Sunday, July 22, 2018

BloodDark Rises Again!



Like all good vampire-inspired stories, BloodDark rises again!

The current titles in the series (along with future stories) have been picked up by Devine Destinies Books. The first re-release will be Fire on the Sands, followed by the three books in the "Olivia Trilogy".

We'll let you know the release dates as soon as we have more details. 

Thursday, June 14, 2018

The BloodDark Series is Without A Home




Yet again, we've lost another publisher. Desert Breeze Publishing is closing their doors after more than a decade. Amazon and the economy destroys millions of lives, and we "mid-list authors" are often left in the lurch. 

They're closing very quickly, so if you wish to buy any of our Desert Breeze Publishing titles (including Cindy's stand alone romance novels) please do so before June 30th. Check the gorgeous cover art (also going away soon) and synopses at her web site. of http://www.cynthianna.com.

We hope to find a new home for the BloodDark series--and continue writing adventure tales set in this universe--very soon. Your best wishes and prayers (and purchases) are very much appreciated during this stressful and sad time.


Purchase links to the four titles in the BloodDark series can be found  on the book pages to your right. Print and Kindle versions are available via Amazon. 

(Ironic, isn't it, for you to buy our books in those formats our publisher was dependent on the instrument of their--and so many small publishers'--deaths. But Amazon is a monopoly, and like all monopolies, their job is to put all competition out of business. Of course, once all competition is gone, they are free to publish or not publish as they see fit. They might not like science fiction or YA novels, for example. It's called economic censorship, and you, the readers, are the biggest losers at the end of the day.)

Thursday, April 12, 2018

The Top 5 Reasons to Read Science Fiction Adventure Stories!


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   This piece ran a while back at Night Owl Reviews. We thought we'd share it here at our page as well. Please feel free to share these reasons with your friends and family who ask you why you read science fiction.

    1. People who read science fiction adventure are generally pretty smart people.

Readers who love science fiction aren't your average run-of-mill readers. They're savvy and sophisticated. They know the difference between a light saber and light speed. They enjoy reading about smart characters such as Olivia and Hernando in our Olivia's Escape trilogy (which also includes Olivia's Return, and Olivia's Decision). Sci-fi readers don't enjoy air-head characters who can't figure out how to tie their shoelaces. They like heroines like Olivia, a young woman who helps lead a rebellion against an enslaving race of vampiric aliens. She really knows how to kick you-know-what!
 


     2. You can hang out at cool sci-fi conventions and meet up with other smart people.

Since you enjoy reading about smart people, you'll enjoy hanging out with other smart people and discussing the smart characters you all enjoy. You'll enjoy discussing intelligent and beautiful airship captains such as Adena from Fire on the Sands. Dressing like Adena in a steampunk-themed cosplay outfit--complete with her sentient mechanical parrot--is a lot of fun, too.
 

  3. Technology is changing our culture faster than many might think, and you want to keep on top of things. Science fiction opens your mind to new possibilities.

What is fiction today will become fact tomorrow. Science fiction authors have predicted inventions such as cell phones and satellites long before they actually happened. Readers of science fiction adventure tend to keep an open mind about how the technology will influence the world of tomorrow, and they're ready for the changes we'll see. Who knows? You might be one of the first humans to transport to an alien world through a device such as the Portal described in our BloodDark series. Read more sci-fi and be prepared!
 
  4. Science fiction is a different and evocative way of exploring current social issues in a safe place.

Same as with technology, science fiction adventure provides a mental challenge to readers to consider the "what if…" in our world. What if one small thing changed in your life--how would you change? What if you were suddenly abducted by aliens and transported to a world that's permanently night on one side and forced into slavery, such as Olivia in Olivia's Escape and Greg in Fire on the Sands are? Would it bring attention to issues of injustices that humans are currently dealing with on Earth right now? Would it expand your thinking to how we could make our planet a better place for all?
 

  5. Everyday life is just way too boring. You crave adventure!


Perhaps this is the best reason of all to read science fiction adventure--who doesn't want to see the other side of the galaxy and experience fantastical escapades? It's definitely more exciting than walking the dog or doing housework. Spending a few hours on another world and experiencing adventure through an intriguing character's viewpoint (such as Olivia's or Greg's) is sure-fire cure for boredom. Be sure to check out the BloodDark series of books today!

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Fire On The Sands Has Arrived!


Fire On The Sands
(Book 4 in The BloodDark Series, this story takes place in the era before the "Olivia Trilogy" of tales.)
http://www.desertbreezepublishing.com/blooddark-book-four-fire-on-the-sand-epub/
Print version available at Amazon.

Airship Captain Adena Nightingale takes on a smuggling run - and gets more than she bargained for. Out on the frigid desert of BloodDark World's night side, she rescues Earthman Greg Cole, an escaped slave from a Pure Blood mine.

Greg wants to rescue his friend, kidnapped with him and held somewhere in the City of Night. Adena's okay with that, but she doesn't know something strange lurks in the Oculus Nightingale's cargo bay.

When they reach the City of Night all hell breaks loose. Adena, Greg, and the sentient brass parrot Mr. Phibuli find themselves caught up in the aftershocks of an ancient war - and they have their work cut out for them in order to survive.

Excerpt:


The open desert lay beyond the single track, the sand and gravel waste looking cold, dark and empty. The heat on Greg's back stopped as if a furnace door had shut. He trudged onward for another hundred paces or so, wondering what to do next. The desert seemed to suck at his soul. Greg shivered from fear more than from cold. Who knows what's out there? The wild creatures of this crazy world could be far worse than Earth.


A blazing barrel dropped from the sky, slamming into the sand and bursting a short distance away. Burning oil shot out in a spray and spattered on his legs. Greg jumped and howled as he beat at the stinging pain and tripped over a barrel stave as it skittered by, one end burning bright. Cursing the burns, Greg picked up the stave. With a last glance at the emptiness he turned and used the rudimentary torch to light his way across the uneven ground.


He skirted the area of the mining compound, trying to see past fires and roiling smoke to determine how the slaves were doing. Occasional yells and cries sounded over the roar of flames. Once an ogre bellowed, whether in pain or triumph, he couldn't tell.


Greg reached the foot of the crag. The locomotive whistle shrieked, the banshee sound making him cringe. He heard the sounds of the engine stirring to life, the heavy huff and puff of steam at work. Greg stopped.


What the heck do I do now? I know that damned city is back down the track. Do the silly beggars think they'll escape if they go back? Are they going the other way, and to what?


He hesitated, caught between exhaustion and the need to escape. The sounds of the locomotive increased in tempo, but decreased in volume. It's moving away. They're getting away without me. He sagged to his knees, feeling like giving up and letting the cold or any surviving ogres find and kill him.


A soft puttering sound impinged on his hearing. At first Greg put it down to the sound of blood surging in his head. The sound increased in volume. Weary beyond belief he raised his head and looked about, wondering if he heard an echo of the fast-retreating locomotive. Some quality of the sound made him stare upward.


A huge shape blotted out the stars above. The fires in the mining camp reflected off a long silver cylindrical form, and Greg could make out the glint of glass and metal fittings and an array of windows showing a dull ruddy light.

It's an airship! An honest-to-God airship!


Fire On The Sands is available now in e-formats from Desert Breeze Publishing and in print at Amazon.