1/26/2012

Mia Marlowe


Today, I'm thrilled to welcome Mia Marlowe back to the blog to talk about her latest novel, Sins of the Highlander, a collaboration with the fabulous Connie Mason.  Since Mia's visited us before (and what a fun interview it was! If you missed it, you really should click HERE and see what talent Mia has that I'm totally jealous of), she's treating us today with a guest post and give-away!

Take it away, Mia!

The Gift of Sight
Nothing is ever wasted on a writer. We store up experiences, emotions and impressions and bequeath them later to our literary children. In SINS OF THE HIGHLANDER, Elspeth Stewart possesses the gift of Sight—the ability to pull back the mist of the future and see what may come. It’s not a gift she’s comfortable with. For one thing, it marks her as different. And people mistrust those who are different.
For another, she can’t conjure it up when she wills. The trances and visions come on her unannounced and unsought. The images are frequently out of context or about people she doesn’t recognize. It’s an uncomfortable talent. But when she feels strongly enough about what she’s Seen, she’ll act on the information.
I can’t claim to have the Sight, but I have had what I call “pinpricks of prescience.” The most dramatic happened years ago when our family gathered to help my grandparents deal with a health crisis. I’d flown in to be there and my mother and younger sisters had driven from several states away. The night before we all had to return home, I started feeling “twitchy” about it. I asked my mom to delay their trip or at least not start out so early in the morning. They had a long drive ahead of them, but she assured me they’d be careful.
I still couldn’t shake my sense of dread. While I waited in the airport, I kept expecting to hear my name called over the intercom and not for anything good. When I arrived home, the message light was blinking on my phone. My mom and sisters had been in a rollover accident after hitting some black ice. The car was totaled, but they had all escaped with only bumps and bruises.  
I wished I’d been more forceful in my warning. I wished I’d had a more definite reason why I felt I had to give it, but it had been nothing more than a feeling. That frustration of not having enough information to act is what I gave to the SINS OF THE HIGHLANDER heroine, Elspeth Stewart. But of course, there comes a time in the story when her visions are clear enough for her to act. Here’s a snippet from Elspeth’s vision:
Brightness burned the backs of her eyes. Then the light dimmed and she could see.
Oh, God! The battle scene. Not again.
Hundreds of bodies littered the field, bleeding into winter-brown grass. Corbeys cried and circled overhead, waiting. Women culled the field for items of value or searched weeping for dead loved ones. A large carrion bird swooped down, impatient for the upright humans to clear the heath so the corbeys could feast on the bodies that remained.
Elspeth wandered through the glen of death, looking for something. She knew not what. The only thing that made it possible for her to put one foot before another was her certainty that she had Seen this battle before. This was all but a vision, as insubstantial as a dream and over as quickly.
Someone groaned, a dying man among the dead. Another bleated piteously for his mother. Whose son was he?
It started to rain, heaven weeping for the fallen.
Oh, Merciful God! This vision was different. She saw something she recognized—a scrap of Stewart plaid. She ran toward it. Her father stared unblinking into the dripping sky. A crossbow bolt protruded from his chest. She sank down beside him, rocking in agony. A soft keening escaped her throat. 
Then a shout drew her gaze. A rabble had surrounded a single man. He fought like a demon, slashing and turning, but there were too many. A blade cut him and he roared in agony. They closed in like wolves around a wounded buck. As he went down, he turned toward her and she saw his face for a blink before they hacked him to pieces.
Rob!
The blades fell like scythes on wheat.
Someone started wailing, a wordless cry with no end.

Hope you enjoyed that taste of SINS OF THE HIGHLANDER. It’s available now at your local booksellers or all the major etailers.  Today you’ll also have a couple chances to win a copy. Leave a comment or question to be entered in the random drawing. Thanks for having me here today, Heather!

Have you ever had a flash of insight about the future or known someone who did?
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Mia Marlowe writes adventurous, sensual historical romance for Sourcebooks and Kensington. She loves to connect with readers and invites you to visit her cyberhome: http://www.miamarlowe.com . While you’re there be sure to enter her website contest. The Grand Prize is a NEW KINDLE!

Thanks for visiting us today, Mia!  And readers, if you can’t wait to read Elspeth and Rob’s story you can buy it right NOW at Amazon.
Come back tomorrow, when our "If I Wrote Romance" post is continued.  Do your part to continue the story and you'll have your chance to win an early signed copy of my debut Regency, SWEET ENEMY, and a lovely book safe.

26 comments:

  1. Looks really good. Can't wait to pick it up!

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  2. "Have you ever had a flash of insight about the future or known someone who did?"

    OH WOW, MIA. This happens to me all the time. I'll call people who were dialing my number. Knew when every grandchild was on their way... Illnesses. Friends I haven't heard from for years, I'll think about and find out something's happened.

    WELCOME BACK to GLIAS...have a wonderful day. THE BOOK LOOKS AWESOME !!

    ~Angi

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  3. Cool, Angi. What do you attribute this to? Do you think you have a gift?

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    1. My grandmother always said I did. Not certain what it is. I like it most of the time.

      Scars the bejeebers out of my youngest who just knew things were wrong one night with some family member. Had to call everyone in the middle of the night to verify they were okay. I didn't mind, because the night my uncle died, I had that dream. So, gift? Sensitive? or Clueless? :-)
      ~Angi

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  4. Hi Mia! So glad to have you back at GLIAS. I've never known anyone who had insights into future, but my mom is an incredible judge of people and can often predict exactly how someone will act or what they are going to do, even years into the future based on their personalities. It's uncanny... I could never get away with ANYTHING living with that woman...LOL :)

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  5. Hi Mia,
    Oh, yes, ma'am, I've had insights into the future. Lots and lots of times! And I predict this fantastic book is going to the top of the charts! Great post. Now I've got to go spread the word about those great giveaways.

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  6. Terrific post, Mia!

    I've had insights. The ones that gave you that dreaded feeling like yours was never fun, but I never ignored them.

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  7. Congrats on the new release, Mia! Sounds like a great book!
    I've never had a prescient vision, but I have had a few souls tap me on the shoulder as they departed for the great beyond. That's not a very comfortable feeling, either.

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  8. Congrats on the new release! It sounds great!

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  10. Heather--Oh, shoot! I forgot I was signed in under my real name. Guess I don't have too many 'pinpricks of prescience,' do I? Thanks again for having me.

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  11. Thanks, Carolyn! Hope your insight is a true one in this case!

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  12. Linda--I'd be interested to know how some of your 'dreads' turned out.

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  13. Oooo, Cheryl. You gave me goosebumps.

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  14. Thanks, Chey. Hope you love SINS OF THE HIGHLANDER!

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  15. can't say i have the sight by any means, just the occasional sense that something seems familiar somehow on occasion when it shouldn't. I don't think I'd want such a gift for the reason shown in your excerpt -- that sense of helplessness of not being able to help what you're seeing as it's not "real" at the time would drive me crazy.

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  16. Congrats on your new release! I loved An Improper Gentleman. :)

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  17. No I don't have "the sight". I can only imagine what a burden it might be. Like your frustration in not being able to tell your mother and sister why you wanted them to postpone their departure, and then worrying about them when they still left on time... and then guilt when they were in an accident. I am glad that I don[t have the sight.
    Best wishes on the new release. I'm sure it will do well... even without the sight!
    bettysunflower at hotmail dot com

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  18. gamistress--I've always wondered what "deja vu" is. That sense of having been there, done that when you know you haven't is unsettling.

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  19. LilMissMolly--I'm so glad you loved that trio of novellas. Diane Whiteside and Maggie Robinson are terrific.

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  20. I've definitely had the sense that something was going to happen and it did--several times in fact. I'm a big believer in listening to feelings. I also have two friends who are psychic--one knew my mother when I was a kid and, unbeknownst to me at the time, was always ratting me out. I didn't meet her until I was in my 20's, we became fast friends and I would call her and say. "Guess what I got!" She'd answer "A dog, a big black dog." Sometimes she's a real killjoy!

    My other friend told me I was pregnant with all three of my kids. Let me tell you there's nothing worse than getting a phone call from Rhonda, less than 8 hours after making love with your husband for the first time in 9 months (due to a 9 month-old baby who never stopped crying--we'd take turns sleeping) only to hear Rhonda on the other end of the phone line say,"I'm nauseous, are you pregnant again?" I must have turned white as a sheet, my DH came downstairs and asked what was wrong. I told him what Rhonda had said, he shook his head and replied "Don't bother buying a test, just make an appointment with the dr." and left. Yeah, it turned out to be a happy surprise, but it sure took a while to figure that out.

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  21. I've had more flashes of insight about the past. Something beyond 20/20 hindsight, a knock on the head (or heart) from some greater wisdom that connects previously random dots either about myself, or about my relationships. I think a good therapist specializes in helping us see these encounters with larger Truth, and they serve a writer well too.

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  22. I do get premonitions or a gut feeling at times. Your book sounds wonderful. I love a man in a kilt!

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  23. Great blog! Looking forward to reading the book!!! Cheers!

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  24. I do get feelings. I can't explain them but now I know to trust them. Not often, but when I do, I listen.

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