Romance Book Craze: July 2012

Seduced by Blood

Sweetblood Series #4

Release date July 24, 2012

E-books released August 1, 2012

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Deep within the forests of the Pacific Northwest, the battle for supremacy rages on between two vampire coalitions: Guardian enforcers sworn to protect humanity, and Darkbloods, rogues who kill like their ancient ancestors... Hot-blooded and hard-edged, Tristan Santiago has an uncanny ability to see beneath the surface-a power that serves him well as the Guardians' region commander. But when a deadly plot against his fellow vampires is uncovered, he must turn to the one woman he can't read: the beautiful yet mysterious Roxanne Reynolds, whose sensual presence soothes his tormented memories. Roxy had put love before duty once before, with devastating results. But to root out a dangerous traitor in their midst, she must put her faith in Santiago, the one man skilled enough to break through her defenses. Posing as lovers, Santiago and Roxy work side by side-and discover a powerful craving that threatens to consume them both.

Excerpt from SEDUCED BY BLOOD

By Laurie London

“Hola” he said as he approached. “Roxanne, I presume?”

She straightened her spine at the sound of his voice and turned to face him. And for just a moment, he forgot entirely why he was here.

Since joining the Agency over a century ago, he’d been stationed in various parts of the world that most people only experienced by reading books and magazines, seeing pictures online or news clips on television. And he’d witnessed many astounding things. Tattooed pleasure workers in Thailand, secret Incan mating rituals, French courtesans well versed in the sexual arts. In short, he’d seen a lot, experienced a lot. There wasn’t much that could take his breath away.

Until now.

“And you must be Santiago.”

God, he even liked the sound of her voice.

She picked at a twig nestled in her dark blond hair, which fell past her shoulders in messy, tangled curls, but she wasn’t having much luck.

“Here, let me get that.” Without thinking, he reached over and had to use two hands to keep from pulling her hair too much. “There, got it.”

It was only after he was done that he realized how intimate an action it had been. He stepped away and folded his arms over his chest as he studied her.

Despite the frigid night air, she wore a cream-colored tank top with a surf shop logo that sported a few blood stains, dark brown yoga pants—the kind that felt different depending on whether you ran your hand up or down the fabric, and slip-on, once-turquoise tennis shoes that were now covered in mud. The juxtaposition between feminine perfection and scrappy street fighter was so utterly arresting that the world fell away for one brief moment.

Although none of her individual features stood out on their own—straight nose, golden eyes framed by dark lashes, and lips that were neither thin nor generous—when they were put together, she was striking. Her face was oval, her skin smooth and unblemished except for a smudge on one cheek. He had the sudden urge to brush his fingertips against her skin to see if it was dirt or blood. She wasn’t old, but the confidence reflected in her eyes indicated that her Time of Change, when a vampire youthling’s blood cravings began, was decades behind her.

“So what do we have here?” he asked, glancing at the charred remains. His tone was purposely sharp and businesslike as he attempted to shake off his lingering reaction to her. He didn’t like losing control of his thoughts like this.

She fingered her necklace. “Turned out I was able to handle the situation on my own.”

“And the human witnesses?”

“They’ll need to be dealt with. I didn’t have the energy to wipe their minds, only to insert a sleep suggestion.”

Very clever, he thought, noticing for the first time the weariness in her eyes. “What about the other Darkblood? You said there were two.”

“I took care of them both. Here—” she toed her sneaker against the pile of ash at her feet, “—and over there about twelve to fifteen feet beyond that downed tree.”

“I don’t understand. You said on the phone you didn’t have any weapons.”

“I didn’t.”

“Then how—?”

“I used theirs,” she said matter-of-factly, as if disarming two Darkbloods who were probably high on Sweet was something a teacher dealt with every day.

It still didn’t make sense. His confusion must’ve been apparent because she continued. “I pretended I was trying to get away from the sweetblood human, that I was concerned I might kill him, and needed their help.”

“So they knew you were a fellow vampire.”

“Yes, but they had no idea I knew they were Darkbloods. As soon as they didn’t consider me a threat and dropped their guard, it was a simple matter to strip their weapons and use them to my advantage.”

This woman performed under pressure as well as any Guardian he’d worked with, and yet she was just a teacher at Tracker Academy. What happened to the adage, ‘those who can’t do, teach’?

A little about Laurie:

A graduate of Western Washington University with a BA in Business Administration and a former tester/programmer for a Fortune 500 company, Laurie London now writes from her home near Seattle where she lives with her husband and two children.

Her debut book, BONDED BY BLOOD, A Sweetblood Novel, came out February 2011 from HQN Books. It was followed by HIDDEN BY BLOOD, an e-novella June 2011; EMBRACED BY BLOOD July 2011; “Enchanted By Blood,” a novella in the anthology A VAMPIRE FOR CHRISTMAS Oct 2011; TEMPTED BY BLOODMarch 2012; and SEDUCED BY BLOOD August 2012.

Her writing has won and been a finalist in several prestigious contests including the Beacon, the Emerald City Opener, the Marlene, and the Orange Rose.

She is a member of Romance Writers of America®, Greater Seattle Area RWA, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

When not writing, she can be found running, reading, or riding and showing her horse. Someday she hopes to qualify for the Quarter Horse World Show – that is, if her horse doesn’t get hurt again.

Find Laurie here

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Good Reads

Laurie’s Christmas novella is a finalist in the Prism contest this year. When we have more details we will pass this on to you.

Giveaway Time!

For a chance to win a copy of Seduced by Blood and a set of Trading Cards. {Paperback & Trading Cards for a US/Canada winner. International winner would receive an E-BOOK of Seduced by Blood (Amazon or B&N only) . To enter please comment here with you email address. A winner will be picked using random.org at the end of the tour and emailed. *No email = no entry

By commenting you will also have a chance at the GRAND PRIZE of a set of the SweetBlood Series, along with a set of Trading Cards and a custom made book thong by Mandy from Shiny Stupid Designs. {US/Canada Only} Winner will be picked at the end of the tour.

Thank you for following the tour. For the other tour stops please see the right sidebar of the blog.

From the acclaimed author of the Dark Sword novels comes a thrilling spin off series in which ancient magic in the modern world ignites a timeless passion…

A MYSTERY OUT OF TIME

Gwynn Austin has no idea why her father has disappeared on a mysterious trip to Scotland. When she goes on a desperate mission to search for him she finds more than she bargains for in a ruggedly handsome, wickedly exciting Highlander who exudes danger and mystery. And when she discovers her own link to Scotland, she’ll have to trust her heart to help lead her….

A LEGEND IN THE FLESH

Propelled through time by powerful Druid Magic, Logan Hamilton uses his immortality and powers of the god inside him to help prevent the awakening of an ancient evil in the modern world. He never expects to find help in the form of a beautiful, alluring, and all too tempting woman whose passion and strength matches his own. Together, Logan and Gywnn must fight for their love—before a demon from the past destroys them both…

A deliciously sexy and exciting adventure with the perfect combination of rugged Scotland and modern day technology.

Gwynn Austin has gone all the way to Scotland to find her father after he disappeared without a trace but what she ends up finding is something a whole lot more then she expected. Logan Hamilton is a highlander who is 400 years out of his time. He is funny, sexy, and very powerful. I absolutely loved him and his ability to adapt. I will say that him learning about modern day technologies had be giggling out loud. His personal explanation of things before they were explained to him was hilarious. His devotion to the caus and his friends and family and his angst from his past kept the story emotional and heartwarming.

Gwynn is a fighter and not one to give up. When she was forced into a world that she didn’t even know existed she didn’t back down or hide. She stood her ground and did everything she could to help. My only problem was her ability to believe so easily. It was a bit unbelievable how fast she accepted what was going on but that did not distract from her character at all. I think she is the perfect addition to the group and the perfect women for Logan.

All in all the story was great. Well written with a plot that kept me sucked in the whole way through. I thoroughly enjoyed this addition to the Dark Sword/Warriors story. I would recommend starting at the beginning with Dangerous Highlander in order to fully understand and get ultimate enjoyment from each book.