The Second Four SHADES OF MIDNIGHT

12 SHADES OF MIDNIGHT

12 authors
12 unforgettable, 
never-before-released stories

The stroke of midnight ushers in many things. From hijinks and mischief to danger and evil, romance is the magic that binds these paranormal novellas together. Join 12 bestselling and award winning authors as they explore the different shades of midnight in exclusive, never-before-released stories.

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DARK SECRETS: STONE COLD DEAD

by Shea Berkley

National Award Finalist

Being a hero is Ryan di Taro’s job. Eradicating the city of vampires and other monsters that hide in the dark is how he got the title. When an unknown woman appears and saves his life and then disappears, he’s not sure if he’s made a friend or enemy. Should he accept her help in hunting down the undead, or is she part of an elaborate plan the creatures of darkness have created to end his quest to see evil eliminated for good.

MIDNIGHT RENEGADE

by Claire Cavanaugh

Golden Heart Finalist

In the first of the new SEAL Team Infinity Series, Navy SEAL Commander Alex “Ice Man” Winters vows to take down those responsible for killing half his team and turning him into a genetically-altered monster. Still, when an assassin strikes near his hideout, Alex can’t leave FBI Special Agent Samantha Gennaro to die…even if her missing father created the serum that altered his DNA. With only once chance to reclaim his humanity, Alex must trust her…even as betrayal stalks them from every turn.

A LOVELY DROP

by Darynda Jones

NYT & USA Today Bestselling Author

A woman who claims she can drop back in time to solve crimes meets a special agent who believes her. Now, the one thing she’s been able to manipulate her whole life is the one thing she needs more of, as she races against time with a special agent hell-bent on saving the world.

GETTING WILDE

by Jenn Stark

Award Winning Author

Magical artifacts hunter Sara Wilde can find anything - for a price. But though her cards predict her newest job will be nothing but trouble, she can't turn down the payday when so many are depending on her.

Still, play with the Devil and you're bound to get burned...

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SHEA’s QUICKIES

full moon or no moon? full

favorite super power? super strength

blood moon or blue moon? My story is pretty violent so I guess, Blood moon

What shade of midnight is STONE COLD DEAD?

Shea: Silver

We heard that all the stories include "Max Midnight." Without spoilers, can you give readers a hint of where he is in Dark Secrets: Stone Cold Dead?

Shea: Max Midnight is a really fun concept we came up with that we hope our readers will like. And even though the name isn’t used the same in ever book, we think hunting for it adds a little extra to the reading experience. Look for Max Midnight near the end of my story.

What circumstances or who inspired the hero for Dark Secrets: Stone Cold Dead?

Shea: Dark Secrets: Stone Cold Dead is the first in the Dark Secrets series. The hero is young and impulsive, and he drives his older brother crazy. He’s not based on anyone I know personally, but he’s a combination of every younger brother I’ve ever known.

What's your favorite MIDNIGHT experience?
Shea: Hands down, making out on a blanket under the stars. Best.

CLAIRE’S QUICKIES

full moon or no moon?  Full Moon. I have always loved the full moon, especially over the water. I remember watching the lunar landing and being in awe that we’d made it there.

favorite super power? Healing. There are people I would like to help with this power, and I wouldn’t mind a little of it for myself.

blood moon or blue moon?  Blood Moon. It’s such a cool, yet eerie, sight. It’s magical. I often wonder what cavemen thought of such phenomena.

What shade of midnight is MIDNIGHT RENEGADE?

CLAIRE:  My shade is indigo, a deep midnight blue that combines dark blue and violet. Indigo is the color of intuition, perception idealism and structure. Mental telepathy plays a big part in my novella and service to humanity, one of indigo’s strengths, is a core trait in both my hero and heroine. Devotion, wisdom, justice and integrity are all part of the meaning and those attracted to indigo will defend people’s rights to the end. The color is a critical element, especially in the hero’s story.

Without spoilers, can you share with readers your favorite scene in MIDNIGHT RENEGADE?

CLAIRE:  Hmmmm. My favorite has spoilers all through it. Actually, I have sections of two different scenes that I really like. One occurs at midnight and it’s the first time the hero lets himself hope for a better future with this crazy, wonderful, loving woman at his side. Believe me, he’s come a long way from Chapter One! That was not what he was thinking about her at all at the beginning! The second involves Samantha in a very poignant scene. She was supposed to be doing something else, then the story decided something different was going to happen. It worked out, but it’s funny when characters just take over and do their own thing.

What’s your favorite MIDNIGHT experience?

CLAIRE:  In 1989, I went to Peru to adopt my two children. At the time, the country was in upheaval and the revolutionary group, Sendero Luminoso, was terrorizing the entire country and blowing up all the electrical towers. (Among other things.) One night, around midnight, all the electricity went out in all of Limas and Comas, where I was staying with my sister, Joan, who was a missionary there. The two children awoke and didn't seem to want to sleep again. ’The day had been extraordinarily stressful and I think we all needed comfort at that stage. Joan told me to come outside. Curious, I followed her and gasped in amazement. I remember holding my infant daughter in my arms and looking up at a billion blazing stars. With no electric light to interfere, their brilliance was amazing. I had never seen anything like the magnificence of the sky that night and even the children seemed calmed by the view. The Southern Cross, a constellation I had never seen before, was huge in the night sky, as if to reassure us that everything would be all right. Miraculously, in the end, it was, and I cherish that very special memory of a beautiful night shared with people I loved.

DARYNDA's QUICKIES

full moon or no moon? Full! And preferably low on the horizon so it looms large in the distance. Heaven.

favorite super power? Indestructability

blood moon or blue moon? Blood. Of course.

What shade of midnight is the A LOVELY DROP?

DARYNDA: Sepia

Without spoilers, can you share with readers your favorite scene in A LOVELY DROP?

DARYNDA: Um, well, there’s a shower scene that's really fun. Yeah, I’ll go with that.

What's your favorite MIDNIGHT experience?

DARYNDA: My favorite midnight experience now is when my books drop and people pick up their kindles and their nooks and wait for it to download. I’m so grateful people are that excited to read something I wrote.

JENN’s QUICKIES

full moon or no moon?  No moon! Which is to say “New Moon” J

favorite super power? Ability to make time stand still

blood moon or blue moon? Blue Moon!

What shade of midnight is the GETTING WILDE?

JENN: Smoke

Without spoilers, can you share with readers your favorite scene in GETTIG WILDE?

JENN: Over the course of her adventure, Sara Wilde encounters the Devil himself—a member of the Arcanan Council. (For those who know Tarot, the Devil is the 15^th card of the Major Arcana). Only this Devil is unlike anything she’s experienced, and he knows exactly how to push her buttons. 

What's your favorite MIDNIGHT experience?

JENN: On Midnight on New Year’s Eve, I have a fun celebration of all the dreams I have for the coming year. I make tiny ornaments representing these dreams out of paper to hang on my New Year’s Eve tree, and at midnight I take them off their branches and drop them into a small fire to release their energy. :) Reading this over, I realize… it’s possible I’m a little strange ;) .

UP NEXT by SHEA

DARK SECRETS: EDGE OF EVIL

Adult Paranormal

Nov. 2014

What if nightmares, best kept in the dark, refuse to stay hidden?

FIND SHEA

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UP NEXT FOR CLAIRE

WHISPERED WARNINGS

a paranormal romantic suspense

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Website      Facebook

 Twitter @ClaireCavanaugh

RECENT RELEASE by DARYNDA

SEVENTH GRAVE and NO BODY

October 2014

Read a little, buy the book

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Contact    Website     Facebook      
Twitter @Darynda    Pintrest      Backlist

UP NEXT for JENN

WILDE CARD
Early 2015

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 THURS: Shae Berkley, Claire Cavanaugh, Darynda Jones, Jenn Stark

FRI: Robyn Peterman, Ann Voss Peterson, Robin Perini & Angi Morgan

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QUESTION FOR OUR READERS: Which moon do you prefer?

Shea Berkley

THE MARKED SON
Keepers of Life, #1
Entangled Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 1937044017

Seventeen-year-old Dylan Kennedy always knew something was different about him, but until his mother abandoned him in the middle of Oregon with grandparents he's never met, he had no idea what.

When Dylan sees a girl in white in the woods behind his grandparents' farm, he knows he's seen her before in his dreams. He's felt her fear. Heard her insistence that only he can save her world from an evil lord who uses magic and fear to feed his greed for power.
Unable to shake the unearthly pull to Kera, Dylan takes her hand. Either he's completely insane or he's about to have the adventure of his life, because where they're going is full of creatures he's only read about in horror stories. Worse, the human blood in his veins has Dylan marked for death.
~ ~ ~
Nothing feels better than touching Kera. I hold her close, feeling her heart beat behind her ribs. The heat of her hands on my chest is impossible to ignore as I kiss her, teasing her lips, and ultimately torturing myself until my control is almost gone. I pull away, putting my forehead to hers, and silently count to ten. Counting to a hundred wouldn’t help. Holding her intensifies my feelings of recklessness.

I can’t let go.

I pick her up. You’d think her dress, with its yards of material would be a problem, but it isn’t. Not for her. She wraps her legs around my waist and rakes her hands through my hair. I place my head on her chest and close my eyes. The rapid beat of her heart matches my own. The scent that engulfs her is as heady as the feel of her in my arms.

“You smell like summer and—” I search for the word that describes the scent pulsing under her skin. It teases me with every breath and touch. Naming it is driving me insane. It’s one I haven’t smelled on her before, yet it’s a scent that’s all too familiar to me, like summer and… “—sadness.”
She captures my lips with hers and slowly slides down my body until her feet touch the floor. Our kiss deepens, her embrace turns desperate. Her kiss fills with misery. The room turns hot, too claustrophobic. I can’t think. I try pushing her away, but she clings to me. Her breathing quickens, and she shivers within my arms. I sense real fear in her. Though she protests, I finally manage to step free. One, two, three steps back, separate but still connected. I can’t stop staring at her, wanting her. She’s like…

A drug.
~ ~ ~
Shea Berkley started out writing nonfiction (not so fun!) and quickly moved into fiction (totally fun!), and knew she’d found her calling. (Her family were thrilled she’d found friends to play with, even if they weren’t technically “real”). She’s still pleasantly surprised that people are willing to pay to read her stories. 

Besides writing, her many diversions include kickboxing, reading awesome books, and hanging out with her loud and rambunctious family. With five kids (all girls), her biggest job is making sure that the little darlings don’t harass the neighbors, and playing dumb when the cops come knocking on her door.

QUESTIONS
ANGI: How often to you get lost in a story?
SHEA: Every time I pick up a new book, I’m excited and want to get lost in the story. Sadly, it doesn’t happen every time, but more times than not it does. I’d say at least 60% of the time I hit gold. I fairly fickle and I usually love the book I’m reading.

ANGI: What’s the first book you remember reading?
SHEA: Umm, dyslexic, here. I fought reading for a long, long time. The first book I wanted to read was Shanna by Kathleen Woodiwiss. My mom threw it at me as a disciplinary measure (it’s a thick ole book) but I dodged it and then showed her. I read it.

ANGI: What’s your favorite “love” word?
SHEA: What is this love of which you speak? My husband is not romantic. Wait, vacuum. My husband got me a vacuum for my birthday once. I’m pretty sure vacuum = love in his language.

ANGI: Can you tell us about a real-life hero you’ve met?
SHEA: I met Spider man outside his roller coaster in Orlando Florida. He’s real. I saw him. I kid you not.

ANGI: What’s your favorite fairy tale?
SHEA: Sleeping Beauty. Phillip is awesome, and Maleficent is just plain evil and so unapologetic about it. Who wouldn’t want to sing like Aurora and have wild creatures dance with you? Phillip fights a dragon—serious man stuff going on there, and Aurora who’s been raised without shoes finds herself a princess and dances with the man she loves in a dress that can’t decide whether it’s blue or pink. It’s awesome times a million!!

ANGI: What’s your favorite cartoon character?
SHEA: Pinky and the Brain. I know it’s two characters, but they work as a team. If you make me chose just one, then it’s Freakazoid. Yep, he’s cooler than cool. You gotta love a superhero who claims an aversion to “poo gas”. I’m not fond of poo gas either, so I’m thinking I might be a superhero. I could be. Really.

ANGI: What turns you off like nothing else?
SHEA: Liars and manipulators. Grrr. They make me sooo mad I want to kick them and push them into a big dirty mud puddle. Not very Christian of me, but there it is.

ANGI: Is there a playlist you’d recommend for reading your latest release?
SHEA: I know some people create playlists as they write, but honestly, that sounds like a lot of work, and seeing as how I’m lazy, that doesn’t really fit in with the slacker image I’m going for, so nope. Got nothing for ya.

ANGI: Where do you read and how often?
SHEA: I read in bed. On the toilet. In my kitchen. In the car on long trips. Outside on the hammock. I’m an equal opportunity reader. If I’ve got a place to sit for more than two minutes, I’ll read… or play Angry Birds.

ANGI: What sound or noise do you love?
SHEA: Laughter. Who doesn’t?

ANGI: Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?
SHEA: Seriously? You’re gonna make me choose? That is cruel! Actually, there is such a thing as Fairy Tale Action Adventures. Tangled. Sleeping Beauty. Aladdin. Yep. It’s been done, and they all rock.

ANGI: What was the first story you remember writing?
SHEA: Something about a frog (I liked frogs when I was younger). The story’s a little sketchy and not worth repeating, but I thought it was pure literary gold.

ANGI: What’s your favorite movie of all time?
SHEA: Is this torture Shea day? Why are you making me chose? I need my blankie! (rub cheek with blankie…sigh)

Okay, I have a lot of favorite movies, and each are for a different reason. My favorite war movie is TEARS OF THE SUN. My favorite historical movie is THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS. My favorite Sci-fi is STAR TREK (Chris Pine version). My favorite remix movie is SHERLOCK HOLMS (love Robert Downey Jr.). My favorite oh-my-gosh-this-is-an-awesome movie is GLADIATOR. My favorite Dragon movie is REIGN OF FIRE. My favorite comedy is BEST FRIENDS. My favorite odd movie is A KNIGHT’S TALE. My favorite musical is SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS. My favorite musical that is just plain weird but I love it is MOULIN ROUGE. See? I’m not even halfway through my list yet and it’s already ten movies deep… and I haven’t even hit on the animated movies that I love.

ANGI: Who’s your favorite villain?
SHEA: Fanny Dashwood, the sister-in-law to Elinor and Marianne Dashwood in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility. The subtlety of her villainy is impressive. “People always live forever when there is an annuity to be paid them.” (giggle, snort) I absolutely love it.

ANGI: Be honest, when reading...do you put yourself in the heroine’s role?
SHEA: No, sorry. I would typically make different decisions than most heroines, but I still love to read about how they get themselves into and out of trouble.

ANGI: Is writing or story-telling easier for you?
SHEA: Storytelling. Being dyslexic, writing has always been a struggle, but I still enjoy it. I’m just not very fast at it. (wipe away a tear)

ANGI: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?
SHEA: Being a new author, it’s difficult to get my books in the bookstores, so word of mouth is going to be the main way people know that THE MARKED SON is available. If you like the book, tell people. Go to your local bookstore and tell them about the book and ask them to carry it. I appreciate any help you all are willing to do.

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: What is your favorite scene in THE MARKED SON, and can you give us some hints about the next two books in the series?
SHEA’S GOTTA ANSWER: Seriously, you all have issues! I’m curled into a fetal position now. I want my mommy. (rock back and forth, back and forth) I love all my scenes. Really.

The one that made me laugh the most when I wrote it was the scene where Grandma and Grandpa are trying to guess who Dylan’s dad is. That I find that scene funny is kinda sick, huh? They’re not trying to be cruel, they’re just being human, and getting caught red-handed playing the guessing game. It’s something I would do, and that Dylan takes it in stride makes me like him even more. He knows he’s got a sucky life, and he’s dealing the best that he can and trying his best to rise above the situation.

I don’t like talking about the books I’m writing, but I can say this, The Lost Prince is about Dylan and his fight to free Teag from those who are trying to take control after Navar’s death. The Bastard King is about Dylan trying to save those who he least cares about, and fighting against those he thought he could trust.

TODAY’S QUESTION: WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE LOVE WORD?
LEAVE A COMMENT for a chance to win an electronic copy of Shea’s MARKED SON. (remember to keep your answers PG13 please)

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KEEP UP WITH SHEA:
Contact: shea@sheaberkley.com
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DON’T FORGET to FOLLOW us on Twitter (#GetLostStories) or LIKE us on Facebook to keep up with all our guest authors and their prizes. Join us tomorrow when Cat hosts Brenda Novak and on Friday Maureen will be here with Claire Delacroix. Remember to check back daily to GET LOST in your favorite stories! ~Angi