Saturday's News Roundup

Big news today!

We sold a new m/m novel to Liquid Silver Books, Fortune's Return. It's set in the same world as Fortune's Honor, though it's about Clay's younger brother, Ryan.

We're hoping for a June release date. Here's the blurb!

Ryan Putnam has lost everything. Laid off from teaching high school and dumped by his lawyer boyfriend, he has nowhere else to go but his childhood home – the Good Fortune ranch. He plans to take the summer to regroup and start over. He never expects to be smitten with a cowboy. Especially not a cowboy like Teo Mendez, who is everything Ryan’s ex-boyfriend is not.

Four years after his wife's death, Teo Mendez has returned to what he loves the most – working the land. He believes the Good Fortune ranch is the perfect place to build a new life for his son, Antonio. When his boss's brother Ryan shows up to work, the other man’s haunted eyes reminds Teo of everything he has lost as well. So he offers the only thing he can—his friendship. But it doesn't take long for Ryan to reawaken long dormant emotions and desires.

Ryan doesn’t intend to find a relationship. Teo doesn’t want to complicate his life with a fling. What they have between them, however, is too powerful to ignore.

We also have a new review for A Little Bit Bewitched.

Genre: Fantasy, Witchcraft, Ménage, M/M
Nymph Rating: 4.5
Literary Nymphs Reviewer: Chocolate Minx

A Little Bit Bewitched is an amusing and sexy expedition into the world of witches and magic. Jamie Craig illustrates the intoxicating bond between Lucy, Daniel and Charles in a most creative way. Daniel loves them both in the same way he is loved, he is their center. A Little Bit Bewitched is a mystical tale with spectacular love scenes that I found very pleasurable.

The third item on our list is a new cover. Specifically the new cover for Chaos & Communion.

Six months after Jesse Madding is brutally tortured by Marcus Brooker, he is still experiencing flashbacks, panic attacks, and jumping at his own shadow. His lovers, Gideon Keel and Emma Coolidge, would do anything to help him, but Jesse cannot tolerate the thought of being alone, and refuses to be hospitalized for treatment. Desperate for a change, Gideon and Emma suggest a radical solution.

Jesse wants to fix his life. More than anything, Jesse wants to be normal again. He doesn’t want to live in fear. He doesn’t want to be ashamed of his scarred and mutilated body. He doesn’t want to shy away from Gideon’s touch. Certain that the holding pattern will kill him, he agrees to Gideon and Emma’s proposed solution: travel to an alternative dimension and save Marcus Brooker from witnessing Mary’s grisly murder, in order to save Brooker’s soul.

And there's still more news.
Craving Kismet is on presale at Amazon. Our novella, Liaisons in Jubilee is also on pre-sale. It's part of an anthology that features Bonnie Dee and Veronica Wilde. So, some good stuff there.

Flashback Friday - Liaisons in Jubilee

Sometimes, Pepper and I are a little...pragmatic in how we approach our writing schedule. A little over a year ago, we had only sold two titles - Chasing Silver, which we knew wasn't going to come out until Fall 2007 (and then got bumped), and Craving Kismet, which was scheduled for Summer 2007 (and then got bumped). We hadn't even dreamed up The Master Chronicles yet, and we really had no idea how quickly we'd be writing/publishing collaborative titles.

But we knew we wanted to get our name out there, because we wanted Chasing Silver to do well. So when the call for submissions for Samhain's summer Heat Wave came out, we decided to write a short story to try for a slot. If we made the cut, we'd have two summer titles then.

That's how Liaisons in Jubilee was born.


Sometimes the truth is the greatest aphrodisiac.

Katie Mayes is the Executive Manager for a large, east coast beach resort. Unfortunately, her boss has discovered her one secret – her seasonal flings with Caleb Beckett, the Entertainment Director for the resort. Company policy dictates no internal fraternization, especially between managers and their subordinates, so her boss gives Katie a choice. Caleb or her job.

She avoids personal encounters with Caleb, until one fateful night a week before the resort’s big summer launch. Then, she runs into him at a local nightclub. When Caleb approaches her, she tries to give him the cold shoulder, but he follows her onto the dance floor where the music, her desire, and his persistence break her will. She claims it’s only one more night before they break it off completely, but Caleb insists on more. Far from an ending, he views the summer as their true beginning.

EXCERPT

Twisting in his arms, Katie meant to walk away, but his searing gaze kept her pinned against his chest, just as effectively as his hard hands. She leaned forward, her breasts crushing to him with a familiar ache, and settled her mouth at his ear. It took a moment to say the words. His scent made her mouth go dry and she had to swallow more than once in order to find her voice again.

“Quentin knows,” she breathed.

“So? Is he the jealous sort?” Caleb joked. When she didn’t smile, the light in his eyes dimmed, and he managed to look like he might be taking this seriously. “What did he say to you?”

“He gave me an ultimatum. You or my job.” She couldn’t resist. It only took turning her head the scantest of inches to trail her mouth along his jaw. “You think anything else could’ve kept me away?”

Caleb wrapped his arm around her, rotating his hips and grinding against her. His other hand slid between her thighs to brush along her pussy, before moving up again to cup her ass and hold her closer to him. Tilting his head, he brushed his lips over her neck and said, “That’s a very serious threat. Maybe you should go.”

“Maybe I should.”

But now that his arms were around her and it wasn’t just his hands holding her in place, Katie was having a hard time remembering why she couldn’t at least enjoy the dance with him. His body was strong and warm, his mouth sinful, and following his lead was as easy as breathing. She closed her eyes to let the music wash over them, her fingers threading through the long strands of his hair, and when she felt him kiss her neck again, Katie shivered.

“Miss me?” she murmured.

“Yes.” He kissed a trail along her jaw. “I missed your mouth, and I missed your ass, and I missed the way you shout my name.” He rested his lips on the corner of her mouth. They swayed to the music, not even an inch separating their bodies. “I think about you, think about holding you like this. Do you think about me?”

“Maybe.” Yes. “Maybe there’s nights when I get done with work and my feet start heading for your place before I can tell them to stop.” Maybe I get to your door before I talk myself into turning around. “And maybe when I’m lying in my bed at night, the only way for me to come using my vibe is to pretend it’s you.”

The music stopped, but Katie didn’t move. His breath fanned across her cheek, and she parted her lips to let her tongue dart out and taste the texture of his skin. The soft rasp of his moustache tickled, making her mouth water, and she exhaled, long and soft and slow as the need for him shuddered through her. “Maybe I should tell Quentin to mind his own fucking business.”

Caleb began guiding her off the dance floor, but not quickly. “I think that’s exactly what you should tell him. Come up to the balcony with me. I think we can find a private spot there.”

She couldn’t delude herself into thinking that staying at the club would keep her hands off him, but at the very least, it would keep their fucking to a minimum. And really, she hadn’t sought Caleb out. She couldn’t be blamed for it. They were colleagues who had run into each other in a public place, and if they were seen together, it was easily explained as coincidence.

But she was going to make sure they weren’t seen. And maybe this would slake her thirst for him, at least temporarily.

Lacing her fingers through Caleb’s, Katie shot him a wicked grin when he glanced down at their hands. “Someplace dark,” she agreed, hoping he would take the hint. “I’ll let you lead the way.”

For more information, visit Samhain Publishing.

Weekly roundup

This has been a very quiet week for us, though not unproductive. No new releases, no new reviews, no new covers, but Pepper and I have been busy with editing and galleys. We finished the first round of edits for A Hidden Beauty and received galleys for Liaisons in Jubilee (which will be coming out in a print anthology in May, woo hoo!), At the Advent of Dusk (the prequel to Master of Obsidian, about Gideon meeting Mary), and I got the galleys for my upcoming vampire novella coming out as part of the same vampire pax as the prequel, Ruby Red Rebels.

On the writing front, we finished Fortune's Return, a 72k gay erotic romance, which I got cleaned up and submitted to Liquid Silver Books yesterday. Fingers crossed they want it! We also started our April Calendar Boy story, though Saturday spent going through A Hidden Beauty edits and my day yesterday off the computer meant we didn't get very far yet. Not for long! Our stranded guys in their cabin need our attention and I imagine that us working on it today will make a huge dent in their story.

Oh, I almost forgot. Pepper and I are now part of a blog comprised of writing teams. It's called It Takes Two, and along with us has the teams of Stella and Audra Price, Emery Sanborne & Philippa Grey-Gerou, and Ashleigh Raine. We post over there on Fridays, but there are good things all week long. Head on over and take a look!

Liaisons in Jubilee--5 Angels from FAR

Reviewer: Chris P
Rating: 5/5 Angels

Jamie Craig knows how to create a great story. Caleb is one hot man, with eyes like dark chocolate, dark brown hair a little too long, and a moustache and goatee that frame a sexy mouth. How could Katie resist him? Katie is smart and passionate about her job, and Caleb. The sex scenes between them are hotter than the sand on the beach. How could anyone give up something that spectacular? Liaisons in Jubilee was true to today's business world and people who get caught up in trying to follow the rules. The plot moved along nicely, and I wanted to help Katie and Caleb find a way to stay together. With curl-your-toes sex and two hot bodies coming together in a blaze of passion, Liaisons in Jubilee would make anyone ready to book a room at the nearest resort.

New Review: Two Lips Reviews Liaisons in Jubilee

Two Lips Review by Kerin

Title: Liaisons in Jubilee
Author: Jamie Craig
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Publication date: August 2007
ISBN: 1-59998-587-X
Pages: 47
Series: Midsummer Night's Steam Heat Wave


Heat Level: , Public Places, Light Bondage, Spanking, Anal Sex

Rating: lips



When Katie’s boss discovers her seasonal fling with Caleb Beckett, he gives her an ultimatum – Caleb or her job. While she enjoys her time with Caleb, she needs her job. It was an easy decision for her make even though her body fails to recognize it. The only problem though is that when Katie tells Caleb about the ultimatum she was given, he’s determined to prove to her that she can’t live with out him.

Liaisons in Jubilee is a sexy hot read from the talented writing team of Jamie Craig. The love scenes are erotic and will have your heart racing and panties wet. I really adored both characters and was rooting for their happy ending. Caleb was simply to-die-for and Katie’s a very lucky woman! From beginning to end, Liaisons in Jubilee is a fantastic read, as in my experience, is anything written by Jamie Craig.

Mrs. Giggles and "Liaisons in Jubilee"

Mrs. Giggles reviewed Liaisons in Jubilee today, and she found it good.

I like Liaisons In Jubilee. What I really like about it is how author Jamie Craig manages to show me why those two characters can evolve from being happy shagbuddies for a few months every year to something more. There are plenty of sex here, complete with some mild bondage elements, but throughout everything, the fact that the characters like and care for each other comes through pretty well for me. I also appreciate how Katie is allowed to have a career, be good at it, and want to keep having that career without being dumped on her choices by the author.

Slight delay on Craving Kismet

Overall, I've been very, very lucky, playing the publishing game. And Vivien and I have been very lucky together. We've sold all the books we've submitted, we've been very agreeable over edits, and since we pretty much share a brain, we can usually find common ground when the occasional disagreement pops up. Since we each write different characters (and I might detail our actual writing process later), it is very, very possible for the two of us to conceptualize a story in drastically different ways. Considering the fact that the writing and publishing process is rife with trouble and land mines, it's a wonder we haven't hit some sort of snag before now! Well, we had a slight delay with Unclose Me because our editor went on her honeymoon and there was a minor miscommunication, but we never had a firm publishing date...

We did have a firm release date for Craving Kismet. August 7, 2007. I don't remember exactly when we wrote Craving Kismet. It must have been in August or September, because we submitted it to our editor at Samhain in October. The point is, we've had a long wait and a long journey to release with Craving Kismet. Now our editor has decided to move on from Samhain, and our book has been reassigned!

I don't know why our former editor is leaving Samhain, but I wish her well in her future endeavors. And I'm also glad we've been reassigned to Sasha Knight. She worked with us on Liaisons in Jubilee, and I really like her.

But this is just a very long-winded way of saying Craving Kismet will be released sometime in September.