Spark by Nancy Lee Badger!

Spark

Clan of Dragons 

Book One

Nancy Lee Badger

Genre: Scottish Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Nancy Lee Badger

Date of Publication: August 4, 2016

ASIN: B01HV8Y5IG

Number of pages: 207 

Word Count: 64,500

Cover Artist: Nancy Lee Badger

Book Description:

Nancy Lee Badger brings you another story filled with Scottish dragons and shape-shifters. Set on the Scottish Island of Skye, she again fills her paranormal fantasy with romance and danger, and with characters you will remember. Some will tug at your heart. Others will make you wish for their demise. SPARK is the first book in a brand new series, Clan of Dragons.

What can a young dragon do to prove to his older brothers that he is their clan’s best chance to save their species? In the Black Cuillin Hills, Evan heads to the village of Morhban to find a way to interact with humans. To learn their language and customs, and to get close enough to a red-haired beauty to mate with her, the brown-winged purple dragon shifts into a copper-colored horse. When his new hooves protect her from Lord Toal MacMorgan’s inappropriate demands with a well-placed kick, she thanks Evan by brushing his silky coat. Things are looking up.

When an unfamiliar horse kicks Toal into the creek, releasing Vika from his roaming hands, her appreciation turns to horror. A sputtering Toal demands that the animal die. Anger makes Vika agree to a wager. A three day hunt will determine the fate of the horse she names Spark. Failure will mean his death, and the loss of her freedom. Pirates, wolves, a wild boar, and a handsome stranger lead her on a wild ride. She discovers her heart is in as much danger as her life.

Amazon      Amazon Canada      Amazon UK    Amazon Aus  

Excerpt

“Do you smell smoke?” Vika tugged on Evan’s arm, as she pointed to the horizon. An orange glow filled the darkening sky, an ominous hue rising from the village. 

“I fear your village be on fire.” Evan prayed his fire-breathing brothers were not involved. All he could do was race as fast as Vika could follow. 

“Dear Lord, ‘tis not the kind of thing to welcome us home. I pray no lives shall be lost.”

They approached the outer gates within moments. 

“There should be a guard to block our way. Has the fire pulled him from his post?” Vika said. 

The smell of freshly spilled blood pulled Evan to a stop, just inside the fence. He increased his grip on her hand.

“Why stop? We must help the villagers!”

“Someone has been hurt, or killed. Can you not smell it?” 

Vika squeezed his hand, and he released her. “Evan, all I smell be smoke. What be you havering about?”

“This.” He pointed to the pair of boots barely visible beneath a mound of straw. He feared the guard was dead.

“Who did this?” she cried.

Evan kneeled beside the straw, and uncovered the man’s face. “Dead. Do you know him?”

“Aye, but not by name. He be a warrior, and must have guarded the village. The elders always post a guard at dusk.”

“We cannot help this man, now, but we must protect the village. I shall block the gates, until the village authorities post another man. Me thinks the fire might have been set by whoever killed this man.”

After pushing the doors closed behind them, Evan rolled several barrels into place, and lifted half a dozen boxes on top to give any further intruders no way to quickly escape.

“How can you lift so much weight?”

“I be stronger than I look. Hurry, lass. We must see if your brother has made it to town. I have a feeling the fire could be another of Toal’s plans to win the wager.”

“Nay! I cannot believe he would be so evil. Besides, he could not have gotten here ahead of us.”

“This means he had men in the village with forewarned plans to create havoc.” Evan growled, and spit at the ground. The air was thick with smoke, and the cries of animals and humans grew louder.

DRAGON TALES guest post 

I love to read stories about dragons, so I decided to write some of my own.  The more I read, the more the stories of European dragons, Asian dragons, and oddities that could be dragons (think Scotland’s Loch Ness Monster) gave me ideas. Scottish folklore is full of dragon-like creatures. So…one day I sat down and wrote a book about a Scottish villager cursed to change into a dragon at inopportune times due to a misunderstanding. That book became Dragon’s Curse. 

I mentioned Loch Ness. The myth of Nessie grabbed my attention. When I researched the Loch Ness Monster, I discovered how some tales call the mysterious beast a wing-less dragon. I used the information I discovered to write an award-winning book titled Dragon In The Mist.

When dealing with mythological creatures instead of actual wildlife, the writer has a certain freedom over other writers. I create my world and my beasts, which is why I took the liberty of creating my clan of dragons. They live in Scotland’s Black Cuillin Hills on the island of Skye, because I prefer to utilize actual locations. Dragons have certain traits such as scales, talons, wings, fangs, spiked tails, etc. However, as a writer I can make it purple, as I made my dragon-shifter hero, Evan Brown,who my heroine nicknames Spark. I can make Evan speak, shift into a handsome stallion with coppery fur, then shift him into a muscular human. I even have him fall in love. The freedom to allow my dragon to shift into other creatures, to enhance my story, is why I enjoy writing about the paranormal world. My love of horses gave the plot an interesting twist. Smoke, the second book in the Clan of Dragons series is already available for pre-order.

I need to apologize the the author- I had this stop on the wrong day of my calendar! I owe her a review- which good thing is- it's already in my calendar, so check back soon!! 

About the Author:

Nancy Lee Badger loves chocolate-chip shortbread, wool plaids wrapped around the trim waist of a Scottish Highlander, the clang of broadswords, and the sound of bagpipes in the air. After growing up in Huntington, New York, and raising two handsome sons in New Hampshire, Nancy moved to North Carolina where she writes full-time.

Nancy is a member of Romance Writers of America, Heart of Carolina Romance Writers, Fantasy-Futuristic & Paranormal Romance Writers, Triangle Association of Freelancers, and the Celtic Heart Romance Writers. Nancy and her family volunteer each fall at the New Hampshire Highland Games surrounded by…kilts!

Blog  http://www.nancyleebadger.blogspot.com

Website http://www.nancyleebadger.com

Twitter  https://twitter.com/NLBadger

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/NancyLeeBadgerAuthor/   

Goodreads     https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4101274.Nancy_Lee_Badger

Amazon Page  http://www.amazon.com/Nancy-Lee-Badger/e/B003UWZJME/

  

Tour giveaway 

1 Winner will receive a Scottish Flag Blanket 

(brand new, cat not included) as well as Shortbread Scotties, 

Purple Jelly beans, a Pirate Pencil, and a Visit Scotland brochure  

*international winner will instead receive ebooks from Nancy's backlist

Giveaway Ends August 21st 

Happy Book Birthday Scorch by KC Stewart!!

Scorch (Hailey Holloway #3)

by K.C. Stewart

Blurb

Hailey Holloway has a serious knack with running from her problems. At the first sign of trouble she can be found lacing up her Nikes and hitting the road. Dacea has been patient with her, but a man can only handle so much. He told her before that he would not chase after her again and is he nothing, if not a man of his word. Katherine is more than happy to pick at the wound that festers between them. If she picks enough, she just might make one or both of them bleed.

War is on the horizon. Together, they need to convince the leaders of Blue and Silver to join their crusade against the Council, but can they put their differences aside and stop fighting long enough to help those in the line of fire?




Short Excerpt of CHAPTER ONE

The thumping of Hailey’s heart echoed throughout her head as she ran. The only thought besides “run” was “run faster.” The words consumed her, swallowed her every thought. In this moment, there was nothing besides moving forward and getting away, as far and as fast as possible. He was coming for her. She could feel him in every tingle that ran up her spine.

Following.

Tracking.

Hunting.

He could probably hear her heart thumping. It pounded so hard, the entire city of Philadelphia could hear it. She slipped into an empty guest room. Light from the hallway illuminated the room for a brief second before settling back into darkness. She plastered her head against the door, listening for the man on her heels.

If you'd like to see the full Chapter 1, you can see it HERE-->> http://kcstewartauthor.wordpress.com/2014/12/12/scorch-chapter-1/


My Review

Ok, I already love this series, but I am seriously getting hooked. I loved the world this author has created. And the ending, I just need you to know that I seriously cheered out loud and got totally excited. I finally feel justified. LOL And I can't believe I love Silas this much. LOL And I thought I would be all about Dak, and I do think he is good for Hailey, but I think I am switching teams, because I have a feeling Silas is going to be awesome in the next book. But enough, let's actually talk serious.

So at the end of the last book, I'm about to spoil a little if you haven't read books one and two, so maybe skip this paragraph, starting NOW... Dacea and Hailey announced to the dragon council that he was alive and she was his mate. AND they brought Silas as backup, which I never thought I would see. And when the council wanted to be stupid, because of Katherine, they decided to go rogue and basically almost start a war. Now they are seeing the fall out. Dak is trying to get any and every dragon on his side, to overthrow the council because of their bad decisions. I agree with him thinking the council needs to upgrade, BUT he needs to get his life and priorities in order. I wanted to kill him most of this book. He ignored Hailey, ALOT... I mean she freaking put the ring on in the damn first few paragraphs and he was too damn stupid to notice. Then he's been hiding Katherine's bull, and lies again to meet her. Except Hailey finds out about his lies and she's pissed. Except instead of apologizing to Hailey, he tells her it's over, done, and she needs to go away. Now Hailey does over react, and should have maybe just thrown the ring in his face and screamed at his lying ass, but I must say, I take her side a little more than his in this one. Take your head out of your @$% and maybe she wouldn't always run away from you. LOL

Now, with the spoilery part done, Silas takes the lead in this book. I am so excited because I knew he wasn't just a mean bag of rocks in a meat suit LOL He takes care of Hailey. He even helps Dak, who doesn't deserve it. He even keeps himself from killing others LOL that seems like a crazy statement right LOL. He's gunna play matchmaker for Hailey and Dak, because he knows they belong together, no matter how crazy the two of them are being. And he gets my hero award of the book!! And then, on top of that, we get to meet some awesome new characters, Like Casper, who is my new favorite dragon!! I hope I get to see him more!!

I know I am normally not one to talk about spoilings and actual things that happen, BUT I needed to get that out. LOL Hailey and Dak had me stressed out in this one. And things are getting darker and a little more fatal, so things need to get back into line. :) I loved this one. I seriously cannot wait to see where the author is going to take us from here, especially since Hailey now has her eggs in the basket, I hope she puts her foot down and makes Dak get his eggs together LOL :) 5 DRAGON PAWS!!!!




About the Author



I thought writing a book would be the hard part. Oh was I ever wrong. The hard part is what comes after the words have been put on the page, and the edits have been made, and the betas have read, and the editor has said it’s crap. The hard part is when you’re holding a beautiful bundle of hard work and you have to package it with the right cover, format the hundreds of pages you just read over and over during the edits, and actually tell people that you wrote a book.

My name is K.C. Stewart and I’m an author.

There, I said it. It’s out in the world and can never be taken back. I’m going to say it again just for posterity sake.

I’m an author.

Hehehe.

Now that we have gotten that out of the way let me tell you a little about myself. I’ve lived in the same small Pennsylvania town all my life. I did take a shot at city living during college, but Philadelphia and I never really got along in the long run. I’m more of a rural girl than an urban one. I went to school for photography, ignoring all of those “job prospects are low” and “maybe you want to have a backup just in case…” from teachers and guidance counselors in high school. To be fair, I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do back then. However, if my 18 year old self could see me now I’m sure she’d call me a nerd and question my sanity. (You read? Pffft. Freak.)

The best part about being a photographer is it introduced me to the world of books. In the winter, the studio is all but dead. It was suggest I bring a book to read. I ended up reading through them faster than I could buy them. It was a life changer. Then I got my first nook. Mind. Blown. Who knew I could read so fast? Reading became my escape from the world. I ditched my cable and invested in a big fuzzy blanket and a cat…or three.

I didn’t start writing until I was invited into the super secret world of Facebook Role Play. Ok, so it’s not so super secret if you know where to find it. But I had no idea that part of Facebook existed. I was positive that I couldn’t string along a sentence, let alone a scene, and I was right. My first few months of RP were shameful. I would not wish my early writing upon my nemesis. But like most things, the more I wrote the better I got. (You were right piano teacher whose name I don’t remember. Practice does make perfect.) Soon writing as an already developed character wasn’t enough. So I made my own. Then writing scenes just wasn’t doing it for me anymore. So I wrote longer, more in-depth scenes, which turned into chapters and into a book.

Now I’m going to be honest with all of you. I never thought I’d finish it. I started it and it kinda just sat there for a few months. In that time I decided that my life needed a change. You know when they say it’s not too late to go back to school. Well, they are right. I was accepted into Clarion University’s online Library Science program. Apparently working full-time and being a full-time student wasn’t enough for me. So I opened back up that word document and began to seriously write my manuscript.

And it flowed.

And it was beautiful.

Now I’m writing a series while taking classes and working. Somehow it all fits together in a complicated puzzle, even if some of those pieces are held together with gum and duct tape.

Links

Website: http://kcstewartauthor.wordpress.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kcstewartauthor?ref_type=bookmark

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/kcstewartauthor/

Google +: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+KCStewartauthor/posts

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7913325.K_C_Stewart

TSU: https://www.tsu.co/KCStewart




SPARK

BOOK 1 OF THE HAILEY HOLLOWAY SERIES

Copywriter by day, nerd by night, Hailey Holloway is living the post college dream. Her life may not be flashy and exciting but it’s enough for her. After a late night at work, Hailey stumbles upon two dragons brawling in the middle of Philadelphia. In an act of kindness and lapse of sanity, she comforts the dragon who was left behind to die. In doing so she inadvertently invited the soul of Dacea into herself for safe keeping. Hailey just wants to live her life as simply and quietly as possible but with the voice of a disembodied dragon in her head, she has little hope of achieving her goal.

Dacea will do anything to be free of Hailey, a human who is moments from checking herself into a psychiatric ward. He is grateful to be alive, but at what cost to his sanity? The dragon world is in upheaval. Green is at war with Red, and he is of no use to anyone while stuck with Hailey.

The solution to their problem is not without its risks. But just how far will Hailey go to be free of the dragon?

Read Chapter 1 here

Book Trailer:  




SINGE
BOOK 2 OF THE HAILEY HOLLOWAY SERIES

Hailey has been taken.

She was alive and had a dragon boyfriend with a shiny new body. Life was fantastic. Or it was until she was drugged and pulled right off the street. Hailey finds herself no match for the supernatural world. Will Dak come after her or did their latest battle of arrogance verses stubbornness ruin her chances of rescue?

Dacea has two Mates.

Word of his return was making its way through the dragon world and all the way to his runaway Mate. After hundreds of years of searching and wondering, Katherine was back and making herself at home. Dacea is stretched thin as he looks for Hailey and attempts to keep Katherine from moving in.

Silas has a secret.

His mind is set and he’ll tear through whatever gets in his way. With a little more research he hopes to have his suspicions confirmed. And when they are, his discovery will change everything.

Read Chapter 1 here

Book Trailer: