Samhain Publishing Ltd. Weblog

Lest We Forget

As a writer, I know the value of words. How words have the ability to take us places we’ve never been before—to share laughter and bring respite during times of sadness and pain. Some words help us remember.

In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
———-

I’m too young to remember the effects of the World Wars. Too far separated from the current situations still waging to have personal experience. But I’ve heard stories—my father describing was it was like to live in a prisoner of war camp as a child in Indonesian. The gentlemen in the nursing home I volunteer at with my children sharing tales . From the Samhain authors, I’ve read stories by Denise Agnew and Elle Kennedy about military men and women—doing what needs to be done.

The words make me think. Make me wonder. Make me grateful.

Whatever your stand, or your memories of war, there are things we shouldn’t forget. Today as we stand in remembrance for two minutes of silence, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month…there are still people fighting for our lives. For our rights. For our happiness.

Maybe it’s you. If so, thank you.
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Vivian Arend is spending time today with family, and remembering.
website

Arwhoooooooo

Have you ever heard it? It’s powerful enough to send shivers down your spine, even months later.

A wolf call.

Some claim it’s a lonely sound, but there’s a passion and fire it in, no matter how frigid the night. And when the stars are blazing in a northern winter sky, the fading echoes make you need a double shot of something bracing in your hot chocolate as you sit on the porch, wrapped up against the cold.

Welcome back to the North. Welcome back to Granite Lake.

Book two in the Granite Lake Wolves, Wolf Flight, releases today. I hope you enjoy an excursion to Alaska and the Yukon.

They’re calling you…

————-

An untriggered werewolf. A runaway Omega. It’s not easy fighting destiny.

Warning: Contains nasty Alphas, secret Omegas and werewolves acting raunchy on the dance floor. Sarcasm, wilderness cabins, and hot nookie back by popular demand.

————-
Vivian Arend is still surprised that the wolves popped off the snowy slopes onto the written page. You can visit her website for more information about the wolfies, and a fun contest.

A TIDAL WAVE of Trouble

I am very excited to have my second sexy shifter story release today. (Say that five times fast!!)

Love shifters? Come try a variation on the theme and slip into some summer fun.

Slippery when wet…

Forces of Nature, Book 1

From her first kiss to her first sight of dolphins dancing on the waves, Alexia Colten has always held a special place in her heart for Jaffrey’s Cove. Now that she’s back to help her grandmother settle into a home, she discovers this place has lost none of its remembered magic. In fact, it seems more magical than before—and more erotic.

After she’s gifted with a beautiful, dolphin-etched medallion, she finds herself surrounded by the golden boys of summers past. Her body is filled with longings she can’t explain and dreams of blue lights that turn into lovers.

Joshua Marley and his cousin Anthony are merfolk, a people capable of living beneath the waves as either dolphin or human. Alexia holds the medallion that marks her as the next in line to lead their people—if she can prove she can transform. Working in tandem, they’re sure they can arouse her passion and protect her from those who would use her simply to gain power.

But their strength alone may not be enough to help her face the challenge of her new position…

Warning: This title contains a conniving granny, naked men in the surf and shifters who take fun in the water to new depths. Snorkels not required.

Vivian Arend
Where Dreams Become Reality
http://vivarend.blogspot.com/

First Impressions

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…- Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (1812 – 1870)

Call me Ishmael. – Herman Melville, Moby-Dick (1851)

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. – Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (1813)

Familiar? These are the first lines from some of the world’s best-known stories. We’re always told we have only one chance to make a good first impression, and there’s so much truth in that statement.

Leah Braemel and I have decided to do a two-part blog post. Today, I’m taking a look at first lines from some of the offerings from Samhain. I’ve expanded it to be the first line+, but the concept is the same. Tomorrow Leah will give us the final word from authors.

From the ten stories listed here, how many first lines can you match with the Author/book? Before you go surfing!

Come again?

The waiter simply didn’t hear me. But his question had me suffering as I fought to keep a straight face.

I cast all blame firmly at my father’s feet. It’s his fault I can’t have a normal conversation without the dire urge to burst into giggles. He’s the reason my eyes always stop on the one combination of written words that spell disaster for me being able to keep a straight face. Genetically, I suppose I was doomed from the start, but adding in my early conditioning around the dinner table means there is no escaping my current fate.

Puns and sarcasm. They’re killing me.

When the Wolves Come Calling

In early winter 2008, I read way too many werewolves novels. Enough of them I began to dream about wolves and hear them calling, not a completely unheard of sound for me with the many wilderness locations my family has lived and visited over the years. Suddenly the thought popped into my head- how cool would it be if someone who couldn’t hear sudden discovered they had regained the ability in a very special and intimate manner- with a werewolf mate.

The second thought following quickly was something to the effect of ‘I bet explaining about werewolves to someone when you can’t speak to each other in the first place would be exciting.’ (OMG, can you imagine the confusion?)

And Wolf Signs was born.

The First Time

Back in high school I sat in the front seat of a truck with the guy, the one who made my face hot and everything else shivery. I still remember the sensation that shot through me as his fingers reached, oh so casually, to touch mine.

I couldn’t breath, my stomach did back flips and I’d never been happier in my life.

I love the intoxicating sensations that are uncontrollable, like the pins and needles you feel when a limb falls asleep and slowly wakes up. The erratic thumping of my heart when something occurs that thrills me. The tingly fingers that trace up my spine when I try a new activity, the hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach when I’m “good-scared”. All physical reactions to one thing. Adrenaline.

I’m an adrenaline junkie.