. Clapping her hands to her ears at the concussion, Andi ducked, crowding into the reassuringly hard-muscled captain.

In one fluid motion, he had his blaster in hand. Still keeping his grasp on her wrist, he drew Andi farther away from the path, taking cover behind a wide, multiple-trunked tree. Placing himself between her and the building, he leaned out, reconnoitering the pathway. The screams and shouts were increasing in intensity and number.

The story:

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Sep 22 2013

Weekend Writing Warriors Escape From Zulaire

We’ve shifted away from Ancient Egypt for a few weeks to my newly released, best selling science fiction romance novel (story blurb below the picture). Captain Tom Deverane is speaking to Andi, the heroine, as the excerpt starts. Although a little creative editing has occurred today, I’m adhering strictly to the WeWriWa eight sentence rule:

“Someone commits a crime, someone else takes revenge and the innocents get caught in the middle, because of who they are, who they were with, who they know. Sometimes being in the wrong spot at the wrong time gets a person killed,” Deverane said, his tone gentle.

A vision of the atrocity committed on her friend battered Andi. What would I do if I got caught in a similar situation? I didn’t even bring my personal blaster. “I’ll go back to the capital with you in the morning.”

He glared at her, eyebrows drawing together in an impressive frown, forehead wrinkles deepening even more as he said, “Have you been listening, Miss Markriss? We need to leave tonight, the sooner the better.”

I love and appreciate your comments and feedback every week! Go here to find all the other Weekend Writing Warriors and read an amazing variety of terrific excerpts…