Samhain Publishing Ltd. Weblog

Cougar Falls

Cougar Falls, Montana is a magical place. The first time I wrote about it, I just knew I’d like to live there. A small town where folks take care of one another, where the sheriff upholds the law, the ice cream parlour has been up and running for decades, and seasonal town festivals celebrate goodwill. Except the only way to live in the town is to be born there. And to be born there, you need to be rather special. An Ac-taw—shapeshifter—or at least the descendant of one.

In Cougar Falls, there’s the catamount pride, the wolf clan, bear clan, raptor clan, and silver fox clan. And I’m sure there are a few other shifters who’ll show up from time to time. But if you’re not part of a clan or pride, you can’t live in Cougar Falls. The community’s safety comes first, and the town has been in place for hundreds of years because town folks subscribe to town law.

The Art of the Cover

Would you pick up a book with this picture as the cover? I would. That blue and well, yes, that hot bod and tattoo would urge me to take a closer look.

I’ve blogged about the importance of titles for books, but let’s face it. No matter how great your story is, if you have a crappy cover, chances are, no one’s going to bother to read it unless you’re Oprah’s next book club selection. Samhain authors are fairly lucky. We get input on our covers, and the artists here are extremely talented.

Managing Idiocy, er, Time

The summer schedule always throws off my writing schedule. Heck, it throws off my life. I must now devote myself to my children 24/7, as opposed to dropping them off at school. The little monsters, er, buggers, must be constantly entertained or they get creative, and not in a good way. I have boys, so “creative” often devolves into “destructive.” By nature I’m a lazy person and I’ve always worked best under deadlines, guidelines, and rules. So now I must find ways to instill self-discipline if I want my house to remain intact and finish the darned book I committed to write by early July. If you’re like me and need help “organizing” thought, here’s a glimpse of my life as I try to make do.

In Plain Sight

In a choice between fight or flight, love makes the final decision.

In Plain Sight is the second book set in Cougar Falls, a town that caters to the Ac-taw, shapeshifters of various breeds. Cats, bears, wolves, foxes, and raptors—birds of prey. This is the story of what happens when a woman finds the love of her life right under her nose, in plain sight.

Cullen Whitefeather is Ac-taw –a fierce golden eagle shapeshifter. The ultimate predator, he doesn’t shy away from confrontation…unless it involves one tempting, smart-mouthed woman. The woman destined to be his mate. The woman who doesn’t even know he’s alive.

Sarah Duncan made one mistake years ago and hasn’t stopped paying for it since. Tired of the town’s treatment, she finally tells the truth about what really happened and pays a hard price. Her clan wants to silence her. Permanently.

Rescue comes from a completely unexpected source—Cullen, a man who can barely seem to string two sentences together. Yet his fierce protectiveness, compassion, and bewitching touch are worth more than a thousand words.

With Sarah so close, Cullen is losing his mind—and his heart. She says she wants to leave, and the raptors want her gone. But if there’s one thing Cullen’s good at, it’s a fight. And he’s not letting her go without one.

Warning: this book contains explicit sex, a woman done wrong, birds of prey, sexy men who can’t talk to women, and red hot lovin’ that’ll make you wish you could fly.

To read more, click here

Happy Reading!
Marie
www.marieharte.com

Back to the Future

This month’s Samhellion is devoted to world building. Every story has a particular world at its core. Contemporaries deal with what we know, the world we live in every day. Urban fantasies are a mix of contemporaries with monsters and fae living among us. Historicals must adhere to what was possible back “then,” as well as tie into the historical landscape. Paranormals make up their own rules, where ghosts, goblins, angels and demons can run the rules of their world while living in ours.

The Great SHIFT

Remember when you couldn’t find a paranormal romance to save your life? When your choices were between a western, a regency, and a contemporary category novel? Times have surely changed. Anne Rice introduced me and much of the world to erotic vampires, and something stuck. Within the last ten years, paranormals have invaded the shelves, and it started with vampires. Soon, the bloodsuckers no longer looked like Nosferatu, but like Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. The many vampire romances grew, until just about every book store, electronic and print, had a bevy of vampire choices. Daywalkers? Check. Blood mingling with sex? Double Check. True loves reincarnated? Again, check.

I was in heaven. Feehan, Kenyon, Ashley, Ward. The big names had me, hooked me… And then I grew a little weary of them. Another destined love, another evil group of zealots trying to kill the “good” vampires. But wait!

There, on my computer, I saw shifters. Werewolves at first, then cats, dogs, birds and more. I was in heaven. Underworld, the movie, came out, a dark picture about vampires and Lycans (werewolves) in a war. I’d been craving the hairy beasts since I fell in love with Lon Chaney Jr., a much misunderstood cursed wreck who played The Werewolf’s title role in a black and white film.

Feral Attraction

FERAL ATTRACTION is now available in print! By Marie Harte and Paige McKellan, Feral Attraction is a print anthology of Rachel’s Totem and Claiming Their Mate.

I’m very excited by this release! In fact, I was in my local Barnes & Noble store tonight and saw two copies in the romance section. I also handed out a bunch of bookmarks today earlier at an RWA chapter meeting. So far, so good.

Feral Attraction is the print version of Rachel’s Totem, an introduction into the odd little town of Cougar Falls, Montana. All manner of animals roam in and around the town. But not all the animals are normal. Many are Ac-taw, shapeshifters who live in the town. One such member, a mountain lion shifter named Burke, meets his match when Rachel comes to town. The cat wants to play, but Rachel’s through with “pretty boys,” until she realizes that Burke is much more than a pretty face.

Are you ready for a bite of something hot? Then click here to read more…

Warning: Contains explicit sex, graphic language, stubborn men, independent women, ménage a trois, growling and red hot romance between shifters in love.

The Death of Vanilla?

I wanted to come up with something interesting for my post. Being a romance writer, my thoughts immediately centered on love, affection, and let’s say it—sex. I favor books that capture the physical essence of a relationship as well as the emotional one, and I’m not afraid to admit it.

Taking Off the Gloves

You’ve heard the term “kid gloves.” Well folks, I’m taking them off. I’m both fascinated and frustrated by the “educated” people in society who continue to put down my favorite form of literary entertainment. The romance book.

Once termed “bodice ripper,” yesterday’s romance used to embody the stereotypical hero saves heroine happily-ever-after book. Hell, I cut my teeth on Johanna Lindsey and Kathleen Woodiwiss. I remember the heroine crying “no no” while the hero persuaded her to scream “yes yes.” In the twenty plus years since I’ve been a loyal reader, romance has undergone major changes, following society’s lead. Women are no longer burning bras or looking for white knights to save them.