Roxy Matthews Talks About Her Pale Bay Series

November 2, 2018 by Jann Ryan in category Jann says . . . tagged as Roxy Mathews, The Charmed Connection, writing

Roxy Matthews is the author of several self published novels, Misery’s Companion, Tools of Terror, From the Depths, McBride’s Gem, Numb, and Second Time Sam, with several others due out this year.

For over fifteen years at the keys, she worked to hone her skills. She wrote her own column for a local online newspaper, www.sootoday.com titled ‘Stepping Stones’ before moving onto higher ground with a stint in Suspense Magazine’s 2010 edition. Over the years, she continued a steady trek through this difficult industry as she dabbled in short stories, earning a kudos and first place win with ‘Watery Grave’ and ‘Euphoria’. Those wins would seal the deal for her, confirming what she always knew…she could make it, she just needed more time. She has since entered several more contests throughout the years, taking any and all advice she could to move forward.

Today, you can watch her on her quest to best seller status with her upcoming releases ‘Numb’ and ‘Second Time Sam’, both releasing this year.
“One day, I will make my way in this industry, however it may be, but I’ll never step off the stones I began treading on over a decade ago. Instead, I will find my way across the path to where I was always meant to be.”

Jann: Roxy Matthews is here with us today to talk about her Pale Bay series, so let’s get started! Did you know you wanted to write a series when you started working on the first book?

Roxy: Actually no, I planned Numb, McBride’s Gem, and Second Time Sam all as stand alones. My first book in this series, McBride’s Gem wasn’t even the first I wrote, Numb was. Once I finished Numb I started on McBride’s Gem right away. With some help from my editor and publisher at the time, it morphed into the first story in the series, and a secondary story line that would link all three books together was created. Even through it all, I still doubted Numb so much, for so long that I almost shelved it and forgot it ever even existed. It took me many years of going through the story line, revising, editing, chopping, editing, revising some more to finally have the perfect story break through.

Jann: Tell us about the world you have created for the Pale Bay series.

Roxy: Pale Bay is a piece of my heart. I based it off a little town along Lake Superior called Haviland Bay. When I dreamed the town up in my head, I gave it the likeliness of the area I lived in including the sub streets and Main Drive, but I expanded it to be more of a town then the one street existence that was Haviland Bay. I made sure it cupped the Lake, it’s people down to Earth, each with their own lives, their own secrets, just as the town was. But Pale Bay is unique. Hidden in plain clothes, mingling amongst the townspeople are a select group of three women and one man sent down from Olympus on the tails of three Gems, the Virtues of Life. They have spent centuries protecting them from the vengeful hands of Cronos, Zeus’ father. His plan, to use the powers of Life, Love, and Happiness to destroy mankind. However, the Gems have their own mission, and that is to find their pure soul mortal protectors.

Jann: In McBrides Gem, book one, you introduce Hawk McBride and Randi Ronin. What can you tell us about these two characters and the story.

Roxy: Randi Ronin was the first person to come alive in McBride’s Gem. I sat at my desk one day and was like…what if I had a woman who was strong, independent, determined to make her way in the world, but she was soft, caring, loving, and wore polka dot panties under her business suit? Boom! Randi Ronin came alive. Her hair is cut like Cleopatra’s and just as dark, her strength in the face of adversity is unbound, yet her sensitivity, her past pains are too close to the skin.

Hawk McBride was always a force to be reckoned with in my mind. He was tall, built, and strong, yet sarcastic with a flair for being a jokester. He has a

big heart that was damaged once before and even though he’s instantly attracted to Randi, he fights the feelings as much as he can. But fate intervene’s as these two forces join against something much bigger then themselves or their pasts…and that is the fate of mankind.

Jann: Did you have book two, Numb, and the Johnny Tanzer in mind while you were working on McBride’s Gem, or did it come later?

Roxy: It was kinda the other way around. Lizzie and Johnny’s story was written first. But I struggled with how to portray Lizzie’s relationship with her brother without it seeming taboo. Their unique connection as twins was a tricky one to write, not to mention the abilities they have when it comes to each other. Because of that, Numb tortured me for some time. I think I rewrote Lizzie and her brother, Lucas’ scenes at least four times to get it right. Not to mention adding in the Godly element I incorporated in McBride’s Gem. If Numb was now going to be number two and carry that secondary story line with perfection, I had lots of work to do. That being said, Numb was the first story I wrote after a close to five year hiatus, so my skills were a tad rusty. It took a good amount of work to polish it up to what it is today but I am super pleased with the outcome.

Jann: In book three, Second Time Sam, was it easier or harder to write? Which character did you have in mine first–Sam Doucet or Gabriella D’Angelo?

Roxy: Oh Lordy, Second Time Sam was by far the hardest. I think the reason it was was because of the story line I had played out in my mind for Sam and Gabby. Second chances at love after the loss of a loved one. I envisioned them much older, in their 50’s, but just couldn’t wrap my mind around how to make them fall in love fast. How could someone be with someone for 20-30 years, lose them, and fall in love again so quickly, especially for the rest of the story line to work? Sure, it’s been known to happen, but I felt in my heart these characters wouldn’t. So, I adjusted their ages which morphed Sam and Gabby’s characters altogether. That was when the magic happened. Bing, bam, boom. Their love to loss to love story flowed through the keys. I then incorporated my Olympian Gods and some mayhem and the puzzle pieced itself together.

Jann: You’re currently working on book four, Drago’s Destiny. Can you give us any hints on this story?

Roxy: Ohhh, Drago’s Destiny really excites me because not only is it the fourth in the series but it could be the first or the last. This story is Sci-Fi/Fantasy and tells how the Gods of Olympus ended up in Pale Bay, protecting mystical Gems, searching for pure soul mortals to, once and for all, rid the evils of Cronos from mankind. You find out the Sheriff of Pale Bay’s wife’s lineage. Denise Doucet, in her mortal form, but Gaea, Great Mother Earth in her Olympian. Drago's Destiny | Roxy Mathews | A Slice of Orange
For this story, I created a whole new world on a planet in a different solar system, NAN. NAN is as unique as they come, with a select group of people meant to oversee the lands above ground and below, at the helm one chosen at birth as NAN’s warrior and protector, Drago Darkiel. But their world is like any, diseases have devastated their soils until finally eradicated from the planet by horrific means. When a hint of the disease shows up in one of Drago’s relatives DNA, he risks everything to find the cure and save his family lineage. But the task will not be without its own dangers, or a woman he loved yet pushed away hot on his trail. What neither Drago nor Raechel know is just how important they are not only to the people of NAN but a planet they have yet to touch feet on.
In the final book in this series, Destiny’s Warrior, we go back to Pale Bay, to a warrior now full grown, the gifts of the gods at her fingertips, and an army created by the Virtues of Life and all that is good in man.

Jann: Thanks Roxy for opening the door into your writing world. Looking forward to the Drago’s Destiny.

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Once Upon the Longest Night

October 30, 2018 by A Slice of Orange in category Spotlight tagged as anthologies, Book Release, Coming Soon, Vampires

Once Upon the Longest Night

Published by Once Upon Anthologies, an imprint of Ink House Books

Genre: Paranormal Fantasy Romance

Participating Authors:

Release Date:

12.21.18, the longest night of the year.

Back cover copy:

The longest night. A vampire’s delight.

The winter solstice, a time of birth and rebirth, life and death, waning light and rising darkness. A time when those who flee the sun and crave the taste of blood find their greatest solace.

But one never knows what the longest night might hold.

Once Upon the Longest Night, a collection of adult paranormal romances, features nine novelettes of lovers and their battles against one of the greatest legends of our time: the vampire. A 15^th-century seaman and the love of his life come face to face with a vengeful manjasang. In ancient Rome, a hunted priestess captured by a loyal centurion offers her aid to the enemy. With the help of a handsome Royal courier, a reluctant Romanian princess braves the curse flowing within her noble blood. Danger awaits when a vampire in the far reaches of North Dakota must endure the lethal cold to protect the woman she loves. And in a future New York, a broken general returns home for the Longest Night Ball where he meets a young male witch who might change his life forever.

This anthology combines vampire mythos and affairs of the heart with the sacred symbolism and magic of the winter season.

Sit back and let us tell you a tale. Welcome to the Longest Night.

Story Excerpt:

Blooded

Linda Robertson

Bucharest was to be our last stop. Long days and longer nights were spent laying in my cabin’s narrow bed, alone. My body longed to reconvene with my lover, but his company and his conversation were missed as much as his touch. The only consolation was knowing how close Petru was. A thin wall separated us, but in his mind, so did his low birth.

I laid with my hand on that paneling, differentiating the sounds inside the adjacent cabin from the rhythmic rumble of the train. It did not take long to put aside those mechanical sounds and focus on Petru’s breathing. I distinguished his easily from Tarel’s; he slept beside me for over a year.

The train’s forlorn whistle sounded into the night, wailing for me as I suffered my longings alone, isolated and silent. I imagined how much worse it was going to get. When we arrived at Lupenegra, Petru would be much farther away than this.

Eventually, he would find another to make him smile.

That brought me to my feet.

I paced furiously, resenting the very concept of status that he had embraced. My lying mother had done this to him. The evidence was in his mannerisms, his downcast eyes and his rigid stance.

Then I stopped, remembering the snow in Budapest Station. She’s worked so hard to keep the world as she needs it to be, that she doesn’t see or care how ugly everything around her has become.

Adherence to that status concept may have been her myopic restriction, but it did not have to be mine. I was educated. I did not want to be her, and so I would not be. I would make things different. She was not here to demand obedience. She could enforce nothing.

A new plan formed.

We arrived in Bucharest mid-morning,and boarded a carriage that would convey us the rest of the way. Only a few hours remained in our journey. As Petru held the door for me to board the carriage, snow began to fall.

And I could not help smiling. I twirled in that snow and laughed like a little girl.

Tarel, preparing to climb up with the coachman,saw me and stopped. “The solstice is a favorable time to return, is it not, voivodela?”

Due to the rigors of travelling and feeding,I had lost track of days. Considering it, I cheerfully said, “It is. I’ll be home for the longest night of the year.” I put one foot upon the step and rose, but did not climb inside the carriage. Halted there, my smile was replaced with a sober expression. “Tarel?”

“My lady?”

Using a voice full of authority, I said, “Neither you nor Petru will speak to the others of what you know of me. Do you understand?”

Tarel nodded.

I glanced down at Petru. He also nodded. His eyes remained so downcast that I could not even see that wildflower color. Or maybe his eyes were shut.

He had shouldered much during our trip, not the least of which was managing the aftermath of my feeding. Soon, that would end.

“Mulțumesc, Petru. For everything.” I closed my parasol and climbed in.

In all, our journey had taken more than three weeks,but thus it was, that the afternoon of December 21st, a Sunday and the solstice, I arrived home.

The road approaching Castle Lupenegra ran along side the mountain. A blanket of white covered the land, and the bare trees stuck up out of the snow like thousands of pikes guarding the fortress. In the wind, they shook as if menacing us, and the snow they shrugged off made an eerie haze around them. But a moment later, unburdened of snow, the branches of those firs, more verdant than I remembered, bounced as if waving to welcoming me home.

As we made the last turn the snowfall increased, but could not obscure Lupenegra’s gate, slowly opening.

My chest seized and all my thoughts skipped back to that midsummer morning when I pounded my fists at that gate trying to open it.

I shut my eyes and breathed, slow and purposeful. My hands had curled into fists and my spine had stiffened. Mindful, I opened my hands and relaxed my muscles as I released a long sigh. My body gave a jerk when the gates clanged shut behind us.

There was no escape for me now.

Story Summaries:

Memories of Stone by Elizabeth Vaughan: Ercula is weary, tired of fleeing, considered a monster by the Romans. But the Solstice is sacred to her goddess and she will worship at the forgotten shrine, whatever the risk.

The centurion who captures her has other plans. @eavwriter

The Lobster Trick by Dan Stout: Jacqueline doesn’t mind her job as an overnight security guard. After all, what’s the worst that could happen at a blood bank? But when an armed group invades the building, Jacqueline is forced into action to save a handsome lab tech… and discovers that his shy smile might hide a shocking secret. @DanStout

Blooded by Linda Robertson: Miriana Jorgeta rejoiced when her distant and cruel mother, the Queen, sent her away from Romania to attend a girl’s school in England. For years, she lived a life so perfect she almost forgot about the duties of her heritage. But curses rarely remain hidden, and soon, with the help of her mother’s royal courier, Miriana must face the truth about what really lurks in her blood. @AuthorLinda

His Last Battle by Sara Dobie Bauer: Suffering from PTSD, vampire general Devlin Frost returns home from the war on Lycans and attends the historic Longest Night Ball. Here, royal witch Elijah Crow must choose three immortal suitors to compete for his love and power. When Devlin is shockingly chosen as one of the three, his immediate attraction to the young witch coaxes him into entering the fray, but this battle is for more than Elijah’s love. The broken general might also win back his ruined heart and bruised soul—if he survives the night. @saradobie

Silver Heart by Charissa Weaks: 15th Century Italy. After a decade at sea and with an inheritance in hand, Cristiano Del Valle returns to his childhood home of Venezia in search of a new beginning. What he finds on the longest night is an ancient enemy who not only threatens the life he’s long desired but the love he thought he’d lost. @CharissaWeaks

Her Blood to Bind by Alice Black: To escape the vampire who made her, a former dominatrix takes a job in Costa Rica as an English tutor to the children of a wealthy widower. What she discovers is that her new employer is just as dangerous as her pursuer…and twice as tempting. @AliceBlackBooks

Walk with Me by Jodi Henry: After a century of killing her own kind, Arianna Guerri retired to a place no other vampire dare go. In the deadly cold of North Dakota, she built a life for herself, and fell, secretly, in love with her best and only friend. When someone burns the small town,

Arianna must face the mistakes of her past—and her feelings—if she hopes to survive the longest night. @_JL_Henry

Love on the Longest Night by Sybil Ward: Neenah and Robert are searching for true love in the same place for drastically different reasons. Can they find love together on the longest night when they’re trapped by the century’s worst blizzard and one of them is a 300-year-old vampire? @SybilWard

One Night In December by Melinda S. Collins: NYC artist, Micah Price, never believed in vampires or immortality. But after a year of researching Daniel Savoy, her family’s enigmatic annual houseguest and the only man she’s ever loved, the options surrounding the truth of his past are slim at best. When a bloody Daniel arrives on Micah’s doorstep, she refuses to leave any stone of the mystery unturned. But accepting that vampires exist is the least of her worries. Because sometimes it’s not the monsters we should fear. It’s what hunts them. @MelindaSCollins

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An Ideal Halloween Read: Love Bites, by Annabelle Costa

October 28, 2018 by A Slice of Orange in category Book Reviews by Geralyn Corcillo, Things That Make Me Go Mmmrrh . . . by Geralyn Corcillo tagged as Annabelle Costa, book review, chick lit, eerie, Halloween, murder, mystery, New York City, romance, vampire, Vampires

Wow! I recently read the most wonderful Autumn/Halloween read! Love Bites, by Annabelle Costa. This is NOT your run-of-the-mill vampire book at all! This novel weaves together two suspenseful, eerie, mysterious narratives. Tom Blake is a young man in 1905 who is falling in love when he gets his first job. Soon he’ll be out of his cruel father’s house and his life will truly begin … but why does he have such a craving for blood? When he is working at the butcher shop, and every time he gets close to his sweetheart Mary…

In present day New York City, Brooke wonders if adorable, reliable, all around good-guy Jamie might be more than a friend. When her gorgeous friend Sydney is murdered and strange things start happening to Brooke, she turns to Jamie and yeah … she’s pretty sure he’s more than a friend. But before she can act on her realization, Hunter T. Stone walks into her life and mesmerizes her. Brooke finds herself under his spell, but the closer she gets to him, the more it seems like he has something to do with Sydney’s murder …

OMG this book is soooooo good!!!! It hits the ground running and both narratives unfold with compelling grace and precision. The romances and the spine-tingling mysteries kept me turning the pages, ravenous to devour every next word! And the best part? As the story unfurled, I had NO IDEA what was going to happen – or even what I wanted to happen! I didn’t know who was going to end up being the good guy or the bad guy. I couldn’t guess who was going to end up with whom. Every new chapter offered another tantalizing piece of the puzzles, something else to consider. The stakes keeping getting upped and upped and upped! Even when you reach the climax, you still have no idea how it will all play out until the very last page. What an exciting read! Sex in the City meets Sleepy Hollow in an intriguing and unique book about vampires, murder, romance, and survival. A perfect Halloween read!