Saturday Sample – Excerpt from Duke of a Gilded Age

In Duke of a Gilded Age, Belle and Wesley have had a bit of a rocky start to their relationship. In this excerpt, the two manage to have a pleasant interlude as they tour 1890 Central Park.

Excerpt:

At the center of Bow Bridge, Belle and Wesley leaned out over against the cast‐iron railing to watch the water rippling on the surface of the lake.

“I’m so glad you brought me here,” she said. “Do you suppose those men in the rowboats brought their lady friends here to propose?”

“It’s entirely possible. Let’s watch to see which boat tips over when the gentleman gets down on one knee.”

She laughed. “I admire your sense of humor. Errol is always so dignified.”

“Errol…is that your fiancé?”

“Yes. Sir Errol Blankenship. He’s a knight.”

“Does he have a white horse?”

“What? Oh, you’re joking with me again!”

“A bit. No offense meant.”

“None taken. I may seem serious on the outside, you see, but I like to laugh. I’m frequently filled with flights of fancy.”

“What marvelous alliteration! I solemnly salute your sagacious soliloquy.”

“Aha! I pay homage to the haste of your homily.”

Wesley doffed his derby hat and bowed from the waist. “I’m decidedly defeated by your deft debate.”

“You can’t be defeated until we conquer the castle together,” she said. “Lead on!”

Duke of a Gilded Age Blurb:

When American-born Wesley Parker inherits a dukedom in 1890, he must learn to be an aristocrat. Assigned to the task is his attorney’s daughter, prim Belle Oakhurst. As they travel to England together on a luxurious ocean liner, their tempestuous relationship encounters more than rough seas. Although Wesley is increasingly attracted to Belle, she is already engaged. While Belle begins to regret her hasty promise to marry, she is bound by honor and duty to keep her pledge. Furthermore, a thoughtless fabrication on her part threatens to expose her as a liar. Neither Wesley nor Belle can foresee that their voyage across the Atlantic will be fraught with peril, and will cost more than one man his life.

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Element of Surprise – Excerpt from CHILDREN OF YDEN

Children of Yden is the sequel to Last Great Wizard of Yden, and it’s jam-packed with action, intrigue, and teenage angst. I don’t have an exact release date yet, but it’s in the wings. Jon and the gang are back, along with a several new fun, feisty characters and nasty bad guys. There are also delicious hints and undercurrents throughout the story that foreshadow things to come in the final book in the trilogy, Secrets of Yden. Enjoy this sneak peek, and keep your eyes peeled for the release date announcement. ~ S.G. Rogers

Blurb:

While balancing the rigorous demands of regular schoolwork, Jon eagerly begins his magical training on Dragon Isle. At the same time, the Dragon Clan starts to search for other Earth-born sons and daughters of Yden’s wizards. Using a purloined map, however, the Fox Clan has already begun recruiting the children of Yden for their own sinister plans. Jon soon discovers Guinn of the Fox Clan is searching for a magical artifact called the Portal Key — and he’s more than willing to kill for it. Worse, Guinn’s desire to settle an old score puts Jon directly in his sights. As Guinn’s schemes fall into place, Jon is forced to hurt a close friend to protect her. Can he learn enough magic in time to thwart Guinn’s ambitions? Will he find the inner strength to survive injury, bitter betrayal, and horrendous loss? The fate of Earth and Yden hangs in the balance.

Excerpt:

Without any warning, Jon flew backward, right into a tree. He shook his head, stunned. Just when he managed to focus his eyes, the hooded wizard stepped into view.

Oh, no.

Dazed, Jon struggled to recover. Guinn’s fingers moved and Jon barely managed to deflect his binding spell. Fueled by adrenaline, Jon returned as strong a repulsion wave as he could muster. Caught by surprise, the Fox Clan wizard was blasted off his feet. Jon didn’t linger to savor the moment. He transported home.

When he materialized in his room, Jon was so amped up he couldn’t catch his breath. Pacing back and forth, he raked his wet hair off his face with his fingers.

“I just fought a powerful wizard.” He stopped pacing. “I just fought a powerful wizard — and won!”

At first he was jubilant, but as the impact of his words seared themselves into his consciousness, Jon’s mirth faded. The only reason I’m alive is my sparring drill practice and the element of surprise. Guinn didn’t think I was capable of defending myself. He won’t make the same mistake twice.

Jon paused to stare at his reflection in the mirror.

Guinn had seen his face, but Jon couldn’t identify the Fox Clan wizard except by his distinctive voice. I need to tell Dad, but how? Considering his father’s history with Guinn, Jon hesitated to talk to him about it.

“What on Yden have I done, Ophelia?”

Jon sank down on his bed and dropped his head in his hands.

Thanks for stopping by to read my excerpt! If you haven’t already read The Last Great Wizard of Yden, what are you waiting for? The e-book is available now through Astraea Press, Amazon, BN.com and other fine outlets ($2.99 MSRP). Now available as a trade paperback too! (HERE)

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Child or Woman? — Excerpt from TOURNAMENT OF CHANCE by S.G. Rogers

A muscle in Dane’s jaw rippled. “We must move faster. The longer she’s alone, the more likely it is she’ll encounter something dangerous.”

“She’s done well enough so far, no thanks to you,” Joe muttered.

Dane peered at Joe with narrowed eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’ve shown your distaste for Heather upon more than one occasion.”

“I would never let my personal feelings interfere with my duty to protect the child,” Dane exploded.

“Really? Then why is she lost?”

Dane hands formed fists at his side. As the two men squared off, Shimmer stepped in between. “Jovander, I’ve known Dane much longer than you have. You accuse him unjustly.”

“That is so,” Manny concurred.

“No, no. Don’t bother to defend me. It won’t make a difference. Jovander Chance has a deep seated resentment toward the royal class and doesn’t believe we could ever act unselfishly,” Dane scoffed.

“Forgive me for saying so, but this whole quest is selfish!” Joe yelled. “If it succeeds, you Ormvalders resume ruling the kingdom. Heather gets nothing except for a pat on the back. She’s the only one of us here who has acted in an unselfish manner.”

“You’ve acted unselfishly too, Joe,” Manny said.

Dane smirked. “No, he hasn’t. Haven’t you noticed? Young Joe is quite taken with the lass.”

Joe flushed bright red. “Don’t act so smug, Your Highness. I’ve seen the way you look at her.”

“First you practically accuse me of doing her in, and now you accuse me of having designs on the woman?” Dane thundered. “Make up your mind.”

“First you call her a child, and now a woman?” Joe pointed out. “You should make up your own mind.”

A long, smoldering silence followed in which nobody spoke.

In Tournament of Chance, a hunter’s daughter becomes the spark that ignites a revolution—in time.

When a beautiful commoner enters the Tournament of Chance archery competition, her thwarted victory sparks a revolution in the oppressive kingdom of Destiny. Although Heather never believed the legends about the restoration of Ormaria, after three shape-shifting Ormarian wizards awaken from a long magical slumber, she joins their perilous quest to regain the throne. Heather battles vicious predators and angry trolls to free the wizards’ magic, but at a horrendous cost. She is unexpectedly torn from the arms of the man she loves and hurled back in time to fulfill a prophecy not yet written. The ensuing maelstrom tests Heather’s survival skills, wits, and endurance. Will she become an unwritten footnote in history, or can she trust the magic to lead her back to her one true love?

Now available in all e-formats from Musa Publishing HERE. Also available at Amazon. Coming soon to BN.com and wherever fine e-books are sold.

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To see the book trailer, go HERE

Eyes of a Snake – Excerpt from TOURNAMENT OF CHANCE

“Today is a momentous occasion,” said King Chance, after he’d settled himself on a cushion. His booming voice resonated across the field. “Let the finalists for the Tournament of Chance come forward.”

“Your Majesty, I present Lady Felicia of the Valley and Heather of the Jagged Peaks,” announced Sir Fitzelle.

Felicia glided toward the king as if to greet an old friend, but Heather hung back. Now that the moment had arrived to actually meet the king and queen, her feet were frozen to the ground. Suddenly wishing for
invisibility, she forced herself to move toward the king’s canopy. All eyes swiveled in her direction as she stood next to Felicia. Murmurings and titters rippled through the royals at Heather’s appearance. Although Felicia ignored her altogether, the queen openly laughed, as did many of the courtiers. A rosy blush crept toward Heather’s hairline.

The king beamed at Felicia. “How splendid to see you again, dear girl.”

“And you, Your Majesty,” Felicia responded. Her smile showed the lovely dimples in her cheeks.

Queen Chelsea frowned — far less pleased to see Felicia than was her husband. King Chance next focused his attention on Heather. His welcoming expression did not slip one bit, but Heather was taken aback. His eyes resembled those of a cold, poisonous snake.

In Tournament of Chance, a hunter’s daughter becomes the spark that ignites a revolution—in time.

When a beautiful commoner enters the Tournament of Chance archery competition, her thwarted victory sparks a revolution in the oppressive kingdom of Destiny. Although Heather never believed the legends about the restoration of Ormaria, after three shape-shifting Ormarian wizards awaken from a long magical slumber, she joins their perilous quest to regain the throne. Heather battles vicious predators and angry trolls to free the wizards’ magic, but at a horrendous cost. She is unexpectedly torn from the arms of the man she loves and hurled back in time to fulfill a prophecy not yet written. The ensuing maelstrom tests Heather’s survival skills, wits, and endurance. Will she become an unwritten footnote in history, or can she trust the magic to lead her back to her one true love?

(Tournament of Chance coming September 28, 2012 from Musa Publishing)

To add to your to-read list on Goodreads, go HERE

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Fun Facts About Norse Mythology – Loki the Gadfly

Loki made a bet with the smithy dwarf Brokkr that his designer label wasn’t as cool as the Sons of Ivaldi designer label.

Bad bet.

Among other super nifty magical creations, Brokkr and his brother Eitri made…Mjölnir, Thor’s awesome hammer.

[Wait!…how the heck do you pronounce Mjölnir anyway?  Watch a short video by Wiseman2024 on YouTube HERE.  It’s mee-uhl-neer for the impatient among us.]

Now Loki REALLY didn’t want to lose the bet because his head was riding on it.  Literally.  So while the Brokkr brothers were slaving away over a hot, magical forge, Loki transformed himself into a gadfly. He bit Brokkr on the eyeball (ew) and as a result, Mjolnir’s handle came out (gasp) a wee bit short.  Since the hammer was nevertheless PHAT, Thor took delivery anyway and compensated by wearing iron gloves. (This goes to prove the axiom that it’s not the size of the hammer that matters, but how you wield it.)

Since Loki lost the bet, you may very well wonder how he managed to keep his head.  In typical Loki fashion, he weaseled out of the bet on a technicality. He claimed Brokkr couldn’t take his head without also damaging his dainty neck (not part of the wager).  Brokkr was hopping mad, and sewed Loki’s lying pie-hole with wire so the trickster couldn’t boast until the wire came out.

For Loki’s next gig, he ran for political office.

~ S.G. Rogers

When Dani was a teen, she had it all; a starring role in her own television series, a wonderful family, and her health. A few years later, everything has changed for the worse—and her time is running short. All she wants to do before she dies is to fall in love, but when she’s kidnapped and taken to Asgard of Norse mythology, she becomes enmeshed in a quarrel between immortals. Prince Rein lends a hand in her quest to return home, and she begins to think the handsome elf has captured her heart. After a magical artifact goes missing, however, he may be forced to marry another woman to avert a diplomatic catastrophe. To find the artifact and save the prince, Dani must undertake a dangerous quest involving ogres, dark fairies, and underworld criminals. Ultimately, however, she’ll have to defy Odin himself.

Dani & the Immortals is available for the Kindle HERE

Taming of the Shrew (Not)

Clash of Wills (The Wild Rose Press)

In the wild and untamed Uncharted Region, the greatest danger is falling in love.

Princess Samantha’s magical compass will help her locate her long-lost brother, but only if she manages to escape her royal parents for a few weeks. When an unwelcome suitor comes to call, Samantha seizes her chance. She beguiles the prince into taking her north, intending to abandon him at her earliest opportunity. Unfortunately, his captivating good looks and charming manner present an unforeseen complication—especially when she is forced to accept help from the very man she has deceived.

To maintain his bachelorhood, handsome Prince Wills is not above deception. Although reluctantly entangled in Samantha’s scheme, he vows to protect her…until a lie threatens to destroy their alliance.  Can his powerful attraction to Samantha overcome his mistrust?  And can they survive a dangerous quest to the wild and magical Uncharted Region?

Excerpt:

Samantha hastened in the same direction Wills had gone, but her heart began to pound when she realized she was lost. Someone pointed her down the alleyway that led to the general store, but Wills had already left. Panic quickened her pace as she retraced her steps.

Halfway through the alley, two men blocked her exit. They’d followed her from the tavern. A sense of dread gripped her so tightly she found it hard to breathe.

“Well, looky here, we’ve got ourselves a little mouse,” one sneered.

His companion laughed. “More like a piece of cheese, I reckon.”

Samantha turned to find her retreat cut off by the other two. She dropped her pack to the ground but before she could reach for her sling, the scarred bandit rushed forward and held a knife to her throat.

“Your tall friend is just around the corner,” he murmured into her ear. “Call him.”

“No.”

“Do it, or I’ll ventilate your windpipe.”

Samantha flinched as she felt the blade slicing into her skin. She knew if she called Wills, the men would kill him. She chose to die instead.

“Would that your hands burn with the strength of your evil,” she spat.

CLASH OF WILLS, a romantic fantasy novella, now available from Amazon (current price $0.99), BN.com and The Wild Rose Press ($1.25 MSRP).

To add to your to-read list on Goodreads, go HERE.

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