Aphrodisia Authors :: Blog

I apologize for not being able to post in awhile, but have been more busy over the last few months than I’d foreseen. But I do have news to share today and this of the release of my latest novel. The title is The Story of Odette: the Swanmaiden’s Unveiling.  Here is some info and I’ll provide an excerpt, too.

It began as a short story in the anthology Sexy Beast VI from Kensington Aphrodisia and continues with The Story of Odette: the Swanmaiden’s Unveiling.

As the swanmaiden’s daughter, Odette was orphaned at a young age when the forces of Charles Martel laid siege to her village and tribe. She was left helpless to the whims of a vengeful half-sister, Vanda. Some years later, however, Odette’s fortune changed when Vanda’s sympathetic husband escorted her into the refuge of fabled Athla. It is a realm sacred to the gods, where only a few mortals are allowed entrance — and the power-hungry Vanda is not among them.

Odette now finds the acceptance and love she’s always craved, and upon entering adulthood she is also educated in Athla’s sacred disciplines of passion and surrender. Unknown to Odette, however, Vanda has pledged her aid to the vampire priests of Loki, who want the swanmaiden’s daughter to sacrifice to their deity. To this dark end Vanda recruits a handsome soldier named Cu’lugh to enter Athla’s borders and bring Odette back. Cu’lugh sets off to Athla, ignorant of Vanda’s true motives and the dire fate intended for his quarry.

But what neither the vampires nor Vanda know is that Loki seeks more than a mere sacrifice. This father of lies and chaos awaits release from his ancient prison and to exact revenge on the gods who confined him there. Killing Odette is only the first step in Loki’s malevolent agenda — to destroy hope, happiness and love forever in the world of mankind.

EXCERPT

She heard someone enter the house and soon she heard Holbarki speaking with another man. She figured it must be one of his light elf friends he was expecting. They could come and go freely in Athla and their artists had a penchant for Athlan trinkets, which, obviously, Holbarki could supply easily enough.

Two silhouettes approached from the front of the room.

“My finest stirrups are on a table in the back,” she heard Holbarki say, “in front of the tapestries.”

She watched as the merchant stepped out of sight and the other figure advanced. It was a man, so focused in his purpose he seemed unaware of everything else. An Outer Realm soldier, she guessed by his worn boots and scuffed scale mail and the much-used scabbard at his back. He was sweaty and unshaven, his mustache thick and dark as his short hair. He was stalwart but not overly tall, and his neck was thick but smoothly attractive under the stubbled chin. Evidently weary from travel he showed none of the eagerness most visitors to Athla came in with, nor the satisfaction of having prevailed against the hardships of the Wasteland to enter the fabled borders. No, this Outer Realmer’s demeanor was like none she’d ever beheld before. She could not read the look but she was sure of it, so glaring was it behind his weariness.

As if this were but a stop on some journey he’d rather have over, Odette thought.

The warrior’s almond-shaped eyes glittered like dark coals as he examined the stirrups displayed; his face was grim, preoccupied. Odette breathed shallowly, hoping he would find whatever it was he needed and go away. The elf girl’s attentions had been one thing; she did not want to endure a man’s touch without the protection of Lord Eryan or one of the stewards she knew.

For several minutes he browsed through the collection, his tanned brow creased; and even in her frightened impatience Odette could not take her eyes from him. He was different from the men of Athla with the animal-like energy that radiated from his very being. Not even the Athlan soldiers exuded such an aura of raw power . . . and it stirred something very deep in her sex that bade her to plead for but one glance from his beautiful eyes.

She chastised herself silently. Certainly, she should be glad this Outer Realm warrior had other concerns. Surely, he was no more than a barbarian who had stumbled out of the Wastelands and been allowed to enter the borders simply because of his personal tolerance, not because he’d quested to find Athla. Otherwise, she told herself, he would be overjoyed to be in the realm and probably already have his own serving girl on a chain by his side.

But her sex was wet and throbbing. She closed her eyes and tried to think of nothing as she waited for him to leave.

Holbarki’s voice piped close by. “Find what you need, good sir?” Odette heard the man mumble something indistinct and the merchant went on. “You have come to the right place. Unlike many merchants in this realm I understand the practical needs of the Midgardians. You need something, I will do my utmost to make it available hastily. You do not need to dally about while I craft the thing from raw materials or imbue it with magical incantations or artistic fancies.”

“No?” The soldier sounded bored, and Odette opened her eyes just enough to peek out and saw the dissatisfaction on his face.

“My own mother is from the Outer Realm,” Holbarki explained. “She told me time and again the more commonsense habits of her people as compared to the Athlan folk. With their lax lifestyles, they have no conception of necessity. The blacksmiths, for example, save you be one of the street sentries or a member of the army or royal guard, would put you on a waiting list.”

The soldier’s mouth turned up in a smile. “Well, perhaps your king pays highly to promote such an enthusiasm to join his army.”

Holbarki laughed overmuch, and by the hardening of the soldier’s smile Odette knew he saw clear through the merchant’s ingratiating polish.

“I am sorry, but I do not find . . . what I need. Where may I find the closest ironworks?”

Holbarki darkened, but his gloss did not fade. “There is Reir and his son, just down the avenue, the red stone house.” Seeing the soldier nod he added, “I see by the fashion of your mail you favor Celtic work. I have just a few days ago received a cargo of horse blankets from friends in Brittany you may be interested in.”

The soldier’s brows rose. “Celt? From which tribe?”

“A tribe friendly with the Frisians, who give them aid against Boniface’s crusading monks.”

The soldier’s face grew thoughtful again. He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced about, and in that moment he discovered Odette. At once his somberness fled. A heated, almost dazed smile softened his mouth and he gazed at her with an intensity that made her tremble. She lowered her eyes instantly, and as she endured the blush that scorched her entire face she prayed he would look away again.

Instead, he walked over to the trestle and raised his fingertips to the ends of her hair over her left shoulder. Her heart beat so rapidly that her ears rang.

“I was shocked—pleasantly, that is—when I entered your realm and found the women running about unencumbered by wasteful apparel,” he said to Holbarki, “and when the guide who led me in explained that this is custom, well, I thought for a few moments I had passed into the realm of the fey.”

Odette felt stifled with heat as his dark eyes canvassed her flesh. And though she sought to turn her face away, those same penetrating eyes drained her will.

“She is quite real, as are all our lovelies,” said Holbarki. “However, this little flower has been displayed for viewing pleasure alone. She belongs to Mistress Helrose, one of our most esteemed priestesses, and has not yet been Unveiled.”

The soldier threw him a questioning glance. “Unveiled?”

Excerpt from The Story of Odette: the Swanmaiden’s Unveiling

©2012 by Anya Howard

This novel is available in an Amazon Kindle edition. For more information about the book and the prelude story in Sexy Beast VI visit  http://anyahoward.com/

Have a great weekend!

~Anya Howard

So, I’m signing my new book later today at Borders Bookstore in Los Gatos, California. If you’re in the are, come visit!

I’m so excited about this book, I can’t even contain it. It is, hands down, my favorite book I’ve written to date, so…here’s a little squee and all the info and excerpts I can throw at you!

The biological warfare of the twenty-first century changed the planet in astonishing ways, transforming humans into shape-shifters who love to walk on the wild side—reveling in danger and the explosive desire that consumes them…

Half-human, half-lynx, Delilah Chase makes her living as a professional thief. But when half-human, half-hawk Hunter Avery catches her trying to steal his priceless ruby, he makes her a proposition: spend a week in his bed, or take a trip to jail. What follows is seven days of unrelenting, primitive passion neither can live without…

As the owner of Tail, the most notorious techno brothel in New Chicago, mink-shifter Lorelei Chase specializes in fulfilling all of her clients’ kinky fantasies. She just has one rule: Never sample the goods that her customers or workers offer. But every day, jaguar-shifter Nolan Angelo and wolf-shifter Pierce Vaughn tempt her to break that rule—until she ultimately gives in to a burning lust that knows no control…

Places to buy it: Amazon.com · Barnes & Noble · Chapters.ca · Borders · Books-A-Million · Kensington · Indiebound · Powell’s Books

EXCERPT from UNTAMED…

Delilah Chase perched on the corner of the building, her hand braced on the ledge in front of her as she swept her gaze over the city below. From ninety stories up, it looked clean, beautiful, an ocean of multicolored lights against pure ebony.

But Delilah knew the truth. Up close, it was gritty, dirty, and dangerous. A place where someone like her flourished.

She grinned and let the adrenaline humming through her body take over. Her claws slid forward, scraping against the slick metal ledge. She ran her tongue down a long fang, her smile widening. It was always this way when she was on a job. Half cool, calm professionalism, half unadulterated thrill seeking.

Schooling herself to patience, she tilted her wrist and checked her chrono. A few more minutes and the virus she’d seduced a young computer techie into feeding into the building’s security system would kick in. She’d have a quarter of an hour to get in, steal the priceless ruby her client wanted, and get out again.

Kitten’s play, this job.

Still, every case had its risks, and the moment a thief got too cocky was the moment they slipped up. If all went well, by the end of the night, multi-trillonaire Hunter Avery would be missing a gem and Delilah would have a sizeable commission in her encrypted cred account. So, things had better go well. She gauged the distance between the skyrise she stood on and the one she needed to break into. Tricky, very tricky. Timing was everything. The lynx within her purred at the challenge.

This was going to be fun.

Balconies circled the entire penthouse. Not surprising a family of red-tailed hawks would build the glass and mercurite sanctuary for themselves in the middle of the city. High enough they couldn’t see the grime of the real people below.

The newsvids had reported on every aspect of the Avery family’s lives for as long as she’d been alive. Their fortune was one of the few to survive the Third Great War, which made them newsvid darlings, beautiful people in an ugly world.

Delilah had heard all about it when Hunter’s parents were killed in a tragic industrial accident. A few years after that, Hunter’s uncle died, and Hunter had all but disappeared from public view. The buzz on the street whispered that Hunter had done the killing himself, his mind twisted from seeing his parents’ death. A bitter little smile curled Delilah’s lips. Figures that he’d get away with murder. The rich always did.

Now, Hunter was practically a recluse in his tower penthouse, only allowing a trusted few in for business purposes, and only leaving for a few business meetings or high-society parties a year. Which meant conning her way in wouldn’t work, so breaking in was her best option. Her client said Avery was in Los Angeles at a board meeting and wouldn’t be home until the next day. Her intel had confirmed it, so tonight was the night to get what her client wanted.

If a tiny part of her was curious to see the inside of the Averys’ ivory tower, and got a malicious thrill from stealing from the richest man alive, she’d never admit it to anyone else.

Her chrono vibrated against her wrist, letting her know the window of opportunity had opened. Reaching behind her she pulled her grappler gun out of her knapsack, aimed it at the balcony railing and fired. A gossamer-thin strand of mercurite shot from each end forward to form molecular bonds with the railings on both buildings. She flipped a setting so the grappler would move along the wire. Taking a breath, she said a quick prayer that the virus worked and she wasn’t about to get fried by the security field that electrocuted any unauthorized life forms attempting to enter.

Then she tightened her grip on the grappler, jumped, and let gravity carry her down the wire with a soundless rush of speed and wind. Her heightened vision took in every detail as she went. So, she knew the exact moment something started to go wrong. The mercurite was designed to dissolve after one use. It left no evidence behind. The wind was especially intense this evening and she might just reach the end of that one use before she reached the other building.

Shit, shit, shit.

Heart pounding so loud in her ears it drowned out everything else, she tilted her feet forward and hoped for greater speed. Tensing every muscle as she hit the perfect spot in her downward flight, she kicked her legs hard. She swung up and around the wire, launching herself into the sky. The cable slackened and she knew it was no more than silver powder beneath her. She twisted midair, flipping until she landed lighter than a cat’s paw on the edge of the railing. Triumph rushed through her, making her grin. Perfect.

She loved it when a plan came together. Almost as much as she loved it when the plans went awry and she had to think on her feet. It was why she was the very best at what she did.

Last time I was here I talked about how I’d never planned to write a series, yet somehow I ended up with connected stories. Well, today I want to show off the cover for my June release MOST WANTED, and give you an excerpt.

First off, why is this connected to what I said about series’? Because MOST WANTED is a singll author anthology with three novellas, and each novella is a sequel to one of my other Aphrodisia stories.

Yep, readers kept asking about them, so the characters got more stories. See the power you readers have?

Check it out.

Bad boys—they’re the best lovers around. Submit to the pleasure of their dark and dangerous passions…

“Hidden Cravings”
PI Lexy Signorino has spent the last year trying to forget her insatiable desire for Devon Kaye’s rock hard body. But when he turns up one night asking her to help him find his missing cousin, she’s ready to surrender to sweet sensual satisfaction…

Lexy and Devon from THE CRIB in the Pure Sex anthology are together again in HIDDEN CRAVINGS.

“Unrestricted Access”
Jillian Furst has lusted after detective Jackson Barrows long enough and decides it’s time for some female seduction. She sends him flowers and a steamy letter with explicit instructions for a sexual fantasy that keeps them busy in bed all night long…

Detective Jackson Barrows watched his partner fall for a thief in SEX AS A WEAPON in The Cop anthology, and in UNRESTRICTED ACCESS, he does some falling of his own.

“No Angel”
Anna Blair looks sweet and innocent, but playboy Gabriel Mann discovers she’s far from it. Mess with her and she’ll mess right back. And that’s just the way he likes it—down and dirty carnal pleasure that keeps him coming back for more…

NO ANGEL continues Sasha’s paranormal Hunter series with Gabriel Mann, the work hard-play harder younger brother of Caleb Mann from SEXY DEVIL, and demon hunter Anna Blair

The funny thing about this anthology for me was that the two stories I thought about the most before writing them, were the ones I had the most trouble with. I think I just wanted tothem to be so good, and I’d waited so long to writ them that I put too much pressure on myself. The third story NO ANGEL, well, it was pure fun to write. In fact, that novella took less than three days to write. It just flowed, straight from my fingertips onto the page, and I laughed out loud a few times while writing it. It’s certainly not one I thought would be easy, and humor is never been my strong suit, but these two characters and I had fun. So I want to share with you one of my favorite scenes.

Below the break is an unedited excerpt from NO ANGEL, in the MOST WANTED anthology. It’s a sex scene, so be ware of explicit content. *grin*. I hope you enjoy!
Read the rest of this entry »

Hi everyone! Since my next release comes out in about a month, I thought I’d use my blogging opportunity to tell you a little about the book.

For those of you who have read Ceremony of Seduction, you won’t be surprised by any of this.

Vision of Seduction is book two of the trilogy and revolves around Katelyn (the Seer) and Prince Grayson.

For those of you who have absolutely no clue what I’m talking about – read on!

Blurb:

Katelyn Hunt is fascinated with the sexy stranger who has been hanging out at her New Age store for the last week. As a Seer, the sensual power she feels from this man of mystery intrigues—and arouses—her. But only his touch allows her to truly see what it would be like to lie beneath him naked and exposed, experiencing complete sexual surrender. And this vision is just the beginning…

As Prince of an otherworldly clan who use sexual energy as their life-force, Grayson de Klatch has searched far and wide for the Seer who can help save his planet. And when he finally finds Katelyn, he knows he has discovered his future mate. His body craves the sex her body so willingly offers and he aches with the need to make this woman his own…

What the Reviewers are saying:

“Deliciously wicked and sexy–intensely satisfying!” –Cheyenne McCray

“Scorching hot sex scenes leave nothing to the imagination.” –Romantic Times – 4 Stars

Enough already – show me the excerpt: **Warning, due to word choice, this excerpt is R-rated. Although in relation to the rest of the book – it’s pretty PG13…

Misty fog drifted around Katelyn’s ankles, even as she recognized the vision for what it was. Twenty-three years of experience made it almost impossible for her to mistake a vision for anything else.

Yet, this one was more vivid than usual—less déjà vu, and more current somehow. She couldn’t pinpoint the differences, but she knew.

The air was heavy with water and ripe with the scents of plants and earth. Katelyn couldn’t see anything past the mist even though the sun warmed her and shined off the soft green grass under her bare toes. From the smells, this place reminded her of the beautiful grassy meadow in her last vision.

“Good morning, Katelyn.”

The deep bass rumble that made her name sound like an exotic delicacy, startled her and she turned toward the voice.

Grayson emerged out of the mist looking much as he had when she’d first seen him walk into her shop. A plain black T-shirt stretched over broad shoulders, which veed down to a tapered waist. Tight jeans molded over muscular thighs before covering the tops of well-worn black cowboy boots.

His dark hair gleamed with amber highlights in the sunlight. He’d pulled it back into a simple ponytail. It looked soft and satiny, and her fingers literally itched to reach out and touch.

Grayson’s chiseled jaw and sensual lips would be enough to make him handsome, but those eyes the color of deep melted amethysts made him breathtaking.

Unease skittered along Katelyn’s spine as images of the battle inside her shop flooded back.
Shit! Did that actually happen?

It must’ve been another vision. Yet, it hadn’t felt like a vision, but something that actually occurred. And why would she vision something so bizarre when all her visions usually came true in some form?

A sinking sensation churned deep inside her belly and she concentrated, attempting to crystallize the images inside her mind’s eye.

Try as she might, she couldn’t remember anything past the blue beam that slammed into her chest like a sledgehammer. When the vivid memory of the pain searing into her chest made her wince, she knew she hadn’t imagined the attack.

Katelyn squeezed her eyes shut trying to block out the memory. Somehow, when the sizzling beam struck her, she had known if it didn’t stop draining her energy, she would die. She brought her hand to her chest, wincing as she touched the sore spot left by the beam.

“Am I dead?” Even in her vision, her voice sounded hoarse and unused.
Grayson’s deep chuckle vibrated through her. She longed to press her body flush against his and ask him to laugh or even speak, so she could see what those wonderful low rumbles would do to her in close proximity.

“No, far from dead, my beautiful Seer. Unconscious, or maybe even asleep, but not dead.” He stepped close, and Katelyn’s breath caught in her throat.

Heat and energy pulsed between them and every coherent thought fled her mind as she gave herself up to this vision.

“I’m glad you are all right. I have come to help you heal—to help heal us both, actually.” Grayson captured a strand of her hair and rubbed it between his thumb and first two fingers.
The innocent caress sent gooseflesh marching over her entire body followed by a tingling wave of heat just under her skin. A low moan escaped before she could stop it.

She nearly let her head fall back in surrender before his words, and not his actions filtered to the front of her awareness. “Are you a healer?” she asked. “Your energy is very powerful, but it doesn’t feel quite right for a healer.”

Grayson laughed, and once again, the beguiling sound roamed over her like a verbal caress. “No, my beautiful Seer. I’m no healer.” He traced a single callused finger over her bottom lip and she clenched her fists to keep from leaning into the light friction of his touch. “I’m a Klatch witch, an ancient line of otherworldly witches whose life force is sexual energy.”

It was Katelyn’s turn to laugh. “Wow, I’ll be happy to lend any help in that arena you might need. Although, unfortunately, I’m only human, and while sex is nice—stellar, if I’m lucky—I need rest and time to heal. That is, if I were sick or injured, which I’m not.”

He brushed his lips over hers, which left a pleasant buzzing sensation against her skin.
“You’re wrong, Seer. Healing doesn’t follow human rules here. And you’re still injured from the energy blast. Trust me.”

She stepped back.

“I don’t trust anyone,” she surprised herself by blurting out something she had thought to herself countless times before.

Grayson only smiled. “I know, my beautiful Seer. Then let me show you instead.” Before she could argue the point, he pulled her tight against him. He plunged his fingers into her hair while he captured her mouth with his.

Her hands found his chest, and her frantic mind sent her arms a signal to push him away, but her body betrayed her, and her fingers fisted in the soft cloth of his T-shirt. Heat sizzled between them and she felt like she would drown in the overwhelming sensations. Finally, his lips gentled against hers and she was able to step away from him. She swayed slightly, but locked her knees and stared him down. “What are you doing to me?”

Grayson didn’t state the obvious, but seemed to instinctively understand her real question. “Every Klatch has a special gift, and mine is to cause arousal in others. I can control it, but it comes very naturally, and most of the time, I don’t even realize I’m doing it.”

“It’s bad enough you’re a walking wet dream, but now you think you can cause magical arousal?” She slapped her hand over her mouth as she realized she’d said the words out loud.
Arousal, hell. So far he’s some sort of truth serum!

A pleased expression lit his already too-handsome features. “Not only have you shown more resistance to my inherent gift than any Klatch woman ever has, but you seem to have the same effect on me. No woman has ever affected me like this. Until you.”

Inside her mind, she laughed at the ridiculousness of his statement. He thought she’d shown resistance? Hell, if Ethel hadn’t interrupted, she might’ve backed him up against her display case and taken advantage of him right there.

Besides, he was delusional. He had to be. She’d never encountered any type of magick or energy that would do what he described. It sounded more like a case of male ego, and less like an “inherent gift.” Katelyn held up her hand stop sign fashion. “On demand arousal. Right. I don’t buy it.” She fisted her hands on her hips and glared up at him. “Hit me with your best shot, Mr.-Goddess’s-Gift-to-Womankind. Show me this ‘inherent gift.’”

Grayson sighed as if disappointed in her lack of belief. “You’re a very stubborn woman, Seer. Please remember that you specifically asked for this demonstration.” He shrugged. “Although it will help you heal, so I suppose it can’t hurt.”

She snorted. “You have no idea how stubborn I can be.” Katelyn held her arms wide as if making herself a bigger target. “Bring it on, stud.”

Grayson never moved, but a wave of his energy surrounded her and her entire body burned with desire.

Her breasts ached almost painfully.

Her pussy throbbed with need.

Even her skin felt like it might explode if she didn’t have Grayson inside her.

Katelyn wanted hot, kinky, explosive sex, and she wanted it now.

She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, drawing in lungfulls of air as she battled against her urges and desires.

Katelyn pictured a shield made of pure white light that surrounded her body and blocked his energy.

Immediately, the assault lessened, but didn’t stop. Apparently, even her strongest shields couldn’t totally protect her. He hadn’t been kidding about his “gift.”

“Enough.” The word slipped from her lips with effort, and she hoped Grayson heard it over the pounding of blood inside her head.

Just as quickly as the desire began, it stopped, as if Grayson had flipped a switch.

Katelyn locked her knees, fisted her hands, and screwed her eyes shut tight. She refused to crumple to the ground with relief like she wanted to.

When her heart had slowed enough that she was sure it wouldn’t pound right out of her chest, she opened her eyes. She expected his expression to be smug. Instead, it was apologetic. He stood stock still as if afraid to come closer.

“Okay.” Katelyn sucked in a shaky breath. “Remind me not to ask for any future demonstrations from you.”