Book Blitz: Excerpt & Giveaway+Guest Post - Warlord (Anathema #1) by Lana Grayson
Book Details
Warlord (Anathema #1) by Lana Grayson
Publication date: November 28th 2014
Genres: New Adult, Romance, Suspense
Synopsis:
The only thing more dangerous than the Anathema MC is the club’s president.
Trapped.
For twenty-one years, Rose Darnell’s family dedicated their lives to the Anathema MC. For twenty-one years, she’s searched for a way out.
Bound to a world of bloodied knuckles and drug money, Rose believes her musical talent will rescue her from an abusive father and overbearing brothers. A chance audition and promising gig would free Rose from the outlaw 1%, but her brothers won’t let her escape the club’s shadow.
A rival chapter threatens Rose, and only Anathema’s president, Thorne Radek, can protect her.
Betrayed.
A traitor lurks within Anathema’s brotherhood, and Thorne will burn the world to scorch the rat. When an innocent diva with baby-bunny eyes and dark secrets needs his help, Thorne offers his protection and is rewarded with the ultimate bait. He may be the only man to distract Rose from her music, but helping him find the traitor will damn more than the club. It will tear her family apart.
Purchase: Amazon
Excerpt
“You’re lying if you say you want out of this life,” he said.
I wished I hadn’t stared at his lips. Or concentrated on the baritone threat of his words. Or willed the twisted beat of my heart to slam against my chest.
“I’m not part of Anathema,” I said.
“No, but it’s part of you. And all the concerts and college loans and temper tantrums won’t get you out of the club. So what is it? Why are you so desperate to leave?”
His fingers teased along the too-pink lace of my panties. My cheeks flushed with the same innocence, but I didn’t let him scare me.
“Why are you so desperate to keep me here?”
He liked that challenge. “If you knew what was good for you, you’d go running back to your big brothers.”
“We’re not talking at the moment.”
“Maybe you should be a good little girl and apologize.”
“And if I don’t?”
I stilled as his hand brushed my cheek. But Thorne wasn’t gentle. His calloused touch claimed when it should have caressed, and his forearm flexed with the rigid strength of a man barely containing the demon of lust corrupting his intentions. I gasped as his hand tangled in my wet hair and yanked.
“I don’t play nice, sweetheart.”
For the first time in my life, a raw, untainted, pure heat rushed within me. His hand gripped hard on my hair, and he pulled my head to expose the delicate hollow of my neck. To kiss. To bite. To slit. I didn’t know, and I didn’t care. His hands rough, his touch unashamed, and his need completely, absolutely, unequivocally natural.
“I don’t want nice,” I whispered.
He tightened his hold. “What do you want?”
“To feel safe.”
He laughed. His hand jammed against my throat. He squeezed, just enough to frighten, just enough to threaten where I was most vulnerable, just enough to clear my mind of the lingering memories of the last time I was touched.
“Now do you feel safe?”
I’d rather fear one man than live the rest of my life afraid of the world. I shook my head as much as his grip would allow.
“You won’t hurt me.”
Guest Posts
Dark Romance
Occasionally, I like to bounce ideas off my husband while I’m writing. He’s a good sport, and he has a lot of decent suggestions. Then…I started to write Motorcycle Club romances.
“Hey honey, how many bullets are in a clip?”
“Bub, if you get shot, do you think you could still drive a bike?”
“Sweetie, how long do you think someone could hide a Meth addiction?”
Before my husband had me committed, he finally asked, “What the hell kind of romance are you writing?”
The best kind, I suppose?
I’ve never been a romantic person. No candlelight dinners or sonnets at my window; I prefer passion and excitement—any way I can get it. And dark Romances offer that tingly, dangerous excitement.
Passion comes in all forms. Fear, rage, injustice, desire. It’s a beautiful, powerful expression, and the best dark romance will recreate that passion in all forms. From capture fantasies to thrilling romantic suspense to even the darkest erotic romances—anything that challenges a reader to explore a side of the world, their personality, or their sexuality is an amazing expression of the romance genre.
Love is the most powerful motivator and healer. Even the worst abuses, betrayals, and situations are tempered through the passion between the hero and heroine. That is why I love the genre. Call it a silver lining or the reluctant romantic in me, but the darker the romance, the greater the danger, the more powerful the book.
So, what are your favorite dark romances? What makes them so exciting? Criminals As Heroes?
Romance seems to be getting darker and darker, and the male protagonists? Harder, arrogant, and more dangerous than ever before. And I love it!
Let’s be honest. I work an eight-to-four job during the day, and park my butt on the couch at night to write. That doesn’t leave a lot of time to get into trouble…unless you count forgetting to switch over the laundry. My most recent brush with the law? The time I drove around for a day without the new registration sticker on my license plate. Hard. Core.
So, I’m not the wildest girl out there. But when I’m reading? Give me the 1% bikers and made men, the criminal masterminds and the MMA fighters, and don’t forget the sinister and devilish billionaires with dungeons in their basement and helipads on their roof.
These are men who live outside the norms of society. The alpha males who not only seize life—they conquer it with a flash of a blade or the curl of their fist. They’re ruthless and brutal, pulsing with masculine energy, and they want nothing more than to dominate, punish, and reveal their desires to those wide-eyed heroines trapped in their web.
These “heroes” are the men our mothers warned us about, the stereotypes Tumblr posts about, and the featured criminals on the FBI Most Wanted list.
So why do we love them so much?
I think it’s just a combination of the danger and the unknown. Growing up, we yearned for Prince Charming to kiss us awake. Gallant and brave and perfect.
But where’s the passion in perfection? It’s the flaws, the danger, the darkness that offer the most excitement and danger and hope. Redeeming the unredeemable, and loving the unlovable. Whether it’s Christian Grey or Jethro Hawk, the criminals, bad boys, and dangerous men are the ones who make a book fun, thrilling, and super sexy.
Who is your favorite bad boy?
Strong Female Protagonists
A romance just isn’t a romance without a strong heroine.
Sure, we swoon over the bad boys, crush on the charismatic charmers, and love the wounded alphas, but the heroine makes the story worth reading. The days of the bodice rippers with timid and weak heroines are just about over.
Nowadays, it seems everyone wants the kick-butt heroine: the determined worker, the intelligent rival, and the challenging and passionate partner. I couldn’t agree more. The heroine/hero relationship dynamic is only successful if both characters prove their worth to each other.
But… lately, does it seem like the only way a female character can demonstrate her strength is through physical feats? A woman isn’t strong unless she knows martial arts, can shoot a gun, and charges into the vanguard with the hero at her side.
I like to cheer for that woman, but I’m missing the gentle heroine. The woman who would never grab a weapon but can lash the hero with her quick wit. The sweetheart who abhors violence but is desperate and determined to defend her ideas, projects, and body from any who would challenge her. The woman who has no special training in marital arts but can dominate without intimidating through physical strength.
A woman can be tough without becoming a clone of the hero, and a heroine can be sympathetic even if she’s unable to defend herself from violence. Just being defiant, being undefeatable even when all hope is lost and unconquerable even when overpowered, establishes an independence that is stronger than any bullet or blade.
So what do you think? Do you have a favorite kick-butt heroine?
Romance in Dark Stories
I love a good dark romance. A novel that’s twisty and achy that leaves me falling for the hero, cheering for the heroine, and experiencing something that might make me a little uncomfortable, confused, and tingly. Not many genres offer that many emotions in a single read.
But sometimes the story can get too dark, and the themes a bit too uncomfortable. The romance might be overshadowed by crime, violence, abuse, or psychological issues. Authors tread a very thin line between drama and taboo, and the successful ones can balance a tale of horror with redemption.
But does the darkness ever hinder the romance? How far can we teeter over that line before we tumble past taboo and into revulsion? Lots of novels deal with very difficult issues—physical and sexual abuse, addiction, abduction, death, murder. Does the line shift from acceptable to uncomfortable, or do authors keep pushing the boundaries?
For me, I look for that redemption, the penance, the understanding a character has when their actions have turned too dark and their desires shift from selfish pleasure to experiencing a moment with their partner. No matter how dark the story, a good romance—a love that endures beyond even nightmare—is what shields the characters from their torment and me from those uncomfortable feelings.
TEASERS
AUTHOR BIO:
Lana Grayson was born to write anything and everything to do with romance. Her favorite genres range from the dark and twisty to the lighthearted and sentimental—as long as the characters are memorable, the story is fun, and the romance is steamy. Lana lives in Pittsburgh with her husband, and, when she isn’t bundled in her writing chair, she’s most likely cheering on the Steelers or searching for the ‘Burgh’s best Italian restaurants.
Author links: Website - Facebook - Twitter - Lana Grayson Mailing List
Author links: Website - Facebook - Twitter - Lana Grayson Mailing List
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