Author Spotlight: RONIN’S BONDMATE by Mardi Maxwell (M/F, steamy sci-fi romance)

Ronin's Bondmate

By 

Mardi Maxwell

Blurb:

Krystali enchantress Belle of the House of Arlyn stands accused of spying and has been banished from her community. The truth would exonerate her but she doesn’t dare tell it. As an enchantress she can provide for herself except when it comes to defense. For that she needs a worthy warrior.

Zarronian warrior Ronin Hughson recognized Belle as his mate the moment he saw her. Eager to bond, he approached her and was immediately put off by her spoiled behavior. After consulting with the starship’s doctor, he believes Krystali will produce a kinder mate for him. In the meantime, he feels drawn to protect the spoiled enchantress.

Belle makes sure he knows she doesn’t want him anywhere near her. Ronin makes sure she knows he’s the only warrior willing to protect her. Resigned to traveling together they try to ignore each other, but Ronin’s mating fever and Belle’s troubles set them up for a destiny they can’t avoid.

Excerpt:

Ronin Hughson shoved his way through the crowd of hostile Krystali warriors and their enchantresses. With his pack hooked over his shoulder, and freedom just a meter away, he hesitated then moved another step closer to the exit. The battle beginning behind him was one he had every intention of missing. A rarity for a Zarronian warrior who spent his life fighting and searching for his mate.

Behind him, Bellya of the House of Arlyn, stood alone in the center of the room. Angry Krystalis surrounded her, determined to deliver the punishment she’d worked so long and hard to earn.

He told himself to keep going. Don’t look back. Don’t look at her. Don’t—damn, too late. His head swiveled as if he had no control over it.

She stood alone, surrounded but in no way defenseless. Still Zarronian warriors were taught to protect females and she was quite a sight. Tall and curvaceous with long dark wavy hair and soft brown eyes. Plump lips made for kissing and hips a warrior could hold onto during the most intense moments of passion.

Her chin was up and the expression on her face dared the crowd to do their worst. Although he abhorred her arrogance he couldn’t help but admire her bravado. He took another step toward freedom then with a curse he turned back. Honor forced him to stay because whether he liked it or not the blasted female was his mate!

The moment he’d seen her he’d known she was the one female in the universe who could save him. The joy, relief and excitement he’d felt had been overwhelming until he’d actually met her. She’d been rude and obnoxious and had treated him like saber cat scat.

He’d made allowances for her. Telling himself she was young and inexperienced. That they’d just gotten off to a bad start, and he needed to go slowly with her. Now, after spending more time with her, he knew she was the last female he wanted as a mate

He had six moon phases before the Zarronian mating fever blazed out of control and killed him. Bonding with Bellya would save him but he’d rather choose a warriors’ death in battle. Ironically, either choice would have him fighting for his life.

Disappointed that he’d finally met his mate and she was so wrong for him, he’d spoken to one of the starship’s doctors.  Borg Veeson had advised him to wait a while in case another Krystali female drew him to her. He’d traveled from one encampment to another, meeting hundreds of Krystali females. None had caught his attention, or raised his fever a single degree. Discouraged, he’d returned to Bellya’s village.

Now, looking around he wondered if one of the other Zarronian warriors would step forward to protect her. Most of them weren’t even paying attention to the proceedings. The few who were appeared to do so only out of curiosity.

Cursing them, he watched as the crowd closed in around her. She, of course, appeared bored and put out with the entire proceedings. An attitude that increased the tension in the room. It also increased the rage of the people around her who were ready for a bit of well-earned revenge.

Sighing, he moved to within a few meters of her and prepared himself to save her.

His movement drew her attention and for a moment their eyes met. Her eyes hardened as she gave him a disdainful get lost look then turned her back on him. He growled with anger and clenched his hands to keep from reaching out and pulling her over his knee so he could swat her delectable bottom

About the Author:

I have four siblings but I've always been the odd ball of the family. My parents used to tell people they had two sons, two daughters, and Mardi. lol I love looking at life from many points of view so that must be why I love the quirky and unique. I believe in UFOs, ghosts and that we have a space station on the dark side of the moon. 

When I read I like romance with BDSM, suspense, and lots of tears and laughter, as well as a happy ending. That's also what I write.

People ask what I do when I'm not writing. I'm just running around, living my life. I'm a terrible gardener (everything dies) but I refuse to give it up. I like to cook but only when I'm in the mood so most of the time its microwavable veggies and cold fruit with cheese. And don't forget that glass of wine during my evening Wine and Reading Hour. I love to travel, but then who doesn't, and I love just hanging out with family and friends

Where to find Mardi on the Internet:

Facebook

Twitter

Amazon

Goodreads

Mardi's Blog

Book Bub

Writer’s Block and how I deal with it.

Years ago, I rarely got writer’s block. I always knew what I wanted to write and how to write it. Lately however, I’ve been plagued with stress from many directions. I’ve had health issues, and schedule changes and things just don’t seem to mesh together the way they used to.

So… what did I do? I sat down and wrote up a plan, a strategy, if you will. What I want to get accomplished in a day. I want to write at least 1000 words a day. That isn’t impossible for me. I know this because I used to write 10,000 words a day quite regularly. I want to do certain things around my home, whether it’s dishes, laundry or just emptying the trash can in the kitchen. I need to work at the day job.

Unfortunately, I work an hour from my home and I carpool to save gas money and the three of us rarely have the same schedule so doing things at home are difficult on days I work. Sometimes, I’m away from my house 14 hours a day, which makes writing that much more difficult. I have a pad of paper I use during my breaks to write down fleeting thoughts and ideas. I carry a netbook or mini laptop to record those ideas after work, while I’m waiting for the others to finish up so we can head home.

I digress...or did I? Can you see how these things can cause a block? If not, and you’re still writing loads every day. More power to you. If you can, welcome to the club.

I’ve begun to treat writing a bit like a workout—a workout for the brain. All day long, I think about what if scenarios for the situations my characters are in. What if they did this, what if they did that?

What if Carrie wasn’t really the birth mother of the baby in her nursery, what if her baby was with another family, what if he had been kidnapped at birth because Carrie is the direct descendant of the ruler of a country, or a world and someone has stolen her child to lay claim to the child’s rightful kingdom? What if Carrie is a vampire, and her child something special, because its father is an angel or a demon, or a superhero?

Exercises such as the what if and why questions some authors practice are essential to their writing, to their world building. I use as many of these as I can. What are your characters motivations? If you can’t think of something to write. Think of these things and eventually, you’ll think yourself right out of that block.

Some authors--and I include myself in this--switch manuscripts when they run into a block. Sometimes, just keeping the words flowing, even if it’s not in the same story, can help you work through the corner you’ve written your characters into.  This can be a good tactic if you don’t have deadlines.

If that doesn’t work, ask yourself what are your characters thinking? Once you figure out what they’re thinking or doing, you should be able to move on. If you still can’t move on, give yourself an exercise. Write about your day, or something that upset you. Sometimes, just the act of writing about anything can get you back on track.

What if you have a deadline? It’s Wednesday and you have until Monday to finish your project. What do you do? Try sitting down and writing something, anything, that takes your characters to another place. Then go back and read it. Sometimes, you’ll find that while it might not fit exactly where you’ve written it, it will fit somewhere else in the story. Reread the last few chapters and try to remember what you were thinking as you wrote them. At one time, you had an idea of where you wanted to go or you wouldn’t have written it in the first place.

With luck, one of these exercises will get you writing again. If it doesn’t, sit down with your favorite treat and indulge in something you love. You’ll deserve it after all of that hard work.

Good Luck!

Until the next time, 

Tianna

Or you could try these:

Ten Websites That Help Cure Writer's Block

If I only had a nickel

Caution; This is a bit of a rant. Read at your own risk.

If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me when's your new release or what are you working on now. I might be a rich woman. I love my readers and I'm glad they ask. It helps keep me motivated. 

If I had a nickel for every time I told myself that my books just aren't going to write themselves, I could pay my electric bill. If I don't make time to write, it's just not going to happen. So what if I don't vacuum the floor today or the others in the house have to fix their own dinner? I've been working. I've written five-thousand words today. That should count for something, right?

Balancing the day job, housework and the writing is not an easy thing. Yes, I have a day job. I'm not rich, and as long as internet trolls keep sharing my books on share sites, I'll never even be able to realize my dream of quitting the day job and writing full time. I don't need to be rich, but being able to pay all of my bills every month would be nice. I've yet to accomplish that--even with the day job.

Still, I digress. I meant to talk about finding time to write, not talk about how it's difficult to get motivated when you work your ass off every day and barely get paid for it because people share your work to countless others for free. Again, I digress...

Finding time... What if I give you an example of an average day around my house? I get up at 7:00 to get ready for work. I shower, wake up the guys and rush out to the kitchen to make something for breakfast. By the time breakfast is over, It's around 8:30 and time to take my meds. I take what pills I have to take, After that, I get my insulin out and psych myself up to stick myself three times with a needle. Some say it's easy. Not for me. Occasionally, it hurts like the dickens and that makes me hesitate every time.

After my injections and meds, it's time to make sure everyone else is ready to go. I make my coffee and gather my things together. Okay. Do I have my watch? Check. My glasses? Yep, wearing them. My phone? Check. My netbook for writing on the fly? Check. My notebook for writing on my breaks at work? Yes. Is everyone ready to go?

Finally, sometime between 8:45 and 9:00 we leave the house and get in our ten year-old van (I did mention I'm not rich, right?) and head to work. We carpool because our other car has been broken for over two years and after sinking over $2000 into it, we just couldn't afford to get it going again. The three of us head in to town and the guys drop me off at work at 10:00 am.

The guys go park and sleep or play on their phones in the van until it's time for them to start work, at 1:00. Three hours, they wait to start work and when I'm off at 7:00 I wait two and a half, to three hours for them to finish work. That's when I write.

In fact, it's 7:10 as I write this in the break room at the day job. Again, I do this because I'm not rich. Hell, I'm not even well off, though I'm sure someone out there believes I am. We'll leave work generally around 9:45 and get home about 10:45, we'll unwind for a few hours and usually hit the bed at about 1:00 am--sometimes a bit later.

Generally, I don't rant, I don't whine, and I don't like airing my problems in a public arena, but I'm a bit fed up with the way things keep going for us. Our roof needs replaced. It's only 13 years old. The electric has been out in about a quarter of my house for a few years now and the foundation is crumbling and falling in under the house.

Why don't you get it fixed, you might ask. Because I'm not rich. I'm not well off and I'm definitely not comfortable. I can tell you what I am, though. I'm tired. 

I'm tired of 12 hour days at the day job. I'm tired of my body aching because the docs say I shouldn't be working outside the home at all anymore and why don't I quit and write full time. Most of all, I'm tired of watching the love of my life age as he dreams of someday having a real retirement when it's beginning to appear as though we'll have to work for the rest of our lives. And I'm sick to death of getting Google alerts that tell me my newest releases are on a share site two days after they're released. I'm sick to death of not making enough money with my writing to even pay my medical bills, let alone have enough to live on after paying said bills.

Most of all,  I'm sick of going to share sites and seeing that my books have been downloaded 80,000 times EACH. I have over 100 e-books, Do the math.

Again, if I only had a nickel...

Shades of Green

Shades of Green

Nymphs are tiny little creatures. How can one possibly be the mate of two huge polar bear shifters?

Thal had never realized how boring her life as a nymph was until a group of ogres kidnap her and her kin. When she manages to help her friends and family escape captivity, she never expected to run into two men and three leprechauns intending to save them, as well.

When Kiran and Gaige mount a rescue with three unlikely partners, they couldn’t be more surprised to realize that one of the tiny nymphs is their mate. Has Mother Nature played a nasty joke on them or is there more to the tiny lass than what they think?

Excerpt:

“What in bloody hell do ye think is going on here?” Gaige glanced at his cousin, noting that Kiran appeared as confounded as he felt, at the moment.

The ground, which should be covered in thick-green grass and dark, fertile loam as it was every spring appeared gray as the snow melted. There were no light-green blades of grass, no clover.  The soil wasn’t as it should be either. It was as though the very ground was ill.

Trees, usually sprouting leaves the size of squirrels ears by this time of year, still lay dormant. Nothing green peered through the bed of dead leaves and equally dead-looking trees. The forest appeared as lifeless and barren as it did in the middle of winter.

The scent of moist soil and rotting vegetation permeated everything as they walked through the woods hunting game for the day’s meals. There was nothing. The squirrels and rabbits stayed sheltered deep in their burrows. Some of them stared out at them as they passed, their little hearts pounding with fear at the sight and scent of the two predators striding through the quiet forest.

Shades of Green ~ Highland Bears #5 a polar bear shifter series

An Interview With A Vampire ~ Repost

Tara: “Hi, everyone! I’m Tara Torolf. I’m a vampire slayer. Tianna had a vampire contact her and asked for an interview to prove they aren’t what everyone thinks. Can you imagine me rolling my eyes? Of course they’re everything they seem. I should know. Though… to be honest, most of them don’t kill their vict—er…donors. 

“Since Tianna couldn’t do this interview due to her deadlines fast approaching—one of them being my book she hasn’t even started yet, she asked me to interview this…this vampire. I know the answers to most of these questions already, but I’ll ask them since it’s what she wants. 

“Here with me today, is Gideon Molfetta. He is a Cartuotey here with me to set the record straight before he decides to end his existence. It’s a shame really, considering he is a very good looking man—vampire—whatever. 

 “Hello, Gideon. Tianna sends her regards and says thank you for joining me here today.” 

 Gideon: “Hello, Tara. It is a pleasure as always.” *winks and tries for a sexy grin.* 

Tara: “Don’t start that with me, Gideon. You know I’m a vampire slayer and Tianna’s transparent attempt at matchmaking is not going to work. Now for the questions. “Do you actually drink blood, or do you suck it up through your teeth like some sort of weird straw?” 

Gideon: “We drink it, actually, though if we’re in dire need it goes up through our teeth and immediately into our bloodstream. *waggles his brows* “It’s a little anti climactic if you know what I mean.” 

Tara :“Um… I imagine it is. Is it getting hot in here? .“I know garlic keeps everyone away, but what about silver, crosses and holy water?” 

Gideon: “Um… Silver is for werewolves. That whole thing about it hurting vampires is a myth. It does looks good on us though. As far as crosses and holy water, we are not the spawn of Satan. These things do nothing to us.” 

Tara: “What about wooden stakes?” 

Gideon: “I don’t think a wooden steak would taste delicious at all.” *laughs* 

Tara: “Do you guys sparkle in the sunlight like the vampires in those movies and novels everyone loves so much or do you actually turn to ash in the sunlight?” 

Gideon: *Laughs* “The only thing sunlight does to us is make us tan.” 

Tara: “I thought that nice tan of yours was from a jar.” 

Gideon: *sits back and rests his arms over the back of the chair. 

It really shows off the bulge in his pants that puts another question to mind* 

Gideon: “Not on your life. It’s all me, sweetheart. 

Tara: “Is what they say about the vampire libido true?” 

Gideon: *wink* “Where do you think all of the legends come from?” 

Tara: “That’s not an answer, Gideon. Come on, spill. True or not?” 

Gideon: “Oh, it’s true, sweetling.” 

Tara: “Prove it!” Gideon: “Is tonight good?” 

Tara:  “I didn’t mean with me! Why are you undressing here? Oh, my goodness! Are all Cartuotey built like that? Hoo! Is it getting hot in here or is it just me? Okay, everyone. That’s it for today’s questions. I have a few more interviews to do so make sure you check back often to see who’s in the hot seat next! I have to run now. I have this huge thing on my to do list. See you next time.”

An Interview with a Vampire

Tara: “Hi, everyone! I’m Tara Torolf. I’m a vampire slayer. Tianna had a vampire contact her and asked for an interview to prove they aren’t what everyone thinks. Can you imagine me rolling my eyes? Of course they’re everything they seem. I should know. Though… to be honest, most of them don’t kill their vict—er…donors.

Since Tianna couldn’t do this interview due to her deadlines fast approaching—one of them being my book she hasn’t even started yet, she asked me to interview this…this vampire. I know the answers to most of these questions already, but I'll ask them since it's what she wants. 

“Here with me today, is Gideon Molfetta. He is a Cartuotey here with me to set the record straight before he decides to end his existence. It’s a shame really, considering he is a very good looking man—vampire—whatever.

“Hello, Gideon. Tianna sends her regards and says thank you for joining me here today.

Gideon: “Hello, Tara. It is a pleasure as always.” *winks and tries for a sexy grin.*

Tara: “Don’t start that with me, Gideon. You know I’m a vampire slayer and Tianna’s transparent attempt at matchmaking is not going to work. Now for the questions.”

“Do you actually drink blood, or do you suck it up through your teeth like some sort of weird straw?”

Gideon: “We drink it, actually, though if we’re in dire need it goes up through our teeth and immediately into our bloodstream. *waggles his brows* “It’s a little anti climactic if you know what I mean.”

Tara :“Um… I imagine it is. Is it getting hot in here?”

“I know garlic keeps everyone away, but what about silver, crosses and holy water?”

Gideon: “Um… Silver is for werewolves. That whole thing about it hurting vampires is a myth. It does looks good on us though. As far as crosses and holy water, we are not the spawn of Satan. These things do nothing to us.”

Tara: “What about wooden stakes?”

Gideon: “I don’t think a wooden steak would taste delicious at all.” *laughs*

Tara “Is it like in the Twilight novels or do you actually turn to ash in the sunlight?”

Gideon: *Laughs* “The only thing sunlight does to us is make us tan.”

Tara “I thought that nice tan of yours was from a jar.”

Gideon: *sits back and rests his arms over the back of the chair. It really shows off the bulge in his pants that puts another question to mind* “Not on your life. It’s all me, sweetheart.

Tara “Is what they say about the vampire libido true?”

Gideon: *wink* “Where do you think all of the legends come from?”

Tara “That’s not an answer, Gideon. Come on, spill. True or not.”

Gideon: “Oh, it’s true, sweetling.”

Tara “Prove it!”

Gideon: “Is tonight good?”

Tara “I didn't mean with me! Why are you undressing here? Oh, my goodness! Are all Cartuotey built like that? Hoo! Is it getting hot in here or is it just me?  Okay, everyone. That’s it for today’s questions. I have a few more interviews to do so make sure you check back often to see who’s in the hot seat next! I have to run now. I have this huge thing on my to do list. See you next time.

Is it just me?

Is it just me or do things from our youth seem to be
disappearing? When I was younger, it seemed like there were city and community
parks everywhere. Children flocked to them to play kickball, baseball, etc. in
the spring summer and fall and we ice skated every day that we could get out of
the house in the winter.

Has technology had that much of a detrimental effect on
everything and everyone? With video games, the Wii, Xbox and Konnect, computer
games, internet, android phones and iPods, has everyone in the world forgotten
what it was like to go outside and feel the fresh air and sunshine on thier
face?

Admittedly, I spend a LOT of time on computers. I work with
them at the day job, for writing, blogging and social media sites. I probably
spend more time on them than I should. However, I do find the time to go
outside, whether it’s to garden, to ride my bike or play with my dogs.

I guess the question I’m trying to ask is, where are all of
the parks, the ice skating rinks and just plain fun places to hang out that
used to be the center of our lives when we were younger? Are they still there
hidden, trying valiantly to be noticed as we go on with our busy twenty-first
century, computer driven lives or are they gone forever, nothing more than dust
in the wind?

Until next time.

Tianna

Going Crazy at Home

Sitting here at home after my surgery has reminded me why I have a job. It's not just for the money. Well...let's be honest, it's mostly for the money. LOL It's also because sitting here at the house all day, every day is one of the hardest things I have had to do in a long time.

I love my family, don't get me wrong, but with my daughter here on disabliity with me, it's a constant battle to get any writing done. Between her inane prattle, video game noises and what she likes to watch on TV, I'm going CRAZY!

Take this blog for instance. I wanted to write it yesterday, did I? No. of course I didn't. I'm sure you're perfectly capable of checking the date. I'm writing it today, because the TV was on all day. When I left my 'recliner office', I went into the real office for some peace and quiet. What does she do? She follows me talking about her newest video game and how I should load it onto my laptop. Uh...no thank you. I'm not really into the same types of games. I do play them though, but they're retro games mostly. I love Tomb Raider because it makes you think and I can make Lara do that cool little handstand backbend thingy. Though sometimes it pisses me off if I sit and think about how I USED to be able to do that before... I glare at my kids.

Oh  well. I have another week before I go back to work. I see the doctor tomorrow to be certain. Let's hope he doesn't extend it, or if he does, I find something other to do than sit here and veg out because the kids are yammering at me non-stop.

By the way, my kids are adults in their mid-twenties. I DID listen when they were younger. Today, I just want them to entertain themselves. Read a book maybe. You would think they would have learned something from their avid reader\author mom wouldn't you? I may have the gift of gab, but I use my fingers to say it. A sort of sign language as it were...it's called writing.

Today I hope to start book 2 of the Hidden Breeds series. I sit here trying to write with the sounds of Bejeweled droning in the background and wonder if I will ever get that first paragraph written. Usually for me, that's the hardest part and the rest is cake. So, I sit here hoping for a few minutes of silence to come up with that awesome opening hook to get me started...

Sigh... I got nothing. Wish me luck!

Until next time.

Tianna

Thursday Thirteen

Hiya!

Here is another Thursday thirteen. I won't promise that I'll do this every Thursday, I usually have to work at the day job and I'll most likely forget. LOL

This time it's restaurants and pubs. These are the thirteen places where I love to hang out when I have the time.

1. Curragh's in Holland

2. McFadden's in Grand Rapids

3. Applebees in Kentwood or Greenville

4. Bennigan's in Big Rapids

5. Logan's in Walker

6. Perkin's in Kentwood

7. Smokey Bones in Kentwood

8. Red Robin in Kentwood

9. Bob Evan's in Kentwood

10. IHOP in Kentwood

11. Suki Hana in the Woodland Mall

12. McKenna's in Lakeview

13. Main Street Pizza in Lakeview

New from Cobblestone Press ~ Narian Summer

Narian Summer:

The summer heat on Naria used to be a welcome time–a time of fertility and bounty. A time where the Narians celebrated life and everyday worries could be easily tossed aside for momentary pleasure. After three millennia of cultural and scientific stagnation coupled with a blatant disregard for their home planet, the summer heat is now deadly.
As Naria’s citizens prepare to leave their world in search of a new home, three Vampyre find that love can happen in only one day’s time. Lania Cadmus meets her mates, Nicolaos Konstantinos and Herodes Kreios, aboard their ship, The Poseidon, and quickly realizes they are determined to make her their mate.
With only one day to get to know each other before the fleet departs, the men must not only get past Lania’s fear of intimacy, but prove to her that love is all they’ll need to take with them on their journey to a new world.

Sex Me Up has been reviewed!

Sex Me Up, one of my newest novellas written with my best friend and critique partner Bonnie Rose Leigh has been reviewed by Amanda H. at Romance Junkies!

Here's a portion of what she had to say:

SEX ME UP is hot, emotional, tense and erotic. I just flew through this story. I had to find out what was going to happen next. This is going to be a phenomenal series. Jaynee is sweet, innocent, and beautiful both inside and out. Luc is the more dominant male, at least in my opinion. He was sexy, gorgeous and determined to get his woman, even at the cost of possibly losing her. Dare was my favorite. He was just as sexy, though a little less dominant, but he had a little more compassion in him. All three of these characters were superb together. The plot line never dwindled at all through this story. The sex scenes will definitely get you hot and bothered. They were absolutely explosive. I liked how Tianna Xander and Bonnie Rose Leigh wrote the sex scenes; they weren't too hard core but had enough BDSM to make your mouth water at the thought. Romance Junkies and Amanda H. for such a wonderful review.

Click here to read the entire review.


Until next time.
Tianna ~ Join me Where Romance Meets the Paranormal