Welcome Deena Remiel and Relic

It’s not everyday I get to sit and talk with a powerful Brethren such as Raphael, so when he said he was available today I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. If you have additional questions for him, I will pass them along and he’ll get back to you with his answers. The main focus of our discussion today is all about the roles the Brethren have and how they came to acquire them. So, let me begin with introductions.

Deena: Raphael, great to see you again. We have company with us during our conversation. These fine people are visitors to Jowanna’s Pimpin’ Reads Blog.

Raphael: Well, hello everyone!*smiles an easy grin* Deena, great to see you as always, and it’s a pleasure to be here.

Deena: “Being here” is what we’ve come to talk about actually, so let’s begin. How did you and the rest of the Brethren come to be here?

Raphael: Well, it’s rather complicated and simple at the same time, really. *sits himself down on the comfy couch next to Deena*

Deena: How so?

Raphael: You see, we manifested on earth during the ancient Gaul period, but we’ve actually been around since, well, nearly forever.

Deena: Lord, you don’t look a day over 36! *winks*

Raphael: Good genes. *chuckles* The thing is, we all had the same jobs in the Beyond, but we worked outside the realm of earth. Kind of like parallel existing worlds. We were always around, just not seen or heard. When we signed up and arrived here, these jobs took on a whole new set of dynamics. We have bodies now.

Deena: Yes, yes you do. Incredible bodies, I might add… *coughs*

Raphael: *laughs* We do like to keep fit. And we have to. Protectors are meant to do just that, protect the human race from evil. Warriors fight against evil. And the Saviors clean up the mess that is made by the clashing of Good and Evil, healing those on the brink of death, and saving countless souls from their miserable life. Our bodies must be in top condition, so we meditate and work out frequently.

Deena: Did you all show up here at the same time?

Raphael: No, Gabriel arrived on his own first. Then, a bunch of us showed up a few months later. I think it was Nathanael, Michael, and me. The rest came shortly thereafter.

Deena: So what do each of you specialize in?

Raphael: Michael is the best when it comes to protections and dismantling the toughest security systems. Gabriel is our information guru. He can find any tidbit of info on most anything or anyone. Nathanael’s amazing at tracking people.  Don’t tell Kemuel I said so, but I think he’s even better than him! And me, I bring people back from the brink of death. In reality, though, if we weren’t the best in our fields, we wouldn’t have been asked to spend the rest of our eternity here.

Deena: And how exactly do you all feel about that?

Raphael: *scratches head* Well, I’m okay with it, and most of us are. But Gabriel had a tough go of it and has returned to the Beyond a few times. But he’s happy here now.

Deena: Oh? What was his problem?

Raphael: He felt he couldn’t do his job properly because of the lack of knowledge and technology. But this last time he came, he was thrilled. I do believe he’s enjoying it here.

Deena: Are you guys assigned teams or do you mash it up?

Raphael: We definitely mash it up. As long as there’s representation from each group, we’re good. And many times we start out on a mission with a few of us and then end up with all of us coming together.

Deena: You’ve had something in your hand since you walked in. What’cha got there?

Raphael: Oh, this? I’ve got here in my hands a few fan packs of trading cards signed by Michael, me, and you, and magnetic business cards.

Deena: Are you saying you’re giving those away to some lucky readers here?

Raphael: Indeed I am! So, if you readers ask me a question and leave your email address, I will answer and put you in the running for one of these packs.

Deena: You’re so cool.

Raphael: You ain’t so bad yourself, lady. *winks* Even if you do put me through absolute Hell in Relic.

Deena: Ha ha ha! Yeah, but I gave you a great woman to share it with. *winks back*

Raphael: Shall we share our journey together with others now?

Deena: I think we should. Why don’t you tell everyone?

Raphael: All right. Hey, ladies! My book, RELIC, just released a couple of weeks ago. It’s on sale for only another few days for $0.99 at AMAZON. I gotta tell ya, it’s worth so much more, so grab it while you can!

Deena: Oh, geez! You’re not too full of yourself now are ya?

Raphael: *shrugs* What can I say? I’ve got a healthy dose of confidence.

Deena: *Rolls eyes* Come on! Let’s take a break while the folks ask questions, all right?

Raphael: Sounds good to me!

RELIC AND TRINITY ARE BOTH AVAILABLE FOR $0.99 ON AMAZON.COM. HERE ARE THEIR LINKS:

http://www.amazon.com/Relic-The-Brethren-Series-ebook/dp/B00722RJUI/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1327713624&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Trinity-The-Brethren-Series-ebook/dp/B004T3V8ZU/ref=pd_sim_kstore_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2

Raphael, a Brethren Savior, an angel with a forgotten past, has lost his power to heal and is on a self-imposed guilt trip to get it back. If he can’t, his tour of eternal duty as Brethren Savior will be revoked. On his journey, he winds up enmeshed in a web of attempted murder and resurrection, all thanks to a woman he’s only seen in a photograph and by chance on an Arizona desert hiking trail. 

Serena Sikes is a wanted woman. Desired by “undesirables” for a gift her brother gave her—a stolen relic with suspected healing powers. Hunted down in the Arizona desert and left for dead, she is found by none other than the angel who cannot heal. 

Raphael and Serena are inexorably bound together, for locked deep within the relic’s heart had lived the soul of his long lost wife. Now, it resides inside Serena. Evil lurks around every corner as Raphael tries to keep both Serena and his dead wife’s soul alive and lustful temptation at bay. 

Three souls bound together by an ancient relic, bound by a timeless gift, and bound by a love that is eternal

Leave a question for one of the brothers and you'll be entered to win an e-copy of Trinity. 

Leave a valid email address. 

No Dogs Allowed

What inspired you to write No Dogs Allowed?

What inspired me? To be honest my 'girls' challenged me. A couple of friends~ JoAnne Kenrick, Gracen Miller, and Deena Remiel (Check out their work!) all have 1Night Stand stories, and encouraged me to come to the 'dark-side' with them in the multi-author series. Another friend, Margie Hall helped me complete it by having a writing competition with me. (Sounds weird to some, but its a great motivator!) 

You seem to have a fascination with shifters, what started it?

This will be another weird answer to a normal seeming question! ^-^  As a child I was into the strange and unusual. I loved (and still do) horror movies, Dean Koontz and Stephen King books. Anything that went bump in the night. I was one of those bad kids that would stay up waiting for their parents to go to sleep so they could sneak out into the living room and watch things they weren't normally allowed like The Howling, Christine, and Carrie. That love of the strange and unusual carried over into adulthood. If books are escapes, then why read something about the everyday?

Did you research the Xolo before writing the book?

I actually knew about Xolos from helping my (at the time 8 year old) daughter with an assignment, which is why I chose that. xD But I did do more research into them before completing No Dogs Allowed.They have a really interesting history, and I thought they should be brought to the public's eye, so to speak. A breed that is so ugly its cute, that has an interesting and proud heritage. Besides what a great thing for a character to have to deal with huh? ;) 

Raphael is ultra sexy on your book cover, who designed it?

I really lucked out, to be honest. I got the same designer for both my covers~ Mina Carter. She's so talented at bringing heat to a cover! ^-^ 

Do you know the models name? 

*hangs head* Sadly I don't but I wouldn't mind knowing Raphs name! ^-^ He's a hawtie!

What advise do you have for other authors?
Honestly? Don't give up! If you can only think about writing then write! But ALWAYS keep an open mind and listen to your editors. They're there to help you make your story better. And learn how to self edit, that's a huge part of getting accepted. Take out as many 'bad' words as possible~ was, said, then; watch out for too many words that end in ly; and watch your tense changes and head hops.~ Those are all biggies. 

Kenya. She hadn’t counted on a hotel full of dogs giving her sneezing fits anytime she leaves her room. How can she get in relaxation, or even meet a guy when every one she encounters brings on an allergy attack? 

Desperate and blotchy, she decides to try 1Night Stand. Maybe Madame Eve can set her up with a man who will knock her socks off before she knocks him off his feet? Or at least one she can date without taking a Benadryl. 

Kenya finds herself blown away, in a different way, by handsome, charming, explosively sexy Raphael. But they are worse than apples and oranges—they are cat and dog, a huge problem any day of the week, even if she wasn’t allergic to his type

Nicole is giving away a copy of her first book Snow Heat.  
Must be a GFC and Network Blog Follower
Leave a comment about your perfect 1NS and a valid email address
This is an e-book
Open Internationally

Coming out January 31, 2012

Third Grave Dead Ahead

by Darynda Jones

Charley Davidson—grim reaper extraordinaire, private investigator . . . meh—is practicing her profession under the influence, caffeine and copious amounts of it, due to an extreme desire to induce insomnia. Every time she closes her eyes, Reyes Farrow, the part-human, part-supermodel son of Satan, is there. Only thing is, he’s a tad peeved. She did bind for all eternity, so it’s hard blame him. But 13 days without a wink is bound to bring out the crazy in a girl. So, when a man hires her to find his wife, Charley accepts the job with one goal in mind: Put the man behind bars, and not the wet kind. She can sense the guilt waft off him and vows to find the woman’s body and prove he’s a murderer. 

In the meantime, Reyes is back in prison and none too happy about it . . . so Charley thinks, until she is carjacked by the dark-haired rake, who swears the very man he went to prison for killing is not only alive, but close by. And he wants Charley to find him. 

While a visit to her old friend Rocket sheds no light on Reyes’s situation, Charley finds out the man’s wife is still alive and time is running out. Finding her before she dies would be a miracle, but she has to try. Together with the help of a fashion-impaired receptionist named Cookie, Charley sets out to bring the bad guys to justice. She just hopes Reyes is not one of them. And that she’s not hallucinating from her self-induced bout with insomnia
Click HERE for my last interview with REYES

Winner of the 2009 Golden Heart® for Best Paranormal Romance for her manuscript FIRST GRAVE ON THE RIGHT, Darynda was born spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. After the Golden Heart final, she pimped herself as best she could, landed an amazing agent and sold to St. Martin's Press in a three-book deal. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, aka the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com

Don't forget Reyes by Pickyme. Love her work. You can find her on FB and on the web.
 www.pickymeartist.com

Welcome Cari Quinn

Sometimes short can be good!

Thank you so much for having me at Pimpin’ Reads today!

“Short” is one of those descriptions that gets a bad rap. A kid is too short to get on a ride. A movie is too short to get really involved in the story. The summer was too short! (Well, no arguing that one…) But sometimes short can be good. Forget good. It can be great!

The folks at Entangled Publishing were wise enough to see that and launched two new lines of novellas recently, Flirts and Ever Afters. My latest release, No Dress Required, is a Flirt and I think that sums up the story really well! It’s a tease, a light dessert when you’re not in the mood for a heavy, heartburn inducing meal.

So I thought I’d put together a short list – ha ha – of reasons why short can rock your world! Especially short books, because, well, I happen to have that aforementioned new release, No Dress Required. Awesome segue, right?

For me, when it comes to books, short means…

1)      They’re often more economical. My book budget has shrunk recently and 99 cent novellas (like No Dress Required)  really help me sate my reading fix!

2)      Just enough. Not too much so you overindulge, just a quick, tasty bite.

3)      You don’t need to set aside a large chunk of time to read. Because, seriously, who has time to spare nowadays? Snatch an hour and you’re good to go!

4)      You get to the yummy stuff faster. No wading through pages and pages trying to get to the best part of the book (oops, is that just me?)

5)      Contrary to popular belief, satisfaction sometimes comes in smaller packages. Just saying!

Not convinced? Check out No Dress Required’s page on the Entangled Publishing site, where you can read an excerpt of 

After years of ho-hum dating, Noelle Gregory is tired of fooling around. There’s only ever been one guy for her—Jake Conroy, her best friend’s older brother. Now that Jake’s back in town, she’s headed to his sister’s New Year’s Eve party to make her move. Purse full of condoms? Check. Sparkly dress guaranteed to show Jake the sexy woman she’s become? Check. 
Carjacker that makes off with both two hours before the party? Check. 
When Jake finds Noelle stranded on the side of the road—looking sexier than ever in her striped socks and silly holiday shirt, damn it—he’s glad for the snowstorm that cancels his sister’s party. His and Noelle’s friendship has tormented him for years, and now, Jake wonders if he should dare to sample what he’s always wanted…and if he’ll be able to walk away when it’s over

Chapter One for free! http://www.entangledpublishing.com/no-dress-required/

And then come back and answer a question to be entered into the drawing to win an e-book copy of No Dress Required: do you enjoy shorter books, why or why not? Or this question works too: do you own any holiday-themed shirts? (read No Dress Required for why I ask!)

Visit Cari Quinn at www.cariquinn.com 

Welcome Natalie Anderson

Pimpin' Reads is so excited to have USA Today best selling author

Natalie Anderson

When two frozen hearts collide…

Emma Reed closed her heart to love years ago after a lifetime spent getting kicked around foster homes and bad relationships. Now she’s on a mission to prove she deserves her recent award to paint a mural for a research base in Antarctica. Nothing and no one is going to get in her way.

After months working in recovery zones around the world, Hunter Wilson planned to escape everything this holiday season by rebuilding a lab at the Kiwi Research Base. Alone. No to family, no to fun. It’s isolation not intimacy he’s aching for. But when he sees the determined artist, that ache becomes an urge – after all, shouldn’t someone show her what two people can do with twenty-four hours of brilliant sunlight?

In the coldest place on earth, even the most frozen hearts can melt

Icy Inspiration by Natalie Anderson

So often writers are asked ‘where do you get your inspiration from?’. For me inspiration comes from different things for different aspects of the story and it’s characters. But I’ve lived down the road from my inspiration for the setting of MELT for years.

My home-town Christchurch, New Zealand, is known as ‘the gateway to the South’ – from here the big Hercules and Globemasters leave almost daily in summer, taking cargo, crew, scientists and support staff down to ‘the ice’ – Antarctica.

Out by the airport, there’s a big fenced compound – on the tarmac they lay out all the machinery and heavy equipment, shipping containers and fuel canisters they send down there. I’ve always loved ‘rubber-necking’ to see what they have sitting there waiting to go down.

Over the road from the compound is the headquarters for the New Zealand programme. The US also has an Antarctic operation based there as well. Alongside that is a tourist facility which promotes knowledge and interest in life and the work being done in Antarctica.

I love going to that attraction as much as the kids. They have lots of tiny Blue penguins – these are all rescued penguins, many have physical disabilities and would no longer survive in the wild. They’re extremely cute. There’s also a snow room in which you can experience a simulated storm with 40km winds – and there’s an ice slide to play on. You can ride on a Hagglund – an all-terrain vehicle (with tracks, like a tank, but smaller). In an around these experiences is a wealth of information about the first explorers, the wildlife, current life on the ice and conservation efforts.

Antarctica is the last ‘frontier’ – isolated, driest and coldest part of the world – and it has always intrigued me. Driving past the operations so many times got me thinking: what would happen if you put two emotionally isolated people down there together, would there be some kind of chemical reaction? You’ll have to find out in MELT!

Buy it from Amazon or Barnes & Noble

USA TODAY bestseller Natalie Anderson writes fun, frisky, feels-good contemporary romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon and Entangled. With twenty books published, she’s also been a Romantic Times Award nominee & a finalist for the R*BY (Romantic Book of the Year).

She lives in Christchurch, New Zealand with her husband, four children and what feels like a million ducks.

Find out more at her website www.natalie-anderson.com <http://www.natalie-anderson.com>

On Twitter @authornataliea

On Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/authornataliea

Picture caption: A Hagglund parked opposite the US Antarctic programme, Christchurch, New Zealand.