Fiona Jayde, you are my hero — I love, Love, LOVE this cover! Spoils of War, my new m/m novella, is all set to release at Noble Romance on Monday, October 18th.

Enslaved during the invasion of the rival King of Herra, Micah cut off his emotions and adapted to his new life in servitude. Xerxes, the Herran King, abuses his captive to keep the neighboring kingdom of Alekia under his yoke, but after Micah nearly dies when plague sweeps Herra, the Alekian King sends Eli to bring his beloved son home. Institutionalized by his slavery, unable to cope with his freedom, Micah seeks to please the new Master he’s found in Eli throughout their harrowing journey to a homeland he no longer remembers. Eli protects the young man and introduces Micah to the pleasures denied him as a prisoner.

Will Micah accept his noble birthright when they reach Alekia and more importantly, can he accept Eli as the devoted slave his father has given him rather than the Master he’s come to love?

And the book trailer:

You can also read an excerpt of Spoils of War by clicking on the My books tab above.

If you entered the Lovely Wicked Launch contest, check your email Monday to see if you’ve won. Haven’t entered? You aren’t too late! For your chance at lots of goodies (including $10 Noble promotional code, Lovely Wicked canvas tote bag & mug, and hello, chocolate — see my Fun & Free page for details), just subscribe to my newsletter (lower left corner of this page) and subscribe to Noble Romance’s newsletter here. That’s it! The winner will be drawn at random, notified and announced in my newsletter by the release of Spoils of War on Monday.

Two books (almost) down. One (Vampyr Chronicles: What Rough Beast) to go. With any kind of luck (and a lot of work), my m/m BDSM shifter story could release between now and What Rough Beast in January, too. Wow. The past couple months have been insane, but I wouldn’t have missed this ride for all the whole bean Columbian coffee in…Well, Columbia, I guess. Cause if you think I’m giving up the coffee in my kitchen, you’re even crazier than I am. 😉

Reviews? Are cool. AlexJouJou over at Manic Readers posted one today for Lovely Wicked that’s got me grinning and seriously considering blue raspberry martinis for dinner. Early dinner. As in three o’clock in the afternoon dinner. 😉

Atypical for the genre this is more than a ménage book with a little kink—it is an exploration of the resilience of individuals who rise above what they were to become what they want to be. Utterly authentic and compelling, read this when you want more than just a casual good read. Be prepared for a little shock, a whole lot of inspiration, and a different kind of Happily Ever After.

I likes.

You can read the rest of the review here by clicking on the review tab.

Book Junkie also reviewed Lovely Wicked here. “Erotic, sexy and passionate Lovely Wicked was simply addictive, raw and salacious, taking the reader by the heart and not letting go…”

Awesome.

In other happy news, I’ve had a bit more fun gathering goodies for both contests on my Fun & Free page. Instead of baskets, winners will receive a Lovely Wicked canvas bag stuffed with the list of goodies already noted + a Lovely Wicked coffee mug. Why the bag & mug? Because I wanted one and thought they looked cool so I ordered a couple more. (I am a promo slut.) So if you haven’t signed up for the newsletter to throw your name into the Lovely Wicked drawing, go for it! See details on the Fun & Free page.

With Vampyr Chronicles: What Rough Beast turned in, I’m back to work on fresh material. No title as yet (unless Kari’s Weird Shifter Book counts), but it’s a m/m BDSM paranormal I hope to finish by the end of October. I’m already 20,000+ words in and discussed it with one of my editors. Would be nice to get another book released before the end of the year, but we shall see. I’m still facing down 2 more book releases (Spoils of War on the 18th and Vampyr Chronicles: What Rough Beast 1/25/11). Life might get a little fruity, fruitier than usual even.

As in Blue Raspberry martini fruity.

Woo hoo!

I invested my weekend adding Kindle references to Vampyr Chronicles: What Rough Beast because A) I’m neurotic, and B)after falling in amorous lust with my K3, Kate owning one? Moral imperative.

Then, my Weres needed iPods. (Wouldn’t you like to see that playlist?)

And if the Weres had iPods, my vamps needed them, too.

And if the vamps had iPods, of course, they’d have iPhones and what well-dressed iPhone doesn’t have the FarmVille app?

Yeah, you read that right.

Vampires playing FarmVille.

Granted, I still think it’s hellaciously funny, but when a book’s due? It’s due. What Rough Beast is now with my editor and I can stop tormenting myself with visions of Luc halting the Vampyr Rebellion to harvest rhubarb or some other damn thing.

Leaving me in the enviable position of having nothing due. Nothing urgent, anyway. The cover and line edits for Spoils of War are on the horizon and I’ll be revisiting the same with my vamps in What Rough Beast at some point. But today? I have a scout recruitment meeting in an hour (if I find my car keys), but otherwise, nada.

Not having anything Due Immediately on my docket is way too weird.

Methinks I’ll plant rhubarb. FV fans, Luc is building his nursery barn — send nails. 😉

After a year plus of dragging my sorry behind, I finally settled on the Kindle 3 which was finally delivered a couple days ago. On Lovely Wicked‘s release day, actually — oh happy, happy day. With zero time to play, I headed directly to the Kindle store and after cursing at how it’s organized (who thought that mess was a good idea? hopped-up crack monkeys?), I downloaded a few new books. Ah, heaven.

Now? Brutal reality.

I have — no lie — hundreds of books loaded onto my laptop. Converting all those files and sending them to the Kindle? Nightmare. This is what I get for procrastinating on buying an ereader, though. I really didn’t want to do it. Thanks to the day job, I haul my laptop with me everywhere so for me, an ereader would just weigh my carryall down even more. (Like the thing doesn’t weigh more than I do already?) But holy cow, I love my Kindle. I can sprawl in unladylike abandon whilst reading again, woo hoo! No more squinting at the harsh lighting, too…It’s wonderful.

We may enter a new ice age before I find the time to load my laptop library into the blasted thing, though. And I suspect my organizational skills will make even the crack monkeys look good. 😉

Wow, I never thought this day would come. And at the same time, it came much too quickly. 🙂

Lovely Wicked releases today at Noble Romance. To celebrate, I’m offering two — count ’em, two — contests! I’ve been having loads of fun gathering goodies for gift baskets so click on the Fun & Free tab above for more information on entering both drawings. While you’re at it, why not sign up for my newsletter, too? I’ll begin drawing monthly random prizes for newsletter subscribers in October. And if you don’t win? Any reader can send an SASE to the address on my Fun & Free page for free bookmarks!

Otherwise…If you’re at www.goodreads.com, look for a free giveaway of Lovely Wicked. With three books to prep for release (not to mention working on a new 4th book), I’ve been a tad…over-extended. And frazzled. Once I’ve become re-acquainted with my family and I’ve produced a dinner that didn’t come out of a pizza box, I’ll see about lining up interviews and/or guest blogs.

Until then…Hope you like Lovely Wicked!

Mitch McAllister and Liv Winslow grew up in the same squalid trailer park, turning to each other for comfort as scared kids. When they meet there again while visiting their dysfunctional families as adults, Mitch and Liv escape the ghosts of their past in sexual excess. They ultimately include Mitch’s neighbor Sam Lawson in their giddy, extravagant play. It was only supposed to be sex: hot, dirty, spine-melting sex.

None of them wanted to fall in love. If life has taught Liv, Mitch and Sam anything, though, it’s that we don’t always get what we want. But if we’re very lucky, sometimes we get exactly what we need.

Look for Lovely Wicked at Noble Romance on September 20th!

…the mouse will play with book trailers. Well, okay, that isn’t quite how the saying goes, but I’m cruising on three hours’ sleep, work with me here. Yes, yes, my revisions will be done on time. Pinky swear promise. In the meantime, Lovely Wicked is coming out in three weeks so I also need to think about promoting that bad boy.

Are book trailers worth the time, effort and expense? Who the hell knows. Not me. They’re awesome fun to make, though. And they don’t have to cost a fortune (or a farthing) if you know a teeny bit about royalty free stock photos (which I do thanks to my freelance graphic design work), free software (I’m using Windows Live Movie Maker), and royalty-free music (which I learned about through writerly compadres). Granted, the learning curve might be steeper for people who aren’t at least advanced computer users or don’t have the graphic design background, but I pulled together the trailer for Spoils of Wars yesterday and did the trailer for Lovely Wicked today. A one-day per book investment? Not bad. Free isn’t too shabby, either, though I admit I intend to send Kevin MacLeod some moulah when I upload the trailers to the net. Not because I have to send incompetech.com money — I don’t. I want to, though, because his music? Is every conceivable level of awesome!

I don’t expect the trailers to sell my books, but given how speedily, cheaply and un-effort-ly (LOL) it is for me to make trailers, I think they’re a good choice regardless. Nice break from my revisions of Vampyr Chronicles: What Rough Beast so I can go back to it fresh, a fun extra for readers and who knows, it might just get my Who the Hell is Kari Gregg? name out there. 😀

Alas, I still have to insert my book covers into both trailers so I haven’t uploaded them yet. Which is just about killing me. I am absurdly looking forward to taking these trailers for a test drive. But unfortunately, What Rough Beast isn’t going to revise itself.

Look for both trailers soon!

A happy surprise for my weekend, both of my editors gave me the release dates for all three of my books.Noble Romance will release Lovely Wicked on September 20th and will release my novella, Spoils of War on October 18th; Loose Id will release Vampyr Chronicles: What Rough Beast on January 25th.

Look for excerpts and covers for each of the books as well as news on contests and freebies soon!

Dear God above, could I feel worse? Doubtful. Exceedingly doubtful. But you know what coming down with the flu means? Sick days. Entire hours away from my day job to sprawl in glorious, unladylike abandon in my comfy bed. Now, to normal people, I guess God-help-me-I’m-sick means rest and, I don’t know, healing up or whatever. (*SNORT* Foolish, foolish mortals.) Not me. Oh no. In betwixt and between bouts of fervently longing for death, I get to write! Productivity, thy name is pandemic flu. Behold and tremble with fear!

Or not. Because what I’m really doing is messing around in a promo workshop I’m taking through NEORWA when I’m not eyeball deep in revisions & edits. (Or snot.) Three books sold so closely together translates to no fresh content for me for the next little bit. Which sucks, honestly. I was grooving right along in my m/m contemporary, IN THE RED, and making whoa, did I write that? progress when the offers started rolling in. But them’s the breaks. A bird in the hand and all that. Three birds, I guess. Three and a half? IN THE RED might actually be a baby bird since I already pitched that one and promised the first look at it to one of my editors. I’ve also got a good head start on a m/m D/s story that I know, just know, my other editor would adore.

No! No more pitching books. I am drowning in books. Drowning in revision and edits. Drowning in workshop.

And drowning in snot.

Ugh. Back to bed.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz…

Vampyr Chronicles: What Rough Beast is now under contract with Loose Id and tentatively scheduled to release in early winter.

I’ve also been offered contracts for my m/m/f contemporary, Lovely Wicked, and my m/m pseudo-historical/fantasy novella, Spoils of War by Noble Romance Publishing.

Oh, happy, happy day!

😀