Tag: The Blades of the Rose

Guest Review: Scoundrel by Zoe Archer

Posted December 15, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 0 Comments

Kris‘ review of Scoundrel (Blades of the Rose, Book 2) by Zoe Archer

READY FOR ACTION…


London Harcourt’s father is bent on subjugating the world’s magic to British rule. But since London is a mere female, he hasn’t bothered to tell her so. He’s said only that he’s leading a voyage to the Greek isles. No matter, after a smothering marriage and three years of straitlaced widowhood, London jumps at the opportunity—unfortunately, right into the arms of Bennett Day.


RISKING IT ALL…


Bennett is a ladies’ man, when he’s not dodging lethal attacks to protect the powers of the ancients from men like London’s father. Sometimes, he’s a ladies’ man even when he is dodging them. But the minute he sees London he knows she will require his full attention. The woman is lovely, brilliant, and the only known speaker of a dialect of ancient Greek that holds the key to calling down the wrath of the gods. Bennett will be risking his life again—but around London, what really worries him is the danger to his heart…

This is the second book in the Blades of the Rose series (the first is Warrior). This book opened with London. She is the daughter of the head of the Heirs of Albion (the bad guys). Her secret passion is languages, but her father thinks that all women are weak and stupid and are in need of total guidance. Unknown to him she has become an expert in ancient languages. When he discovers it he decides he can use her for his own gain. Bennett is in Greece trying to uncover some information about the Heirs and runs into London but does not know who her family is. He is intrigued by her and meets with her again, still not knowing who she is.

By the time he finds out he is already drawn to her and is unsure of where she stands with her father. He kidnaps her and tells her about the Heirs and the Blades and what her father is trying to accomplish and then send her back to her father to make up her own mind about what to do. This is so outlandish to her she is not sure what to think. And she loves the fact that Bennett is willing to let her decide for her self, which her father would never let her do. But now that she knows she starts to see more signs and understand more of what she has been seeing and hearing all these years. She confronts her father and he tells her the truth, why he brought her along and that the Heirs need her help with a translation. She goes along with it wanting to believe in her father. Then Bennett shows up again to find out her decision, whether she wants to stay with her father or escape with Bennett.

This was another great action adventure romance. Lots of fun. London has been married but it was not a love match. She married because she was told to and it was her duty. Her husband saw her as a convenience and as a step toward more power in the Heirs. She meets Bennett and is drawn to his masculinity, his mind, his loyalty and his honor. He opens up a whole new world to her and she latches on with all she has. She loves the adventure and the ability to use the knowledge she has spent so long learning. She is a very loyal and strong woman, a great character.

Bennett is a master in seduction and in escapes. He loves his work with the Blades, it gives him purpose and a higher goal for his life. He is intrigued by London, she is his enemy’s daughter but she is so full of life and honor that he cannot help but be drawn to her. They light up each other, and the sheets, as they travel with two Greek companions and try to save the world from the Heirs getting a hold of another Source.

Their two companions were fun to watch as they bantered and refused to acknowledge that they were attracted to one another. It was a good secondary romance to watch unfold.

This book have a great storyline, is hot and lots of fun to read. Definitely recommend it to those who love a good adventure romance story.

I give this one a 4.5 out of 5

The series:
Warrior (Blades of the Rose)Scoundrel (The Blades of the Rose)Rebel (The Blades of the Rose)Stranger (The Blades of the Rose)

This book is available from Zebra. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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Excerpt: Stranger by Zoe Archer

Posted December 13, 2010 by Holly in Promotions | 0 Comments

Check out an excerpt from Stranger, book 4 in Zoe Archer’s Blades of the Rose series. Stranger is available now from Zebra.

____________________

The only thought careening through Catullus’ head as he flew through the air was, God, please let her be safe. Jumping off the top of speeding trains wasn’t something he did daily, but he had enough experience with it to feel confident about landing without being hurt. Gemma, however, was new to his world. She could be hurt. Or worse.

He hit the ground, pulling his arms in close to take the impact. Rolling, he tumbled down a low hill. He smothered a curse as he bounced over a rock, but then, mercifully, the hill ended and he came to rest in a ditch. He heard the distant sound of the train speeding away, but no Heirs in pursuit.

The Blades and Gemma had gotten away. For now, they were safe. Or maybe not.

His eyes opened to find himself staring up at a curious sheep. It stared at him with black, ovine eyes before trotting off with a bleat. Catullus took a bare moment to be sure that all his limbs were still functioning before sitting up. He looked around quickly, then his heart pitched.

Gemma lay on the ground, a few feet away. And she wasn’t moving.

He scrambled over to her, a litany of swearing tumbling from his lips. She lay on her back, one arm flung overhead, the other resting on her stomach. Tiny cuts and scrapes dotted her face and hands, and her hair had come down into a mass of copper waves.

He knew better than to try and move her right away, but he had to restrain himself from gathering her up in his arms.

“Gemma?”

No answer.

He said her name again, then bent low to her mouth, where, saints be praised, he felt the stirring of her breath. Gently taking up her wrist, he felt for her pulse, and it came steadily against his fingertips.

Catullus brushed strands of her satiny hair from her face. “Gemma?”

Then, she moaned softly, and her eyes flittered open. He thought he might shout with joy to have those sapphire eyes on him again.

“Catullus,” she whispered. “The Heirs?”

“Gone, for the moment.”

She blinked, coming back into herself, then tried to push herself upright.

“Careful. Don’t move. Are you hurt anywhere?”

She shook her head slightly, but the motion made her gaze unfocused. “Dizzy.”

“Rolling down a hill tends to do that to a person.” He felt anything but droll, however. “I’m checking you for injuries. Let me know if anything pains you.”

His hands moved over her, impersonal—or he tried to be. He tested her arms, her hands, and had his first true understanding of her slim, strong body. When he progressed to her feet and legs, he struggled to remain objective. This was simply a matter of field doctoring, the same as he’d done hundreds of times in his life for himself and other Blades.

Except it wasn’t. Gemma Murphy was not a Blade, and his body somehow knew the difference. He tested her slender ankles with gentle attention, trying like hell to dampen his reaction to her. “Does this hurt?”

“No.”

Her legs needed to be checked for breaks or sprains. Over the skirt, or under it? He had to be thorough. “I’m sorry, but—” His hands slid under her skirt to touch her calves.

Some mystic in India once taught Catullus special breathing techniques to help gather his thoughts, calm his mind and body when the world grew too present. Catullus drew upon every drop of that training to help him now.

Good God, she had gorgeous legs. He could not see them, but he could feel with a greater sensitivity. The muscles of her calf were sleek and lithe beneath the soft cotton knit of her stockings, not the calf of a leisured lady who reclined upon a chaise all day, but the kind that attested to an active life full of motion and purpose. And, damn him, if he didn’t find that unbearably arousing.

He wanted so badly to take his hands up further, over her knee, across her thighs to feel those muscles and the band of bare flesh above her stockings. But he could not. A violation.

He pulled his shaking hands away, and carefully smoothed down her skirts. “Try moving your legs.”

Her skirts rustled as she did this. He set his teeth against the sound.

She said, “They’re fine.”

“What about…your ribs? Are they bruised?”

She made to bring her hands up to feel them, but the movements were fitful as she struggled to regain her strength. “I don’t know.”

“May I?” He was a tongue-tied boy again, simple words stuttering in his mouth.

“Yes, please.”

So he levered himself beside her, and, at her nod, ran his hands along her sides. Her dress was worn thin, and he felt beneath the fabric the material of her corset, each individual lace and hook that constrained her body. It was a corset for traveling, lightly boned, so that he knew now, to his deep joy and dismay, that the curves of her waist were entirely hers and not the result of a corsetmaker’s art.

What he wouldn’t give to slide his hands up higher, cup those exquisite, full breasts in his hands. He had large hands, but she would spill from them with their abundance. He wanted to touch her so badly, his own breath sawed through him, louder than a steam engine.

“Does this hurt?” he asked, hoarse. Because it was hurting him.

Want a chance to win the full series? Check out Zoe’s guest post to find out how you can!

Stranger is available from Zebra. You can buy it here or here in e-format.

The series:
Warrior (Blades of the Rose)Scoundrel (The Blades of the Rose)Rebel (The Blades of the Rose)Stranger (The Blades of the Rose)


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Guest Author: Zoe Archer – How to Write a Back-To-Back Series

Posted December 13, 2010 by Holly in Giveaways, Promotions | 49 Comments

Today Zoe Archer is here to tell us how to write a back-to-back series. The fourth book in her Blades of the Rose series, Stranger, was just released from Zebra.

_______________

How to Write A Back-To-Back Series:
A primer in madness
By Zoë Archer

Step one: Write a book (in my case, WARRIOR) that could possibly be spun out into a series.  Agent submits book to sundry editors.  When one editor falls in love with the book and asks if this could be a series, emphatically say yes.  Tell her you envision it as a four-book series.  THE BLADES OF THE ROSE.

Step two: When editor expresses interest in releasing the books back-to-back, giggle excitedly.  Pinch yourself, because this moment has been a very long time coming.  When editor asks if you can write a full-length 100,000 word novel in four months, boldly declare that you can.  Sign the contract.  Celebrate with chocolate.

Step three: Realize that you have just committed to writing at least 300,000 words in the span of a year.  Wonder if you will have to be committed by the end of the year.  Shake off doubt and misgivings.  This is what you want, what other authors dream about.  

Step four: Write.

Step five: Write.

Step six: Keep writing.  Are you still writing?  Good.  Write on weekends.  Write at night.  Write, write, write.  Become addicted to caffeine for the first time in your life.

Step seven: Forget that you ever communicated with three dimensional people (except your husband and your cats).  Write.  Finish book, in my case, SCOUNDREL.  

Step eight: Repeat steps four through seven two more times. (REBEL, STRANGER) In the middle of this, also write a novella (“The Undying Heart” in HALF PAST DEAD).

Step nine: Turns out that, for scheduling purposes, your back-to-back series will be released a little later than initially thought.  Accept this calmly and rationally even though your social and hygiene skills vastly deteriorated over the course of writing three books (the last one clocking in at 120,000 words) in a single year.

Step ten: Wait.

Step eleven: More waiting.

Step twelve: Try to prevent a nervous breakdown whilst waiting for your reason for being to be released.  Write a sci-fi romance as a means of productively using the time (COLLISION COURSE, Carina Press, April 2011).

Step thirteen: Realize you actually only have a few months until the back-to-back series comes out and you’d better get with the promotion ASAP.  Send charming emails to bloggers hither and yon asking if they’d like review copies of your books, and charmingly ask if you can guest blog.  Be delighted when bloggers accept your offers.

Step fourteen: Realize that you now have four solid months of blogging and promotion to do, and all in the middle of writing a new book with a new deadline (the forthcoming HELLRAISERS series, Zebra, December 2011). Contemplate substance abuse.

Step fifteen: Blog your little heart out.  Blog until you can blog no more.  Embrace social media to the point where your spouse has to drag you away from your computer just so you’ll brush your teeth (on account of the deteriorating hygiene skills).  Make many, many trips to the post office to mail off prize copies of your books.  Become friendly with postal employees, to the point where they think you’re being a little too friendly.

Step sixteen: Look up and realize that all four books are now out.  Your dream has come true.

Step seventeen: For the love of God, take a shower.

Zoe has offered a full set of the series to one lucky reader. How do you feel about series that come out back-to-back? Do you like that better than waiting, or do you prefer it to be spread out? Leave a comment here answering the questions and you’ll be entered to win. Contest ends Friday 12/17 @ 11:59pm.

The series:
Warrior (Blades of the Rose)Scoundrel (The Blades of the Rose)Rebel (The Blades of the Rose)Stranger (The Blades of the Rose)


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Guest Review: Warrior by Zoe Archer

Posted December 13, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 0 Comments

Kris‘ review of Warrior (Blades of the Rose, Book 1) by Zoe Archer

IN HOT PURSUIT…

The vicious attack Capt. Gabriel Huntley witnesses in a dark alley sparks a chain of events that will take him to the ends of the Earth and beyond—where what is real and what is imagined become terribly confused. And frankly, Huntley couldn’t be more pleased. Intrigue, danger, and a beautiful woman in distress—just what he needs.

IN HOTTER WATER…

Raised thousands of miles from England, Thalia Burgess is no typical Victorian lady. A good thing, because a proper lady would have no hope of recovering the priceless magical artifact Thalia is after. Huntley’s assistance might come in handy, though she has to keep him in the dark. But this distractingly handsome soldier isn’t easy to deceive…

This book is a great historical adventure book with a good romance. The comparison that popped in my head as I was reading this was The Mummy. I loved that movie, action/adventure with a good romance. This story takes place mostly in Mongolia in 1874. I loved the unique location, I have not read many historical romances that take place outside of Britain, France or America.

The story begins with Gabriel Huntley, who is a soldier who is no longer soldiering and trying to find his place in the world outside of the army. On his way to the country for a promised job and possible wife, he comes across a man fighting for his life and losing. The man’s final words were a commission for Huntley to bring an object to a man in Mongolia. Huntley figures that that sounds like more fun than settling down and goes to Mongolia.

Thalia Burgess has spent most of her life in Mongolia. Her father is works there and has a good reputation for being respectful of the Mongols and their traditions. Huntley shows up on her doorstep with a object that is prized by the group that her father and the deceased man i nthe alley belong to called the Blades of the Rose. They are a group of men and women that protect powerful magical objects called Sources from falling into the hands of those who would abuse their powers. Of course there are bad guys. The main group of bad guys call themselves the Heirs of Albion and they are a group of wealthy Englishmen who want the power of the various Sources so that England will rule the world.

Thalia’s father has a problem though he is in no condition to go on the quest that has been given to him by the dying Blade member. So Thalia volunteers to go for him. She refuses Huntley offer to help, but Thalia being the independent heroine she is of course declines because she does not know him or need his help. Him being the helpful man he is ignores her and follows them to make sure they get there safely.

This was a great adventure romance story, i had a great time reading it. Thalia was a good strong heroine who still had room to grow and it was great to watch her character develop. Huntley is adrift until he find the Blades and then he gets a cause and a woman he could spend the rest of his life fighting for. I definitely recommend this book if you like adventure romances in unique locales.

Fun book. I give it a 4.25 out of 5

The series:
Warrior (Blades of the Rose)Scoundrel (The Blades of the Rose)Rebel (The Blades of the Rose)Stranger (The Blades of the Rose)

This book is available from Zebra. You can buy it here or here in e-format. Or buy the bundle here.


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Giveaway: Warrior by Zoe Archer

Posted October 4, 2010 by Holly in Giveaways | 27 Comments

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to meet Zoe Archer in person at one of our So Cal Blogger meets. She’s cute and funny and I really enjoyed getting to know her. In case you didn’t know, she has a new historical paranormal series out this fall. There just aren’t enough paranormal historicals available, IMO.

I especially love the premise here, because the novels don’t just take place in England. Warrior is set in Mongolia. Mongolia, y’all. How awesome is that?


Book Cover

To most people, the realm of magic is the stuff of nursery rhymes and dusty libraries. But for Capt. Gabriel Huntley, it’s become quite real and quite dangerous…

IN HOT PURSUIT…

The vicious attack Capt. Gabriel Huntley witnesses in a dark alley sparks a chain of events that will take him to the ends of the Earth and beyond—where what is real and what is imagined become terribly confused. And frankly, Huntley couldn’t be more pleased. Intrigue, danger, and a beautiful woman in distress—just what he needs.

IN HOTTER WATER…

Raised thousands of miles from England, Thalia Burgess is no typical Victorian lady. A good thing, because a proper lady would have no hope of recovering the priceless magical artifact Thalia is after. Huntley’s assistance might come in handy, though she has to keep him in the dark. But this distractingly handsome soldier isn’t easy to deceive…

Thanks to Zoe’s generosity, we’ve got an autographed copy of Warrior to give away. Are you interested in winning it? Tell us what appeals to you about the series, and we’ll throw your name in for it. Contest ends Oct 1, 2010 at 11:59 p.m.

All four books are being released this fall. Be sure to check them out as they’re released. Zoe will be back on the blog soon to talk about the series and to give away a full set!

Warrior (Blades of the Rose)Scoundrel (The Blades of the Rose)RebelStranger (The Blades of the Rose)


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