HALLOWEEN HOPPING!

Oooh! It's almost that haunting time of year again, time for Nancy Gideon's Haunted Open House Giveaway Blog Hop! Nancy and her author friends have gathered to entertain you, Halloween-style! We're going to tell you scary stories, talk about our favorite Halloween treats, or just discuss the season in general. I'm glad you can join us.

On my blog I want to explore my weirdness. That's right. I'm weird. I don't like haunted houses. I don't think it's fun to be scared (it's the opposite of fun, in my book!) But...I like writing about gruesome murders and twisted villains. So explain that. If you hop by my house at Halloween, you're not going to find gory decorations, bloody dismembered parts or ax-murderers lurking in the corners. You are more likely to find whimsical decorations, like figurines of Trick-or-Treaters dressed up like candy corn or signs that read, "Witch Parking Only~Violators Will Be Toads!" But my bad guys are not cartoonish in any way. They kill, they rape, they threaten children~ a grim lot, indeed. So why this incongruity? Maybe it is because I can control the evil in my books. If my characters kill, it's because I make them. If they brandish weapons, I put them in their hands. If they're jumping out of shadows, it's because I wrote them there. 

So I wanted to share a villain here today. But who to choose? The evil Lord Boltar from my desert romance, TAKEN BY STORM? He killed the king and queen and countless others. He's definitely creepy! Or speaking of royalty, maybe the king from AN UNCOMMON LOVE. After all, he tricks his daughter and locks her away in the castle. Not a role model for proper parenting. There's even cold-blooded killers in my rock star romances, like TRAPPED UNDER ICE, or BETWEEN ROCK AND A HARD PLACE. But I decided to bypass all these bad guys and switch up holidays on you, giving you the villain from UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR.

Excerpt ~

Max didn’t expect the explosion. He heard the

 

tremendous, almost rhythmic sound of metal crunching as the car cartwheeled down the side of the cliff like a preschooler at recess. The thunderous BOOM of the sedan going up in flames caught him by surprise. He was rushing to peer over the edge, but was stopped dead in his tracks by the blast. By the time he got to the side of the ridge, the fire had already engulfed the vehicle. The flames licked hungrily at the night sky like so many devils’ tongues and consumed the car with such vehemence that, within seconds only a black outline of the frame remained.

Looking back on it, standing on the side of the road was an incredibly stupid thing for him to do. Anyone could have seen him as they whizzed up the side of the mountain, and perhaps even noted the dents in his car and copied down the license plate number. But he wanted to see the results of his handiwork. Besides, he wasn’t thinking at all clearly that night. 

It gave him a raw thrill to chase the sedan over the edge of the cliff. He followed Kevin home from work, desperate, not knowing what he would do to solve his problem. At first he only picked up speed to keep pace with Kevin, but then recklessness began to pump in his veins. HHe pulled out into the lane meant for on-coming traffic, not even realizing what he was doing. His eyes darted everywhere, his pulse raced, frightened witless as the scenery flew by. Luckily, for some reason, the usually well-travelled road lay deserted. Thinking he wanted to pass him, Kevin slowed down, no doubt cursing the crazy driver beside him. But he only matched the sedan’s speed. Kevin glanced over, and in the flash of a streetlight, seemed to recognize him. 

He must have thought ol’ Max didn’t have it in him. But I did.

He remembered the changing expressions on Kevin’s face as he began to understand his adversary’s intentions. At first his brow had been furrowed in confusion. Then his jaw went rigid and he tightened his grip on the wheel, glaring at Max, who feinted with his car. Kevin had to swerve onto the shoulder before correcting the path of the sedan. That was when Max’s prey stared back, his eyes hollowed by fear. A wild laugh burst through the air and Max wondered at first where it came from, before realizing it belonged to him. 

The vehicles jostled, and tires screeched. When Kevin’s car finally did careen over the edge of the cliff, Max could have sworn he felt the heat of the gigantic explosion, although he knew that was impossible. For him it was like an orgasm, a wave of pleasure and relief. Kevin Kelly was no more.

If only that had been the end of it. 

~ Nice guy, eh? Let me tell you a bit more about UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR before you head on your way to the next stop. Oh, and then I'll giveaway an e-copy of UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR to two people. A Christmas romantic suspense just in time for the holidays! 

Blurb ~

Dylan Fisher is an EMT and part-time Santa Claus at a mall in Denver, Colorado.

He has logged plenty of time with children sitting on his lap asking for anything from the latest electronic gadget to a week’s worth of homework passes, but he never heard anyone ask for what little Delaney Kelly asked for on one snowy night in December. A dad! When Dylan’s eyes search the crowd for Delaney’s mother and land on Keira Kelly, the paramedic almost finds himself in need of a little CPR. She is stunning! 

Keira Kelly is still grieving over the loss of her husband…

… but a reckless driver has her thinking about nothing but survival as she’s headed home from the mall. When Keira wakes in the hospital to find a hunky EMT at her bedside, she begins having a few thoughts that would put her on Santa’s Naughty List for sure!

Neither is ready for what is coming UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR!

When she finds out the EMT is only hanging around because the police believe someone is out to get her, she’s not sure what to think about his kindness. Is he helping her because he wants to, or because he feels he needs to? And what about the man who rammed her car, could he have had something to do with her husband’s death?

giveaway ~

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Now, don't forget to check out what my friends have to offer on their blogs--->