Read an excerpt here (oh, and see more reviews, too.)

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Here are your random numbers:

29 51 130 97

#29 – Heather (Darkly Reading)
#51 – Devon Alexander
#97 – Jacqueline C.
#130 – Katrina Whittaker

Congratulations! And thank everyone again, so much. I wish I had a lot more to give away. But since I don’t, I’ve added a snippet (edited to cut out paragraphs that wouldn’t make sense without the previous chapters, and mildly spoilerish for Demon Forged):

Deacon crossed the hotel room toward the window, knowing he should hit the bed instead. Sunrise was almost here, and he’d drop where he stood when the sun came up. He pushed back the drapes. Not much to see. Scooters and chained bicycles lined the cobblestone alley. A few potted flowers folded in on themselves against the night. Deacon studied the shadows. Hell, he’d been watching the shadows all night, expecting her to step out of them.

Rosalia.

She wasn’t out there now. None of the shadows were deep enough; he could see through them. But when they were impenetrable . . . that would be Rosalia.

He curled his fist against the glass, wishing he could smash through it. God damn her for sticking her nose into his life again. Helping him, when he could barely look at her square on. He hated being near her. He couldn’t escape his failure or his guilt when she looked at him. Yet he searched the shadows for her. The temptation, the hope, of a single glimpse had drawn him to the window instead of the bed.

Movement beyond his reflection froze Deacon in place. Someone had come into the room. The door hadn’t opened — not a demon or vampire, then. So Rosalia had come after all? She wouldn’t be staying. He’d run her out of here, the same way he’d run her off before. Uncivil bastards pissed her off. Lucky for him, being one came easy.

Deacon let the drape fall back into place, began to turn.

“Don’t move.”

He tensed. No. Not Rosalia. The voice was a strange rasping harmony, both male and female and holding too much at once: threat, warning, and terror.

But threats didn’t work anymore. Deacon didn’t have much to lose. He turned, but he wasn’t stupid. He did it slowly.

She crouched in the corner, trembling. Pale as a vampire, but not one. Her clenched teeth formed an even line. No fangs. Tangled red hair framed a face with hollowed cheeks. Solid black filled her eyes where the whites and irises should have been. Deacon stared, unease crawling over his skin. He knew this woman. A detective. One who’d worked with the Guardians. He’d met her once, at a vampire club in San Francisco. She’d been human then. She wasn’t anymore. He didn’t know what she was.

“He wants to kill you,” she said, then gasped. Her fingers dug into the wall, her nails gouging the plaster. Her heart beat a rapid pace against his ears. “I’m holding him back. But it’s hard . . . when you move.”

Someone wanted to kill him? Nothing new. But she was new . . . whatever she was. And whoever was inside her. “Who?”

“Michael.”

The Guardians’ leader? Deacon tried to take it in. No surprise that the man was out for his blood. His only surprise was that it had taken this long. But like this?

“He’s controlling you?”

Anger flashed through her psychic scent, dark and deep. “Hell . . . no.”

From what he could see, that response held more wish than fact. But she’d gotten her breathing down, slow and steady. “Why is he—”

“Shhh.” It came out like the hiss of a snake.

Or a demon.

These are advance review copies, and I’d really love it if they were used as such. So if you win one, please review it somewhere by the week of July 6th: on your blog, on an online bookseller’s site, Goodreads or Library Thing, wherever. I’m not asking for positive reviews, or even detailed reviews — just reviews. If you don’t think you can read it by July, please pass on these advance copies; I intend to give away several final copies when the book is released, so you can try again, then.

About the ARCs: these are the yellow-covered bound copies, and are copy-edited (by Berkley, but the version in these ARCs doesn’t have my copy-edits entered yet.) That means that there are more errors than in a final version, and that some dialogue, sentences, and descriptions are different than will be in the final version. There are no substantial differences in plot, characters, or any of the scenes, but a few passages have been altered and some small references changed or clarified. More pronouns have been clarified. If you have any questions while reading, I’ll be more than happy to answer and/or send you the corrected passage, if applicable.

For new readers to the Guardian series: Everything you need to know is included in the first three chapters. Seriously, it’s the longest prologue, ever. You won’t have the same emotional connection to some of the recurring characters, but you (hopefully) won’t be lost, so feel free to give DEMON BLOOD a try.

Sorry, a cover flat isn’t included, because that’s the only one I have. I just put it in the picture because it’s pretty. You will get bookmarks, though.

So, the rules: Comment by midnight PST on 4/24/2010 for your chance to win. Four winners will be selected randomly using random.org, and their names posted on this blog 4/25/2010. Only one entry per ISP address. The contest is open to international readers. No purchase necessary to enter, but a good faith effort to review the book by the release date is deeply appreciated. Odds of winning depend on number of entries received. Void where prohibited.

So far, my 2010 release schedule looks like this (full descriptions below the cut):

DEMON BLOOD (excerpt added), July 2010
“Here There Be Monsters” in BURNING UP, August 2010
THE IRON DUKE, October 2010

I expect to revamp the site around March or April, and I should have more information regarding the Iron Seas series up then, along with excerpts. I hope everyone is having a fantastic New Year!

Click to see the full descriptions of the upcoming books…which I totally copied from the “Upcoming” page on this site, heh. Cut and paste blogging, you gotta love it.

July 2010: DEMON BLOOD, The Guardians, Book 6
 
[This cover copy has mild spoilers for Demon Forged. Read at your own risk.]

Long before she was transformed into a Guardian and trained to fight demons, Rosalia knew darkness all too well. Raised by a demon, Rosalia learned to guard her heart–and her soul–until she found a man worthy of her love. Once, she thought that man would be the powerful vampire, Deacon…until he betrayed the Guardians.

After losing everything to the lies of a demon, Deacon lives only for revenge—and is taken aback when Rosalia offers to help. A vampire who has nothing—who is nothing—isn’t worthy of her attention. But Rosalia wants to do more than just look, and the explosive need between them can’t be held in check. And when Deacon’s vengeful quest creates a dangerous alliance of their enemies, she will be his only hope…

ISBN 0425235475 | July 6, 2010

Amazon.com ~ Borders.com ~ BN.com ~ Powells.com

August 2010: BURNING UP (Iron Seas novella)
 
My novella, “Here There Be Monsters” will appear in BURNING UP, a mass-market anthology with Angela Knight, Nalini Singh, and Virginia Kantra.

Two years ago, blacksmith Ivy, desperate to flee London, purchased her overseas passage by agreeing to spend the voyage in the bed of the pirate captain, Mad Machen. Saved at the last minute by his rival, Ivy scraped out a new life in Fool’s Cove…until Mad Machen finds her, forces her to accept a job that will create a monster, and reminds her that she still owes him the price of a journey…

ISBN 0425235955 | August 3, 2010

Amazon.com ~ Borders.com ~ BN.com ~ Powells.com

October 2010: THE IRON DUKE
 

After the Iron Duke freed England from Horde control, he instantly became a national hero. Now Rhys Trahaearn has built a merchant empire on the power — and fear — of his name. And when a dead body is dropped from an airship onto his doorstep, bringing Detective Inspector Mina Wentworth into his dangerous world, he intends to make her his next possession.

Mina can’t afford his interest, however. Horde blood runs through her veins, and despite the nanotech enhancing her body, she barely scratches out a living in London society. Becoming Rhys’s lover would destroy both her career and her family, yet the investigation prevents her from avoiding him…and the Iron Duke’s ruthless pursuit makes him difficult to resist.

But when Mina uncovers the victim’s identity, she stumbles upon a conspiracy that threatens the lives of everyone in England. To save them, Mina and Rhys must race across zombie-infested wastelands and treacherous oceans — and Mina discovers the danger is not only to her countrymen as she finds herself tempted to give up everything to the Iron Duke.

…the Demon Blood cover? I didn’t think I’d ever love any cover as much as Demon Forged, but Oh My God…holy WOW. The cover artist, Cliff Nielsen, is the same — and once again, I’m blown away. There are a few changes to the font that will be made, but otherwise, I think it’s perfect for Rosalia and the book.

Also, today is Friday! Come give a shout-out to your favorite cover artists at Odd Shots.

Cover contest: Don’t forget to nominate your favorite 2009 covers at the Cover Cafe! They are also running polls on covers that have been nominated.

MUST LOVE HELLHOUNDS releases next week. Will I be back to regular blogging by then, or does the summer not officially end until Labor Day? Hmmmm….

Other news: I have a title for the 10th Guardian book: DEMON BLOOD. No details yet, because the description is kind of a spoiler for DEMON FORGED.

The first of the Iron Seas books will be a novella, “Here There Be Monsters,” (subject to change) in a not-yet-titled anthology releasing August 2010 in mass-market. The novella is a lightly-connected-but-standalone story, as will be all of the books in that series.