The Lamplighter's Special : Cover Reveal

 I'm doing a cover reveal today in conjunction with Danielle Sibarium-Tsapp. You can find her here.

Lisa was in my school in fifth grade: a tall, beautiful girl with short  golden hair that stood straight up on top of her head. I couldn't take  my eyes off her. Her clothes were gorgeous, in a "I don't care what  the world thinks; I'm going to wear what I want" sort of way.

I never thought that, years later, we would become best friends. We went to Ireland and Paris together. We hung out and talked for hours in the bamboo forest behind her house. She designed and made my prom dress. 

And now she is my cover artist. I'm incredibly lucky to have a designer that is extremely talented but and also one of my oldest, dearest friends. When we get on the phone to discuss cover issues, we always end up in fits of laughter, and at this point, after all this time, we can  read each other's minds.

Here is the cover she designed for my upcoming book, The Lamplighter's Special:

 

I love the way she contrasted the beautiful woman with red hair (my arch villainess, Barbara) with the fishbones on the side. And as The Lamplighter's Special is a steamship, the water detail on Barbara's arms and back is perfect.

And here is an excerpt from The Lamplighter's Special. The characters are on the steamship, and they are in the middle of a very strange voyage, through time and space, called The Passage:

The Passage

Lizzie felt herself get shaken back and forth, the way that the little dog in the alley behind their old house used to do with the large rats that lived there if he managed to catch one in his mouth. “Help me, someone! I can’t bear it!” she shouted. It was as though she had no words. The sound of her voice was snatched away. Ninna screamed something too, but Lizzie couldn’t hear her sister either.

Under Lizzie’s hands, the machine seemed to get warmer. She could feel the heat. Something mechanical moved inside; it felt as though cogwheels and clockworks in the box that had been sealed up rotated faster and faster. She peered into the container that held the instrument, but the typing ball appeared the same as always – a delicate, brass machine with the letters sticking up from the apparatus like spikes on a hedgehog.

She looked up suddenly. She could smell something. There was a scorched taste in the air that she could sense in her nose and on her tongue. In fact, it was almost as if she could hear the burnt smell, or even see it, although of course that was impossible.

At that moment a shower of sparks flew past the window of the observation room. They landed on the sills and were followed by more sparks. It was hard to follow the arcs of the burning embers, due to the continuing motion of the ship. The glowing pieces shook in front of Lizzie’s eyes. Without her eyeglasses, she saw them as fuzzy stars. She wanted to put on the spectacles, but she didn’t dare let go of the box and the machine inside.

The motion increased in speed. Lizzie realized she was moaning with the effort of staying in one piece. A rapid “Uh-uh-uh-uh-uh!” was forced out of her chest as the ship shook faster and with more force.

Priam’s figure danced in front of her eyes. Next to her, Ninna rattled like a balsa puppet. Even Toby’s face, as close as it was, jittered in front of her vision like some kind of fevered dream.

Oh, please, make it stop! Lizzie wanted to shout. But, no, that wasn’t really what she wanted to say. She looked at Priam, considering that she didn’t know Toby’s younger brother very well. From what he had seen, though, he seemed like a survivor. He was physically strong, and usually good-humored; he might be thoughtless at times but he seemed nice enough, at least until he had kissed that Miss Wilkins on the stairs.

And Toby – it seemed terribly important that Toby was there, beside her, his warm hand next to hers. At that moment she sensed that it would always be that way, no matter what happened to them both.

She formed a desperate, silent plea in her mind. Her one thought was: Take care of Ninna. She’s not that strong. Take her through this safely. If there is someone out there who can hear this, then guide my sister through this – this Passage.

SOS

Today I'm going "shopping" to buy some "clothes." For myself.

I'm trying to wrap my head around it, since shopping now has become one of three options:


Groceries
Expensive items for child; see here
Books for my Kindle


But apparently there are stores out there that sell clothes that are actually worn by moms. You have to go to these stores, pick out some items, and go through a torture process known as Trying On.


I vaguely remember doing this at another point in my life, but then it was the 80's and I had places to go to in those clothes. I went to teeny bopper stores and bought lace gloves and high heels and thought I was the bomb. 

Yes! Just what my outfit needed.

(Let's just pause here for one moment and imagine putting lace gloves on, standing back, looking in the mirror, and thinking - YEAH. I am all set for the club.)


So, no lace gloves today, and I am not allowed to buy for my kid. And I doubt Macy's carries the steampunk bustled skirt that I really want to get.

Probably not going to buy this today.

I'll check back later and let you know how this all works out.

Free Books for Kindle Download 2/12/12; Romance books contest

 All of these books are free for Kindle download today, Sunday, February 12 2012. Just click on the titles to go to the Amazon page.

Binary

Brooklyn- is a junior in high school, who is sick of high school drama. She doesn’t fit in and is the recipient of constant bullying. So, when a stunning, oddly dressed, guy approaches her on the beach, she doesn’t understand why he would; take the time, to talk to her.

Tyche- The son of his planet’s Emperor, is lost. His planet is at war. His father was murdered and the only hope he has, is to find a girl, he has seen in a vision of his future. She is somehow, the key to solving his problems.

The two begin an adventure, with their friends, to find five elements to save Tyche’s planet. In the process they find adventure, love and themselves.

"When our gazes meet, I feel my knees struggle, to keep me standing upright. If this is an illusion, I never want to be sane again. If this is a dream, I never want to wake up. If this is all real, I am in trouble. I don’t think I can pull my heart out, of this one, now that I am in so deep. I can’t fight gravity."

Brother, Betrayed 

"One brother will betray the others with such treachery that it will change the destiny of Miscia forever."

The three princes hear this prophecy, and they will discover how far it will drive them to explore love, loyalty, and their own souls.

The princes are bound by loyalty to each other and their kingdom. When conflict comes to their land, their ascension into power is darkened by betrayal.

Oman, eldest and Anteria's promised king, leads his brothers on their journey through Arnith.

Fasime, driven by passion, seeks a life of romance and adventure.

Syah, born the ailing youngest brother of these two outgoing princes, endeavours to overcome his bleak destiny through pursuit of knowledge and magic... a quest that may reveal unknown power within his own soul.

A tale woven with deception, war, sacrifice, and magic, BROTHER, BETRAYED takes readers to a troubled kingdom surrounded by barbarians, magical races, and forbidden boundaries.

Devil's Kitchen 

In The Night Watchman Express, Miriam and Simon were kidnapped and thrown on the strange train... Now in Book Two of The Crown Phoenix series, they arrive at the terrifying destination known as Devil's Kitchen.

There they will face human experiments in a laboratory known as The Infirmary.

There Miriam will be forced to work in an underground factory.

There Simon is held in a luxurious prison by jailers who are as beautiful as they are deadly...

And their courage will be tested to the breaking point.

 
Sakuri 

Life as a package courier might not be the most glamorous of lifestyles; but for Sakuri it certainly comes at no shortage of thrills and dealings with the city's underbelly. So when an ex-mob boss requests a delivery through Sakuri's work it appears just to be an average job; right down to the attempt on her life to assure that package isn't delivered.

A stray bullet cracks up the case during the battle, revealing an innocuous gemmed gauntlet within. In order to protect the delivery Sakuri slips it on, only to discover that once attached the device is not so willing to be removed. As she would come to know it by; the Metamorpher becomes the source of Sakuri's future troubles.

Thrusting her into a world that constantly challenges the reality she once knew; Sakuri now contends with both earthly foes and a malefic force heralding from beyond the stars seeking the device for itself. Intentions that have no kind regard for the Metamorpher's host; or those around her.

Terps 

Deafness is perceived as a culture and not as a disability in the world of "Terps" and interpreters comprise the subculture that can only exist where Deaf and hearing overlap.

That's the backdrop, but the story is about a marriage. An interpreter marries the only hearing member of a famous Deaf family. The interpreter has chosen to build her life around the Deaf world, but her husband was born into it and would rather do just about anything else.

The Last Guardian 

CJ Carson believes herself to be slightly crazy. For as long as she can remember, she has been plagued with strange dreams, migraines and an imaginary friend that never seems to go away: a voice of love and reason she has heard in her head since childhood.

Born in a time of turmoil and bloodshed, Mika Elkhart is half-coyote, half Lakota warrior. Orphaned at birth, he was taken to Haven, a place of refuge and respite for shape-shifters. There he was raised by the Guardians of Haven, becoming a member of Delta Pack, the Theriontrope Foundation's elite defense force. His was a world of death and darkness aside from his one ray of hope, CJ Carson.

The time has come for Mika to reveal his true identity and convince CJ to willingly take her father’s place as the Guardian of Haven. But for CJ, the road to Haven is laid with danger brought about by the Loki, the Lord of Chaos. Without a Guardian, Haven will destroy itself and without his Little Star, so may Mika.

William the Damned 

A ghost ship... below the deck there is a sight beyond believe, fifty men and woman dead upon their backs.

Their eyes are closed and their hands twined together upon their chest. Here in the lowest deck, where not an inch of light manages to intrude, they lie dead.

William is a vampire pirate, with an unquenchable thirst for human blood. He has an aversion for holy water, crucifixes and garlic. Exposure to sunlight will turn him to dust. He has loved before, but never like this and for Susanna, he would make the ultimate sacrifice.

 Furthermore, you can enter to get an entire shelf of romance books for your ereader! Just click HERE to enter.