The Last Guardian, by Joan Hazel

Joan Hazel's book, The Last Guardian, is on my reading list this summer. I can't wait to read a story about a group of shapeshifters.

But there's more than that - there's Mika, see. Ever since I learned about Joan's book, I've been drooling over her character. He's not just Mika, he's My Mika. Why you ask? I'll show you why:

OK! So now that we understand that whole concept, Joan has been kind enough to allow me to host an excerpt from The Last Guardian. And as a special treat, she has featured a steamy scene with CJ and with My Mika.

cover for The Last Guardian

"Do you not know me?" Mika spoke directly to her, yet continued to stare out into the middle of the lake. There was sadness in his voice, and CJ was unsure if the sadness belonged to her or to something else.

Did she know the man at her side? Her heart said yes, but her mind said no. Without shame or guilt, CJ stared at her companion.

He was taller than she by maybe four inches, no more. The earrings he wore were made from real feathers, wrapped with silver wire. The one closest to her swayed gently from the beating of his heart. Her gaze followed the long length of his braids to where they ended slightly above his belt.

The sleeves of the scarlet shirt he wore were rolled up exposing his forearms. Try as she might, CJ could not stop the woman in her from wondering if the skin beneath his shirt was the same deep sun-kissed color as the part she saw.

A laugh, deep and masculine, echoed across the lake. She would have thought it her imagination, had the sound not been followed by the plopping of frogs as they scattered into the water in surprise.

CJ's lifted her gaze to Mika's face. Still he stared ahead, unwavering. "Are you going to answer me?" she asked.

"The answer is yes," he said.

"Excuse me?"

"Yes, my skin is the same color all over."

"I did not mean…How did you…"

"I have been inside your mind since you were a child. It is easy for me to slip in and out of your thoughts without your notice."

The author, Joan Hazel

CJ grunted and crossed her arms over her chest in defiance.

"Forgive me. I did not mean to embarrass you," he whispered.

"You didn't. I, uh…" Okay, she thought. I am embarrassed. Dang it! "You still did not answer my original question," she said trying to change the subject.

"Does that mean you have finished taking inventory?" he asked with a hint of male smugness.

CJ blushed, but felt no true remorse. "You asked if I did not know you. I was only checking to see if I recognized you. Which, I am sorry to say I did not."

"Very well," he said, facing her.

Though there was little emotion in his voice, his eyes held a pain and longing CJ did not understand, yet felt compelled to erase.

Mika took her hand in his and placed it over his heart. Her pulse quickened at his touch.

"What…uh…what are you...?" she stammered.

"Do not speak, Charlie Jean," he said. "Only trust."

CJ peered deep into his caramel eyes. Gold flecks twinkled and danced in a way that was mesmerizing. If he asked her to walk on a bed of hot coals at this moment, she would do it for him.

"Close your eyes," he requested as he brought up his other hand to cover her eyelids with his palm.

If any other man had tried to touch her in such a way, CJ would have pulled away, but she ignored her mind's protests and did as he asked. With eyes closed, CJ allowed Mika to guide her wherever he wished.

"I need to know that you trust me, Wicahpi. Truly trust me."

CJ nodded her obedience. "I do," she whispered. "I don't know why, but I do." Even with her eyes closed, she knew her statement had made him smile, and that made her happy.

"This is real CJ. I am real. I need you to open your mind," he instructed her. "Open you mind and your heart. Allow them to guide you to our Mother. She gives us all the answers. It is our job to know how to receive them."

Time held no influence over the events that were taking place. For CJ it seemed to be both an eternity and mere seconds. The heat of Mika's body radiated though his shirt to penetrate into her hand, and the rhythm of his heart pulsed strong and steady through her fingertips and into her body.

"Listen. Can you hear it? Can you hear my heart beat?

"Yes," she whispered.

"As my heart beats, so does that of every living thing upon the Earth. Every creature. Every plant. Even the water. Can you hear those?"

Timidly, CJ opened her heart and her senses to the world about her. She heard the breeze as it whispered through the pines and recognized the songs of the different birds that sang along its branches.

The world around her buzzed and thrummed. Each sound blended with the next to create a symphony that played in time to the beat of Mika's heart.

"You feel it. Don't you?" Mika asked.

"I feel it, but—but what is it?"

"Connection," he explained. "Connection to the Universe and all she has to offer you.”

*****

Oh, let's just have one more look at Mika, shall we?

 

The Maytag Woman

Our washing machine is broken. It's really, really broken, as in: the circuit board is fried. Good news, though; I married an engineer, so he can fix it!

Hurray! It's an engineer!

Except he can't. No one sells parts. When he called the local appliance store for a new circuit board, they laughed at him and told him to buy a new machine.

Now my husband, when he gets on a mission, is a bulldog. He just won't give up. He scoured heaven and earth (google) to find those parts.

any excuse to add a photo of a dog

And Lo! They will arrive on our doorstep this week, and he can fix the washer.

Here's the thing, though. I am DROWNING in laundry right now. We had just come back from a trip to the beach before the breakdown. Trips to the beach mean dirtying huge, heavy things, like beach towels. They tower in great dirty piles all over my house.

Plus, I'm doling out clean socks like a miser. And pajamas. ("Wear them another night, you're too young to sweat yet.")

I never realized how much I loved my washing machine until I didn't have it any more. I'm ready to grab those towels and socks and head out for a river and two flat rocks.

Oh, don't laugh at me, Mr. Maytag! I'm down to wearing those old pants, not that I was ever a fashion plate anyway, and the T-shirt that I wore to paint my mom's house. The shirt is black, the paint was white - you do the math.

So please, reading public, please cross your fingers for me that those parts arrive in the mail today. And give your own washing machine a pat from me.

Cover Reveal - Heart Waves

Danielle Sibarium is the author of For Always, a popular YA romance novel. She's known for her great characters and authentic settings. So when I heard that her next book, Heart Waves, was set at the Jersey Shore, I was really excited to have her write a guest blog about her book and the beach. She also agreed to do a cover reveal, and here it is:

Beautiful!

Thank you so much Alison, for having me here today. It is both a pleasure and honor to be a guest on your blog!

There was always a part of me that loved the Jersey Shore. As a young child living in Brooklyn, nothing would fill me with more excitement than my father announcing we were going to spend the day at Seaside Heights. And it would be the entire day. We’d start our trek early, taking the forever long drive down the Garden State Parkway. Once we arrived, we spend the next hour or two searching for a parking spot. Okay, it wasn’t that long, but at eight, it felt like it.

We’d hit the beach, bake in the sun for a bit, cool off in the water, and then the fun would begin, at least my fun. After hours of anticipation we’d start to explore the boardwalk, rides, games, food; a never-ending world of awe and wonder. During my sweet sixteen party, my father told me he bought a summer house in Point Pleasant. No it wasn’t my birthday gift. And the house wasn’t a summer type of house. It was a beautiful house on the Inter Coastal Canal in a cosy year round neighborhood.

 For the next decade my family and I shared special memories I will cherish for the rest of my life at my father’s house in Point Pleasant. Not just my immediate family, but my extended family and friends as well. We’d gather together, sometimes twenty or thirty of us, for the weekend. Ridiculous races with floats and noodles in the pool, volleyball games and evenings at the boardwalk only touch the surface of good times we shared. This was my favorite place to be.  And just happens to be where Jenna Kingsley (the main character of Heart Waves) lives.

I never really thought about where Heart Waves would take place, it just naturally unfolded in my father’s community, looking out toward the Loveland Bridge. Many summer nights, I’d walk to the little community beach and talk to a friend while sitting on the swings. This became Jenna’s sanctuary. And how can I write a book about living here and leave out the most popular attraction of all, Jenkinson’s Boardwalk? One of the scenes I had the most fun writing was the boardwalk scene where Jenna unexpectedly is left alone and sees Reece with another girl.

For those of you who live in this part of New Jersey, I hope I’ve done justice to the wonderful community you embody. For those of you who don’t live here, I hope you get a taste of what it’s really like to live at the real Jersey Shore. 

Follow Danielle on Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/Sibarium

Like the Heart Waves Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/#!/heartwavesbook

Purchase on Amazon http://amzn.to/HeartWaves

Nook http://bit.ly/HeartWavesNook

Thanks so much for visiting, Danielle! I hope to entice you back soon.