Category: The Spymaster's Secret

Rainbow Snippet October 19-20

10/19/2019

Marcus’s hand was large and warm, his fingers wrapping around Alexander’s slender wrist, the gold of his skin stark against Alexander’sporcelain pale flesh. He watched the point of contact, not even breathing, for a long moment, fascinated and yearning suddenly.

He wanted this man’s hands on him everywhere.

The realization left him gasping. He’d been intrigued by Marcus since the first moment he’d seen him—the man’s competence and confidence, his calm presence in the face of crisis and royalty, had set his curiosity alight. And now he wanted far more.

You can find more about The Spymaster's Secret here. Thanks for reading today!

3 Comments

The Spymaster's Secret Is Out Now!

10/14/2019

0 Comments

Happy book birthday to The Spymaster's Secret! I'm so excited this book is out in the world now for you to read and get to know Alexander and Marcus better. If you've read other books in the series, you might have met these two before (though you can certainly jump in right here if you haven't—all the books in the series stand alone). Marcus's first appearance was way back in the second book of the series, The Artist's Masquerade, and at the time, I didn't plan on writing a book for him. But, as I kept writing, Marcus kept popping up here and there, and then in The Dragon's Devotion, he and Alexander were in one scene together. They didn't even talk to each other, but Alexander was intrigued by Marcus—curious about what he does and drawn to him by his confidence and competence—and I knew I'd be writing their story soon.

They were such a fun couple to write—I seem to like writing opposites attract! Alexander is a royal cousin who is younger, flirtatious, and seemingly entirely frivolous, but he has hidden depths that few ever see, mostly because he doesn't let them. He is also endlessly curious (I tried to refrain from too many "curiosity killed the cat" references, considering the magical Talent of the royal family to change into cats!). Marcus is a serious, older widower with children...and the princes' spymaster. He's been alone since his wife died and has no intention of ever falling in love again. He never expected Alexander or the attraction they'd feel for each other. Still, they have to learn to open up, to trust both themselves and each other, if they're going to find love that lasts. And of course, there's magic and spies and intrigue along the way.

I hope you enjoy reading their story as much as I did writing it!

About The Spymaster's Secret:

Alexander is doing his best to settle into life in Tournai’s royal palace after years living outside the country due to his father’s diplomatic work. The sense of belonging and home he feels is overwhelming, but none of his plans are going as he imagined. Many see him as only a lovely, charming adornment of the royal court and underestimate both his intelligence and abilities. His attraction to Marcus, a mysterious older man who does work for the prince, Alexander’s cousin, is unexpected but not unwelcome…if Marcus could possibly see who Alexander really is.

Lord Marcus is the second son of a minor noble family, a widower raising two children…and the prince’s spymaster. He knows his work is necessary for the security of the kingdom and its royal family, but he also knows it can be distasteful and dangerous to him and those around him. Marcus has vowed never to fall in love again, never to put anyone else at risk—a promise threatened for the first time by the vibrant, flirtatious Alexander. The attraction is unwelcome and entirely undeniable. He can’t believe someone like Alexander would want someone like him, but he also can’t stay away.

As they become ever more entangled, Marcus is investigating rumors of spies at work in Tournai’s university. As he gets closer to uncovering their plot, Alexander is drawn deeper into danger. Can their love survive when Alexander is put in peril by the very spies Marcus is hunting for?

Add to your Goodreads shelf.

Buy The Spymaster's Secret:
NineStar Press
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Apple
Kobo
Smashwords

0 Comments

Rainbow Snippet October 12-13

10/12/2019

6 Comments

The icy wind whipped around Alexander as he stepped out of thestables, and he barely bit back a gasp. He’d ridden to the university and back today, but it hadn’t felt so cold until clouds moved in and the wind picked up in the last few minutes. He rushed across the courtyard, intent on getting inside the palace as soon as possible.

The clatter of hooves alerted him to the galloping horse, but he was almost too late to get out of the way. Someone behind him was yelling, and Alexander jumped back, his foot slipping.

A hand grabbed for Alexander before he could even blink, before he could shout, righting him and pulling him out of the way just as the rider galloped past. And then suddenly Alexander had no words to say. Marcus’s ungloved hand had found the bare skin of his wrist between his glove and the lace edging his shirt cuff. It was as if lightning arced through him, and his heart pounded even harder.

You can find out more about The Spymaster's Secret here, and if you didn't see it, I also recently posted an update about what's going on with my Dreamspinner titles, which you can find here. Thanks for reading today!

6 Comments

Rainbow Snippet October 5-6

10/5/2019

4 Comments

“I don’t know exactly,” Faelen said. “But he seems to be the one who finds things out when Philip needs them. Etan mentioned Marcus was the person who discovered an Ardunnian spy ring operating in Jumelle. It sounded like something Marcus keeps an eye on.”

“Interesting.” He stretched the word out. “Philip said somethingabout Marcus having someone in every noble household. I wonder if that’s true or exaggeration.”

Faelen shrugged, a graceful motion. “I don’t know. And you didn’t answer my original question.”

Alexander sighed. “It’s only some harmless curiosity. He’s handsome, isn’t he?”

Faelen’s brow wrinkled in a little frown. “I suppose.”

He laughed and moved to the couch to lean into his twin. “Well, you wouldn’t notice with Maxen all you see.”

You can find out more about The Spymaster's Secret, including a longer excerpt and buy links, over here. Thanks for reading today!

4 Comments

Rainbow Snippet September 28-29

9/28/2019

3 Comments

It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets. The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+.

I've shared a few snippets from The Spymaster's Secret here as I worked through edits for the book, but I'm going to start sharing regular snippets for a little while because the book will be out on October 14th (less than a month!). The Spymaster's Secret is the next book in the Chronicles of Tournai series. It's the story of Alexander, a charming, flirtatious royal cousin with hidden depths, and Marcus, a mysterious, older widower with an important job for the princes. Alexander is immediately fascinated by him and wants to know more about him, and Marcus is captivated by Alexander...and absolutely does not want to be. This snippet takes place right after the last snippet I shared from The Spymaster's Secret. In the previous snippet, Marcus had come upon Alexander and his twin, Faelen, in the palace. In this snippet, Alexander is speculating about why Marcus was there and whether it has to do with a prisoner recently captured, and Faelen is wondering why Alexander is so interested.

Faelen fixed him with a sharp stare. “Are you more curious about what the prisoner has to say or about Lord Marcus?”

Alexander shrugged. “Who wouldn’t be curious about him?” Faelen’s stare didn’t lose one bit of its intensity. “Plenty of people.” “I suppose, or he wouldn’t be able to do his work--whatever it consists of.” He frowned briefly. “What does he do exactly?”

The first he’d seen or heard of Marcus was when Bastien, Philip’scousin, had been kidnapped. Philip had called in Marcus for help, as wellas Loriot. Marcus had been so calm, so confident. He’d discovered who’d taken Bastien and where. While those answers had been shocking, Marcus had found them through what was apparently an impressive skill for investigation and a network of informants or spies or whatever he called the people working for him.

Alexander could only be glad Marcus had no reason to turn their attention toward him. Of course, it also meant Marcus was unlikely to notice Alexander at all. Which was a shame--not that he wanted to be investigated, obviously, but Marcus was very attractive.

If you'd like to know more about The Spymaster's Secret (and for a longer excerpt and buy links), you can find it here. Thanks for reading today!

3 Comments

The Spymaster's Secret is almost here!

9/22/2019

0 Comments

The Spymaster's Secret, the next book in the Chronicles of Tournai series, will be out in the world on October 14th (though you can have it in your hands three days early if you preorder from NineStar Press). And, of course, I'm my usual jumble of nervous and excited at the upcoming release! The Spymaster's Secret is the story of Alexander, the flirtatious, charming royal cousin with hidden depths, and Marcus, the older, serious widower with the mysterious job. It's an opposites attract, age gap romance with spies and intrigue and two people who have to learn to trust each other and themselves and take a chance on love.

And here is the absolutely gorgeous cover by Natasha Snow:

About The Spymaster's Secret:

Alexander is doing his best to settle into life in Tournai’s royal palace after years living outside the country due to his father’s diplomatic work. The sense of belonging and home he feels is overwhelming, but none of his plans are going as he imagined. Many see him as only a lovely, charming adornment of the royal court and underestimate both his intelligence and abilities. His attraction to Marcus, a mysterious older man who does work for the prince, Alexander’s cousin, is unexpected but not unwelcome...if Marcus could possibly see who Alexander really is.

Lord Marcus is the second son of a minor noble family, a widower raising two children...and the prince’s spymaster. He knows his work is necessary for the security of the kingdom and its royal family, but he also knows it can be distasteful and dangerous to him and those around him. Marcus has vowed never to fall in love again, never to put anyone else at risk--a promise threatened for the first time by the vibrant, flirtatious Alexander. The attraction is unwelcome and entirely undeniable. He can’t believe someone like Alexander would want someone like him, but he also can’t stay away.

As they become ever more entangled, Marcus is investigating rumors of spies at work in Tournai’s university. As he gets closer to uncovering their plot, Alexander is drawn deeper into danger. Can their love survive when Alexander is put in peril by the very spies Marcus is hunting for?

Preorder The Spymaster's Secret at NineStar Press. (Preorders at other retailers will be available soon.)

0 Comments

Rainbow Snippet August 10-11

8/10/2019

3 Comments

It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets. The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+.

Today I decided to share a snippet from The Spymaster's Secret, which will be out from NineStar Press this fall, since I just turned in copy edits. The Spymaster's Secret is part of my Chronicles of Tournai series but, like all the books in the series, stands alone. If you've read other books in the series, you may have met the main characters: Alexander, the young, flirty royal cousin with hidden depths, and Marcus, the older, serious widower with secrets. It was fun seeing how these two opposites fit together. Plus, there's lots of romance, family (supportive but meddling!), magic, and intrigue. And I've made it all the way through edits not hating this book!

This snippet comes from the first chapter of the book. Marcus is in the palace after meeting with the princes when he comes upon Alexander and his twin, Faelen.

A laugh shattered the quiet and brought Marcus’s attention fully back to his surroundings. As he approached an intersecting corridor, the two young men he’d been thinking of came around the corner. They were nearly identical in appearance with the same shade of dark hair that glowed red in the light, the same ivory skin and peridot eyes, the same delicate features, an intriguing mix of pretty and sensual. Their differences were slight, but perfectly apparent with a moment’s study. Alexander was slightly taller, and Faelen’s hair fell in loose curls while Alexander’s was a tumble of waves.

He’d made a point of finding out which of them was which. And not because of the way Alexander had looked at him the one previous time he’d been in their presence.

The way Alexander looked at him now. Curious with a spark of something more.

I'll have more from The Spymaster's Secret soon (including, hopefully, a cover to share—I just sent in my cover spec sheet, and I'm always excited for Natasha Snow's covers!). In the meantime, you can spend some time with Alexander in his twin Faelen's book, The Merchant's Love, if you like. Thanks for reading!

3 Comments

Rainbow Snippet June 29-30

6/29/2019

5 Comments

It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets. The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+.

Today I decided to share a snippet from The Spymaster's Secret, which will be out from NineStar Press this fall, since I just turned in my edits. The Spymaster's Secret is part of my Chronicles of Tournai series but, like all the books in the series, stands alone. If you've read other books in the series, you may have met the main characters: Alexander, the young, flirty royal cousin with hidden depths, and Marcus, the older, serious widower with secrets. It was fun seeing how these two opposites fit together. Plus, there's lots of romance, family (supportive but meddling!), magic, and intrigue.

Since I've been doing first kisses for snippets, here's Alexander and Marcus's first kiss. They're both attending a masked ball at the palace, and Alexander convinces Marcus to slip away to meet him.

Everything inside Alexander went warm, a delightful sense of anticipation replacing his uncertainty. “Will you kiss me?”

Marcus watched him for one breathless moment before reaching up and removing his mask. He moved slowly, deliberately, toward Alexander and stretched a hand out to cup his cheek. Alexander leaned into that big hand and let his eyes flutter shut on a sigh. He wanted more, but being touched this way was lovely. He wouldn’t mind much more of it too.

“Alexander.” His name came out in an almost resigned tone.

Before he could open his eyes to look at Marcus, to try to see what he was feeling, Marcus’s lips were on his. It wasn’t a sweet kiss. It was too demanding, too greedy for sweetness. It was as if Marcus wanted everything from Alexander in that one moment. And Alexander reveled in it.

I'll have more about The Spymaster's Secret as we get closer to release day, but if you'd like to spend some time in Tournai and meet the main characters in advance, check out The Merchant's Love (Faelen, Alexander's twin, is one of the main characters in this book, and Alexander plays a big supporting role, though he first appears in The Dragon's Devotion) and The Dragon's Devotion (Marcus gets pulled into the mystery plot in this one, though his first appearance is in The Artist's Masquerade). You can also get The Merchant's Love and The Dragon's Devotion 40% off at NineStar with code PRIDE through June 30th. Thanks for reading today!

5 Comments

Rainbow Snippet October 19-20

The Spymaster's Secret Is Out Now!

About The Spymaster's Secret:

Rainbow Snippet October 12-13

Rainbow Snippet October 5-6

Rainbow Snippet September 28-29

The Spymaster's Secret is almost here!

About The Spymaster's Secret:

Rainbow Snippet August 10-11

Rainbow Snippet June 29-30

Author

Archives

Categories