Showing posts with label superheroes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label superheroes. Show all posts

Friday, May 25, 2018

"TALK NERDY TO ME!" - Celebrate Nerd Pride Day with Here Be Magic

Posted by: Dani Harper, Author
Since 2006, May 25 has been designated as Nerd Pride Day. In honor of this auspicious occasion, we asked everyone at Here Be Magic"Tell us something nerdy about you..." 

Read on as our authors reveal their innermost geek!



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"Being a nerd is about feeling an intense adoration of a topic that inspires you to gather knowledge or paraphernalia far beyond the extent of the average fan. To wit, I have a billion pieces of vintage clothing that don’t even fit, all because I love vintage clothing. If that’s not nerdy in its own way…what is? 

Note: I am not a hoarder otherwise, only with regards to my nerdly hobbies. 

Also note: cats don’t count in the “not a hoarder” category. I have six." 
~ Jody Wallace, www.jodywallace.com 

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"Do I have to do "just one", asked the giant nerd? I mean, c’mon, I’m a software tester in my day job, a general technophile, and a lifelong fan of multiple SF/F authors and media properties. I can yammer on for hours about Star Trek, Star Wars, Doctor Who, Battlestar Galactica, the MCU, Mac vs. PC, iOS vs. Android, and the minutae of worldbuilding in the Tolkien legendarium. 

Especially Tolkien.

Come to think of it, that may be my answer right there. ;D" 
~ Angela Korra'ti, www.angelahighland.com

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Nicole Luiken is an avid reader AKA a bookworm. Instead of bringing a towel with her wherever she goes à la Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, she brings a book to read, usually of the SF/Fantasy variety. The best way to lure her away from her books is with a Board Game Night.


~ Nicole Luiken, www.nicoleluiken.com

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"I took a minor voice-acting role in a not-for-profit fan-made Doctor Who audio play. (I won an audition against pros and everything!)"

~ Shawna Reppert
www.shawna-reppert.com






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"My personal nerdiness is on full display in my writing office. There's a figurine of Cerberus, the 3-headed dog that guards the gates of the Underworld, with various faeries and dragons to keep him company. My collection of Ray Bradbury sci-fi novels has a place of honor among rows of books on myths and legends and the paranormal. You'll see a signed photo from a Klingon cosplayer, a poster of demon-hunter detective Constantine, plus my vendor's booth banner and a couple of ID cards from the last comicon I attended. Not to mention the fully articulated wolf head that my hubs wore at said comicon...

Why yes, those ARE Marvel action figures standing around my keyboard. I use them to act out scenes in my stories – honest!
~ Dani Harper, www.daniharper.com


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"I love to dress up in Victorian/steampunk clothes and go to museums, festivals, and anywhere I can, with as many like-minded friends as possible."

~ Cindy Spencer Pape







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"I'm sure there I have multiple nerdy habits in addition to my lifelong bookworm obsession. I'm sharing my latest obsession—the Supernatural television show. Last year I binged the seasons with my daughters (their second time through) and we've been to the convention twice. 

I impatiently wait for my Thursday night fix with, "The Boys", plus I have several Supernatural t-shirts that I wear with pride as if I am a Hunter waiting for Sam and Dean." 
~ Maureen L Bonatch, www.maureenbonatch.com

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"I’m in my 60s, and a grandmother. But that doesn’t stop me from flaunting my SUPERNATURAL t-shirt, my DR. WHO wallet, or whatever else I want to show off. My office is my nerdy paradise, with everything from a Superman doll, Phantom of the Opera artwork, X-Files paraphernalia, and my beloved bobblehead Groot. 


"When people comment on my stuff, I proudly tell them, “You’re never too old to be a nerd!”
~ Linda Mooney, www.lindamooney.com


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Our very own Veronica Scott in the soundbooth
during the creation of a Star Trek audiobook. 
https://www.amazon.com/City-Edge-Forever/dp/B01H47NKNU/
"I grew up watching the original Star Trek every week with my younger brother. There are no words for how cool we thought the show was. So I think my proudest nerd/geek moment might be the fact that I am now an actual  “Star Trek” Red Shirt Security Officer – I got to play one in the 2016 official audiobook of the Harlan Ellison original script for ‘The City on the Edge of Forever.’ That was one of my very favorite episodes back in the day, although there are quite a few major differences between the show that was broadcast at the time and the original Ellison script. My character for one thing LOL.  

"I only had seven words of dialogue in the audiobook BUT I said them to Kirk, with Spock standing next to us (in the teleplay script – sadly audiobooks are not usually recorded with a full cast all at one time, so I did my seven words alone in a booth but still….). I got to sign the title page of the script next to all the famous real actors, which was a thrill and I will forever be an official member of the Enterprise crew. And the best part is that my Red Shirt character doesn’t die!"

~ Veronica Scott, www.veronicascott.wordpress.com

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Now it's YOUR turn! Tell us one of your nerdy secrets! And on June 2, three lucky commenters will be drawn at random by the Rafflecopter. Two will win an adorable mini Millennium Falcon BOOK LIGHT! And one will win this Doctor Who travel bag!



(Must be a legal resident of the US and over 18 to enter. Winners will be announced in the comments on this post, in the Rafflecopter box, and in the Here Be Magic  Here Be News feature of the blog. Email addresses will NOT be disclosed.)

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Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Why I'm excited for Avengers: Infinity War

Posted by: Angela Korra'ti

Avengers: Infinity War is almost upon us, and as of yesterday I’ve already seen the initial wave of freakouts crashing into the Internet. Which means I’ve had to launch Operation Anna Ignores Most of the Internet Until She Can See the Movie!

If you’re in the same boat I am—i.e., not entirely sure when you’re going to get to see Infinity War—fear not. I am not going to talk about the film in this post. But what I am going to talk about is all the work the MCU has gone to up to this point in order to build their shared universe and ongoing storyline, and why this impresses me as a writer.

When Iron Man dropped in 2008, the moviegoing world was introduced to Tony Stark, incarnated so ably by Robert Downey Jr. Had that been a truly standalone movie, that would have been peachy; Iron Man was huge fun. “But wait,” the closing credits told us at the time, “there’s more!” And there was: Nick Fury showing up in a post-credits scene, to bring Stark the news of the Avengers Initiative. And bringing _us_ the first signs that there was going to be a lot more to this story than one film could show us.

Then in 2011 we got both Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger. And I was already on board after Iron Man, but Loki and Cap both, in their own spectacular individual fashions, sealed the deal for me. (I could write a whole separate post just on the topic of why I adore Captain America. And may, in fact, next time it’s my turn to post around here. ;D ) But that’s from the perspective of moviegoing audience member.

As a writer, what I really appreciate about the MCU is that over the last decade, they’ve taken the time to show us all these individual characters, which has gotten me to care about them. And at the same time, they’ve kept drawing the individual plot threads closer and closer together. One by one, we’ve seen most of the Infinity Stones show up and have come to learn about their various abilities—in some cases, spectacularly destructive ones. We’ve seen the universe from multiple angles: Earth in various locales. Asgard. The various worlds the Guardians of the Galaxy cast have been to. And, most recently and awesomely, Wakanda. (Which is of course on Earth, but which deserves calling out separately, because good gods I loved Black Panther. But that, again, could be a whole other separate post.)

This is storytelling at an epic scale. Character building across multiple movies—and I almost hesitate to use the term “world building”, since we are dealing with a storyline that spans many, many worlds, so “universe building” is almost more appropriate. I keep seeing posts from various sources on the Internet talking about “superhero fatigue”, but I can safely say that for me, at least, this is so very not a problem. We’re only just now getting to the big climactic fight for a storyline that’s been building over the last ten years—and okay yeah sure that’s asking a lot out of audiences, to stick with a storyline that takes so long to build. But y’all, seriously, I’m an SF/F fan and a devoted reader. I’ve easily taken this long to keep following series of novels that take just as long to build. Doing this for movies? Cake.

And sure, I’ve liked some of the Marvel movies less than others. Some of them I have declined to re-watch, even as I happily go back and watch others over and over again. (The first Captain America is particularly my favorite.) But this, too, is similar to some of my favorite long-running series of novels, wherein I like some installments of the story better than others.

So yeah, I am very, very excited for this latest chapter in the ongoing MCU saga. And trying very hard not to fret about whose chances of surviving this plot are slim! ;D

Talk to me in the comments, y’all! Who all’s going to see the movie this weekend? What are your favorite movies in the MCU? Who are your favorite characters?


--
Angela is totally not in the slightest bit nervous about Steve's chances in this movie NOPE NOPE NOPE (fidget fidget fret). And when she's totally NOT FIDGETING about Steve Rogers, she writes as both Angela Highland and Angela Korra'ti. You can find her books under either name at angelahighland.com! Or come say hi and tell her all about your favorite superheroes on Facebook or Twitter.

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Let's talk about Wonder Woman!

Posted by: Angela Korra'ti
Our first real and actual Wonder Woman movie is on the immediate horizon, and I gotta tell you, Internets, I am looking very, very forward to it. My reasons are much the same as a lot of other women in SFdom my age—we want to see a female-led superhero film; we want to see DC movies start stepping up to the plate as well as Marvel; and most of all, it’s about freggin’ time that Wonder Woman, long one of the three big DC superheroes along with Batman and Superman, gets her own film.

A lot of folks had Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman on TV in the 1970s as their first exposure to the character. I am no exception, though I have no real memory of regularly following the show. Mostly I knew it was there, since it sometimes showed up in syndication on our local channels. It took until the 90s, when DC’s excellent animated continuity showed up in the cartoons for Batman, Superman, Justice League, and Justice League Unlimited, for me to really get a Wonder Woman I took to hard. Diana in that continuity was excellent, and some of my favorite moments with the character are in fact from those shows.

I have a clearer memory of Wonder Woman in, of all things, the Superfriends cartoons. Those, unlike the live-action show, were on my radar more often just because I was more likely to be watching TV on a Saturday morning back in the 70s and early 80s. Looking back on it now, I’m pretty sure she didn’t make an impact on me at the time—women in the Superfriends were pretty thin on the ground and I don’t remember the Superfriends iteration of Wondy doing much other than flying around in her invisible jet. Nevertheless, she was there, an early precedent for me to use later, when I was on the lookout for prominent female characters in animation. (Princess in Battle of the Planets and Lisa Hayes in Robotech, I am looking straight at you.)

Now, no matter how you slice it, the Superfriends were pretty silly. DC’s animation game kicked up considerably later on, though. I must give a shoutout to the full-length animated film (titled simply Wonder Woman) that came out in 2009, which I jumped on in no small part because Nathan Fillion voices Steve Trevor in it. And like many a geek, I do love me some Nathan Fillion. <3 The film’s an origin story, but it does well, and by the time it came out I knew enough about Wonder Woman’s backstory that I recognized the basic elements. (Like, say, Steve Trevor; I may not have active memories of the 70’s TV show, but I’m pretty sure I must have watched it anyway, because that’s the most likely source for me having that name in the back of my head.)

Let me also call attention to the 2008 film Justice League: The New Frontier. Another origin story, this time mostly for Green Lantern in particular and the Justice League in general, but it too has some wonderful Diana mileage in it. (And I gotta note as well, looking this film up again to double-check details about it, it’s particularly excellent that Lucy Lawless is the voice of Diana. How appropriate is that? :D )

What I lack, though, is grounding in the character’s actual line of comics. I’ve been dabbling in female-led Marvel titles in the last few years, and I have had half an eye on DC as well, enough to see glimmers of potential in some of the more recent Wonder Woman storylines. With the movie about to drop, I’m thinking it’s about time I investigated those titles.

Any fans of Wonder Woman’s recent comic stories out there? Got any recommendations for me?

If you didn’t discover the character via comics, what were your first memories of the character in mass media? Was Lynda Carter your Wonder Woman? Or did you discover her in animated form?

And if, like me, you have a soft spot for Greek mythology, how does that play into your knowledge of the character?


Share your Diana stories in the comments!

--
Angela is not an Amazon, but boy howdy is she looking forward to seeing Wonder Woman Amazon it up this weekend. In the meantime, come say hi to Angela on her site at angelahighland.com, on Facebook, or on Twitter! Particularly after she posts her inevitable review of the movie.

Friday, May 13, 2016

Three reasons why I love Supergirl

Posted by: Angela Korra'ti
Here's a thing about being a writer that I daresay all my fellow writers can appreciate, and which readers may not know:

If you've got to work on your own creative output, this often means you don't have as much time for anybody else's.

You get behind on your reading, on going to movies, and on television shows. Particularly if you also have a full-time day job, or if you're also a parent needing to take care of children, or all of the above. In my case I've got the full-time day job, which means I spend a good bit of my evenings and weekends trying to muster enough brain to put words into manuscripts. So my available bandwidth for watching television is limited.

But every so often I'll make an exception. Historically my exceptions have been Doctor Who (albeit with a somewhat fractious relationship, last couple of seasons) and Castle (on which I've fallen significantly behind, enough that I'm still well over a season behind just in time for the show getting cancelled).

Much more recently, though, I've been delighted to jump on watching Supergirl. I haven't been able to watch it as it's aired, but I did buy a Season Pass to season 1, and have been actively working to catch up. And since the news went around yesterday that the show has been officially renewed, I wanted to talk a bit about why exactly this show has delighted me, how it ties in with what I like to read and write about, and why I'll definitely be on board for Season 2.

1. Supergirl demonstrates that superhero stories do not have to be so unremittingly dark.

I've been hugely disappointed with reports that the recent DC movies have been so grim and unpleasant. But thankfully, they're not extending that to their television properties. My household has very much appreciated the brighter, more upbeat tone of The Flash--and I've very, very much appreciated that Supergirl in particular is a burst of sunshine. There's action, serious plot threads, and high emotion, absolutely--but there's a difference between "intense action" and "a world so bleak and grim that it's decidedly unpleasant to watch".

Likewise, this is something I try to accomplish in my writing. At the end of the day, even if I put my characters through the wringer during the course of a plot, I want them to come out the other side with something to be hopeful about. I want there to be brightness in their world.

2. Supergirl shows us that having superpowers is pretty freggin' amazing.

I've seen more than one movie review and more than one pop culture article talk about "superhero fatigue". With that kind of a reaction out there, it's very easy to become jaded about "oh look yawn another superhero television show". One of the things I've really loved about this show, though, is how much simple, outright joy Kara has in her abilities. Ability to fly? Ability to catch bullets with your bare hands? Ability to shoot lasers out of your eyes? Awesome.




And even more importantly, Kara takes immense joy in being able to use her abilities to help others. Seeing how splendidly Melissa Benoist portrays Kara's emotional investment in her powers goes a long, long way to getting me emotionally invested in what she's doing with them.

When I write, whether it's my girl Kendis going holy crap I can do magic or Faanshi finding that for her, the correct course of action is to heal and protect rather than harm and kill, I try to give my characters a similar emotional investment. If I want my readers to have a sense of wonder about what I'm writing, my thought is, I need to have my characters have a sense of wonder about what they're experiencing, too.

3. Supergirl has multiple excellent female characters.

Quite a bit has already been written about how feminist a show Supergirl is. For me as a viewer, what establishes this is not only that it's a female-led show, but that it's also got so many excellent female characters in varying positions of power and with various types of relationships with each other. Kara has a beautiful relationship with her adoptive sister Alex, and an interesting, complex relationship with Cat Grant as well. (Sidebar: how very, very awesome is Cat? She gets all the very best lines.)

We also get interesting female supporting characters. Lucy Lane initially came in as romantic rival, sure--but I've very much appreciated how this season has given her more depth than that, showing us her relationship with James from her point of view as well as eventually resolving the triangle in a way that didn't demean her as a character. We've also gotten a good solid political figure in Senator Crane, who initially showed up on the "GRR ALIENS" bandwagon, but who turns out to be more sympathetic than that.

And of course there's also Alura, Kara's aunt, whose backstory with Kara plays off dramatically against her plans for the earth. Her presence in this plotline not only sets off conflict for Kara herself, but also conflict between Kara and the rest of the cast.

Plus, it has not escaped my notice that this show puts multiple female characters into positions of power. Kara and Cat are the two main obvious power players, Kara with her actual superpowers and Cat by virtue of being the splendid media power figure that she is. But Alex and Lucy both have their shots at leading the DEO. The aforementioned Senator Crane is another woman in a position of power, and Alura serves as the primary protagonist through much of the season. Additionally, we get a couple of fun supervillains in Livewire and Silver Banshee.

And if all of that weren't enough, I've also seen some very tasty talk about the show courting Lynda Carter to play the President in Season 2. President Wonder Woman, you guys. <3 She'd certainly get my vote.

Why is this important to me? Because I am a woman--and because we're still living in a world where women have to fight to defend their place in the SF/F genre in general and in superhero stories in particular.

In my own writing, I try for having a similar breadth of female character representation--and yeah, I'm prone to putting women in positions of power as well. There are reasons that the major magical power figures in the Free Court books, the Warder First of Seattle and the Queens of the Seelie and Unseelie Courts, are female. Likewise, the major magic users and the major political power figures in the Rebels books are women.

And in closing...

I could say a lot more about why I've loved this show to bits so far, and why I'll definitely be on board for Season 2, even as the show moves over to the CW and to filming in Vancouver. Suffice to say, though, it's just been a joy to see a story that not only tries to go to places I do myself as a writer--but which also is a sheer pleasure to experience.

And c'mon, how can I not love a girl who loves ice cream?

How about you? Are you watching Supergirl? Are you on board for Season 2? Talk to me in the comments!

--
Angela writes the Free Court of Seattle urban fantasy series as Angela Korra'ti, and the Rebels of Adalonia high fantasy trilogy as Angela Highland. Come say hi to her at angelahighland.com, or on Facebook or Twitter!

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Happy Day After Canada Day!

Posted by: Jenn Burke
Yesterday was party day! We celebrated the 148th birthday of our nation. Here in Canada’s Capital, Parliament Hill is normally swarmed with crowds of 100,000 or more, and museums have free admission. It’s pretty cool! In one of the early drafts of Her Sexy Sentinel, I actually had a Canada-Day-on-Parliament-Hill scene, but that subplot ended up getting cut.

In belated celebration, I wanted to share with you some of my favourite TV shows and movies from Canada.
This movie is filled with Canadian in-jokes. You’ve got the tension between English Ontario and French Quebec, you’ve got a murder mystery entirely centred around Canadian hockey teams moving to the U.S., and an entire scene devoted to explaining how to swear in Québécois French. It’s pretty awesome.

I was a HUGE fan of this TV series when it was on. First of all, it features a do-good Mountie stationed in Chicago, partnering with an American detective to solve crime. Secondly, the guy’s deaf husky is named Diefenbaker, after one of our prime ministers. And lastly, Paul Gross is hot, man.

In this series from the early 90s, Nick Knight is a vampire cop struggling to find redemption. It’s set in Toronto and was one of my first introductions to the whole “vampires as good guys” trope.

This show is based on one of my favourite book series, Women of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong. It’s mostly set in Toronto and northern New York and centres around the one and only female werewolf. I haven’t seen all of the episodes yet, but I can tell you that the books…wow, the books are awesome.

Speaking of books, if you’re looking for some fun Canadian spec fic, check out:

Moonheart or the Jack of Kinrowan series by Charles de Lint. These books are set in Ottawa and the surrounding area and effortlessly blend Old World and First Nations myths and legends with the real world.

Tanya Huff’s Vicki Nelson series is set in and around Toronto. Vicki is a former cop with degenerating eyesight who partners with the vampiric bastard son of Henry VIII to solve paranormal crimes.

Light by ‘Nathan Burgoine is a recent favourite of mine. Set in Ottawa during Pride Week, the story focuses on a reluctant superhero struggling to find love and prevent hatred and bigotry from spewing all over the celebrations.


And, of course, there’s mine…

The most dangerous thing they could do is fall in love...

Callie Noble fled to Ottawa to escape danger. But she is far from safe. Overwhelmed by a strange new power she can't control, Callie is terrified and painfully incapacitated. Her only hope is to seek the help of the one man who broke her heart...

Derrick Llewellyn is one of the Sentinels charged with the protection of the city's mysterious secret. Seeing Callie again is a shock enough, but the electricity between them is stronger than ever. Still, loving another marked individual is forbidden, and Callie needs his help—not romantic complications.

But there are forces at work in the city, and Callie finds herself inexorably drawn into a world filled with danger and untold magics. A world where loving Derrick isn't just forbidden...it's the surest way to drive them both mad.

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Loving the Superheroine

Posted by: Jeffe Kennedy
When I first saw this amazing cover, I felt an actual, physical chill.

It was everything I could have hoped for - my warrior princess's thousand-yard stare, the golden glow and a great big freaking sword.

OMG YES YES YES.

I was so thrilled, I called in my guy, David, and bounced happily as I showed him. He said, "there's no way she could swing a sword that big."

Oh, yeah - that annoyed me no end.

I should caveat at this point and say that David is a wonderful man. We've been together nearly 25 years and there's a reason I always put him in my Acknowledgements as the one who makes everything possible. He's a nurturing person, fair-minded and always supportive of everything I do. He also studied Kung Fu alongside me for 15 years and has decidedly strong opinions on the topic of what women fighters can and cannot do.

Which is all fair enough. A lot of Ursula's perspective on fighting and training is informed by those same considerations. I have a pretty good idea of what I can and can't do physically, especially if confronted by a male opponent.

Except this is fiction. And yes, I did tartly ask, "Does it help to know she's not fully human?"

Of course he backpedaled and felt bad for raining on my cover parade. He also doesn't read my books - or really any fiction - and I'm good with that. I also forgave him because I know that what he said was his knee-jerk, programmed response and not how he came to think about it after some discussion.

But it's salient that this is so culturally ingrained in us. We see male action heroes accomplishing the impossible ALL THE TIME. We expect it. Of course Indiana Jones can outrun a boulder despite all laws of physics! Can David Banner become a giant green monster that busts all clothing except his short pants? Why yes! Can Bruce Wayne pour bucket loads of money into technology to make himself a superhero with no supernatural abilities? SAVE US, BATMAN!!

Sure, we can pick apart the ways that our disbelief isn't *entirely* suspended. The Hulk's pants, right? Still, I'd lay money down that David would not have looked at a cover with a man holding a great big sword and immediately assessed whether he thought the guy could swing it. Because men are completely accustomed to fantasizing themselves as superheroes. Which usually includes saving the beautiful princess and winning her body, if not her love.

In this case, I wanted the fantasy of the superheroine. She's not screaming shrilly waiting for Indy to come save her. She's supernaturally fast and strong.

She has a big freaking sword and she knows how to use it.

The Talon of the Hawk

A HEAVY CROWN
Three daughters were born to High King Uorsin, in place of the son he wanted. The youngest, lovely and sweet. The middle, pretty and subtle, with an air of magic. And the eldest, the Heir. A girl grudgingly honed to leadership, not beauty, to bear the sword and honor of the king.
Ursula’s loyalty is as ingrained as her straight warrior’s spine. She protects the peace of the Twelve Kingdoms with sweat and blood, her sisters from threats far and near. And she protects her father to prove her worth. But she never imagined her loyalty would become an open question on palace grounds. That her father would receive her with a foreign witch at one side and a hireling captain at the other-that soldiers would look on her as a woman, not as a warrior. She also never expected to decide the destiny of her sisters, of her people, of the Twelve Kingdoms and the Thirteenth. Not with her father still on the throne and war in the air. But the choice is before her. And the Heir must lead…

Request a digital review copy

Available May 26, 2015

 

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

It's Win-a-Book Wednesday with...Linda Mooney!

Posted by: Linda Mooney

Linda Mooney


I hadn't planned on writing a third book in this series, but too many readers insisted I'd left important story arcs unresolved. After going back and re-editing the first two books (HeartFast and HeartCrystal), I had to agree. But after writing this one, I wouldn't rule out further stories.

HEARTSTORM
Book 3 of the HeartFast Series
A Sensuously Erotic Sci-Fi Romance Novel
by Linda Mooney
Word Count: 65.2K

$3.99

They were the Guardians. Seventeen special men and women with incredible powers, who had sworn their lives to the protection of their galaxy, while upholding the laws of their world.

With the birth of their daughter, StarLight and Master Hunter prepare themselves for their most difficult mission yet - as parents. Until a person from Star's past intervenes, bringing with him chaos and heartache.
Amid this turmoil, an old foe rises. An enemy the Guardians believed they had conquered. An enemy ready to strike again, now that all of Guardian Command is compromised.
* * *
Homecoming


            Deceiver wouldn't tell her what the outcome of their mission had been, which both confused and worried her. She was always given a report, good or bad. And if someone was seriously injured and needed immediate medical help, he was very adept at sending ahead the person's specs, so she would be ready to provide expedient care.
            But not this time. Other than the cryptic “We're on our way home,” she'd heard nothing. Worse, it was taking them longer than usual to get back, even though the Guardian leader had told her they had sustained damage to the ship, and weren't able to use the hyperlight drive. What was delaying them?
            A shiver went through her. A warm tear slid down her cheek. She allowed herself to cry when no one was around to see her. She didn't want the others to see her weakness, afraid it would cast her in an unfavorable light among the superheroes. Which was why she'd done as much crying as she needed these past few days, since the rest of the Guardians had left to pursue reports of pirate activity in the Caperonda cluster. She figured that if she got it out of her system, there would be no more tears left when they returned. No tears for the others to see. Her professional countenance would remain intact, and give them the reassurance they needed from her that they were in very capable hands.
            Another tear glided down in the path of the first. Silently, she cursed herself.
            Commander was gone. Forever gone. Sucked through that wormhole. That was almost five months ago, yet every time she thought back to that day, her heart caved a little bit more. Just when she had hoped she had turned the corner and was ready to walk the long road of recuperation, something would remind her of him. A look, a sound, a memory, or the mere mention of his name, and her carefully constructed mask would come crashing back down around her.
            I think what hurts the worst, the reason why I can't resolve myself to you being dead, is because I never saw you die. Neither did anyone else. One moment you, and Hunter, and Seeker, and Disaster were fighting those pirates. Moments later, the wormhole ate Transport Two, and it was as if you had never existed.
             Her soul felt fragile. It had shattered at the news of Commander's demise, and only existed now because she'd somehow managed to hold it together with pieces of determination and strings of practicality. Her last hope at finding some kind of consolation had hung its head in shame and shrunk away to the darkest caverns in her heart, leaving her as barren as a lifeless planet.           
            Overhead, the enormous bay doors ponderously began to open, sliding back to reveal a cloudless blue sky. Somewhere above Guardian Command, the largest ship in its fleet was descending.
            Wiping tears from her face, Devorah sniffed and got to her feet. She pulled on her stoic face, then signaled the emergency cart to hover nearby in the event someone had to be lifted to the clinic.
            She heard the big ship before she spotted it. After several seconds, the shiny silver hull appeared, long, tapered, and magnificent looking. Before long, the upper half of the ship came into view. As it always did, the Guardian crest emblazoned on the tail sent a little thrill of pride through her. It reminded her of the miracle that had brought her to Guardian Command, and sealed her fate to become the group's first on-site physician. So far she couldn't spot who was piloting the craft, but it didn't matter. Right now, her primary concern was StarLight and her unborn child.
            The ship slowly settled into its cradle before it began to power down. Devorah moved closer, bringing the cart with her, to wait for the hull door to open.
            Seconds ticked by without any sign coming from the ship. Frowning, she wondered what was preventing them from exiting. She glanced over at where the communications console was located, and debated whether or not to call over and see if there was a problem, when she heard the familiar hiss of the airlock. The door slid to the side, but no one appeared to be waiting to disembark.
            Devorah took another step toward the ship, now that it was safe to approach, when Disaster halted in the doorway. He stared at her for a moment, then walked onto the small platform and took the short flight of stairs to the floor. Her eyes widened when he began striding toward her with an unfathomable look on his face. This behavior wasn't like the Guardian leader. That realization raised her level of alarm.
            "What's wrong? What's happened?" she whispered, and glanced at the ship, but no one else appeared to be leaving the vessel. She gave another good look at Disaster, this time with her medical eye. Other than exhaustion, she could see no outward signs of injury.
            "Doctor. Dev." His voice was low, soothing. A little smile quirked the corners of his mouth.
            By this time, her temper was beginning to flare. "If there's something you need to tell me, spit it out. What's wrong? Is there anyone needing my assistance?"
            "Nothing's wrong. In fact, everything's right. I just..." He stopped and took a deep breath. "I just don't know how to tell you this."
            "Tell me what?" A thought raced through her mind, and her heart sped up. StarLight and the baby. She had vehemently protested Star going on this mission because of the risk involved, and the possibility of her losing the baby. "Did Star give birth out there? Is she all right? Is the child all right?" She started to advance toward the ship, when a figure appeared in the hull opening. A figure that shouldn't have been there. That shouldn't have existed. That hadn't existed in nearly five months.
            Her mouth dropped open, and the blood rushed from her body as Commander walked onto the landing platform, then paused to stare at her. Her mind refused to acknowledge his return, his presence. What she was seeing wasn't really him. He was a part of her fevered imagination. Or a hologram. Or something not of the flesh.
            The figure took the steps, his boots making little hollow sounds. At some point, Disaster moved away, giving her room to take it all in. Giving her space to breathe, although her lungs were refusing to cooperate.
            "Devorah."
            It was his voice. His face. His eyes that were riveted on her. That thin little worry line he always got above the bridge of his nose was present.
            "Devorah?"
            He reached out, and warm hands grasped her arms at the shoulder. This close, she could smell his sweat and the tang of old air that always surrounded them whenever they had spent a long time inside a spacesuit.
            "Devorah, speak to me."
            "Paol?"
            "Yeah. It's me. Don't faint on me, woman," he added softly, teasingly. He cupped the side of her face to connect with her, letting her adjust to his touch. Feel him. Accept the truth.
            Tears fell over her lower lashes, but she was unaware of them until his thumb brushed one of them away. Carefully, almost fearfully, she placed a hand on his jaw.
            "H-how?"
            "Long story. I'll tell you all about it later. But now, I need to get something off my chest." 
           She couldn't wait for his confession. Throwing her arms around his neck, she lifted herself up on her tiptoes and hungrily pressed her lips to his. His muscular arms surrounded her, the warmth his hard body engulfing her to the point that her mind whispered, It doesn't matter the story. You're back. Another miracle has been granted, and you've come home. My Paol. My love.



Thursday, September 11, 2014

New Release! HEARTSTORM, Bk. 3 of the HeartFast Series

Posted by: Linda Mooney
New!

HEARTSTORM
Bk. 3 of the HeartFast Series
A Sensuously Erotic Sci-Fi Romance Novel
by Linda Mooney
ISBN: 978-1-941321-19-5
Word Count: 65.2K
3.99


They were the Guardians. Seventeen special men and women with incredible powers, who had sworn their lives to the protection of their galaxy, while upholding the laws of their world.

With the birth of their daughter, StarLight and Master Hunter prepare themselves for their most difficult mission yet - as parents. Until a person from Star's past intervenes, bringing with him chaos and heartache.
Amid this turmoil, an old foe rises. An enemy the Guardians believed they had conquered. An enemy ready to strike again, now that all of Guardian Command is compromised.
Click here for excerpt and buy links.

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Something Old, Something New...

Posted by: Sheryl Nantus
It's one of those fun times for authors when events collide in a glorious smash-up of events... so let me share them with you!

First, I'm pleased to announce the release on September 3rd of the print release of "Heroes Lost and Found", the third and last book in the "Blaze of Glory" trilogy!

Some will rise, others will fall…

Jo Tanis is still recovering from her near-death experience in Las Vegas when she receives a mysterious postcard from Harris Limox, who claims to have a promising lead on the whereabouts of the Controller. Over her boyfriend/guardian Hunter’s objections, she sets off to a sleepy Oregon town to ferret out the truth.

The Controller is more than just a disgruntled super. He’s a rogue Guardian who was presumed dead and is now armed with a slew of high-tech hardware that not only makes him physically superior to the supers—and therefore almost impossible to destroy—he’s got the ability to detonate the implants in the back of all supers’ necks.

In Oregon, Jo meets a surviving Alpha super, Kit Masters, whose wild plan to capture the Controller could put an entire town of innocents at risk. But instead of successfully talking her former idol out of his disastrous bid to regain former glory, Jo finds herself betrayed and trapped in her worst nightmare.

Fight her former teammates, or die.

And a cover reveal! For "Battle Scars", the fourth book in the "Blood of the Pride" series! Coming out October 28th but available for pre-order at Amazon and Barnes & Noble right now!

P.I. Rebecca Desjardin is surprised when two seemingly unrelated missing-teen cases land in her lap on the same day. Her cat-shifter instincts tell her there's more to the story, and when she uncovers a bitter feud between the two families, she suspects Romeo and Juliet runaways. She turns to her lover, Brandon Hanover, a man who knows the underground better than most.

Brandon is determined to help the woman he loves outwit ruthless enforcers and bring two missing kids to safety, but when a woman from his past resurfaces he finds himself caught between two worlds once again.

As the claws come out and the war between the shifter families turns deadly, the two will have to stand together or fall separately—and even that might not be enough to save them.

And I'm thrilled to announce that I've signed a two-book contract with Carina Press for a new series...  final title TBA but here's the blurb so far!

Tales of the Bonnie Belle

Sam Keller is a woman running from her past, landing as a captain on a Mercy ship—ferrying courtesans from stop to stop to indulge the sexual fantasies and needs of distant mining colonies. She thought she'd left the violence behind but when one of her crew is brutally murdered she has to find the killer before the Bonnie Belle loses enough money to be put out of commission. Marshal Daniel LeClair arrives on base to investigate and the sparks between the two fly both professionally and personally. As the pair weave through corruption and the sensual world of the professional courtesan they find themselves drawn together not only by a need for justice but also for survival in a world where Sam knows the shadows hold dangerous secrets.

This new series will be starting out in 2014 so it's going to be a heck of a finish to 2013 and a jump with both feet into the New Year! I hope some of you will come along for the ride and enjoy a good read with old and new friends!
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